Scott Nicholas
NASA has performed a certification test on a flight controller for a future Space Launch System deep space rocket as part of a series of tests on components built using advanced manufacturing approaches.
The space agency said Wednesday the flight controller was integrated on the RS-25 developmental engine for a 365-second full-duration test held at the Mississippi-based Stennis Space Center’s A-1 Test Stand.
Ongoing engine tests will evaluate controllers for the future SLS Exploration Mission-2 which will carry passengers aboard the Orion spacecraft into deep space for missions to the moon and Mars.
RS-25 engines for the first SLS flight, which have been modified from previous space shuttle main engines, are now ready for integration on the SLS EM-1 rocket’s core stage, noted NASA.
Personnel from Aerojet Rocketdyne and Syncom Space Services help NASA perform the RS-25 evaluations at Stennis.
