Indian scientists pronounced the testing of an indigenously developed reusable space rocket this week, “Mission accomplished successfully.” Those words have been heard increasingly in recent years from the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) as it quietly presses ahead with its space ambitions. Developing a reusable rocket could still be a decade away, but the test of a miniature winged, 6.5-meter long, 1.75 tonne space vehicle signified that India has entered the race to make space exploration cheaper and easier. Russia, Japan and the European Space Agency and private spaceflight companies like SpaceX are also developing similar technology. The U.S. space agency NASA abandoned its...
