It also holds the duration record for a space plane in orbit, having spent nearly 675 days in space during OTV-3. The X-37B is only the second space plane - after the Russian Buran, which orbited the Earth once on Novemto perform an automated landing. Thus far, landings have occurred unannounced at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, though future missions (and perhaps OTV-4) may land like the Space Shuttle at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for rapid reprocessing and launch. Space Shuttle, the X-37B launches atop an Atlas V rocket and lands like an aircraft. A miniature space plane one-fourth the length of the U.S. The X-37B is a direct descendant of Boeing’s X-40 project. A Mini Space Shuttle The orbit the Air Force's X-37B is flying during its fourth uncrewed mission. They also recently tracked the maneuverings of the extra mystery payload Russia launched aboard the Cosmos-2496 satellite and which is suspected to be testing either in-orbit refueling or ”satellite-killer” tech. Volunteer satellite hunters have confirmed - and sometimes refuted - launch claims by countries with largely veiled space programs, such as North Korea and Iran. “Moonwatch and our modern network both make available data on objects on which otherwise very little data would be (publicly) available.” “In the time of Moonwatch, the network of amateur observers was a (if not the) most prominent source of tracking information on new objects launched,” says veteran satellite watcher Marco Langbroek. You can trace this legacy all the way back to the original Project Moonwatch, which first tracked Sputnik 1 after its historic first orbit in 1957. (The launch was broadcast live, however.) Once launched, tracking the mini space plane becomes the pursuit of dedicated satellite-watchers worldwide. Department of Defense missions, NORAD doesn’t publicly publish the orbital parameters for the X-37B. Its orbit is inclined 38° from Earth’s equator, ensuring that the craft is visible from latitude 45° north to 45° south.Īs with a majority of classified U.S. Launched from Cape Canaveral on May 20, 2015, OTV-4 orbits Earth once every 91 minutes in a 196-mile (315-km) altitude orbit. The USAF owns two X-37B spacecraft, and the current Orbital Test Vehicle 4 (OTV-4) mission is the fourth overall for the program. One of the more intriguing missions to track from your backyard is the U.S. (Folks at public star parties are always amazed to see satellites with their own eyes!) But most of what you’re seeing are actually discarded boosters in low-Earth orbit, and more than a few are clandestine spy satellites. Step outside on any clear night at dusk during twilight hours and watch the sky for a few minutes, and you’ll notice swiftly moving “stars,” sentinels of our modern Space Age. This photo is from the second mission, OTV-2, which launched from Cape Canaveral in 2011 and conducted experiments in orbit for 469 days. Air Force's unmanned, reusable space plane. The X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle is the U.S. Now is the time to track the secret space plane X-37B on its OTV-4 mission.
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