Thursday, December 13, 2012

USAF relaunches its first X-37B on a slightly less mysterious spaceflight

USAF relaunches its first X37B on a new, slightly less mysterious spaceflight

The US Air Force's aims with each X-37B mission continue to be shrouded in secrecy, but we're learning a little more now that it has launched the autonomous space plane for a third time. In once more flying the OTV-1, the original vehicle that reached orbit in 2010, the military branch is clear that testing reusability is a major goal: it wants to know if these spacecraft can take more than one trip without suffering ill effects. We likewise know that navigation, re-entry and other basics will be under scrutiny, even if the military won't talk about the payload. Just when we'll see OTV-1 back on Earth is another matter. The USAF is still standing by its official line that the X-37B is built to stay spaceborne for nine months, but it's remaining open to longer missions if conditions permit. Given that OTV-2 took more than a year to return, we wouldn't be surprised if we're just becoming comfortable with 2014 by the time the vehicle's sibling touches down.

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Source: The Register

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/12/usaf-relaunches-its-first-x-37b-on-a-new-less-mysterious-spaceflight/

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