Rehabilitation of the Rocket Vehicle Integration Test Stand at Edwards Air Force Base

Download or read book Rehabilitation of the Rocket Vehicle Integration Test Stand at Edwards Air Force Base written by National Aeronautics and Space Adm Nasa and published by Independently Published. This book was released on 2018-09-20 with total page 60 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since initial use in 1958 for the X-15 rocket-powered research airplane, the Rocket Engine Test Facility has proven essential for testing and servicing rocket-powered vehicles at Edwards Air Force Base. For almost two decades, several successful flight-test programs utilized the capability of this facility. The Department of Defense has recently demonstrated a renewed interest in propulsion technology development with the establishment of the National Aerospace Initiative. More recently, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is undergoing a transformation to realign the organization, focusing on the Vision for Space Exploration. These initiatives provide a clear indication that a very capable ground-test stand at Edwards Air Force Base will be beneficial to support the testing of future access-to-space vehicles. To meet the demand of full integration testing of rocket-powered vehicles, the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, the Air Force Flight Test Center, and the Air Force Research Laboratory have combined their resources in an effort to restore and upgrade the original X-15 Rocket Engine Test Facility to become the new Rocket Vehicle Integration Test Stand. This report describes the history of the X-15 Rocket Engine Test Facility, discusses the current status of the facility, and summarizes recent efforts to rehabilitate the facility to support potential access-to-space flight-test programs. A summary of the capabilities of the facility is presented and other important issues are discussed.Jones, Daniel S. and Ray, Ronald J. and Phillips, PaulArmstrong Flight Research CenterENGINE TESTS; FLIGHT TESTS; GROUND TESTS; X-15 AIRCRAFT; TEST STANDS; RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT; RESEARCH AIRCRAFT; MILITARY TECHNOLOGY; NASA PROGRAMS