WELCOME BACK....
THIS MORNING, NASA IS TESTING
ORION, THE SPACE CRAFT THAT
WOULD TAKE THE FIRST WOMAN AND
NEXT MAN TO THE MOON IN 2024.
AFTER THAT, ORION HAS ITS EYES
SET ON MARS WITH PLANS TO TAKE
HUMANS THE FARTHEST
THEY'VE EVER BEEN IN SPACE!
ERA
EVEN COOLER? SPRINGFIELD IS
REPRESENTED AT THE LAUNCH THIS
MORNING,
ROB BLEVINS, EXEC DIRECTOR WITH
THE DISCOVERY CENTER WAS CHOSEN
TO COVER THE
TEST AND JOINS US LIVE FROM THE
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER IN CAPE
CANAVERAL, FLORIDA!
ROB, HOW ARE YOU THIS MORNING?
NASA invites local, nonprofit
science center director to a
test
launch at Kennedy Space Center
ERA: ROB, TELL US WHAT YOU'RE
DOING IN FLORIDA
THIS MORNING?!
Springfield, MO-NASA has invited
the Discovery Center's
Executive Director, Rob Blevins,
to attend, document, and share
the Orion Ascent Abort Test 2
(AA-2) at Kennedy Space
Center in Cape Canaveral,
Florida from July 1st - July
2nd. While it is an
out-of-this-world experience,
the rocket will not
be leaving the Earth's
troposphere. Instead, the Orion
spacecraft, which is the
exploration vehicle that is
intended to transport humans
farther than they have ever gone
before, will undergo testing of
its new Launch Abort System
(LAS) during ascent.
ERA: WHAT WILL BE THE MISSION OF
ORION?
After reaching nearly 31,000
feet while traveling at Mach 1.3
(over 1,000 mph), the LAS will
fire a powerful abort motor to
move the Orion test vehicle away
from the missile. Once
carried to a safe distance, the
LAS will stabilize Orion and
then jettison the vehicle back
down to earth. This is the only
test
planned for the LAS before NASA
will use it to transport
astronauts to the Moon in 2024
as part of the Artemis mission,
which will carry the first woman
and the next man to visit the
lunar surface. NASA eventually
plans for the Orion spacecraft
to
carry the first humans to Mars.
ERA: WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO
REPRESENT
SPRINGFIELD AT THIS HISTORIC
EVENT?
As part of the NASA Social
program experience, Blevins will
receive media credentials and
access similar to that of the
news media, get to watch the LAS
test from Space Launch
Complex 46 at Cape Canaveral Air
Force Station (CCAFS) in
Florida, tour the NASA
facilities at Kennedy Space
Center, and
speak with representatives and
scientists from NASA. These
experiences will be shared
through social media and
livestreams on the Discovery
Center's Facebook page at
www.facebook.com/DiscoveryCenter
Springfield. The Discovery
Center will also be sharing
those livestreams
and video conferences with
visitors and pairing that with
hands-on astronomy activities on
July 1st and 2nd. The Center
will provide updates to
programming times on their
Facebook page as they become
available.
"I have a terrible sense of
humor, so it shouldn't surprise
anyone that I'm saying that I'm
over-the-moon excited to be
selected for this historic
experience," said Executive
Director, Rob Blevins.
"Astronomy is my favorite
subject. I'm a huge geek when it
comes to NASA and space
travel. Our mission at the
Discovery Center is to inspire a
lifelong love of learning, and I
struggle to think of something
more inspiring for kids than
space flight, landing on the
oon, and exploring new worlds.
I'm thrilled to be able to bring
these
NASA experiences to children and
families right here in the
Ozarks."