The B-2 Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center is big – in size and in the testing

projects it undertakes. As recently modified, the stand ranks as one of the tallest 

structures in Mississippi. It originally was built to test Saturn rocket stages for the 

Apollo Program that carried humans to the Moon in the late 1960s and early 1970s. 

It then was modified to test – and prove flight worthy – the space shuttle Main 

Propulsion Test Article configuration prior to the vehicle’s first flight. If that is not 

impressive enough, the stand now has been modified to test stages of NASA’s 

new Space Launch System, which is being built for NASA’s Artemis Program that will 

carry humans deeper into space than ever, to such destinations as the Moon and, 

ultimately, Mars. No doubt – when it comes to the B-2 Test Stand, one has to think big.

B-2 Test Stand

n The B-1/B-2 Test Stand is a dual-position, vertical-firing facility 

built in the 1960s to test Saturn rocket stages that carried 

humans to the Moon during the Apollo Program. 

n The B-1/B-2 stand is anchored in the ground with 144 feet of 

steel and concrete. The 7,000 tons of steel in the stand is about 

as much as was needed to build the Eiffel Tower. The stand also 

has 86,000 cubic yards of concrete, estimated as enough to 

build a sidewalk from Stennis to Memphis, Tennessee.

n The B-1 (shorter) side of the stand is used for single engine 

 testing. The B-2 (taller) side is designed for stage and main 

 propulsion system testing.

n NASA conducted the first-ever hot-fire test on the B-2 Test 

Stand, a 15-second firing of the Saturn S-IC-T rocket stage, 

on March 3, 1967. Twelve Saturn S-IC stages were tested 

on the B-2 stand from April 1967 to October 1970. S-IC-4 

through S-IC-12 powered Apollo 9 through 17 missions to the 

moon. S-IC-13 launched Skylab into orbit.

n The space shuttle Main Propulsion Test Article, consisting of an 

 external tank, a mock orbiter structure and three main engines

 linked together and installed on the B-2 stand, was tested 

 from December 1977 through January 1981.

n The RS-68-powered Delta 4 Common Booster Core was 

 tested on the B-2 stand from November 1999 through 

 May 2001.

n NASA spent six years preparing the B-2 Test Stand to test 

 taller, heavier stages of NASA’s new Space Launch System. 

 The work included upgrades to every major stand system:

• Electrical, data, mechanical and propellant piping systems 

were modified and enhanced to handle demands of 

Space Launch System testing.

• The derrick crane atop the B-2 stand was strengthened 

and extended 50 feet to lift the new Space Launch 

System core stage onto the stand.

• A 1.2 million-pound structural frame was repositioned 

 and another 1 million pounds of steel was added to 

 accommodate Space Launch System stages.

• The Stennis high-pressure industrial water system was 

replaced to increase flow capacity to 335,000 gallons, 

primarily used to cool super-hot engine test exhaust.

n Core stage testing will involve installing an actual flight stage 

and firing its four RS-25 engines simultaneously, just as will

occur during an actual launch. Tests will be conducted on the 

core stage prior to its use on the Artemis 1 mission.

n As originally constructed, the soft core of the B-2 Test Stand 

was about 290 feet tall. The new steel superstructure added 

to facilitate testing of the Space Launch System core stage 

extends the structural height to 342 feet. However, the main 

derrick’s mast atop the stand will still be the tallest element 

of the test stand at approximately 360 feet. By comparison, 

the Statue of Liberty stands 305 feet high from ground to torch. 

n The main derrick crane atop the B-2 Test Stand will be used to 

lift the Space Launch System core stage into place for testing. 

The core stage will stand more than 210 feet tall with a diameter 

of 27.6 feet. To lift the stage, the B-2 derrick crane was extended 

50 feet and the load rating was increased to 195 tons.

n Simultaneous firing of the Space Launch System’s core stage’s 

four RS-25 engines will generate 2 million pounds of thrust.

n More than 32,500 5/32-inch holes in the B-2 Test Stand flame 

deflector direct more than 240,000 gallons of water a minute to 

cool rocket engine exhaust during a hot fire test. About another 

92,000 gallons of water per minute will be sprayed through 92 

nozzles to provide vibro-acoustic suppression protection during 

Space Launch System core stage testing. This also will help to 

shield the stage from radiant heating and other thermal effects.

n There are well over 100 water nozzles of various sorts and 

sizes arrayed across the test stand that could provide a curtain 

of water over the length of the core stage and across the test

facility to prevent damage in the event of a fire or cryogenic 

spill. Water also would be diverted from the flame deflector

and vibro-acoustic spray ring to support these emergency 

operations.

n The average American household uses about 100,000 gallons 

of water a year. During a Space Launch System core stage test, 

the B-2 stand will use that amount every 18 seconds.

n The B-2 stand is serviced by the Stennis High Pressure 

 Industrial Water Plant. The original system has been upgraded 

due to age and in order to increase the water flow needed for 

Space Launch System core stage testing. The water system now 

is capable of delivering 335,000 gallons per minute to the B-2 

stand via 96-inch pipes. The capacity represents an increase of 

25,000 gallons per minute from the original system.