STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - As the new year begins, seven of the nine test stands at Stennis Space Center (SSC) are being used for testing. Four stands are being operated by NASA directly, one is under a Reimbursable Space Act Agreement with Aerojet Rocketdyne, and two have been turned over to Relativity Space Inc. for operation under a Commercial Space Launch Act. The outlook for 2022 activity is a carry-over from 2021, when rocket engine testing featured 11 test campaigns, including seven NASA-led projects, on eight test stands. The year’s activity totaled 434 tests and 7,341 seconds of cumulative firing time. On the commercial front, SSC partnered with seven companies on rocket engine and component testing projects during the recent year – Aerojet Rocketdyne, Relativity Space, Virgin Orbit, Blue Origin, Ursa Major, Launcher, and Firehawk. Aerojet Rocketdyne conducted the final scheduled RS-68 hot fire acceptance test on the B-1 Test Stand in April. However, several of the other companies are continuing testing projects into 2022. There also is the possibility of participating in partnerships with additional companies in the new year. (Source: NASA/SSC, 01/18/22)
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