His last role before retiring from active service was as the Deputy Chief Technology and Innovation Officer for the Space Force.ĭuring the 90s and early 00s, he was also part of a precursor to the X-37B, the Boeing-built X-40 Space Maneuver Vehicle. Air Force and then the Space Force, but always in a space-focused role. Galbreath spent 30 years as part of the U.S. “The fact that it’s on a Falcon Heavy suggests to me that you’re not just going to a medium Earth orbit altitude here,” Galbreath said. Space Force said: “The use of a Falcon Heavy rocket will expand the X-37B flight envelope, launching into a new orbital regime, and enabling unique experimentation opportunities for the X-37B.”īased on notices issued to mariners and aviators related to the impact zones for the first and second stages, the Falcon Heavy will take a northerly trajectory from Cape Canaveral and might perform a so-called ‘dog leg’ maneuver to reach a high inclination orbit.Ĭharles Galbreath, a Senior Fellow for Space Studies at the Mitchell Institute’s Spacepower Advantage Center of Excellence (MI-SPACE), said that from an outsider’s perspective, he’s interested to see how these “new orbital regimes” play out for the vehicle. Spaceflight Now will have live coverage of the mission starting an hour and 30 minutes ahead of liftoff.Īs with prior flights of the military spaceplane, much about the mission remains undisclosed, including it’s orbit and activities after liftoff. The other five flights of the spaceplane used the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 501 rocket. SpaceX launched the fifth OTV mission in September 2017 on a Falcon 9. This will be the seventh mission for the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV) since its space debut in 2010 and the first time it has flown aboard the triple-booster Falcon Heavy rocket. In a post on social media, SpaceX did not provide a specific reason for the delay, but stated it would allow “time to complete additional pre-launch check outs.” The mission had been scheduled to liftoff Sunday evening but was delayed 24 hours. Space Force (USSF)-52, is set for liftoff during a ten-minute window on Monday, Dec. The fifth and final Falcon Heavy mission of 2023 is preparing to launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center carrying the X-37B, a secretive spaceplane operated by the U.S. SpaceX said they are looking at a backup opportunity no earlier than Tuesday, Dec. 11: SpaceX is standing down from its launch attempt of the USSF-52 mission due to “a ground side issue.” The scrub was followed by a delay of the Falcon 9 launch for the Starlink 6-34 mission as well. 12: SpaceX and SSC are now targeting launch of the USSF-52 mission at 8:13 p.m. 13: Falcon Heavy is returning to the hangar and launch of USSF-52 mission is on hold. The two side boosters are making their fifth flight while the center booster is launching on its first and only flight. A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket stands ready to launch the USSF-52 mission.
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