NASA's new Orion spacecraft made a "bullseye" splashdown in the Pacific on Friday following a dramatic test flight that took it to a zenith height of 3,600 miles and ushered in a new era of human exploration aiming for Mars.
U.S Navy ships recovered the capsule for future use.
The unmanned test flight ended about 4.5 hours after it began and achieved at least one record: flying farther and faster than any capsule built for humans since the Apollo moon program.
Orion blasted off from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 7:05 a.m. Friday morning on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket.
The launch was delayed three times Thursday due to a boat in a restricted area and two other times due to windy conditions. The launch was finally scrubbed due to a fuel valve issue.
In Houston, NASA's Mission Control took over the entire operation once Orion was aloft. The flight program was loaded into Orion's computers well in advance, allowing the spacecraft to fly essentially on autopilot. Flight controllers — all shuttle veterans — could intervene in the event of an emergency breakdown.
The spacecraft is rigged with 1,200 sensors to gauge everything from heat to vibration to radiation. At 11 feet tall with a 16.5-foot base, Orion is bigger than the old-time Apollo capsules and, obviously, more advanced.
Orion — serial number 001 — lacked seats, cockpit displays and life-support equipment for obvious reasons. Instead, bundles of toys and memorabilia were on board: bits of moon dust; the crew patch worn by Sally Ride, America's first spacewoman; a Capt. James Kirk collector's doll owned by "Star Trek" actor William Shatner, and more.
Lockheed Martin Corp. built the capsule and is staging the $370 million test flight for NASA.
Orion is NASA's first new spacecraft for humans in more than a generation, succeeding the now-retired space shuttles. Unlike the capsules under development by two U.S. companies for space station crew transport, Orion is meant for the long haul, both in time and space; it would be supplemented with habitats for potential Mars trips.
Future Orion launches will use the mega rocket still under development by NASA, known as SLS or Space Launch System. The first Orion-SLS launch is targeted for 2018, unmanned, followed by the first piloted mission in 2021.
Spectators take in historic Orion launch
The Space Coast was packed with spectators hoping to be a part of history, and Thursday's delays didn't discourage space fans.
"We were out here yesterday," Fritz Laun said. "Didn't launch. So, today I figured get something bigger out here."
Armed with cameras, telescopes and binoculars, the people were back to give Orion a second chance.
It was the moment everyone was waiting for: As the countdown started, about 200 people stood on the edge of the Indian River with cameras ready to capture Orion's launch. After a minute went by, the rumble from the rockets could be heard and felt miles away in Titusville.
"They told me the Delta IV Heavy was a loud one," Dr. David Fisher said. "I've seen shuttle launches from here and they weren't nearly as loud as that, so that was a great experience.”
An experience shared by many who traveled far and wide. The McEntee family is from Australia. They took their boys to the Kennedy Space Center and couldn't pass up on an opportunity to see a launch.
"Oh, it's just once in a lifetime," Tony McEntee said.
Some locals we spoke with couldn't even count how many launches they have witnessed, like Ozzie Osband, who brought a TV and a computer to monitor all of the live coverage from his favorite viewing location.
"I still have the excitement after all those years," Osband said. "Just love watching stuff go up. That's why I live here now.”
The excitement will likely grow with the start of the new space mission that will one day send humans to Mars. For now, NASA predicts the first flight with four astronauts could happen as early as 2021.
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