K2-X Hot Fire Testing

VAB is getting prepped for another Mk6 build with the parts that have come in this past week while also getting ready for the Ascension K2-X engine to arrive next week for integration with the tank and insertion to the test stand

KSC Operations Cease Indefinitely Due to Legal Injunction: kerbalspace.agency/?p=6892

Don't panic! Sadly our operational capacity has been drastically reduced but the KSA is not being shut down

the High Court has ruled that the injunction against surface operations is legal, which means our team of lawyers now has to get to work writing up amendments to the current laws that will have to be cleared through Assembly. This could take months!!

the Ascension Mk1 Block I & Block II lifters have been finalized. Barring any serious trouble w/ K2-X engine tests we should still be able to hold to our original Apr/May target for first flight of the Block I, now aiming for the end of May

work has continued on the 1.25m engine test stand to complete all the little bits of plumbing and structural support for the fuel tank - all we have to do is drop it in and hook it up once KSC ops resume

earlier today installation of the K2-X engine and its Etoh-1400 fuel tank into the test stand was completed. Final checkouts will be conducted on Monday with the first hotfire testing to begin on Tuesday of next week!

after spending all last night cycle reviewing procedures, teams are moving out with the sunrise to perform final checkouts of the test stand while Flight Director Lanalye and her team continue to drill for tomorrow's firing

Lead Engineer Simon reports the test stand is secure and ready to receive fuel, which it will today to test tanking procedures in addition to pressurization. Lanalye's team will conclude drills so they can monitor fueling operations

7t of fuel is being offloaded after successful tanking and pressurization of the Etoh-1400 - no ruptures were detected although extensive leak checks will be performed tomorrow prior to firing

controllers are on console and test crews are outside prepping for fueling operations. Tanks once again will be fully loaded & pressurized followed by nearly an hour of monitoring to ensure no leaks are present

3.150t of liquid fuel with 3.850t of oxidizer have been loaded & tanks are at flight pressure. Test site has been secured, engine confirmed safed and shutters have been lowered at the R&D building to prevent glass shattering in event of an explosion. Causeway is shut down

leak monitoring continues but at this time pre-ignition operations have also begun in launch control as Flight Director Lanalye's team begins to validate all monitoring and control systems built into the test stand

tank pressures remain stable, control team is working an issue with data relay from the accelerometers that will be measuring vibration while the engine is operating - a critical factor in future payload design

data issue thankfully was identified as an improper cable connection at launch control, meaning no further delays in having to drainback & approach the test stand for inspection. Ignition time is now set for 13:20 UTC

warning horn has sounded to alert KSC staff of ignition in 5 minutes. Test area confirmed clear, engine ignition system is ARMED. Computer control has been initiated for final purge sequence and valve checks, followed by ignition sequence & throttle control

1 minute to ignition! Test will last only 30 seconds starting at minimal 10% power throttling up to 50% before cutoff valves terminate the burn. At least, that's the plan...

short but sweet! Quite the rumble for only half power, no doubt we'll hear from Wernher despite all the warnings we managed to foul up *some* ongoing experiment of his. Waiting for things to clear up & cool down before verifying safe conditions to conduct post-ignition inspection

post-test inspection underway. Despite the short firing this was a major milestone, being the first integrated systems test firing. Engine design itself has undergone extensive testing already by NovaPunch but this was closest to launch conditions so far

everything is looking good for our second test firing later today, still scheduled for sometime between 19:00-19:30 UTC. Unless complications arise, prep work will begin at 18:00 UTC

test schedule continues on track and weather continues to remain favorable as tankers approach the test stand to reload propellants. Following similar procedures to earlier today minus the extensive leak check should have us ready to fire within the hour

all systems stand ready for test fire #2 with ignition scheduled for 19:00 UTC. Lasting 45 seconds, 10% power at ignition will once again throttle up to 50% & hold before throttling back to 0% to force a flameout & gather new shutdown transient data

pre-ignition inspection has been completed, controllers coming on console and fuel trucks heading out to the test stand. We are looking to fire between 12:40 & 13:00 UTC

all operations have remained on track so we are GO for ignition at the start of our planned window in 5 minutes. Warning horn has sounded across campus, all roadways within 200m are shut down. preparing to hand over control to the engine management system

EMS is running, will manage and monitor the ignition sequence then command the throttle through the 60 second burn to step upwards to maximum thrust if all parameters remain nominal before fuel cutoffs engage to terminate the firing. 2min and counting!

and cutoff! Firing went as planned, all systems and pressures registered nominal throughout. Propellant offload followed by post-burn inspection will be carried out to confirm all components look good for a second max thrust test later today

🚨📢 HAAAAAWWWWRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! 📢🚨
5 minutes to ignition for our second hot fire test! We will run the engine for 120 seconds (practically a full burn) while throttling straight from minimum to full power and then below minimum power at the end to induce flameout

FWWWOOOOOOSSSHH!!!! Check out that burn at full rated thrust of 172kN (@ sea lvl)! Important to note that the "smoke" you see is really just steam as the hot exhaust gases boil off the water deluge used to keep down temperature and noise during the testing youtube.com/watch?v=F4iRXV…

Lead Engineer Simon reports the K2-X is holding up just fine, so we will continue with testing tomorrow and then pause at the start of next week for our second comprehensive data review

good first K2-X test of the day, with the engine being ignited while already throttled to 50% but only with 25% of fuel remaining to test conditions (except air pressure) where the engine could one day be made restartable while in flight

second engine hot fire of today was another success, igniting at 15% thrust with only 5% of fuel remaining in the tanks. Next week will begin with more comprehensive reviews of test data before two final tests to close out the run by the end of the week

nominal first hot fire test for today saw the K2-X run through a Block I launch of full thrust at takeoff with a pull-down through MaxQ regime followed by return to full thrust for the remainder of the burn. Post-testing inspection & prep for next test underway

today's K2-X test has been cancelled after further data review found it to be redundant and unnecessarily risky given that we would like to use this engine for our first Ascension Mk1 flight to meet our original schedule - which we can't do if it blows up

bit.ly/FinanceReport_… is now up and although we nearly recouped our losses the amount of missions we were able to squeeze in at the end of the month couldn't quite overcome the Deuce and K2-X testing costs. Looking for some profit this month though!