News Archive / Tagged: Utah

• NG engineer details what it is like to develop GEM 63 booster

  Jason RhianDecember 20th, 2018

  PROMONTORY, Utah -- Each component of a rocket is individual, yet it must function as one on the day of launch. The GEM 63 solid rocket motor has begun taking its first steps toward being integrated into one of the most successful rockets ever flown. What were those first steps like?

• Northrop Grumman test fires astronaut protection system

  Jason RhianDecember 13th, 2018

  Sending crews to destinations such as the Moon and Mars is not easy. As many within the space industry will tell you, one of the most harrowing times during these missions is the first few minutes of the flight. A test carried out today worked to make this tense period a little less stressful for […]

• Gallery: Desolate Utah plains rumble with GEM 63’s fury

  Jason RhianSeptember 21st, 2018

  PROMONTORY, Utah — Northrop Grumman’s GEM 63 solid rocket motor conducted its first test fire at 1 p.m. MDT (3 p.m. EDT / 19:00 GMT) on Thursday, Sept. 20. The motor was tested under “cold conditions” of approximately 40 °F. The GEM 63 series is being developed for use on United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V […]

• Insider Live: Northrop Grumman’s GEM 63 first test fire

  Jason RhianSeptember 19th, 2018

  Want to see exclusive live video of a GEM 63 rocket motor being tested? Only SpaceFlight Insider brings you live coverage from the test site in Utah. Tune in at 12:30 p.m. MDT / 2:30 p.m. EDT.

• Insider Exclusive: The people and parts of NASA’s EM-1 mission

  Jason RhianOctober 1st, 2017

  PROMONTORY, Utah — NASA is eyeing a 2019 launch for its new super-heavy-lift Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft. While some of the systems are so-called legacy hardware, they have never been flown in this configuration without a side-mounted shuttle and with a mandate to take crews far beyond low-Earth orbit. For each mission, NASA is not only relying on the parts to guarantee its astronauts travel safely to these distant destinations but also people who work every day to ensure these components are as reliable as possible.

• Five Seconds of Fury: Orbital ATK conducts test fire of Launch Abort Motor

  Jason RhianJune 16th, 2017

  PROMONTORY, Utah — With a brief flash of highly controlled power, Dulles, Virginia-based Orbital ATK, along with NASA and Lockheed Martin, successfully conducted a test of a system designed to increase safety and to save lives.

• SFI Live: QM-1 Launch Abort Motor test fire

  Jason RhianJune 15th, 2017

  PROMONTORY, Utah — Orbital ATK and NASA are planning to conduct a static test fire of the Orion spacecraft's Launch Abort Motor. The Qualification Motor 1 test is set to begin at 1 p.m. MDT and last for approximately five seconds. SFI will be on hand providing you with exclusive coverage from the T-97 viewing site about a half mile away. Tune into our Live Webcast starting at 12:30 MDT.

• Insider Exclusive: Precourt talks boosters, bovines and brilliance

  Jason RhianJuly 2nd, 2016

  PROMONTORY, Utah — Charlie Precourt has piercing, steely-blue eyes that help cement one's mental image of a retired U.S. Air Force Colonel and a four-time space shuttle astronaut. Precourt now works for Orbital ATK to develop the massive five-segment SRBs that will be used on the new SLS. SpaceFlight Insider spoke with Precourt in an exclusive interview about the June 28, 2016, QM-2 test fire.

• QM-1 test fire turns Utah sand to glass in lead up to first flight of SLS

  Jason RhianMarch 11th, 2015

  PROMONTORY, Utah — The salt lake flats and deserts of Utah were lit ablaze as NASA and newly-merged Orbital ATK activated one of the boosters which the space agency plans to utilize to send crews to deep space destinations – such as an asteroid and perhaps Mars. The test was carried out at Orbital ATK’s Promontory, […]

• Registration for the 2014 University Rover Challenge is now open!

  Press ReleaseNovember 22nd, 2013

  The Eighth Annual University Rover Challenge (URC), the world’s premier robotics competition for college students organized by the Mars Society, will be held May 29-31, 2014 at the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in southern Utah.