X-37B US military space plane launches for third flight

[mhm]

A notoriously mysterious military space plane operated by the US Air Force has launched from Florida, the third flight in a secretive test programme.

The reusable, unmanned craft is designed to operate in Earth orbit for extended periods. Its prior missions in 2010 and 2011 lasted 224 and 469 days.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20680253

[viking9]

A notoriously mysterious military space plane operated by the US Air Force has launched from Florida, the third flight in a secretive test programme.

Notoriously mysterious? Who wrote this - the BBC's childrens' writer? 

[Brian]

Photos: http://spaceflightnow.com/atlas/av034/121211beach/
http://spaceflightnow.com/atlas/av034/status.html
http://spaceflightnow.com/atlas/av034/

[Triple7]

It's coming home.

The U.S. Air Force's mysterious X-37B space plane will return to Earth this week —possibly as early as Tuesday — after 22 months in orbit on a secret mission.

The robotic X-37B space plane, also known as the Orbital Test Vehicle, will land at the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, where Air Force officials are gearing up for its return. As of today (Oct. 12), the X-37B mini-shuttle has been in orbit since December 2012 and racked up a record-shattering 671 days in space.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/secretive-x-37b-military-space-plane-could-land-132030466.html#VhxgDBp

Tim

[Triple7]

The US military's top-secret version of the space shuttle has completed a nearly two-year-long classified mission.

The space plane, known as the X-37B, landed at Vandenberg Air Force Base on the Southern California coast on Friday after circling the Earth for 674 days.

What the shuttle was doing during that time remains a mystery.

The Air Force says the space planes, also known as Orbital Test Vehicles, "perform risk reduction, experimentation and concept-of-operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies".

http://news.sky.com/story/1355493/mystery-shuttle-lands-after-two-year-flight

Tim