CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - With more than 12 times the thrust produced by a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_747" class="extiw" title="w:Boeing 747">Boeing 747</a> jet aircraft, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constellation_program" class="extiw" title="w:Constellation program">Constellation Program</a>'s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ares_I-X" class="extiw" title="w:Ares I-X">Ares I-X</a> test rocket roars off <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_Space_Center_Launch_Complex_39" class="extiw" title="w:Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39">Launch Complex 39B</a> at NASA's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_Space_Center" class="extiw" title="w:Kennedy Space Center">Kennedy Space Center</a> in Florida. The rocket produces 2.96 million pounds of thrust at liftoff and goes supersonic in 39 seconds. Liftoff of the 6-minute flight test was at 11:30 a.m. EDT Oct. 28. This was the first launch from Kennedy's pads of a vehicle other than the space shuttle since the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_program" class="extiw" title="w:Apollo program">Apollo Program</a>'s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturn_(rocket_family)" class="extiw" title="w:Saturn (rocket family)">Saturn rockets</a> were retired. The parts used to make the Ares I-X booster flew on 30 different shuttle missions ranging from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STS-29" class="extiw" title="w:STS-29">STS-29</a> in 1989 to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STS-106" class="extiw" title="w:STS-106">STS-106</a> in 2000. The data returned from more than 700 sensors throughout the rocket will be used to refine the design of future launch vehicles and bring NASA one step closer to reaching its exploration goals. For information on the Ares I-X vehicle and flight test, visit <a rel="nofollow" class="external free" href="http://www.nasa.gov/aresIX">http://www.nasa.gov/aresIX</a>.
NASA/Sandra Joseph and Kevin O'Connell
2009-10-28
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