NASA Unveils New Rocket Plan
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
By: Nicole Creston

September 14, 2011 | WMFE - NASA is unveiling the design for its gigantic new rocket, bigger than the one that sent astronauts to the moon. At a press conference Wednesday morning, NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden was joined by US Senator Bill Nelson of Florida and other officials.

The new rocket will be able to carry astronauts and as much as 140,000 pounds of cargo. Senator Nelson emphasized that the new program will create jobs for the skilled workforce at Kennedy Space Center and help NASA retain that talent pool.  

“You will see that workforce start to scale up, so that there’s not just the precipitous drop, that you phase from one right into the other,” said Nelson. “That was most important to all of us. It’s important to the President.”

Getting the heavy-lift rocket and capsule ready to fly within five years is expected to cost about $18 billion. Nelson said it reflects the importance of the space program for the future of the nation. 

“In the bosom of every American, there is a yearning for us to explore the heavens,” Nelson said. “And what you see over the next five or six years is a budget coming forth from the administration of about $3 billion a year for this system.” 

The new rocket is scheduled for an unmanned test flight in 2017.