CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crane has lowered the Orion heat shield onto a stand. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the Orion crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Lockheed Martin technicians monitor the progress as the Orion crew module is lifted by crane from a test stand. Activities are underway to prepare Orion for future installation of the heat shield. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers move the heat shield for the Orion crew module down the aisle inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers prepare a crane that will be used to lift the Orion heat shield inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the Orion crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers have positioned the heat shield near the Orion crew module. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers monitor the progress as a crane positions the Orion heat shield near the crew module in the high bay. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the Orion crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The Orion crew module is positioned on a test stand inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Activities are underway to lift Orion and prepare it for future installation of the heat shield. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers monitor the progress and assist as needed as a crane begins to lift the Orion heat shield away from a stand inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the Orion crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers attach the heat shield to the Orion crew module inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield for Exploration Flight Test-1, or EFT-1. The flight test will provide engineers with data about the heat shield's ability to protect Orion and its future crews from the 4,000-degree heat of reentry and an ocean splashdown following the spacecraft’s 20,000-mph reentry from space. Data gathered during the flight will inform decisions about design improvements on the heat shield and other Orion systems, and authenticate existing computer models and new approaches to space systems design and development. This process is critical to reducing overall risks and costs of future Orion missions. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crane is being moved into position to lift the Orion crew module from a test stand. Activities are underway to prepare Orion for future installation of the heat shield. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The heat shield for the Orion crew module has been secured in a special work stand inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Lockheed Martin technicians attach a crane to the Orion heat shield to prepare to move it away from a stand inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the Orion crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Lockheed Martin technicians check the Orion crew module before it is lifted from a test stand. Activities are underway to lift Orion and prepare it for future installation of the heat shield. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers move the heat shield for the Orion crew module down the aisle inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Lockheed Martin technicians monitor the progress as the Orion crew module is lifted from a test stand. Activities are underway to prepare Orion for future installation of the heat shield. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers attach the heat shield to the Orion crew module inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield for Exploration Flight Test-1, or EFT-1. The flight test will provide engineers with data about the heat shield's ability to protect Orion and its future crews from the 4,000-degree heat of reentry and an ocean splashdown following the spacecraft’s 20,000-mph reentry from space. Data gathered during the flight will inform decisions about design improvements on the heat shield and other Orion systems, and authenticate existing computer models and new approaches to space systems design and development. This process is critical to reducing overall risks and costs of future Orion missions. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers closely monitor the progress as a crane lowers the Orion heat shield onto a stand. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the Orion crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers have positioned the heat shield near the Orion crew module. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Lockheed Martin technicians check the Orion crew module. Activities are underway to lift Orion from a test stand and prepare it for future installation of the heat shield. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The heat shield for the Orion crew module has been secured in a special work stand inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians prepare to move the heat shield for a fit check with the crew module. More than 200 instrumentation sensors have been installed on the heat shield. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Daniel Casper

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Lockheed Martin technicians and engineers monitor the progress as a crane lifts the Orion heat shield away from a stand inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Technicians have installed more than 200 instrumentation sensors on the heat shield and are preparing it for installation on the Orion crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort system. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/orion. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 14, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 14, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 14, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 14, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 14, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 9, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

On Feb. 13, 2015, Lockheed Martin engineers remove the heat shield from the Orion vehicle that flew on Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) in December 2014 in Operations and Checkout Building (O&C) at Kennedy Space Center. The heat shield will be transported to the Marshall Space Flight Center for testing. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

On Feb. 13, 2015, Lockheed Martin engineers remove the heat shield from the Orion vehicle that flew on Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) in December 2014 in Operations and Checkout Building (O&C) at Kennedy Space Center. The heat shield will be transported to the Marshall Space Flight Center for testing. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

On Feb. 13, 2015, Lockheed Martin engineers remove the heat shield from the Orion vehicle that flew on Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) in December 2014 in Operations and Checkout Building (O&C) at Kennedy Space Center. The heat shield will be transported to the Marshall Space Flight Center for testing. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

On Feb. 13, 2015, Lockheed Martin engineers remove the heat shield from the Orion vehicle that flew on Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) in December 2014 in Operations and Checkout Building (O&C) at Kennedy Space Center. The heat shield will be transported to the Marshall Space Flight Center for testing. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

On Feb. 13, 2015, Lockheed Martin engineers remove the heat shield from the Orion vehicle that flew on Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) in December 2014 in Operations and Checkout Building (O&C) at Kennedy Space Center. The heat shield will be transported to the Marshall Space Flight Center for testing. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.