Science News
NASA plans test flight of next-generation spacecraft
Nov 8, 2011, 16:24 GMT
Washington - The United States will conduct the first unmanned test flights of its next-generation spacecraft in 2014, NASA announced Tuesday.
The test of the Orion spacecraft will focus on testing the craft for reentry into Earth's atmosphere. It will launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, make two orbits around the Earth and then make a water landing.
NASA hopes to fly the six-person crew capsule about once or twice a year through the 2020s and to fly a manned mission to an asteroid by 2025, but exact plans for when and where the new craft's first mission will be are not yet set.
NASA retired its ageing space shuttle fleet earlier this year and is shifting attention to working with commercial companies to fly astronauts to the International Space Station and other destinations in low-Earth orbit.
Meanwhile, the space agency will turn its attention to developing its own Orion spacecraft capable of travelling to more distant destinations.
COMMENT
blog comments powered by DisqusLatest Headlines in Science
- 1. Space Shuttle Enterprise arrives in New York City Pictures
- 2. Africa and Australia battle for giant radio telescope
- 3. Care-providing robot helps severely disabled to work
- 4. Solar Flare Pictures
- 5. Brazil's forests at risk under proposed law, critics say
Older Talkback
