NASA’s Orion spacecraft has arrived safely back at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Orion traveled more than 3,600 miles above Earth on Dec. 5 during the four-hour, 24-minute Experimental Test Flight-1, after which it splashed down about 630 miles southwest of San Diego.
Navy divers then recovered the capsule for transport back to San Diego aboard the USS Anchorage. Then Orion began the trip back across the country, hauled in a custom case mounted on the back of a semi.
“Despite traveling a bit slower than what we’re used to, Orion made pretty good time,” said Michael Hawes, Lockheed Martin’s Orion program manager. “Most of the team hasn’t had eyes on the spacecraft since November, when we rolled to the launch pad, so we’re excited to take a look.”
Lockheed Martin Space Systems is Orion’s prime contractor. The spacecraft and heat shield were designed and built at the company’s Waterton Canyon campus.
The heat shield’s performance is of prime concern for NASA and Lockheed Martin. Upon re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere, Orion reached speeds of 20,000 mph and temperatures of 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat shield is designed to keep Orion’s crew cabin a comfortable 72 degrees Fahrenheit.
When Orion was in port in San Diego, engineers took samples from the spacecraft’s heat shield to evaluate its performance. These samples, along with other data, were taken to San Diego Lockheed Martin facilities for analysis.
At Kennedy Space Center, the Orion team will remove the spacecraft’s back panels, analyze flight data and perform visual inspections of propulsion systems, fluid lines and more. There also will be work to remove hazardous substances from the spacecraft.
Initial inspections show that Orion was hit by small space rocks — or micrometeroids — while in flight. NASA said this was expected.
While EFT-1 data is being analyzed, work is moving forward on the next version of Orion.
On Thursday, a version of the spacecraft was dropped out of an airplane from 25,000 feet to test modifications to Orion’s parachute system. One of Orion’s three main parachutes failed on EFT-1.
Orion’s next mission, the uncrewed Exploration Mission-1, is scheduled to launch in 2018 aboard NASA’s new rocket — Space Launch System — for a longer orbit around the moon. NASA has set a goal for Orion’s first crewed mission by 2021.
Colorado has the top number of aerospace workers, per capita, of any state, according to the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation. Projects such as Orion contribute greatly to Colorado’s economy, which boasts about 170,000 aerospace-related jobs and more than 400 aerospace-related companies, according to EDC data.
Orion was carried into space aboard a Centennial-based United Launch Alliance-made Delta IV Heavy rocket. Broomfield-based Ball Aerospace created the craft’s antennae and flight cameras.
About 1,000 Lockheed Martin employees across locations and business areas have fingerprints on some aspect of the Orion project — 800 of those are Space Systems employees, with about 600 of them in Littleton, company spokeswoman Allison Rakes said.
Lockheed Martin plans to have a full report to NASA by March detailing performance and recommendations.
Laura Keeney: 303-954-1337, lkeeney@denverpost.com or twitter.com/LauraKeeney
