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Secret X-37B Space Plane After Landing on June 16, 2012
Credit: 30 Space Wing USAF
This infrared view of the U.S.'s Air Force secret X-37B space plane was taken shortly after it landed at Vandenberg Air Force base on June 16, 2012.
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Air Force's X-37B Space Plane: OTV-2 Landing
Credit: Boeing
Designed to be launched like a satellite and land like an airplane, the second X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle, built by Boeing for the United States Air Force’s Rapid Capabilities Office, is an affordable, reusable space vehicle.
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Air Force's X-37B Space Plane: OTV-2 in Infrared
Credit: USAF/Vandenberg Air Force Base
This still from an infrared camera shows the U.S. Air Force's second X-37B robotic space plane as it approaches a runway at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California during a June 16, 2012, landing that ended a 469-day mission.
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X-37B Space Plane Infographic
Credit: Karl Tate, SPACE.com
The SPACE.com infographic depicts the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle is an unmanned space test vehicle for the USAF.
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Air Force's X-37B Space Plane: OTV-2 in Infrared
Credit: USAF/Vandenberg Air Force Base
This still from an infrared camera shows the U.S. Air Force's second X-37B robotic space plane as it lands at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California during a June 16, 2012, touchdown that ended a 469-day mission.
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Air Force's X-37B Space Plane: OTV-2 Landing
Credit: USAF/Vandenberg Air Force Base
This still from a U.S. Air Force video shows the second X-37B unmanned space plane just after landing on June 16, 2012 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California that ended a 469-day mission.
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Air Force's X-37B Space Plane: OTV-2 Landing
Credit: Boeing
The Boeing-built X-37B autonomously landed at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on June 16, 2012 after a successful 469-day mission.
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Air Force's 2nd X-37B Wheelstop
Credit: USAF/Vandenberg Air Force Base
This still from a U.S. Air Force video shows the second X-37B unmanned space plane just after wheelstop following a June 16, 2012 landing at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California that ended a 469-day mission.
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Air Force's X-37B Space Plane: OTV-2 Hangar
Credit: Boeing
Stretching 29 feet in length and weighing 11,000 pounds, the second Boeing-built X-37B became the longest on-orbit space vehicle on June 16, 2012 when it completed a 469-day mission with an autonomous landing at Vandenberg Air Force Station in California.
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Let Me Go
Credit: United Launch Alliance
In this artist's conception, an Atlas V rocket jettisons its payload fairing to release the second X-37B space plane during the Air Force's Orbital Test Vehicle 2 mission in March 2011.
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I See You X-37B: Skywatcher Video Still
Credit: Kevin Fetter
This still image taken from a video by Canadian skywatcher Kevin Fetter shows the X-37B space plane, known as the Orbital Test Vehicle 2, as it passed over his site on March 24, 2011.
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Blastoff for Air Force's 2nd X-37B Space Plane
Credit: Pat Corkery, United Launch Alliance.
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket carrying the Air Force's second X-37B robot space plane, the Orbital Test Vehicle 2 (OTV-2), launches from its Space Launch Complex-41 at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on March 5, 2011 at 5:46 p.m. EST.
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A Shell for X-37B
Credit: Boeing
The second Boeing X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle, built for the U.S. Air Force, is shown here during encapsulation within the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket's 5-meter fairing at Astrotech in Titusville, Fla., on Feb. 8, 2011. The Air Force launched the new space plane from the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on March 5.
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X-37B Soars Toward Space
Credit: United Launch Alliance
The Air Force's second X-37B space plane soars toward space atop an Atlas 5 rocket after launching from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on March 5, 2011.
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Orbital Diagram for X-37B and Tiangong 1 (1)
Credit: Brian Weeden/Google Earth/Dr. Wang Ting (Stanford University)
Diagram of the orbits of the X-37B space plane (red line) and China's Tiangong 1 space module (green line), as of early January 2012. The orbit for Tiangong 1 was pulled from the U.S. military's Space Track website, and the orbit for X-37B is from amateur observations.
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Orbital Diagram for X-37B and Tiangong 1 (2)
Credit: Brian Weeden/Google Earth/Dr. Wang Ting (Stanford University)
Diagram of the orbits of the X-37B space plane (red line) and China's Tiangong 1 space module (green line), as of early January 2012. The orbit for Tiangong 1 was pulled from the U.S. military's Space Track website, and the orbit for X-37B is from amateur observations.
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Shrouded (Literally): The Second X-37B Space Plane
Credit: Boeing
The second Boeing X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle, built for the U.S. Air Force, is shown here during encapsulation within the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket's 5-meter fairing at Astrotech in Titusville, Fla., on Feb. 8, 2011. The Air Force launched the new space plane from the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on March 5.
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Effective Mating
Credit: United Launch Alliance
The Air Force's X-37B space plane, set to fly the OTV-2 mission, is shown inside its rocket nose cone before being mated to its Atlas 5 booster for launch from Space Launch Complex-41 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida in March 2011.
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Identifying Label
Credit: United Launch Alliance
The Air Force's mission emblem for the secretive OTV-2 space plane flight using a robotic X-37B spacecraft is visible as the vehicle is mated to its Atlas 5 booster in preparation for launch from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
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So High
Credit: United Launch Alliance
An Atlas 5 carrying Air Force's second X-37B space plane on its secretive OTV-2 mission rolls out to the seaside launch pad for launch from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida
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Atlas 5 Rocket Carries Second X-37B
Credit: Pat Corkery/ULA
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket with the Air Force’s second X-37B robot space plane, the Orbital Test Vehicle 2 (OTV-2) rolls out to its Space Launch Complex-41 launch pad on March 3, 2011, one day before launch. The OTV-2 supports space experimentation, risk reduction, and concept of operations development for long duration and reusable space vehicle technologies.
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Shake It Up
Credit: USAF
Now being readied for an orbital shakeout, the X-37B (shown here in an illustration) is an unpiloted military space plane. Launched from Florida, the vehicle will make an auto-touchdown in California.
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It's An Orange-y Sky
Credit: NASA/MSFC
Early artist concept of the X-37 advanced technology flight demonstrator re-entering Earth’s atmosphere. The X-37 was billed by NASA as a testbed for dozens of advanced structural, propulsion and operational technologies that could dramatically lower the
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Weather Delay
Credit: United Launch Alliance
An Atlas 5 rocket holding a U.S. Air Force X-37B space plane in its nose cone sits on the launch pad in Floriday on Friday, March 4, 2011. Bad weather delayed the launch, with another attempt coming March 5.
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X-37B: Let's Work
Credit: NASA/MSFC
NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center image shows on-orbit functions for the reusable X-37 space plane, now under the wing of the U.S. Air Force.
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Robotic Space Plane Rises Again
Credit: Pat Corkery, United Launch Alliance.
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket carrying the Air Force's second X-37B robot space plane, the Orbital Test Vehicle 2 (OTV-2), launches from its Space Launch Complex-41 at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on March 5, 2011 at 5:46 p.m. EST.
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Mystery Mission Begins for OTV-2
Credit: United Launch Alliance
The Air Force's second X-37B robot space plane blasts off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on March 5, 2011 to begin its secret Orbital Test Vehicle 2 mission.
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Do I Have to Draw a Diagram?
Credit: United Launch Alliance
This exploded view details the components of the Atlas V 501 vehcle. The configuration consists of a single Atlas V booster stage and the Centaur upper stage, with the OTV mission encapsulated within the payload fairing.
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All Stacked Up
Credit: USAF
The U.S. Air Force’s X-37B space plane prototype, called the Orbital Test Vehicle 1, is primed for its debut launch into space in April 2010.
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Home Again
Credit: USAF/Vandenberg Air Force Base
Despite its robotic nature, the X-37B space plane received a warm welcome from Air Force crews at Vandenberg. Here, the vehicle appears to be undergoing safing procedures after landing on Dec. 3 at 1:16 a.m. PST (0916 GMT). Significant weathering, or discoloration, can be seen on the spacecraft's upper thermal blanket insulation.
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X-37B Transferring Cargo at the ISS
Credit: AIAA/Grantz/Boeing
This series of illustrations depicts the sequence of events for a potential X-37B space plane delivery flight to the International Space Station. The Boeing-built X-37B is a robotic space plane currently flying classified missions for the U.S. Air Force.
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Aft and Mid APAS X-37B Configurations
Credit: AIAA/Grantz/Boeing
These designs from a Boeing study show configuration for a crewed space plane (X-37C) derived from the unmanned X-37B spacecraft. The designs could carry up to six astronauts to low-Earth orbit and include autonomous and piloted flight capabilities.
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X-37B Size Comparison
Credit: AIAA/Grantz/Boeing
This size chart shows how the Boeing-built X-37B robot space plane compares to NASA's space shuttle, a larger version of the spacecraft called the X-37C and an Atlas 5 rocket.
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X-37B Derivatives
Credit: AIAA/Grantz/Boeing
This Boeing graphic depicts the steady evolution of the robotic X-37B space plane design into a larger vehicle that could potentially carry astronauts. The process incrementally retires risk as capabilities increase, according to Boeing officials.
