NASA's new Ares rocket test flight : pics and vids

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA's newest rocket blasted off on a brief test flight today, taking the first step in a back-to-the-moon program that could yet be shelved by the White House.

The 327-foot Ares I-X rocket resembled a giant white pencil as it shot into the sky, delayed a day by poor weather.

Nearly twice the height of the spaceship it's supposed to replace — the shuttle — the skinny experimental rocket carried no passengers or payload, only throwaway ballast and hundreds of sensors. The flight cost $445 million.

"Oh, man. Well, how impressive is that," said Jeff Hanley, manager of NASA's space frontier program, known as Constellation. "You've accomplished a great step forward for exploration," he told launch controllers.

It was the first time in nearly 30 years that a new rocket took off from Kennedy Space Center. Columbia made the maiden voyage for the shuttle fleet back in 1981.

Liftoff, in fact, occurred 48 years and one day after the first launch of a Saturn rocket, a precursor to what carried astronauts to the moon during the Apollo program. The Saturn V moon rockets were the tallest ever built, an impressive 363 feet.

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I don't even see why they need a new rocket design if the Apollo rockets did so well 40 years ago. The article says its supposed to replace the shuttle but the shuttle was never designed to go to the moon.



[edit on 28-10-2009 by VitalOverdose]

Originally posted by VitalOverdose
I don't even see why they need a new rocket design if the Apollo rockets did so well 40 years ago.

We want the ability to land at very high latitudes, even at the poles if need be, and we want to stay on the surface for much longer than we ever have before. Last but not least, we want to be able to reuse the capsules. Apollo's equipment cannot provide that kind of capability.

The shuttle wasn't designed to go to the moon, true, but Ares I is supposed to provide us with the ability to transfer crews to and from ISS, which would have been the role of the shuttle after station construction was completed. Sadly Ares will not give us the cargo capacity though, but we should still be able to bring back limited amounts that can fit within the living space (which is far more than a Soyuz).

[edit on 28-10-2009 by ngchunter]

reply to post by ngchunter

That all seems reasonable.

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Thats an awesome sight


[edit on 28-10-2009 by VitalOverdose]

An earlier test. 22 million horse power.


CGI simulation


The real test flight.



[edit on 28-10-2009 by VitalOverdose]