Orbital Sciences Corp. will design and build the next-generation NASA Orion Abort Test Booster for NASA and the U.S. Air Force Space Development and Test Wing, the company announced April 11.
Orbital will develop, build and test a new booster configuration to demonstrate and qualify the Orion Launch Abort System that will allow the astronaut crew to escape in the event of an emergency during launch pad operations and early ascent.
The work is part of a contract awarded under the Test Wing’s Sounding Rockets Program 2 contract, which allows the use of surplus government boosters to reduce launch vehicle cost for U.S. government-sponsored missions.
The basic contract, valued at about $35 million, provides for a three-year program that ends with a pair of test flights scheduled for 2009 and 2010, respectively. Contract options valued at $45 million could add up to two additional flights and two spare vehicles through 2011.