NASA to show Orion progress

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- With six months until its first trip to space, the Orion spacecraft is taking shape at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The media has been invited to a status update on Orion and to see the spacecraft Wednesday. Technicians began attaching the crew module on top of the completed service module on Monday. This is the first step in moving the three primary Orion elements, the crew module, service module and launch abort system, into the correct configuration for launch. This is all part of NASA’s Space Launch System program, designed to carry astronauts deeper in space than ever before. (Source: GCAC, 06/17/14, NASA release) Gulf Coast note: Orion was built at Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans, and rocket engines for the SLS program are tested at Stennis Space Center, Miss. But Orion on this first flight will be lifted atop a Delta IV, which is powered by RS-68 engines tested at SSC.