Space plane slated for early 2010

A new kind of space vehicle, 27.5 feet long with a 15 foot wingspan, will be launched next year—possibly in January—if all goes well.

The X-37 had some problems in an April 2006 test flight

Drone space plane

It will be NASA’s X-37B unmanned space plane, designed by Boeing. As a test vehicle, NASA hopes it will be the forerunner of future space planes. An earlier version of the vehicle was tested over the Mojave desert back in April 2006. In the test, the craft was released into the atmosphere by the White Knight, the carrier craft designed to be used with SpaceShipOne. That test was less than completely successful—the X37 rolled off the runway completely upon landing

The new vehicle, presumably, won’t experience the same problems. Interestingly, the x37B is described as a military space plane.

Changes in launch plans

Originally, the spacecraft was scheduled to be launched from the cargo bay of a space shuttle. This plan was changed after the Columbia disaster. Next, plans called for a launch using Delta rocket. The launch is now planned using an Atlas V EELV—essentially, a descendant of the rocket used to launch John Glenn into orbit in 1962.