The U.S. Space Force’s experimental spaceplane, X-37B, is ready for another go in orbit for an undisclosed duration, in which it will test new technologies aimed at bolstering military capabilities in space.
The Boeing-built orbital test vehicle, designated as OTV-8, will attempt to launch on Thursday at 11:50 p.m. ET from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The spaceplane will ride on board a Falcon 9 rocket, marking the second time SpaceX launches the Space Force’s orbital vehicle. The launch will be streamed live on SpaceX’s website and the company’s X account, and you can also tune in through the live feed below. The live feed will begin around 20 minutes before liftoff.
Thursday’s launch will mark the vehicle’s eighth test flight, taking place just a few months after it wrapped up its previous mission. The spaceplane will carry an unidentified number of payloads for flight number eight, including a laser communications technology demonstration and a quantum sensor for navigation in space.
Laser communication packs more data into each transmission, and it’s considered more secure than the more commonly used radio frequency transmissions. The laser communications demonstration on board OTV-8 will rely on commercial satellites in low Earth orbit to transmit data using infrared light. OTV-8 will also use a quantum inertial sensor—an extremely precise device that measures acceleration using the principles of quantum mechanics—to enable navigation without having to rely on GPS.
Previously, Space Force’s spaceplane launched on December 28, 2023, for its seventh test flight, spending a total of 434 days in orbit before returning to Earth on March 7. The most recent mission was significantly shorter than its sixth test flight, which lasted for a record-breaking 908 days in orbit before landing at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in November 2022.
With each launch, the Space Force may be shifting its focus toward a faster turnaround of its reusable, uncrewed vehicle rather than seeking to extend the duration of each flight. And with each passing mission, the X-37B has been losing its aura of mystery as the Space Force reveals more about the spaceplane’s payloads. China is also developing its own spaceplane, named Shenlong, which completed its third mission in late 2024 after spending 268 days in orbit. The two nations are locked in a race to develop a reusable vehicle reminiscent of NASA’s Space Shuttle, operating as a spacecraft in orbit and landing similar to conventional aircraft.
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