SSME Test Live on the Internet

When the Space Shuttle lifts off, two solid rocket motors and three main engines generate enough power to lift it to orbit. Without a doubt, the Shuttle is an impressive machine! Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSME) have been flying for more than 20 years, yet those flying today are much more capable and reliable than those that lifted STS-1 on April 12, 1981.

This increased capability and reliability and the fact that these engines are used to lift people and not just cargo, requires a continuous program of testing to assure the safety of the astronauts and their cargo. The Stennis Space Center in south Mississippi is responsible for testing and flight certifying the SSME.

Occasionally, SSME testing is open to the public. Such a public test will occur Friday, November 8, 2002, at 6:00 pm CST (00:00 GMT, Saturday). For the first time, the test firing will be streamed live on the Internet at this site, sponsored by Science@NASA, Stennis Space Center, and the SSME Project Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.

The test is a 520 second firing of an advanced SSME and the streaming will include audio and video of the test stand and from inside the Test Control Center. The streaming presentation will begin about 30 minutes before the test firing, roughly at 5:30 pm CST (23:30 GMT) Friday. Note that these times are the scheduled times. However, since this really is rocket science, times are approximate.