Criticism of the Space Shuttle program (approximately $ per pound adjusting for inflation to 2011). It failed in the goal of achieving reliable access to space, partly due to multi-year interruptions in launches following Shuttle failures. NASA budget pressures caused by the chronically high NASA Space Shuttle program costs have eliminated NASA manned space flight beyond low earth orbit since Apollo, and severely curtailed use of unmanned probes. NASA's promotion of and reliance on the Shuttle slowed domestic commercial expendable launch vehicle (ELV) programs until after the 1986 "Challenger" disaster. "Space Transportation System" (NASA's formal name for the overall Shuttle program) was created to transport crewmembers
Space Shuttle main engine to the four-engine configuration and its position in-plane with the SLS booster exhaust nozzles. New ablative insulation and heaters were to be tested during the series. Following these series of tests, four more engines are planned to enter a new test cycle. A new series of tests designed to evaluate performance in SLS use cases was initiated in 2017. Space Shuttle main engine The Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-25, otherwise known as the Space Shuttle main engine (SSME), is a liquid-fuel cryogenic rocket engine that was used on NASA's Space Shuttle and is planned to be used on its successor, the Space