Ares

Ares, family of two launch vehicles, Ares I and Ares V, for the proposed Constellation program, the crewed U.S. spaceflight program that was scheduled to succeed the space shuttle program and focus on missions to the Moon and Mars. In June 2006 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) named the launchers Ares, after the Greek counterpart of the Roman god Mars, in order to symbolize the long-term objective of mounting a mission to the red planet. The Roman numerals assigned to the launchers were a tribute to the Saturn vehicles of the Apollo program.

A number of lift options were considered for the Constellation program, including the use of existing Delta IV and the Atlas V launchers. However, it was ultimately decided to modify proven space shuttle components—in particular, the space shuttle main engine (SSME), the solid rocket booster (SRB), and the external tank (ET)—in order to create new vehicles.

Ares I launch

The two-stage Ares I would have launched the Orion spacecraft with four astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) and the Moon. Its first stage was to have been a five-segment SRB based on the shuttle’s four-segment version. An upper stage would have been powered by a modernized version of the J-2 hydrogen-burning engine developed for the upper stages of the Saturn launch vehicles. On top of this upper stage would have been the Orion spacecraft, which would have had an escape tower on its apex. These components gave the 97.8-metre- (321-foot-) tall Ares I its distinctive profile, earning it the nickname “the stick.” The first stage of Ares I would have been recoverable (as had been the case with the space shuttle’s SRBs), but the upper stage would have been expendable. Ares I would have been able to deliver a payload of some 25,000 kg (55,000 pounds) to low Earth orbit.

The first and only Ares I test vehicle launched on October 28, 2009. This comprised a surplus shuttle SRB fitted with an inert fifth segment, a nonfunctional upper stage, and a model of Orion outfitted with instrumentation to report on conditions in flight. A second test in 2014 would have used a functional upper stage and spacecraft. The first launch with a crew was initially scheduled for 2015; the spacecraft would have visited the ISS. Lunar missions were planned to occur by 2020 and missions to Mars as soon as practicable thereafter.

Ares V launch

Ares V initially would have launched the Altair lunar lander but would have later delivered to low Earth orbit the components of the large vehicle that would have flown to Mars. It would have been 110 metres (358 feet) tall and had a pair of SRBs similar to that of the Ares I strapped to a core stage consisting of an enlarged ET with a cluster of six RS-68 engines at its base. These engines were developed for the Delta IV and had a sea-level thrust of 2,890,000 newtons (650,000 pounds) each. The second stage would have been powered by the same engine as the Ares I upper stage. The payload to low Earth orbit would have been 130,000 kg (287,000 pounds).

In May 2009 the administration of Pres. Barack Obama announced that it would review the Constellation program to determine whether it would be the best option for U.S. crewed spaceflight after the end of the space shuttle program. In October 2009 the review committee announced that, barring a significant increase in NASA’s budget, the schedule for the Constellation program was unrealistic, with the first crewed Ares I flight likely occurring between 2017 and 2019. In February 2010 the Obama administration canceled the Constellation program in favour of commercial flights to the ISS and research on lowering the cost of crewed spaceflight.