Sat, Mar 12, 2011
Hydrogen-Powered Engine Designed To Power Heavy-Lift Vehicles
Into Space
A series of Hardware Acceptance Reviews on the first RS-68A
production rocket engine has been completed by Pratt & Whitney
Rocketdyne, validating the hydrogen-fueled engine is ready to power
a heavy-lift vehicle into space. "RS-68A engine 30003 has
demonstrated all the requirements for flight over a wide range of
operating conditions," said Dan Adamski, RS-68 program manager,
Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. "We look forward to working with
our customers to ensure the RS-68A engines powering the Delta IV
Heavy launch vehicle are successful in delivering their important
payload into orbit."
Engine 30003, the first of three RS-68A production engines to
undergo a Hardware Acceptance Review, has been shipped to Decatur,
AL, for integration onto a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy
launch vehicle. RS-68A production engines 30004 and 30005 will
undergo Hardware Acceptance Reviews in March and April 2011,
respectively, after completion of their hot-fire testing at Stennis
Space Center in Mississippi. These engines will then be installed
onto the launch vehicle. The three engines are scheduled to boost
the Delta IV Heavy next year carrying a government payload into
orbit. The RS-68A Hardware Acceptance Reviews, conducted by the
customer and Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, evaluate the engine's
compliance with detailed specifications, design, manufacture,
checkout, test reliability and quality assurance, qualification and
acceptance testing to determine the engines are ready for
flight.
The RS-68A is an upgrade of the RS-68 engine, and is a
liquid-hydrogen/liquid-oxygen booster engine designed to provide
increased thrust and improved fuel efficiency for the Delta IV
family of launch vehicles. Each RS-68A will provide 705,000 pounds
of lift-off thrust, or 42,000 more pounds of thrust than a basic
RS-68 engine.
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