Space Force's "Secret" Space Plane: Unveiling the Upcoming Mission

The United States Space Force's secretive X-37B space plane, built by Boeing, is preparing for its seventh mission, scheduled to launch on December 7. The upcoming mission will be the first to use a Falcon Heavy rocket, a more powerful launch vehicle than previous missions. While many details about the X-37B's activities and payloads remain classified, it is known that the upcoming mission will involve operating in new orbital regimes and conducting experiments related to space domain awareness technologies and the effects of radiation. One known experiment is NASA's Seeds-2, which will expose seeds to space radiation during a long-duration flight to study the impact on plants.