NASA Langley Orion (MPCV) Spacecraft Making Cross Country Voyage

The first flight test article made under the original Orion Capsule design is on its way across country from NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center in California to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

NASA’s next generation spacecraft, the newly named Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV), will make three outreach stops along the way to inform the public.

In the above image, the capsule is making its way to Tucson, Arizona.

NASA Langley engineers built the test article in just 10 months. It took 49,500 fabrication hours and 2,000 fabricated parts to build the almost 20,000 pound capsule that represents the size, shape and mass of the actual Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle.

The test article was built to fly as a part of the successful Pad-Abort 1 flight test that took place May 6, 2010 at White Sands Missile Range.

The test demonstrated the capability of a new launch abort system, developed by NASA. The test article was not originally planned to be reused due to the high-risk nature of the Pad-Abort 1 test, but the module and its systems survived the flight test with only minor damage.

The planned stops are June 15-16 at the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson, Ariz.; June 19-20 at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin, Texas; and on June 24-25 at the Tallahassee Challenger Learning Center in Florida. The module also will be on display June 29-July 4 at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.

The test article will eventually be moved to Kennedy’s Operation and Checkout Facility for further study.

Nasa Langley Research