Ares 1-Y Dropped By NASA for Ares 1-X PRIME

NASA's Constellation Program has recommended dropping a planned follow-on Ares 1-Y to last week's successful Ares I-X flight-test because it doesn't have the funding necessary to get an upper stage engine ready in time, according to AviationWeek.

Instead, the Ares I-X engineering team will study the costs and benefits of going ahead with a 2012 launch previously dubbed "Ares I-X prime" that would flight-test a full five-segment Ares I solid-fuel first stage and the Orion crew exploration vehicle launch abort system at high altitude, according to Constellation Program Manager Jeff Hanley.