The booster rocket used in a test flight was badly dented when it fell into the Atlantic because of a deflated parachute, NASA said Thursday. The new Ares I-X completed a two-minute flight Wednesday. The launch itself went well, officials said, but one of the three parachutes on the booster failed to work properly. All three parachutes opened, but one ended up deflating for unknown reasons, said NASA spokesman Allard Beutel. That caused the booster to hit the ocean with extra force. The first-stage booster was found to be dented near the bottom when it was recovered from the ocean. It was expected back on shore Friday. Shuttle managers, meanwhile, have chosen Nov. 16 for the launch of Atlantis on a space station delivery mission. That assumes an unmanned rocket flies Nov. 14 with a communication satellite; a one-day postponement for that launch would bump the Atlantis flight to the 17th.
