Tag: AV-054
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Photos: Sunday’s return of X-37B after 718 days in space
This gallery of U.S. Air Force photos show technicians, wearing protective SCAPE suits, initially check for hazardous hypergolic fuel vapors around the X-37B spaceplane on the Shuttle Landing Facility runway and the subsequent tow of the vehicle to its newly-renovated hangar at the Kennedy Space Center. Credit: Air Force
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X-37B spaceplane returns to Earth and makes autopilot landing in Florida
The military’s mini shuttle on the KSC runway this morning. Credit: Air Force Editor’s note: Exact landing time now added CAPE CANAVERAL — The Air Force’s robotic X-37B mini space shuttle swooped out of obscurity today after 718 days spent in orbit on a secretive military mission, touching down at the Kennedy Space Center’s orbiter…
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Video: Sunday’s landing of X-37B at Kennedy Space Center
The U.S. military’s mini space shuttle successfully returned to Earth today, touching down on Runway 15 at the Shuttle Landing Facility after spending 718 days in space. These video clips were released by the Air Force showing different views of the landing. (The NASA shuttle seen is a museum mockup being restored near the runway).
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No imminent X-37B landing planned
An artist’s concept of X-37B in orbit. Credit: Boeing CAPE CANAVERAL — The enigmatic X-37B spaceplane, launched into low-Earth orbit on an experimental military mission in 2015, continues to circle the planet despite a flurry of landing rumors. “The X-37 is still on-orbit. The program is conducting a regularly scheduled exercise this week,” said Capt.…
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One year in space: X-37B spaceplane celebrates anniversary without fanfare
Atlas 5 launches with X-37B on May 20, 2015. Credit: Walter Scriptunas II / Scriptunas Images CAPE CANAVERAL — Orbiting the world in seclusion for the past year, the Air Force’s mysterious X-37B spaceplane marks the anniversary of its launch today. The stubby-winged craft was boosted into space by a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5…
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One year in space: X-37B spaceplane celebrates anniversary without fanfare
Atlas 5 launches with X-37B on May 20, 2015. Credit: Walter Scriptunas II / Scriptunas Images CAPE CANAVERAL — Orbiting the world in seclusion for the past year, the Air Force’s mysterious X-37B spaceplane marks the anniversary of its launch today. The stubby-winged craft was boosted into space by a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5…
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LightSail hailed as precursor for low-cost planetary missions
A camera aboard LightSail took this picture of the deployed solar sail. Credit: The Planetary Society Managers in charge of the privately-funded LightSail solar sail in Earth orbit said Wednesday the success of the experiment is a step toward opening up the solar system to scores of modest science probes that could explore space at…
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Satellite comes back to life, deploys solar sail on second try
Artist’s concept of LightSail backdropped by the Milky Way galaxy. Credit: The Planetary Society Mission managers say the shoebox-sized LightSail satellite powered up its tiny deployment motor Sunday, and data from the diminutive spacecraft indicate its experimental solar sail unfurled in orbit hundreds of miles above Earth. The deployment sequence began at 3:47 p.m. EDT…
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Ground team battling on-and-off communications with LightSail
LightSail’s solar sail undergoes a deployment test on the ground in September 2014. Credit: Justin Foley/The Planetary Society After an up-and-down week of intermittent contact with the LightSail satellite, the tiny spacecraft radioed home Saturday, giving engineers hope to deploy the experiment’s solar sail as soon as Sunday. The deployment window opens at approximately 2:02…
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LightSail deployment set for this week
Updated June 2. Artist’s concept of the LightSail spacecraft after deployment of the solar sail. Credit: The Planetary Society The Planetary Society’s LightSail spacecraft is back in contact with ground controllers after nine days of radio silence triggered by a suspected software glitch, and engineers plan to send the command to unfurl the tiny satellite’s…