NASA News
National Aeronautics and
Space Administration
John C. Stennis Space Center
Stennis Space Center, MS 39529-6000
(228) 688-3341 April 8, 2004
Paul Foerman
NASA News Chief
(228) 688-3341
MBO-04-030
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NASA STENNIS SPACE CENTER PROPULSION TEST TEAM WINS PRESTIGIOUS SPACE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
HANCOCK COUNTY, Miss. – The Integrated Powerhead Demonstrator (IPD) Test Team at NASA Stennis Space Center (SSC) received a prestigious national award March 11 as recognition for a significant contribution to the U.S. space program.
IPD Project Manager Dr. Harry Ryan accepted a Stellar Award from the Rotary National Award for Space Achievement (RNASA) Foundation at its 18th annual National Space Trophy Dinner in Houston.
RNASA, established by the Space Center Rotary Club in 1985, selects team and individual winners based on accomplishments that hold the greatest promise for furthering activities in space. Nominations come from those who work in government and industry, members of professional organizations and individuals.
IPD component testing began at SSC in 1999 and recently completed two extensive turbopump testing projects at the E-1 Test Stand. The test series, completed in November 2003, was the culmination of a three-year effort of design, construction, activation and component test activities.
The IPD is a 250,000-pound thrust, liquid hydrogen-fueled engine, part of NASA’s Next Generation Launch Technology program, which seeks to provide safe, dependable, cost-cutting technologies for future space launch systems. The IPD is designed not as a flight article, but as a way to acquire data through testing and to build technology for future engine design.
The IPD is also part of the Department of Defense’s Integrated High Payoff Rocket Propulsion Technology program, which seeks to double the performance and capability of today’s state-of-the-art rocket propulsion systems while decreasing costs associated with military and commercial access to space.
“It was a big project for us,” said Ryan, who took over as project manager in June 2002. “It touched a lot of people, NASA and contractors alike. It was very much a joint effort between many, many parties, including the U.S. Air Force, Marshall Space Flight Center and the Boeing Company.”
The component testing benefited both the E-1 test facility and the IPD program, according to Ryan. “It tested the maximum capabilities of E-1,” he said. “We gained a lot of experience and demonstrated that E-1 could do what it is designed to do. We acquired a lot of data that will lower the risk for the program and should reverberate through future designs. Lowering the risk is the whole point.”
Now that component testing is complete, SSC engineers are preparing for engine systems testing at E-1, scheduled to begin this fall. The engine is currently being assembled at SSC.
Ryan, meanwhile, is beaming with pride about the project and the team after returning from the black-tie dinner, which was attended by more than 500 people. It was also the occasion for Apollo 11 Astronaut Neil Armstrong to receive RNASA’s top award, the 2004 National Space Trophy Award. It is presented annually to an individual who has excelled in furthering national goals in the field of space.
“I was just thrilled to be there,” Ryan said. “It is a great honor, and I don’t know how to describe the 200 percent personal satisfaction I feel.”
News releases provided by NASA’s Stennis Space Center are available at https://www.nasa.gov/centers/ssc/news/newsreleases/2004. For more information, call the NASA Public Affairs Office at Stennis at 1-800-237-1821 in Mississippi and Louisiana only, or (228) 688-3341.
2004 News Releases