Europe's IXV 'space wedge' performs drop test

A successful "drop test" has been conducted on Europe's experimental re-entry vehicle, the IXV.

A 1:1 scale model was released from an altitude of 3km by a helicopter, and then descended to a splashdown in the Mediterranean on a parachute.

The IXV is a project of the European Space Agency that aims to develop an autonomous atmospheric re-entry system.

A flight model will be launched on a Vega rocket next year and will have to descend from an altitude of 420km.

Read more: BBC News - Europe's IXV 'space wedge' performs drop test