NASA has launched a huge flying saucer-like inflatable heat shield into space this morning that could one day help humans land safely on Mars.
LOFTID, an inflatable 'aeroshell' about 20 feet in diameter, launched from a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket in California on Thursday at 04:49 ET (09:49 GMT).
The launch was set to take place at 04:25am ET (09:25 GMT); however, a 'valve issue' forced the launch window to be extended for just over half an hour.
LOFTID is now travelling to low-Earth orbit – less than 1,200 miles from our planet's surface – before inflating and then descending back to Earth.
It will deploy a parachute to allow a soft splashdown in the Pacific Ocean east of Hawaii before being recovered by an offshore vessel called Kahana II in around two days' time.
NASA hopes the test will demonstrate how the heat shield can act as a giant brake to slow down a future spacecraft when it enters the Martian atmosphere.