This image shows a Scale Model Acoustic Test for NASA's Space Launch System, conducted on July 2, 2014.
A 5-percent scale model of NASA’s Space Launch System undergoes acoustic testing July 2 at NASA’s Marshall Center, continuing the Scale Model Acoustic Test (SMAT) program that is paving the way for full-scale construction of the next-generation spacecraft. The heavily instrumented scale model provides data on the acoustical energy that could be expected during launch. The Space Launch System, America’s next flagship in space, will carry human crews on new missions of exploration at Mars and other destinations across the solar system.
Image credit: NASA/MSFC