January 29, 2014

Image Caption: A 5-percent scale model of the Space Launch System (SLS) is ignited for five seconds to measure the effect acoustic noise and pressure have on the vehicle at liftoff. Credit: NASA/MSFC/David Olive

NASA

The first round of acoustic tests on a scale model of NASAs Space Launch System (SLS) is underway. The tests will allow engineers to verify the design of the sound suppression system being developed for the agencys new deep space rocket.

The testing, which began Jan. 16 at NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., will focus on how low- and high-frequency sound waves affect the rocket on the launch pad. This testing will provide critical data about how the powerful noise generated by the engines and boosters may affect the rocket and crew, especially during liftoff.

We can verify the launch environments the SLS vehicle was designed around and determine the effectiveness of the sound suppression systems, said Doug Counter, technical lead for the acoustic testing. Scale model testing on the space shuttle was very comparable to what actually happened to the vehicle at liftoff. Thats why we do the scale test.

During the tests, a 5-percent scale model of the SLS is ignited for five seconds at a time while microphones, located on the vehicle and similarly scaled mobile launcher, tower and exhaust duct, collect acoustic data. A thrust plate, side restraints and cables keep the model secure.

Engineers are running many of the evaluations with a system known as rainbirds, huge water nozzles on the mobile launcher at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During launch, a peak flow rate of 450,000 gallons of water per minute will be released from five rainbirds just seconds before booster ignition. Water is the main component of the sound suppression system because it helps protect the launch vehicle and its payload from damage caused by acoustical energy. SLS with NASAs new Orion spacecraft on top will be launched from Kennedy on deep space missions to destinations such as an asteroid and Mars.

A series of acoustics tests also is taking place at the University of Texas at Austin. Engineers are evaluating the strong sounds and vibrations that occur during the ignition process for the RS-25 engines that will power SLS.

[ Watch The Video: Space Launch System Acoustic Testing ]

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NASA's Space Launch System Sound Suppression Testing Ramps Up