X-37B launch. Your thoughts on the purpose of the X-37

[Disgustipated]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/wor...-unmanned-space-shuttle-launched-tonight.html

http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/space/nasa/behind-the-air-forces-secret-robotic-space-plane

I didn't see a thread on it here or off-topic. Hopefully this is the right forum for this. We don't have a military forum...

Anyways stuff like this is interesting to me, even if I don't know what it does. I guess the thrill is if it can be used for war purposes in orbit. Blowing up satellites maybe? Intercepting missiles targetting our satellites?

What are your thoughts on this vehicle? Waste of money or possible future use?

 

[warpus]

This thing is tiny. Check it out.

At first I was like, whoa, what the hell, space shuttle? But nah.. It's so small.. They're probably gonna use it to do secret satellite fixin/destroyin

 

[Phrossack]

As for weaponising it, nobody wants to open Pandora's box by arming space, and there are treaties against exactly this sort of thing.

Anyway, how will they use the experiment bay if nobody's on board to do the experiments? Remote control?

 

[warpus]

As for weaponising it, nobody wants to open Pandora's box by arming space, and there are treaties against exactly this sort of thing.

You think this is going to stop the U.S. military? What else could they be using this for?

 

[Phrossack]

Like they said in the article, a highly mobile satellite able to take evasive action or reposition quickly.

 

[uppi]

Anyway, how will they use the experiment bay if nobody's on board to do the experiments? Remote control?

Almost every larger experiment today is computer controlled anyway, so if your electronics has access to every function you need, it doesn't matter if the experiment is in the same room, a few rooms away or in space.

Physical access only matters if you need to build something new or something breaks. But in space you would have trouble ordering spare parts, anyway.

 

[warpus]

Like they said in the article, a highly mobile satellite able to take evasive action or reposition quickly.

For what purpose though?

 

[Yared]

It certainly does add a new dimension to Space Warfare.

 

[civ editor11]

It could become a highly evasive missile site. The Space UAV We could stockpile it like a submarine with no need to protect human life onboard. It is the perfect weaponizable platform.

 

[J-man]

Spy plane/Spy satellite hybrid?

Or perhaps the first protoype for the Prompt global strike?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prompt_Global_Strike

 

[Fetus4188]

If it's indeed marked as an X-# it's purpose is experimental and will never be used itself as anything other than a real world aerospace laboratory to gather data. Save your conspiracies for satellites designed in the future that would make use of the information gathered from this.