X-33 Stays Cool In Early Development Stage
News story originally written on February 5, 1999

Engineers have finished working on the heat shields for the X-33. The X-33 is a working model of an "aerospace plane" called the VentureStar. The VentureStar is like a new version of the space shuttle. It will make it cheaper and easier to go into space.

The heat shields will protect the X-33 and the VentureStar from temperatures as high as 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. It can get pretty hot during re-entry!

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