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Orion spacecraft gets dunked in the Atlantic in first sea trials
For the first time since the 1960s, NASA is testing a spacecraft in the water, seeing how seaworthy it is after a splashdown. It looks a lot like the Apollo spacecraft from years ago, but this Orion capsule is bigger than as its 12.8-foot-wide Apollo predecessor. Orion is 16.5 feet in diameter, and is more than twice as heavy at 31,000 pounds, compared to the 12,787-pound weight of the Apollo capsules. And the tech inside is like the difference between a Model T and a Bugatti Veyron.
Could this familiar launch/splashdown routine have anything to do with NASA's nostalgia for the hugely successful Apollo program? Maybe NASA finally figured out that it's not all that practical to design a space shuttle that returns to Earth on a landing strip, encased in fragile ceramic tiles. This one will ride atop the huge (and controversial) Aries launch vehicle, also currently under development, and take a dunk in the drink as its big finish. Take a look at two more pictures of the watery escapades:
From the looks of it, Orion fared well in its trials which took place yesterday 20 miles off the Florida coast. They'll be testing the moon ship for the rest of this week; no word on whether they'll try to shoehorn six astronauts into this craft that will someday take the sextet to the International Space Station, or the four-person crew that will travel inside it to the moon and back by around 2020. Funding permitting, that is.
Via Space.com
By E.T at 2:46 PM ON 04/28/09
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA wtf rust bucket
By JAMES at 3:14 PM ON 04/28/09
Of all the Technology we have.. We have to go back to the 60's tech.. it doesn't look like it would be very comfortable to be in.. The space shuttle, the astronauts had room to move around..it just seems we are stepping backwards instead of Forward.. can't we redesign the Shuttle.. They are awesome machines..
By Marty B. at 4:19 PM ON 04/28/09
James, with all its sophistication, the shuttle is simply too costly a program to maintain. If you want a sustainable space program for the long term, you need to think simpler.
You're also assuming the exterior belies a crude interior. The article mentions a multi-generational leap from the tech inside the Apollo capsule to what's supposed to be inside the Orion. Pity DVice didn't dwell more on exactly what that meant.
By BetterNotMessWithMajorTom at 5:18 PM ON 04/28/09
Funny, When I said the same thing as James, I got blasted last time.
Completely agree, James.
And it isn't even as though we are working on a completely space-based vehicle system, and this 'tin can' is just the rocket-powered elevator up and down. This is the whole thing... Welcome back to the 1970s, and it isn't just the space program that is reliving that decade.
By Old Man Dotes at 5:40 PM ON 04/28/09
The problems with the Shuttle are entirely caused by the budget cuts that forced NASA to abandon the original design and add the Rube Goldberg strap-on boosters and external tank which have so far kill 14 astronauts. See http://www.thespacesite.com and /space_modern_space_travel.html and http://www.friends-partners.org/partners/mwade/lvfam/winged.htm and http://www.bautforum.com/archive/index.php/t-3498.html
By karpet at 7:43 PM ON 04/28/09
how long will it take to get enough carbon nano tubes to get the space elevator in orbit?
By dixon at 10:40 AM ON 04/29/09
i grew up on the space coast and i think this would be a welcome change. we need something like this to spark more interest in the space program. i say "let's light this candle!"
By zory at 7:29 PM ON 04/29/09
31,000 lbs???? That can't be right. The average family car weighs about 3,000 'lbs. Does that thing look like it weighs as much as ten cars??
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zory:
31,000 lbs???? That can't be right. The average family car weighs about 3,000 'lbs. Does that thing look like it we...More »