Mysterious X-37B Military Space Plane Caught on Camera (Photo)

[Judi Lynn]

By Leonard David 5 hours ago Spaceflight

We still don't know what the X-37B is doing up there, however.



The U.S. Air Force's X-37B robotic space plane in orbit, as photographed by satellite tracker Ralf Vandebergh. (Image: © Ralf Vandebergh)


Skywatcher and satellite tracker Ralf Vandebergh of the Netherlands recently caught a rare glimpse of the U.S. Air Force's secretive X-37B space plane.

Vandebergh said he'd been hunting for the robotic spacecraft for months and finally managed to track it down in May. But it took a bit longer to get photos of the vehicle.

"When I tried to observe it again [in] mid-June, it didn't meet the predicted time and path," Vandebergh explained. "It turned out to have maneuvered to another orbit. Thanks to the amateur satellite observers' network, it was rapidly found in orbit again, and I was able to take some images on June 30 and July 2."

The X-37B's recent passes were almost overhead, Vandebergh added.

More:
https://www.space.com/x-37b-space-plane-skywatcher-photo.html?utm_source=notification

[Kurt V.]

1. I've heard this is scram jet technology. where it sort of bounces along. not sure tho.