Top secret US spaceship returns to Earth after 434 days on mysterious mission… and is met by hazmat-clad ground crew
The spaceship performed a never-before-seen “invisible” manoeuvre
by Lydia Doye
The X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle-7 landed at the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California where it was met by hazmat-clad ground crew.
The spaceship began its return to Earth after successfully completing its “test and experimentation objectives”.
The X-37B completed a never-before-seen aerobraking manoeuvre to change its orbit.
Aerobraking involves making several passes into the Earth’s atmosphere which causes drag to rapidly change the craft’s orbit.
In doing so, the spaceship expends minimal fuel, making it temporarily invisible to other nations who could be tracking it.