Europe Set To Build Experimental Transport Spacecraft 61
coondoggie writes "Looking to take a giant step toward taking part in low Earth orbit transportation, exploration and servicing of orbiting space structures, the European Space Agency today said it would team with Thales Alenia Space Italia to begin building an experimental spacecraft for launch in 2013. 'The 2t lifting body will attain an altitude of around 450 km, allowing it to reach a velocity of 7.5 km/s on entering the atmosphere. It will collect a large amount of data (PDF) during its hypersonic and supersonic flight, while it is being controlled by thrusters and aerodynamic flaps.'"
America is worse off than Europe (Score:0, Interesting)
America continues to spend ~$600 billion / year on its military and a continual several billion on its manned space program. Unlike America, Europe has invested in its infrastructure and education and not on a wasteful military, so it can afford temporary cutbacks. Unlike America, which has blown its money on Iraq, Afghanistan and the military in general. It is America that is screwed.