NASA completes final test of SLS boosters before first launch
Source: SpaceNews.com
NASA completes final test of SLS boosters before first launch
by Jeff Foust — June 28, 2016
WASHINGTON — A successful two-minute test of a five-segment solid rocket booster June 28 is the final development milestone for the shuttle-derived boosters before their use on the first flight of the Space Launch System.
The test, known as Qualification Motor 2 (QM-2), demonstrated the booster’s performance when cooled to approximately 5 degrees Celsius, the lower end of its range of operating temperatures. NASA swiftly declared that the booster firing, conducted at an Orbital ATK test site near Promontory, Utah, was a success.
“It’s not just a test firing, it’s really a qualification motor test firing, which fits into a sequence that essentially says this design is ready to go fly,” said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA associate administrator for human exploration and operations, in a media teleconference an hour after the test.
Analysis of data collected during the test, which was delayed by an hour to replace a failed hard drive in ground support equipment, is still in its initial phases. Agency officials, though, appeared pleased. “We’ve had a chance to look at just some very, very preliminary data,” said Alex Priskos, manager of the SLS Boosters Office at the Marshall Space Flight center, “and everything looks great so far.”
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[font size=1]A five-segment solid rocket booster fires during the Qualification Motor 2 test in Utah June 28. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls[/font]
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