NASA Announces Engine Development Contract

June 5, 2006

NASA has awarded Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, Inc. of Canoga Park, Calif., a letter contract with a maximum value of $50 million to initiate design, development, test and evaluation of the J-2X engine for the agency’s crew and cargo launch vehicles.

The letter cost reimbursement contract runs from June 2 through November 30. It will initiate conceptual design; procurement of long lead items; provide integration of the engine with the launch vehicles and support associated vehicle reviews. There is a Systems Requirements Review scheduled for September and a Systems Design Review in October.

The J-2X engine is planned to power the crew launch vehicle’s upper stage and the Earth departure stage of the cargo launch vehicle. Development of the crew and cargo launch vehicles is led by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., in partnership with other agency centers. It is managed by the Constellation Program Office at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, Houston, for the agency’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate.

For information about development of the crew and cargo launch vehicles, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/exploration


For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/home

Dolores Beasley
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1753

Kim Newton
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.
256-544-0034

Contact Information

Dolores Beasley

Headquarters, Washington

NASA

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