A ‘taste’ of what’s to come for human spaceflight

2014-08-06

In anticipation of Orion’s upcoming test flight this December, the Orion Program held a cake-decorating contest on July 15 to give Johnson Space Center team members a “taste” of the excitement to come as NASA makes its move to voyage beyond low-Earth orbit once again.

Ten delightful confections resembling the Orion capsule, parachutes, recovery and other aspects of the first test flight were put through the paces to show whether or not they had the right stuff to represent Orion and this historic test phase.

Team KM2—Katharine Harder and Kara Pohlkamp—won the overall contest and two V.I.P tickets to view the Exploration Flight Test- 1 launch.

The runners up: Team Mission Out of Control, which consisted of members Ginger Kerrick, Dana Weigel, Holly Ridings and Peggy Whitson. They will be able to the view the launch in JSC's Mission Control Center.

Team Splashdown nabbed the People's Choice award. Holly Dlouhy, Eden Fields, Sharon Jackson and Sara Zwart won a behind-the-scenes tour of the Orion mock-up in the Exploration Development Laboratory at Lockheed Martin.

Many thanks also go to: The Impinging Bakernauts, Martian Maidens, Team Pie in the Sky, Cakes on Cakes on Cakes, Eloquent Cakes, Ladies Orion Orbital Planning Society (L.O.O.P.S.) and Cakesploration Flight Test 1, as well as our judges for their participation in the contest.

However, it can be said that the real winners of the contest were actually the spectators who gathered in the Building 3 Collaboration Center to view the excitement, for they got to walk away with mouthfuls of glorious, sugary cake.

JSC team members line up, ready to taste all the delectable, creative confections at Orions first cake-decorating contest. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

Before the judging began, teams arrived to set up their Orion cake creations. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

Team Cakes on Cakes on Cakes created this fun cake inspired by Orion and the popular game Kerbal Space Program. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

This team created a chocolate lovers dream cake. Image credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

Team KM2 were our judges overall winners. They have been invited to a V.I.P. viewing of the launch this December. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

JSC employees taste the asteroid retrieval mission inspired cake and speak with Ginger Kerrick and astronaut Peggy Whitson from Team Mission Out of Control. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

The Ladies Orion Orbital Planning Society, or L.O.O.P.S., cake wowed the crowd when the Orion capsule mounted on top moved back and forth across the blue-frosted waters. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

Team Splashdown took home the Peoples Choice award with the Orion chocolate-chip capsule splashing down into a yellow cake with stawberry filling Pacific Ocean. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

This yummy treat was made by The Impinging Bakernauts. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

These parachutes will not work like the real thing, but they are guaranteed to taste better. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

Orions cake-decorating contest was a great success and an awesome and delicious way for employees to show their enthusiasm for the first test flight. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa

The easiest way ever to be "on board" with Orion--by eating cake. Image Credit: NASA/Mark Sowa