X-37B Space Plane Lands at Kennedy Space Center
The X-37B spacecraft after landing on May 7, 2017. (Credit: USAF)
WASHINGTON, DC (AFNS) — The X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle mission 4 (OTV-4), the Air Force’s unmanned, reusable space plane, landed at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility May 7, 2017.
“Today marks an incredibly exciting day for the 45th Space Wing as we continue to break barriers,” said Brig. Gen. Wayne Monteith, the 45th SW commander. “Our team has been preparing for this event for several years, and I am extremely proud to see our hard work and dedication culminate in today’s safe and successful landing of the X-37B.”
The OTV-4 conducted on-orbit experiments for 718 days during its mission, extending the total number of days spent on-orbit for the OTV program to 2,085 days.
“The landing of OTV-4 marks another success for the X-37B program and the nation,” said Lt. Col. Ron Fehlen, X-37B program manager. “This mission once again set an on-orbit endurance record and marks the vehicle’s first landing in the state of Florida. We are incredibly pleased with the performance of the space vehicle and are excited about the data gathered to support the scientific and space communities. We are extremely proud of the dedication and hard work by the entire team.”
X-37B after landing at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. (Credit: USAF)
The X-37B is the newest and most advanced re-entry spacecraft. Managed by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, the X-37B program performs risk reduction, experimentation and concept of operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies.
“The hard work of the X-37B OTV team and the 45th Space Wing successfully demonstrated the flexibility and resolve necessary to continue the nation’s advancement in space,” said Randy Walden, the director of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office. “The ability to land, refurbish, and launch from the same location further enhances the OTV’s ability to rapidly integrate and qualify new space technologies.”
The Air Force is preparing to launch the fifth X-37B mission from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, later in 2017.
19 responses to “X-37B Space Plane Lands at Kennedy Space Center”
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there is no data to judge the value for the cost of this vehicle
But you can be sure that we spent too much.
I don’t know, we certainly seem to be getting plenty of mileage out of it, as reusable vehicles go…
I object. Assumes facts not in evidence.
Your honor, without knowing costs, precisely what they’re doing with it, or what
they’re getting out of the flights, it’s difficult to assess the total value proposition of the program. There’s also nothing comparable to compare the program to.
Sustained.
Your honor, I ask for an immediate summary judgment.
Granted. Court adjourned.
You don’t think procurement history is a fact?
Oh, I know that’s a fact. Cost alone is not a full determinant of a program’s value. I’d have to put that against what we’re actually getting from the program to determine the overall value of the investment. Without knowing more about that, it’s hard to say more.
All the Air Force will say about the X-37 is that it’s being used to conduct on-orbit tests of new technologies. My best guess is that they’re testing things like sensors and maybe materials. As new technologies mature, it’s good to be able to test things in their operational environment and then bring them back for analysis. Just like how SpaceX has learned a great deal from the recovered rocket stages that has fed into improvements into the design, being able to analyze those systems to make improvements is beneficial. Those systems that prove up to the job can then be incorporated into dedicated satellite systems.
“Testing” as in using them to conduct missions onorbit for a year or two.
While they don’t publish the X-37’s orbital parameters, observers have found and tracked it on several occasions. The orbit’s parameters limit what the mission can accomplish. While the X-37 has a great deal of maneuvering capability, it still is limited in what it can do. If they are testing sensors, you can be assured they using them to see how well they’ll perform. Once returned to the surface, the subjects to the tests will be examined to see if they need to be improved. Ultimately, those systems will probably be installed into dedicated satellite systems or carried as hosted payloads.
Except precedent from known costs of DoD programs and black projects make it a pretty safe assumption to make.
You get what you pay for. Without knowing what we’re getting back from that investment, it’s hard to say what the overall value is. It might cost a lot, but if the benefits are substantial, then it’s a good investment.
Yes, I guess they could be up there fighting off aliun invasuns…
https://twitter.com/robert_…
A great idea
https://twitter.com/dtarsge…
As usual, Zubrin’s comments annoy me. Something like the X-37 is simply too small to be a cost effective second stage.
Scale it up, remove the unnecessary wheels and wings and you end up with something along the lines of the spacex ITS.
But then something like that is hardly Zubrin’s idea…
I’d like to see cold gas thrusters.
Have the minispaceplane launch atop Falcon Heavy–that’d be enough for HL-42.
Buran could slip off down the side. Top mount spaceplanes are actually more dangerous due to pitch-loads and bending moments that threaten to tear them off the top.
But Falcon Heavy will be strong-so maybe you could get away from that here.
Have the spaceplane hold the LOX for the whole second stage, with small hypergolic fuels on ascent. Then use excess oxygen for maneuver.
I don’t know what the cargo is, nor the mission objectives, but having seen some Youtube & Vimeo videos recently that were both compelling & persuasive, I am led to believe that space-planes, space-gliders, capsules & all conventional rocket launchers will soon be obsolete.
Research in to zero-point energy, Casimir effects, novel uses of liquid mercury, microwaves, and gyroscopic phenomena will revolutionize (even shock) the spaceflight industry to its core, and open up routine spaceflight to a point where even Elon Musk would shake his head in astonishment.
Sometimes I trundle down those same Youtube rabbit-hole too. Good for amusement but don’t take them to seriously.
All of them, at some point, must pass the ‘Missouri Test.’
(Show me)
Props to Boeing for a landing system that can survive nearly two years in space without issue.