Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) was a test of the

launch escape system A launch escape system (LES) or launch abort system (LAS) is a crew-safety system connected to a space capsule. It is used in the event of a critical emergency to quickly separate the capsule from its launch vehicle in case of an emergency requiri ...

(LAS) of

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

's Orion spacecraft. The test followed Orion's Pad Abort-1 test in 2010 and

Exploration Flight Test-1 Exploration Flight Test-1 or EFT-1 (previously known as Orion Flight Test 1 or OFT-1) was a technology demonstration mission and the first flight test of the crew module portion of the Orion spacecraft. Without a crew, it was launched on 5&nb ...

in 2014 in which the capsule first flew in space. It preceded an uncrewed flight of Orion around the Moon as the

Artemis 1 Artemis I, formerly Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1), was an uncrewed Moon-orbiting mission that was launched in November 2022. As the first major spaceflight of NASA's Artemis program, Artemis I marked the agency's return to lunar exploration a ...

mission, and paves the way for human use of Orion in subsequent missions of the

Artemis program The Artemis program is a Exploration of the Moon, Moon exploration program led by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), formally established in 2017 via Space Policy Directive 1. The program's stated long-ter ...

. The test flight lifted off from Space Launch Complex 46 at

Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) is an installation of the United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 45, located on Cape Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida. Headquartered at the nearby Patrick Space Force Base, the sta ...

on 2 July 2019 at 11:00

UTC Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) is the primary time standard globally used to regulate clocks and time. It establishes a reference for the current time, forming the basis for civil time and time zones. UTC facilitates international communica ...

(07:00 EDT, local time at the launch site). The flight was successful, and the launch abort system performed as designed.

Mission highlights

An Orion test article, aerodynamically similar to but lacking the full features of the space-tested capsule, was launched from

Cape Canaveral Cape Canaveral () is a cape (geography), cape in Brevard County, Florida, in the United States, near the center of the state's Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. Officially Cape Kennedy from 1963 to 1973, it lies east of Merritt Island, separated ...

SLC-46 by the purpose-built Orion Abort Test Booster (ATB). The booster was a repurposed Peacekeeper missile first stage (SR118) procured from the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

and modified for the mission by

Orbital ATK Orbital ATK Inc. was an American aerospace manufacturer and defense industry company. It was formed in February 9, 2015 from the merger of Orbital Sciences Corporation and parts of Alliant Techsystems (ATK). Orbital ATK designed, built, and de ...

Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational Aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and Arms industry, defense company. With 97,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $40 billion, it is one of the world's largest Arms industry ...

, similar to the first stage of the Peacekeeper-derived Minotaur IV. The mission's goal was to demonstrate and qualify the Orion Launch Abort System (LAS) that will allow the astronaut crew to safely escape in the event of an emergency during launch pad operations, through the ascent phase of the Orion vehicle. The LAS was set to activate after around 55 seconds of ascent at an altitude of , close to the point of maximum dynamic pressure, while the booster was still firing. No parachute system was installed on the Crew Module because they are very expensive and have already been tested multiple times. The test article transmitted telemetry data during its flight, and as a backup 12 data recorders were ejected in pairs during its descent, starting about 20 seconds after separation of the capsule from the abort motor. They were recovered from the Atlantic Ocean.

References

External links

NASA video of the test
(2:05)
NASA video explaining the test prior to launch
(1:38)
NASA blog providing updates on the test
{{Orion program Orion (spacecraft) 2019 in spaceflight 2019 in Florida July 2019 in the United States Test spaceflights Flight abort