Northrop Grumman has delivered three of its 63-inch-diameter Graphite Epoxy Motors (GEM 63) for United Launch Alliance's (ULA) Atlas V rocket. The three motors were shipped from the Northrop Grumman facility in Magna to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, and will be used as strap-on boosters to augment thrust on Atlas V.
The GEM 63 rocket motors were developed under a cooperative agreement with ULA for the Atlas V vehicle. Each motor contributes a maximum thrust of 373,000 pounds to the launch with up to five GEM 63 motors being able to support a single Atlas V launch.
"Designing a drop-in solution for an existing vehicle is no easy feat," said Charlie Precourt, vice president, propulsion systems, Northrop Grumman. "As ULA's largest legacy supplier, we have been providing rocket propulsion to ULA and its heritage companies since 1964 and we are pleased to continue our partnership with this new generation motor."
A series of motor ground tests beginning in September 2018 satisfied requirements for certification by the United States Air Force and ULA. The first flight of Atlas V that will utilize three GEM 63 rocket motors is expected to launch later this year.
The GEM family of strap-on motors was developed starting in the early 1980s with the GEM 40, supporting 132 Delta II launches. The company also developed the GEM 46, which used 54 motors to support six successful missions of the Delta II Heavy. Northrop Grumman later developed the GEM 60, which retired with 100 percent success in August 2019 with 86 motors flown over 26 Delta IV launches.
Northrop Grumman is once again evolving the GEM family with the development of the GEM 63XL variation to support ULA's Vulcan Centaur launch vehicle.
Northrop Grumman solves the toughest problems in space, aeronautics, defense and cyberspace to meet the ever evolving needs of our customers worldwide. Our 90,000 employees define possible every day using science, technology and engineering to create and deliver advanced systems, products and services.
Related Links
Northrop Grumman
Rocket Science News at Space-Travel.Com
| Thanks for being there; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution. |
||
| SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5+ Billed Monthly |
 |
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal |
Rocket Lab promises customers to 'Leave No Stone Unturned' launch failure
Moscow (Sputnik) Jul 07, 2020
Founded in 2004, the private US aerospace company has put 53 spacecraft into low-Earth orbit and most of its missions have been successful. Saturday's launch was initially scheduled for 5 July, however, due to a bad weather forecast, the company moved it one day earlier, a rare occurrence in the space industry. The CEO of Rocket Lab, Peter Beck, promised to "leave no stone unturned" after the company's Electron rocket experienced an anomaly during its latest mission and was lost after launch. ... read more
from Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense https://ift.tt/3eVdZ4u
via space News
No comments: