Research Projects

The HSP-X1 is a next-generation hybrid spaceplane designed to operate as a reusable single-stage-to-orbit vehicle. This means it takes off like a conventional airplane, reaches orbit without additional stages, and returns by landing on a runway—all using a single integrated vehicle. Its primary mission is to transport payloads on the order of tens of tons to low Earth orbit (LEO) more efficiently and rapidly than traditional launch systems.

For example, the design envisions the capability to place approximately 15 tons into low Earth orbit—a figure comparable to cutting-edge projects such as Skylon—but with estimated operating costs that are a fraction of current ones (on the order of 1/50 compared to conventional launch vehicles). The vehicle is designed to be fully reusable hundreds of times, with turnaround times between missions of only a few days, shifting space transportation toward an “airliner” paradigm rather than a traditional “launch vehicle” approach.