WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — NASA said Friday it will not crew the Orion spacecraft that will be launched in two years atop a super heavy Space Launch System (SLS) rocket due to associated risks and costs.
"NASA determined it is technically capable of launching crew on EM-1, but after evaluating cost, risk and technical factors in a project of this magnitude, it would be difficult to accommodate changes needed to add crew at this point in mission planning," the agency said in a statement.
The maiden launch of the Exploration Mission-1, or EM-1, has been scheduled for 2019. The official launch date will be determined in the coming weeks, NASA said.
EM-1 is the first in a broad series of exploration missions that will take humans to deep space, and eventually to Mars. The agency said the second mission, EM-2, will carry crew beyond the moon.
