22 minute read
By Mike Easterling
Teledyne Launches Successful Test Rocket
By Mike Easterling / Photo courtesy of Teledyne Brown Engineering
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The White Sands Missile Range, formerly known as the Proving Grounds, confirmed one of Teledyne Brown Engineering’s latest missiles is on point.
The Targets Division of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command’s (USASMDC) recently tested the latest in a series of target missiles developed by Teledyne Brown. The Economical Target (ET-2) missile was launched safely and successfully.
According to Teledyne, the ET-2 missiles are one of several affordable targets developed under the Tactical Range Air Defense Missile (TACRAM) program. The engineering firm goes on to say the ET-2 target missiles are fin-stabilized, singlestage vehicles that represent a ballistic missile threat.
Furthermore, as the prime contractor for TACRAM and ET-2, Teledyne designs and builds these flexible target missiles for testing advanced air and missile defense systems for domestic and international programs.
“This latest addition and test launch for the TACRAM program is proof of a successful partnership between Teledyne Brown Engineering and SMDC,” said Jan Hess, president of Teledyne Brown Engineering. “We have been able to deliver a flexible, affordable, and effective product solution in a timely and efficient way, enabling our customer to provide our nation with more advanced missile defense systems.”
Target missiles are guided missiles used for testing and development of other systems.
Teledyne stated that the latest launch from White Sands Missile Range was “a risk reduction flight to prove out the new design that will be used to exercise ballistic missile defense systems. This is the first successful ET-2 flight and the tenth successful launch for the TACRAM family of target missiles.”
Teledyne claims its TACRAM family of threat realistic products “continues to reduce cost and cycle time for ballistic missile testing.” The TACRAM family of solutions includes the single-stage four-meter Sabre Zombie, the single-stage six-meter Pathfinder Zombie, the two-stage six-meter Black Dagger Zombie and the fin-stabilized ET-2.
“TACRAM reduces the cost of Army and missile defense programs’ test and evaluation efforts for missile defense assets. Currently, there have been 10 target missiles delivered with ongoing orders being manufactured.’’ u
Counting Down to Takeoff, Meet Artemis SLS
By Kimberly Ballard / Photos courtesy of NASA
This is the second of a three-part series, with the first part published in the October 2021 issue, on the inauguration of the Artemis Lunar and Deep Space Missions using the SLS Rocket.
Home to the propulsion systems associated with the rockets we currently fly, and every successful rocket we have flown in the past, the Rocket City is once again at the heart of world-changing feats and life and death-defying technology.
Rocket scientists here in Huntsville are already working on hardware for five iterations of the Artemis Space Launch Systems (SLS), America’s next generation exploration class rocket, and the only rocket that can fly the manned Orion spacecraft safely to the moon.
Fifteen percent more power than the Saturn V, Artemis Space Launch Systems is the only exploration class vehicle capable of sending humans into deep space along with large systems that are necessary to live and work in deep space.
And none of these missions can get off earth and escape earth’s gravity field without the SLS, managed and for a large part, built here in Huntsville!
According to John Honeycutt, program manager for Space Launch Systems, SLS is a foundational asset and key component to deep space architecture that will allow us to journey to Mars and destinations beyond.
SLS is a unique super heavy lift vehicle that allows for reduced complexity and risk to everything from payload design to ground infrastructure to in-space operations.
In a business that talks about risk and weighing probabilities of success, Honeycutt said SLS is way ahead of the game, providing the best opportunity for mission success.
“In 2019, the world celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, for which Huntsville had … I guess you could say a small part,” said a cheeky Honeycutt to a recent audience at the National Geographic Theater at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center’s Davidson Center. “In the propulsion community we always let our friends at the manned space flight centers know, they can’t get there without us!” he said to the laughing audience.
“The Apollo and Saturn V programs changed the world, but I am here to tell you that Artemis and Space Launch Systems will change the world too. It will just be a little different this time because the vision is different, and the mission is different.
It is important to return to the moon for many reasons according to Honeycutt.
The build up to a sustained lunar presence consists of a series of 21st century firsts.
Honeycutt said they are working very hard towards a successful launch of Artemis I by the end of this year. Artemis I is an unmanned test flight for flying a manned Orion spacecraft on Artemis II in 2023. It will go further than we have ever been in space.
SLS Block I is a workhorse for the first phase of the Artemis program.
Looking at it being stacked at the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center, what stands out is how big the rocket is compared to those used on the Space Shuttle.
That accompanies the two most
Artemis loaded onto Pegasus barge headed from Marshall Space Flight Center to Kennedy
powerful solid rocket boosters in the world, recently tested in the New Mexico desert. The power of one of the boosters, each having 3.6 million pounds of thrust, provided 75 percent of the thrust needed to escape earth’s gravity field on initial takeoff.
Despite the newness, SLS will surprisingly reuse many of the reliable and proven propulsion systems upgraded from the Space Shuttle program.
“The RS-25 (main shuttle engines) are extremely reliable,” said Honeycutt. “We knew engine development was expensive and time-consuming, so we were fortunate to inherit 16 of them from the Space Shuttle program.
“We’ve done a lot of work to get those engines upgraded properly and we know these engines are extremely reliable. The RS-25s and solid rocket boosters we have, is the safest rocket we can fly.
“Teams here in Huntsville are already working on the exploration upper stage, which will allow us to launch 40 percent more payload than the rocket we are flying on today meaning SLS is going to send America’s most important human exploration and science missions faster and farther than ever before … or should I say, more, farther and faster.”
Fully stacked and integrated, SLS stands 322 feet tall and boasts 8.8 million pounds of thrust - enough to hoist 59,000 pounds in translunar injection. The twin boosters and RS-25 engines make SLS 15 percent more powerful than the Saturn V launch rocket.
The rocket has the power and capacity to lift large complex payloads, reducing the number of operations needed in space and simplifying integration activities. It is much easier, said Honeycutt, to put science missions and payloads together on the ground and deploy them in space, than it is to fly them in small pieces and build them in space. There is a significant amount of risk by doing that and SLS has that capability.
Honeycutt said SLS also allows for a lot of flexibility in the human missions, co-manifested payloads, and cargo type payloads used for scientific missions.
Artemis II will fly relatively the same mission as Artemis I, but the astronauts will obit the moon.
Scheduled for 2024, Artemis III will land the first crewed missions to the lunar surface in the 21st century.
With every mission, SLS will evolve from a system with greater capability than any existing launch vehicle, to a Mars-enabling capability, avoiding the need for a new vehicle design with each iteration.
He said from a biometric perspective, SLS can carry twice the volume of any contemporary launch vehicle including things like habitat modules, refractor telescopes for buzz science packages, robotic probes, and more.
Artemis IV will kick off tremendous activity with the beginning of the Block IB configuration and the USA – the Universal Stage Adapter, offering more volume for payloads, compared to the current industry standard of a 5-meter fairing.
From a mass perspective, the initial Block I configuration capability is over 100,000 pounds; and from an energy perspective, which is what it takes to escape earth’s gravity field, SLS offers reduced transit time to the outer solar systems and cuts transit time in half or greater. “We have done some mission analysis that show some missions might take seven to eight years to reach a destination on other rockets, while on SLS, it will take only two or three,” said Honeycutt. “The scientists who developed the experiments spend a long time waiting for their spacecraft to get to their destinations, so we can speed that process up and help them get into the learning phase much faster.”
Several companies, all with a presence in the Huntsville area, are key to bringing Artemis to life.
Northrop Grumman developed the two 5- segment solid rocket boosters; Aerojet Rocketdyne is responsible for the four RS25 engines; Boeing oversees the big new core stage; and Teledyne Brown Engineering is responsible for the Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter.
Boeing and United Launch Alliance are providing the interim cryogenic propulsion stage being built in Decatur. The ICPS is a modified Delta 4 upper stage using a workhorse proven RL-10 engine to provide just a little under 25,000 pounds of thrust for the upper stage. The identical twin of Artemis I will be used in Artemis II to send the first astronauts into orbit around the moon since 1972.
Marshall Space Flight Center is doing an inhouse design for the stage adapter. The European Space Agency and Airbus are providing the surface module that powers the Lockheed Martin-built Orion spacecraft.
Hold on tight, Huntsville! To the Moon Alice! u
NASA SLS artist rendering
Gov. Ivey Joins Officials to Welcome Special Aerospace Services Campus to Cummings Research Park
With a backdrop of sunshine, classical music and scrumptious food, Special Aerospace Services (SAS) broke ground on their new 55,000 square-foot facility they call “The Campus” at 1101 Explorer Boulevard in Cummings Research Park. The new facility consists of two buildings, and they expect to add up to 50 high technology jobs when they open next year.
SAS President and CEO, Heather Bulk and her husband Tim, started the Colorado-based company in their basement in 2007. Since then, SAS has become partners with NASA, the Department of the Defense, the Missile Defense Agency, and other commercial space providers.
The company has expertise in strategic and tactical services, engineering, propulsion, software, avionics systems, and safety; as well as design, manufacturing, assembly, and testing of both aviation and space projects.
“We are intentionally merging engineering and hardware on the manufacturing side of things, which have traditionally been separated,” said Bulk. “Within the walls of the building we will optimize the engineering, have training space, several high bays, and assembly areas for advanced manufacturing and research.”
Titled, “Breaking Ground, Breaking Barriers”, Bulk said the groundbreaking ceremony is monumental on many fronts, one being that she is the first woman-owned company to put down roots in Cummings Research Park, leveraging Governor Kay Ivey’s new business incentive law HB 192.
“I’m proud to stand here and share this groundbreaking with the people who enacted the policies and created the business culture that made this moment possible,” said Bulk. “When SAS was evaluating across the country, where we wanted to go with this expansion, I have to admit we were drawn to Huntsville over and over.”
Giving a shout out to Gov. Ivey who was in special attendance, “Those state and local incentives really drive it home, especially for small businesses,” Bulk said about the governor’s
Pictured left to right: Tim and Heather Bulk, founders of Special Aerospace Services; Alabama Governor Kay Ivey; Alabama Secretary of Commerce, Greg Canfield; Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle; Jeff Gronberg, Huntsville-Madison County Chamber Chair new law, which acted as a major incentive in their final decision to build their campus in Huntsville. “It made tremendous inroads that have allowed us to be the first woman-owned business to stand here today and have this conversation. HB 192 moves the mark for women in business.
“The culture of innovation … the people who truly care to follow through and make it happen, and the business-focused environment are the factors that led us here, and that will keep us here.”
Gov. Ivey talked about her motivation in signing HB 192 into law this past February.
“It’s good to be back up here in the Rocket City where things are always happening,” said Gov. Ivey to proud laughter. “Today we are here to celebrate a great new Alabama company doing remarkable things for our state.
“I knew after everything our businesses have endured, we had to do everything we could to get back on track and get our state back to work, which is why I was thrilled to sign this bill into law back in February.”
She said projects like SAS are driving Alabama as a business-friendly state.
“HB 192 is yet another means in which Alabama is demonstrating we are a pro-business state,” said Ivey. “Today is special because SAS is the very first company to utilize this terrific economic development tool and I can assure you they will be the first of many.” Although SAS has only been around for about a decade, Gov. Ivey pointed out that they have quickly made their presence known in the industry. “SAS plays a vital role in supporting our aerospace industry and I am so proud you have chosen to expand here in ‘Sweet Home Alabama’.” Alabama Secretary of Commerce, Greg Canfield was also in attendance, joining Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, Madison Mayor Paul Finley, the Huntsville-Madison Chamber of Commerce executive staff, and several congressional representatives. “Alabama is committed to having a business climate that affords underrepresented businesses a reason to locate here and thrive here,” said Secretary Canfield. “An innovative small business-like SAS will not only bring vitality to our business community but also provide a boost for our efforts to elevate STEM education and careers.” The ceremony kicked off with Chris Maynard, talent acquisition manager at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center singing a moving a cappella rendition of the National Anthem, followed by the Presentation of Colors by the all-female Columbia High School Honor Guard led by U.S. Army LTC Eugene Thurman, Commander of the Jr. ROTC program at Columbia High School.
By Kimberly Ballard / Photo by Steve Babin
Located just down the road from the new SAS location, Bulk said it was another major marker for her company to have the ability to partner with a nearby school where their engineers and manufacturers can mentor students.
“A STEM education is something I care intensely about,” she said. “Governor Ivey’s Alabama STEM Council and her Advisory Council for Excellence in STEM are doing incredible things to promote a science, technology, engineering, and math education. This commitment is simply imperative to our industry, our communities, and the next generation.”
“We are very excited to have SAS as the newest tenant in Cummings Research Park as they build The Campus,” said Erin Koshut, executive director of CRP for the Chamber. “This company brings exceptional expertise and aerospace leadership to our community.
“We are also thrilled that they see the importance of inspiring and supporting our future STEM workforce, especially in their close neighbors at Columbia High School, located just down the road from their site. We look forward to seeing this development take shape in the coming weeks and months ahead.”
Bulk then surprised the audience by announcing a SAS commissioned STEM Boot Camp beginning in 2022. She said it is a brainchild of her husband Tim and is an internship program for students to work on innovative technologies.
“This real-world experience fosters STEM for our next generations of talent, so we are making a $2,000 donation to Columbia High School as a sign of our commitment to that mission,” she said to uproarious applause.
“This expansion to Huntsville demonstrates the confidence and appreciation for the workforce talent that is here, the diversity of Cummings Research Park, and our continued mission to support our nation in all things space and defense,” said Mayor Battle. “We welcome SAS to the Rocket City!” u
If Huntsville had at any time in the past 75 years, shied away from very complex programs and solutions, rife with a lot of moving parts requiring a massive effort from a team of brilliant scientists to accomplish – well, we would all still be picking watercress and a gigantic boll of cotton would mark the city limits on I-565.
But instead, Huntsville has faced down the challenges of many almost superhuman feats.
Historic missile development – Check.
Ensuring survival on the International Space Station – Check.
Development of fused Integrated Battle Command Systems (IBCS) for the U.S. Army – Check.
Building the next generation of Artemis space explorers - Check.
So, when Northrop Grumman began implementing a strategy to recruit talent needed to execute their $13.3 billion development contract for the entire Ground Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD) program, Huntsville was one of the five “spoke” locations to be considered.
GBSD is indeed massive. It is part of the Air Force’s complete recapitalization and replacement of the ground leg of the Nuclear Triad, Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM).
“GBSD is a mega program, very complex, that takes a massive effort from every imaginable aerospace defense company you can think of on our industry team - working not pieces of the program, but all of it,” said Greg Manuel, sector vice president and general manager of Space Systems Strategic Deterrent Systems at Northrop Grumman. “And we have to do it on time.”
GBSD is replacing the Boeing LGM-30 Minuteman III ICBM, an Air Force project that has been here in Huntsville for a long time, but has not been often talked about.
“It is the policy of our nation that when fired upon, we will fire back,” Manuel said. “The U.S. Army has the defensive interceptor
Being a deterrent, the intent is that GBSD missiles never, ever be launched, although they are always on alert, he explains. The penalty any adversary will have to pay is very high, and hopefully one they will not be willing to pay.
Looking to hire 500 employees as prime on the contract, Northrop Grumman was looking for a rich, existing talent pool where they could more easily recruit into bridge areas; where their employees could grow within the company professionally; and where they could raise a family and attend an excellent school system.
side, and the Air Force has the offensive ICBM weapons system side that provides deterrence for our adversaries,” Manuel said. “It is all about deterrence, even though it is used silently every day, 24/7/365.
He explains that if and when adversaries decide to launch a missile in the continental US, Alaska or Hawaii, the Army’s mission is to defend us by using their Ground-Based Midcourse Defense interceptor to intercept adversarial ICBMs.
But the offensive leg and deterrent leg have to work hand in glove, he said. “The Air Force’s deterrent consists of our groundbased ICBMs, which is the largest piece of the Triad. It also includes Bombers and the Navy’s submarine-launched ballistic missiles, so everybody has a piece of the Nuclear Triad.”
Northrop Grumman is already supporting a broad range of business in Huntsville including the Missile Defense Agency and several key supporting resources in Cummings Research Park and on Redstone Arsenal.
Manuel explains how massive an undertaking GBSD is.
“GBSD is a complete recapitalization and replacement of the entire weapons system, all Command and Control (C2) systems, and the entire infrastructure including all 450 launch facilities, training, and maintaining of maintenance devices that assures us a message from the President gets to the crew and all facilities,” Manuel said. “The re-modernization consists of replacing 150 launch sites in three missile complexes located at FE Warren Air Force Base in Nebraska; Malmstrom Air Force Base in Great Falls, Montana; and Minot Air Force Base in Minot, North Dakota.
He said long lead production starts in 2024; and the rate protection program that includes building all missiles and components of the missiles, along with rebuilding all 450 launch facilities, starts in 2026.
Minuteman III stays in place as new GBSD go up. For every Minuteman taken down, a new GBSD goes up, so the U.S. always has 450 missiles on alert.
“The schedule is aggressive, and we are on a quick schedule, but we are hitting our milestones,” Manuel continued. “We see no reason why our first test launch at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California won’t take place during the fourth
quarter of 2023.”
Manuel said their test program, with a test program missile, ground equipment, and C2 must be tested before they start on the actual missile. That will run from fourth quarter 2023 through mid-2025.
By 2036, everything, all three missile complexes will be complete.
Northrop Grumman started the contract here in Huntsville in September 2020 but only recently officially opened their completely renovated two-building campus at 110 Wynn Drive to house GBSD, a missile production facility, and a software factory.
Located in one of the oldest buildings in the oldest section of Cumming Research Park, Northrop Grumman gutted the original building from the foundation up “We are excited to grow our GBSD team in Alabama and leverage the dynamic aerospace talent in the Rocket City to support this critical strategic deterrent capability for our country and allies"
and put it back together again, outfitting it as a state-of-the-art facility with multiple secured areas and a software factory. “We are excited to grow our GBSD team in Alabama and leverage the dynamic aerospace talent in the Rocket City to support this critical strategic deterrent capability for our country and allies,” said Manuel. Greg Manuel, Vice President & General Manager, “Huntsville’s rich Strategic Deterrent Systems, Northrop Grumman expertise and legacy in Command-and-Control systems will help our nationwide team deliver a safe, secure and effective capability to the U.S. Air Force on time and on cost. “We looked at other locations in Huntsville, but we decided we could work with the community to be on the frontend of the move to revitalize this part of Cumming Research Park. We look forward to continuing our strong community partnerships and delivering 21st century innovation for our customer missions.” With a couple hundred new people already in place, Northrop Grumman is looking to hire
another 250 to 300 high end jobs in all forms of engineering, cyber science, software development, business management, pricing and estimating, supply chain, software engineers, test labor, and quality and safety engineers. “I’m thrilled that Northrop Grumman will be building on its already large presence in Huntsville while also advancing a strategic national defense priority,” said Alabama Governor, Kay Ivey. “By selecting Alabama’s ‘Rocket City,’ Northrop Grumman has picked the ideal location to carry out this important national security mission, and the company’s growth plans represent welcome news for Huntsville and for all of the state.” Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle said Northrop Grumman is a valued partner in Huntsville’s preeminent role in the defense of our nation and armed forces across the globe. Photo by Steve Babin “They are another great example
Photo credit: Huntsville/Madison County Chamber
Pictured left to right - back row: Chip Cherry, Huntsville/Madison County Chamber President & CEO; Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle; Greg Manuel, Vice President & General Manager, Strategic Deterrent Systems, Northrop Grumman. Front row left to right: Lucia Cape, Chamber Senior VP of Economic Development, Industry Relations, and Workforce; Erin Koshut, Executive Director, Cummings Research Park; Brad Duvall, GBSD Site Lead, Northrop Grumman.
of our community’s ability to deliver great expertise in aerospace, rockets, propulsion and defense,” said Mayor Battle.
In addition to GBSD, key programs in Huntsville include the Missile Defense Agency’s Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) and the Next Generation Interceptor (NGI) programs, the Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS), as well as hardware integration and test support for NASA missions.
Northrop Grumman also supports numerous STEM organizations including Alabama School for Cyber Technology and Engineering, U.S Space and Rocket Center, CyberPatriot, and Madison County Schools WiFi Business Program.
For more information about joining the Northrop Grumman GBSD program team, visit www. northropgrumman.com/jobs. u
