KSC-2013-1257

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the high bay of Kennedy Space Center's Operations and Checkout Building, Scott Wilson, NASA's Orion production manager at the Florida Spaceport, briefs members of the news media about progress in preparing Orion for its first flight. In the background, the Orion spacecraft is surrounded by a special pre-launch processing access fixture. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry crews to space beyond low Earth orbit. It will provide emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during the space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on a Space Launch System rocket. For more information, visit http:__www.nasa.gov_orion Photo credit: NASA_Kim Shiflett