# GENERAL FORUM > IN THE NEWS >  Top-secret space plane lands on California coast

## Times Roman

It makes you wonder what we really have up our sleeve? Most analysts will say the government will not unveil something like this unless they have something better to replace it with.

Top-secret space plane lands on California coast

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AP)  A top-secret space plane landed Friday at an Air Force base on the Southern California coast.

The plane spent nearly two years circling Earth on a classified mission. Known as the X-37B, it resembles a mini space shuttle.

It safely touched down at 9:24 a.m. Friday, officials at Vandenberg Air Force Base said.

Just what the plane was doing during its 674 days in orbit has been the subject of sometimes spectacular speculation.

Several experts have theorized it carried a payload of spy gear in its cargo bay. Other theories sound straight out of a James Bond film, including that the spacecraft would be able to capture the satellites of other nations or shadow China's space lab.

In a written release announcing the return of the craft, the Air Force only said it had been conducting "on-orbit experiments."

The X-37B program has been an orphan of sorts, bouncing since its inception in 1999 between several federal agencies, NASA among them. It now resides under the Air Force's Rapid Capabilities Office.

The plane that landed Friday is one of two built by Boeing. This is the program's third mission, and began in December 2012.

The plane stands 9 1/2 feet tall and is just over 29 feet long, with a wingspan under 15 feet. It weighs 11,000 pounds and has solar panels that unfurl to charge its batteries once in orbit.

The Air Force said it plans to launch the fourth X-37B mission from Cape Canaveral, Florida, next year.

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## Times Roman



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## Mp859

The picture of that thing makes it loom like a piece of crap.

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## Times Roman

I'm sure the pic was taken at night, and with some type of night vision enhancement.

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## Mp859

> I'm sure the pic was taken at night, and with some type of night vision enhancement.


 I mean the design of that thing in general.

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## Times Roman

so it makes you wonder what a robotic orbital space ship is capable of if it can remain in orbit for two years before coming back down and landing unscathed? How many think there might be some kind of device on board that could also double as a weapon? Satellite destroyer? 

There was an article a couple of months ago about someone seeing a UFO, small, outside the space station. I'm thinking it was probably this thing?

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## lovbyts

> It makes you wonder what we really have up our sleeve? Most analysts will say the government will not unveil something like this unless they have something better to replace it with.
> 
> Top-secret space plane lands on California coast
> 
> VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AP) — A top-secret space plane landed Friday at an Air Force base on the Southern California coast.
> 
> The plane spent nearly two years circling Earth on a classified mission. Known as the X-37B, it resembles a mini space shuttle.
> 
> It safely touched down at 9:24 a.m. Friday, officials at Vandenberg Air Force Base said.
> ...


OK that answers the question I was going to ask, was it manned?

Hmmm I wonder if I worked on any of the design or manufacturing at one time? Probably not since its been several years since I was in that part of the field.

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## Times Roman

> OK that answers the question I was going to ask, was it manned?
> 
> Hmmm I wonder if I worked on any of the design or manufacturing at one time? Probably not since its been several years since I was in that part of the field.


unmanned. it was a robotic drone.

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## zejj

it looks like a hot dog

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## MuscleScience

Is Times Roman still around? Miss that guy

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## jstone

> Is Times Roman still around? Miss that guy


He is gone from what I understand.

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## RigPig

> He is gone from what I understand.


He's still around from time to time and answers PMs.
Idont speak to him often but once in a while i'll check up on him to see how he's doing

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## Marsoc

> I'm sure the pic was taken at night, and with some type of night vision enhancement.


Infrared

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## Obs

> 


Looks like a big ass airstream! Lmao! They were testing out white trash space exploration!

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## InternalFire

To me looks like robotic orca in the space...

Sent from my eyePhone

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## jstone

> He's still around from time to time and answers PMs.
> Idont speak to him often but once in a while i'll check up on him to see how he's doing


Haven't seen him around since I was very new. I thought someone said he wasn't around. I liked some of tbe stuff he posted about things like this.

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