The Orion spacecraft is nearly ready for its first-ever test flight, leaving designers at manufacturer Lockheed Martin in anticipation of the upcoming launch.
Orion is designed to bring astronauts to deep space - far beyond the relatively low orbits of the Space Shuttle and International Space Station, including to Mars.
Lockheed Martin won the contract to design to build the Orion spacecraft on August 31, 2006.
"We live for this kind of project. We will tell our kids and our grandkids about this, The company's hard working crew literally lives for this first step of future deep space exploration. We've had a team in Florida working around the clock for the past several months preparing for this moment. Once that Delta IV lifts off, you're going to see quite the celebration," Allison Rakes, Lockheed Martin spokesperson, said.
Two space accidents in recent weeks - one of them fatal - are weighing heavily on the minds of Lockheed engineers. An Antares rocket failed seconds after liftoff, exploding in a furious fireball on October 28, 2014. Virgin Galactic's SpaceShip Two disintegrated on ignition just three days later.
A Launch Abort System (LAS) built into Orion will provide astronauts with the ability to escape the launch system while on the launchpad, or during descent, while returning to Earth. The emergency system accelerates 500 MPH in just two seconds. If activated while on the launch pad, astronauts would be hurtled more than a mile-and-a-half from the launch vehicle.
Hazards for space travelers are not limited to liftoff and re-entry. Bringing astronauts beyond the protective layer of Earth's Van Allen belts requires protecting space travelers from interplanetary radiation. The Orion spacecraft is designed to provide adequate shielding for the deep-space journeys of the coming decades.
The Orion spacecraft is scheduled to liftoff on December 4, 2014, on an automated test flight. Unlike the retired American Space Shuttle, this vehicle is able to fly without a human pilot. On its maiden journey, Orion will venture 3,600 miles from the Earth - 15 times the distance to the International Space Station (ISS). The vehicle will then begin a return journey to our planet, traveling up to 20,000 MPH, before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean. During its fiery passage through the atmosphere, Orion will experience temperatures up to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The vehicle will be protected by a next-generation heat shield 16.5 feet in diameter, the largest ever built.
The Orion spacecraft is currently mounted to a Delta IV Heavy rocket, designed by the United Launch Alliance (ULA). The mated rocket system is poised to liftoff from launch pad 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
