Miles Jamison
Northrop Grumman has completed a demonstration of NASA’s Booster Obsolescence and Life Extension, or BOLE, solid rocket booster.
The global aerospace and defense technology company said Thursday the full-scale static fire test served as the initial demonstration of the 156-foot-long, five-segment solid rocket motor.
BOLE Solid Rocket Booster Test Details
During the test, the BOLE solid rocket booster fired for more than two minutes, generating over 4 million pounds of thrust. The test, conducted at Northrop’s Promontory, Utah facility, used over 700 data channels to evaluate the solid rocket booster.
Advanced Design Features
The BOLE solid rocket booster incorporated enhancements over previous designs, utilizing a carbon fiber composite case, enhanced propellant formulation and other advanced components to replace obsolete parts.
The advanced features contributed to an increase of over 10 percent in the booster’s performance and an additional five metric tons of payload for lunar missions, compared to the current Space Launch System booster. The new design also accelerated the manufacturing process while meeting commercial standards. In addition, the rocket booster’s metallic components could boost the nation’s supply chain.
“As a new design, and the largest segmented solid rocket booster ever built, this test provides us with valuable data to iterate our design for future developments,” said Jim Kalberer, vice president of propulsion systems at Northrop Grumman.
