The recent hotfire test of NASA’s next-gen megarocket was supposed to go eight minutes, but it lasted just 67 seconds. The space agency has an explanation for the premature shutdown, saying it all swells up, but a second test is still a special possibility.
The first hotfire test of the Space Launch System (SLS) was conducted on Saturday. Jan. 16 at NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, came to a halt at just over one-minute sign when key parameter entered land outside boundaries, explained NASA in a statement. That parameter applies to the filters required for gimbaling, or pivoting, each rocket engine.
For the test – the eighth and (possibly) final round of the Green Run test – NASA planned to fire the rocket’s four RS-25 engines for up to eight minutes. With the 212-foot-tall (65-meters) a rocket platform anchored to a B-2 test stand, and with the main stage filled with more than 700,000 gallons of propulsion, the engines began operating at 5:27 pm EST, sputtering a gloomy cloud of excavation. This lasted for just 67.2 seconds until computers shut down the whole thing.
NASA has reviewed the data and conducted preliminary reviews of the system, finding that the rocket’s hardware is in “good condition” and that the shutdown was ” stimulated by test parameters that were deliberate to ensure the safety of the main stage during the test. ”
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Built by Boeing, SLS NASA’s most powerful rocket and a key part of Artemis’ upcoming missions to the Moon. It consists of a main stage with four RS-25 engines, along with two smaller solid rocket lifts attached to each side of the Space Shuttle Program. Once activated, SLS will used to send American astronauts to the Moon sometime in 2020n. A launch event may be launched later this year.
Speaking to SpaceFlightNow, NASA astronaut Jim Bridenstine said NASA “maybe they can take the rocket down to Kennedy [Space Center in Florida] and get ready to launch it, ”saying that“ this decision has not been made, ”as the situation remains uncertain.
In fact, NASA is still trying to figure out if the second is hota fire test will be required. Given the results of the first test, the control parameters team could turn the thrush vector to prevent a similar shutdowndown, according to NASA.
The parameters pre-programmed for the hotfire test are specific to ground test, and are designed so that the platform’s vector control system can change the direction of the RS-25 engines. In addition to the thrust vector control system, a series of actuators provide the forces needed to gimbal each engine, and are powered by several Main Support Power Units (CAPUs). The gimbalthe engines were operating as expected, but the associated irrigation system was “exceeding the preset test limits set,” and as a result they were shut down.down, according to NASA.
NASA says this is not a problem, and if SLS had been flying, the rocket would have continued on its way using the remaining CAPUs. And of course, NASA said that this abbreviated test showed in action.
Plus, the gimbalA test that closed the CAPU was “a deliberate case for the system that was intended to use the system’s capabilities,” NASA said. “The data is being assessed as part of the process to complete the preset test limits before the next key stage is used. ”
In terms of positive things, the second wet test was successful (ie, the rocket was full of propellant), the crew was able to put pressure on the propellant tanks, and completed a countdown leading to the ignition of the engines. At full explosion, the engines reached maximum capacity at 1.6 million pounds of effort.
The team will continue to study flavors that can be seen around the engines. Thermal blankets used to protect the engine from the intense heat showed signs of scorching, which is not strange. as they are close to the engines and the CAPU. However, NASA wants to make sure this was normal behavior.
As mentioned, a second hotfire test is not out of the question. As reported in SpaceFlightNow, John Shannon, SLS program manager at Boeing, said the team wanted to get and evaluate at least 250 seconds of data during the test before proceeding to the next level. O.suddenly, a full eight-minute test would be even better, as that is the total time it takes the SLS rocket to reach space.
Yes, this would delay it, but it may not be in a hurry. It is not clear if the Biden Administration asks NASA to reach the lunar surface in 2024, accelerated timeline pushed by the Trump administration.