Orbital's stock dropped 15 percent after the accident, and the company will likely have to postpone its resupply launches while it figures out what went wrong. If the problem can't be quickly fixed, according to Marco Caceres, director of space studies at the defense consultancy the Teal Group, Orbital may have to delay for several years while it works on a replacement, at which point it would risk losing its NASA contract.

Marco Caceres, director of space studies at the Teal Group, a consulting firm, said that "in an age where it is very expensive to fly these vehicles, the pressure is to do the minimal amount of test flying."

"So that may be something we have to take a look at," he continued. "Everyone seems to be in need of more money to conduct more flights, so the pressure is to start operational flight too soon. Maybe we are being unreasonable here."