Secretive mini space shuttle set for Space Coast launch; late-night sonic boom possible

[Here’s the original article as published by the Orlando Sentinel](https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/08/21/secretive-mini-space-shuttle-set-for-space-coast-launch-late-night-sonic-boom-possible/). Authored by Richard Tribou.

It’s the same article, but it has more up-close pictures of the X-37 space plane (and not some generic picture of some space launch). At a newspaper site, you should expect to get ads/tracking/etc just like on phys.org.

Phys.org is a content aggregator. They collect free and licensed content (like this**), and publish their own ads/tracking/whatever with it. Usually the original article is better browsing in some way and in this case, it’s those photographs. I assume phys.org could not gain the permission the Orlando Sentinel had on them.

** This appears to be licensed! They mentioned the 3rd party broker/distributor… how ’bout that…

Any idea why the landing sonic boom was so much more louder last night than typical returns?

Looking at launch/return trajectories, they don’t seem very different then normal low-earth launches