A loud sonic boom awakened residents of Florida's Space Coast late in the evening on August 21, 2025, when SpaceX launched a classified mission for the U.S. Space Force with its Falcon 9 rocket. That mission's payload?
The X-37B space plane, an autonomous, reusable orbital vehicle that exists with limited public knowledge. At 11:50 EDT, the Falcon 9 lifted off, and it would be the eighth of the X-37B - a crucial part of our military space mission.
Although many of the particulars about the launch were classified, officials confirmed that the mission would test advanced technologies in quantum navigation and laser satellite communications.
The Falcon 9 booster launched and returned (and boomed) for a successful event that was on display as a technical achievement but just as surely a sign of space's increasing strategic value.
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More photos from tonight’s Falcon 9 launch of the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle’s eighth mission to orbit pic.twitter.com/qURZEEqRQn
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 22, 2025
What is the X‑37B Space Plane?
The X‑37B, also called the Orbital Test Vehicle, or OTV, is a reusable, unmanned spaceplane developed by Boeing and flown by the U.S. Space Force.
It is about the size of a small bus, and has the look of a scaled-down version of NASA's retired space shuttle, but it is fully autonomous and designed to fly without human crew.
Though originally designed by NASA and then transitioned to the Department of Defense, the X‑37B is designed to examine new, cutting-edge technologies in space, and to deliver classified military payloads.
Missions can last for months and years in space and then land on Earth, like a plane, on a runway.
Even while much of the mission remains classified, it is essential to advancing our capabilities in space for defense, navigation, and communications.
SpaceX Falcon 9 X‑37B Space Plane Launch
On the evening of August 21, 2025, SpaceX launched the U.S. Space Force's X-37B space plane on a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The mission, designated USSF-36 mission, was the eighth flight of the X-37B, a reusable, unmanned orbital vehicle manufactured by Boeing that has yet to be disclosed to the public primarily due to its military applications.
The launch illuminated the night sky, and after tha,t the loud sonic boom that followed could be heard throughout Florida's Space Coast when the Falcon 9's first-stage booster returned for a precision landing at Cape Canaveral. The X-37B was then launched on its mission in low Earth orbit to execute a series of classified experiments, which include tests of advanced laser communication systems and a quantum-based inertial navigation sensor.
This mission illustrates the emerging partnership between SpaceX and the U.S. military. The growing and contested strategic nature of space and iteratively developing new capabilities is becoming clearer. The Falcon 9 vehicle's flawless performance further supports that SpaceX is an increasingly reliable provider in the commercial space market and the U.S. Defense market.
Sonic Boom Startles Florida Residents
On the night of August 21, 2025, thousands of residents across Florida’s Space Coast and beyond were shocked when a powerful sonic boom shook their homes as SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched the X‑37B space plane into orbit.
The noise, which followed the launch just minutes earlier, was a result of the rocket’s first-stage booster coming back to Earth and breaking the sound barrier before landing at Cape Canaveral’s Landing Zone 1.
The short-booming noise was a fully dramatic reminder of the power of today’s modern rocket launches, and Florida's growing role in the future of military and commercial spaceflight.
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