NASA's Orion capsule blasts off on 'first step' to MarsAFP
By Kerry Sheridan 33 minutes ago
The United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket carrying NASA's first Orion deep space exploration craft takes off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on December 5, 2014 (AFP Photo/Joe Raedle)Cape Canaveral (AFP) - The US space agency's Orion capsule blasted off Friday on its first journey into orbit, a key test flight for a vehicle that could carry people to deep space destinations like Mars in the coming years.
The unmanned spacecraft soared into space at 7:05 am (1205 GMT) atop a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket that rumbled and roared as it climbed into the pastel skies over the Florida coast at sunrise, leaving a plume of smoke in its wake.
Cheers could be heard at Kennedy Space Center as the rocket took off, though the crowds were thinner than they were on Thursday, when 27,000 people showed up for a launch that was delayed by wind gusts and technical problems.
Those concerns vanished on Friday.
"It was just a blast to see how well the rocket did," said Orion program manager Mark Geyer.
"Being near a launch -- a rocket that big -- you can feel it."
The United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket carrying NASA's first Orion deep space exploration craft takes off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on December 5, 2014 (AFP Photo/Joe Raedle)The mission is the first in more than four decades of a new US spacecraft intended to carry humans to the Moon or beyond.
NASA says the Orion launch has reinvigorated a manned exploration program that has been stagnant for more than three years since the last space shuttle carried a crew of astronauts to the International Space Station.
The 30-year shuttle program ended in 2011, leaving the United States no option but to pay Russia to carry astronauts on its Soyuz capsules at a cost of $71 million per seat.
- Two loops -
The four-and-a-half hour flight aims to test crucial systems like the heat shield and parachute splashdown.
The United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket carrying NASA's first Orion deep space exploration craft takes off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on December 5, 2014 (AFP Photo/Joe Raedle)The spacecraft entered the first of two loops around the Earth smoothly, orbiting about as high as the International Space Station, which circles at an altitude of about 270 miles (430 kilometers).
Halfway through the flight, a second stage engine burn went ahead as planned, to propel the spacecraft higher than any vessel meant to carry people since the Apollo 17 moon mission in 1972.
About three hours into the flight, at 10:11 am (1511 GMT), the spacecraft reached its peak height of 3,604 miles above the Earth.
"Orion is flying free for the first time in its history," said NASA commentator Rob Navias after the crew capsule detached from the service module.
Less than an hour later, the spacecraft is supposed to plunge into the waters 600 miles to the west of Baja California, to be retrieved by the US Navy.
An analysis of sophisticated sensors on the capsule should let NASA know how the heat shield performed and if the temperature inside remained survivable for a potential crew, even as the spacecraft's exterior heated to 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,200 Celsius) during its re-entry to Earth's atmosphere at a velocity of 20,000 miles per hour.
Potential future missions for Orion, which can fit four people at a time, include a trip to lasso an asteroid and a journey to Mars by the 2030s.
"I think it's a big day for the world, for people who know and love space," said NASA administrator Charles Bolden ahead of Friday's launch.
NASA has already spent $9.1 billion on Orion and the powerful rocket meant to propel it with crew on board, the Space Launch System (SLS).
Another unmanned test flight is slated for 2018. The first Orion test flight with a crew on board is scheduled for 2021, when total costs are projected to reach $19 to $22 billion.
About $370 million dollars in equipment was at stake in Friday's launch.
http://news.yahoo.com/nasas-deep-space-capsule-poised-2nd-launch-bid-060452779.html
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