The mysterious space shuttle X-37B will launch on December 12 aboard a Falcon Heavy rocket. It was launched in the interests of the US Air Force.
The X-37B space shuttle is a mystery to the space shuttle. Little is known about the U.S. spacecraft. There are few facts about the previous mission. What the shuttle carries into space, and what it does during its stay in orbit, which can sometimes last months, is a closely kept secret.
This makes all the more interesting the unusual option of a launch vehicle to send the X-37B into space for the next mission. This is SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket. So far, spacecraft have been put into orbit on smaller rockets.
This mysterious spacecraft can automatically deploy small satellites and conduct experiments. The shuttle flies without astronauts, receives energy from the solar system and independently lands on the designated runway at the end of each mission (there have already been 7 times).
The X-37B first flew into orbit in 2010. The most recent flight took place about a year ago, when the spacecraft landed safely on NASA's old Space Shuttle runway in Florida after nearly 30 months in orbit. It was the X-37B's longest flight to date. In all missions, the spacecraft flew at an altitude of only a few hundred kilometers.
In the upcoming mission, the spacecraft will have a longer range than before, so it is likely that it will be sent into space by a Falcon Heavy rocket. According to military documents, the rocket will deliver 6350 kg of cargo to height 350,000 km of geostationary transfer orbit.
The X-37B weighs 5 tons, but is also equipped with a service module of undetermined weight. However, the documents are 5 years old and the Space Force is reluctant to provide any information on the details of the mission.