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Preparing for the Future

NASA, ATK, Orbital Sciences Corp. and Lockheed Martin successfully completed the first full-scale test fire of the motor for a new Orion launch abort system Nov. 20, 2008. The abort motor is designed to pull the crew module away from the Ares I launch vehicle in an emergency situation on the launch pad or during the first 300,000 feet after launch. This is the first time such a test has been conducted since the Apollo Program tested its launch escape system in the 1960s.