Officials at the Baikanour space centre in Kazakhstan say a space craft using revolutionary new technology has disappeared after orbiting the earth several times.

They say they lost track of the craft about a-hundred-and-fifty kilometres from the earth's surface, but that it did enter our atmosphere and all that remains is to find it.

A search is underway on the plains of Kazakhstan.

The craft is designed to return safely to earth using giant inflatable heat shields that slow its descent and stop it burning up in the earth's atmosphere.

The developers say the space craft -- described as looking like a giant flattened ice cream cone - will revolutionise space travel as it's lighter and less complex than its predecessors.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service