The U.S. Space Force's mysterious X-37B space plane is just about ready to take flight for the seventh time. <\/p>\n
The Space Force and SpaceX \"are making final preparations\" for the planned Sunday evening (Dec. 10) launch of the robotic X-37B, Space Force officials said in an emailed update today (Dec. 7). <\/p>\n
The space plane is scheduled to lift off atop a Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a 10-minute window that opens at 8:14 p.m. EST (0114 GMT on Dec. 11). If SpaceX webcasts the launch as expected, you'll be able to watch the action live here at Space.com. <\/p>\n
Related: SpaceX will launch the Space Force's mysterious X-37B space plane on a Falcon Heavy rocket <\/p>\n
The Space Force is believed to possess two X-37B vehicles, both of which were built by Boeing. The space planes look a lot like NASA's old space shuttle orbiters, but they're much smaller; both X-37Bs could fit inside the payload bay of a single space shuttle. <\/p>\n
The two X-37Bs have flown a total of six missions to date, each one longer and more ambitious than the last. The most recent one, known as OTV-6 (Orbital Test Vehicle-6), touched down in November 2022 after circling Earth for 908 days. <\/p>\n
It's unclear how long the coming flight, OTV-7, will last; the Space Force releases few details about X-37B missions, as most of their payloads are classified. Some of this gear is likely to be novel reconnaissance instruments; military officials have long said that the X-37B is used primarily as a testbed for new technologies. <\/p>\n
But the X-37B carries up some civilian research cargo as well. For example, one of the unclassified experiments going up on OTV-7 is Seeds-2, a NASA project that will test how seeds are affected by long-term exposure to space radiation. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The first five X-37B missions launched atop United Launch Alliance Atlas V rockets, and the most recent one flew aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9. OTV-7 will be the first to use the powerful Falcon Heavy. <\/p>\n
The Heavy has eight missions under its belt to date. It last launched in October, sending NASA's Psyche spacecraft toward the bizarre metal asteroid of the same name. <\/p>\n
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SpaceX, Space Force set to launch secretive X-37B space plane on Dec. 10 - Space.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The U.S. Continue reading