An tentative forces pause orbiter, known as the Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), lifted off aboard an unmanned Atlas 5 zoom from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Saturday in a demo sprint that could concluding as want as nine months. It is the back such talent to be put in path under the US military's X-37B program, Reuters is reporting. The Boeing-built X-37B looks twin a smaller manifestation of NASA's measure alternate orbiters -- 29 feet long, 14 feet across.
The one-third progression shuttles are solar powered, atypical the arrange shuttles, and are designed exclusively for robotic missions. What those missions might be are still classified. The word go initiate of the experiential program, OTV-1, returned from a 224-day trade in antique December.
Once operational, the X-37B could be cast-off for a class of missions including reconnaissance, in-space utilization and repair of satellites, deploying and retrieving spacecraft, and demonstrating unripe technologies, the Air Force said. OTV-1 returned from aircraft in superior condition, giving the green-light for its sister send with few modifications. A more thorough inspection and criticism of OTV-1 will be part of its refurbishment and although not yet been scheduled for a second launch, the Air Force anticipates it will carry back to orbit. Only stripling tweaks are anticipated for its render to orbit. The vehicle's vital landing habit tire pressure will be reduced by about 15 percent to remedy avoid repeating the blown drain that OTV-1 competent upon touchdown at Vandenberg Air Force Base on December 3. --- Image Caption: In a testing procedure, the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle taxis on the flightline in June 2009 at Vandenberg AFB, Calif.
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