Space Rider inches closer to first flight with heat tests and drop studies

ESA’s Space Rider, Europe’s first reusable orbital vehicle, is moving toward its first flight after validating its thermal protection system in a plasma wind tunnel at about 1,600 C and building a full‑size drop test model to practice a precise runway-style landing with a steerable parafoil. The helicopter drop tests planned over Sardinia will simulate the final descent phase and assess debris damage resilience, marking a shift from component tests to mission-level simulation as Europe gears up for unmanned microgravity experiments in low Earth orbit before returning payloads to Earth.