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Orion Flight Test To Carry Mementos And Inspirational Items
Provided by Steven Siceloff, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
An oxygen hose like those used by spacesuited Apollo astronauts will soar into space aboard Orion as NASA’s next-generation spacecraft makes its first flight test on Dec. 4. The artifact from the generation of lunar surface exploration is part of a manifest of mementos and historically significant items that will fly in Orion and hint at the spacecraft’s future of discovery.
A microchip with more than a million names will fly aboard Orion on its flight test. The public was given an opportunity to submit their names for inclusion on the chip to be part of NASA's journey to Mars. Credit: NASA
Orion is also holding a tiny sample of lunar soil that will be used to inspire students toward science and engineering fields. A prehistoric fossil from a Tyrannosaurus Rex from the Denver Science Museum will make the flight as a reminder of how much life the Earth has seen during its existence. And a microchip with the names of more than a million people who submitted their names to be part of NASA’s exploration efforts will make the trip, as well. Together, the artifacts chart humanity’s progress and technological advancement as the nation takes a critical step forward on the Journey to Mars.
Lockheed Martin, which is under contract to conduct the mission, composed the manifest for this flight in collaboration with NASA. Lockheed Martin has loaded several stowage lockers with an assortment of flags, coins, patches and pins, experiments, educational items and a diverse collection of art in the form of poetry and music into the spacecraft.
One of the lockers carries a radiation experiment designed by the students who won the Exploration Design Challenge, an initiative for students to research and design ways to protect astronauts on future missions from radiation. Another radiation experiment designed by NASA called BIRD, for battery-operated independent radiation detector, will evaluate the environment inside the locker as Orion passes through the Van Allen belts experiencing higher doses of radiation than spacecraft that orbit closer to Earth, such as the International Space Station.
Several artistic works commissioned by Lockheed Martin will be aboard, including a recording of “We Shall Overcome” by Denyce Graves arranged by Nolan Williams. The arrangement features the words “We Shall Live in Peace,” a theme common throughout America’s civilian space program and efforts. Several poems by poet Maya Angelou will also be aboard, including “Brave and Startling Truth.” A recording of “Mars” from Gustav Holst’s “The Planets” performed by the National Symphony Orchestra will also be carried on Orion, along with a copy of a poem by Marshall Jones and a small sculpture by Ed Dwight called “Pioneer Woman.” The works will help expand the cultural connection between the arts and science.
The flight test also will carry several items that will be used to inspire future generations. NASA and Sesame Street have joined forces to help promote the importance of studying science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and teach students about the importance of human spaceflight. Cookie Monster’s cookie, Ernie’s rubber ducky, Slimey the Worm and Grover’s cape will fly some 3,600 miles above Earth and come back to take prized spots on the Sesame Street set where millions of children will watch.
The symbolism and chance to touch something that has been in space has proven a powerful enticement to those who can’t make the trip themselves. Medals, flags, pins and patches that have ventured into orbit adorn museum displays around the world and are often placed in prominent locations in schools so students can ponder the universe and their effect on it.
Packing a fraction of a spacecraft with commemorative cargo has been a Space Age tradition almost from the start. NASA’s Mercury astronauts carried dimes in their spacesuits. Family photos and specially stamped envelopes flew with Apollo and each space shuttle astronaut was given a tiny package they would fill with things from their lives ranging from toys to diplomas. NASA also flew hundreds of mission patches and pins on every flight to hand out afterward as recognition to the thousands it took to run a successful operation.
The practice was not limited to spacecraft carrying people, either. Probes that will never see Earth again carry markers from our lives here nonetheless, whether in the form of a gold record of Earth sounds on the twin Voyager spacecraft or a penny on the Curiosity rover on Mars that is used to calibrate the rover’s cameras and instruments.
Orion falls into both categories for now: it is coming back to Earth and designed for astronauts, but this mission is uncrewed. Its flight test and design also speak to the future of exploration, to a time in the future when astronauts board Orion to venture out to an asteroid and onward toward Mars.
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Source: http://www.redorbit.com/news/space/1113291947/sesame-street-and-other-mementos-onboard-with-orion-120314/
