NASA successfully tests five-segment solid rocket motor
September 9, 2011 By Dan Kanigan
NASA and ATK's five-segment solid rocket motor fires during Development Motor-3 test in Promontory, Utah, on Sept. 8. Credit: ATK
NASA and ATK Space Systems successfully completed a two-minute, full-scale test of Development Motor-3 (DM-3), Thursday, Sept. 8. DM-3 is NASA's largest and most powerful solid rocket motor ever designed for flight.
The stationary firing of the development solid rocket motor was conducted at the ATK test facility in Promontory, Utah. ATK Space Systems is the prime contractor. DM-3 is the third in a series of development motors and the most heavily instrumented solid rocket motor in NASA history with a total of 37 test objectives measured through more than 970 instruments.
Prior to the static test, the solid rocket motor was heated to 90 degrees Fahrenheit to verify and assess motor performance at high temperatures during the full-duration test. This series of testing will certify the motor to fly at temperature ranges between 40-90 degrees Fahrenheit. Initial test data showed the motor performance met all expectations.
"Ground testing at temperature extremes is crucial to furthering our understanding of solid rocket propulsion," said Alex Priskos, first stage manager for Ares Projects at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. "These tests will help us build better, more capable solid rocket motors and will allow America to maintain its leadership in this important technical capability."
The solid rocket motor is designed to generate up to 3.6 million pounds of thrust, or lifting power, at launch. Information collected from this test, together with data from earlier development motor tests, will be evaluated to better understand solid rocket propulsion performance, reliability and design.
Although similar to the solid rocket boosters that helped power the space shuttle to orbit, the five-segment development motor includes several upgrades and technology improvements implemented by NASA and ATK engineers. Motor upgrades from a shuttle booster include the addition of a fifth segment, a larger nozzle throat, and upgraded insulation and liner. The motor cases are flight proven hardware used on shuttle launches for more than three decades.
The solid rocket motor is managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.
Provided by
JPL/NASA
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Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 3 / 5 (2)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 3.1 / 5 (12)
We've been to the moon. We can build SSTO if we wanted to. But NASA will continue buying disintegrating totem poles, for as long as we allow it.
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 4.4 / 5 (5)
To shootist:
Once you assemble an SRB, the fuel is already inside it. You can inspect and test it way ahead of time. Then it can sit in storage or on the pad as long as you want, ready for use. Liquid fuel rockets have to be fueled as close to launch time as possible, and then you have to run all your system checks at the last minute.
Also, a larger, more powerfull SRB could be used to boost the capabilities of existing rockets which are already designed for use with smaller SRB's. You could even use parts of this test model to upgrade existing SRB designs.
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 3.3 / 5 (7)
If SRBs are so beautiful why aren't all rockets SRBs?
No. NASA uses SRBs, not because of technical superiority, but because its thousands of minions know how to build man-rated SRBs.
http://www.jerryp...ace.html
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 3 / 5 (2)
It is to be used on Space Launch System:
http://en.wikiped...h_System
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 4 / 5 (2)
http://en.wikiped..._booster
The page goes on to say that the launch cost per lb is about the same with either liquid or solid, but I've heard other sources say that SRB's can be cheaper when you take into account the external systems, ease of use, and safety issues. The cost of a delayed launch due to some small problem with the liquid fuel system is staggering. For every minute of launch delay you might as well be hauling money away in dump trucks. They have planes in the air, ships at sea, agencies all over the world, all sitting around waiting for the launch as the meter turns; cha-ching$, cha-ching$, cha-ching$.
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 4.7 / 5 (6)
There are pro's and con's to both sides. Depends on what you want to do. I'm not aware of any agency that does not use a combination of both liquid and solid fueled motors. Ariane, Delta, Soyouz, all can be fitted with solid boosters as needed (Two, three, four, etc.).
Even the Saturn V used solid fueled motors between the stages for seperation. If you're going to say that Werner Von Braun didn't know how to design a rocket, then you're a loon.
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 4.6 / 5 (5)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (4)
Not sure I'd count a separation motor as a rocket stage; don't some upper stages use springs?
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
The recent Soyuz failure was supposedly a fuel system failure though. Ironic timing.
No, the separation motor isn't a stage, but I was just pointing out how the job needed determines the tool you use. The above story just adds another tool to the toolbox.
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 1.5 / 5 (2)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 3 / 5 (2)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 3 / 5 (2)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (3)
Also, why is the thrust listed in pounds? Does NASA use that unit? I wouldn't be surprised, but it's still ridiculous. It's 16,000 kilonewtons of thrust. (I can ignore Fahrenheit, but thrust is sufficiently technical to warrant a proper SI unit). I bet no one would write an article about Skylon with references to "pounds" of thrust! Actually, I'm sure a lot of Americans would, even though I can't see using the "local unit" helping an average person gauge the amount of thrust since its not a unit most people deal with every day.
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 3 / 5 (2)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 3.7 / 5 (3)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 2 / 5 (4)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 4 / 5 (1)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (4)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (4)
Heyyyy wake up dumbass - this is 2011 - not 1967.
"This series of testing will certify the motor to fly at temperature ranges between 40-90 degrees Fahrenheit"
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
Sep 09, 2011
Rank: 2 / 5 (1)
That's a pretty cool rocket!
Sep 10, 2011
Rank: 3 / 5 (2)
Any American Engineer with an ABET accredited Mechanical Engineering degree from a Pac 12 University, like myself, never used English units. We always used SI and I graduated in Mechanical Engineering in 1993. The State of Washington EIT examination was also in SI units back then.
It's only the industry that doesn't want to convert all the road signs, HVAC, Construction and any old standard industry to SI and they proclaim it's the cost, but it's rather clear that the Auto Industry bit the bullet as they've converted their speedometer/odometer gauges to a joint English/SI decades ago.
We've got plenty of slave labor in prisons who pump out license plates. They can surely pump out a KPH and MPH combo, not to mention distance signs. The sooner the better.
Sep 10, 2011
Rank: 3.5 / 5 (2)
This man doth typith the truth! The booster was born of corruption and are known killers. Another 3000 - shuttle folk laid of last month alone are good enough to apply for jobs building any rocket. In fifteen years when you hear of the next segment failing, remember this time, this moment when we had the chance to change and do something/anything better.
Sep 10, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (4)
A defective SRB joint segment was what destroyed Challenger. Even if engineers saw the failure the second it happened before the shuttle cleared the tower and understood what it was, the vehicle was doomed and there was nothing anyone could do except say "goodbye". Of course SRB's are cheap, and cheap is as American as apple pie! NASA wanted liquid for the shuttle, congress told them solid - money over safety every time! My 2 cents.
Sep 10, 2011
Rank: 4 / 5 (1)
Sep 12, 2011
Rank: not rated yet
A detail; the R-7 is literally the oldest rocket launcher and has only seen minor modicfications since Sputnik 1. This makes it both the most reliable launcher available and one of the cheapest per pound to orbit.
Sep 12, 2011
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Sep 12, 2011
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Older people in America, say 55 and up, are horribly uneducated and absolutely REFUSE to even try to learn the metric system.
It's not just the older people either, you've also got high school drop-outs and the "mediocre" students who prefer to learn as little as possible about math of science, so none of them know the metric system, even though they were supposed to in order to graduate. They "learned" it long enough to make a "c" on the test, and then forgot it the next day.
So yeah, lazy, stupid and uneducated are the reasons, especially for the Baby Boomers (such as my parents and their peers).
That's why so many of our engineers and doctors now come from China, Japan, Taiwan, and India.