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NASA's new Orion spacecraft program that will replace its current shuttle system may seem like a blast to the past for some.

The Apollo-type rocket design will replace the shuttles used today for space missions, said Neil Woodward, a director in the exploration systems mission directorate at NASA's headquarters in Washington.

"Although Orion borrows its shape and aerodynamic performance from Apollo, the new capsule's updated computers, electronics, life support, propulsion and heat protection systems represent a marked improvement over legacy systems," he said. "We're pushing the technological edge, but only where it makes sense."

For instance, one of the upgrades to the new capsule includes titanium heat shields. They will protect Orion from the extreme heat as it re-enters Earth's atmosphere as well as the extreme cold it would experience on the dark side of the moon, according to officials from Aeronca, the Middletown company awarded a $12 million contract to manufacture the shields.

Previously, shields were made of a 2-inch thick stainless steel alloy, which is weaker and heavier than titanium.

While current shuttles are adept at carrying large loads to the space station for replacement and repairs, they are not capable of making a trip to the moon and back — a major focus for NASA in the coming decade, said spokesman Grey Hautaluoma.

The Orion is specifically the capsule that can hold four astronauts for a trip to the moon and six for one to the space station.

The Ares I rocket will jettison the capsule into space while the more powerful Ares V will carry cargo — such as the Lunar Lander — which the Orion can dock with in orbit for use, Hautaluoma said.

The new spacecraft also will include an abort system, a motor system capable of pulling the Orion module free of the Ares I launching rocket in case of an emergency.

"It's a safety plus over the shuttle. Since the (capsule is) on top of the rocket, you don't have to worry about the foam coming off the external rocket and dinging the shuttle and damaging it as we saw in Columbia incident," he said.

By 2015, NASA officials hope the Orion will be ready for missions to the International Space Station and for trips to the moon by 2020.

NASA officials hope astronauts will be able to build habitats on the moon and learn more about living on a planetary body in preparation for possible trips to Mars, Hautaluoma said.

"There is so much we still don't know about the moon or what life is like there," he said. "We need to conquer that first."

Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2843 or jheffner@coxohio.com.