INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
military&s X-37B space plane blasted off Thursday on another secretive mission that&s expected to last at least a couple of years.Like
previous missions, the reusable plane resembling a mini space shuttle carried classified experiments
There&s no one on board.The space plane took off aboard SpaceX&s Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA&s Kennedy Space Center at night, more than
two weeks late because of technical issues, AP reported.
It marked the seventh flight of an X-37B, which has logged more than 10 years in
orbit since its debut in 2010.The last flight, the longest one yet, lasted 2 1/2 years before ending on a runway at Kennedy a year ago.Space
Force officials would not say how long this orbital test vehicle would remain aloft or what&s on board other than a NASA experiment to gauge
the effects of radiation on materials.Built by Boeing, the X-37B resembles NASA&s retired space shuttles
But they&re just one-fourth the size at 29 feet (9 meters) long
No astronauts are needed; the X-37B has an autonomous landing system.They take off vertically like rockets but land horizontally like
planes, and are designed to orbit between 150 miles and 500 miles (240 kilometers and 800 kilometers) high
There are two X-37Bs based in a former shuttle hangar at Kennedy.The post US military space plane blasts off on another secretive mission
expected to last years first appeared on Ariana News.
