Categories: MilitarySpace FlightTechnology

Gallery: X-37B Space Plane Returns to Earth

The X-37B after landing. Credit: 30th Space Wing (Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

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The secret military space plane has returned home, and while the mission was classified, the Air Force and Boeing have supplied pictures of the craft after landing. With this mission appearing to be a success, the Air Force is preparing to launch the next X-37B, OTV-2, in Spring 2011 aboard an Atlas V booster.

See more images below.

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X-37B is shown here after landing at 1:16 a.m. Pacific time today, concluding its more than 220-day experimental test mission. Credit: Boeing

The X-37B after landing. Credit: 30th Space Wing (Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

X-37B on the runway at Vandenburg Air Force Base. Credit: Boeing.

X-37B after landing. Credit: 30th Wing, Vandenberg Air Force Base.

X-37B is shown here after landing at 1:16 a.m. Pacific time today, concluding its more than 220-day experimental test mission. Credit: Boeing

X-37B Landing by 30th Space Wing (Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.)

Here’s a video which includes the landing (which we showed on our previous article) plus post landing activities.

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy has been with Universe Today since 2004, and has published over 6,000 articles on space exploration, astronomy, science and technology. She is the author of two books: "Eight Years to the Moon: the History of the Apollo Missions," (2019) which shares the stories of 60 engineers and scientists who worked behind the scenes to make landing on the Moon possible; and "Incredible Stories from Space: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Missions Changing Our View of the Cosmos" (2016) tells the stories of those who work on NASA's robotic missions to explore the Solar System and beyond. Follow Nancy on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Nancy_A and and Instagram at and https://www.instagram.com/nancyatkinson_ut/