Posted on 05/07/2020 12:55:21 AM PDT by Libloather
The U.S. Air Force's experimental unmanned space plane is about to take off again, this time with a new attachment near its tail to hold more payloads.
Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett announced Wednesday that the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV) will take off May 16 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, for its sixth mission, which will incorporate tasks for U.S. Space Force and NASA, among other agencies.
"This important mission will host more experiments than any prior X-37B flight, including two NASA experiments," she told viewers during a conference hosted by the Space Foundation.
One NASA experiment will "study the results of radiation and other space effects on [specific] materials," while the other will research "ambient space radiation" effects on seeds used to grow food, Barrett said.
**SNIP**
While the unmanned X-37B belongs to the Air Force, the Space Force will command its upcoming launch, on-orbit operations and eventual return. Under the purview of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, the test vehicle can autonomously re-enter the atmosphere and land on a flight line.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Experiments wink nudge nudge
:)
Washing it was sheer stupidity.
Should do well tomorrow.
There is no tomorrow! Have you ever heard of rain???
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.