10 things we know about the secret X-37B space plane
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The U.S. Department of Defense’s uncrewed X-37B spy plane is one of the most intriguing spaceships in the world, flying regular covert missions whose purposes aren’t fully known. But over the years, information about the craft, which is also known as the Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), has come to light in dribs and drabs. Here, we take a look at 10 things that can be definitively said about the secretive space plane.
Basic facts are available
The reusable X-37B, which resembles a smaller version of one of NASA’s now-retired space shuttles, was originally built by NASA in 1999, as previously reported by Live Science’s sister site Space.com . It is around 29 feet (8.8 meters) long and 9.5 feet (2.9 m) tall, with a wingspan of slightly less than 15 feet (4.6 m). It weighs 11,000 pounds (4,990 kilograms) when on the launchpad.
Like the space shuttle, the X-37B takes off vertically and is propelled by a rocket. Once in orbit, it can maneuver on its own, and it eventually lands on a runway back on Earth , much like a conventional plane. The vehicle has a small payload area, roughly the size of a pickup truck bed, enabling it to carry gear and satellites. It operates at an altitude of between 150 and 500 miles (240 to 805 kilometers) above Earth , according to its manufacturer, Boeing .
Different military branches have had it over the years
Space Force now has control over the X-37B space planes. (Image credit: U.S. Space Force)
NASA transferred two X-37B vehicles to the Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in 2004, according to Space.com . After being operated by the U.S. Air Force for many years, the robotic spy planes came under the purview of the newly established Space Force in 2020, according to Military.com , a news and resource website for military members.
Nobody knows quite what it’s up to
A U.S. Air Force X-37B space plane, an unpiloted miniature space shuttle, is seen after landing at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility on Oct. 27, 2019 to end its record 780-day OTV-5 mission. (Image credit: U.S. Air Force)
Despite flying six missions to date, the X-37B’s true purpose remains a mystery. Some possibilities include surveillance of the Earth’s surface from on high and deploying spy satellites, though nothing has ever been confirmed.
More out-there theories have been proposed, such as the notion that the X-37B could be a space-based bomber, a vehicle for spying on the Chinese space station, or a means for the U.S. military to interfere with other countries’ satellites. Experts have splashed cold water on all these ideas, saying they would require large amounts of fuel or would be too easy to trace back to the American military, as previously reported by Live Science.
It can remain in space for years
One of the two X-37Bs accomplished its first launch in 2010 and spent 224 days in space. Its partner vehicle first flew a year later and remained in orbit for more than double that amount of time.
The current record for the spacecraft is 780 days — more than two full years — in orbit, which occurred during the fifth flight of the X-37B, Live Science previously reported . What it was doing up there for all that time remains a mystery.
It can launch on a SpaceX rocket
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket launches an X-37B space plane on a classified mission for the U.S. Space Force from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on May 17, 2020. (Image credit: United Launch Alliance)
While the X-37B has typically ridden United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V booster into space, the vehicle is capable of being launched by different rockets. During its fifth mission in 2017, the military changed things up a bit and used a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to take it to orbit, according to Space.com.
Civilians have photographed an X-37B
Though it is a clandestine piece of military hardware, the X-37B is not immune to being spotted by civilian skywatchers. The vehicle’s launch times are publicly announced, which enabled satellite tracker Russell Eberst of Edinburgh, Scotland, to determine where it would be in the sky and see it through a telescope in October 2017. Netherlands-based sky sleuth Cees Bassa did the same that year, Live Science previously reported .
And a Dutch skywatcher and satellite tracker named Ralf Vandebergh was able to photograph the robotic vehicle as it orbited overhead in 2019. “We can recognize a bit of the nose, payload bay and tail of this mini-shuttle, with even a sign of some smaller detail,” he told Live Science at the time.
It can carry experiments
An artist’s illustration of the U.S. Air Force’s X-37B space plane in orbit. (Image credit: NASA Marshall Space Flight Center )
Shortly before the most recent X-37B launch in 2020, the U.S. military revealed that the spy plane had a new service module attached to its rear that allowed for large numbers of experiments to be carried to orbit. “The incorporation of a service module on this mission enables us to continue to expand the capabilities of the spacecraft and host more experiments than any of the previous missions,” Randy Walden, director and program executive officer for the Department of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, said in a statement .
The mission deployed a small satellite known as FalconSat-8, which contained five experimental payloads, some developed by the U.S. Air Force and some developed by NASA. While NASA has stated that it was flying an experiment on a previous X-37B flight , this was the first time the military had disclosed any specifics about such cargo.
It has won awards
Boeing’s X-37B operates about 110 to 500 miles (160 to 800 kilometers) above the Earth at a speed of about 17,500 mph (28,200 km/h). (Image credit: Boeing)
In 2020, the X-37B was given the Collier Trophy, one of the most prominent awards in aviation, for pushing “the boundaries of flight and space exploration,” according to the U.S. Air Force . “Sophisticated and uncrewed, the X-37B advances reusable spaceplane technologies and operates experiments in space that are returned for further examination on earth,” Secretary of the Air Force Barbara Barrett said in a statement.
Previous Collier Trophy winners include Orville Wright, Howard Hughes, the Apollo 11 lunar landing team, the International Space Station, and the B-52.
It is designed to frustrate enemies
(Image credit: United Launch Alliance)
During a panel at the Aspen Security Forum in 2019, former Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson revealed that the X-37B may be able to fly low enough to use Earth’s atmosphere to alter its orbit, according to Military.com . Wilson said that the vehicle’s maneuvers are specifically designed to drive adversaries such as Russia and China “nuts” because they are unable to predict exactly how it will behave.
A crewed version was once in the works
These designs from a Boeing study show configuration for a crewed space plane (X-37C) derived from the unmanned X-37B spacecraft. The designs could carry up to six astronauts to low-Earth orbit and include autonomous and piloted flight capabilities. (Image credit: AIAA/Grantz/Boeing)
Back in 2011, Boeing studied different vehicle designs that the X-37B could eventually evolve into. A paper by company engineer Arthur Granz titled " X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle and Derivatives " mentioned a version called the X-37C that would be larger and able to carry astronauts, according to Space.com . But since then, little information about the X-37C has appeared.
Originally published on Live Science.
NASA selects L3HARRIS to guide Mars Mission Samples Home
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NASA selects L3HARRIS to guide Mars Mission Samples Home
Press Release From: L3Harris Technologies
Posted: Tuesday, August 24, 2021
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) has selected L3Harris Technologies (NYSE:LHX) to provide the latest Universal Space Transponder (UST) for the Mars Sample Return program, which is developing capabilities to return Martian samples to Earth for detailed analysis.
The UST enables secure transmission of data, video, audio and telemetry information to and from Earth, swiftly and reliably pushing data the 250 million miles to Mars within minutes, while also relaying information between other spacecraft deployed to Mars.
“L3Harris’ highly reliable space communications links transmit the data, images and audio files to enable exploration of the universe,” said Kristin Houston, President, Electro Optical Sector, L3Harris. “Recently, this vital communication link made it possible for JPL to send updated software commands to Perseverance that were then transmitted to the Ingenuity helicopter, allowing for its historic first flight.”
For 20 years, every U.S. rover on Mars and orbiting spacecraft mission has used L3Harris transceivers including the current Perseverance lander and orbiting spacecraft.
Flexible by design, the UST’s multi-band transponder accommodates many mission scenarios where data links are required between two spacecraft. The Mars program incorporates two L3Harris transceivers – the new UST located on the Sample Retrieval Lander and the existing Electra transceiver on the Earth Return Orbiter.
Numerous NASA programs have relied on L3Harris’ high reliability designs, manufacturing expertise and technology – from early spacecraft through the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Space Shuttle, International Space Station and previous Mars missions. L3Harris has supported deep space exploration with work on the Hubble Space Telescope and now the James Webb and Nancy Grace Roman space telescopes. In addition, the company supports space-based weather forecasting on U.S. and international satellites and has navigation technology on every U.S. GPS satellite. L3Harris.com/space.
About L3Harris Technologies
L3Harris Technologies is an agile global aerospace and defense technology innovator, delivering end-to-end solutions that meet customers’ mission-critical needs. The company provides advanced defense and commercial technologies across air, land, sea, space and cyber domains. L3Harris has approximately $18 billion in annual revenue and 47,000 employees, with customers in more than 100 countries. L3Harris.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect management’s current expectations, assumptions and estimates of future performance and economic conditions. Such statements are made in reliance upon the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results and future trends to differ materially from those matters expressed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Statements about system capabilities are forward-looking and involve risks and uncertainties. L3Harris disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
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MotoArt Preserves NASA’s Space Shuttle History with Mobile Launch Platform-2 PlaneTags
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MotoArt Preserves NASA’s Space Shuttle History with Mobile Launch Platform-2 PlaneTags
Press Release From: Motoart
Posted: Wednesday, August 4, 2021
MotoArt, a pioneer of creating art and furniture from decommissioned aircraft, along with PlaneTags has created unique aerospace PlaneTags – using salvaged parts from NASA’s now defunct Mobile Launch Platform-2.
The MLP-2 was a massive, two-story mobile structure used by NASA during the build-up and launch of the Space Shuttle program. Previously known as Mobile Launcher-2 (ML-2), the platform was used for the Apollo program before being converted for Space Shuttle launches.
The material used in creating the PlaneTags comes from the Tail Service Masts (TSM), two structures on the top deck of the platform which contained umbilical connections that fed propellants from the launch pad tanks to the external tank, and provided connections to other gasses, electrical and communication links. The umbilicals retracted into the masts at launch and were protected from flames by protective hoods. The TSMs were 15 feet long, 9 feet wide, and rose 31 feet above the MLP deck. They were the last thing the Space Shuttle touched as it lifted from the platform.
The MLP-2 was demolished because it was no longer being used and NASA needed the room for the new Mobile Launcher-2 being built. There were no museums or companies that wanted to preserve it. Dave Hall, owner of MotoArt, saw in the news it was being destroyed and was contacted by many PlaneTags collectors, expressing the hope that something could be done to preserve it.
“The Mobile Launch Platform was such a familiar, unwavering symbol of our space program and our determination to get mankind to the moon and back safely,” said Hall. “It was sad to think that it was going to be demolished and we’d only be able to read about it in a textbook.”
Although the collectible pieces mirror the familiar oval shape and size of PlaneTags they are much thicker and heavier, measuring ½ inch thick. The traditional paper display card has been replaced by aluminum, which holds the PlaneTags with a strong magnet. Each one has been laser cut, polished, etched then assembled by hand, with the attention to quality and detail that MotoArt is known for. They are available on planetags.com beginning August 5th.
About the company: MotoArt rescues noteworthy decommissioned aircraft from demolition and uses the salvaged parts to create art, furniture and PlaneTags aviation collectibles. MotoArt Studios in Torrance, California, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.
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