Atop the most powerful rocket available, NASA's next-generation space capsule Orion is scheduled to launch at 6:05 CST Thursday morning from Cape Canaveral Air Station.
The 4 1/2 hour, unmanned mission will give NASA a chance to test America's new workhorse spacecraft. In coming decades, Orion is expected to carry astronauts deep into space: to the Moon, asteroids, Mars and beyond.
This flight will give NASA and Orion's builder, Lockheed-Martin, critical information about how Orion jettisons parts of the rocket as it goes up; how aviation controls and computers function; and how electronics hold up in deep-space radiation.
Also being closely watched will be how its heat shields work as re-entry temperatures reach 4,000 degrees; and if its three sets of parachutes make the landing safe enough for humans.
Orion is set to orbit Earth twice, swinging out to 3,600 miles away - farther than any spacecraft designed to carry humans has gone since Apollo. From there it will reach a re-entry speed of 20,000 mph and splash down in the Pacific Ocean about 600 miles west of Baja California, Mexico.
"Thursday is a huge day for us, flying Orion. It's the beginning of exploration,' said NASA Orion Program Manager Mark Geyer.
"A part of me hopes everything is perfect. We land, high-fives; everybody has a great time," Geyer continued. "But really … we want to discover things that are beyond our modeling capability and beyond our expertise, so we can learn how to fix it."
NASA expected a 70 percent chance of favorable weather. Orion has a two-hour, 40-minute launch window, which is far more generous than most launches. That means the launch team – led by the company United Launch Alliance, which is providing the rocket – has the unusual luxury to wait out any short-lived weather systems and still launch.
Orion's launch may be drawing more attention than anything that has happened at Kennedy Space Center since the last space shuttle program's last mission in July 2011. Journalists from around the world have gathered. Area hotels reportedly have seen a significant spike in bookings.
Crowds of thousands are expected to watch from the banks of the Indian and Banana rivers.
Space industry insiders are as excited as anyone.
"Go, Big O, go!" said Ron Fortson, United Launch Alliance's director of mission management.
Here is a look at the key milestones of the planned 4-1/2-hour flight:
To get as far away from Earth as possible, Orion is launching aboard a Delta 4 Heavy rocket, currently the biggest booster in the U.S. fleet.
One minute, 25 seconds after liftoff: Orion goes supersonic.
Four minutes: Two of the Delta 4's three liquid-fueled boosters are jettisoned.
Four minutes, 30 seconds: The last booster burns out and separates from the upper-stage engine.
Six minutes, 15 seconds: With the second-stage burning, three protective panels separate from Orion's mock-up service module. Five seconds later, the launch escape system is jettisoned.
Seventeen minutes: the second-stage engine shuts down, leaving Orion in its initial orbit 115- by 552 miles above Earth.
Three hours: after a second burn of the upper-stage engine, Orion passes through intense radiation in the Van Allen Belts and reaches its peak altitude of 3,600 miles.
Three hours, 23 minutes: Orion separates from its service module and the Delta upper stage and prepares to return to Earth.
Three hours, 57 minutes: Orion fires its steering thrusters to position itself for atmospheric re-entry.
Four hours, 13 minutes: Orion, traveling at 20,000 mph reaches upper limits of Earth's atmosphere.
Four hours, 15 minutes: Orion experiences peak heating of about 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
Four hours, 19 minutes: Parachutes begin deploying to slow Orion's descent.
Four hours, 23 minutes: Orion lands in the Pacific Ocean, 600 miles off the coast of Baja California. Recovery teams will retrieve the capsule and take it to San Diego, California.
Reuters contributed to this report
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