SpaceX has begun preparations for the test flight of its Dragon V2 capsule scheduled to take place at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on May 6.
Aside from testing the spacecraft's capabilities, the American space transport company also hopes to show the ability of its crew to meet the safety standards set by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
The test flight, named Pad Abort Test, will launch an unmanned spacecraft using eight SuperDraco engines to an altitude of about 5,000 feet in the air. The entire flight will last for only about 90 seconds from beginning to end. The spacecraft will then parachute safely down into the Atlantic Ocean.
While the test vehicle will not carry human passengers during the test flight, a dummy nicknamed "Buster" will be placed inside the capsule with the capability of recording data about what real astronauts may experience.
SpaceX is also set to test the effectiveness of the Dragon V2's escape system during the pad abort test. This system is designed to allow passengers of the capsule to successfully escape at any point from its initial launch up until the spacecraft is in orbit.
NASA and SpaceX believe that the results of the test flight will greatly benefit the development of the escape system whether the launch goes perfectly or not.
The crew involved in the test flight is also ready for possible delays due to technical difficulties.
During the media briefing for the pad abort test, Jon Cowart, NASA's partner manager for the Commercial Crew Program, explained how SpaceX will learn a lot from the scheduled test flight.
"We are going to take the time that we need to get it right," Cowart said. "This is a development test; we're developing a system, looking very hard at how the Super Dracos will operate during this test."
The Dragon V2 capsule project is part of SpaceX's plan to send manned flights to space by 2017. The success of the upcoming test flight will help the company secure human rating for the Dragon V2.
In 2014, NASA awarded SpaceX and Boeing multi-billion dollar contracts to develop spacecraft capable of transporting astronauts to space and back.
