| Secret space shuttle flies again |
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 X-37B, U.S. Air Force's top secret unmanned space shuttle, has returned to orbit. On Saturday, shot up from the Cape Canaveral, carried by an Atlas V rocket. This is a second copy of the space shuttle. The first was launched for the first time in April 2010 and ended 225 days later on the Vandenberg-field without greater problems than a flat tire on the runway. What information it had, and what the sister craft to do this time is the secret. Air Force and Boeing engineer called the shuttle “Orbital Test Vehicle,” and it will be used to test reusable space vehicles. The secrecy has led to much speculation about what information the X-37B will have in the future. X-37B only nine feet long and has a cargo bay that can accommodate a van. It can spend 270 days in orbit, and make many changes. Some possible options that would give the Air Force is deploying satellites, control or firing weapons at targets on the ground or to attack other satellites. It could also be used as a mobile spy satellite that can be postponed at short notice. Both Russia and China has threatened to build their own unmanned shuttles to counter the X-37B if it is a threat. |
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