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| Orion 'Mars ship' launch aborted | Orion 'Mars ship' launch aborted |
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| The US space agency (Nasa) has aborted the launch of its Orion Mars capsule test mission, amid technical issues. | The US space agency (Nasa) has aborted the launch of its Orion Mars capsule test mission, amid technical issues. |
| The spacecraft had been due to launch on a short journey above the Earth to test key technologies - Nasa will try again in 24 hours. | The spacecraft had been due to launch on a short journey above the Earth to test key technologies - Nasa will try again in 24 hours. |
| The maiden flight had been due to take place from Cape Canaveral in Florida between 12:05GMT and 14:44 GMT. | The maiden flight had been due to take place from Cape Canaveral in Florida between 12:05GMT and 14:44 GMT. |
| But the countdown was held several times, due to a boat getting too close, winds and technical issues. | But the countdown was held several times, due to a boat getting too close, winds and technical issues. |
| Finally, space agency officials were forced to scrub Thursday's launch. | Finally, space agency officials were forced to scrub Thursday's launch. |
| "Despite the valiant attempts of the launch team and mission managers around the country, we basically ran out of time in trying to troubleshoot," said Nasa spokesman Mike Curie. | |
| The conical vessel is reminiscent of the Apollo command ships that took men to the Moon in the 1960s and 1970s, but bigger and with cutting-edge systems. | |
| Given that this is a first outing, there will be no people aboard. | |
| The first delay on Thursday was because of a boat straying into the launch vicinity. Unacceptably strong gusts of wind subsequently forced the countdown to be halted. | |
| Then there were technical issues with valves not operating properly on the rocket's big boosters. | |
| The decision to scrub Thursday's attempt was driven by the combination of problems. | |
| Orion is being developed alongside a powerful new rocket that will have its own debut in 2017 or 2018. | |
| Together, they will form the core capabilities needed to send humans beyond the International Space Station to destinations such as the Red Planet. | |
| For the time being, the Delta IV-Heavy rocket - currently the beefiest launcher in the world - is being used as a stand-in. | |
| If all goes well on Friday, it will send Orion twice around the globe, throwing the ship up to an altitude of almost 6,000km (3,600 miles). | |
| This will set up a fast fall back to Earth, with a re-entry speed into the atmosphere close to 30,000km/h (20,000mph) - near what would be expected of a capsule coming back from the Moon. | |
| It should give engineers the opportunity to check the performance of Orion's critical heat shield, which is likely to experience temperatures in excess of 2,000C (4,000F). | |
| They will also watch how the parachutes deploy as they gently lower the capsule into Pacific waters off Mexico's Baja California Peninsula. | |
| Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos |