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Air Force X-37B space plane lifts off on 4th flight, with LightSail in tow [i]The U.S. Air Force's secret-but-storied X-37B mini-space shuttle is back in orbit, having lifted off on its fourth clandestine mission Wednesday (May 20), with a prototype solar sail in tow. The unmanned Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV) launched atop a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 11:05 a.m. EDT (1505 GMT). Hitching a ride with the booster's upper stage were ten small satellites, called CubeSats, to be deployed separately from the space plane – including The Planetary Society's first LightSail. The X-37B's ascent marked the start of a new direction for the 29-foot-long (9-meter) classified shuttle. "With the success of the first three missions, we're able to shift our focus from checkouts of the vehicle to testing of experimental payloads," Randy Walden, director of the Air Force's Rapid Capabilities Office, said in a statement.[/i]
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