<\/p>\n SpaceX will broadcast the launch beginning at about 11:30 p.m. EDT (0330 GMT, Aug. 22), with streams available on the USSF-36 mission website<\/a> and SpaceX’s profile on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n You may like<\/p>\n It is the sixth flight for the Falcon 9 booster supporting the USSF-36 launch, B1092, which previously launched NROL-69<\/a>, CRS-32<\/a>, GPS III-7<\/a>, and Starlink groups 12-13<\/a> and 10-34<\/a>. The booster is expected to return to the Space Coast for recovery at SpaceX’s Landing Zone-2, located at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, a few miles downrange from the launchpad.<\/p>\n Another look at the X-37B, which is about 29 feet (8.8 meters) long. (Image credit: US Space Force)<\/p>\n OTV-8 will focus X-37B’s mission on two primary technology demonstrations: a laser communications system and a quantum inertial sensor to test a new type of in-space positioning system, like GPS, according to a July 28 statement<\/a> Space Force statement.<\/p>\n These technologies represent major advancements in their respective fields. Laser communications capable of supporting heavier data loads and tougher security safeguards, compared to traditional radio.<\/p>\n And, instead of traditional GPS<\/a>, X-37B’s quantum sensor will measure the inertia of nearby atoms to help inform the space plane’s navigational position on orbit, without reliance on existing satellite infrastructure.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/YMvZPcJY6QpJnj9MU9WxiW.jpg\")
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