Space Shuttle Main Propulsion Test Article
Space Shuttle orbiter test model
The Main Propulsion Test Article (MPTA-098) was built by Rockwell International as a testbed for the definitive propulsion and fuel delivery systems for the U.S. Space Shuttle Program.
Description
Never intended for actual spaceflight, the MPTA consisted of the internal structure of a Space Shuttle orbiter aft-fuselage, a truss structure that simulated the basic structure and shape of an orbiter mid-fuselage and a complete Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) assembly, including all main propulsion system plumbing and the associated electrical systems. Later, the very different STA (Structural Test Article) was converted into a flightworthy orbiter, re-designated OV-099, and christened Challenger. Rockwell and NASA thus retroactively re-designated the MPTA as MPTA-098, though it was never christened with a name. A Space Shuttle External Tank, commonly referred to as MPTA-ET, was built to be used in conjunction with MPTA-098 for structural tests of the Space Shuttle Main Engines prior to construction of flyable craft. It rolled off the assembly line on September 9, 1977 at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, Louisiana, and was then transported to the National Space Technology Laboratories in southern Mississippi (now known as Stennis Space Center) where it was used in the static test firing of the Shuttle's cluster of three main engines.
History
On June 24, 1977, MPTA-098 was delivered by Rockwell International to the National Space Technology Laboratory (NSTL), in Hancock County, Mississippi, where it was mated with MPTA-ET, mounted in a launch orientation and used for static engine tests. On July 2, 1979, MPTA-098 suffered major structural damage due to a fractured fuel valve on Space Shuttle Main Engine number 2002. The fracture allowed hydrogen to leak into the enclosed aft compartment, raising the pressure to beyond the structural capability of the heat shield supports, severely damaging the structure. After extensive repairs were completed, testing resumed in September, but on November 4, a high-pressure oxidizer turbopump failed 9.7 seconds into a scheduled 510-second test.
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