[SatNews] Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne and RD AMROSS successfully propelled a critical…
…U.S. government satellite into orbit, once again demonstrating the consistency and reliability of their rocket launch propulsion systems. The spacecraft launched from Vandenberg Air Force Station in California on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The Atlas V is powered by the RD AMROSS RD-180 booster engine, and the upper-stage is powered by the Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne RL10 engine. RD AMROSS LLC is a joint venture of Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne and NPO Energomash. Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne is a United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) company.
The Atlas V Centaur upper-stage is powered by a single RL10A4-2 engine that delivers 22,300 pounds of thrust. The Atlas V Common Core booster is powered by the RD-180 engine and delivers nearly 1 million pounds of thrust. The RD-180 is fueled by a kerosene/liquid oxygen mixture, provides an environmentally-clean operation, and uses an extremely efficient, high-pressured staged combustion cycle. The high-pressure helium storage tanks on the Atlas V booster and upper stage were manufactured by ARDE, Inc., located in Carlstadt, New Jersey, a division of Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne.
