NASA Orion Heat Shield glows red as Spacecraft re-enters Earth Atmosphere

Entry interface confirmed. The Orion spacecraft is falling back into the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean at an altitude of 400,000 feet.

Credit: NASA

Orion Crew Module: Heat Shield Connection and Exploration Flight Test-1

Image Credit: NASA

At the Operations and Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the Orion crew module and heat shield are being moved into position for the mating operation. 

The heat shield will be tested on Orion's first flight in December, Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1), an uncrewed flight that will put to the test the spacecraft that will send astronauts to an asteroid and eventually Mars on future missions.

EFT-1 will launch an uncrewed Orion capsule 3,600 miles into space for a four-hour mission to test several of its most critical systems. 

After making two orbits, Orion will return to Earth at almost 20,000 miles per hour and endure temperatures near 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit, before its parachutes slow it down for a landing in the Pacific Ocean.

NASA Orion Heat Shield Transported Aboard Super Guppy Plane

The heat shield for NASA's Orion spacecraft was loaded onto a Super Guppy plane in Manchester, N.H. on Dec. 4, for transport to Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 

The heat shield, the largest of its kind ever built, is being unloaded Thursday, Dec. 5, and is scheduled for installation on Orion in March 2014.

The heat shield will be used in September 2014 during Exploration Flight Test-1, a two-orbit flight that will take an uncrewed Orion capsule to an altitude of 3,600 miles. 

The returning capsule is expected to encounter temperatures of almost 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit as it travels through Earth's atmosphere at up to 20,000 mph, faster than any spacecraft in the last 40 years.

Data gathered during the flight will influence decisions about design improvements on the heat shield and other Orion systems, authenticate existing computer models, and innovative new approaches to space systems and development. 

It also will reduce overall mission risks and costs for future Orion missions, which include exploring an asteroid and Mars.

Image Credit: NASA