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Today was a huge day for space exploration, thanks to the Orion spacecraft that blasted into space at dawn from Cape Canaveral, FL. The brand-new capsule was slated to launch on Thursday but faced a delay due to several problems. The reason it's such a big deal is that Orion was made to take humans farther into space than ever before; if all goes well, it could shuttle astronauts to the moon in 2020 and, eventually, to Mars.

For now, the plan is for the spacecraft to orbit Earth twice — at an altitude of 3,600 miles— before heading back to the Pacific Ocean. Another great fact: the Orion is carrying a crew patch that Dr. Sally Ride wore when she became the first American woman to go to space in 1983 aboard the space shuttle Challenger, as well as an excerpt from her children's book The Mystery of Mars. What a wonderful tribute.

If you missed the launch this morning, you can relive the excitement by watching this video now. And check out more stunning photos ahead.