MAF simulates engine install

NEW ORLEANS -- Engineers at the Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF) in New Orleans are using a pathfinder RS-25 engine to practice the installation of engines on the Core Stage of the Space Launch System (SLS). Each core will receive four RS-25s, currently undergoing test firings at the Stennis Space Center, ahead of a path that will see them being shipped to MAF. The installation of all four R-25s on the Core Stage will be a major milestone on the path to Exploration Mission-1, the first launch of SLS. Test firings at the Stennis Space Center (SSC) continue to serve toward the readiness of that milestone, with the first four flight engines now closing in on shipping to MAF to be installed on Core State-1 (CS-1). Those engines, all Space Shuttle veterans, are E2045 in position 1, E2056 in position 2, E2058 in position 3, and E2060 in position 4. All four of these RS-25s will remain at SSC until MAF engineers have completed the work on CS-1. The latest schedule shows the four engines will make the journey to New Orleans in May of next year. (Source: NASA Spaceflight, 11/30/17)