Aerojet completes early risk reduction engine testing for NASA's Orion crew module

Aerojet has completed a hot-fire testing programme of the Orion crew module 120-pound thrust mono-propellant engine to demonstrate operation at expected Orion flight conditions. Because this thruster was designed to operate in space, there was concern that performance would be significantly degraded as the thruster operated in an atmospheric environment as the crew module returned to earth.

This sea-level test programme included thermal cycle testing, with more than 20 thermal cycles and over 450 pulses as well as two mission duty cycle demonstrations. The test results indicate that the MR-104G will meet the required Orion operating conditions and is an important step in elimination of this risk.

"A key tenet of the Constellation programme is to identify and eliminate risk as early as possible. This testing validates the selection of Aerojet's MR-104G engine for the Orion program," said Julie Van Kleeck, vice president of Space Systems.

Aerojet will be providing propulsion for NASA's Orion Crew Module as well as all engines aboard the Orion Service Module to prime contractor Lockheed Martin.

The current Orion Crew Module flight configuration includes 12 MR-104G engines operating at 120 pounds thrust. The MR-104G engine family originally provided in-space propulsion for the Voyager 1 and 2 and Magellan missions. Subsequent MR-104G variants provided propulsion for Landsat and NOAA satellites as well as other US government programmes.

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