Rocketdyne RS-25 · Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME)
The reusable Space Shuttle Main Engine uses fuel-rich staged combustion with hydrogen and oxygen. This exhibit represents a Shuttle-era RS-25; later adaptations power SLS. The artwork does not establish a specific Shuttle production block.
- Engine cycle
- Staged combustion
- Fuel
- Liquid hydrogen
- Oxidizer
- Liquid oxygen
NASA · RS-25 engineRS-25
OxidizerFuel / fuel-rich gas
RS-25
Select a part to explore its role in the flow diagram.
RS-25
Real hardware, from assembly to flight. Explore the engines and the rockets they power.
EnlargeOctober 2019 · Michoud Assembly FacilityShuttle heritage, a new rocket
Engine 2045 joins the Artemis I SLS core stage. This reused Shuttle engine previously helped carry John Glenn back to space in 1998.
EnlargeApril 12, 1981 · STS-1Columbia’s first flight
Three RS-25 main engines and two solid rocket boosters launch Columbia on the first Space Shuttle mission.
