![\"ML](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Z73.jpg\" "\\"ML")
With the giant Launch Umbilical Tower (LUT), the total weight of the structure came in at around 9.5 million pounds, compared to the 8.2 million pounds for just the Shuttle\u2019s MLP.<\/p>\nTeams at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) are expected to complete a redesign plan for the giant Mobile Launcher (ML) by the end of the month. Re-purposed for the Space Launch System (SLS), companies will soon be able to bid for contracts to carry out the conversion process.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\nSLS Mobile Launcher:<\/p>\n
The ML \u2013 designed by RS&H (base and structure), along with ASRC Aerospace Corporation (prop systems etc.) \u2013 consists of the main support structure that comprises the base, tower and facility ground support systems, which include power, communications, conditioned air, water for cooling, wash-down, and was designed with ignition over-pressure protection in mind.<\/p>\n
Hensel Phelps engineers worked on the structure at the mobile launcher park site area just north of the VAB, with trestles and girders arriving by barge in February of 2009, beginning the opening phase of work to create a base platform \u2013 one which is lighter than the current Mobile Launch Platforms (MLPs) that previously hosted the Space Shuttle stack.<\/p>\n
With the giant Launch Umbilical Tower (LUT), the total weight of the structure came in at around 9.5 million pounds, compared to the 8.2 million pounds for just the Shuttle\u2019s MLP.<\/p>\n
Fabrication of the 345-foot LUT begin in May of 2009, in preparation for being placed on top of the ML\u2019s platform as the LUT\u2019s base, prior to the addition of nine additional sections via a giant crane at the build site.<\/p>\n
The installation of the first section was conducted on September 24, followed by a second section on October 15, a third on October 27, a fourth and fifth section in November, a sixth and seventh in December, followed by the final three sections, resulting all 10 sections being installed by January 28, 2010.<\/p>\n
NASA mission patches (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n This was followed by the installation of the launch mount \u2013 highly specific for only the since-cancelled Ares I vehicle \u2013 on the platform in the Spring of 2010.<\/p>\n Parked up near the VAB, rumors of what would happen to the ML ranged from pulling the structure apart for scrap, through to a joke that was circulated throughout the KSC workforce claiming there was interest from Disney for turning it into a fun ride.<\/p>\n Ironically, Disney engineers had already worked with the KSC team on the roller coaster Emergency Egress System (EES) \u2013 a giant structure that is still in the running to be the EES for the SLS.<\/p>\n Such modification planning has been taking place in addition to the umbilical set up required for SLS \u2013 a completely different set up to that planned for Ares I.<\/p>\n KSC managers have already sent out a request for information about potential sources for the labor, equipment, and materials to deconstruct and modify the existing Mobile Launcher for SLS \u2013 work that will be carried out at the ML Park Site 3 near the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB).<\/p>\n According to L2 information, the bid package for the reconstruction of the ML was sent to NASA\u2019s legal team for review in late January, with the full details starting to become available to contractors this month via Request For Proposals \u2013 the first of which was made available last Friday.<\/p>\n The final details of the redesign were at the 90 percent level in the Design Review as of January, with a completion target date of the end of February. The final elements of the DR relate to the redesigned ML being slightly overweight, with efforts being made to trim excess mass off the ML plan.<\/p>\n This change of placement will result in the attach point structure being located right above the LOX tank dome to the forward skirt interface weld line, with discussions specific to this element of hardware taking place at the Technical Interchange Meeting (TIM) level between SLS\u2019 main contractor, Boeing, and the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC).<\/p>\n Meanwhile, modifications to High Bay 3 (HB-3) \u2013 where SLS will be stacked atop of the ML \u2013 are progressing well.<\/p>\n Otherwise known as the \u201cDog House\u201d platforms, the famous walkways dated back to the Saturn program era. The structures have since been sent for scrap.<\/p>\n The transition of the VAB is aimed at not just hosting SLS, but also commercial vehicles \u2013 part of KSC\u2019s \u201cmulti-user\u201d facility brief.<\/p>\n Currently, no other vehicle has committed its future to using the building for launch processing, although there remains a possibility a cargo vehicle of ATK\u2019s Liberty rocket may rise to the challenge, while KSC has held notional design meetings relating to the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V commercial crew rocket becoming a tenant.<\/p>\n (Images: Via NASA and L2 content from L2\u2032s SLS specific L2 section, which includes, presentations, videos, graphics and internal \u2013 interactive with actual SLS engineers \u2013 updates on the SLS and HLV, available on no other site.)<\/p>\n (L2 is \u2013 as it has been for the past several years \u2013 providing full exclusive SLS and Exploration Planning coverage. To join L2, click here: http:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/l2\/)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Teams at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) are expected to complete a redesign plan for the giant Mobile Launcher (ML) by the end of the month. Re-purposed for the Space Launch System (SLS), companies will soon be able to bid for contracts to carry out the conversion process. SLS Mobile Launcher: The ML \u2013 designed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30314,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[9034,7766,8892,624,1701],"class_list":["post-39916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-hlv","tag-ksc","tag-ml","tag-sls","tag-vab"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39916"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39916"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39916\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Ares](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/A3171.jpg\" "\\"Ares")
However, the cancellation of the Constellation Program (CxP) resulted in the ML receiving its pink slip.<\/p>\n![\"ML](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Z31.jpg\" "\\"ML")
Although the ML is highly suited to the SLS vehicle, modifications \u2013 mainly to the Ares-specific elements of the structure, such as the launch mount \u2013 will be required, ahead of the Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle\u2019s debut in 2017.<\/p>\nSee Also<\/h4>\n
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![\"SLS](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Z43.jpg\" "\\"SLS")
Some of the final work on the umbilical planning relates to the design of the vehicle stabilizer, with the attach points now located further down the SLS vehicle by around 10 inches. This change was called for in order to make room for a new forward skirt umbilical plate.<\/p>\n![\"VAB](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Z41.jpg\" "\\"VAB")
New photos (L2) this past week show all the platforms and gantry walkways \u2013 that were once used to surround the Space Shuttle stack during mating and integration \u2013 have been removed.<\/p>\n