The NASA Apollo-era team shows once again how they got it right for going to the Moon with the machines they created from scratch. Orion, NASA's new manned crew capsule is an Apollo command module on steroids; the J2 engine used on the Saturn family of rockets will be used in the SLS; and the mighty 1.5 million pounds of thrust F1 engine that powered the Saturn V may have its heart transplanted into a new rocket engine.
NASA engineers recently studied a mothballed F1 engine by taking portions of it apart, cleaning the parts and prepping one of the critical components to thunder once again into life. The actual component being tested was the gas generator, a rocket engine in its own right that was used to start the mighty F1 engine.
NASA engineers are looking at the F1 to see if it can be upgraded and play a part in future rocket engines. Test firings of the gas generator are impressive as you can see:
Read More ABout It: http://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/f1_sls.html and http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/23/nasa-engine-test-parts-saturn-v-rocket-moon_n_2534361.html
I for one would love to hear a F1 roar to life again - maybe I will get my chance someday if NASA flies an upgraded version of a blast from the past F1.
Sky Guy in VA
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