Gallery: Antares rocket explodes

First, you see the rocket sputter, then pause suspended in mid-air and crash back to Earth in a blinding ball of flame. If you still have your wits, you brace for the blast wave.

Watch the briefing to learn what is aboard the Orbital ATK Cygnus OA-6 resupply freighter launching to the International Space Station on March 22 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas-5 rocket.

The year ended with a deluge of big news, reminding us of the risks of spaceflight and the thin margins between success and failure on the final frontier. 2014 was also a year of breakthroughs in the exploration of the solar system and the future of human spaceflight.