Volume 6 Issue 11 www.nasa.gov/centers/stennis November 2011 NASA conducts major J-2X test NASA conducted a successful 500-sec- ond test of the agency’s new upper-stage engine on the A-2 Test Stand at Stennis Space Center on Nov. 9. A host of NASA leaders visited Stennis for the major test of the next-generation J-2X rocket engine that will carry humans into deep space. The J-2X engine will be part of NASA’s new Space Launch System and is being developed for Marshall Space Flight Center by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. NASA leaders acknowledged the 500-second test as an important step in the continued development of the new spacecraft. Stennis will perform sea-level, component and simulated high-altitude testing of the J-2X engine and also is charged with testing the RS-25 rocket engines that will provide launch power for the new Space Launch System. Center directors’ forum held at Stennis Stennis’ 2011 Combined Federal Campaign Goal $190,000 Stennis Space Center Director Patrick Scheuermann (right) hosted directors from six other NASA To-date centers during a forum discussion at the south Mississippi rocket engine test facility Nov. 9. The direc- tors discussed the future of the American space program from their perspectives during an all hands session with Stennis employees. Participants were: (l to r) David McBride, director of Dryden Flight $197,772 Research Center in Edwards, Calif.; Lesa Roe, director of Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va.; Ray Lugo, director of Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio; Bob Cabana, director of Kennedy Space Center in Florida; Robert Lightfoot, director of Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.; (104.1% of goal) Mike Coats, director of Johnson Space Center in Houston; and Scheuermann. Page 2 LAGNIAPPE November 2011 cent of the workforce at Stennis are direct descendants of the families who contributed their land for develop- From the desk of ment of the then-Mississippi Test Facility. The prom- Pamela Covington ise of Sen. John C. Stennis is being fulfi lled when he Manager assured the families that their generations would reap the benefi ts of the jobs that the center would create. Offi ce of External Affairs Stennis Space Center I am thankful Stennis has a solid role in the next chapter of America’s space exploration program. We are testing the J-2X rocket engine that is planned for his year seems to have fl own by. It is Novem- use in the upper stage of the new rocket design that ber, and Thanksgiving is here already! The age- will take humans to deep space destinations. We are Told saying that time fl ies when you are having continuing construction on the A-3 Test stand that will fun resonates with me. My team and I have had our support testing at simulated altitudes up to 100,000 share of fun this year. From major outreach activities feet. Our Applied Science Offi ce has a pivotal role in like the Essence Festival and public open house to the managing the Gulf of Mexico Initiative and addressing Roy Estess dedication, time capsule ceremony and, of coastal management issues on a regional level. We have course, our grand 50th Gala celebration. We have been increased our facility space by nearly 33 percent, and busy and, yes, it has been fun. the missions of our resident agencies are stable and, in some cases, expanding. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. Traditions usually involve being in the company of family and As I celebrate Thanksgiving, among the things I refl ect friends and a big feast with all the favorite trimmings. on is my gratitude for being a part of NASA and the For most, it is also a time of refl ection and giving broader Stennis family, the quality of life that Stennis thanks for the many blessings experienced throughout enables for so many and the employees who contribute the year. to the impact that Stennis has on the economic devel- opment of our communities and state. The center has I am grateful to have been part of Stennis during its a solid future ahead. I am thankful that I am part of 50-year history. It is rewarding to receive thanks and the collective team that is charting the course for the appreciation from the employees for the role my offi ce next 50 years. played in creating the moments and experiences of our yearlong 50th celebration. It is gratifying to feel that How blessed we are to be alive during such a historical your contributions are meaningful and that you are part time as this! Happy Thanksgiving. of something special like Stennis Space Center. As I interact with employees and hear stories of how their granddad, uncle, cousin and other family mem- bers were part of Stennis history back in the day, I hear gratitude in their voices for what Stennis has meant and continues to mean to their families. Over 40 per- NASA leaders discuss future of space program In a news conference broadcast live on NASA TV, key NASA leaders discussed the signifi cance of the successful 500-second test of the agency’s new J-2X rocket engine at Stennis Space Center on Nov. 9. The engine will provide upper-stage power for NASA’s new Space Launch System (SLS) being developed to carry humans into deep space. Participating in the session were: (l to r) Dan Kanigan, public affairs specialist at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center; Dan Dum- bacher, deputy associate administrator for NASA Exploration System Development; Joan “Jody” Singer, deputy program manager for the SLS Program Offi ce at Marshall; Patrick Scheuermann, Stennis director; and Mike Kynard, manager of the SLS Liquid Engines Element at Marshall. November 2011 LAGNIAPPE Page 3 FULFILLING NASA’S EXPLORATION MISSION (Right photo) A plume of steam signals start of a successful test of the next- generation J-2X engine at Stennis Space Center on Nov. 9. (Bottom left photo) A wind-pushed steam plume threatens to obscure the A-2 Test Stand during the Nov. 9 test of NASA’s new J-2X engine. (Bottom right photo) Directors of seven NASA centers prepare to view the Nov. 9 test of the J-2X engine – (l to r) Ray Lugo, Glenn Research Center; David McBride, Dryden Flight Research Cen- ter; Robert Lightfoot, Marshall Space Flight Center; Patrick Scheuermann, Stennis Space Center; Bob Cabana, Kennedy Space Center; Lesa Roe, Langley Research Center; and Mike Coats, Johnson Space Center. J-2X test achieves 500-second mark ASA conducted a successful 500-second test fl ight certifi cation at Stennis. fi ring of the J-2X rocket engine on Wednes- Nday, Nov. 9, marking another important step in Both engines use liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen pro- development of an upper stage for the heavy-lift Space pellants. The core stage engines were developed originally Launch System (SLS). for the space shuttle. SLS will carry the Orion spacecraft, its crew, cargo, equip- “The J-2X engine team and the SLS program as a whole ment and science experiments to destinations in deep are extremely happy that we accomplished a good, safe space. SLS will be safe, affordable and sustainable to and successful test today,” said Mike Kynard, Space continue America’s journey of discovery from the unique Launch System Liquid Engines Element Manager at vantage point of space. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. “This engine test fi ring gives us critical data to move “The J-2X engine is critical to the development of the forward in the engine’s development.” Space Launch System,” Dan Dumbacher, NASA’s deputy associate administrator for exploration systems develop- Stennis has tested engines that carried Americans to ment, said after the test at NASA’s Stennis Space Center space in both the Apollo and Space Shuttle programs. in Mississippi. “Today’s test means NASA is moving The J-2X engine is being developed for Marshall by Pratt closer to developing the rocket it needs if humans are to & Whitney Rocketdyne of Canoga Park, Calif. explore beyond low-Earth orbit.” “We look forward to adding to the legacy as we fulfi ll Data from the test will be analyzed as operators prepare our responsibility to test engines that will power Amer- for additional engine fi rings. The J-2X and the RS- ica’s next launch vehicle,” said Stennis Director Patrick 25D/E engines for the SLS core stage will be tested for Scheuermann. Page 4 LAGNIAPPE November 2011 Stennis continues Legends Lecture Series Stennis Space Center Director Patrick Scheuer- mann (right) welcomes former leaders to the fourth Legends Lecture Series presentation Oct. 13. Stennis launched the series last November as part of a yearlong 50th anniversary celebra- tion. The recent session focused on past rocket engine test work. Visiting Stennis legends were: (l to r) Dave Geiger, former Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne site director; Patrick Mooney, former space shuttle main engine project manager; Boyce Mix, former test and engineering director; J. Stephens Dick, former Systems Engineering Division chief; James Taylor, former propulsion test director and deputy director for operations; and Marvin Carpenter, former deputy director of the Stennis Test & Engineering Directorate. Mississippi creates Scenic Byway to Space network hirty miles of Mississippi roadways leading and that relocated in the 1960s to make way for Stennis. The adjacent to Stennis Space Center have been des- Pearlington Scenic Byway to Space travels through that Tignated Scenic Byway to Space sections for their existing community adjacent to Stennis. distinctive and treasured attractions and sights.