Name: ______Date: ______

ASSESSMENT: The Firing Room

Directions:

Work with your teammates to quickly find the correct answers to the questions below. Most answers will be found by following the Learn More links within each featured engineer’s site at

  1. What does the acronym SSME stands for?
  1. Space System Mission Envelope
  2. Space Shuttle Main Engine
  3. Shuttle System Major Element
  4. Space Station Mechanical Engineer
  1. Which swing arm(s) is (are) NOT monitored from console C7?
  1. Hydrogen Vent Line Access Arm
  1. Gaseous Oxygen Vent Arm
  2. Orbiter Access Arm
  3. All of the above
  1. Which substance is used as fuel in the External Tank?
  1. Liquid Copper
  1. Liquid Nitrogen
  2. Liquid Oxygen
  3. Liquid Hydrogen
  1. The Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge covers
  1. 1,500 acres
  1. 15,000 acres
  2. 140,000 acres
  3. 256,000 acres
  1. The pathway for engineers, technicians, and astronauts to enter the Space Shuttle while on the launch pad is the
  1. Swing Arm Access Platform
  1. Orbiter Access Arm
  2. Retractable Crew Module Arm
  1. Gaseous Oxygen Vent Arm
/
  1. The length of an SRB hold-down bolt is
  1. 19 inches
  1. 28 inches
  2. 36 inches
  3. 62 inches
  1. The average thrust produced by each Solid Rocket Booster at launch is
  1. 2.65 million pounds
  1. 3.3 million pounds
  2. 5.3 million pounds
  3. 7.0 million pounds
  1. A Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) weighs approximately
  1. 850 pounds
  1. 2,500 pounds
  2. 7,000 pounds
  3. 15,520 pounds
  1. The high pressure fuel turbopump is coated with _____ to reduce heat transfer.
  1. Lead
  1. Cadmium
  2. Titanium
  3. Nickel
  1. The Redundant Set Launch Sequencer (RSLS) software running in the Shuttle's onboard General Purpose Computers assumes control of the launch countdown sequence at what time?
  1. T-3 minutes
  1. T-6 hours
  2. T-9 minutes
  3. T-31 seconds

  1. The period in seconds for which 0.45 kilograms of propellant will produce a thrust of 0.45 kilograms of force is called
  1. Propellant density
  1. Compression factor
  2. Specific impulse
  3. Principle of ejection
  1. The system that ensures the O-Ring joints on the Solid Rocket Boosters stay warm is the
  1. Joint Heater System
  1. Thermal Protection System
  2. O-Ring Thermal Circulation System
  3. Seal-Safe System
  1. The Forward Reaction Control System (FRCS) contains how many primary engines?
  1. 6
  1. 8
  2. 14
  3. 22
  1. The Shuttle’s main engines burn liquid hydrogen and
  1. Liquid methane
  1. Liquid hydrazine
  2. Liquid oxygen
  3. Liquid helium
  1. The Northern Flicker is a species of
  1. Woodpecker
  1. Tortoise
  2. Crow
  1. Alligator
  1. The system responsible for computer control and monitoring of shuttle functions such as guidance and navigation is the
  1. Data Processing System
  1. Launch Processing System
  2. Ground Launch Sequencer
  1. Ground Support Equipment
/
  1. The timeline that defines all activities performed by the crew, flight controllers, payload operations, and vehicle operation is known as the
  1. Flight Support Facility
  1. Flight Plan
  2. Integrated Training Facility
  3. Integrated Planning System
  1. The Ground Launch Sequencer (GLS) call for APU start happens at what time?
  1. T-2 minutes 50 seconds
  1. T-5 minutes
  2. T-6 minutes 30 seconds
  3. T-7 minutes 30 seconds
  1. The Launch Control Center (LCC) contains ____ firing rooms.
  1. 1
  1. 4
  2. 7
  3. 12
  1. The maximum number of people (flight crew and passengers) a Shuttle can carry is
  1. 7
  1. 9
  2. 10
  3. 15
  1. The Space Shuttle is a _____ vehicle.
  1. fly-by-wire
  1. UAV
  2. dead stick
  3. deadhead
  1. The three subspecies of the Black Racer, or Black Snake, are Coluber constrictor paludicola, Coluber constrictor helvigularis, and
  1. Coluber constrictor truncatus
  1. Coluber constrictor priapus
  2. Coluber constrictor habilus
  3. Coluber constrictor aegyptae

  1. The KennedySpaceCenter shares its land with
  1. Disney World
  1. CocoaBeach
  2. Titusville
  3. Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge
  1. How many General Purpose Computers (GPC's) are used to run the software to operate the Shuttle?
  1. 1
  1. 2
  2. 3
  3. 5
  1. The Rotating Service Structure (RSS) can rotate 1/3 of a circle, or ___ degrees.
  1. 90
  1. 120
  2. 180
  3. 360
  1. SSME #2 fires at what point in the countdown?
  1. T-0
  1. T-6.48 seconds
  2. T-6.6 seconds
  3. T-31 seconds
  1. Which NASA center is responsible for Shuttle mission operations?
  1. KSC
  1. ARC
  2. JPL
  1. JSC
  1. The hypergolic fuel used on the Shuttle is
  1. Nitrogen tetroxide
  1. Monomethyl hydrazine
  2. Hydrochloric acid
  1. Ammonium perchlorate
  1. The SRB recovery ships are the Liberty Star and the Freedom Star.
  1. True
  1. False
/
  1. Shuttle Enterprise was once displayed at the
  1. OrlandoScienceCenter
  1. 1984 New Orleans World's Fair
  2. Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
  3. Merritt Square Mall
  1. The Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 was reauthorized by Congress in what year?
  1. 1982
  1. 1994
  2. 1996
  3. 2002
  1. What are the responsibilities of the Shuttle Test Director (STD)?
  1. Overall management of the launch countdown
  1. Coordinating, integrating, and approving all troubleshooting to resolve problems
  2. Managing the countdown clock including built-in or unplanned holds
  3. All of the above
  1. Liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen are called cryogenic propellants because
  1. Hydrogen and oxygen are light elements
  1. They combine to make water
  2. They are supercooled
  3. They are nonpolluting
  1. The KennedySpaceCenter is located in Brevard County, Florida.
  1. True
  1. False
  1. The water released into the flame trench during launch
  1. prevents sound shock waves from damaging the orbiter.
  1. dilutes any fuel that leaks.
  2. cools the metal structure of the launch pad.
  3. prevents flames from affecting the surrounding environment.

  1. How many SSMEs are on an orbiter?
  1. 1
  1. 3
  2. 4
  3. 9
  1. The Solid Rocket Booster propellant channel configuration is in the shape of a
  1. Hexagon
  1. Rectangle
  2. Star
  3. Circle
  1. A vacuum-jacketed pipe prevents the liquid hydrogen from warming up to a gas as it is loaded into the External Tank.
  1. True
  1. False
  1. The Shuttle General Purpose Computer (GPC) is a descendant of what computer?
  1. DEC VAX
  1. SGI O2
  2. IBM 360
  3. Apple IIE
  1. A Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) is the same height as the
  1. EiffelTower
  1. EmpireStateBuilding
  2. Statue of Liberty
  1. St. Louis Arch
  1. The acronym STS stands for
  1. Shuttle Telescope System
  1. Shuttle Trucking System
  2. Star Tracking System
  1. Space Transportation System
  1. If the Safe and Arm Device cannot be armed, the booster cannot ignite.
  1. True
  1. False
/
  1. The SSME engineers sit at which consoles?
  1. C1/C2
  1. C3/C4
  1. C7/C8
  2. C11/C12
  1. The launch countdown procedure is about ____ pages long.
  1. 250
  1. 500
  2. 2500
  3. 5000
  1. One disadvantage of a solid fuel rocket motor is that once ignited, the motor cannot be stopped or restarted.
  1. True
  1. False
  1. A Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) contains how much solid propellant?
  1. 7,500 pounds
  1. 25,000 pounds
  2. 521,000 pounds
  3. 1.1 million pounds
  1. Launch Complex 39 was first used for which NASA program?
  1. Mercury
  1. Apollo
  2. Gemini
  3. X-15
  1. The "bean celebration" takes place
  1. at T-6 hours
  1. before ET tanking begins
  2. at T-31 seconds
  3. after a successful launch
  1. Math and science are the only skills necessary to become a successful engineer.
  1. True
  2. False

  1. SSMEs are what sort of engines?
  1. Turbine
  1. Reaction
  2. Reciprocating
  3. Adiabatic
  1. The maximum orbital apogee of a Shuttle, in statute miles, is
  1. 350
  1. 425
  2. 600
  3. 690
  1. Each launch uses about 850,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen.
  1. True
  1. False
  1. Which DPS unit helps astronauts land the vehicle?
  1. HUD
  1. BFS
  2. MDM
  3. PASS
  1. The GPC software is written in what programming language?
  1. BASIC
  1. JavaScript
  2. PL-1
  1. HAL/S
  1. How many Multiplexer/Demultiplexers are aboard an orbiter?
  1. 5
  1. 12
  2. 23
  1. 128
  1. John Young was the pilot of STS-1.
  1. True
  1. False
/
  1. One of the more plentiful residents of KSC is the
  1. Alligator
  1. Caiman
  1. Crocodile
  2. Chameleon
  1. The area at the end of the Orbiter Access Arm is called the
  1. Staging area
  1. The White Room
  2. Crew marshalling area
  3. The Ready Room
  1. Which is the specific impulse of an SRB at sea level?
  1. 125 seconds
  1. 242 seconds
  2. 256 seconds
  3. 525 seconds
  1. The dry weight of an External Tank is approximately
  1. 2,500 pounds
  1. 6,200 pounds
  2. 15,250 pounds
  3. 60,000 pounds

/ Developed by NASA KSC and funded by NASA SOMD / 1