Europe wants reusable rockets, too.
European aerospace company
Airbus has revealed its plans to develop rocket engines that fly back to a runway and a reusable upper stage that acts as a space tug — reusability concepts that mirror those being developed by American spaceflight companies SpaceX and United Launch Alliance (ULA).
Airbus has been working on its Advanced Expendable Launcher INnovative engine Economy (Adeline for short) reusable-rocket conceptsince 2010 and wants it to be up and running by 2025. The technology could help enable huge satellite constellations that would require a dramatic increase in the number of launches per year, company representatives have said. [Reusable Rocket Launch Systems: How They Work (Infographic)]
To read more, click here.