SHUTTLE POWER

[Music] [Music] the planet Earth as seen from space in the last quarter of the 20th century from here no one would ever guess that there are over four billion human beings attempting to live together down there and every day an additional two hundred and eleven thousand babies come into the world to join them at this rate the births population will more than double by the year 2013 it's hard to see in our daily existence of the earth is essentially one enormous ecological system exceedingly complex with infinite numbers and varieties of interrelated and interdependent parts the quality of life here indeed our very survival depends on the preservation of the system we must find ways to use it wisely in this context the Space Shuttle may become one of the most important tools of our time where they go after in journals [Music] second [Music] six five four three two [Applause] [Music] as the first two decades of the United States exploration of space drew to a close with the appellant lunar program and manned space labs orbiting the Earth our government along with top scientists and engineers formulated plans for a new era in space we could no longer afford to throw away the basic transportation system used to achieve a mission we needed a reusable vehicle that could make flights into space routine the result was the space shuttle it is in essence a carrier of cargo a mover of Freight much like a train ship truck or plane transporting men and equipment into near-earth orbit [Music] at launch the shuttle consists of the orbiter vehicle about the size of a 727 aircraft a large propellant tank and two recoverable solid rocket boosters by the time the orbiter reaches orbital altitude the solid rockets and external tank have been jettisoned a typical mission will last one week but can be extended up to a month following the mission the orbiter re-enters the Earth's atmosphere and glides through a landing much like a conventional aircraft within two weeks the orbiter is refurbished and readied for another flight maintenance on the engine is similar to that practiced by commercial airlines each engine is designed to perform 455 flights while out in space a shirtsleeve atmosphere on board the shuttle from its scientists and specialists to accompany their equipment and experiments into space no longer does a crew member have to be a test pilot in peak physical condition who must undergo an extensive training period we've established what a space shuttle is now let's examine why we need one high reliability and reusability are perhaps two of the most positive features a single vehicle can be put to the task of launching many unmanned satellites during its lifetime the cost savings is obvious over the present use of a one-time-only launch vehicle and if economy is important and it is to all of us consider the recovery of multi-million dollar communication and weather satellites in need of repair when they fail now they just become inoperable space Hardware circling the Earth this single multi-purpose vehicle can on other occasions become the launch base for payloads with propulsion stages these in turn can place satellites into a higher orbit or send them out on an interplanetary journey the improved satellites of the shuttle hero will perform many jobs scanning devices circling high over the earth will aid in our search for elusive and rapidly diminishing resources with this information geologists can locate new petroleum natural gas and valuable mineral deposits specially equipped cameras will become the first line of defense for our forests detecting disease and insect infestation in its early stages the same equipment can provide surveillance of waterways lakes and coastlines monitoring pollution and its sources ships at sea can be forewarned of impending storms so they can steer a course to cama waters likewise on land early warning of large weather disturbances like hurricanes can save countless lives and for a hungry world where children still go to sleep with empty stomachs sensors systems carried to space by the shuttle will monitor crops tell of their vigor and probable yield and warn of disease and insects oceanographers will better understand current patterns and temperature changes so fishing experts can predict the movements of schools of fish in the weightlessness of space researchers can conduct experiments that would be impossible with the gravity on earth a boon to science medicine and Industry alike and the list is endless when you figure that a single Space Shuttle Orbiter can fly 100 missions before being retired and each of those flights will carry a variety of payloads all devoted to using space to benefit Earth then you can see that the return will be many times greater than the investment ok so now we know what a Space Shuttle is and why we need it that leaves us with how how do we get it there because the shuttle is designed to perform a wide variety of missions it requires an entirely new breed of rocket engine to propel it into space in the early planning stages it was known that the engine had to meet certain criteria it had to above all be reliable for the most precious cargo would be human life it had to produce high thrust and yet be low in weight and very efficient and it had to be reusable Rockwell's internationals Rocketdyne division located in Canoga Park California where I'm standing now was selected by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to design develop and build the space shuttles main engines Rocketdyne has long been the leading builder of high thrust liquid propellant rocket engines including this largest rocket engine ever built to their proud credit are the engines that took men to the moon and back and the engines that stood by ready to propel intercontinental ballistic missiles in defense of our country the one called the workhorse of space and the early products the ones that launched America's first satellites from this Rocketdyne reaped a vast amount of knowledge and then drew upon that storehouse of experience to create the engine for the space shuttle the shuttle engine burns as propellants liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen the exhaust is totally non polluting it is water vapor the engines are movable during flight this capability called gimbal Eng gives the vehicle directional control at time of launch three of these engines fire in unison they provide the highest thrust for their weight of any rocket engine yet development and the thrust is variable from a minimum range to full power the high pressures and temperatures experienced in this engine necessitates the use of materials and fabrication techniques totally new to the field the combustor body where propellants burn after being injected is a slotted channel design made from a Rocketdyne developed copper alloy called gnarly Z walling in of the slots is accomplished in this large computerized electro deposition facility [Music] coolant tubes form the engine nozzle the tubes are braised together in this gigantic gas fired furnace at rocket time is the largest electron beam welding facility in the United States the entire power head of the engine can be placed in this vacuum chamber over 200 major electron beam wells are used in the manufacture of the engine critical engine weight is minimized by using welded construction wherever possible other key components of the engine are its turbo pumps there are actually four of them and they are responsible for getting the propellants to and through the engine at the proper pressures and flow rate the turbo pumps are sophisticated state-of-the-art high speed rotating machinery they are assembled in ultra clean rooms the power potential of these machines is quite awesome for example if water were pumped at the rate fuel is pumped by three Space Shuttle main engines an average family size swimming pool could be emptied in 25 seconds the fuel turbopump weighs about the same as a modern v8 automobile engine but develops as much horsepower as 28 diesel locomotives the high-pressure oxidizer pump delivers the power of eleven more this is the first rocket engine to use a built-in electronic digital controller besides accepting commands from the crew of the orbiter the controller will monitor engine operation and in the event of a problem will attempt to correct the condition if this fails the engine is safely shut down the mission can continue with the remaining two engines testing of the engines is carried out in rugged terrain near Los Angeles at the Rocketdyne Santa Susana field laboratory and on test stands of the National Space Technology laboratories near Bay st. Louis Mississippi here also the three engine clusters are test fired only upon completion of stringent testing are the engines considered ready and at that time they are delivered to Kennedy Space Center Florida for installation in the boat tail of the orbiter vehicle where the entire system is readied for launch the space shuttle it is America's space transportation system it is a versatile reusable spacecraft capable of carrying single multiple or mixed payloads to and from space at economical cost shuttle power it will benefit America and all mankind in many ways not once or twice but routinely to the end of this century and beyond [Music] [Applause] [Music]