Orbital Sciences vows comeback after rocket explosion

Executives from Orbital Sciences Corp. tried to reassure investors Wednesday that the company would withstand the explosion of its unmanned rocket bound for the International Space Station.

“Certainly a failure like this is not helpful,” David Thompson, chairman of Orbital, said during a conference call with Wall Street analysts.

“Orbital has experienced adversity in the past,” he said, “and the company has emerged stronger.” Thompson said he was confident that the Dulles, Va.-based company could do that again.

The explosion Tuesday evening, just after liftoff, marked the first time a resupply mission contracted by NASA to a private company has failed.

Orbital’s 13-story Antares rocket cost more than $200 million and was carrying about 5,000 pounds of supplies and experiments. The resupply mission would have been the rocket’s third such trip to the space station, according to NASA.

No injuries were reported in the explosion off the Virginia coast.

The company’s stock plunged by $4.62, or 15.21%, to $25.75 in late morning trading in Wall Street. By afternoon, the shares were still down by 14.5 %.

With the U.S. space shuttle fleet retired, NASA has raced to give private companies such as Orbital and Hawthorne-based SpaceX the task of carrying cargo and crews in a bid to shave costs. The agency now plans to focus on deep-space missions, including ones to Mars.

Orbital Sciences has signed a $1.9-billion contract with NASA for eight flights to transport cargo from the newly built Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport.

Follow me on Twitter: @MelodyPetersen

Follow me on Twitter: @khouriandrew