A military spacecraft of unknown origin has taken launched using one of Elon Musk’s rockets.
Using one of its Falcon Heavy rockets, the billionaire’s rocket business SpaceX launched the US Space Force’s top-secret X-37B spacecraft into orbit on Thursday.
The mysterious spacecraft has been launched by Elon Musk’s rocket business twice before, with multiple delays in the launch process.
The unmanned, shuttle-shaped craft is currently the record holder for the greatest duration in orbit, having spent 908 days in orbit. It often circles the planet for months at a time carrying out unidentified military tasks, which has some people wondering if it is being used for espionage.
Though its actual mission is kept under wraps, NASA uses the Boeing-built spacecraft for research projects including studying the effects of prolonged cosmic radiation on plant seeds.
In a recent statement, the Space Force stated that X-37B would be “operating in new orbital regimes” during this mission, which may imply an attempt to break the spacecraft’s existing record for both altitude and duration in orbit.
In 2018, then-president Donald Trump stated Space Force would be the first new arm of the US military in over 50 years. Since then, SpaceX has seen a significant increase in customerele.
In November, the military command, which had been mocked for its Star Trek-inspired emblem at its initial release, granted $1.23 billion in launch contracts to Elon Musk’s rocket business.
Being the only US supplier now able to launch astronauts into orbit, SpaceX’s dominance in the rocket sector is further evidenced by the US government’s reliance on the California-based corporation.
This year, SpaceX has launched ninety-six times, or around every few days. That surpasses the total of its rivals, with well-known rivals like Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin finding it difficult to overtake.
When Business Insider reached out to SpaceX for comment outside of regular business hours, the company did not immediately reply.