Crews Conduct Lift Exercise

Teams lift an interstage simulator – 31 feet in diameter and 176,000 pounds – onto the Thad Cochran (B-2) Test Stand on July 17. The component, which will help house the new Exploration Upper Stage for testing, remained on the stand a few weeks to complete needed checks, measurements, and machining and welding work. EUS will enable NASA to fly larger, heavier payloads to lunar orbit than the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage being used on initial Artemis flights. Prior to its use on SLS (Space Launch System), the EUS unit will undergo a full series of tests at NASA Stennis to ensure it is ready to fly. The so-called Green Run test series will represent the first full power-up of the stage and its systems. It will culminate with a firing of the stage’s four Aerojet Rocketdyne RL10 engines, just as must occur during an actual mission.