Orion has lift-off! Historic test flight that could herald a new age of space exploration launches after yesterday's technical glitches
comments
For the first time in more than 40 years, Nasa has launched a spaceship designed to carry astronauts far beyond Earth.
The unmanned Orion test flight successfully launched at 12.05 GMT (07.05 ET) today in a landmark event witnessed by thousands at Cape Canaveral.
The spacecraft is now being catapulted around the Earth twice in a 4.5 hour journey, which will end when it re-enters the atmosphere later today at 20,000 mph (32,000 km/h).
In the future, Nasa hopes to use the spacecraft to send astronauts to an asteroid in the 2020s and ultimately take them to Mars in the 2030s.
Scroll down for videos and live stream
We have lift-off! For the first time in more than 40 years, Nasa has launched a spaceship designed to carry astronauts far beyond Earth
The maiden launch of the Orion spacecraft was postponed yesterday, after a technical fault and poor weather conditions hampered efforts to blast into space.
A stray boat in the launch-danger zone also kicked things off badly.
Launch controllers scrambled to check all of these so-called 'fill and drain' valves in the three first-stage booster engines, but time ran out.
The valves control the flow of the liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen in the three first-stage booster engines. The propellants combine to ignite with the explosive force needed to thrust the rocket toward space.
Fill-and-drain valves on the Delta IV Heavy have been tested throughout the day so the launch team can prevent a mechanical problem like one that came up Thursday.
'We're very confident we're going to be able to exonerate the equipment,' said Dan Collins, chief operating officer of United Launch Alliance.
High winds also twice halted yesterday's countdown with less than four minutes remaining.
'A wind gust will put aerodynamic loads on the rocket which if big enough could push it off course or even crash,' Dr Jon Marchant, an astrophysics at Liverpool John Moores University told MailOnline.
'So the engines angle automatically to change the thrust angle to compensate. It's a bit like balancing a broom on your finger, you make constant corrections to keep the broom balanced,'
'Obviously too big a gust will be beyond the capabilities of this 'engine-angling' (correct term is 'gimballing') to compensate and it'll crash.'
Although there are specific windows in which they can launch, they will not want to risk it in the wrong environmental conditions,' Dr Nigel Bannister, an expert in rocket propulsion at Leicester University.
'Rockets are not like aircraft - once they are moving and the bolts holding it to the launch pad have been released, there is no going back.
'Weather is a big issue for them. A rocket leaves behind a plume of gas that is extremely electrically conductive, and that turns a rocket into a giant lightning rod, so they will never risk launching if there are thunder clouds in the area.
'Wind shear can create extremely high stresses that need to be corrected very quickly so it is safer not to launch than risk losing a spacecraft that cost millions of pounds to build.'
If the launch is successful today, this will be the first mission since the Apollo moon landings to take a spacecraft built for manned flight into deep space, beyond the limit of orbiting satellites.
Live: Nasa's Orion spacecraft launch
Counting down: Nasa tweeted this stunning view of the launch pad this morning. Crowds have again gathered in the hope of witnessing a historic lift-off that could mark the first step to sending man to Mars
Delayed: Orion was set to launch at 12.05 GMT (07:05 local time) yesterday, but wind gusts temporarily delayed lift-off with less than four minutes left in the countdown. Nasa now plans to attempt launch at the same time today
Next step: This mission is unmanned, but in the future Nasa hopes to use the Orion craft to send astronauts to an asteroid, and someday Mars
Let down: A large crowd turned out to watch Orion take-off yesterday, but they had to head back empty handed after the launch was postponed to tomorrow. They are seen here walking back to the Saturn V Center at Cape Canaveral from the observing area. 'It's a little bit sad, it came quite unexpected,' said space expert Remco Timmermans, who had travelled out for the launch
Ambition: The earliest Orion might carry passengers is 2021; a mission to an asteroid is on the space agency's radar sometime in the 2020s and Mars, the grand prize, in the 2030s
Orion is being developed alongside the world's most powerful rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS), which is due to make its maiden launch in 2018 or 2019.
Together, SLS and Orion will allow Nasa to send humans into deep space to destinations such as Mars.
For this launch, Orion has been strapped to a Delta IV-Heavy rocket - currently the largest launch system in the world. Three RS-68 engines will produce about two million pounds of thrust at lift-off.
Five and a half minutes after launch, at an altitude of around 200 miles (320km), fuel will have run out on both the Delta IV's main and booster engines.
A couple of seconds later, the entire bottom end - or the 'first stage' of the rocket - will detach, while the second stage engine will ignite to take Orion to a higher orbit.
The upper stage's protective fairings will then be jettisoned, along with the launch abort system, which is designed to protect the astronauts in the case of an emergency during launch by carrying the capsule to safety.
Second time lucky: Today, pending weather conditions, Orion will be catapulted around the Earth twice in a historic 4.5 hour test flight
Under pressure: The launch should give engineers the opportunity to check the performance of Orion's critical heat shield, which is likely to experience temperatures in excess of 2,000°C (4,000°F)
After two hours, and one orbit of Earth, the second-stage rocket will be ignited again, moving Orion up to an altitude of 3,600 miles (5,800 km).
This is 15 times the distance to the ISS and will cause Orion to travel through the high-radiation Van Allen Belts.
At three hours after lift-off, Orion will hit its peak altitude and then slowly start its descent back to Earth
The flight program has been loaded into Orion's computers well in advance, allowing the spacecraft to fly essentially on autopilot.
It should give engineers the opportunity to check the performance of Orion's critical heat shield, which is likely to experience temperatures in excess of 2,000ºC (4,000°F).
Its re-entry speed into the atmosphere will be close to 20,000mph (32,000km/h) - similar to the speed of the Apollo capsules that returned from the moon in the 1960s and 1970s.
The dry run, if all goes well, will end with a Pacific splashdown off Mexico's Baja coast and Navy ships will recover the capsule for future use.
WHAT ARE THE KEY FLIGHT MILESTONES DURING ORION'S MAIDEN JOURNEY AROUND EARTH?
Down to Earth: Orion is expected to have a rapid re-entry speed into the atmosphere close to 32,000km/h (20,000mph), according to Nasa
One minute, 25 seconds after liftoff, Orion goes supersonic.
Four minutes after liftoff, two of the Delta IV's three liquid-fueled boosters are jettisoned.
Five minutes, 30 seconds, the last booster burns out and separates from the upper-stage engine.
Six minutes, 15 seconds, with the second-stage burning, three protective panels separate from Orion's mock-up service module. Five seconds later, the launch escape system is jettisoned.
Seventeen minutes, the second-stage engine shuts down, leaving Orion in its initial orbit 115 by 552 miles (185 by 888 km) above Earth.
Three hours, after a second burn of the upper-stage engine, Orion passes through intense radiation in the Van Allen Belts and reaches its peak altitude of 3,600 miles (5,800 km).
Three hours, 23 minutes, Orion separates from its service module and the Delta upper stage and prepares to return to Earth.
Three hours, 57 minutes, Orion fires its steering thrusters to position itself for atmospheric re-entry.
Four hours, 13 minutes, Orion, travelling at 20,000 mph (32,000 km/h) reaches upper limits of Earth's atmosphere.
Four hours, 15 minutes, Orion experiences peak heating of about 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,200 Celsius).
Four hours, 19 minutes, parachutes begin deploying to slow Orion's descent.
Four hours, 23 minutes, Orion lands in the Pacific Ocean, 600 miles (965 km) off the coast of Baja California. Recovery teams will retrieve the capsule and take it to San Diego, California.
Separation: Three hours and 23 minutes after launch, Orion will separate from its service module and the Delta upper stage, and prepares to return to Earth (shown)
Waiting game: News photographers and journalists watch as the sun rises on the Delta IV Heavy rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft waiting for liftoff on the launch pad from the Cape Canveral Air Force Station in Florida
New dawn of space travel: Orion will allow the United States to send its own astronauts into space for the first time since the Space Shuttle
What will happen after launch? Just minutes after lift-of, the entire bottom end - or the 'first stage' of the rocket - will detach, while the second stage engine will ignite to take Orion to a higher orbit
Flight sequence: Five and a half minutes after launch, at an altitude of around 200 miles (320km), the fuel will have run out on both the Delta IV's main and booster engines, so Orion will separate and head into a higher orbit
The spacecraft is rigged with 1,200 sensors to gauge everything from heat to vibration to radiation.
Programme manager Mark Geyer said: 'We're going to test the riskiest parts of the mission. Ascent, entry and things like fairing separations, Launch Abort System jettison, the parachute, plus the navigation and guidance - all those things are going to be tested.
'Plus, we'll fly into deep space and test the radiation effects on those systems.'
A crucial test will come when Orion flies through the Van Allen belts, which are two layers of charged particles orbiting around Earth.
'The ISS would not have to deal with radiation but we will, and so will every vehicle that goes to the moon,' Geyer told the BBC.
'That's a big issue for the computers. These processors that are now so small - they're great for speed but they're more susceptible to radiation.
'That's something we have to design for and see how it all behaves.'
Another key test will be on the heat shield on Orion's base, designed to protect the craft from the searing temperatures of atmospheric re-entry.
It is 16.5ft (five metres) across and is the biggest, most advanced of its kind ever made.
Test flight: Orion will make two big laps around Earth before re-entering the atmosphere at 20,000 mph (32,200 km/h). Pictured is an artist's impression of the Orion craft in orbit
On this flight, Orion will reach close to 2,000ºC (4,000°F), not quite the 2,800ºC (5,000ºF) that was generated from the moon missions, but close enough for a good test of the technology.
That's why Orion will aim for a 3,600 miles (5,800 km) peak altitude to pick up enough speed to come back fast and hot with this mission, officially called Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT-1).
Even though bears a strong resemblance to the Apollo command module that carried astronauts to the moon in the 1960s, it is bristling with the latest technology that makes it markedly different.
'There's an obvious comparison to draw between this first Orion launch and the first unmanned flight of the Apollo spacecraft on Apollo 4 [in 1967], but there are more differences than similarities,' space historian Amy Teitel told MailOnline.
'Apollo 4 flew a nearly lunar-ready command and service module, was the first flight of the Saturn V rocket, and demonstrated that both the S-IVB rocket stage and the spacecraft's own engine could ignite in a vacuum.
'The EFT-1 flight is only testing a spacecraft; it doesn't even have its service module!
'With Apollo 4, we knew we were going to the moon and it was clear this mission was putting us firmly back on that path after the major setback of the Apollo 1 fire. With Orion, we don't have a clear goal and a firm timeline for this new spacecraft.'
HOW DOES ORION COMPARE TO APOLLO MODULE THAT TOOK MAN TO THE MOON IN 1969?
A 'new Apollo'? Orion bears a strong resemblance to the Apollo command module that carried Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the moon in 1969, but it is bristling with the latest technology that makes it markedly different.
The Orion space capsule will enable Nasa to send its own astronauts into space for the first time since the Space Shuttle programme was scrapped.
But the next-generation vehicle will also herald a new era of space travel as it has been designed to carry humans to land on asteroids and even to other worlds.
Ultimately Nasa hopes Orion will allow astronauts to make the first manned journey to Mars.
Perhaps understandably the development of Orion has helped reawakened some of the atmosphere of exploration that surrounded Nasa during the Apollo missions that first landed mankind on the moon.
But with almost exactly 42 years between the last Apollo mission, Apollo 17, which launched on 7 December 1972, and the first flight of Orion, the technology has moved on considerably.
On the surface the two space capsules look the same - they are cone-shaped, and have a large heat shield to protect the astronauts from the intense conditions during re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere.
However, Orion is larger, capable of carrying four crew members rather than Apollo's three. It will also have to carry far more supplies than Apollo ever did.
The last Apollo mission saw a two man crew spend just three days on the moon's surface while a mission to an asteroid or to Mars could see astronauts spending up to 450 days in space.
Like the Apollo Command Module, Orion has a Service Module attached that houses a single large engine, batteries and storage.
However, Orion will carry a pair of solar arrays to help keep the capsule powered in space - technology that Apollo did not use.
Orion also uses up-to-date computers, electronics, life support and propulsion systems. The electronics also have a far more sophisticated radiation shielding than the Apollo modules.
Nasa has also used some hard lessons to improve the heat shield. Measuring 16.5 feet (five metres) across, it is the largest heat shield ever built for a spacecraft and has been covered in a new material called Avcoat.
Nasa has also improved the parachutes, once used to land the Apollo spacecraft and slow the Space Shuttle, to help Orion land more safely in the water when it splashes down after a mission.
Final countdown: The Orion capsule sits on top of the Delta IV Heavy rocket at the launch pad in Florida. Yesterday, it had to await the removal of a boat that had strayed into waters close to the launch site before the first launch could be attempted - before a faulty valve scuppered it
Poised: Orion awaits launch in Florida. This is the first attempt to send a spacecraft capable of carrying humans beyond a couple hundred miles of Earth since the Apollo moon mission
But at 11ft (3.6 metres) tall with a 16.5ft (5 metres) base, Orion is much larger than the old-time Apollo capsules, and is designed to carry four astronauts rather than three.
The earliest Orion might carry passengers is 2021; a mission to an asteroid is on the space agency's radar sometime in the 2020s and Mars, the grand prize, in the 2030s.
'We're approaching this as pioneers,' said William Hill of Nasa's exploration systems development office.
'We're going out to stay eventually. ... It's many, many decades away, but that's our intent.'
However, Nasa has yet to develop the technology to carry out manned surface operations on Mars.
ORION WANTS TO TAKE PEOPLE TO MARS, BUT CAN HUMANS SURVIVE A JOURNEY TO THE RED PLANET?
Can we survive a trip to Mars? Pictured is the surface of the red planet, as seen by the Viking I Lander
Scientists hope Orion will return humans to the moon by 2020 and transport the first visitors to Mars in the 2030s.
But the 140 million-mile (225 million km) journey to Mars will involve extreme hazards threatening the lives of astronauts.
Space is filled with dangerous radiation that the Earth's atmosphere shields us from. The greatest threat comes from high energy streams of subatomic particles pouring out of the sun that can damage DNA, leading to cancer.
How big is the radiation risk?
Nasa's Curiosity Mars rover was hit by 0.66 sieverts of radiation during its 253 trip to Mars. That's the equivalent of receiving a whole body CT X-ray scan every five or six days.
Intense bursts of radiation and particles erupting from the sun, in large solar flares or coronal mass ejections, have the power to disrupt electrical equipment and deliver potentially lethal doses. Radiation shielding coating the spacecraft can offer some protection.
Is there a danger of being hit by a meteorite?
Big and small rocks are continually flying around the Solar System, millions of which go undetected. On a long journey through space the risk of being hit is not negligible, and even a tiny meteorite could wreak unimaginable damage.
Bigger objects can be steered around if detected in advance, and Nasa has been developing armour-like materials and double-layer walls to protect against smaller objects.
How easy is it to land on Mars?
The answer is, not easy at all, which is why so many Mars missions have failed. Overall the success rate of landing on Mars is only about 50 per cent.
This is one area where it pays off to have humans on board rather than relying on computers. During the Apollo moon missions, Nasa never lost a single lander, despite some very close shaves. Mars is much more challenging, though, because it has an atmosphere and appreciable gravity.
How bad is a Mars trip for your health?
Without gravity, bones become brittle and muscles start to waste away. There is also evidence that gravity affects the way the brain works.
The astronauts will have to undergo strict exercise regimes to make up for the lack of gravity. Another solution would be to provide at least some degree of artificial gravity by spinning the spacecraft as it travels.
Psychological health is considered a very imported issue for long distance space travellers. The astronauts will need to be mentally tough to cope with being so far from home in the knowledge that so far out in space there can be no hope of rescue.
Why go to Mars at all?
Many experts say only so much can be done with robots. Humans are just so much better at finding and selecting samples, and spotting the unexpected. Others argue that it will inspire children and unite humanity in a common adventure.
Some say that confining ourselves to a planet with limited resources is simply not an option if the human race is to survive.
On track: In the months leading up to launch, Orion has been rigorously tested as engineers prepare it for a journey beyond low Earth orbit
Recovery: The US Navy and Nasa recovery teams will be on station off the cost of California and ready to recover Orion after landing
By comparison, it took eight years from the time President John Kennedy announced his intentions of landing a man on the moon - before John Glenn even became the first American to orbit Earth - to Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin's lunar bootprints in 1969.
Given the present budget situation, 'it is what it is,' said Kennedy Space Center's director Robert Cabana, a former astronaut. And the presidential election ahead could bring further delays and uncertainties.
Lockheed Martin is handling the £236 million ($370 million) test flight, and Nasa will be overseeing its operation.
Nasa's last trip beyond low-Earth orbit in a vessel built for people was Apollo 17 in December 1972.
'This is just the first of what will be a long line of exploration missions beyond low Earth orbit,' said Bill Hill, deputy associate administrator for Exploration Systems Development.
'In a few years we will be sending our astronauts to destinations humans have never experienced. It's thrilling to be a part of the journey now, at the beginning.'
THE WEIRD AND WONDERFUL CARGO BEING CARRIED 3,600 MILES INTO SPACE ON ORION'S FIRST TEST FLIGHT
Technicians pack bags to be placed into Orion's stowage lockers with items from Sesame Street including a cookie belonging to Cookie Monster, Ernie's rubber duck, Grover's cape and Slimey the Worm
Nasa has packed its Orion space capsule with experiments and sensor designed to measure the conditions inside the vehicle.
However, also hitching a 3,600 miles (5,800km) above Earth will be Captain Kirk, a Tyrannosaurus rex fossil and some Sesame Street puppets.
They are all part of a weird collection of artefacts, celebrity photos and memorabilia that has been placed inside Orion's storage lockers.
Nasa has also placed a tiny sample of lunar soil along with a fossil from a Tyrannosaurus rex donated by the Denver Science Museum, into the capsule.
A microchip carrying the names of more than a million people who submitted their names will also be carried onboard.
Lockheed Martin, the main contractor on Orion, worked with the Entertainment Industries Council to collect items from science fiction-related celebrities to place on Orion.
William Shatner, who played Captain Kirk in the original Star Trek series and is a noted space enthusiast, supplied an action figure of 'Captain Kirk in Environmental Suit'.
'William Shatner is thrilled to send Kirk back to space and support Orion, while inspiring future generations about space travel,' EIC vice president Skylar Jackson told collectSPACE.
Director Jon Favreau offered an Iron Man challenge coin while Back to the Future actress Claudia Wells provided signed cast photos and a Delorean time machine model.
Mayim Bialik, from The Big Bang Theory, also gave pictures of her ancestors. A collection of pins, medals and artworks will also be carried in the Orion lockers.
Also among the cargo will be props from Sesame Street including a cookie belonging to Cookie Monster, Ernie's rubber duck, Oscar the Grouch's pet Slimey the Worm and Grover's cape.
When they return to Earth they will take prized spots on the long-running television programme in a bid to educate millions of children about space.
In a statement on its website, Nasa said: 'Together, the artifacts chart humanity's progress and technological advancement as the nation takes a critical step forward on the Journey to Mars.'
Carrying commemorative cargo into space, however, is not a new tradition and has been done since the very early age of space flight.
Nasa's Mercury astronauts carried dimes in their spacesuits while astronauts on the Apollo missions carried photos and specially stamped envelopes.
The Voyager spacecraft have also carried gold discs featuring sounds of Earth along with a range of other information while the Curiosity rover on Mars carried a penny to calibrate its instruments.
Orion's batteries were charged up using power from the launch pad as unlike future operational versions it does not carry solar panels
Heavy lifting: The United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket carrying Orion will burn through 450,000 gallons of hydrogen and oxygen fuel in order to produce the two million pounds of thrust needed to lift the 815 ton space rocket out of Earth's atmosphere
'This is just the first of what will be a long line of exploration missions beyond low Earth orbit,' said Bill Hill, deputy associate administrator for Exploration Systems Development. 'In a few years we will be sending our astronauts to destinations humans have never experienced'
Put the internet to work for you.
0 comments:
Post a Comment