Posted on 11/23/2010 5:00:34 PM PST by KevinDavis
A U.S. Air Force robotic space plane continues to maneuver in Earth orbit, according to the latest observations from skywatchers. The reusable space drone has been carrying out tasks using a suite of classified sensors and may be nearing its mission's end, according to comments from Air Force officials.
The spacecraft is the Air Force's X-37B space plane, also known as the Orbital Test Vehicle 1, which launched on its maiden flight on April 22 atop an Atlas 5 rocket.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
Interesting!
This is interesting.
http://www.hobbyspace.com/nucleus/index.php?itemid=25269
A reader wonders if the X-37B may have landed or will land soon. A post on this spacecraft observation forum said on November 14th that the X-37B had not been directly spotted by anyone in the group since November 10th. (I’ve been looking for more recent updates on attempts to track it but nothing yet.) The X-37B has occasionally gone missing from amateur observations and then turned again later. However, this post by Thomas Wehr on Saturday included the following intriguing NOTAMs (Notices to Airmen) for the Vandenberg AFB area:
M0428/10 - PERSONEL AND EQUIPMENT LOCATED: 500FT WEST OF RWY 30 CENTERLINE
BETWEEN 12 DRM AND 11 DRM ADJACENT TO WILD LIFE FENCE. 20 OCT 21:54 2010
UNTIL 15 DEC 23:59 2010. CREATED: 20 OCT 21:55 2010
M0427/10 - PERSONNEL AND EQUIPMENT LOCATED AT EITHER RWY 12 OR 30
GLIDESLOPE. (THIS WILL DEPEND ON WHAT RUNWAY WILL BE LANDING. 20 OCT
21:51 2010 UNTIL 15 DEC 23:59 2010. CREATED: 20 OCT 21:54 2010
M0426/10 - USE EXTREME CAUTION FOR UNMANNED AIRCRAFT ACTIVITY IN THE
VICINITY OF VANDENBERG AFB. 20 OCT 21:45 2010 UNTIL 15 DEC 23:59 2010.
CREATED: 20 OCT 21:50 2010
Wehr says the NOTAMS were up for several days and are now gone.
Is Space Ping the son of Ting Wang? Of course he’s the postdoctoral associate at Cornell University’s Judith Reppy Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies, don’t ya know.
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