Uh, Autonomous landing? 7 Months in space!
Can it Carry Cargo?
If it can land itself while carrying say ...
Nevermind! Move along sheeple nothing to see here.
Foxnews
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – The U.S. Air Force's secrecy-shrouded X-37B unmanned spaceplane returned to Earth early Friday after more than seven months in orbit on a classified mission, officials said.
The winged craft autonomously landed at at Vandenberg Air Force Base on the California coast 130 miles northwest of Los Angeles, Vandenburg spokesman Jeremy Eggers said.
"It's very exciting," Eggers said of the 1:16 a.m. PST landing.
The X-37B was launched by an Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on April 22, 2010, with a maximum mission duration of 270 days.
Also known as the Orbital Test Vehicle, the Boeing-built spacecraft was originally a NASA project before being taken over by the military.
The Air Force has not said whether it carried anything in its cargo bay, but insists the primary purpose of the mission was to test the craft itself.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Unmanned US Spacecraft Returns After 7-Month Trip
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Phantom Eye hydrogen-powered spy plane unveiled
The Phantom Eye can stay in the air for 4 Days , at 65.000 feet .
BBC
Boeing has unveiled its unmanned hydrogen-powered spy plane which can fly non-stop for up to four days.
The high-altitude plane, called Phantom Eye, will remain aloft at 20,000m (65,000ft), according to the company.
The demonstrator will be shipped to Nasa's Dryden Flight Research Center in California later this summer to prepare for its first flight in early 2011.
Boeing says the aircraft could eventually carry out "persistent intelligence and surveillance".
It is a product of the company's secretive Phantom Works research and development arm.
Boeing says the aircraft is capable of long endurance flights because of its "lighter" and "more powerful" hydrogen fuel system.
"We flew Condor [the company's previous reconnaissance drone] for 60 hours in 1989 on regular jet fuel, and that was the maximum," said Chris Haddox from Boeing Phantom Works. "Now we're talking 96 hours."
