The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced that the final fire tests of the first stage of the Space Launch System (SLS) launch vehicle are scheduled for January 17. If the systems work properly, the rocket will be sent to equip on an unmanned flight to the moon with the Orion spacecraft. This mission is scheduled for the end of this year, which will be the first decisive step for the re-landing of a man on the moon.
NASA test bench in the center. John Stennis. Image source: NASA
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Last year, the SLS Green Run tests were very, very uneven, which disrupted the test timeline and, ultimately, threatened to disrupt the Artemis mission for a manned flight to the moon. The final eighth test of the “green run” in the form of a fire test of all four LV engines was supposed to take place last fall or at least in December, but it had to be postponed to eliminate a number of problems with the rocket systems.
It must be said that the previous seventh test – the so-called “wet dress rehearsal”, when the LV tanks are completely filled with cryogenic fuel, also did not complete 100% successfully. Refueling had to be interrupted shortly before the end of the test and the malfunction was rectified. Now, according to the sources, the systems should work normally.
During firing tests in the second half of January PH SLS engines will operate at near full power for up to eight minutes, which is equivalent to placing a payload in the form of a second stage and the Orion spacecraft into orbit. The second stage, by the way, will soon be built by Boeing, but this is already other story.
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