Part of NASA spacecraft to be tested in NW Ohio


Associated Press

SANDUSKY

Part of the test version of NASA’s new Orion spacecraft is ready to undergo testing in northwestern Ohio.

The service module was delivered recently to the NASA test facility in Sandusky. It will receive vibration, acoustic, strength, and temperature tests over the next several months that will replicate conditions the module will experience while ascending into space.

Orion is NASA’s first new spacecraft for humans in over a generation. It succeeds the now-retired space shuttles.

Representatives from various organizations attended a special event at the NASA Plum Brook Station to discuss Orion’s progress.

The service module will provide in-space propulsion, as well as electricity, air, and water for astronauts. The results of the tests will determine if the service module can withstand the challenges it may face in space as well as if it is safe enough to be located near the astronaut crew cabin.

The tests will help NASA and the European Space Agency collaborate on a final service module that will go up in space. Once that one’s ready, it will probably also go through the Sandusky facility for additional verification, Mike Hawes, Orion program manager for NASA contractor Lockheed Martin, told The Blade following a news conference.

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