And turning to other major news in the U.S.
Scientists at NASA are counting down to a
TEST FLIGHT of an American spaceship... that
will fly astronauts beyond Earth′s orbit...
for the FIRST time in more than 40 years.
Paul, how much time is left on the clock?
Well, we′re at around T-minus 40 minutes
before the Orion spacecraft blasts off from
Cape Canaveral... in what many are hoping
will mark an important milestone for future
manned missions to the moon and even MARS.
The unmanned capsule, built by Lockhead Martin,...
will lift off into space from the historic
Air Force Station on Florida′s coast...
on Thursday morning.
The four-hour test flight is aimed at seeing
how well the Orion′s heat shield can withstand
temperatures of over 22-hundred degrees Celsius...
before it returns to Earth in the Pacific
Ocean.
"Tomorrow morning you will see us press harder
than we′ve pressed before because for the
first time in more than 40 years, this nation
is going to launch a space craft intended
to carry humans beyond the Earth′s orbit.
That is a big deal."
The current timetable shows astronauts will
join Orion′s third flight in 2021, with
the ultimate goal of sending the first human
expedition crew to Mars.
Thursday′s test flight comes after two failed
launches, one of them deadly.
But NASA says the risks are well worth the
rewards.
