Specs for a Rocket Engine

Rocket engines are used to launch the space shuttle into outer space.

Rocket engines are a type of jet engine used to launch space shuttle spacecraft into outer space. They are internal combustion engines burning liquid or solid propellant fuel. Rocket engines produce their thrust by expelling a high-speed exhaust that pushes them forward.

Space Shuttle Booster Engines

The space shuttle achieves escape velocity from the Earth's gravitational pull with twin solid-propellant rocket motors manufactured by the Thiokol Corporation. The rockets and main engines produce 1.2 million pounds of thrust. The booster rocket's mass is 1,253,765 pounds, and it burns 1,107652 pounds of solid fuel in its 123.6 seconds of burn time.

Space Shuttle Main Engines

The three space shuttle main engines are built by Rocketdyne, Pratt & Whitney and Aerojet. These engines reach a speed of 17,000 miles per hour in six minutes. The engines burn a half-million gallons of liquid hydrogen and oxygen in 8.5 minutes. The fuel is burned in the main combustion chamber at temperatures of 6,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

Technical Information

Each shuttle engine consumes an oxygen and hydrogen mixture at a 6:1 ratio. It produces a sea level thrust of 375,000 pounds and a vacuum space thrust of 470,000 pounds. The 14-by-8-foot engine's mass is 6,990 pounds. Its thrust-to-weight ratio is 73.3.

References

• The Artemis Project: Rocket Engine Specifications
• NASA: Space Shuttle Main Engines
• Space and Tech: SSME; Specifications