HG-3 (rocket engine)

The HG-3 was a liquid-fuel cryogenic rocket engine which was designed for use on the upper stages of Saturn rockets in the post-Apollo era.[1] Designed in the United States by Rocketdyne, the HG-3 was to have burned cryogenic liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants, with each engine producing 1,400.7 kN (315,000 lbf) of thrust during flight.[1] The engine was designed to produce a specific impulse (Isp) of 451 seconds (4.42 km/s) in a vacuum, or 280 seconds (2.7 km/s) at sea level.[1] Developed from Rocketdyne's J-2 engine used on the S-II and S-IVB stages, the engine was intended to replace the J-2 on the upgraded S-II-2 and S-IVB-2 stages intended for use on the Saturn MLV, Saturn IB-B and Saturn V/4-260 rockets, with a sea-level optimised version, the HG-3-SL, intended for use on the Saturn INT-17.[1][2] The engine was cancelled, however, during the post-Apollo drawdown when development of the more advanced Saturn rockets ceased, and never flew, although the engine was later used as the basis for the design of the RS-25 engine.[3]

HG-3
Country of originUnited States
DesignerMSFC/Rocketdyne
ManufacturerRocketdyne
ApplicationUpper stage engine
Associated LVSaturn MLV
Saturn IB-B
Saturn V/4-260
Saturn INT-17
PredecessorJ-2
SuccessorRS-25
StatusCanceled
Liquid-fuel engine
PropellantLiquid oxygen / Liquid hydrogen
Performance
Thrust, vacuum1,400.7 kN (314,900 lbf)
Thrust, sea-level869.6 kN (195,500 lbf)
Specific impulse, vacuum451 seconds (4.42 km/s)
Specific impulse, sea-level280 seconds (2.7 km/s)
References
References[1][2]

See also

References

  1. Mark Wade (17 November 2011). "HG-3". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 15 November 2011. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  2. Mark Wade (17 November 2011). "HG-3-SL". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 17 November 2011. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  3. "MSFC Propulsion Center of Excellence is Built on Solid Foundation". NASA. 1995. Archived from the original on 27 April 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2011.


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