SpaceX to Launch US Military's Secret ‘Space Plane’ Monday After Delay

Little is known about the largely classified mission, USSF-52, or its X-37B space plane, also known as the Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV). Similar in shape and design to NASA’s iconic Space Shuttle, the X-37B is tiny in comparison, with a wingspan of 15 feet and a length of 29 feet. NASA’s space shuttle was 122 feet long and had a wingspan of 78 feet.

SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket is scheduled to launch the Boeing manufactured X-37B space plane for the US Space Force on Monday after a 24-hour delay due to inclement weather prevented a Sunday launch.

“Now targeting Monday, December 11 for Falcon Heavy’s launch of the USSF-52 mission, with weather conditions forecasted to improve to 70% favorable for liftoff on Monday night,” the company wrote on X. “The team will use the time to complete additional pre-launch check outs.”

SpaceX is expected to livestream the launch, which is planned for a 10-minute window that opens at 8:14 pm EST (01:14 am GMT). The X-37B will be launched with SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket system.

This is the seventh OTV mission, OTV-1 through OTV-6 used either the United Launch Atlas V rockets or SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets for liftoff.

The Falcon Heavy rockets utilizes three Falcon 9 rockets during its first stage. The Falcon Heavy outperforms both systems used in previous OTV missions.

While much of the mission remains classified, a release from Space Force revealed that the mission’s objectives include “operating in new orbital regimes” presumably referring to higher orbits further from Earth. That could account for why the OTV-7 launch requires more powerful rockets than its predecessors.

Another stated goal is “experimenting with space domain awareness technologies” and when combined with the X-37B’s cargo bay, could indicate that sophisticated, possibly heavy, equipment is on board, requiring the extra lift.

One unclassified project known to be a part of the USSF-52 mission is NASA’s Seed-2 project, which will look at the effects of space radiation and long-term space travel on plant seeds.

The previous OTV launch, the OTV-6, concluded in November 2022, successfully landing after spending 908 days in orbit. Like OTV-7, one of its experiments also tested the effects of space travel on plant seeds.

The USSF-52 mission is scheduled to launch at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex-39A, roughly 15 miles north of Cape Canaveral.