When an Antares rocket dramatically exploded six seconds after launch on October 28, a wide range of scientific experiments were destroyed. Although no humans were injured in the massive explosion, everything aboard the booster, and the rocket itself, was shattered in the fireball.
Liftoff took place at 6:22 p.m. from a launchpad on the coast of Virginia, with 4,883 pounds of experiments and supplies loaded for delivery to the International Space Station (ISS).
A meteor study lost in the accident would have examined the atmosphere of the Earth, looking at shooting stars, as seen from above. Researchers believed this information could have provided more clues about meteors, as well as planet formation. By carefully analyzing the tracks seen from space, it would have been possible to determine the composition of meteors, as well as detect previously-unknown showers of shooting stars.
The Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart in Houston, Texas created an experiment - Pea Shoot Growth in Space. Peas possess large concentrations of vitamins and minerals, possibly making them an ideal food to grow during long space missions. On Earth, the vegetables can often be harvested just a few weeks after planting. The student-designed experiment would have exposed the plants to differing levels of red and blue lights. After returning from space, the young researchers would have measured levels of nutrients, to determine the optimum balance of wavelengths.
Yankee Clipper was a student-led series of experiments, collected as part of the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP).
"The studies investigate a range of topics from a crystal growth study that will enable students to learn more about how fluids act and form into crystals in the absence of gravity to how microgravity affect milk spoilage," NASA officials wrote on a Web page outlining the Antares cargo.
Brain Drain was designed to study long-term exposure to microgravity environments that can cause abnormalities in blood flow within the brains of space travelers. This experiment, lost in the titanic fireball, would have examined how the life-giving fluid moves in brains when outside the gravitational field of the Earth.
"[S]cience experiments [will] expand the research capability of the Expedition 41 crew members aboard the orbiting laboratory, along with crew provisions, spare parts and experiment hardware. This mission will also feature Orbital's first use of the upgraded Castor 30XL second stage motor, which enables greater lift capacity for this and future missions," Orbital officials wrote in a press release prior to the failed launch. That company designed the rocket and capsule lost in the blast.
In addition to 1,600 pounds of science experiments aboard the doomed space vehicle, the rocket was also loaded with 1,650 pounds of cargo for occupants of the ISS. Astronauts have plenty of supplies to last them until at least March 2015, according to NASA officials.
