Reusable Solid Rocket Motor and Solid Rocket Boosters

The Sequence

The reusable solid rocket motor, or RSRM, is assembled and tested by ATK Thiokol Propulsion near Promontory, Utah.

Each motor consists of four steel tubes, or segments, lined with 1.1 million pounds of solid fuel propellant. An igniter is installed in the forward segment and a nozzle in the aft segment.

The RSRM segments are shipped by rail to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

At Kennedy, the RSRM segments are joined with subassemblies built by United Space Alliance, including the forward assembly, aft skirt, frustum and nose cap.

These structures contain the booster guidance system -- the hydraulics system that steers the nozzles, booster separation motors and parachutes.

The combination of the reusable solid rocket motor segments and solid rocket booster subassemblies make up the flight configuration solid rocket boosters, or SRBs.

The SRBs come to life when the thrust vector control, or TVC, system is activated 28 seconds before launch.

After the main engines are running, the boosters are ignited by an electrical spark that sends flames from the igniter down the center of the propellant.

The boosters go to full power in two-tenths of a second. At the same time, the hold-down nuts are severed, and the shuttle lifts off.

The propellant in the forward segment of the RSRM is designed to provide fast acceleration, burning out 50 seconds after launch.

The speed of the SRBs causes them to coast upward for 13 miles before beginning their fall into the ocean.

The remaining propellant is shaped to burn at a slower rate to reduce stress on the vehicle and the crew during the period of maximum dynamic pressure, or max Q.

After about two minutes, all of the propellant is consumed and the boosters burn out and separate at an altitude of 28 miles and speed of 3,100 mph.

The boosters coast upward to a 41-mile altitude, then parachute back to the Atlantic Ocean about 140 miles from the launch site.

After splashdown, NASA's recovery ships, Liberty Star and Freedom Star, tow the boosters back to Cape Canaveral for disassembly and recycling.

The motors are returned to Utah for final cleaning, inspection and propellant reloading.

The booster subassemblies (the frustum, forward skirt and aft skirt) go to the United Space Alliance Assembly and Refurbishment Facility at Kennedy.

The parachutes are refurbished at Kennedy's Parachute Refurbishment Facility.

Source : Nasa

The HST Story

Hubble Space Telescope Story Chapter 1
by ESA (European Space Agency)

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Stop Global Warming NOW!!!

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Global warming is the increase in the average temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and the oceans since the mid-twentieth century and its projected continuation. Global surface temperature increased 0.74 ± 0.18 °C (1.33 ± 0.32 °F) during the 100 years ending in 2005. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes that anthropogenic greenhouse gases are responsible for most of the observed temperature increase since the middle of the twentieth century,and natural phenomena such as solar variation and volcanoes probably had a small warming effect from pre-industrial times to 1950 and a small cooling effect from 1950 onward. These basic conclusions have been endorsed by more than 40 scientific societies and academies of science, including all of the national academies of science of the major industrialized countries. Global warming is also known as "The Green House Effect" (The Green House Effect causes the global warming).

THE EFFECTS!

Ocean warming, sea-level rise and coastal flooding

Warmer temperatures increase melting of mountain glaciers, increase ocean heat content, and cause ocean water to expand. Largely as a result of these effects, global sea level has risen 4 to 10 inches (10-25 cm) over the past 100 years. With additional warming, sea level is projected to rise from half a foot to 3 feet (15-92 cm) more during the next 100 years. On average, 50 to 100 feet (15-30 meters) of beach are lost for every foot (0.3 meters) of sea-level rise. Local land subsidence (sinking) and/or uplift due to geologic forces and coastal development will also affect the rate of coastal land loss.

Glaciers melting

Over the past 150 years, the majority of mountain glaciers monitored have been shrinking. Many glaciers at lower latitudes are now disappearing, and scientists predict that, under some plausible warming scenarios, the majority of glaciers will be gone by the year 2100. As glaciers continue to shrink, summer water flows will drop sharply, disrupting an important source of water for irrigation and power in many areas that rely on mountain watersheds.

Arctic and Antarctic warming

Parts of Canada, Alaska, Siberia, and the Antarctic have been experiencing warming well above the global average for the past few decades. This trend fits climate model predictions for a world with increasing levels of greenhouse gases. Melting permafrost is forcing the reconstruction of roads, airports, and buildings and is increasing erosion and the frequency of landslides. Reduced sea ice and ice shelves, changes in snowfall, and pest infestations have affected native plants and animals that provide food and resources to many people.

WHAT TO DO?

PLEASE, STOP DESTROYING FUTURE!