UM-Bot Posted May 18, 2015 #1 Share Posted May 18, 2015 The X-37B will be launching again on Wednesday however nobody knows exactly what it will be doing. The solar-powered space plane, which looks a lot like a miniature version of NASA's space shuttles, had been originally designed to repair satellites before NASA discontinued the project and passed it over to the US Department of Defense back in 2004. Read More: http://www.unexplain...for-new-mission 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paperdyer Posted May 18, 2015 #2 Share Posted May 18, 2015 IT's going to meet the Aliens that are secretly in orbit in cloaked ships to get more technology. Why else would it be there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Hammerclaw Posted May 18, 2015 #3 Share Posted May 18, 2015 Wonder if John Creighton will be aboard, this time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OverSword Posted May 18, 2015 #4 Share Posted May 18, 2015 Probably laying stealth anti-satellite weapons in the path of Russian and Chinese military and communication satellites. Never know when those may come in handy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lightly Posted May 18, 2015 #5 Share Posted May 18, 2015 it's an unmanned vehicle ! (29' long) http://www.ibtimes.com/us-air-forces-unmanned-x-37b-space-plane-returns-earth-after-secret-orbit-experiments-1707344 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted May 19, 2015 #6 Share Posted May 19, 2015 So why does the X-37B have to be kept sooo! "secretive" as to what it's real mission/missions are ? Gosh - no wonder some countries are paranoid with what the US and NASA get up to. Is it any wonder why conspiracy theorists have a field day with this type of hype ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aardvark-DK Posted May 19, 2015 #7 Share Posted May 19, 2015 I know!! it's docking with the Dark Knight, resupply mission. End of story.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qxcontinuum Posted May 19, 2015 #8 Share Posted May 19, 2015 solar powered ehh? so alternative energies is not a scam! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted May 20, 2015 #9 Share Posted May 20, 2015 So why does the X-37B have to be kept sooo! "secretive" as to what it's real mission/missions are ? Gosh - no wonder some countries are paranoid with what the US and NASA get up to. Is it any wonder why conspiracy theorists have a field day with this type of hype ? Just to be a little clearer as to what I was referring to yesterday - as far as secrecy = specutaion and conspiracy theories go. Without an explanation of the X-37B’s mission, national security analysts, conspiracy theorists and space enthusiasts have speculated on the space plane’s activities in orbit. “The space plane program inspires speculation in part because its purpose, its budget and most of its details are kept secret. http://spaceflightno...-in-california/ and this ; Other theories sound straight out of a James Bond film, including that the spacecraft would be able to capture the satellites of other nations.A space bomber that can attack anywhere in the world within a matter of hours has also been put forward by conspiracy theorists. One leading secrecy expert told MailOnline that the drone is 'very likely' to be a US spy plane. 'The US government has a bottomless appetite for sensitive information,' said Steven Aftergood, a secrecy expert at the Federation of American Scientists. 'Some sort of explanation of its function is likely to come, if not this year, then I guess within five years.' Good - I'm sure many CTer's will sleep easier by then. http://www.dailymail...ng-nations.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted May 20, 2015 #10 Share Posted May 20, 2015 Bows out... http://www.newscient...ml#.VVwaXPmqqkp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Noteverythingisaconspiracy Posted May 20, 2015 #11 Share Posted May 20, 2015 solar powered ehh? so alternative energies is not a scam! Solar power has been used on space crafts since 1958, so it is hardly a new idea ! Why did you think it was a scam ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OverSword Posted May 24, 2015 #12 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Solar power has been used on space crafts since 1958, so it is hardly a new idea ! Why did you think it was a scam ? Really? It was joke obviously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Noteverythingisaconspiracy Posted May 24, 2015 #13 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Really? It was joke obviously. On this site you never really know for sure, especially with someone that have qxcontinuum's track record ! I really wish that people would use a little smiley when they are joking. Just like you did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalmoxis Posted May 24, 2015 #14 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Awesome stuff. I think the space plane would do one of two things or both: 1 - Try out and test some new technology 2 - Do routine top secret stuff That's what I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waspie_Dwarf Posted May 25, 2015 #15 Share Posted May 25, 2015 (edited) I think the space plane would do one of two things or both: 1 - Try out and test some new technology 2 - Do routine top secret stuff That much is pretty obvious. the actual questions are what new technology and what top secret stuff? We know a couple of the payloads being carried on this mission... that is a first but other than that what it does in space remains a mystery. DONTEATUS generally pops up in these threads to claim that it is a spy satellite but that is highly unlikely. It is too small to carry a worthwhile optical system. it's orbit is not the right one for it to be carrying out electronic intelligence gathering (ELINT) and it makes no sense to carry out these missions in a small reusable space plane anyway. Some people have claimed that it is spying on other satellites, most notably the Chinese Tiangong space laboratory. this accusation is because the X-37B can manoeuvre multiple times in orbit. However if it was to spy on another satellite effectively it would need to match it's orbit with that of the other satellites. The x-37b can be tracked from the ground and many hundreds of amateurs regularly do just that. it has never matched it's orbit to that of another satellites and certainly not that of Tiangong. So we can deduce what it isn't doing, but that makes us no wiser as to what it is doing. The X-37B adds weight, complexity and cost to a mission (for every pound that the X-37B weighs that is a pound of useful payload you can't launch) this means that whatever the X-37b is doing there must be a big advantage in returning the payload to the Earth. This would virtually rule out "routine top secret stuff" since the routine stuff can be achieved more efficiently with conventional satellites. Of course the main piece of technology that is probably being tested is the X-37B itself. The craft may well be the experiment, laying the foundation for future reusable military spacecraft. The weird thing being kept secret on this mission is which of the two OTV (X-37B) spacecraft is being flown. OTV-1 flew the first and third flight, whilst OTV-2 flew the second. The USAF have not announced which craft is flying this fourth mission. Unlike the previous three missions they have also not released pre-launch photographs of the vehicle. this has lead some analysts to speculate that the vehicle may have obvious external modifications from previous flights. Edited May 25, 2015 by Waspie_Dwarf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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