China has said very little about its experimental reusable spaceplane. But a new image released by U.S. intelligence offers the clearest look yet at the secretive spacecraft, a reminder that even classified vehicles can be watched in orbit.

The Defense Intelligence Agency included the photo in its unclassified report, Challenges to Security in Space, which was released on Oct. 26. The image was captured in 2024 by a spacecraft operated by Maxar Technologies, a commercial satellite imaging company.

What the Image Shows

The photo shows the underside of China’s spaceplane in orbit, with its service module attached and its solar arrays deployed. It also offers clear views of its unique solar panels, which face toward the rear of the spacecraft.

The image was likely taken during the spaceplane’s third orbital mission. In the report, the photo’s caption simply describes it as a Chinese “spaceplane,” without a name.

The vehicle is widely believed to be the spacecraft often referred to as Shenlong, meaning “Divine Dragon.” China has never officially confirmed that name, and it has revealed very little about the project since its existence first came to light nearly two decades ago.

A Spaceplane Shrouded in Secrecy

China has released limited information about the vehicle’s size, payload capacity and objectives. In official statements, the country has described its missions only in broad terms, saying the spacecraft carries out reusable and in-orbit service technology verification to support “the peaceful use of space.”

The DIA report reviews the spaceplane’s first three missions, flown between 2020 and 2023. It highlights reported rendezvous and proximity operations during the second and third flights, which involve maneuvering close to other objects in orbit.

Those kinds of operations can have many uses, from inspecting or servicing satellites to testing technology. There’s no evidence that the spaceplane is designed as a weapon to destroy satellites, but its intended mission remains undisclosed. That uncertainty is part of why the spacecraft draws so much attention as space becomes an increasingly contested domain.

Four Missions and Counting

China’s reusable spacecraft has flown four orbital missions since September 2020, each launched aboard a Long March 2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert.

The first mission lasted just two days. The second stretched to 276 days, ending in May 2023. The third lasted more than 266 days before the spacecraft returned to Earth in September 2024.

The fourth mission began on Feb. 7, 2026, and the spaceplane appears to still be in orbit.

How It Compares to the X-37B

China’s spaceplane is often compared to the U.S. Space Force’s X-37B, a Boeing-built robotic spaceplane that has flown several long-duration classified missions. The two vehicles appear similar in some ways, including their winged designs and their ability to return to Earth for reuse.

The X-37B is currently on its eighth mission, and it has spent more than 430 days in orbit so far. Even with that secrecy, the U.S. has disclosed some of the X-37B’s published objectives, such as testing reusable spacecraft technologies and running experiments that can be brought back to Earth. The Space Force says the current mission includes tests of laser communications and quantum measurement technology.

China has shared far less about its own spaceplane’s work.

Why It Can’t Stay Hidden

Even when a country keeps a spacecraft’s mission secret, the vehicle itself is hard to hide. Objects in low Earth orbit can be tracked by military radar, commercial satellites and even backyard observers. China’s spaceplane has been photographed from the ground by an amateur space photographer, and now commercial satellites have captured it up close.

The growing ability of private companies to photograph other spacecraft in orbit is changing how much governments can conceal. A secret mission may stay secret, but the spacecraft carrying it out is increasingly out in the open.

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