The final booster motor segments for NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket that will help propel Artemis III astronauts on their journey to space shipped from Northrop Grumman’s Railyard Shipping Facility in Corinne, Utah on June 2. The eight booster motor segments are on their way to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida where they will form the SLS rocket’s twin, five-segment solid rocket boosters, which produce more than 75% of the total thrust at liftoff.
Manufactured by SLS booster lead contractor Northrop Grumman in Utah, the solid rocket boosters have three major assemblies with the motor segment being the largest portion of the booster. Together, the SLS rocket’s twin boosters and the core stage’s four RS-25 engines produce more than 8.8 million pounds of thrust. The eight booster motor segments travel in specialized transporters to the spaceport.
Artemis III will launch four astronauts from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the Orion spacecraft on the SLS rocket. The mission will test critical rendezvous and docking capabilities between Orion and commercial human landing systems needed to deliver astronauts to the lunar surface on future missions.
