Blastoff from Sandusky

Columbus Dispatch: It’s fitting that the state that gave America John Glenn and Neil Armstrong – not to mention the Wright Brothers – will test the latest version of NASA’s first new spacecraft for humans in more than a generation.

The Orion spacecraft’s service module, which will provide in-space propulsion, electricity, air and water for astronauts, has arrived at NASA Plum Brook Station, the agency’s test facility in Sandusky. There, it will undergo several months of tests in the world’s largest and most sophisticated vacuum chamber for testing rocket parts, replicating conditions it will experience in space.

PURPOSE OF PROJECT

The testing will provide the basis for NASA and European Space Agency engineers to work together on the final version of the service module. Once ready, that module also likely will be tested in Sandusky.

Other elements of Orion are being tested around the country, with an eye to launching manned trips another six to eight years down the road.

It’s an exciting mission for Ohio to be part of.