3 ms·

Does someone know approximately how many times per day this plane would orbit the planet? I was wondering to try and figure out how far it has "flown" to date.

Does someone know approximately how many times per day this plane would orbit the planet? I was wondering to try and figure out how far it has "flown" to date. You could say the plane has an incredible range!

CapitalistCartr 4y ago
No way to know for us, but typically, 75 to 90 minutes per orbit.
- loeg 4y ago
  If we knew the altitude, wouldn't we have a pretty good estimate? And vice verca? I think amateurs have probably observed this already. Here's a claim[1]: > The spaceplane is orbiting at an altitude of about 320 kilometers (a little under 200 miles) 320 km gives an orbital period of ~91 minutes. [1]: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/spaceplane-x-37-180957777/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/spaceplane...
  - Pakdef 4y ago
    > I think amateurs have probably observed this already. Here a video of it taken by an amateur: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WbpLxDxVDS8 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WbpLxDxVDS8 if you can believe it (it's listed in the article)
- robonerd 4y ago
  Satellites like this can be observed from Earth, so those details aren't really as secret as the government may wish. But yes, about 90 minutes; it's generally around 300-400 km up.
  - tiagod 4y ago
    From the article: https://youtu.be/WbpLxDxVDS8 https://youtu.be/WbpLxDxVDS8
- trothamel 4y ago
  N2YO says that it's 91.2 minutes per orbit. https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=45606#results https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=45606#results
ortusdux 4y ago
Here is a good tracking page: https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=45606 https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=45606 From those numbers, a rough estimate is 159.3 million miles, 14.25 light minutes, or 1.7 AU. https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=%282*pi*%28%286713km%29%2F2%29%29+*+%28770+days%2F91.2+minutes%29 https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=%282*pi*%28%286713km%29... Orbital tracking of the earlier missions was interesting, as the vehicle can change orbits easily. There was a bit of a cat and mouse game between hobbyists and the operators IIRC. This is the vehicle's 6th flight, so summing up all 6 missions so far gets you roughly 751 million miles traveled, or 1.12 light hours / 8 AU. https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=%282*pi*%28%286713km%29%2F2%29%29+*+%28%28770+days%2B224+days+%2B+468+days+%2B+674+days+%2B+717+days+%2B+779+days%29%2F91.2+minutes%29 https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=%282*pi*%28%286713km%29...

CapitalistCartr 4y ago

No way to know for us, but typically, 75 to 90 minutes per orbit.

loeg 4y ago
If we knew the altitude, wouldn't we have a pretty good estimate? And vice verca? I think amateurs have probably observed this already. Here's a claim[1]: > The spaceplane is orbiting at an altitude of about 320 kilometers (a little under 200 miles) 320 km gives an orbital period of ~91 minutes. [1]: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/spaceplane-x-37-180957777/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/spaceplane...
- Pakdef 4y ago
  > I think amateurs have probably observed this already. Here a video of it taken by an amateur: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WbpLxDxVDS8 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WbpLxDxVDS8 if you can believe it (it's listed in the article)
robonerd 4y ago
Satellites like this can be observed from Earth, so those details aren't really as secret as the government may wish. But yes, about 90 minutes; it's generally around 300-400 km up.
- tiagod 4y ago
  From the article: https://youtu.be/WbpLxDxVDS8 https://youtu.be/WbpLxDxVDS8
trothamel 4y ago
N2YO says that it's 91.2 minutes per orbit. https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=45606#results https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=45606#results

ortusdux 4y ago

Here is a good tracking page: https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=45606 https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=45606 From those numbers, a rough estimate is 159.3 million miles, 14.25 light minutes, or 1.7 AU. https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=%282*pi*%28%286713km%29%2F2%29%29+*+%28770+days%2F91.2+minutes%29 https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=%282*pi*%28%286713km%29... Orbital tracking of the earlier missions was interesting, as the vehicle can change orbits easily. There was a bit of a cat and mouse game between hobbyists and the operators IIRC. This is the vehicle's 6th flight, so summing up all 6 missions so far gets you roughly 751 million miles traveled, or 1.12 light hours / 8 AU. https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=%282*pi*%28%286713km%29%2F2%29%29+*+%28%28770+days%2B224+days+%2B+468+days+%2B+674+days+%2B+717+days+%2B+779+days%29%2F91.2+minutes%29 https://www.wolframalpha.com/input?i=%282*pi*%28%286713km%29...