Posts: 50516 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 02-22-2021 03:24 PM
NASA and Boeing are rescheduling the hot fire test that was slated for Feb. 25. From an update from NASA:
During checkout preparations over the weekend, engineers determined that one of eight valves (a type of valve called a prevalve) was not working properly. This valve is part of the core stage main propulsion system that supplies liquid oxygen to an RS-25 engine.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 50516 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-15-2021 09:48 AM
NASA release
NASA TV to Air Second Rocket Test for Artemis Moon Missions
NASA is targeting a two-hour test window that opens at 3 p.m. EDT (1900 GMT) Thursday, March 18, for the second hot fire test of the core stage for the agency's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket at NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.
The agency plans to begin live coverage on NASA Television, the agency's website, and the NASA app approximately 30 minutes before the hot fire. The team will refine the timeline as it proceeds through operations. NASA will provide updates on the operations and the target hot fire time at @NASA and the Artemis blog.
On test day, engineers will power up all the core stage systems, load more than 700,000 gallons of cryogenic, or supercold, propellant into the tanks, and fire the rocket's four RS-25 engines at the same time to simulate the stage's operation during launch, generating 1.6 million pounds of thrust.
A post-test briefing will follow on NASA Television approximately two hours after the test.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 50516 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-18-2021 02:42 PM
NASA update
Today's coverage of the Green Run hot fire test is starting at 3:45 p.m. EDT (1945 GMT).
Paul78zephyr Member
Posts: 797 From: Hudson, MA Registered: Jul 2005
posted 03-18-2021 03:52 PM
Great effort and show. I would ask if the apparent 'fire' of the TPS blankets was normal/expected? Perhaps not a big deal but they definately cut the camera view that showed that fire.
Headshot Member
Posts: 1221 From: Vancouver, WA, USA Registered: Feb 2012
posted 03-18-2021 07:06 PM
Yes, I noticed that also.
Hopefully no significant damage was done by the fire. It should not be a problem during actual launches as the higher the rocket goes, the less oxygen there will be to feed a TPS fire.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 50516 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-18-2021 08:13 PM
Eric Berger at Ars Technica addressed the fire in his article about the test:
Although the cork insulation around one of the engines caught fire and appeared to burn aggressively before the camera view cut away, NASA's Green Run manager Bill Wrobel said engineers had expected some of it to burn away. The insulation did its job, as sensors beneath the cork never got above 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
This should not be an issue during an actual launch, during which the vehicle will be ascending into much lower air pressures while exhaust is carried away from the engines.
AstronautBrian Member
Posts: 310 From: Louisiana Registered: Jan 2006
posted 03-19-2021 11:31 AM
I was crossing Lake Ponchartrain yesterday heading towards Slidell, LA. and could see the plume off in the distance.