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ESA rocket motor successfully tested
The first firing test of the European Space Agency's Vega Zefiro 9 third-stage solid rocket motor was successful, ESA officials in Paris said Wednesday.
The Zefiro 9 motor, with a propellant mass of 10 tons, provides a maximum thrust of 67,100 pounds (305 kiloNewtons).
For the test at Salto de Quirra in southeast Sardinia, the nozzle was adapted for sea-level conditions by lowering the thrust to 61,600 pounds (280 kN). The motor was placed in a cage-like structure and fixed to the bench bastion, officials said, adding safety devices were put in place to destroy the motor in case of anomalous behavior.
A second test next September will be with combustion velocity at its upper limit.
When the Vega rocket makes its qualification flight at the end of 2007, Zefiro 9 will enable its payload to continue ascent into a low elliptical trajectory, bringing the spacecraft to Mach 13.3 -- the highest Mach number the launcher will reach, helped by the lack of gravity above the Earth's atmosphere.
Copyright 2005 by United Press International
For the test at Salto de Quirra in southeast Sardinia, the nozzle was adapted for sea-level conditions by lowering the thrust to 61,600 pounds (280 kN). The motor was placed in a cage-like structure and fixed to the bench bastion, officials said, adding safety devices were put in place to destroy the motor in case of anomalous behavior.
A second test next September will be with combustion velocity at its upper limit.
When the Vega rocket makes its qualification flight at the end of 2007, Zefiro 9 will enable its payload to continue ascent into a low elliptical trajectory, bringing the spacecraft to Mach 13.3 -- the highest Mach number the launcher will reach, helped by the lack of gravity above the Earth's atmosphere.
Copyright 2005 by United Press International
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