A branch of the Clearwater-based boat and yacht retailer, MarineMax, was contacted with NASA to work on an exciting project. The MarineMax Houston Service team assisted in shrink wrapping an Orion crew module test article so that it could be safely transported from Texas to the Plum Brook Station testing facility at the Glenn Research Center in Sandusky, OH for the Ascent Abort-2 flight test. The Orion crew module mockup will be used for the Ascent Abort-2 test next April at the Kennedy Space Center. This flight test is an integral part of ensuring astronauts are safe by testing Orion’s Launch Abort System (LAS). The LAS is a state-of-the-art crew escape system attached to the top of the spacecraft that will propel the crew module away from the rocket should a life-threatening event arise. The Orion spacecraft is being designed to take humans beyond the Moon and someday onto Mars. Although the project did not involve a boat, shrink wrapping is something that the MarineMax Houston team performs on a regular basis, making them ideal candidates for the job.

MarineMax