Shuttle Engine Fires Perfectly — Horizontally

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PROMONTORY, Box Elder County -- A long jet of flame seemingly as bright as the sun, a loud throaty roar that continues for more than two minutes, a huge clump of gray and brown smoke boiling toward the cloud cover -- it could only be the test-firing of a space shuttle booster engine.

Officials of ATK Thiokol, which builds the rockets, and NASA, which uses them to power the shuttle into space, declared Thursday's static firing a success. In a static firing, an engine mounted horizontally burns propellant just as it would when lifting into space, but it remains grounded on the test bay.

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Shuttle Engine Fires Perfectly — Horizontally

The purpose was to check modifications to the motor that are supposed to improve safety and make the engine more powerful. According to NASA, a slight change in the shape of the solid fuel ...

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