Lift Off—Finally!

It was an historic morning at Kennedy Space Center as the rocket that is supposed to replace the space shuttles took its first test flight.

It is a sight not seen in more than thirty years, a new rocket design lifting off from the Kennedy Space Center.

After two mornings spent watching the weather- Ares One X blasted through a hole in the clouds Wednesday morning just before noon.
725 sensors monitoring the unmanned rocket’s speed and performance as the engine fired then the pieces separated and splashed down into the Atlantic.

It all happened in the span of about two and a half minutes.

But as engineers wait for the critical flight data the biggest question may be whether this is the last time Ares will fly.

Last week a presidential panel called Ares the wrong rocket for the future of U.S. space flight.
And so, even at supersonic speeds, Ares could not outrun the controversy over the future of a craft that has already cost almost half a billion dollars.

A future now up in the air as NASA waits to see if Ares will ever rise again.
The president is expected to make the call by the end of the year.

NASA officials say no matter what spacecraft they use going forward, there was much to learn from Wednesday’s flight