Editing Spaceplane (section)

{{Short description|Spacecraft capable of aerodynamic flight in atmosphere}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
[[File:STS-133_Space_Shuttle_Discovery_after_undocking_3_(cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Space Shuttle Discovery|Space Shuttle ''Discovery'']]]]
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A '''spaceplane''' is a vehicle that can [[flight|fly]] and [[gliding flight|glide]] as an [[aircraft]] in [[Earth's atmosphere]] and function as a [[spacecraft]] in [[outer space]].<ref name="NYT-20141020-KC">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/21/science/25-years-ago-nasa-envisioned-its-own-orient-express.html |title=25 Years Ago, NASA Envisioned Its Own 'Orient Express' |work=[[The New York Times]] |last=Chang |first=Kenneth |date=20 October 2014 |access-date=21 October 2014}}</ref>  To do so, spaceplanes must incorporate features of both aircraft and spacecraft.  [[Orbital spaceflight|Orbital]] spaceplanes tend to be more similar to conventional spacecraft, while [[sub-orbital]] spaceplanes tend to be more similar to [[fixed-wing aircraft]].  All spaceplanes as of 2024 have been [[rocket engine|rocket]]-powered for takeoff and climb, but have then landed as unpowered [[glider (aircraft)|gliders]].

Four examples of spaceplanes have successfully launched to orbit, [[Atmospheric entry|reentered Earth's atmosphere]], and [[Landing#Aircraft|landed]]: the U.S. [[Space Shuttle]], Russian [[Buran (spacecraft)|Buran]], U.S. [[Boeing X-37|X-37]],<ref name="BBC">{{cite web |last1=Piesing |first1=Mark |title=Spaceplanes: The return of the reusable spacecraft? |url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210121-spaceplanes-the-return-of-the-reuseable-spacecraft |website=BBC |access-date=15 February 2021 |date=22 January 2021}}</ref> and the Chinese [[Shenlong (spacecraft)|Shenlong]]. Another, [[Dream Chaser]], is under development in the U.S. As of 2024 all past and current orbital spaceplanes [[VTHL|launch vertically]]; some are carried as a payload in a conventional fairing, while the Space Shuttle used its own engines with the assistance of boosters and an external tank. Orbital [[spaceflight]] takes place at high velocities, with orbital kinetic energies typically greater than suborbital trajectories. This kinetic energy is shed as heat during [[Atmospheric entry|re-entry]]. Many more spaceplanes [[List of spaceplanes|have been proposed]].

At least two suborbital [[rocket-powered aircraft]] have been launched horizontally into sub-orbital spaceflight from an airborne [[mother ship|carrier aircraft]] before rocketing beyond the [[Kármán line]]: the [[North American X-15|X-15]] and [[SpaceShipOne]].<!--Please don't add SpaceShipTwo here until it actually reaches 100 km.-->{{efn| In 2018, [[SpaceShipTwo]] passed the US definition of space of 80km, but not the 100km Kármán line.}}