Astronaut Don Pettit watches as a technician works
on the Orion crew module inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at
Kennedy Space Center on March 21.
Image Credit:
NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis
Image Token:
Linda
Herridge
NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center
NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center
The last of eight reaction control system (RCS) pods for NASA's Orion
Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) arrived this week at Kennedy Space Center's
Operations and Checkout Building (O&C) from the manufacturer, Aerojet, in
Redmond, Wash.
"Arrival of the final reaction control system pod marks a significant milestone as we prepare NASA's Orion crew module for its first flight test," said Glenn Chinn, the deputy manager of the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle Program in Kennedy's Orion Production Operations Office.
"The pods will provide the critical maneuvers necessary for Orion's re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere."
The first set of pods arrived at Kennedy on Feb. 18, with subsequent pods arriving March 11, and April 5 and 19.
"Arrival of the final reaction control system pod marks a significant milestone as we prepare NASA's Orion crew module for its first flight test," said Glenn Chinn, the deputy manager of the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle Program in Kennedy's Orion Production Operations Office.
"The pods will provide the critical maneuvers necessary for Orion's re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere."
The first set of pods arrived at Kennedy on Feb. 18, with subsequent pods arriving March 11, and April 5 and 19.
A technician works on a reaction control system pod
at the Aerojet facility in Redmond, Wash. The pod is one of eight that will be
installed on the Orion crew module for Exploration Flight Test-1.
Image Credit: Aerojet
Image Token:
The right-roll
thruster pod with two rocket engines was the last to arrive, and joined the
other seven pods already in the facility. Included in the group are two pitch-up
thruster pods with a single rocket engine; two pitch-down thruster pods, each
with a single rocket engine; two right- and left-yaw pods, each with a single
rocket engine, and a left roll thruster pod with two rocket
engines.
Before the pods were delivered to Kennedy, Aerojet put each of them through a series of tests, including proof pressure and leak, engine vibration, rocket engine hot fire acceptance and electrical functional testing.
Lockheed Martin will unpack and visually inspect all of the pods. Then technicians will add short propellant line segments and line brackets to each.
Beginning in June, the pods will undergo additional proof pressure and leak testing, valve leak testing and rocket engine functional testing. Aerojet will support processing activities that involve the rocket engine pods with procedure reviews, and on-site engineering and assembly support during installation and testing on the crew module.
Aerojet Program Director for Human Space, Sam Wiley, said he can't wait for the RCS pods to be installed onto the crew module.
"We put our heart into our products and the installation work will wrap up more than three years of design and development activities," Wiley said. "We're ready to support EFT-1 for flight."
The pods and their engines will be installed in various locations on the Orion crew module.
Two of the single engine pods will be located in the crew module's forward bay, with the remaining pods located in the aft bay. Together they will provide full attitude control during Orion's re-entry and landing.
Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry humans farther into space than ever before. The spacecraft will provide emergency abort capability, sustain crews during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep-space return velocities.
Orion's first uncrewed test flight is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a United Launch Alliance Delta IV heavy rocket. A second uncrewed flight test is scheduled for 2017 on NASA's Space Launch System rocket.
NASA Invites Media to View Orion Heat Shield Near Boston
WASHINGTON -- NASA officials will visit Textron Defense Systems in
Wilmington, Mass., Wednesday, July 17, to view progress being made on the heat
shield for the agency's Orion spacecraft.
Orion will launch on Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) next year. The flight will evaluate the design and performance of the spacecraft that will send humans on future missions to an asteroid and Mars.
News media representatives are invited to attend a 9:15 a.m. EDT tour of the Textron Defense Systems facility to view the heat shield in its fabrication area and custom-built equipment and robotic systems necessary to build the heat shield. Reporters also will hear from Dan Dumbacher, NASA's deputy associate administrator for exploration systems; Mark Geyer, Orion Program manager; and managers from Lockheed Martin, the prime contractor for Orion, and Textron Defense Systems.
Journalists who plan to attend should respond to Brandi Dean at brandi.k.dean@nasa.gov or 281-244-1403 by 5 p.m. EDT Tuesday, July 16. All guests must present a valid driver's license upon arrival at the facility. Foreign nationals will be required to present a valid passport. Textron Defense Systems is located at 201 Lowell St. in Wilmington. Media should enter the facility from Rt. 38 (Main Street).
EFT-1 will send Orion 3,600 miles into orbit, farther than any spacecraft built for humans has traveled in more than 40 years. During its return to Earth, the spacecraft will reach speeds of up to 20,000 miles per hour, faster than the space shuttles or any current spacecraft. The increased speed means Orion must endure temperatures of 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit as it re-enters Earth's atmosphere.
The heat shield skeleton and skin were assembled at Lockheed Martin's Waterton Facility near Denver, and then shipped to Textron Defense Systems in March aboard NASA's Super Guppy cargo aircraft. Since then, technicians have been covering the structure with Avcoat, an ablative material designed to erode as it heats up, to protect the interior of the spacecraft from extreme temperatures during re-entry.
Once complete, the heat shield will be shipped to NASA's Kennedy Space Center for installation on the Orion crew module.
For more information about Orion, visit:
Orion will launch on Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) next year. The flight will evaluate the design and performance of the spacecraft that will send humans on future missions to an asteroid and Mars.
News media representatives are invited to attend a 9:15 a.m. EDT tour of the Textron Defense Systems facility to view the heat shield in its fabrication area and custom-built equipment and robotic systems necessary to build the heat shield. Reporters also will hear from Dan Dumbacher, NASA's deputy associate administrator for exploration systems; Mark Geyer, Orion Program manager; and managers from Lockheed Martin, the prime contractor for Orion, and Textron Defense Systems.
Journalists who plan to attend should respond to Brandi Dean at brandi.k.dean@nasa.gov or 281-244-1403 by 5 p.m. EDT Tuesday, July 16. All guests must present a valid driver's license upon arrival at the facility. Foreign nationals will be required to present a valid passport. Textron Defense Systems is located at 201 Lowell St. in Wilmington. Media should enter the facility from Rt. 38 (Main Street).
EFT-1 will send Orion 3,600 miles into orbit, farther than any spacecraft built for humans has traveled in more than 40 years. During its return to Earth, the spacecraft will reach speeds of up to 20,000 miles per hour, faster than the space shuttles or any current spacecraft. The increased speed means Orion must endure temperatures of 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit as it re-enters Earth's atmosphere.
The heat shield skeleton and skin were assembled at Lockheed Martin's Waterton Facility near Denver, and then shipped to Textron Defense Systems in March aboard NASA's Super Guppy cargo aircraft. Since then, technicians have been covering the structure with Avcoat, an ablative material designed to erode as it heats up, to protect the interior of the spacecraft from extreme temperatures during re-entry.
Once complete, the heat shield will be shipped to NASA's Kennedy Space Center for installation on the Orion crew module.
For more information about Orion, visit:
Orion Features
Orion Undergoes Pyro Bolt Test
05.30.13 - Lockheed Martin engineers and technicians recently completed a series of pyrotechnic bolt tests on the Orion ground test vehicle.Orion Undergoes Testing
05.06.13 - The Orion crew module is being put through a series of tests that simulate the loads the spacecraft would experience during its mission.Final Orion Reaction Control System Pod Arrives
05.03.13 - The last of eight reaction control system pods for NASA's Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 arrived this week at Kennedy Space Center's Operations and C ...Leading Edge Design and Engineering
05.17.11 - Drawing from more than 50 years of spaceflight research and development, the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) is designed to meet the evolving needs ...
About Orion
The Orion MPCV (Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle) is based on
the Orion design requirements for traveling beyond low Earth orbit (LEO). Orion
will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide
emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during the space travel, and
provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities.
- Spacecraft to serve as the primary crew vehicle for missions beyond LEO
- Capable of conducting regular in-space operations (rendezvous, docking, extravehicular activity) in conjunction with payloads delivered by the Space Launch System (SLS) for missions beyond LEO
- Capability to be a backup system for International Space Station cargo and crew delivery
Media Resources
Built On A Solid Foundation
05.17.11 - Designating Orion as NASA's Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle provides our nation with an affordable solution for multiple mission capability by continuing t ...A NASA-Industry Team Effort
05.16.11 - The Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) design team has incorporated cutting-edge technology garnered through collaborative efforts with every NASA cent ...Explore the Exploration Vehicle
05.16.11 - Explore the Launch Abort System, Crew Module and Service Module of the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle.
Fact Sheets
NASA
Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
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ayabaca@yahoo.com
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