WIKIARCHIVES.SPACE

At Naval Base San Diego in California, NASA's Orion spacecraft is being offloaded from the well deck of the USS Anchorage. Orion has been secured in its crew module recovery cradle and will be prepared for return to Kennedy Space Center in Florida. After lifting off at 7:05 a.m. EST on Dec. 5 atop a Delta IV Heavy rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, Orion completed a two-orbit, four-and-a-half hour mission to test systems critical to crew safety, including the launch abort system, the heat shield and the parachute system. NASA, the U.S. Navy and Lockheed Martin coordinated efforts to recover Orion after splashdown in the Pacific Ocean. The Ground Systems Development and Operations Program led the recovery efforts. For more information, visit www.nasa.gov/orion