Ares I-X Flight Test Launches

Ares I-X launched on October 28, 2009, at 11:30 EDT (15:30 UTC) from Kennedy Space Center LC-39B, successfully completing a brief test flight. The vehicle's first stage ignited at T-0 seconds and Ares I-X lifted off from Launch Complex 39B.

Purpose:
Ares I-X was a single-stage test vehicle designed to validate flight dynamics of the Ares I, a rocket intended to carry astronauts into space as part of the NASA Constellation program, a follow-up to the Space Shuttle program.

Height:
Standing tall at its fully assembled height of 327 feet, the Ares I-X is one of the largest rockets ever processed in the Vehicle Assembly Building's High Bay 3, Super Stack 5 at the Kennedy Space Center.