* Astronomy

China to launch first 'space shuttle bus' this year

China is expected to launch an upper stage aircraft this year that can be used as a "space shuttle bus" to propel payload in space, a senior official in charge of rocket research said Monday.
The Yuanzheng-1 (Expedition-1) upper stage aircraft, attached with a carrier rocket, can carry aircraft using its own power system after reaching an initial orbit, said Liang Xiaohong, Party secretary of the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology.
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