NASA's Orion Spaceship Successfully Completes Two Orbit Flight

NASA's Orion spacecraft successfully completed its two-orbit test flight before landing into the Pacific on Friday.

Powered by United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy Rocket that provided two million pounds of thrust, the spacecraft lifted off just after 7 am from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and settled into low earth orbit within 20 minutes. Orion completed the first orbit two hours after launch when its second stage lifted it into higher orbit, 3,600 miles away from earth, USA Today reported. Friday's flight was Orion's second attempt after it's first failed on Thursday.

After about an hour into the second orbit, the crew module in the spacecraft prepared for entry into earth. Researchers were relieved that the spacecraft's heat shield could withstand atmospheric resistance caused temperatures to soar to 4,000 degree Fahrenheit.

Orion successfully deployed parachutes to cut its descent speeds from 20,000 miles per hour to 20 miles per hour. It landed 4 hours and 30 minutes after its flight in Pacific, 600 miles west of Baja California. The spacecraft's crew module was collected by waiting navy ships.

BBC reported Orion's success as important for NASA's manned missions in the future, including mission to Mars and landing people on asteroids. However manned spaceflights are not on the cards until 2021 when Orion would carry its first human cargo.

Though Friday's flight was unmanned, scientists have landed precious data collected by the spacecraft's sensors during flight. According to CNN, Orion can carry four people on 21-day missions. NASA has spent about $ 9 billion on Orion in the last one decade.