SACRAMENTO, Calif., Jan. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Stardust Spacecraft, which collected "space debris" from the comet Wild 2 and was powered by Aerojet propulsion during its maneuvers, will return its collection to earth on Jan. 15, 2006. The materials collected by Stardust will come down by parachute in the Sample Return Capsule to the Utah Test and Training Range.
Stardust was launched Feb. 7, 1999 aboard a Boeing Delta II launch vehicle. Aerojet Sacramento Operations provided the 10,000 lbf second-stage liquid engine for the launch vehicle, as well as the 30 lbf directional control thruster on the third stage of the Delta II vehicle.
Aerojet Redmond Operations provided the rocket engine modules (REMs) on the Stardust spacecraft built by Lockheed Martin. Sixteen engines were used for trajectory adjustment during cruise to the Wild 2 comet and to return the collection to earth. The REMs were also used during critical collection maneuvers to keep the collector and its shield in proper alignment.
The Stardust collection is a NASA Discovery Mission. Aerojet, a GenCorp Inc. company, has provided propulsion for every NASA Discovery mission launched to date, including NEAR, Mars Pathfinder, Lunar Prospector, MESSENGER, Deep Impact, Dawn, and Stardust. NASA Discovery missions are low-cost, highly-focused planetary science investigations.
Aerojet is a world-recognized aerospace and defense leader principally serving the missile and space propulsion, and defense and armaments markets. GenCorp is a leading technology-based manufacturer of aerospace and defense products and systems with a real estate business segment that includes activities related to the development, sale and leasing of the Company's real estate assets. Additional information about Aerojet and GenCorp can be obtained by visiting the Companies' web sites at http://www.aerojet.com/ and http://www.gencorp.com/ .
