High-Stakes Test Looms for Space Shuttle Successor

NASA officials say they plan to install two dampening systems to control vibrations in the Ares I rocket (Illustration: NASA/MSFC)

From New Scientist:

Talk about pressure. As the troubled successor to NASA's space shuttle powers up for its first flight test, a White House panel is weighing up whether to cancel the project.

The Ares I rocket is designed to carry a crew capsule called Orion to Earth orbit, where it could dock with the International Space Station or form part of a mission to the moon. But it has been plagued with budget problems and technical hitches.

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