KSC-2009-2000

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Simulator segments of the Ares I-X are on display for the media in the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. At left are several stacked segments. At right is the launch abort system simulator. The I-X flight will provide NASA an early opportunity to test and prove hardware, facilities and ground operations associated with Ares I, part of the Constellation Program to return men to the moon and beyond. Ares I is the essential core of a safe, reliable, cost-effective space transportation system that eventually will carry crewed missions back to the moon, on to Mars and out into the solar system. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller