For those of you who think NASA and the U.S. space program ended years ago with the retirement of the space shuttles, think again. Last month, while we at USF St. Petersburg were cramming for finals, NASA took its first major step toward the human exploration of our solar system.
The Orion spacecraft, conceived as the space shuttle’s successor in 2005, flew its inaugural test mission the morning of Dec. 5. Known as Exploration Flight Test 1, the four-and-a-half-hour mission tested the spacecraft’s systems, flight profile and heat shield.
While there were more than 87 different goals of the flight, the primary objective was to test the capsule’s heat shield at near-lunar return velocities. Since the Space Shuttle was not designed to fly to the moon, its heat shield needed only to withstand temperatures of around 2,732 degrees Fahrenheit. Since Orion will send humans to the moon and beyond, it will hit the Earth’s atmosphere at far greater speeds # upward of 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
Orion marks a departure from NASA’s activities of the last 39 years. No crew-capable space capsule has been flown since 1975, and since 1981, winged space planes have been used to move crews to and from low-Earth orbit. Although the space shuttle was instrumental in constructing the International Space Station, it was never designed for exploration. It was the equivalent of a pickup truck – capable of bringing large payloads to orbit, but not for long-distance travel.
Originally slated for a Dec. 4 launch, numerous issues, including a wayward boat, high winds and rocket issues, ultimately delayed the launch 24 hours to Dec. 5. The Delta IV Heavy rocket, produced by the United Launch Alliance Corporation, lifted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 37 at 7:05 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.
Shortly after liftoff, the first milestone of Orion’s flight occurred when five aerodynamic panels that protected the spacecraft during launch were jettisoned. An hour into the flight, the real test of Orion began as the upper stage of the Delta IV Heavy rocket propelled the spacecraft into a high-altitude orbit. It crossed the lower Van Allen Radiation belt twice during the flight, testing out the capsule’s radiation shielding. The space shuttles never flew to the altitude where the radiation belts are located, so such shielding techniques had not been practiced since the Apollo program of the 1960s.
About three hours after liftoff, at 10:16 a.m., Orion topped out at a maximum altitude of 3,604 miles above Earth and began its return descent. Reaching speeds of 20,000 miles per hour, Orion slammed into the atmosphere at speeds similar to what it would reach upon a return from the moon.
Four and a half hours after leaving Florida, the capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, 640 miles southwest of San Diego. Splashdown occurred at 11:29 a.m. just three miles from the center of its projected landing zone. The U.S. Navy amphibious cargo dock USS Anchorage recovered the capsule.
Following a return to shore, Orion was placed in a special transport container for a four-day, cross-country road trip back to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Starting in mid-January, the capsule will begin to be disassembled for detailed analysis and inspection. Data that NASA gathers from both the flight and the capsule’s subsequent analysis will aid the agency in completing the final design review for the spacecraft, which is set for March. The changes that will be made will be incorporated in the Orion capsule slated for launch in 2018.
My reflections on Exploration Flight Test-1:
The day before the first launch attempt, I had the opportunity to visit the rocket and spacecraft on the launch pad. Standing only 200 feet away – closer than the rocket itself was tall – with the mechanical titan towering above me, I could not help but contemplate how different this flight was compared to the space shuttles I had grown up with.
Growing up, NASA was the space shuttles. It’s what was ingrained in the public consciousness for decades. Most people read about the moon landings in history books, and some older folks remembered it, but for my generation, it was all we knew. For a future generation, Orion will be all that they know. They’ll grow up admiring the sleek conical spacecraft that was about to take its first baby steps to the stars.
This was the first flight of a completely new spacecraft. I remembered the day that President George Bush directed NASA to build the Crew Exploration Vehicle – the successor to the space shuttles and the evolutionary predecessor to Orion.
The Orion was finally ready to take flight 3,978 days later.
It has been over a month and a half since Orion launched on that chilly December morning. The dawn of America’s new age of space exploration was one of the most inspiring events I have ever experienced. Having worked for NASA previously, as well as a reporting on launches for the past two years, I have seen many things which excite and inspire me. But none of them compared to Orion.
On Jan. 6, while working at the Cape, I was allowed to see Orion once more. This time, instead of on top of a rocket and encased in a protective shroud, the capsule was at ground level right in front of me, with its black tiles exposed to the elements. It was the first time I saw the capsule following the December launch.
The scorch marks from the fiery re-entry were clearly visible on both the black tiles of the capsule and the head shield underneath. The balloons that helped keep the vehicle afloat following splashdown sat deflated at apex of the capsule. At various locations, small circular samples of the vehicle were already removed for laboratory analysis. Red protective panels covered the vehicle’s four primary windows from toxic fuel that had yet to be drained.
Orion was a large vehicle compared to the Apollo capsule, a fact we were reminded of when we approached. We weren’t allowed closer than 20 feet to the craft, but engineers and technicians were directly next to the capsule, further highlighting the spacecraft’s size compared to a man.
The sight was beautiful to behold, especially after the significance of its mission and the inspiration it brought.
For the past three and a half years, the U.S. space program seemed to disappear behind a political and financial black cloud. Orion’s developmental life was far from easy – in fact, the original rocket it was supposed to fly on as part of the Constellation program was cancelled.
But through all this, Orion survived. It flew into space three years after the last space shuttles did. To the public, that meant the end of NASA. But in the aerospace industry, optimism remained. America would again fly a new crew-capable spacecraft.
This first test launch is something that every American should be proud of. Yes, their tax dollars paid for it, but in the grand scheme of things, it proves that our country is trying to regain a stellar dominance it lost. Space exploration showcases a country’s technological power. The space shuttle was ahead of its time and a spectacular vehicle for over three decades, but it proved to be unable to adapt to the changing paradigm in the space industry.
Orion’s versatility and 21st-century design evoked memories of the first space ships in the 1960s that were equally ahead of their time – flagships of their countries technological prowess and political dedication.
The turnout for the flight alone proves that the pride Orion instilled was infectious – more than 27,000 people flocked to the Titusville/Cocoa Beach/Cape Canaveral area from Dec. 3-5. This was the greatest number of attendance for a NASA launch since the final flights of the Space Shuttle in 2010/2011. Additionally, #Orion trended on Twitter for almost 20 hours – far longer than any NASA program had in years.
Not only was it the dawning of a new era of American space exploration, but also the first moment in many years when NASA could be seen publicly preparing to send humans back into space domestically. Orion was more than just a test flight – it was the dawn of the future, and it inspired a new generation of explorers, engineers and scientists in four and a half hours on a December morning.
