Ares I First Stage Motor Unveiled

177644-05 -- NASA's Ares I first-stage motor sits on ATK Space System's test stand in Promontory, Utah, awaiting its test firing, set for Aug. 27. The 154-foot solid rocket motor will produce heat two-thirds the temperature of the sun and its 12-foot-diameter cylinder will deliver 3.6 million pounds of thrust. The Ares I first-stage development motor, or DM-1, is managed by the Ares Projects at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. ATK Space Systems, a division of Alliant Techsystems of Brigham City, Utah, is the prime contractor for the Ares I first stage.

Image credit: ATK