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Article: Solid Rocket Boosters
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- Space Sciences
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CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Solid Rocket Boosters
Mounted on either side of the space shuttle's external fuel tank are a pair of giant rockets with a single, two-minute purpose: to get the shuttle off the
launch pad. The rockets are called the shuttle's solid rocket boosters (SRBs) because they contain solid, as opposed to liquid, propellant. Each booster has a thrust of about 3.3 million pounds of force at launch, enough power to propel the shuttle, its external fuel tank, the boosters themselves, and the shuttle's cargo and crew into the air.
The boosters ignite 6.6 seconds after the shuttle's main engines start. If the shuttle engines are performing properly, computer commands are automatically relayed to ...