Boeing working on multiple Cores, first EUS hardware for Artemis missions 2-4 nasaspaceflight.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from nasaspaceflight.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
47,853 kg (
147-cm (
44,087 kg (
The business end of the GEM-63XL. Source: NASA
Northrop Grumman Vice President of Propulsion Systems Charlie Precourt has told NASA, The GEM-63XL increases thrust and performance by 15 - 20 percent compared to a standard GEM 63.
The purpose of the January 21, 2020 test was to validate the performance of the new motor s internal insulation, the grain of its solid propellant, and its ballistics, in a hot-conditioned environment. A previous test of the motor conducted on
August 13, 2020, was for a cold-conditioned environment. At today s test, the rocket motor fired for approximately
90 seconds and produced nearly
203,600 kg (
449,000 pounds) of thrust.
SLS, Stennis working on colder LOX for next Green Run WDR attempt
December 11, 2020
Space Launch System (SLS) Core Stage Green Run team members are working on new procedures to supply liquid oxygen (LOX) to the vehicle at lower temperatures in the next Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR) attempt. The first attempt on December 7 at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi was scrubbed because the temperature of the LOX was a few degrees higher than design requirements as it entered the vehicle; NASA did not want to continue loading with the temperature out of limits.
The problem is not with the Core Stage itself; engineers with the SLS Program, Core Stage prime contractor Boeing, and NASA Stennis are looking at ways to reduce the temperature of the cryogenic liquid before it reaches the stage from barges docked next to the B-2 Test Stand. In the meantime, the test team is recycling the stage and other equipment to be ready to start a new Wet Dress Rehearsal attempt no earlier than the week of