Feb. 20, 2009

Grey Hautaluoma/Ashley Edwards
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0668/1756
grey.hautaluoma-1{at}nasa.gov
ashley.edwards-1{at}nasa.gov

Amber Philman
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468
amber.n.philman{at}nasa.gov

RELEASE: 09-035

SEGMENT OF ARES I-X TEST ROCKET ARRIVES AT KENNEDY

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The last newly manufactured section of the
Ares I-X test rocket arrived at the Assembly and Refurbishment
Facility of NASA's Kennedy Space Center on Friday.

Called the frustum, the section resembles a giant funnel. Its
function
is to transition the primary flight loads from the rocket's upper
stage to the first stage. The frustum is located between the forward
skirt extension and the upper stage of the Ares I-X.

"It is always great to get the hardware to the launch site, and once
the motors arrive in just a few weeks, the entire launch vehicle can
begin final processing prior to stacking operations in the Vehicle
Assembly Building," said Jon Cowart, the Ares I-X deputy mission
manager at Kennedy.

The Ares I-X is targeted to launch in the summer of 2009. The flight
will provide NASA with an early opportunity to test and prove
hardware, facilities and ground operations associated with the Ares I
launch vehicle. The flight test also will bring NASA a step closer to
its exploration goals of sending humans to the moon and destinations
beyond.

The frustum is manufactured by Major Tool and Machine Inc. in Indiana
under a subcontract with Alliant Techsystems Inc., or ATK, the Ares
first stage prime contractor. Weighing in at approximately 13,000
pounds, the 10-foot-long section is composed of two aluminum rings
attached to a truncated conic section. The large diameter of the cone
is 18 feet and the small diameter is 12 feet. The cone is 1.25 inches
thick.

"We are thrilled to deliver this final segment to the ground
processing team at Kennedy," said Bob Herman, ATK's Florida site
director. "The arrival of the frustum is a significant milestone.

Much rigorous design, development and testing had to be accomplished
prior to manufacturing all of the new segments that make up the Ares
I-X first stage."

The frustum will be integrated with the forward skirt and forward
skirt extension, which already are in the Assembly and Refurbishment
Facility. That will complete the forward assembly. The assembly then
will be moved to the Vehicle Assembly Building for stacking
operations, which are scheduled to begin in April.

Video B-roll of the hardware arrival will be available on NASA
Television's Video File. For NASA TV streaming video, schedules, and
downlink information, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

For more information about Ares I-X and NASA's next-generation
rockets, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ares

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