The Patriot Files Forums  

Go Back   The Patriot Files Forums > Warfare > Space

Post New Thread  Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 11-05-2022, 08:37 AM
Boats's Avatar
Boats Boats is offline
Senior Member
 

Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Sauk Village, IL
Posts: 21,784
Post US military's X-37B space plane zooms past 900 days in orbit

US military's X-37B space plane zooms past 900 days in orbit
By: Leonard David - Space Insider News - 11-05-22
Re: https://www.space.com/x-37b-military...900-days-orbit

The robotic X-37B keeps extending its flight-duration record.
Re: https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gi...50-80.jpg.webp
The U.S. Space Force's robotic X-37B space plane has been aloft for more than 900 days on its
current mission, the sixth for the X-37B program. (Image credit: Boeing Space)

The U.S. military's X-37B robotic space plane just passed 900 days in orbit on its latest
hush-hush mission, adding to the program's flight-duration record.

The current mission is the sixth for the X-37B program and is therefore known as OTV-6
("Orbital Test Vehicle 6"). It launched on May 17, 2020, from Cape Canaveral Space Force
Station in Florida, and it's unclear when it will end.

OTV-6 is the first X-37B flight to use a service module to host experiments.
The service module is an attachment to the aft of the vehicle that allows
additional experimental payload capability to be carried to orbit.

The mission also deployed FalconSat-8(opens in new tab), a small satellite developed
by the U.S. Air Force Academy and sponsored by the Air Force Research Laboratory
to conduct several experiments on orbit.

In addition, two NASA experiments are onboard the space plane to study the results
of radiation and other space effects on a materials sample plate and seeds used to grow food.

Technology testing:

A U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) experiment is also onboard the space plane,
evaluating technology to transform solar power into radio frequency microwave energy.

That experiment, called the Photovoltaic Radio-frequency Antenna Module, or PRAM,
continues to crank out data, said Paul Jaffe, an electronics engineer and researcher at the NRL.

"It's still chugging along," Jaffe told Inside Outer Space.
"The longer we're up there, the more we learn."

The X-37B doubtless toted other payloads that we don't know about on OTV-6 as well;
many of the vehicle's experiments and activities are classified.

Technologies being tested in the X-37B program include advanced guidance, navigation
and control, thermal protection systems, avionics, high temperature structures and seals,
conformal reusable insulation, lightweight electromechanical flight systems, advanced
propulsion systems, advanced materials and autonomous orbital flight, reentry and landing,
U.S. Space Force officials have said.

Flight roster
Here’s a listing of the previous flights of the Boeing-built space plane:

* OTV-1: launched on April 22, 2010 and landed on Dec. 3, 2010, spending over 224 days in orbit.

* OTV-2: launched on March 5, 2011 and landed on June 16, 2012, spending over 468 days in orbit.

* OTV-3: launched on Dec. 11, 2012 and landed on Oct. 17, 2014, spending over 674 days in orbit.

* OTV-4: launched on May 20, 2015 and landed on May 7, 2015, spending nearly 718 days in orbit.

* OTV-5: launched on Sept. 7, 2017 and landed on Oct. 27, 2019, spending nearly 780 days in orbit.

When and where OTV-6 will return to Earth is anybody's guess.

OTV-1, OTV-2 and OTV-3 landed at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, while the OTV-4 and
OTV-5 missions touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

China's space plane:

Meanwhile, China's orbital space plane, catalogued as 53357/2022-093A, is also circuiting the Earth.
It was lofted on Aug. 4. Space tracker Robert Christy of Orbital Focus notes that China's craft recently
ejected something into space.

That new object separated from the main vehicle between Oct. 24 and Oct. 30, Christy reported.
The two objects are very close to each other and perhaps are station keeping, he said.

Leonard David is author of the book "Moon Rush: The New Space Race(opens in new tab),"
published by National Geographic in May 2019. A longtime writer for Space.com, David has been
reporting on the space industry for more than five decades. Follow us on
Twitter @Spacedotcom(opens in new tab) or on Facebook(opens in new tab).

For more data: Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky
and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know;
at: community@space.com.

About this writer:
-
Leonard David is an award-winning space journalist who has been reporting on space activities for more than 50 years.
Currently writing as Space.com's Space Insider Columnist among his other projects, Leonard has authored numerous
books on space exploration, Mars missions and more, with his latest being "Moon Rush: The New Space Race"
published in 2019 by National Geographic. He also wrote "Mars: Our Future on the Red Planet" released in 2016
by National Geographic. Leonard has served as a correspondent for SpaceNews, Scientific American and Aerospace
America for the AIAA. He was received many awards, including the first Ordway Award for Sustained Excellence in
Spaceflight History in 2015 at the AAS Wernher von Braun Memorial Symposium. You can find out Leonard's latest
project at his website and on Twitter.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Other data links on site only with further missions scheduled for
2023 & 2031 - if interested to this site - links at bottom of space.com.

Most UFO's are 'Chinese surveillance' drones and 'airborne clutter, Pentagon
officials reveal > Re: https://www.space.com/ufo-chinese-drones-report
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Personal note: I wish I could go into space as most contemplate late
in their lives.

The U.S. government has officially started to explain some of the most infamous UFO encounters of the
last decade, with China and weather balloons as top offenders.

Re: https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/6Q...50-80.jpg.webp
Government officials are beginning to explain several recent UFO encounters. (Image credit: Bettmann/Getty Images)

Note: Intelligence agencies in the U.S. have spent the last few years analyzing footage
of hundreds of recent UFO encounters, and they want the American people to know:
-
It's still not aliens (opens in new tab).
Re: https://www.livescience.com/pentagon...fo-report.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
__________________
Boats

O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"IN GOD WE TRUST"
sendpm.gif Reply With Quote
Sponsored Links
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On

All times are GMT -7. The time now is 01:34 AM.


Powered by vBulletin, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.