The spaceplane was operated by Air Force Space Command, which has not revealed the specific identity of the payload for the first flight. The Air Force stated only that the spacecraft would "demonstrate various experiments and allow satellite sensors, subsystems, components, and associated technology to be transported into space and back."[6]
Launch
OTV-2 was launched aboard an Atlas V rocket, tail number AV-026, on 5 March 2011 from Space Launch Complex 41atCape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.[7][8] It was scheduled to launch on the previous day, 4 March, but weather prevented the launch on that day, forcing the reschedule to 5 March.
The X-37B spacecraft was originally intended to be deployed from the payload bay of a NASA Space Shuttle, but following the Columbia accident, it was transferred to a Delta II 7920, then subsequently transferred to the Atlas V following concerns over the X-37B's aerodynamic properties during launch.[3]
Prior to the installation of the spacecraft, the Atlas rocket was moved to the launch pad and performed a wet dress rehearsal on 4 February 2011.[7] It was returned to the Vertical Integration Facility the following day for final assembly.[9]
Mission
Most of the mission parameters for the first OTV-2 flight have not been disclosed.[10] The Air Force stated the mission time would depend on progress of the craft's experiments during orbit. On 29 November 2011 a spokesperson for the Secretary of the Air Force announced the mission was extended beyond its original life expectancy, citing ongoing experimentation.[11]
In addition to its unspecified payload, OTV-2 carried a folded solar panel in its cargo bay to power the spacecraft during its year and a half long mission.[12]
After completing its mission, OTV-2 deorbited, entered the atmosphere, and landed at Vandenberg Air Force Base on 16 June 2012 at 05:48 PT (12:48 GMT).[2] OTV-2 is the third reusable spaceplane to perform an automated landing after returning from orbit, the first being the Soviet Buran spacecraft in 1988[16] and the second, its sister craft, the OTV-1.[17]
^Chertok, Boris E. (2005). Siddiqi, Asif A. (ed.). Rockets and People. NASA History Series. Vol. 1. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. p. 179. SP-2005-4110.
Launches are separated by dots ( • ), payloads by commas ( , ), multiple names for the same satellite by slashes ( / ). Crewed flights are underlined. Launch failures are marked with the † sign. Payloads deployed from other spacecraft are (enclosed in parentheses).