CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., Oct. 13 (UPI) -- The first new rocket engine designed in the United States since the space shuttle engines were built in the 1970s is scheduled to be test-fired on Monday in preparation for its first flight on a Delta 4 booster next month.
Boeing Co., which developed the RS-68 engine, plans to fire up the booster about 4 p.m. ET at the newly refurbished Delta 4 launch complex at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The test will clear the way for the Delta 4's debut next month to carry a European communications satellite into orbit.
The Delta 4 is Boeing's offering under an Air Force-supported program to upgrade, simplify and cut costs for expendable rocket launches. Lockheed Martin's Atlas 5 rocket, which like the Delta 4 is built around a common core booster and interchangeable parts to accommodate a variety of payloads, flew its first mission successfully in August.
Rather than use an existing motor to power its rocket, Boeing decided to develop an entirely new engine -- the RS-68. Built by the firm's Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power division in Canoga Park, Calif., the engine uses liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen for propellants and is designed to generate 656,000 pounds of thrust. The RS-68 is more efficient than conventional liquid oxygen/kerosene engines and it produces only steam as a byproduct.
The rocket will stay bolted to the launch pad during Monday's test, which is scheduled to last about five seconds.
Managers downplayed the importance of the test-firing, though any problems would delay the company's rollout of its first Delta 4 flight.
"This is not a make-or-break launch for the Boeing Co.," said Will Trafton, president of Boeing Launch Services.
Added Dan Collins, vice president and manager of Boeing's Delta and Titan rocket programs," There is a momentum building and we want to keep that momentum going."
The company already has orders for 27 Delta 4 launches over the next five years. Delta 4 is expected to compete not only with Lockheed Martin's Atlas 5, but also with commercially available boosters sold by China, Russia and other countries.
