NASA Orion begins new era of crewed space exploration

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The future of America's manned space program received a boost on Friday with the successful lift-off of NASA's Orion spacecraft on its first orbital test flight.

Orion craft launches on test flight. (NASA)

Destined to carry four astronauts to an asteroid and the Moon during the next decade, the Lockheed Martin-built Orion spacecraft was uncrewed as NASA aims to learn how it will perform both in space and during it's return home.

"It's the beginning of exploration It's the beginning of putting Orion in space," exclaimed NASA Orion Program Manager Mark Geyer. "On a flight test like this if there are subtleties in how the vehicle behaves with the environments, my hope is that we find that on this test flight."

The launch occurred a few minutes after sunrise and one day late following an attempt to get the Delta IV off the ground. Problem plagued fuel valves, winds and a stray civilian boat forced launch control to scrub on Thursday.

Thousands of spectators returned to the beaches and causeways around Cape Canaveral early Friday, many who camped for three days just to secure a good place. "We arrived at our hotel on Cocoa Beach a few days ago just so that we could watch the launch," said Jennifer Hyatt of East Lancing, Michigan. "The lift-off this morning was incredible with the rumble and smoke column."

The prelaunch activities happened during the predawn hours as the United Launch Alliance launch team and the Air Force fueled the Delta IV rocket and brought the Orion spacecraft to life. The trouble free countdown neared its end as the first rays of the Sun broke above the Atlantic horizon and bathed the 250-foot tall rocket.

NASA to launch uncrewed Orion on orbital test flight

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The future of NASA crewed spaceflights beyond Earth orbit will be put to the test Thursday as the space agency launches a new spacecraft to qualify it's performance in space and the capability of its heat shield during its return to earth.

Built by Lockheed Martin, the cone-shaped Orion spacecraft will fly uncrewed during this first test flight -- NASA's first step in returning Americans to the Moon in the 2020's and later an asteroid and on to Mars.

"This is special. This is our first step on that journey to Mars," exclaimed Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana on Monday. "This is a huge first step to be able to check out the vehicle on the Delta IV."

The success of this $370 million mission will weigh heavily for NASA as the space agency looks to recapture the glory days of human spaceflight. The end of the space shuttle program in 2011 marked the last time Americans soared into earth orbit from the United States. Orion will allow four astronauts to fly beyond low earth orbit beginning with the first crewed flight in 2021.

Private American companies are moving forward under NASA's leadership to prepare in launching astronauts to the space station a few years earlier, while NASA focuses on launching beyond earth orbit.

"We are going to test the riskier parts of the mission with ascent and entry," said NASA Orion Program Manager Mark Geyer. "Things like the faring separation, heat shield, parachutes, guidance... those kinds of things. As well as flying into deep space and examining the radiation effects on the avionics."

Future NASA Launch Escape System Tested

The Launch Escape System separates from Orion today. (NASA)

A new version of a launch escape system for the upcoming Orion manned spacecraft was successfully tested this morning at NASA’s White Sands Test Facility.

The new escape system is designed to pull the Orion craft away from a troubled or exploding core rocket from prelaunch or up thru the initial launch phase.

The Pad Abort 1 test ignited and launched at 9:00:01 am EDT this morning, near Las Cruces, New Mexico. (Watch the NASA Video)

NASA's first fully integrated test of the multiple motors associated with the launch escape system went very smoothly while mounted a top a mock Orion module. The system is designed for future Orion manned launches beginning no earlier than 2014.

The craft was sent one mile in altitude and landed about one mile north of the test site, landing some 97 seconds later.

The launch team stated an hour after the test concluded that they saw no anomalies and that it was outstanding.

The abort motor begins the escape launch process as it produces 500,000 pounds of thrust or 15 G's to launch the Orion upward.

The Attitude Control System Motor which uses 8 solid motor thruster valves then reorients the craft and swings it 180 degrees to prepare for the drag chutes to deploy. The ACS motors pitch Orion from the six o'clock position up to the 9 o'clock and around to the 4 o'clock position to begin the landing sequence.

The jettison motor then ejects the launch escape tower away from the Orion so that a series of parachutes can begin to deploy and slow the craft down.

The craft landed at a speed of 23 miles per hour.

This was the United States' first abort system test since the early Apollo days in 1966.

The Orion craft parachutes down this morning (NASA)

KSC Visitors get upclose with Orion Module

(NASA-KSC Images)

The Orion crew exploration module mock up has arrived at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida, and Apollo-styled module quickly became a popular attraction on Thursday at America's Spaceport.

Following a few days here at the visitor's area at Spaceport USA, it will be used at the KSC industrial complex and destined for the "open water" of the Atlantic Ocean as it begins water tests in support of the Orion landing operations.

"The Post-landing Orion Recovery Test, or PORT, is to determine what kind of motion astronauts can expect after landing, as well as outside conditions for recovery teams", stated Brian Dunbar with NASA public affairs on Thursday.

Orion - which is one piece of Project Constellation - will begin making routine trips to the international space station as it carries a crew of four and supplies beginning in 2015. NASA also plans to use Orion as the command module as America proudly returns to the Moon in 2020.

Once Orion begins its decent for landing back here on earth, it will carry a landing profile much like the Apollo command module did between 1968 thru 1975 -- an ocean landing.

This August, the Ares 1 will have a test launch from launch pad 39-B here at KSC with a dummy Orion module a top as NASA gets underway with the first real tests of the Constellation project.