China News Agency, Houston, May 17 (Xinhua, May 17) The US X-37B spacecraft was launched at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base in Florida. This is the first time the US military has announced the X-37B space mission to the outside world.
The Associated Press reported that at 9:14 a.m. . The US military did not specify how long the X-37B spacecraft planned to stay in orbit, nor did it announce the purpose of the mission.
This winged spacecraft is similar in shape to the NASA space shuttle, but only a quarter of its size and is 29 feet (9 meters) long. The outside world called it "micro space shuttle".
Currently, the US Air Force has two such reusable X-37B spacecraft, which have completed a total of five missions. Up to now, the two spacecraft have orbited a total of 2865 days.
According to the US media "Space" website, the X-37B spacecraft is an orbital test vehicle (OTV) developed by the United States. It is a kind of solar-powered aircraft. It is controlled by remote control, and the crew is not carried on the spacecraft. It set a historical record in the fifth mission, orbited for two years, successfully ended its 780-day orbit and returned to the earth at the end of October 2019, breaking the previous 718-day orbit set in 2017 recording.
As the developer of the X-37B spacecraft, Boeing Senior Vice President Jim Chilton said that the X-37B has accumulated 1 billion miles in orbit. He said that the flight time of each mission is increasing.
The X-37B belongs to the US Air Force and is operated by the US Air Force's "Response Office"; the US Space Force manages its missions to launch into orbit, return to earth, and orbit. Since the first flight in 2010, the X-37B's first five missions have been classified as US military secrets. However, last week, the US Space Force announced that it would perform the sixth flight of the X-37B on May 16, and pointed out that the mission will be a new milestone. This turning point has attracted the attention of the American media.
Due to the weather, the mission was postponed by one day.
US Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett said that the mission will maximize the unique performance of X-37B and conduct a number of experiments, including the conversion of solar energy into radio frequency microwave energy by the US Naval Research Laboratory, and Space solar experiments transmitted to the ground; the US Air Force Academy is responsible for the deployment of "Falcon 8" small satellites in orbit; NASA has two experiments to study the effects of radiation and other space effects on crop growth. This is the largest scientific load of the X-37B to date.
The US media "Politician" website pointed out that the X-37B spacecraft mission is the first step in the development of space solar energy in the United States. (Finish)