A technician works on a platform mounted on the interior wall of the upper stage simulator of the Ares I-X rocket.

In the Vehicle Assembly Building's High Bay 3 at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a technician works on a platform mounted on the interior wall of the upper stage simulator of the 327-foot-tall Ares I-X rocket.

Part of the Constellation Program, the Ares I-X is the test vehicle for the Ares I, which is the essential core of a space transportation system designed to carry crewed missions back to the moon, on to Mars and out into the solar system. The Ares I-X flight test is targeted for Oct. 27. For information on the Ares I-X vehicle and flight test, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/flighttests/aresIx/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann