s21-037_ssc-1979-00005_main_propulsion_test_article

A 1979 photo offers a close-up view of a space shuttle main propulsion test article (MPTA) hot fire on the B-2 Test Stand at Stennis Space Center. MPTA testing involved installing a shuttle fuel tank, a mockup of the shuttle orbiter and the vehicle’s three-engine configuration on the stand, then firing all three engines simultaneously, as would be done during an actual launch.