Orion Flight Test 

Exploration Flight Test-1 

PRESS KIT/December 2014 

www.nasa.gov NP-2014-11-020-JSC 

National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration 

Orion Flight Test

December 2014

 

Contents 

Section Page
 

Flight Overview ......................................................................................................... 1
 

Timeline Overview .................................................................................................... 2
 

Flight Profile .............................................................................................................. 8
 

Recovery Operations .............................................................................................. 11
 

Vehicle Components ................................................................................................14
 

Delta IV Heavy Rocket ............................................................................................ 19
 

Flight Objectives ..................................................................................................... 21
 

Flight Personnel ...................................................................................................... 22
 

Next Steps for NASA ............................................................................................... 25
 

Public Affairs Contacts ........................................................................................... 28
 

i 
Orion Flight Test

ii December 2014
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

Flight Overview 

Orion is NASA’s new spacecraft built to carry 

humans, designed to allow us to journey to 

destinations never before visited by humans, 

including an asteroid and Mars. On this 

uncrewed test flight, Exploration Flight 

Test-1, Orion will test systems critical to 

crew safety as it travels farther into space 

than any spacecraft built for humans has 

traveled in more than 40 years. 

During the 4.5-hour flight, Orion will orbit 

Earth twice, covering more than 60,000 miles 

(96,600 kilometers) and reaching an altitude 

of 3,600 miles (5,800 kilometers) on the 

second orbit. (The International Space 

Station orbits Earth at an altitude of 

approximately 260 miles, or 420 kilometers.) 

That altitude will allow the spacecraft to return 

through the atmosphere at a speed 

of 20,000 mph (32,000 kph), which will 

generate temperatures near 4,000 degrees 

Fahrenheit (2,200 degrees Celsius) on Orion’s 

heat shield. Those temperatures – about 80 

percent as hot as Orion would experience 

returning from lunar orbit – will provide the 

most challenging test currently possible. 

The flight test will also validate systems 

such as Orion’s parachutes, avionics and 

attitude control, and demonstrate major 

separation events such as the launch abort 

system jettison and the service module fairing 

separation. All of these systems must perform 

flawlessly to guarantee safe, successful 

missions in the future. Although they have 

been tested extensively on the ground, the 

space environment cannot be replicated 

completely on Earth, and Exploration Flight 

Test-1 will provide critical data that will enable 

engineers to improve Orion’s design and 

reduce risk for the astronauts it will carry 

as NASA continues to move forward on its 

human journey to Mars. 

Although Orion is a NASA program, 

Exploration Flight Test-1 is managed and 

led by Orion prime contractor Lockheed 

Martin and will launch on a United Launch 

Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket. 

Flight Overview 1 
Orion Flight Test

2 December 2014

Timeline Overview 

Preflight: 

L-8 hours 15 minutes – 


Mobile Service Tower First Motion
 

- The gantry used to access the vehicle as 

it was being readied for launch begins to 

move away from the rocket. 

L-4 hours 35 minutes – 

Fueling Readiness Polls 

- United Launch Alliance launch team will 

poll its members to decide whether to begin 

fueling the rocket with liquid hydrogen and 

liquid oxygen. 

L-4 hours 30 minutes – 


Delta IV Heavy Fueling Begins
 

- The Delta IV Heavy boosters begin to be 

filled with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. 

L-3 hours 30 minutes – 

Flight Control Team on Console in Mission 

Control, Houston 

- The NASA flight control team overseeing 

Orion’s flight from Houston takes over from 

the pre-launch flight control team that has 

been making preparations for launch. 

L-2 hours 35 minutes – 

NASA TV Coverage Begins 

L-1 hour 55 minutes – 

Landing Weather Briefing 

- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration’s Space Flight Meteorology 

Group in Mission Control, Houston, briefs 

the Flight Control Team on weather 

conditions at the splashdown point 

in the Pacific Ocean. 

Timeline Overview 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

L-0 hours 30 minutes – 

Launch Weather Briefing 

- The 45th Space Wing Operations Group 

Weather Squadron at Cape Canaveral Air 

Force Station briefs the United Launch 

Alliance’s Delta Launch Team on weather 

conditions at the launch site. 

L-0 hours 19 minutes – 

Terminal Countdown Hold 

- The Orion launch countdown enters a 

15-minute hold at the T-4 minute mark, 

during which time the final go or no-go 

polls are conducted. 

L-0 hours 16 minutes – 


Orion Go or No-go Poll for Launch
 

- The Lockheed Martin mission manager polls 

the Mission Management Team for a final go 

or no-go for Orion’s launch. 

L-0 hours 8 minutes – 

Orion on Internal Power 

- Orion begins using power from its own 

batteries rather than external power. 

L-0 hours 8 minutes – 


Delta Go or No-go Poll for Launch
 

- The United Launch Alliance launch 

conductor polls the Delta Launch Team for 

a final go or no-go for launch of the Delta IV 

Heavy that will carry Orion into space. 

L-0 hours 4 minutes – 

Terminal Countdown Begins 

- The final built-in hold ends, and the clock 

begins counting down the final minutes 

before launch. 

L-0 hours 0 minutes – 

Liftoff! 

- Orion launches into space on its first 

flight test! 

Timeline Overview 3 
Orion Flight Test

4 December 2014

Flight: 

L+1 minute 23 seconds – 

Max Q 

- Orion and the Delta IV Heavy experience the 

maximum dynamic pressure during ascent. 

L+1 minute 25 seconds – 

Mach 1 

- Orion and the Delta IV Heavy reach the 

speed of sound. 

L+3 minutes 56 seconds – 

Port and Starboard Common Booster 

Cores Jettisoned 

- The boosters on either side of the rocket 

are released after their engines cut off at 

the 3 minute, 56 second mark. 

L+5 minutes 30 seconds – 


Core Common Booster Core MECO
 

- The main engines cut off on the remaining 

booster core. 

L+5 minutes 33 seconds – 

Stage 1 Separation 

- The first stage of the Delta IV Heavy 

separates from the rest of the vehicle, while 

the second stage continues on with Orion. 

L+5 minutes 49 seconds – 

Second Stage Ignition #1 

- The second stage of the Delta IV Heavy 

begins an 11-minute, 50-second engine 

burn to continue Orion’s ascent. 

L+6 minutes 15 seconds – 


Service Module Fairing Separation
 

- The three 13x14-ft. fairing panels that have 

provided structural support and protected 

the service module through the first minutes 

of flight are pushed away from the vehicle 

to reduce Orion’s weight. 

Timeline Overview 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

L+6 minutes 20 seconds – 

Launch Abort System Jettison 

- The system that would be used to pull future 

Orion crews away from their rocket during 

an emergency is jettisoned once Orion is 

safely through the most dynamic portion 

of its launch. 

L+17 minutes 39 seconds – 

Secondary Engine Cutoff (SECO) #1 

- The Delta IV Heavy second stage engine 

shuts down as Orion arrives at its initial 

orbit, 115 x 552 miles (185 by 888 

kilometers) above Earth. 

L+1 hour 55 minutes 26 seconds – 

Second Stage Ignition #2 

- The second stage of the Delta IV Heavy 

begins a 4-minute, 45-second engine burn 

to push Orion farther into orbit. 

L+2 hours 0 minutes 09 seconds – 

SECO #2 

- The Delta IV Heavy second stage completes 

its engine burn, sending Orion on its way 

to its peak altitude of 3,600 miles (5,800 

kilometers). 

L+2 hours 05 minutes – 


Entering First High Radiation Period
 

- Orion enters the first of two periods of 

intense radiation in the lower Van Allen Belt. 

Its cameras are turned off during this period 

to protect them from damage. 

L+2 hours 20 minutes – 

Leaving High Radiation Period 

- Orion rises above the most intense area of 

radiation it will travel through. Its cameras 

are turned back on. 

Timeline Overview 5 
Orion Flight Test

6 December 2014

L+2 hours 40 minutes – 


Reaction Control System Activation
 

- The engines that will steer Orion once it has 

separated from the Delta IV Heavy second 

stage are activated. 

L+3 hours 05 minutes – 

Peak Altitude 

- Orion reaches its highest altitude of the 

flight, 3,600 miles (5,800 kilometers) above 

Earth and farther than any vehicle built for 

humans has been in more than 40 years. 

L+3 hours 09 minutes – 

Maneuver to Crew Module/Service Module 

Separation Attitude 

- Orion moves into position for the separation 

of its service module and the Delta IV Heavy 

second stage. 

L+3 hours 23 minutes 41 seconds – 

Crew Module/Service Module Separation 

- The Orion crew module separates from its 

service module and the Delta IV Heavy in 

preparation for its return to Earth. 

L+3 hours 30 minutes – 


Entering Second High Radiation Period
 

- Orion re-enters the area of intense radiation 

in the lower Van Allen Belt, this time going 

down instead of up. Its cameras will again 

be turned off for protection. 

L+3 hours 57 minutes 11 seconds – 

Crew Module Translation Burn 

- Orion’s reaction control system engines fire 

for 10 seconds to initiate its return to Earth. 

L+4 hours 05 minutes – 

Leaving High Radiation Period 

- Orion falls below the most intense area 

of radiation it will travel through. Its cameras 

are turned back on. 

L+4 hours 13 minutes 35 seconds – 

Entry Interface 

- Orion reaches the upper limits of Earth 

atmosphere, which generates heat as 

Orion passes through it at about 

20,000 mph (32,000 kph). 

Timeline Overview 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

L+4 hours 13 minutes 41 seconds – 

Blackout 

- The flight control team in Mission Control 

loses contact with Orion for approximately 

2.5 minutes as a superheated plasma forms 

around the capsule, blocking signals in 

and out. 

L+4 hours 15 minutes 03 seconds – 

Peak Heating 

- Orion experiences the hottest period 

of its return through Earth’s atmosphere, 

with its heat shield experiencing 

temperatures near 4,000 degrees 

Fahrenheit (2,200 degrees Celsius). 

L+4 hours 19 minutes 29 seconds – 

Forward Bay Cover Jettison 

- The forward bay cover, with its tiles that 

have protected Orion through the heat 

of re-entry, is jettisoned to expose its 

parachutes. The forward bay cover has 

three parachutes of its own that will lower 

it to the Pacific Ocean. 

L+4 hours 19 minutes 31 seconds – 

Drogues Deployed 

- The first two parachutes of the eight that 

will slow Orion for splashdown deploy 

while Orion is traveling about 300 mph 

(480 kph). 

L+4 hours 20 minutes 40 seconds – 

Main Parachutes Deployed 

- Three pilot parachutes are used to pull 

the three massive main parachutes out 

after the drogue parachutes are released. 

The main parachutes, which together would 

cover almost an entire football field, slow 

the vehicle from about 100 mph (160 kph) 

to less than 20 mph (30 kph). 

L+4 hours 23 minutes 29 seconds – 

Splashdown 

- Orion lands in the Pacific Ocean, 

approximately 600 miles off the coast 

of Baja California. It will be recovered 

by a combined NASA and U.S. Navy team 

that will attach Orion to cables that will 

pull it into the flooded well deck of the 

USS Anchorage. 

Timeline Overview 7 
Orion Flight Test

8 December 2014

Flight Profile 

Launch 

Launch vehicle: United Launch Alliance 

Delta IV Heavy 

Launch site: Space Launch Complex 37 

at Cape Canaveral, Florida 

Launch date: Dec. 4, 2014 

Launch time: 7:05 a.m. EST 

Launch window: 2 hours, 39 minutes 

Altitude: 115 x 552 miles initial orbit; 

-23 x 3,609 miles final orbit 

Inclination: 28.8 degrees 

Duration: 4 hours, 24 minutes 

Vehicle Data 

Orion/Delta combined liftoff weight: 

1,630,000 pounds (740,000 kilograms) 

Orion liftoff weight (including service module 

and launch abort system): 46,000 pounds 

(21,000 kilograms) 

Orion landing weight (crew module only): 

19,000 pounds (8,600 kilograms) 

Landing 

Splashdown date: Dec. 4, 2014 

Splashdown time: 8:29 a.m. PST 

(assumes an on-time launch) 

Targeted splashdown site: the Pacific 

Ocean, 600 miles (1,000 kilometers) west 

of Baja California 

Flight Profile 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

For its first flight, Orion will launch into space 

on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy 

rocket, the largest rocket currently available 

until NASA’s Space Launch System rocket is 

completed. The Delta IV Heavy is powerful 

enough to boost Orion 3,600 miles in altitude 

above Earth – high enough to require the 

spacecraft to return to Earth at speeds that 

will result in its heat shield experiencing 

temperatures approximately 80 percent of 

what the vehicle would endure on a return 

from lunar orbit. 

Atop the Delta IV Heavy, it will take Orion 

17 minutes to reach orbit. During that time, 

several portions of both the rocket and Orion 

will be jettisoned. 

The first things to go are the rocket’s port 

and starboard liquid-fueled rocket boosters, 

which are jettisoned about four minutes after 

launch. The center booster stays with the 

vehicle for another minute and a half before 

it, too, has fulfilled its purpose and separates 

from the second stage of the rocket and the 

Orion spacecraft. 

Six minutes into the flight, 

Orion jettisons the three 

service module fairing panels 

that protect the service 

module and provide structural 

support for the crew module 

and launch abort system 

during the heaviest loads 

of launch and ascent. The 

launch abort system itself 

follows seconds later. 

The second stage of the 

Delta IV Heavy will provide 

all of the attitude control and 

propulsion for Orion while it 

remains with the vehicle. Its 

engine cuts off for the first 

time when Orion reaches its initial 115- by 

552-mile (185- by 888-kilometer) orbit, 17 

minutes after launch. It ignites again as the 

first of Orion’s two orbits ends, pushing the 

spacecraft to its peak altitude. After firing 

for 4 minutes and 45 seconds, Orion’s orbit 

will change from roughly circular to extremely 

oval, with an apogee – or high point – of 3,609 

miles (5,808 kilometers) and a perigee that 

would actually dip below Earth surface, if the 

flight weren’t ending at splashdown. 

Orion will reach that peak altitude three hours 

into the flight. At 3,600 miles in altitude, Earth 

should fill 60 percent of the field of view 

through Orion’s window. 

At that point, the rocket’s second stage will 

perform its final task as part of Orion’s flight 

test, by maneuvering the spacecraft into 

position for separation. At 3 hours and 

23 minutes, the Orion crew module will 

separate from both the Delta IV second stage 

and the Orion service module. The second 

stage, with the service module still attached, 

will fire its engines one more time to drop 

itself into Earth’s atmosphere and burn up. 

Flight Profile 9 
Orion Flight Test

10 December 2014

The Orion crew module will continue on 

the flight by itself, providing its own attitude 

control and propulsion. It will go from peak 

altitude to splashdown in just an hour and a 

half. Just before completing its fourth hour 

of flight, Orion will use its reaction control 

system for 10 seconds to perform its re-entry 

demonstration burn. About 15 minutes later, 

the spacecraft will begin experiencing 

Earth’s atmosphere again, at an altitude 

of 400,000 feet (122,000 meters). 

Orion will be traveling just under 20,000 mph 

(32,000 kph) at this time. It will take it only 

10 minutes from that point to reach the Pacific 

Ocean for splashdown. By comparison, the 

space shuttles took 40 minutes to descend 

for landing. 

The hottest temperatures Orion’s heat shield 

will see occur less than 10 minutes before 

landing, 4 hours and 15 minutes into the 

flight. As its heat shield is put to the test, 

Earth’s atmosphere will begin to slow the 

spacecraft down. Within five minutes, it will 

reach a speed of about 300 mph (480 kph) 

and have passed the extreme heating phase 

of the flight. This will allow the forward bay 

cover, which protects the capsule and its 

parachutes, to jettison, making way for the 

first two of the eight parachutes that further 

slow Orion’s descent. 

Orion’s two drogue parachutes deploy first, 

at 22,000 feet (6,700 meters), and within a 

minute slow Orion to about 100 mph (160 kph) 

before being released. They are followed by 

three pilot parachutes that pull out the three 

massive main parachutes when Orion is still 

6,500 feet (2,000 meters) above the Pacific 

Ocean. They finish the job and lower Orion 

to the ocean’s surface at less than 17 mph 

(27 kph). 

Flight Profile 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

Recovery Operations 

Before Orion launches on its flight test from 

Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Flroida, 

the integrated team will embark aboard 

two ships, the U.S. Navy’s amphibious 

ship, the USS Anchorage, and the Navy’s 

salvage ship, the USNS Salvor, on the West 

Coast to prepare for Orion’s recovery. The 

team is made up of U.S. Navy amphibious 

specialists, engineers and technicians from 

NASA’s Ground Systems Development and 

Operations (GSDO) program at the agency’s 

Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Johnson 

Space Center in Houston, and Lockheed 

Martin Space Operations. 

While the team waits for Orion to take flight, 

it will launch weather balloons from the deck 

of the Anchorage and monitor sea conditions. 

Before Orion’s splashdown in the Pacific 

Ocean, helicopters will take off from the 

Anchorage’sdeck and fly out to help locate 

Orion as it makes its descent toward the 

ocean. After Orion’s splashdown, the team 

will recover the crew module and attempt 

to recover hardware that was jettisoned, 

including the forward bay cover and 

parachutes. 

Minutes after Orion splashes down, the crew 

module uprighting system will inflate to help 

rotate the spacecraft into a heads-up position, 

if needed. 

U.S. Navy divers in Zodiac boats will check 

for any hazards around Orion. Then they will 

attach a sea anchor, load-distributing collar 

and tether lines to the crew module, 

and work to guide it to the ship’s well deck. 

The crew module will be winched into the 

flooded well deck of the USS Anchorage 

and placed on rubber shock absorbers. 

Water will be drained from the well deck, 

leaving Orion secure and dry. Once the ship 

starts the journey back to shore and reaches 

calm waters, the crew module then will be 

placed into its recovery cradle and readied 

for offloading. 

The USNS Salvor and rigid-hull inflatable 

boats will be used to secure and recover 

Recovery Operations 11 
Orion Flight Test

12 December 2014

Orion’s forward bay cover and parachutes. 

The Salvor’s cranes will be used to lift 

the forward bay cover and parachutes 

onto the ship deck. The crew module and 

jettisoned hardware will be transported 

from the landing site to a pier at the 

U.S. Naval Base San Diego. After the 

crew module is secured in the recovery 

transportation fixture, nicknamed the 

Armadillo, the Orion crew module 

and hardware will be transported by 

truck to Kennedy, where the crew module 

will be prepared for use in Orion’s Ascent 

Abort-2 test. 

The team also is prepared to use an 

alternative crew module recovery method 

in case Orion cannot be recovered using 

the USS Anchorage’s well deck. At sea, a 

sling would be placed around Orion, and 

the stationary crane on the USNS Salvor 

would be used to lift the crew module 

up and onto the deck where it will be 

secured. In case of very turbulent sea 

conditions, the USNS Salvor could tow 

Orion along until calmer seas are reached, 

and it could be recovered. 

During future crewed Orion exploration 

missions propelled by NASA’s Space 

Launch System rocket, the recovery 

procedures will be adjusted to allow for 

extraction of the crew members. NASA 

astronauts will remain inside Orion after 

splashdown and be removed once the 

craft is secured inside the well deck of the 

Navy ship. There, a platform will be moved 

into place after the water has drained from 

the deck, allowing the astronauts to climb 

out. They will undergo a thorough medical 

evaluation on the ship. 

Several of the unique pieces of Orion 

recovery hardware were designed and 

Recovery Operations 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

developed by NASA and Lockheed Martin 

engineers and technicians at Kennedy. 

Lockheed Martin designed the cradle Orion 

will sit on inside the well deck. It will be used 

to secure Orion in the recovery ship and move 

it out of the ship after returning to port. 

Building on 50 years of experience in 

spacecraft recovery operations, NASA’s 

GSDO Program at Kennedy is helping the 

agency prepare for future human deep space 

exploration, and will play a key role in Orion 

recovery operations. 

During NASA’s Apollo Program, Launch 

Services Program rocket launches and all 

135 space shuttle launches, NASA’s 

expertise included deploying and leading 

complex integrated teams at off-site locations 

throughout the world, working hand-in-hand 

with military personnel (both foreign and 

domestic), developing and coordinating 

search and rescue efforts with the Department 

of Defense, and creating and implementing 

a recovery operations concept that is 

compatible with the unique spacecraft, 

payload hazards and requirements. 

Recovery Operations 13 
Orion Flight Test

14 December 2014

Vehicle Components 

The Orion spacecraft is made up of four 

primary parts: the crew module, the service 

module, the launch abort system and the 

Orion-to-stage adapter. Each of those 

components is being tested on Orion’s 

flight test. Overall, 55 percent of the 

Orion systems that will be required for the 

spacecraft’s first crewed mission are being 

demonstrated for the first time in space on 

Exploration Flight Test-1. 

Crew Module 

Orion’s crew module will protect future crews 

during launch, provide them an area in which 

to live and work in space, and return them 

safely to Earth at the mission’s conclusion. 

It was built to support a crew of four for up 

to 21 days in space, but could also house a 

smaller crew for a longer period and up to six 

astronauts for either a shorter period or with 

the addition of a habitat module for extended 

missions. 

The crew module is the only portion of Orion 

that returns to Earth at the end of the flight. 

Its primary structure is made of aluminum and 

aluminum-lithium, with a friction-stir-welded 

pressure vessel covered in 970 tiles that make 

Vehicle Components 

Launch 

Abort 

System 

Crew 

Module 

Service 

Module 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

up Orion’s back shell. The back shell tiles are 

almost identical to the tiles that protected the 

bellies of the space shuttle orbiters as they 

returned from space. Made of a low-density, 

high-purity silica fiber made rigid by ceramic 

bonding, the tiles will be called upon to 

protect the sides of Orion from temperatures 

up to 3,150 degrees Fahrenheit (1,732 

degrees Celsius) on this test. 

Temperatures will climb even higher at the 

bottom of the Orion capsule, which will be 

pointed into the heat as Orion returns to 

Earth. Protecting the spacecraft from those 

temperatures requires the largest, most 

advanced heat shield ever built. 

The 16.5-foot (5-meter) diameter heat shield 

is built around a titanium skeleton and carbon 

fiber skin that give the shield its shape and 

provide structural support for the crew 

module during descent and splashdown. 

A fiberglass-phenolic honeycomb structure 

fits over the skin, and each of its 320,000 cells 

are filled with a material called Avcoat. Avcoat 

is designed to burn away, or ablate, as the 

material heats up, rather than transfer the heat 

back into the crew module. At its thickest, the 

heat shield is 1.6 inches (4 centimeters) thick, 

and about 20 percent of the Avcoat will erode 

as Orion travels through Earth’s atmosphere. 

On this first flight, Orion will face temperatures 

near 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,200 

degrees Celsius) during its return to Earth. 

That’s about 80 percent of the peak heating 

it would see during a return from lunar orbit, 

in which temperatures could reach 5,000 

degrees Fahrenheit (2,800 degrees Celsius), 

and enough to give engineers on the ground 

confidence in the heat shield design for 

future missions. 

Once the heat shield has done its job, 

Orion’s parachute system takes center stage. 

Throughout the flight, the forward bay cover 

on top of the crew module cone protects 

the parachutes from any damage in orbit 

and the heat of re-entry. After the spacecraft 

has safely made it through that heat, it is 

jettisoned to expose the parachutes, which 

begin deploying almost immediately. Including 

Vehicle Components 15 
Orion Flight Test

16 December 2014

 

the three parachutes that pull the forward 

bay cover away from the rest of the vehicle, 

11 parachutes make up Orion’s parachute 

system. 

Once the forward bay cover and its 

parachutes are out of the way, two 23-foot 

(7-meter) parachutes called drogues deploy 

to stabilize and slow down the spacecraft. 

They unfurl at approximately 25,000 feet 

(760 meters), while the spacecraft is traveling 

more than 300 mph (480 kph), and are cut 

away after approximately 30 seconds, when 

the vehicle is still about 8,000 feet above the 

ground. They’re followed by three pilot chutes 

that pull out the three, 116-foot (35-meter) 

main parachutes, which slow the vehicle 

down from 100 mph (160 kph) to less than 20 

mph (30 kph) for splashdown. 

For more stability, the main and drogue 

parachutes inflate in stages, with what are 

called “reefs” keeping the canopy of the 

parachutes bound until the proper time. This 

prevents the parachute system from putting 

too much stress on Orion by slowing it down 

too abruptly. 

Almost all of the systems that will be a part 

of the crew module on a crewed flight are 

included in the Exploration Flight Test-1 crew 

module. In addition to the systems already 

mentioned, this first crew module includes 

electrical power storage and distribution; 

thermal control; cabin pressure control; 

command and data handling; communications 

and tracking; guidance, navigation and 

control; reaction control system propulsion 

and flight software and computers. The only 

crew module systems that will not fly on this 

vehicle are the environmental control and 

life support system; and the crew support 

systems such as displays, seats and crewoperable hatches. 

Service Module 

Orion’s service module is designed to be the 

powerhouse that fuels and propels the Orion 

spacecraft in space. Located directly below 

the crew module, on future flights it will contain 

the in-space propulsion capability for orbital 

transfer, attitude control and high-altitude 

ascent aborts. It will also generate power 

using solar arrays and store it, and provide 

thermal control, water and air for the 

astronauts until just before their return 

to Earth, when it will separate from the 

crew module. 

However, because Orion’s first test flight lasts 

only 4.5 hours and does not include crew 

members, those functions are not needed in 

the first service module. Instead the service 

module flying on Exploration Flight Test-1, 

which was built by Lockheed Martin, will 

primarily provide a structural representation 

of the full service module. The full service 

module will be provided by the European 

Space Agency on Orion’s first mission atop 

the Space Launch System, Exploration 

Mission-1. 

Vehicle Components 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

This service module for the flight test 

will include ground cooling components, 

mass simulators and development flight 

instrumentation, as well as the separation 

mechanism needed to release the service 

module from the crew module before the 

crew module returns to Earth. 

In addition, the service module on this and 

all future flights will be required to support 

the load of the crew module and launch 

abort system during the extreme stress of 

launch. The crew module and launch abort 

system together weigh more than 37,000 

pounds (17,000 kilograms) at liftoff, and that 

load is multiplied by the forces exerted on 

the spacecraft during ascent. To support the 

weight and protect the service module from 

the heat, wind and acoustics it will experience 

during launch, three 14-foot by 13-foot 

panels (4-meter by 4.3-meter) – called 

fairings – surround the inner structure of 

the service module. 

The fairings’ job is done six minutes after 

launch, and each of those panels weighs 

more than 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms). 

So rather than carry them along for the rest 

of the flight, Orion jettisons them after 

reaching an altitude of about 560,000 feet 

(171,000 meters). To make that possible, six 

breakable joints and six explosive separation 

bolts are used to connect the fairing panels 

to the service module and each other. In a 

carefully timed sequence, the joints are fired 

apart, followed shortly by the bolts. Once all 

of the pyrotechnics have detonated, six spring 

assemblies push the three panels away, 

leaving the service module exposed 

as it travels on into space. 

The service module fairing separation is one 

of 17 separations or jettisons that have to 

happen exactly as planned for Orion’s first 

flight test to be successful. 

Launch Abort System 

Orion’s launch abort system will make it 

the safest spacecraft ever built for humans. 

Positioned atop the crew module, it is 

designed to protect the capsule during ascent 

and pull it – with astronauts inside – away 

from a failing rocket on the launch pad or 

during the first few minutes of launch. On 

crewed missions, it will be able to activate 

within milliseconds to pull the capsule away 

and position it for landing. 

The launch abort system can be divided into 

two parts: the fairing assembly, which is a 

Vehicle Components 17 
Orion Flight Test

18 December 2014

	 	 	 	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	

shell composed of a lightweight composite 

material that protects the capsule from 

the heat, wind and acoustics of the launch 

environment; and the launch abort tower, 

which includes the system’s three motors. 

Each of the three solid propellant rocket 

motors serves a different function: 

•	 The abort motor would provide the force

to pull the crew module away from the 

rocket in the event of an emergency. It 

is capable of producing about 400,000 

pounds (181,000 kilograms) of thrust to 

propel the vehicle away from the launch 

pad. The 7,636-pound (3,464-kilogram) 

motor has enough force to lift 26 elephants 

off the ground. 

•	 The attitude control motor uses a solid

propellant gas generator with eight 

proportional valves equally spaced around 

its 3-foot (1-meter) diameter to steer the 

vehicle as it moves away from the launch 

pad. The 1,680-pound (760-kilogram) 

motor can exert up to 7,000 pounds (3,200 

kilograms) of steering force in any direction. 

•	 The jettison motor is the only motor on

the launch abort system that will be used 

in every Orion launch, including Exploration 

Flight Test-1. Six minutes into a nominal 

flight, when Orion has made it through 

the most dangerous period of ascent, 

the 904-pound (410-kilogram) motor will 

ignite and pull the launch abort system – 

the fairing assembly and the launch abort 

tower – 300,000 feet (91,000 meters) 

away, allowing the crew and service 

module to continue on with the flight. In 

an emergency, it would fire once the crew 

capsule was safely away from the rocket, 

making way for Orion’s parachutes to 

deploy and lower the spacecraft and 

crew to the ground. 

Because there is no crew aboard Orion on this 

first flight, the jettison motor is the only one of 

the three that will be active. However, all three 

motors were tested during the Pad Abort-1 

Test in 2010 and will be tested again during 

the Ascent Abort-2 test, set for 2018. During 

that test, the crew module built for Exploration 

Flight Test-1 will be reused on a first stage 

booster from a Peacekeeper missile modified 

by Orbital Sciences Corporation to 

demonstrate an abort under the highest 

aerodynamic loads it will experience 

during flight. 

Orion-to-Stage Adapter 

The Orion-to-stage adapter connects Orion’s 

service module to the rocket below. In this 

case that is the Delta IV Heavy rocket, but in 

the future, the same design will connect Orion 

to the Space Launch System. The adapter 

provides structural support to Orion and 

electrical interfaces between the spacecraft 

and the rocket. 

Vehicle Components 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

Delta IV Heavy Rocket 

The Delta IV family of launch vehicles 

combines design simplicity, manufacturing 

efficiency, and streamlined mission and 

vehicle integration to meet customer 

requirements to launch high-priority U.S. 

Air Force, National Reconnaissance Office, 

NASA, and commercial payloads to orbit. 

The Delta IV launch system is available in five 

configurations: the Delta IV Medium, three 

variants of the Delta IV Medium-Plus, and the 

Delta IV Heavy. For Orion’s flight test, United 

Launch Alliance is providing a Delta IV Heavy. 

Each configuration is comprised of a 

common booster core (CBC) and a cryogenic 

second stage. The Delta IV Heavy employs 

two additional CBCs to augment the 

first-stage CBC. 

Delta Cryogenic Second Stage (DCSS) 

The DCSS stage propellant tanks are 

structurally rigid and constructed of isogrid 

aluminum ring forgings and spun-formed 

aluminum domes. It is a cryogenic liquid 

hydrogen/liquid oxygen-fueled vehicle, and 

uses a single RL10B-2 engine that produces 

24,750 pounds of thrust. The DCSS cryogenic 

tanks are insulated with a combination of 

spray-on and bond-on insulation, and heliumpurged insulation blankets. An equipment 

shelf attached to the aft dome of the DCSS 

liquid oxygen tank provides the structural 

mountings for vehicle electronics. 

Boosters 

The Delta IV booster tanks are structurally 

rigid and constructed of isogrid aluminum 

barrels, spun-formed aluminum domes and 

machined aluminum tank skirts. Delta IV 

booster propulsion is provided by the 

RS-68 engine system, which burns cryogenic 

Delta IV Heavy Rocket 19 
Orion Flight Test

20 December 2014

liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, delivering helium-purged insulation blankets. 

663,000 pounds (301,000 kilograms) of The boosters are controlled by the 

thrust at sea level. Booster cryogenic DCSS avionics system, which provides 

tanks are insulated with a combination guidance and flight control. 

of spray-on and bond-on insulation and 

Delta IV Heavy Rocket 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

Flight Objectives 

NASA and Lockheed Martin established the 

following objectives for Orion’s flight test: 

1. Successfully launch and deliver Orion into 

the planned 115 by 552 mile orbit. 

2. Demonstrate critical separation events 

during ascent and deorbit: 

a. service module fairing separation 

b. launch abort system jettison 

c. crew module/service module separation 

d. forward bay cover jettison 

3. Demonstrate thermal protection system 

performance during a high-energy return, 

when Orion will travel near 20,000 mph 

(32,000 kph), generating 4,000 degrees 

Fahrenheit (2,200 degrees Celsius) 

on its heat shield and 3,150 degrees 

Fahrenheit (1,730 degrees Celsius) 

on its backshell. 

4. Demonstrate descent, landing and 

recovery. A series of eight parachutes will 

slow Orion from about 300 mph (480 kph) 

to less than 20 mph (30 kph) when it will 

splash down in the Pacific Ocean and be 

recovered by a combined team of NASA, 

U.S. Navy and Lockheed Martin personnel. 

Flight Objectives 21 
Orion Flight Test

22 December 2014

Flight Personnel 

Mission Operations 

Mission Director/Mission Management Team 

Chair: Bryan Austin, Lockheed Martin 

Flight Director: Mike Sarafin, NASA 

Launch Conductor: Scott Barney, United 

Launch Alliance 

Recovery Director: Jeremy Graeber, NASA 

Program Management 

NASA Orion Program Manager: Mark Geyer 

Lockheed Martin Orion Program Manager: 

Mike Hawes 

NASA Television Commentators 

Host: Brandi Dean 

Pre-launch commentator: Michael Curie 

Flight commentator: Rob Navias 

United Launch Alliance Delta commentator: 

Steve Agid 

Orion’s flight test is unique. Although Orion 

is a NASA program, the flight is managed 

and led by Orion prime contractor Lockheed 

Martin, and launched on a United Launch 

Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket. Because 

of this, several teams of personnel will be 

involved in the minute-to-minute operation 

of Orion and differ from the personnel that 

will be involved in Orion’s missions atop 

NASA’s Space Launch System. 

Mission Management Team 

The Mission Management Team, chaired 

by Lockheed Martin’s Mission Manager 

Bryan Austin, will provide oversight of Orion 

operations during the flight test. It is made 

up of program and operations managers 

from NASA and Lockheed Martin who 

provide expertise in various areas and will 

advise Austin during real-time decisions. If 

circumstances during the flight go beyond the 

scope of established launch commit criteria 

Flight Personnel 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	 	

or flight rules, the mission management team 

will decide how to respond. 

In addition to Austin, the members of the 

Mission Management Team include the NASA 

and Lockheed Orion program managers; the 

NASA and Lockheed Martin safety officers; 

the NASA and Lockheed Martin chief Orion 

engineers; a flight test management officer; a 

Ground System Development and Operations 

Program officer for landing and recovery 

operations insight; a NASA flight operations 

assistant director; a Lockheed Martin mission 

success manager; a liaison to the Federal 

Aviation Administration Office of Commercial 

Space Transportation; and the Orion Director, 

a Lockheed Martin representative to the 

United Launch Alliance Delta Launch Team. 

With the exception of the Orion Director and 

the flight operations director, the members of 

the Mission Management Team will be located 

inside the Mission Director’s Center in Hangar 

AE at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. 

United Launch Alliance (ULA) Team 

Led by Launch Conductor Scott Barney, the 

United Launch Alliance Team is responsible 

for activating and configuring the Delta IV 

Heavy rocket for launch. They will also lead 

the integrated countdown operations for the 

launch and are responsible for all powered 

phases of the flight, through the Orion crew 

module’s separation from its service module 

and the Delta IV Heavy second stage. The 

Orion Director on the Mission Management 

Team will be NASA and Lockheed Martin’s 

representative on the Delta Launch Team, 

reporting for Orion in the go/no-go polls 

the launch conductor will lead. ULA will 

make the final go or no-go decision 

for launch. 

The ULA Team will be stationed in the 

Mission Director’s Center and the Launch 

Control Center of the Delta IV Operations 

Center at Cape Canaveral. 

Flight Control Team 

Responsible for monitoring Orion’s flight 

performance, overseeing its real-time 

operations and sending commands to the 

spacecraft, the Flight Control Team, located 

at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, will be led 

by NASA Flight Director Mike Sarafin. He will 

be the responsible authority for the spacecraft 

between liftoff and the post-splashdown 

handover to the Orion recovery team. Based 

on input from his 14-member team and on the 

landing weather forecast, Sarafin will provide 

a go or no-go decision for Orion’s launch to 

the Mission Management Team and provide 

recommendations on operations outside the 

flight rules as needed. 

Positions on the Flight Control Team include: 

•	 Flight Dynamics Officer (FDO): responsible

for the pre-launch heading alignment 

update and orbit and entry trajectory 

predictions 

•	 Electrical Power System Officer (EPS):

responsible for spacecraft electrical and 

mechanical systems 

•	 Emergency, Environmental and

Consumables Manager (EECOM): 

responsible for spacecraft pressure 

control and active thermal control systems 

•	 Command and Data Handling (C&DH):

responsible for the command and data 

handling system, including the flight control 

module, the on-board storage module, the 

Orion data network and portions of 

the power and data units 

Flight Personnel 23 
Orion Flight Test

24 December 2014

	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	

•	 Propulsion Officer (PROP): responsible

for the propulsion system hardware 

and software 

•	 Guidance Navigation and Control Officer

(GNC): responsible for operations of the 

navigation hardware, including inertial 

measurement units, barometric altimeters 

and the GPS receiver and antennas 

•	 Guidance Officer (GUIDANCE): responsible

for the onboard navigation performance; 

launch vehicle and onboard navigation 

state vector quality assessments; guidance 

performance monitoring and associated 

flight test objectives evaluations; ground 

navigation processing and best state vector 

source determination; and the Mission 

Control Center contingency state vector 

update command 

•	 Instrumentation and Communications

Officer (INCO): responsible for Orion’s 

communication systems, development 

flight instrumentation systems, video 

systems and recovery beacon; INCO 


will send all nominal and contingency 


commands to Orion
 

•	 Ground Control Officer (GC): responsible for

ground data systems and data flows that 

interface with the Mission Control Center 

•	 Weather Officer (WEATHER): responsible

for providing landing and contingency 

weather forecasts, as well as sea state 

information; located in a supporting room 

in the Mission Control Center 

•	 Landing Support Officer (LSO): responsible

for relaying mission status and milestones 

to external interfaces, such as the State 

Department, the Department of Defense, 

the recovery team, NASA Headquarters 

and others as required 

The Flight Control Team will operate from 

the Blue Flight Control Room in Johnson’s 

Mission Control Houston, a room previously 

used for International Space Station 

operations. 

Flight Personnel 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

Next Steps for NASA 

NASA’s missions, programs and projects 

are ensuring the United States will remain 

the world’s leader in space exploration and 

scientific discovery for years to come, while 

making critical advances in aerospace, 

technology development and aeronautics. 

Here is what’s next for NASA. 

Exploration 

NASA is designing and building capabilities 

to send humans farther into the solar system 

than ever before, including to an asteroid 

and Mars. On this Journey to Mars, NASA is 

developing the most advanced rocket and 

spacecraft ever designed. NASA’s Orion 

spacecraft will carry four astronauts on 

missions beyond the moon, launched from 

Florida aboard the Space Launch System 

(SLS) — an advanced heavy-lift rocket that 

will provide an entirely new national capability 

for human exploration beyond Earth’s orbit. 

To help test other spaceflight capabilities 

to meet the goal of sending humans to 

Mars, including advanced propulsion and 

spacesuits, NASA is developing the Asteroid 

Redirect Mission – the first-ever mission to 

identify, capture and redirect a near-Earth 

asteroid to a stable orbit around the moon, 

where astronauts will explore it in the 2020s, 

returning with samples. 

International Space Station 

The human spaceflight Journey to Mars 

begins some 260 miles (420 kilometers) 

overhead, as astronauts aboard the 

International Space Station are working off 

the Earth for the Earth. The space station’s 

microgravity environment makes research 

possible that can’t be achieved on Earth, 

leading to breakthroughs in understanding 

Earth, space and physical 

and biological sciences. 

By studying astronauts living in space for 

six months or more, NASA is learning how 

future crews can thrive on longer missions 

into the solar system. The space station also 

is a test bed for exploration technologies 

like autonomous refueling of spacecraft, 

advanced life support systems and human/ 

robotic interfaces. 

A portion of the space station has been 

designated a national laboratory, and NASA 

is committed to using this unique resource 

Next Steps for NASA 25 
Orion Flight Test

26 December 2014

for wide-ranging scientific research. A new 

generation of U.S. commercial spacecraft 

and rockets are supplying cargo to the space 

station and soon will launch astronauts 

once again from U.S. soil, allowing NASA to 

expand its focus to build new capabilities for 

deep space exploration. As a blueprint for 

international cooperation, the space station 

enables a U.S.-led multinational partnership 

and advances shared goals in space 

exploration. 

Aeronautics 

NASA is with you when you fly. Every U.S. 

aircraft and air traffic control tower has 

NASA-developed technology on board. 

The agency is helping transform aviation 

further by dramatically reducing its 

environmental impact, maintaining safety in 

more-crowded skies, and paving the way to 

revolutionary aircraft shapes and propulsion. 

NASA’s aeronautics research also helps 

maintain U.S. leadership in aviation, which 

is a key economic driver for the nation, 

facilitating $1.5 trillion in economic 

activity each year, 11.5 million jobs, and 

transportation of 17.7 billion tons of freight. 

From developing new air traffic management 

tools and designing quieter aircraft that fly 

at supersonic speeds, to writing innovative 

problem-solving software that improves 

aviation safety, NASA’s legacy of nearly 

a century of aviation research continues. 

Next Steps for NASA 
Orion Flight Test

December 2014

Technology 

Technology drives exploration. On Earth and 

in space, NASA is developing, testing and 

flying transformative capabilities and cuttingedge technologies for a new future of human 

and robotic exploration. We take emerging 

technologies and mature them, delivering 

innovative solutions that can improve our 

capabilities to explore, save lives and create 

economic growth. 

To help humans reach an asteroid and Mars, 

we’ll continue to evolve technologies like 

advanced solar electric propulsion, largescale solar sails, new green propellants, 

and composite cryogenic storage tanks for 

refueling depots in orbit. These new space 

technologies will increase our knowledge 

and spawn new capabilities to sustain our 

future missions. 

Science 

NASA is conducting an unprecedented array 

of missions that will seek new knowledge and 

understanding of Earth, the solar system and 

the universe. 

We’re studying Earth right now through 

spacecraft currently helping answer critical 

challenges facing our planet: climate change, 

sea level rise, freshwater resource depletion 

and extreme weather events. As an innovation 

leader in Earth and climate science, NASA is 

constantly expanding the view of our planet 

from space, with an exceptional team of 

experts and decades of innovative scientific 

and technical research. 

The first human footsteps on Mars will follow 

rover tracks. A fleet of robotic explorers 

already is on and around Mars, dramatically 

increasing our knowledge about the Red 

Planet. The planet once had conditions 

suitable for life, making it a rich destination 

for scientific discovery and robotic and human 

exploration as we expand our presence into 

the solar system. The formation of Mars and 

its evolution are comparable to Earth, helping 

us learn more about our own planet’s history 

and future. Future exploration could uncover 

evidence of life on Mars, unraveling one of the 

fundamental mysteries of the cosmos: Does 

life exist beyond Earth? 

Multiple NASA missions are studying 

our sun and the solar system, unraveling 

mysteries about their origin and evolution. 

By understanding variations of the sun in 

real time, we can better characterize space 

weather, which can impact exploration and 

technology on Earth. 

NASA telescopes also are peering into the 

farthest reaches of the universe and back to 

its earliest moments of existence, helping us 

understand the universe’s origin, evolution, 

and destiny. 

It’s an exciting time at NASA as we reach 

for new heights to reveal the unknown and 

benefit humankind. See a list of NASA’s 

current missions and find out what we’re 

launching next! 

Next Steps for NASA 27 
Orion Flight Test

28 December 2014

 

 

 

Public Affairs Contacts 

NASA Headquarters 

Human Exploration and Operations 

Mission Directorate 

Rachel Kraft, Stephanie Schierholz 

202-358-1100 

rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov 

stephanie.schierholz@nasa.gov 

NASA’s Johnson Space Center 

Orion Program 

Brandi Dean 

281-483-5111 

brandi.k.dean@nasa.gov 

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center 

Michael Curie, News Chief 

Amber Philman, GSDO 

321-867-2468 

michael.curie@nasa.gov 

amber.n.philman@nasa.gov 

Additional Orion Multimedia 

Materials 

More information about Orion and its 

flight test, including high resolution 

photo and video, can be found at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/orion. 

The launch will be broadcast live on 

NASA Television and webcast at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv. 

Prelaunch coverage will begin at 

4:30 a.m. EST on Dec. 4. 

Lockheed Martin 

Orion Public Relations 

Allison Rakes 

303-977-7135 

allison.m.rakes@lmco.com 

United Launch Alliance 

Delta IV Heavy Launch Vehicle 

Jessica Rye 

321-730-5646 

jessica.f.rye@ulalaunch.com 

United States Navy 

Expeditionary Strike Group THREE 

Recovery Operations 

LT Chelsea Irish 

619-556-5478 

chelsea.irish@navy.mil 

Follow NASA on social media: 

Twitter: 

http://www.twitter.com/NASA 

http://www.twitter.com/NASA_Orion 

#Orion 

Facebook: 

http://www.facebook.com/NASA 

http://www.facebook.com/NASAOrion 

Google+: 

http://www.plus.google.com/+NASA 

http://www.plus.google.com/+NASAOrion 

Instagram: 

http://www.instagram.com/NASA 

http://www.instagram.com/exploreNASA 

Public Affairs Contacts