The Road to Pad Abort 1

At the White Sands Missile Range in Las Cruces, N.M., engineers and technicians are preparing for the Pad Abort 1 flight test. The Launch Abort System is a sophisticated new rocket tower designed to pull a spacecraft away from danger on the pad and initial ascent. For the first time, all the components of the system will work together. The test not only develops core technology needed for future spacecraft, but also directly improves the chances of crew survival in an emergency.