WASHINGTON: Nasa successfully carried out a key static test of its troubled Space Launch System rocket on Thursday, a win for the agency as it prepares to return to the Moon.
The second “hot fire” test saw all four of the rocket’s RS-25 engines fire simultaneously at 4.40 pm Eastern time (2040 GMT) for the full duration of eight minutes, producing a maximum of 1.6 million pounds of thrust (7.1 million newtons).
“The applause says a lot about how the team feels,” Bill Wrobel, an official in charge of the test, said during a livestream after the control room began clapping.
“Looks pretty good right now,” he added.
“This is a major milestone towards advancing our goals objectives for Artemis,” acting NASA…