My Return to NASA Social: The Orion Ascent Abort 2 Test

Our fabulous NASA Social group in front of the VAB (Vehicle Assembly Building).
Photo Credit: NASA Social

5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
ABORT!!

Did I get your attention? Well, there's a reason for it, but I'll get to that in a minute. If you've read my post from last year's NASA Social adventure, you know that I witnessed the launch of NASA's TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Satellite System) on Space-X's Falcon 9 rocket, and it was basically the coolest thing I've ever experienced in my life. I've spent the time since then sharing my renewed passion and knowledge of space travel and exploration with friends, family, students, and even complete strangers via social media, classroom presentations, and my inclination to bring it up in virtually every conversation I have.

Inevitably, I decided to apply for another NASA Social event. And this time, I would be attending as an alum! A pro. A seasoned veteran. Ok, it was only my second event and it was completely different from the first one, but at least I had some idea going into it of what I might be experiencing. And I ended up with a few first-timers on my tail throughout the experience which I'll admit, made me feel just a little bit special.

So why the 'abort' in my countdown above? Well, since NASA is committed to the safety of its astronauts, they are conducting abort tests of the Orion capsule, which will eventually take women and men to the moon and beyond! The first test was successfully completed on the launchpad in 2010 and the second one I witnessed last week... 31,000 feet in the air! 55 seconds after launch the test capsule was ejected, along with 12 Ejectable Data Recorders, and hurtled spectacularly into the ocean. No parachutes were used since this was just a test, but once humans are on board, parachutes will be installed in order to make an abort landing more of a gentle splashdown than a colossal cannonball.

This is Pad 46, which housed the Orion test capsule and booster before the launch. Can you see it hiding inside there?
(Not pictured: the alligator I ended up about all of 20 ft from before someone said "Look out for the gator!")

This is Andrzej Jackowski, a smarty pants NASA Avionics Engineer. He is shyly holding a mock-up of one of the Ejectable Data Recorders he helped design. #cutie

Day 1 of the event was all behind the scenes. We acted like professional NASA correspondents in the media building, visited Pad 46 and its eventual moon-bound inhabitant (pictured above), and saw Pad 39b with the Mobile Launch System, which had just been moved there a few days before. This is the launchpad that will eventually launch astronauts to the moon and mars. Fun fact: I got to walk ON launchpad 39b last year while it was still being built!

We all look so professional don't we?
Photo Cred: NASA Social

That gangway on the upper left is where future astronauts will walk into capsules like Orion for launches to the moon, mars, and beyond. So cool!!

Next up on the tour was the massive beast that is a NASA Crawler. These titans transport all of NASA's shuttles, rockets, boosters, capsules, etc from their hangers to the launchpads. They move at the blinding speed of 1-2 miles per hour, get a whopping 38 feet to the gallon, and look like something directly out of a Star Wars set. Can't you just see Chewbacca climbing this thing while yelling "aaaarrrrgggggwwwwwhhhh"?!? We drove past one of these behemoths at the event I attended last year, but this time we got up close and personal... and even got to walk underneath of it!!

Our entire group lined up in front of the crawler... and we still didn't even span the entire thing!
Photo Cred: NASA Social

My view of the Mobile Launch System on Pad 39b from UNDERNEATH the crawler!

The obligatory, "The crawler was THIS BIG" photo.

After visiting the crawler, and recovering from the sheer awesomeness of what we had just experienced, we traveled to see the astronaut crew quarters. We didn't get to go inside, but it was truly awe inspiring to think of the astronomical (see what I did there?) number of brave souls who had lived there during training and while preparing for launches. Are you ever really too old to want to be an astronaut when you grow up?

Wishful thinking...

Photo Cred: NASA Social

The final stop of our tours for the day was the NASA Cryogenics Lab... a very 'cool' place and a welcome relief from the stifling Florida heat. Here, we watched a daring NASA scientist turn a rubber bouncy ball into glass-like shards on the floor, and we learned that anything above the coldest temperature possible (around -460 F) is actually considered heat. So next winter, when Wisconsin reaches wind chills of -50, I'll just tell everyone "It's a heat wave!".

After warming back up, these shards actually became pliable and rubbery again!

Day 2: Launch Day, started early with a 5:00am meet up time. After the most adorable security sweep ever (good dog!), we boarded the bus and headed to our viewing area just a few short miles from the launchpad. Florida put on a breathtaking show for us in the form of a magnificent sunrise while we waited for the countdown. We couldn't see the launchpad from where we stood so my video of the launch on Twitter is missing the first couple of seconds as I move my camera to the right spot (oops!), but it was spectacular to see in person.

For almost a full minute, we watched Orion rise above the landscape before the anticipated separation occurred without a hitch. We stood silently and watched with wonder as 3 teeny tiny white dots fell back down like little bitty dandelion seeds in the sky. One seed was the booster, a second was the abort system, and the third was the test capsule, all of which splashed down perfectly into the ocean, exactly as planned. Well done NASA!

Up, up, up, and away!

A perfect abort test. Can you see two of the pieces falling?

As usual, I made a ton of new friends at this event, several of whom I am certain I will remain in touch with, just like last time. There were a few other teachers there, as well as people from a vast array of backgrounds. I love how NASA Social can bring such a diverse group of space geeks together like that. So thank you again NASA Social for another incredible and life changing experience. Thank you to my school (Indian Trail High School and Academy) for covering my expenses with a grant. Thank you to my administration for the support. And thank you to all of my friends, family, and students who followed along and participated as I posted my adventure on social media. I can't wait to continue sharing what I've learned in the classroom and beyond! Now I just need to win the lottery so I can go to adult space camp!!
Until then...
Live simply, run swiftly, and dream big my friends!