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Unmanned Robo-Shuttle to Launch Into Space This April

by Amar Toor on March 16, 2010 at 11:08 AM

After its long and often troubled history, the U.S. shuttle program seemed to be on life support. But, it may be getting the shot in the arm that it has so sorely needed, thanks to a new robotic aircraft called the X37B. At just 29-feet-long and weighing in at 11,000 pounds, the X37B has been in the works for some time, and was originally conceived, according to The Register, as a "lifeboat" reentry craft for the International Space Station crew. After NASA passed the project on to the Air Force, though, it was redesigned as an unmanned shuttle, capable of staying in orbit for long periods before automatically returning to Earth's surface. The Air Force has already conducted a few dry runs with the X37B "in atmosphere," and is now reportedly planning on launching it into orbit, for real, on April 19th.

So far, the Air Force has been pretty mum on details of what exactly the X37B will be doing out there, and hasn't even gone so far as to specify a date for its voyage back to Earth. According to the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, the only requirement for the baby robotic craft is to manage to stay in orbit and out of trouble for "up to 270 days." The Office added, though, "Actual length for the mission will depend on the meeting the mission objectives [sic], which consists [sic] of checkout and performance characteristics of the spacecraft systems."

It seems pretty clear that the Air Force is treading lightly -- and with good reason. After all, the X37B reportedly ran off the runway during an earlier test run in California. But, if all the kinks are worked out and this thing actually takes off (and comes back), it could signal the beginning of a new era for the shuttle project -- one in which the risk of human lives may be removed from the equation. [From: The Register, via: Engadget]

Tags: air force, AirForce, nasa, robot, shuttle, space, top, x37b

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