Top secret Chinese spaceplane is releasing strong signals over North America – months after US shot down China’s spy balloon that collected intelligence from military sites
A top-secret Chinese space plane launched into orbit last week is sending powerful signals over North America.
The spacecraft – named Shenlong after a spirit dragon from Chinese mythology – released six mysterious objects after reaching Earth's orbit for the third time in three years.
The objects are being tracked by the US Space Force, but no details have been publicly released about what they are or what purpose they serve.
Amateur astronomer Scott Tilley tracked the plane and examined the signals it emitted.
He told DailyMail.com that they appear to emit the strongest signals as they fly across North America.
It comes just ten months after the US shot a Chinese spy who could have gathered intelligence as he passed through various military locations.
China's top-secret spaceplane sent five unidentified objects into orbit after launching last week, which are now sending powerful signals back to Earth. The photo shows a shot of the space plane in orbit around the Earth
Tilley said he believes the signals are aimed at a ground station or a boat near British Columbia, Canada, where he lives.
“When the spaceplane flies over me, it only sends out a certain trajectory that appears to favor a location south to southwest of me.
“That is, at higher passes above me there are no signals, but at ocean passes to my southwest all my observations of the object have occurred.”
Tilley is working with a group in Switzerland that specializes in optical-band space surveillance, and the partnership has been keeping a close eye on the plane since it was launched on December 15.
The US Department of Defense has designated the six objects OBJECT A to F.
Tilley and the team in Switzerland named the spaceplane Object A, which “has now been identified by the US Space Force as the test spacecraft.”
Object B is “very bright” and showed “characteristics during multiple passes that we prefer to associate with a higher stage,” according to S2A systemsthe team in Switzerland.
“The light curve of Object D also indicates stabilized postural control,” the team continued.
Object A is very bright and has stable attitude control – pictured is the light curve captured by Tilley
'Object C appears to be a rapidly spinning weak piece of debris. OBJECT F is also quite faint, but no rotation has yet been observed.
'We will take further measurements in the coming weeks.'
Objects E and D are assumed to be satellites.
“The object believed to be the Object A spaceplane is emitting signals,” Tilley said.
'Objects D and E have also been observed emitting signals by an observer in Australia.
'I have just received another report of possible reception of signals from Object B.'
Tilley is working with a group in Switzerland that specializes in optical-band space surveillance, and the partnership has been keeping a close eye on the plane since it was launched on December 15.
The Chinese space plane was launched a day after the US was forced to scrub the flight of its 'spy plane' (pictured), which the head of the US Space Force said was 'no coincidence'.
An announcement in the Chinese press described the spaceplane's purpose as providing “technical support for the peaceful uses of space” – but the nation has kept the details secret, as have US officials about their spacecraft.
The Chinese space plane was launched a day after the US was forced to scrub the flight of its 'spy plane', which the US Space Force chief said was 'no coincidence'.
“It's probably not a coincidence that they're trying to match us in terms of timing and sequencing of this,” said Gen. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations for the Space Force.
Speaking at the Space Force Association's Spacepower Conference in Orlando, General Saltzman highlighted the sophistication of these unmanned and reusable orbital spy vehicles, which can provide greater operational security than spy satellites.
“The ability to put something into orbit, do a bunch of things and take it home and see the results is powerful,” Saltzman said.
“It's no surprise that the Chinese are extremely interested in our space plane,” he said. “And we are very interested in theirs.”
Nevertheless, despite years of promotional photos of the US secret X-37B spacecraft designed by Boeing, no images of its Chinese rival have been leaked to the public.