Date: May 9th 2007

May 8, 2007

Melissa Mathews/Beth Dickey Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1272/2087

Paul Foerman Stennis Space Center, Miss 228-688-3333

RELEASE: 07-103

NASA TO BUILD NEW STAND AT STENNIS TO TEST ARES ROCKET ENGINES

BAY ST LOUIS, Miss - NASA will test one of the rocket engines it is developing for its new launch vehicles at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi The agency will build a new test stand at Stennis for the J-2X engine The engine will power the upper stages of NASA's Ares I and Ares V rockets

Stennis already is home to Apollo-era test stands that have served the nation's space program through the shuttle era The newly proposed structure will be the first large test stand built at the center since the 1960s Unlike the older structures, the new 300-foot-tall, open-frame design will allow engineers to simulate conditions at different altitudes

NASA engineers need to simulate various altitudes to test the J-2X's ability to function as a second stage engine for the Ares I crew launch vehicle and the Earth Departure Stage engine for the Ares V cargo launch vehicle To do that, the test stand will generate approximately 4,620 pounds per second of steam and use it to reduce the engine test cell pressure

NASA will complete the new stand in time to support the first J-2X engine test in December 2010 An existing test stand at Stennis also is being modified to test the J-2X engine at sea level conditions

Ares I will launch the Orion spacecraft, taking astronauts to the International Space Station no later than 2015, then to the moon by 2020 The Ares V will carry cargo and components into orbit for trips to the moon and later to Mars The new spacecraft are key components of NASA's Constellation Program

"This new test stand will enable the critical testing needed to verify the Ares I upper stage engine performance at altitude conditions," said Stennis Center Director Rick Gilbrech "The Apollo-era test stands have served us well over the last forty years, and I'm excited that NASA will have a new stand to help us accomplish these new goals "

The test stand, along with its control center, propellant barge docks and access roadways, will be built in Stennis A Complex

For more on Ares I, Ares V and the Constellation Program, visit:

http://www nasa gov/constellation

-end-

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