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NASA's Orion spacecraft is designed to send
astronauts on exploration missions into deep

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space.

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Closer to Earth, orbiting about 250 miles
up, NASA is using the International Space

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Station to conduct cutting edge research and
technology development and to increase our

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knowledge about what it takes to live and
work for long periods of time in space.

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Currently, the six crew members of the space
station travel to and from the orbiting laboratory

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in Russian Soyuz spacecraft.

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NASA's Commercial Crew Program is spearheading
the development of a U.S. commercial crew

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space transportation capability that provides
safe, reliable and cost-effective access to

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and from the International Space Station in
low-Earth orbit.

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In September, NASA selected two commercial
providers, Boeing and SpaceX, to develop the

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systems to transport astronauts from U.S.
soil to and from the space station using the

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company's Boeing CST-100 and SpaceX Crew Dragon
spacecraft.

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These new American spacecraft also will allow
us to add a seventh crew member to the space

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station and double the amount of time the
crew has to conduct research aboard the unique

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microgravity laboratory.

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Certifying and using U.S. commercial companies'
spacecraft to provide transportation services

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to low-Earth orbit allows NASA to expand its
focus to even more ambitious missions . . . sending

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astronauts to explore an asteroid, learning
in the proving ground of space around the

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moon.

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Ultimately NASA's Space Launch System rocket
and Orion spacecraft, and the skills and techniques

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learned in lunar orbit will enable humans
to explore Mars.

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We are going to different exploration destinations,
so we need different systems.

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NASA will own and operate its Orion spacecraft
and Space Launch System for deep-space missions

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and will purchase services from Boeing and
SpaceX to get astronauts to and from the station.