SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida Solid Rocket Booster Processing Kennedy Space Center SRB Mechanical Engineering NE-M 7

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida KSC – Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) Processing Areas Shuttle Processing and Launch Postflight Hardware Recovery and Evaluation

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida KSC – Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) Processing Areas VAB RPSF Pad

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida KSC – Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) Processing Flow Recovery l Design Centers Disassembly and Assessment l Logistics and Shipping l Element Refurbishment and Manufacturing Delivery RPSF SHUTTLE LANDING Offload and Inspect SRB RETRIEVAL SHIP HANGAR AF ORBITER PROCESSING FACILITY SRB STACKING Field Joint Mate Offload Buildup INTEGRATED VEHICLE OPS/VAB ET/SRB OPERATIONS ET STANDALONE LCC HORIZONTAL PAYLOAD INT HYPERGOLIC FACILITY Aft Booster Build Leak Test Field Joint Protection System S&A PAYLOAD FACILITIES VERTICAL PAYLOAD INSTALLATION Launch Pad Ops

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida Forward Assembly and Aft Skirt arrive from SRB Element in the Assembly Refurbishment Facility (ARF) at KSC. Aft Skirt Parachutes ARF Frustum Nose Cone Forward Assembly • Nose Cone • Frustum • Parachutes • Forward Skirt

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida Segments arrive from ATK in Corrine, Utah in rail cars. The segments go to the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility (RPSF) at KSC. RPSF

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida At the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility (RPSF), the rail cover is removed, propellant grain & metal surfaces inspected, the segments are rotated to vertical, secured on a pallet and stored in the surge facilities. Break-over of the forward segment from horizontal to vertical

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida At the RPSF, the aft booster is assembled and processed in the buildup stands. Other hardware processed in the RPSF includes: - Stiffener Rings Assembly and Closeouts - Thermal Curtains - External Tank Assembly (ETA) ring and hardware - Thermal Protection System (TPS) closeouts - Systems tunnel and cables installation and closeouts - Heater power cable installation - Nozzle severance cable connection Aft Skirt Mate AEC Breakover Aft Segment Breakover to Vertical Build-up to Aft Booster Configuration (see following charts) Aft Booster Build-up Stand

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida The aft skirt is placed in the build-up stand the booster segment is mated. 177 pins are installed and secured with a steel pin retainer strap. The joint is closed out with cork and RT-455 ablative compound. Aft Skirt Mate Pin Retainer Steel Strap Cork Band Aft Booster Build Stand Aft Skirt Clevis

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida Aft exit cone is assembled to the forward exit cone at the RPSF. • Phenolic mating surfaces are primed with DC 1200 primer prior to assembly. • Primary and secondary seals (Orings) are installed. Forward Exit Cone Primary Seal Secondary Seal • Exit cone is raised on an elevator and floated on an air bearing for mating. • The joint is bolted with 96 fasteners. • Leak test is performed at 83 and 30 psig with the mass flow meter prior to joint RTV backfill. The joint gap is backfilled (injected) with RTV silicone sealant as part of thermal barrier system. Phenolic RTV Thermal Barrier AEC Mate Phenolic Aft Exit Cone Aft Skirt Not Shown for Clarity

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida If needed, the aft booster will be put into surge for storage. The SRM transporter transfers the aft booster from the RPSF to the surge or the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) for the stacking operations. • Surge buildings protect hardware from elements (rain, wind, etc. ) – Not climate controlled • Segments have weather proof covers on top RPSF Surge VAB

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida The segment is connected to the beam and the 325 -ton crane in the transfer isle of the VAB. Circularity measurements, tang preps, metal parts inspections, abrade J-leg, and assemble/connect curtain.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida The aft booster segment is lifted from the transfer isle to the high bay of the VAB to be connected to the Mobile Launch Platform (MLP). The booster is bolted to the hold down post of the MLP with a frangible nut that separates at launch.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida At KSC, the center and forward segments are stacked. When two segments are mated at KSC, this joint is called a field joint. The SRB forward assembly mated. Then, all field joints are all closed out in the VAB. Forward Segment SRB Forward Assembly Forward Field Joint Forward Center Segment Center Field Joint Aft Center Segment Aft Field Joint Aft Booster

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida All the field joints are configured with a tang and clevis design with a capture feature. The 3 O-rings and J-leg help prohibit a combustion gas leak at the joints. • Tang • Field joint is a clevis and tang configuration with 177 pins – Three alignment slots/pins ensure correct segment clocking Tang “capture feature” and insulation “j-leg” added during redesign Capture Feature Field Joint Example Clevis – Tang capture feature “captures” inner clevis leg to limit seal surface movement (joint rotation) during motor pressurization – Insulation j-leg prohibits combustion gas from reaching seals Inner Clevis Leg Insulation J-leg

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida For a segment mate, the segment is lowered over the SRB stack. The field joint assembly fixture (FJAF) acts as a “shoehorn” to align the tang/clevis and prevent flat-on-flat metal conditions. Leak test of the joint and the vent port plug are the final acceptance of a successful joint mate. Field joint mate with 3 feet between the segments. FJAF O-rings PSA Application Field joint mate with 1/8” between the segments. Segment mates require a controlled environment within the curtain room. Also, the controlled area requires personnel to wear flames, eyes-only hoods, gloves and meet maximum static levels.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida Each field joint is closed out with the field joint protection system (FJPS). The FJPS provides thermal protection, weather protection and retains joint pins. Cork Joint Temperature Sensor Heater Retainer Strap and Thermal Barrier Field joint after mate, before FJPS Joint Heater RT-455 Ablative Cork Pin Retainer Band Field joint with FJPS RT-455 Ablative

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida The forward assembly is mated to the forward segment and also closed out with FJPS. Since no propellant is exposed in this mate, a controlled environment is not needed. Forward Skirt Cork Band Fwd Segment Forward Skirt JPS Pin Retainer Strap Forward Skirt Joint

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida The systems tunnel, cables, heater power cables, and linear shaped charge (LSC) are all assembled and closed out. In addition, TPS, cabling and closeouts are completed in other areas of the boosters. Forward and Center Field Joint Tunnel Closeout Tunnel Cover Systems Tunnel Closeout LH side (fwd 3 segments) RT-455 Heater Power Cables Cork

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida After the boosters are assembled, the external tank (ET) is then brought over from the ET check-out cell in the VAB for the ET/SRB mate.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida Next, the orbiter is mated to the ET with the boosters supporting the weight of the whole shuttle.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida The crawler transports the MLP and the shuttle to the pad where all processing is completed.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida After launch, the boosters separate at around L+128 seconds. The boosters continue to climb to around 42 miles high. Then, boosters tumble until the drogue shoot deploys at 1600 feet, which orientates the boosters upright. The main parachutes deploy at 6300 ft to slow down the boosters to impact the ocean at about 60 mph. Before impacting the ocean, the aft exit nozzle separates to prevent deformation on the reusable motor.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida The Liberty Star and Freedom Star each retrieve a booster in the ocean to tow it back to Hanger AF at KSC.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida The boosters are received at Hanger AF and evaluated for any off nominal conditions in the post-flight assessment.

SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM Solid Rocket Booster Processing NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida Every aspect of the boosters is inspected and compared to past post-flight data. The segments are disassembled and sent back to ATK and USA.