NASA Artemis Moon Rocket Booster Tests in Utah | Northrop Grumman

NASA Artemis Moon Rocket Booster Tests in Utah | Northrop Grumman

Teams from NASA and Northrop Grumman fired a ground-based version of a booster for the agency’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket on June 26, 2025. Secured horizontally in a test stand at Northrop Grumman’s test facility in Promontory, Utah, the single five-segment booster motor fired for more than two minutes and produced 3.9 million pounds of thrust. The booster for this test, known as Demonstration Motor-1 (DM-1), is the result of the Booster Obsolescence Life Extension (BOLE) project. This test was the first full-scale ground test of a new five-segment solid rocket motor.

During the test, there was an abnormal event approximately 15 seconds before the end of the motor firing. Despite this, NASA achieved several of the test’s primary objectives and received valuable data on technical risks identified ahead of the test. Testing this evolved booster for the SLS will help evaluate improvements and new materials in the boosters. The BOLE effort was launched to transition to a more efficient, lower cost commercial solution for the boosters for the SLS rocket. Through the Artemis program, NASA will send astronauts to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for its first crewed missions to Mars.

Learn more about NASA's SLS:
https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/space-launch-system/

Image Credit: Northrop Grumman/Dylan Baker

Duration: 3 minutes
Image Date: June 26, 2025

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