The X-37B is an American unmanned spaceplane owned by the military and used in classified missions. It recently returned to Earth after 434 days in orbit.
The X-37B’s secret mission
The U.S. military’s classified miniaturized space shuttle returned to Earth on Friday after a 434-day mission around the world.
The spaceplane flew into orbit from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in December 2023 on a secret mission. Launched by SpaceX, the X-37B did not carry humans, only military experiments.
Its pre-dawn landing at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California was not announced until hours after it landed. The photos show the white and black spaceplane parked on the runway in the dark.
The seventh successful space shuttle mission
This is the seventh flight of one such test vehicle. Space Force officials said the mission successfully demonstrated the ability to change orbits by using atmospheric drag to slow down, saving fuel.
It’s “an exciting new chapter in the X-37B program,” program program director Lt. Col. Blaine Stewart commented in a statement.
First launched in 2010, the reusable spaceplanes manufactured by Boeing spent 908 days in space at a time. They are 9 meters long and have a wingspan of almost 4.5 meters.
According to phys.org
