US releases photo of Shenlong spaceplane docked with satellite — Space.com

A US military intelligence organization has released a photograph of China’s reusable Shenlong spaceplane, showing it docked with another spacecraft with deployed solar panels. As Space.com reports, the image was taken by Vantor’s WorldView 3 satellite in 2024 from a distance of about 90 kilometers.

Image details

The photograph has a resolution of 4.5 centimeters per pixel. Shenlong had previously been photographed by ground-based observers, but the new image, taken from space, made it possible to see more details of the vehicle. In particular, the image shows the open doors of its payload bay.

It is currently unknown which satellite Shenlong was docked with. China’s space agency previously stated that the spaceplane is used to test technologies intended to make flights into space and back more convenient and accessible for the peaceful use of outer space.

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Previous Shenlong missions

Shenlong’s fourth mission began in February 2026. In June, the US company LeoLabs, which tracks space objects, reported detecting a new object near the spaceplane. After further observations and analysis, the company said with high confidence that the object had been released by the Chinese vehicle.

Similar activity was also observed during previous flights. During the third mission, which ended in 2024, Shenlong also released an object. During the second mission in 2023, the spaceplane released another object and, according to observers’ assessment, may have carried out proximity maneuvers and an orbital rendezvous with another spacecraft.

The United States also operates Boeing’s robotic X-37B spaceplane, the details of whose missions are mostly not disclosed. In February 2025, the US Space Force published the first photograph of X-37B in space.