Watch Space Force's top secret spaceplane perform 'groundbreaking' orbital maneuver

The Pentagon has kept a tight lid on details about the Space Force's secretive spaceplane that is perpetually flying 500 miles above Earth's surface. Space Force released a video showing the X-37B spacecraft's 'groundbreaking' maneuver The X-37B aircraft is the first of its kind to use the Earth's atmosphere to reach a new level of orbit using an aerobraking procedure that relies on the friction to slow it down Space Force has not released information about the spacecraft's main function but has said it will conduct experiments involving 'space domain awareness technologies.' The spacecraft pointed its nose away from Earth as the friction heated up its underside, causing the bottom to cast an orange glow and slow down the vehicle 'Once the aerobrake maneuver is complete, the X-37B will resume its test and experimentation objectives until they are accomplished, at which time the vehicle will deorbit and execute a safe return as it has during its six previous missions,' the Space Force said. The X-37B spacecraft launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in December Holly Murphy, program director for Boeing's Experimental Systems Group, said in the video: 'X-37B missions have continuously advanced our nation's space capabilities by testing new technologies that reduce risk and inform our future space architectures. Space Force's X-37B has so far spent roughly 10 months in orbit but the agency has yet to reveal when its seventh mission will conclude.