VANDENBERG AFB, Calif. - The Boeing-built X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV) successfully de-orbited and landed on October 17 at Vandenberg Air Force Base at 9:24 a.m. PDT (12:24 p.m. EDT), concluding a 674-day (or about one year and 10 months) experimental test mission for the U.S. Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office. The X-37B was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., on Dec. 11, 2012.
The first OTV mission began April 22, 2010, and concluded on Dec. 3, 2010, after 224 days in orbit. The second OTV mission began March 5, 2011, and concluded on June 16, 2012, after 468 days on orbit. In total, X-37B spacecraft have spent 1,367 days in space. This total actually surpasses NASA's space shuttle fleet, which spent a total of 1,334 days in space.
The X-37B is a secretive U.S. Air Force spacecraft. It is launched on an Atlas V rocket, but can land like an aircraft. The exact mission of the X-37B is unknown. Official objectives for the spacecraft include space experimentation, risk reduction and concept-of-operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies that could become key enablers for future space missions.
The spacecraft is reported to have the ability to carry payloads into orbit, service satellites already in orbit, and maneuver in space. Those capabilities are extremely valuable to the Air Force, allowing it to deploy rapid response satellites, service satellites in orbit, and even move the X-37 to different locations to gather reconnaissance information.
Because the X-37 is classified it is unclear how many have been produced or how many times a single spacecraft can be reused.
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