Brief

Engines test well

With a roar and a rush of water vapor, the Space Shuttle's Main Engines (SSME) reached a significant milestone on Jan. 21. The SSME system surpassed one million seconds of successful testing and launch firings during a successful flight-acceptance test at NASA's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi.

The engine tested is scheduled for use on STS-121, the mission following the Space Shuttle's return to flight. The test ran for eight and a half minutes, the length of time it takes the Space Shuttle to achieve orbit.

http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2004/jan/HQ_04032_shuttle_propulsion.html