X-37b Launches before Kennedy Gets Hit by Irma

Falcon 9 rocket with X-37b aboard launches from Kennedy Space Center. (SpaceX)

SpaceX Made a beautiful launch Thursday of their Falcon 9 rocket, this time without their Dragon resupply space capsule. In another first for the company, the US Air Force had chosen SpaceX to lift the secretive X-37b re-usable winged spacecraft into orbit. Normally the Atlas V has been the rocket of choice, but now the military is looking to lower costs and prove the concept of using different boosters. 

An X-37b spacecraft on the runway after landing. Service crew gives a good indication of size. (NASA)

This was the fifth launch of an X-37b. While the Air Force does not announce which of the two spacecraft was in use, NASA Spaceflight.com reports that the Air Force alternates between the two craft, which would mean this is the third mission for the first spacecraft to fly. The Air Force also does not comment on the expected length or purpose of the mission. Fans of the X-37b will be diligently following any reports by satellite spotters of changes in orbit. 

Damage to the Vehicle Assembly Building after hurricane Matthew in 2016. (NASA)

Shortly after the launch, and then the recovery of the Falcon 9 first stage, the Kennedy Space Center, SpaceX, the Air Force, and other companies located at Cape Canaveral began shutdown and safety procedures in advance of this weekend's hit by hurricane Irma. The hurricane is very wide and although it is set to travel up the length of the Florida west coast, the storm will reach to the other side of the state and could cause damage to structures and equipment. 

For more information on the threat levels used by NASA and the story of how the Space Center prepares for a hurricane, check out the detailed article at NASA Spaceflight.com: https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2017/09/ksc-cape-major-hurricane-irma/

Surprise! Military shuttle X-37B lands at KSC

Front view of the X-37B on the shuttle runway at the Kennedy Space Center. Engineers wear protective suits so they will avoid contamination by any volatile chemicals. (US Air Force photo from Spaceflightnow.com)

The fourth X-37B mission has finally come to an end. Currently the US Air Force has two X-37 spacecraft (that we know of), and this was spacecraft number - well, we don't know, because the US Air Force does not officially disclose which of its spacecraft are up there during a mission. We DO know that it lifted off on May 20, 2015, on an Atlas 5 booster from Cape Canaveral LC-41. It spent 718 days in space.

 

 Side view of the X-37B. (US Air Force photo from Spaceflightnow.com)

For more information on this mission, check out SpaceFlightNow.com:
https://spaceflightnow.com/2017/05/07/x-37b-spaceplane-returns-to-earth-and-makes-precision-autopilot-landing/

X-37B Launches on Atlas 5

Atlas 5 on the pad at Launch Complex 41.

On Wednesday May 20, United Launch Alliance services launched the Air Force's X-37B re-useable robotic shuttle into Earth orbit. There are two spaceplanes in the X-37B fleet, and this was the second flight for the second spacecraft. There have been four X-37B flights so far. On these classified missions, it's not made known to the general public what experiments are being conducted, nor when the spaceplanes will glide back to Earth.

Previous Atlas 5 with X-37 shroud.

Th flight marks the 54th Atlas 5 flight. The rocket has been chosen for use with Boeing's CST-100 manned space capsule, which is undergoing testing in preparation for use as a low-orbit ferry in years to come.

X-37 being fitted with protective shroud.

The last X-37B fllight lasted for more than two years, so this could also be a long flight. Some of the tests the Air Force has been making are materials exposure tests which require long periods in open vacuum. On this flight, the craft is also carrying 10 small deployable satellites for various other institutions.