IXV ready for liftoff

This time-lapse video shows IXV's preparation, fairing encapsulation, transfer to the Vega mobile gantry and upper composite integration on the Vega launcher, at Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, in January 2015. IXV will be launched 340 km into space on top of a Vega rocket, flight VV04, climbing to 412 km before beginning a long glide back through the atmosphere. During the flight, IXV will test the latest technologies and critical systems to help guide the design of future spaceplanes.