NASA assembles two boosters for its ‘mega-socket’

NASA has completed assembly of two booster rockets that will help power its massive next-generation launch system – the SLS.

The SLS, or Space Launch System, is the rocket that will bring astronauts back to the moon as part of the American project Artemis.

Over the course of several months, workers at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida stacked the 10 booster rocket segments vertically.

When operational, the SLS will be the most powerful rocket in the world.

It will be able to produce up to 8.8 million pounds of thrust, making it 15% more powerful than the Saturn V rocket that dominated the Apollo lunar missions.

The SLS consists of a huge central stage with four powerful motors at its base and the two solid rocket boosters (SRBs) attached to either side.

The two completed SRBs at the Kennedy Space Center will fly during the inaugural launch of the SLS – known as Artemis 1 – which is slated for late 2021.

Each identical thruster is divided into five segments reserved by large rocket pieces known as the front and rear assemblies.

The SRBs were stacked on a structure called the Mobile Launcher, which will support the testing, verification and maintenance of the SLS, as well as transfer to the Kennedy Space Center launch pad.

The thrusters, which are similar to those that aided the launch of the now retired Space Shuttle, will provide 75% of total lift off thrust.

On Twitter, Charles Precourt, vice president of propulsion systems at Northrop Grumman – which makes SRBs – said it was “exciting to see fully stacked boosters.”

Engineers from NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems team positioned the first segment on November 21, 2020 and continued the process until the final nose assembly was added on March 2 of this year.

“Stacking the solid rocket boosters is a big step,” said Cliff Lanham, senior director of vehicle operations. “This means that the rocket is being assembled on the mobile launcher and that we are in the final stages of a long journey – getting to launch Artemis 1.”

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The SLS has the thrust to propel NASA’s next-generation crew vehicle, Orion, to the moon without first having to hook up to a separate propulsion stage in Earth orbit.

America is back on the moon as part of the Artemis program (named after Apollo’s sister in Greek mythology). The project was launched under the presidency of Donald Trump; but in February, the Biden administration backed the shooting of the moon.

Trump’s White House had set an aggressive target date of 2024 for the US space agency to make the first human moon landing since 1972. However, the Biden administration made no mention of this timeline, leaving assume the date will be. slide.

The last big chunk of the SLS waiting to be inserted into the mobile launcher is the orange-colored central stage, which is currently being evaluated at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

NASA plans to conduct a core hotfire test in mid-March, which will involve igniting all four engines. Engineers aim to shoot them for the eight minutes it takes for the SLS to reach space.

On the first attempt at a hot fire in January, a problem with the mid-stage hydraulics caused the test to end after just one minute.

The SLS’s maiden flight is currently scheduled for late 2021. This will see the rocket launch an unequipped Orion spacecraft on a trip around the moon to perform a full assessment of both vehicles.

The seals that connect each segment of solid rocket boosters have a limited life of 12 months. Stacking the boosters means the clock is already ticking at launch – although engineers have said there may be ways to extend the certification period.

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