>> well, she got to nasa in 1978.he was in training and named as the first american woman to fly in 1982. and she flew in 1983. so he had all that training and then she had one year of really, really intensive training right before she flew. >> stephen: what does that mean, really intensive training? what do you have to do? what were the physical requirements? were there some physical things they thought women couldn't do that you had to do for space space? >> everything. >> stephen: women can float upside down, i would imagine that. >> they certainly can. >> stephen: what do they have to do? >> the same thing the men do. >> stephen: i don't know what those are, either. >> there was no difference in the training. the men and women trained exactly alike. they had to learn how to jump out of a parachute -- >> stephen: hopefully out of a plane but in the parachute. jumping out of the parachute is very tough. that is very tough training. >> but, you know, the astronauts are very smart, so-- they had to do water survival t

they are under contract with nasa. they have almost a $2 billion contract to deliver pay loads to the space station. the second stage engine was build by rocket-dine and they have a contract to build the landing system thrusters for the mars 2020 mission . in terms of the crypto equipment, i don't understand and i am trying to get clarity on it. but they keep people back far enough so nobody hurts when this happens. the reason it didn't happen last night because a sailboat was within the roughly 1400 square mile safety zone where they keep people away just in case something goes wrong. but any time you launch any kind of spacecraft like this and you have a new component on it that raises questions about how exactly how everything comes together and whether or not it will work properly. and just for point of reference here, a short while ago, one of our guests on cnn said this is not as easy as it looks. here is something to bare in mind. when a rocket like this takes off, it is burning so much fuel and it is moving so

this is not nasa. not a nasa mission. but it is tragic accident. and as we noted, it was scheduled to take supplies up to the space station, and no word yet on now what will they do without the supplies that were supposed to come up on that one. >> again, that unsuccessful launch taking place just moments ago. that's a live picture of the aftermath. we will be on top of this story and as soon as we get more information, we will share it with you. in the meantime, we will take a quick break. we'll be back right after this. >>> we continue to cover this unsuccessful rocket launch that just happened moments ago at wallops island, virginia. back to jim handly it at the live desk with new information. jim? >> doreen and vance, this was about nine minutes ago, on schedule, as it didn't happen yesterday. 6:22 nod. take a look. just within seconds of this, right here, you see the rocket go up. barely going up. and then all of a sudden an explosion. the rocket goes down and then significant fire. what we're hearing now from nasa. there is significant proper

we're getting all this from nasa tv. a powerful image. we'll get more information from nasa. figure out, hopefully no one was injured. it is a significant setback to what nasa hoped this cargo aboard this rocket, this spacecraft, was supposed to go unmanned to the international space station and help everyone out there. it is a really serious setback. jay boldin, by the way, the national spokes pen is telling cnn, there was fail you are a on launch. there is no indicated loss of life. there was significant property and vehicle damage. mission control is trying to assess what went wrong. let me repetition this. nasa snows loss of life on this rocket explosion. jay golden telling cnn, there was failure on launch, no indicated loss of life. there was significant property and vehicle damage. mission control is trying to set what went wrong. you see the explosion on the rate part of the screen. the left part of the screen, you see live pictures, alive images of what's going on. this is eastern virginia. wallops island in eastern virginia where this rocket took off about 11 minutes

disaster for nasa.t contracted from a private firm explodes six seconds after liftoff. nasa says no injuries or loss of life. joining me, a former astronaut. mark kelly, you first. when you see the video of the explosion, what is your reaction? what do you think could have kaurzed this? >> well, space flight is a difficult thing to do. launching a rocket presents a number of different challenges. in the video what you see is it's pretty obvious there is a first stage failure. i don't think nasa knows and probably won't know for some time whether it was the engine or something else in the first stage. the first stage providing all the propulsion at that point came apart. >> while you watch the slow motion of this rocket and the cargo and spacecraft, doesn't anything look out of the ordinary? nasa reported the explosion happened six aekseconds after t launch? >> looks quite normal to me. with the high-speed video and as they start to analyze it, they'll preebl see something, but probably not. they're anal

orbital science will suffer more than nasa by this loss.a has put in place this robust system that i mentioned with another backup provider. this is something that happens because there is rocket science involved. i think orbital science will be able to determine what happened and whether they can continue based on how serious that is. there are a limited number of flights that nasa has contracted for and this is an engine from russia that they are not developing anymore. it was built in the 1970's. this is a complicated recovery but i do not blame the fact that they were contracting with the private sector for it. commercials space is here to stay in my view. >> will nasa be able to get back into space if they were not reliant on private companies? >> nasa has been reliant on private companies. the space shuttle was built by private companies. even the space shuttle had punished safety record. -- had a blemished safety record. government management does not ensure full success. we believe this is a program that is robust enough to continue

before we go we want to remind you we'll have more coverage on the breaking news out of nasa, that nasa rocket exploding just seconds after the launch. more news on this coming up i'm tony harris in new york. leroy >>> to rent or buy - good question. i'll get the answer from a nobel winning author >>> the man tasked with cleaning up a bowling alley at the center of a panic >>> i'm ali velshi, and this is "real

officials from nasa and orbital sciences

an unmanned rocket blasting off the from a nasa base in virginia explodes seconds after liftoff.ther rocket launched overnight as well. we've got a live report ahead. >> "action news" exclusive. the tipster who helped put a woman convicted of heinous crimes behind bars is still waiting for her big payday. >> speaking out about the hazing scandal that wiped out their football season. >> and it's going to rain later on today. good morning everyone. it's 4:30. let's go right to david and karen. good morning. >> we're starting out with a lot more cloud cover today than yesterday. you can see it as it has marched in. out to the west of us we have this cold front. ahead of it some sprinkles and showers and as we go through the day there's the possibility we get a little damp for at least part of the day. doesn't necessarily look like a big downpour for most of you. temperatures this morning not too bad. little milder than yesterday. 65 degrees in philadelphia. just 50 in allentown but even that is maybe five, 6 degrees better than we were this time yesterday morning. 65 in wilmington,

nasa was very much involved and it never would have happened without nasa. once i made that realization, i took all the credit. thank you very much. glad you liked that. i designed it myself. i saw something there. i saw excitement that i hadn't seen in a while. that was really interesting. so i started looking around at what was happening and what this new initiative nasa was taking to involve the private sector more and give more freedom to the private sector to innovate. i saw all this innovation happening. i saw companies doing really great work. and i knew that this was a promise for a bright future in space. this is where progress was going to happen. i wanted to be a part of it. i did something that was very difficult, which is i stopped being an astronaut. that was a great gig. but i voluntarily stepped away from that and said, i want to sign up with space x. i have been there for 3 1/2 years working on turning this spacecraft that we used to take c cargo into a human carrying vehicle. this is what it looks like. if you compare that to the previous s

this is the time of work that nasa is doing, outsourcing so nasa can do the big research projects thatt really does best and let the other companies like spacex and orbital science and sierra nevada and all the other ones of doing this work of carrying supplies up oto the international space station. that doesn't mean they can cut corners as far as quality of materials used or adherence to safety protocols all those things they are still required to keep the same level of quality assurance and safety protocols as nasa has always been required to do. >> quit final question derrick, given how catastrophic this failure was how long will it take for them to figure out what went wrong and will they be able to? >> i think they'll do a pretty good job of figuring out what went wrong. they keep incredible records of exactly what's happening in the engine as it operates so they have data stream of them tri telemetry, they also have test profiles of how this performance, they can check actually what happened yesterday, and exactly what went wrong and now they can look at the rest of the engines

. >> nasa engineers are trying to figure out what went wrong. susan mcginnes is on the ground in wallops island with the latest on the investigation, susan, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, ukee and erika, it is close tore daze break a and that means investigators will be back here this morning, combing through data, analyzing the debris that they find hear trying to figure out what happened here last night, officials from nasa and orbital sciences said they have no hint of any trouble until the actual explosion. >> we have lift off. >> reporter: second after blasting off from the launch pad on wallops island virginia the unmanned 14 story anteras rocket bound for international space station burst into flames. the flight was over in just 15 seconds. spectacular fireball and exploding debris rained down on the launch pad, in one was killed or injured in the catastrophic launch but more than 5,000 pounds of cargo and supplies heading to the international space station are gone. >> we do want to express our disappointment that we were not a

nasa's unmanned rocket explodes seconds after liftoff.tigators trying to figure out just what went wrong. >>> security watch. thousands of federal buildings across the country this

in fact, it is something nasa has already done.2005, the deep impact spacecraft plowed into comet tempel one, changing its orbit. >> there are three important ingredients for asteroid or comet impact mitigation. we need to find them early, we need to find them early, and we need to find them early. >> brown: meanwhile, the scientists in charge of the nasa research satellites that orbit mars have gradually changed their orbits so that they will be shielded from the hazards posed by the whizzing debris in siding spring's tail. still, they will try to gather as much data as they safely can. rich zurek is the chief scientist for the mars program at j.p.l. >> our instruments, our cameras and such, aren't really designed to look at a diffused object. however, we have a ringside seat. if we knew a comet was coming, we might have done something different >> brown: backyard astronomers will also be out in force. at david levy's home and observatory near tucson, where the sky is big and beautiful by day and night, he will be on the lookout a

that i fear that nasa may not learn when issuing press releases about last night's mishap. not an explosion or a screwup or terrible mistake, but a mishap, they might as well have called it a symptom of an agency has departed from its heritage and unfortunately is not well led or funded. nasa is only now learning that we didn't build our once glorious space program by outsourcing materials and technology and the imagination and courage to build and to go where no man had before. and now our quotation of the evening, carl sagan said exploration is in our nature and we are wanderers still. we have lingered long enough on the shores of the cosmic ocean and we are ready at last to set sail for the stars. if only carl were right. maybe he will be soon. and up next, the 9/11 flag, an important icons of american history. brad meltzer surges esuite on new york state is jump-starting business with startup-ny. an unprecedented program that partners businesses with universities across the state. for better access to talent, cutting edge research, and state of the art facilities. and y

so this reliance on the private sector by nasa is nothing new. to see that relationship change just as a result of an accident like this. >> but orbital has to be sitting back today and just -- i mean, they have to be devastated. >> of course. >> not just financially, right? >> no, this is certain ly tarnishing their reputation. spacex has flown their missions to the international space station. this was certainly a high-profile accident. luckily it was unmanned, simply cargo, yes, 5,000 pounds of it but no one was injured. >> well, i think it's interesting that orbital depends on old technology to build its rockets. spacex is the other company that nasa is under contract with and spacex will be responsible for sending astronauts into space. >> along with bowing. >> so why the other bittal using the old technology. why wouldn't it say "wow, this is our chance to show what we can do"? >> it's interesting. there's a space trash talk that happens within the aerospace industry and back in 2012 elon musk referred to the other bittal science system as

it was the first catastrophic launch, since nasa started paying commercial companies to pony express supplies to the international space station. it is tuesday night, and the big story on "action news" tonight is the big question at nasa, what went wrong? the the commercial rocket was supposed to carry 5,000 pounds of supplies, and experiments to the space station, for nasa, spectators have gathered near launch site in virginia but this is what they saw. >> "action news" reporter sharrie williams is live from the satellite center. sharrie, we should emphasize this was not a manned flight and mercifully nobody was killed or hurt. >> reporter: abs absolutely the case in this case there was in loss of life this 14 story rocket is completely automated. no one was on board. there were no injuries on the ground. late tonight, nasa officials along with space officials held a press conference and while they are collecting a lot of data, there is still no clear answer as to why this mission failed all eyes were on a rocket controlled by nasa as it blasted off from the launch pad in virginia b

it's the first accident since nasa hired orbital and another contractor.ried out its own mission since it mothballed the program in 2011, but a lack of their own rocket engine no how mean much of the technology is of soviet design. that may surprise some people considering the current geopolitical tensions between the united states and russia and the international space station and just his sorts of rocket engine contracts are pretty much the only areas of scientific cooperation these two countries have left. so will russia assume the manning of the space station. russia says it is ready to help more if nasa wants to ask, and a russian rocket launch without hitch on wednesday. but six russian rockets have failed in recent years. it's reliability record is far from perfect. nasa insists there is no iss supply line crisis. >> the station is in great shape. the crew is in good shape. we have plenty of work for them to do and plenty of supplies to keep them going for quite sometime. >> reporter: in recent years the u.s. has been trying to downsize to a new era

>> what may have looked like a tragedy, nasa is calling a here mishap. no one was hurt. >> we confirmed that all personnel are accounted for. we have new injuries. >> whenness at a decided to refocus efforts on deep space exploration, the international space stacking missions have been going to private companies like the one that launched this rocket. the third resupply flight of an eight mission, $2 billion contract with the government was when this was launched. >> it's a tough time to lose a launch vehicle like this and it's pay load. it's not at tragic as losing a life with it, so we're happy to report that there were no injuries and the safeguards worked at they should have and all we lost was hardware. >> that lost hardware has a price tag of at least $200 million. orbital's two missions before this were successful. another private contractor space x what also conducted successful delivery missions. >> the dragon is free. >> the dragon cargo craft detached from the space station on its way back to earth. while tuesday's expleas is a setback, the cr

kpix 5's kiet do is at the nasa ames research center with more. local students had experiments on the long the. >> reporter: it was a setback for scientists and the space program but a major disappointment for hundreds of schoolchildren across the country including here in the bay area. dozens of schools have placed experiments on the rocket and students at mark west charter school in santa rosa had been working on their project for months. they wanted to see if tiny shrimp like "triops" could survive a rocket launch into space with the hopes that one day the "triops" could be a food source for astronauts and watching their hard work go up in flames was painful. >> we spent all this work on it and it blew up. >> it's definitely heartbreaking to see your work lost in an accidents like this. >> reporter: in addition to the science experiment, the capsule was carrying supplies to the astronauts to the international space station but none of the supplies was urgent. nasa is paying billions for privatization of the space program. they are hoping to car

breaking news from nasa tonight. the space agency reporting an unmanned rocket exploding on liftoff from virginia. this is the scene right now. the rocket was supposed to deliver cargo the international space station. the main ponte here, unmanned. but spectacular pictures at this hour. i want to bring in meteorologist ginger zee. it's really the other extreme from what we saw from rob, a blast of cold. this is the coldest start to the season in some places. >> reporter: for many places, yes. and the proximity to the warmth. early tomorrow morning, the 30s already making their way into the northern plains and great lakes. pay attention. the colors are coded with the numbers. by early saturday morning, we're taking costume time for friday night, halloween, the 20s make their way to kansas city, 30s, nashville's talking about sub-freezing. and 40s all the way there into the southeast. >> i see snowflakes there, too. just in time for halloween. ginger, thank you. >>> now to a developing story this evening. homeland secu

pause for nats take vo --desastre en la nasa!... en pleno conteo regresivo explota un cohete que llevaba suplementos al espacio... take lucrecia live ===show open=== juanfra hola que tal buenos dias con mucho gusto les saluda juan francisco ramrez... son las ??? .... lorena dominguez tiene la manana libre. bienvenidos a noticiero telemundo 48 primera edicin ... ===chit chat=== juanfra lorena lucrecia roll open under lucrecia buenos das... qu nos espera el da de hoy. lucrecia amigos tengan todos muy buenos dias y sean cordialmente bienvenidos a noticiero telemundo 48 primera edicion. enseguida les comparto la informacion meteorologica del dia de hoy. como usted ve en su pantalla aqui tenemos las siguientes condiciones climatologicas: durante la manana tenemos: bajas temperaturas y nubosidad. para la tarde subira el termometro, permanecen las nubes. y para la noche esperamos temperaturas en los rangos de: 50's =============== como usted sabe en nuestra area geografica tenemos por lo menos cinco microclimas. hoy las temperaturas maxima

now search is on for what caused this devastating blast, nasa contracted rocket was carrying supplies bound for international space station. >> cbs news correspondent susan mcginnes joins us live outgrow under in virginia where investigators will comb that area when sun comes up, right susan, good morning. >> reporter: that is right, good morning ukee and erika. quite a day ahead for investigators here combing for debris and analyzing data trying figure out what happened here. this explosion lit up the night sky, and officials still don't know what happened. >> we have lift off. >> reporter: second after blasting off from the launch pad on wallops island, virginia unmanned 13 story rocket bound for international space station burst into flames. the flight was over in just 15 seconds. spectacular fireball and exploding debris rained down on the launch pad. in one was killed or injured in the catastrophic launch but more than 5,000-pound of cargo and supplies, heading to the international space station are gone. >> we do want to express our disappointment that we were not able to fulfil

so i would assume unless nasa reaches out and offers some assistance, probably nasa would not necessarily be involved in this. this is in no way a nasa-related vehicle. you know, there is a special zone in the mojave desert the faa cleared for test flights. that's it, they are test flights. trying to determine exactly what the limits are, this type of a vehicle is something they've been very much engaged in for, you know, the better part of 18 months. they were going to have many more test flights before they actually put paying passengers on board. >> tom costello, thank you so much. please stay with us. keep us updated with anything knew you learn. let's bring in former corporate pilot, anthony roman. what more can you tell us about this spaceship, how it's intended to work and operate. >> well, this is a fantastic enterprise that began with a world renowned innovative aerospace engineer burt rotan. he and a quaul tied group of renegade engineers with apple computers rented some space in the mojave desert and they began designing the first civilian spacecraft. they won something called

that's one reaction to a spectacular explosion at a nasa launchpad.longed to a private company that has a nearly $2 billion contract with nasa. it's the first major accident since nasa ended its space shuttle program. >> the unmanned rocket was carrying supplies for the international space station. another cargo mission is on its way there after a successful launch this morning in kazakhstan. >>> dozens of hawaiian homes and businesses are in danger this morn. slow moving lava is threatened more than 60 builds. carter evans is in pahoa on bag hawaii island where residents are watching the lava flow. carter, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the lava flow goes right through the middle of pahoa here. it could cross 100 yards from where i'm standing. let me give you an idea of what this lava flow looked like last night as it was burned through yards. inching along at about 15 miles an hour. it's burned through miles of thick brus. it burned down one structure yesterday as it approached this community. now dozens of homes are threatened and there i

nasa is left with the gut wrenching question what went wrong? nbc dan shinman reports. >> seconds laters the rocket crashed back into the launch pad exploding into a fire ball that can be seen for miles. burning debris reigned down over the nasa's complex in virginia. >> terrorist rocket suffering a catastrophic anomaly shortly after lift off. the range confirming no injuries and the personnel are accounted for. >> the safe guards worked as they should. all we lost was hardware. >> the rocket was carrying a sigma spacecraft loaded with 5,000 spounds of nasa supplies. >> we're a good point on the space station. there was no car go that was critical to us on the flight. >> the flight was the third supply mission to the international space station and marks the first accident since nasa began relying on commercial companies after the space shuttles were retired in 2011. >> we have every confidenced in the team and their ability to get to root cause, resolve the issues, and get back to applying iss. >> >> we will understand what happened hopefully s

. >>> nasa rocket explodes creating this fireball that lit up night skies on the eastern shore of virginia last night. >> it was carrying supplies bound for international space station, cbs news correspondent susan mcginnes joins us live from wallups island virginia where investigators will, comb that area for clues later this morning. good morning. >> reporter: they will be here as soon as the the the sun comes up. officials from nasa and orbital sciences which is company that built this 200 million-dollar rocket said they have no hint of any trouble until the actual explosion over the flight complex here last night. investigation is already well underway into what went wrong. >> we have lift off. >> reporter: second after blasting off from the launch pad on wallo ps island, virginia, unmanned 14 story rocket bound for the international space station burst into flames. the flight was over in just 15 seconds. a spectacular fireball and exploding debris rained down on the launch pad. in one was killed or injured in the catastrophic launch but more than 5,000-pound of cargo and supplies head

a crucial rocket for nasa exploding just seconds after liftoff. this morning, investigators trying to figure out just what went wrong. >>> security watch. thousands of federal buildings across the country this morning. terror threats forcing the department of homeland security to sound the alert. we'll tell you what we're learning. about that threat and how specific it is. good morning, welcome to "early start." >> i'm christine romans. >> i'm john berman. it's wednesday, october 29th, it's 5:00 a.m. in the east. we do have breaking news from ferguson. there's word that the police chief there could soon step down. officials tell cnn that chief thomas jackson's departure would be part of efforts to reform the ferguson police department, that, of course,le following the shooting of unarmed teenager michael brown by darren wilson. chief jackson and the mayor both flatly deny the reports. >> there are reports to having chief jackson step down. >> no. >> are there -- >> i mean, to step down, we stood by him this entire time. >> nothing -- >> there's no

and think of all the great things we got from nasa, tang, i love tang.cks. >> isn't it interesting that the cell -- >> in fact that thing was -- there was another rocket launching this afternoon that was putting a satellite up for cell towers, but part of the problem is that we're using a 40-year-old soviet engine in that rocket. it exploded, the way you really do it, is the way -- 85% of the robert that he puts in the air is built within space -- his private company, now he's getting a lot of help from the government, you got a $500 million loan. >> there's actually something coming from it. >> so do you -- you agree with -- don't you they that the program, nasa from the beginning has contributed to the economy in terms of innovation. >> definitely, and probably was of the boldest decisions that the president has made in modern times was president kennedy's decision to try to get us to the moon. >> you still believe in that? that hoax? >> kimberly, i was talking to our one of our contributors who flew on the international space station, and he's very co

more than 1,000 nasa contract employees. it is home to the only launchpad that can handle the antares rocket that exploded tonight. >> this was intended to be a resupply mission to the internationa the ant terrace was carrying 5,000 pounds of supplies and equipment. orbital sciences says everything on board can be replaced. nasa says there are several other resupply missions to the space station comg up. one launches from russia tomorrow and spacex will have a mission in december. >>> right now, the amber alert that was issued for a maryland woman and her two young children is over. the children were found unharmed in delaware. the alert for the two were issued after their father told police their mother threatened to drive off a bridge with them in the car. police say tips from the amber alert helped find them. the mother will not be charged. >>> tonight, a local woman is waiting to learn if she was one of the people secretly recorded during ritual showers at a d.c. sin gone. rabbi barry freundel is accused of making the vi

this is an experiment in changing the way nasa does business. it is worth pointing out that nasa has always used the private sector to build its rockets, whether it is boeing or lockheed martin or its predecessor corporations. it is the way they did business with them. they were on the factory floor telling them how to turn the nuts and bolts and offering up specific safety requirements right there on site. now they are offering up a broad list of speckifications and purchasing the vehicle at the end. there is no reason to believe that is any more or less safe. we are just trying to figure it outgoing along here. it is worth pointing out in all those years when nasa had all those strict requirements, they lost 14 shuttle crew members and three people on the launch pad during the apollo era. it is a dangerous, difficult business no matter when i which you do it. it is hard to say this is any more or less safe. >> ken, this is the wave of the future. there are a ton of space companies out there. i think of elan musk. this is only going to increase

la cuenta regresiva para el lanzamiento del cohete no tripulado de la nasa.eses. las imÁgenes registraron la explosiÓn. cuya causa se desconoce. el cohete perteneciÓ una firma privada. con base en virginia. (inglÉs) >> fue obvio inmediatamente que algo habÍa salido mal por la manera en que se destruyÓ, supimos que no habÍa nada que hacer. dijo el presidente de la compaÑÍa. no se registraron victimas en tierra. este accidente es el primero desde que estados unidos comenzÓ a privatizar el envio material al espacio cuando la nasa concluyÓ su programa de transbordadores en el 2011. la nasa que paga miles de millones de dÓlares frustrada con el accidente dijo sin embargo que mantenÍa su confianza en las empresas para el transporte y suministro. entre los elementos explotados estaban los enviados por estudiantes. >> es una perdida para nosotros porque nos va a tomar mÁs tiempo tratar de hacerlo todo necesariamente pero nadie resultÓ herido. es lo importante. >> la nasa dice que lo ocurrido no los va a desalentar en sus esfuerzos por enviar cargamento desde territor

the 14 story rocket was built by orbital science corporations contracted to nasa. the manufacture will now work to find out what caused the malfunction. >> there were no injuries. our team worked hard to prepare it, conduct aid lot of testing and a analysis to get ready for this mission. however, something went wrong. we'll find out what that is. >> it was taking 2,000 kilograms of supplies for six astronauts living on the international space station. efficients say they have contingency plans in place. >> we keep logistics on i.s. is s. to protect us four to six months in the event other logistics vehicles can't make it to i.s.s. this is the first accident since nasa began the space flight program in which it pays companies to deliver supplies for the space station. debris around the site is drew to be examined as the investigation of what caused the explosion gets underway. >>> a mud slide triggered by monsoon rains in sri lanka has killed ten and left 300 missing. officials said mud buried dozens of workers home in the district 200 kilometers from the capital. t

nasa hired this company, $200 million for this launch. to deliver supplies to the international space station. and tonight, what we've learned about the rocket. made by the soviets in the 1960s? abc's david kerley leads us off. >> five, four -- >> reporter: a nighttime launch. >> three, two, one -- we have ignition. >> reporter: thousands gathered. >> and we have liftoff. >> reporter: to watch a spectacular flight as the antares rocket roorps towards the space station. but just 11 seconds in, something goes terribly wrong. the 14-story rocket starts falling back to earth, the bottom falling apart. at the 20-second mark -- the safety launch officer presses the self-destruction button. to ensure the rocket doesn't fly off, causing even more harm. >> launch team, be advised, stay at your consoles. >> reporter: take a look from another angle. and from 3,000 feet in the air, the scene captured by a passenger in a small plane. in space, the astronauts on the station watching the tv feed of their supplies being destroyed. >> we're very grace. no

. >> nasa is trying to figure what caused an explosion of a rocket on take off. two area schools are hurt because they had a stake in the international space station and the journey. nick? >>> engineers say it is too early to understand the explosion and nasa is warning the public to city away from rocket debris. >> oh, god. oh, god. >> the shock of what they were seeing cam toured on this cell phone, the rockets owned by a virginia company exploding seconds after blast off. millions of dollars worth of equipment ranging from classified government materials to school science experiments including properties from to schools in the bay area, urban promise in oakland and from unified sonoma county. new warnings in nasa to avoid contact with debris because it could be contaminated. critics point blame at ageing russian parts used by the private contractor. >> we worked hard to prepare. we country add lot of test and analysis to get ready for the mission but something went wrong. >> investigators have secured the site. it was carrying 2.5 tons of equipment to the inte

. >> joining us on american history tv is stephen dick, a former nasa chief historian. tell us what astrobiology is. >> astrobiology is a search for life in the universe. that involves the search for origin of life here and elsewhere. the nature of life, the future of life, the implications if we find life. it is a very interdisciplinary subject. >> that is what brought you to the kluge center? >> we have this chair in astrobiology to look particularly at the humanistic aspect of astrobiology, which is broad in itself. i looking at the impact on am society if we find life. >> what is your thinking on how human beings would respond to discovering intelligent life in the universe? >> the first thing you have to ask when you approach the subject is how you approach it at all. it is a far out subject. trying to figure out what the reactions would be would be even more difficult. we have come up with three approaches. history. there are times in the past that we thought we discovered life. you can see what the reaction was. also, the nature of the discovery, and thirdly, a c

nasa used to do all of this themselves. they started opening it up for private biddings. when did it happen? you just said, up until now, it appears as if it's gone fairly well? >> yes, it has gone fairly well. nasa has been working on this for at least the last five years, trying to move some of its operations out to commercial corporations to handle this easy resupply work, in a sense. when i say easy, i mean routine kind of operations of just launching payload. we've been doing a lot of that for the last 60 years in the american space program. and as an unmanned mission just sending supplies and equipmented, that is fairly routine. but nasa has been pushing this off, opening the doors for commercial operations to handle this kind of work because it can be done fairly well by these other companies. it doesn't reduce the risk, though, of what can happen when something happens when an engine component or something else in the rock et fails. >> so, obviously, we're familiar with the sort of catastrophic, tragic examples of rock ets that have not -- that have failed to laun