Rocketdyne J-2 Rocket Engine
This engine, powered by a mixture of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants, was used on NASA's Saturn IB and V launch vehicles. Each engine weighed 1.78 tonnes and produced 232,250 lb of thrust.
The Saturn V rockets used five J-2 engines in their second stage. Both the Saturn IB and V used a single J-2 on their upper stage. Until the Space Shuttle's main engine, this was America's largest liquid hydrogen/oxygen rocket engine (the Saturn V's main launch engines, Rocketdyne's F-1, were powered by kerosene/oxygen and remain the most powerful single-nozzle liquid-fuelled rocket engines ever flown).
The J-2 was approved for development in June 1960 and first flew in February 1966. An unusual feature for the time was that the engine was designed to be restartable. The Saturn V's single third-stage J-2 finished the low Earth orbital insertion of the Apollo spacecraft with a two-minute burn. Subsequently, it was used for a 6.5 minute burn to accelerate the spacecraft on a course for the Moon.
This example, which has a diameter of 6.6 feet, is seen on display in rather low light conditions in the Exploring Space Hall of the Science Museum in South Kensington, London.
Rocketdyne J-2 Rocket Engine
This engine, powered by a mixture of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants, was used on NASA's Saturn IB and V launch vehicles. Each engine weighed 1.78 tonnes and produced 232,250 lb of thrust.
The Saturn V rockets used five J-2 engines in their second stage. Both the Saturn IB and V used a single J-2 on their upper stage. Until the Space Shuttle's main engine, this was America's largest liquid hydrogen/oxygen rocket engine (the Saturn V's main launch engines, Rocketdyne's F-1, were powered by kerosene/oxygen and remain the most powerful single-nozzle liquid-fuelled rocket engines ever flown).
The J-2 was approved for development in June 1960 and first flew in February 1966. An unusual feature for the time was that the engine was designed to be restartable. The Saturn V's single third-stage J-2 finished the low Earth orbital insertion of the Apollo spacecraft with a two-minute burn. Subsequently, it was used for a 6.5 minute burn to accelerate the spacecraft on a course for the Moon.
This example, which has a diameter of 6.6 feet, is seen on display in rather low light conditions in the Exploring Space Hall of the Science Museum in South Kensington, London.