When I went to the official X-33 site, I found out that the X-33 could go mach 13+, and now I think that the Aurora is actually the X-33. The X-33 is triangle shaped, and made by the Skunk Works, so it's probably mistaken for the Aurora. The "Aurora Sitings" could actually be actually X-33 sitings. Even though the X-33 has never officially flown, it's probably only the "white" version of the aircraft. We have the technology (and money) to make something like the X-33, but it would be stupid to declassify it while still testing it. Perhaps they thought that it would fail, so they declassified it, and when it suceeded, they removed the white version and began working on the black version. However, this is beginning to sound a lot like various conspiracy theories, and this is probably not what happened. If you don't believe it could go Mach 13+, here is the page where I got the information from, and here is the complete specifications chart:

However, the Aurora is a reconaisiance plane, while the X-33 is a rocket that goes into outer space/plane which descends down. The X-33's goal is to reduce the cost of putting a pound of payload into space from $10,000 to $1,000. Thus, this project may actually help save your taxpayer money, instead of waste it.

Well, basically, if you want to know all about the X-33, which you probably do, since it's so cool, go to the official X-33 site. This is just very brief.

The wedge shaped X-33, being developed under an agreement between NASA and Lockheed Martin Skunk Works of Palmdale, California, is a prototype of a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) which Lockheed Martin has named "Venture Star," and which the company hopes to develop early in the next century. This program will help industry representatives decide by the year 2000 whether to proceed with the development of a full-scale, commercial RLV program. A full-scale, single-stage-to-orbit RLV will dramatically increase reliability and lower costs of putting a pound of payload into space. By reducing the cost associated with transporting payloads into Low Earth Orbit (LEO), a commercial RLV would create new opportunities for space access and significantly improve U.S. economic competitiveness in the worldwide launch marketplace. NASA will be a customer, not the operator, of the commercial RLV.

The X-33 design is based on a lifting body shape with two revolutionary "linear aerospike" rocket engines and a rugged metallic thermal protection system. The X-33 also features lightweight components and fuel tanks built to conform to the vehicle's outer shape. The X-33 will be a UAV(unmanned aerial vehicle), taking off vertically like a rocket, reaching an altitude of up to 60 miles and speeds faster than Mach 13 (13 times the speed of sound), and landing horizontally like an airplane. Time between the X-33 test flights will normally be seven days.

3-D Pictures!

• Quick Time VR Movie
• X-33 Drop Test (Scale Model)