X-37B Space Plane Lands After 2 Years Orbiting Earth

While every mission SpaceX performs is covered in fine detail and we all await the next news surrounding Virgin Galactic's attempts to commercialize space flight, the US Air Force is busy quietly flying an experimental space plane effectually the Earth.

We were reminded of that on Sunday when the unmanned X-37B Orbital Exam Vehicle landed at NASA'southward Kennedy Space Center in Florida. What's more impressive than the Usa military having a functioning space plane, is the fact the X-37B managed to orbit Earth for two years without issue as far as we know.

X-37B plan manager Lt. Col. Ron Fehlen commented, "This mission in one case once more set an on-orbit endurance record and marks the vehicle'southward starting time landing in the state of Florida. We are incredibly pleased with the operation of the space vehicle and are excited most the data gathered to support the scientific and infinite communities."

The X-37 spacecraft began equally a NASA project back in 1999 before being transferred to the US Department of Defense in 2004. The first launch occurred in 2022, the second in 2022, the third in 2022, and then this latest mission, OTV-iv, launched aboard an Atlas 5 rocket in May 2022 and now stands as the longest flight nevertheless for the experimental plane.

Just near everything related to the Ten-37B is classified. It's a projection with an unknown budget for a spacecraft built by Boeing. It was initially funded through a collaboration between NASA, Boeing, and the United states of america Air Strength totaling $192 meg before a further $301 one thousand thousand contract was awarded to Boeing by NASA in 2002. Clearly a lot more than has been spent over the last 15 years to keep evolution.

According to Reuters, while the X-37B was in orbit over 700 experiments were carried out. We don't know what whatsoever of them were, how much the mission cost, or what technology is subconscious away inside the space plane'due south shell, which measures 29-feet long and has a wingspan of 15-feet.

The side by side mission for the Ten-37B is already existence planned. Information technology will launch from Cape Canaveral Air Strength Station, Florida, "later in 2022." Is that going to extend the endurance tape still farther?