Engine moves under way

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - The relocation of the RS-25D space shuttle main engine inventory from Kennedy Space Center's Engine Shop in Cape Canaveral, Fla., to Stennis Space Center, Miss., is under way. The RS-25D flight engines will be used in NASA's Space Launch System, the new heavy-lift launch vehicle that will expand human presence beyond low-Earth orbit and enable new missions of exploration across the solar system. SLS will carry the Orion spacecraft, its crew, cargo, equipment and scientific experiments to destinations in deep space. "The relocation of RS-25D engine assets represents a significant cost savings to the SLS Program by consolidating SLS engine assembly and test operations at a single facility," said William Gerstenmaier, NASA's Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. The 15 RS-25D engines at Kennedy are being transported on the 700-mile journey using existing transportation and processing procedures that were used to move engines between Kennedy and Stennis during the Space Shuttle Program. (Source: NASA, 01/12/12) Previous post