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December 10, 2012 10:17 pm GMT
Original Link: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/~3/saB6Ug4VHHA/
Secretive Air Force Space Plane Ready for Tuesday Liftoff
The secretive U.S. Air Force X-37B robotic space plane has been cleared to lift off on Dec. 11.
The X-37B vehicle and its cargo bay packed with a classified payload is set to make the third mission of the program. Also called Orbital Test Vehicle-3, or OTV-3, the unpiloted craft is slated to be hurled into Earth orbit by an Atlas 5 rocket from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) at 1:03 p.m. EST.
There's an interesting angle to the upcoming mission. This third flight will use the same X-37B spacecraft that flew the first test flight, the OTV-1 mission, back in 2010.
That maiden voyage of the miniature space plane lasted a little over 224 days, orbiting Earth from Apri…
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Original Link: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/~3/saB6Ug4VHHA/
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