A rare photo of the Earth from the United States Space Force’s secretive X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle was released by the Space Force on Friday.
Sharing a picture of the Earth that was captured in space by the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle, the Space Force tweeted, “An X-37B onboard camera, used to ensure the health and safety of the vehicle, captures an image of Earth while conducting experiments in HEO in 2024.”
The Space Force added that the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle completed a series of “first-of-kind maneuvers, called aerobraking,” which allowed the space vessel to “safely change its orbit using minimal fuel.”
Fox News reported that Friday’s picture released by the Space Force is the first photo to be released to the public from the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle’s current mission. According to the Space Force’s website, the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle is currently on its seventh mission after launching from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in December of 2023.
While Fox News reported that the Space Force has not released many details regarding the current mission of the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle, the Space Force announced that the mission included a “wide range of test and experimentation objectives” prior to the launch of the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle’s seventh mission in 2023.
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“These tests include operating the reusable spaceplane in new orbital regimes, experimenting with future space domain awareness technologies, and investigating the radiation effects on materials provided by NASA,” the Space Force stated.
At the time, Lt. Col. Joseph Fritschen, program director for the X-37B, said, “We are excited to expand the envelope of the reusable X-37B’s capabilities, using the flight-proven service module and Falcon Heavy rocket to fly multiple cutting-edge experiments for the Department of the Air Force and its partners.”
