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That U.S. Space Force X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV-7) has silently slipped past one-year of flight time.
The craft is engaged in performing aerobrake maneuvers, a technique to alter its orbit around Earth, as well as safely dispose of its attached service module.
Lofted in December of 2023, the military spaceplane was placed in an orbit higher than any of the earlier space plane missions – into a highly elliptical high Earth orbit.
From that orbit, the United States Space Force, supported by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, conducted radiation effect experiments and tested Space Domain Awareness technologies.
X-37B/OTV-7 is also referred to as United States Space Force-52 (USSF-52). This spaceplane was lofted on Dec. 28, 2023.
Artist rendering of the X-37B performing an aerobraking maneuver using the drag of Earth’s atmosphere.
(Image credit: Boeing Space)
In a statement released last year by Boeing, builder of the X37B "will perform ground-breaking aerobraking maneuvers to take the dynamic spaceplane from one Earth orbit to another while conserving fuel. Partnered with the United States Space Force, this novel demonstration is the first of its kind."
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The use of the aerobraking maneuver requires the heat-tiled spacecraft to conduct a series of passes using the drag of Earth's atmosphere. That technique enables the spacecraft to change orbits while expending minimal fuel.
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