![](\"http:\/\/www.esa.int\/var\/esa\/storage\/images\/esa_multimedia\/images\/2014\/09\/ixv_drop-test_model_being_moved\/14837286-4-eng-GB\/IXV_drop-test_model_being_moved_small.jpg\")
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\nThis drop-test model of ESA\u2019s Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle (IXV) spaceplane will be one of the star attractions of the Sunday, 5 October ESTEC Open Day<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n \nThis replica was built to be dropped from a helicopter and parachuted into the Mediterranean, to ensure the flight model would survive splashdown at the end of its plunge from space.\n<\/p>\n \nThe actual spaceplane will fly on a Vega launcher this November, coasting as high as 450 km before gliding back to Earth. In the process, it will gather valuable data on atmospheric reentry conditions.\n<\/p>\n \nThe flight model was, until this week, being tested for space only a few tens of metres away from its drop-test twin, within the cleanroom environment of the ESTEC Test Centre.\n<\/p>\n \nWith its test programme complete, it has now been flown to Europe\u2019s Spaceport in French Guiana<\/a> to begin its launch campaign.\n<\/p>\n \nHaving been designed for a sea splashdown, the drop-test model can readily withstand the Dutch weather. Visitors can view it in its new position outside the Test Centre throughout the Open Day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \t\t\t\t\t \nThis drop-test model of ESA\u2019s Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle (IXV) spaceplane will be one of the star attractions of the Sunday, 5 October ESTEC Open Day<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n \nThis replica was built to be dropped from a helicopter and parachuted into the Mediterranean, to ensure the flight model would survive splashdown at the end of its plunge from space.\n<\/p>\n \nThe actual spaceplane will fly on a Vega launcher this November, coasting as high as 450 km before gliding back to Earth. In the process, it will gather valuable data on atmospheric reentry conditions.\n<\/p>\n \nThe flight model was, until this week, being tested for space only a few tens of metres away from its drop-test twin, within the cleanroom environment of the ESTEC Test Centre.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n