Top Secret U.S. Space Plane Launched

[FarCenter]

The Air Force will say only that the shuttle-style X-37B is "a flexible space test platform."

By Paul McDougall
InformationWeek
April 23, 2010 08:58 AM

The U.S. Air Force successfully launched an unmanned space plane Thursday carrying an undisclosed payload.
The Air Force's Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), also known as the X-37B, lifted off from Cape Canaveral at 7:52 p.m. EDT. The ship, built by Boeing, was carried aloft by an Atlas V rocket launched by United Launch Alliance, a Boeing-Lockheed Martin joint venture.

The X-37B is a space shuttle-style craft that's designed to orbit the Earth and land through remote piloting. To date, the Air Force has said little about the spacecraft's purpose or payloads.

A post on an official Air Force blog described the X-37B as "a flexible space test platform to conduct various experiments to allow satellite sensors, subsystems, components and associated technology to be efficiently transported to and from the space environment."

Some observers have theorized that the X-37B is meant to be an orbital platform for lasers or other weapons that could be used to knock out satellites belonging to hostile countries.

Whatever its purpose, the X-37B's successful launch by a consortium of private contractors could provide a boost for President Obama's plan to outsource some space missions and launches to the private sector.

<SNIP>http://www.informationweek.com/news/government/leadership/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=224600230&cid=nl_IW_daily_2010-04-26_h

[itsrobert]

1. Old news

3 days old

[FarCenter]

4. I thought that the role of United Launch Alliance was interesting

It would appear that ULA is the premier rocket builder and launch specialist in the United States.

http://www.ulalaunch.com/site/pages/Products_AtlasV.shtml has information about the Atlas V rocket systems used.

The heavy lift version can boost a 65,000 pound payload to Low Earth Orbit and 30,000 pounds to Geosynchrnous Transfer Orbit.

It is not clear why a manned space capsule could not be sent to the Internatoinal Space Station using these rockets.

[NoNothing]

2. That's progress, all right

Shift the manned space program from NASA the open research science agency to a classified Air Force military project.

[Johonny]

3. It's so secret is was all over DU... last week

[Tailormyst]

5. Oh cool - missed this.

Thanks for posting :)