(Yuma, AZ) — Parachutes for the Orion spacecraft are being tested today in the Arizona desert.
NASA says the tests are taking place at the Yuma Proving Ground in western Arizona.
An Orion mock capsule will be dropped from a C-17 aircraft flying at an altitude of about 35-thousand feet. The two-chute test is the final qualifying design of the Orion.
It will determine how the spacecraft reacts at higher elevations without using a full complement of parachutes. NASA also wants to see how astronauts will be affected by a potentially stronger landing.
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