The Space Shuttle external tank, usually called the ET, was the large central tank of the Space Shuttle launch vehicle. It held the liquid hydrogen fuel and liquid oxygen oxidizer and fed them under pressure to the three RS-25 main engines on the orbiter during lift-off and ascent. Just over ten seconds after main engine cut-off the orbiter jettisoned it, and it broke up on re-entry over the ocean. Unlike the solid rocket boosters it was never reused. The tank was built at the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, with Martin Marietta as the contractor that NASA selected in 1973 and Lockheed Martin continuing the work after the 1995 merger. It also served as the structural backbone of the shuttle stack, carrying the attachment points for the boosters and the orbiter. Later versions were lighter, and the orange colour is the spray-on foam insulation.
Facts
PropulsionLiquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen 1 Comparison
Body StyleExternal propellant tank 1 Connections
Exemplifies
Source Space Shuttle external tank (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
Manufactured By
Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.
Source Space Shuttle external tank (Wikipedia)ContractorQuote, Contractor
The contractor for the external tank was Lockheed Martin (previously Martin Marietta), New Orleans, Louisiana.
Originated In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.
Source Space Shuttle external tank (Wikipedia)Contractor, locationQuote, Contractor, location
The tank was manufactured at the Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans, and was transported to Kennedy Space Center by barge.
Sources
1. Space Shuttle external tank (Wikipedia)
Lead, propellants
The Space Shuttle external tank (ET) was the component of the Space Shuttle launch vehicle that contained the liquid hydrogen fuel and liquid oxygen oxidizer.
Contractor
The contractor for the external tank was Lockheed Martin (previously Martin Marietta), New Orleans, Louisiana.
Contractor, location
The tank was manufactured at the Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans, and was transported to Kennedy Space Center by barge.
Exemplifies: Orbital Spaceflight, Lead
During lift-off and ascent it supplied the fuel and oxidizer under pressure to the three RS-25 main engines in the orbiter.
In Group: Orbital Launch Vehicles, Lead
The Space Shuttle external tank (ET) was the component of the Space Shuttle launch vehicle that contained the liquid hydrogen fuel and liquid oxygen oxidizer.
View the Source2. NASA: 50 Years Ago: NASA Selects Contractor for Space Shuttle External Tank
NASADelivery of ET-2 and first launch
with the first launch of an ET taking place on April 12, 1981
Final tank
On July 8, 2010, the last ET to fly, ET-138, rolled off the assembly line at MAF, and flew on STS-135, the final mission of the program, in July 2011.
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