Orbital Sciences and SpaceX Given Contracts to Supply International Space Station

(MoneyWatch)  NASA reached out to the commercial space launch sector by awarding two separate contracts to Orbital Sciences and SpaceX to provide cargo supply to the International Space Station. SPACE.com has the details. The two contracts are valued at over $3.5 billion combined and will bridge the gap when Space Shuttle flights will not be available due to its replacement by the Orion spacecraft. Another goal of these contracts is for the U.S. to use domestic sources to carry out supply flights as up to now the main source has been Russian launch vehicles and space craft. NASA had previously provided funding to the two companies to develop their launch vehicles.