| NASA Center: |
Headquarters |
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| Image # : |
67-H-1591 |
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| Date : |
12/01/1967
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Title
Nuclear Rocket Engine Being Transported to Test Stand
Full Description
The first ground experimental nuclear rocket engine (XE)
assembly, (left), is shown here in "cold flow" configuration, as
it makes a late evening arrival at Engine Test Stand No. 1 at the
Nuclear Rocket Development Station, in Jackass Flats, Nevada.
Cold flow experiments are conducted using an assembly identical
to the design used in power tests except that the cold assembly
does not contain any fissionable material nor produce a nuclear
reaction. Therefore, no fission power is generated.
The large object at the right is one-half of an aluminum
cylindrical closure that can be sealed about the engine, forming
an airtight compartment, thereby permitting testing in a
simulated space environment. The "cold flow" experimental engine
underwent a series of tests designed to verify that the initial
test stand was ready for "hot" engine testing, as well as to
investigate engine start-up under simulated altitude conditions,
and to check operation procedures not previously demonstrated.
The XECF (Experimental Engine Cold Flow) experimental nuclear
rocket engine was a part of project Rover/NERVA. The main
objective of Rover/NERVA (Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle
Application) was to develop a flight rated thermodynamic nuclear
rocket engine with 75,000 pounds of thrust. The Rover portion of
the program began in 1955 when the U.S. Atomic Energy
Commission's Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory and the Air Force
initially wanted the engine for missile applications. However, in
1958, the newly created NASA inherited the Air Force
responsibilities, with an engine slated for use in advanced,
long-term space missions. The NERVA portion did not originate
until 1960 and the industrial team of Aerojet General Corporation
and Westinghouse Electric had the responsibility to develop it.
In 1960, NASA and the AEC created the Space Nuclear Propulsion
Office to manage project Rover/NERVA. In the following decade, it
oversaw a series of reactor tests: Kiwi-A, Kiwi-B, Phoebus,
Pewee, and the Nuclear Furnace, all conducted by Los Alamos to
prove concepts and test advanced ideas. Aerojet and Westinghouse
tested their own series: NRX-A2 (NERVA Reactor Experiment), A3,
EST (Engine System Test), A5, A6, and XE-Prime (Experimental
Engine). All were tested at the Nuclear Rocket Development
Station at the AEC's Nevada Test Site, in Jackass Flats, Nevada,
about 100 miles west of Las Vegas.
In the late 1960's and early 1970's, the Nixon Administration
cut NASA and NERVA funding dramatically. The cutbacks were
made in response to a lack of public interest in human
spaceflight, the end of the space race after the Apollo
Moon landing, and the growing use of low-cost unmanned,
robotic space probes. Eventually NERVA lost its funding,
and the project ended in 1973.
Keywords
XECF Nuclear Rocket Engine Jackass Flats Nevada Nuclear Rocket
Development Station Cold Flow Rover NERVA
Subject Category
Rocket Propulsion
Reference Numbers
- Center:
HQ
- Center Number:
67-H-1591
- GRIN DataBase Number:
GPN-2002-000143
Source Information
- Creator/Photographer: AEC-NASA
- Original Source: DIGITAL
| Resolution | Format | Width
(Pixels) | Height
(Pixels) | Size
(KBytes) |
Thumbnail |
JPEG |
84 |
67 |
8 |
Small |
JPEG |
595 |
473 |
200 |
Medium |
JPEG |
1394 |
1109 |
1,176 |
Large |
JPEG |
2788 |
2218 |
7,446 |
Publication Information
Information on Project Rover/NERVA provided by James Dewar.
Other relevant NASA Web sites:
• NASA Headquarters
• NASA History Office
• NASA Image eXchange (NIX)
• NASA Multimedia Gallery
• NASA Human Spaceflight
Updated October 31, 2002
• History Questions: NASA History Office
• Responsible NASA Official: Steve Garber
• Author: Michael Hahn. Editor: Dwayne A. Day
• Curator & Technical Questions: Erin Needham
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