July 22, 2011

J D Harrington/Michael Braukus Headquarters, Washington
202-358-5241/1979 j d harrington@nasa gov/michael j braukus@nasa gov

Amy Johnson Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va 757-864-7022/757-272-9859 amy johnson@nasa gov

Josh Byerly Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 josh byerly@nasa gov

RELEASE: 11-242

NASA TESTS FUTURE DEEP SPACE VEHICLE FOR WATER LANDINGS

HAMPTON, Va -- As NASA closes the chapter on the Space Shuttle Program, a new era of exploration vehicles is beginning to take off

Testing began this month at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va , in the new Hydro Impact Basin to certify the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) for water landings The Orion MPCV will carry astronauts into space, provide emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and ensure safe re-entry and landing

Engineers have dropped a 22,000-pound MPCV mockup into the basin The test item is similar in size and shape to MPCV, but is more rigid so it can withstand multiple drops Each test has a different drop velocity to represent the MPCV's possible entry conditions during water landings

The last of three drop tests to verify the new facility is scheduled for the end of this month

Testing will resume in September with a slightly modified test article that is more representative of the actual MPCV

The new Hydro Impact Basin is 115 long, 90 feet wide and 20 feet deep It is located at the west end of Langley's historic Landing and Impact Research Facility, or Gantry, where Apollo astronauts trained for moon walks

For images and video of the tests, visit:

http://www nasa gov/centers/langley/exploration/hib html

To follow the progress of the Orion MPCV on social networking sites, visit:

http://www facebook com/nasampcv

http://twitter com/nasampcv

http://www youtube com/user/nasampcv

http://www flickr com/photos/nasampcv

NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston manages the Orion MPCV program for the agency For more information about the program, visit:

http://www nasa gov/exploration/mpcv

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