ATK's Solid Rocket Boosters Help Launch Space Shuttle Discovery

*ATK Manufactured the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier (LMC) in Discovery's Payload Bay
MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Alliant Techsystems' (NYSE: ATK - News) Reusable Solid Rocket Motors (RSRM) ignited at 11:59 p.m. EDT, Aug. 28 launching the Space Shuttle Discovery and its crew on their 13-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS). More than 100 RSRM flight sets have been launched to date, marking a two-decade track record of flawless performance.
"The launch of Space Shuttle Discovery and the upcoming fall launch of the Ares I-X, highlight the capabilities and progress ATK and NASA have made in developing the most reliable and affordable family of solid rocket motors ever produced," said Blake Larson, ATK Space Systems President. "For the past 20 years, the reliability of these motors has been unmatched. They will continue to be instrumental to the success of the remaining shuttle flights as well as future human spaceflight programs."
The 149-foot-tall solid rocket boosters each produced more than 15 million horsepower, safely launching the shuttle to approximately 28 miles in altitude in just over two minutes. After the flight, the RSRMs were jettisoned from the orbiter and external tank by ATK's 16 Booster Separation Motors (BSMs). Each booster has eight BSMs: four on the forward skirt and four on the aft skirt. The separation motors propelled the RSRMs to a safe distance from the shuttle orbiter, enabling the spent boosters to parachute down through the Earth's atmosphere where they splashed down into the ocean and were recovered for reuse. The solid rocket motors were produced at ATK's facility in Promontory, Utah.
ATK, under a contract with the Goddard Spaceflight Center in Maryland, also provided the sustaining engineering for the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier (LMC) flying in Discovery's payload bay. The 1,100 pound LMC was manufactured at ATK's facility in Beltsville, Md., and functions as a non-deployable carrier providing launch and landing transportation. For STS-128, the 16-foot by 3-foot carrier transported the Ammonia Tank Assembly (ATA), a critical Orbital Replacement Unit, and will return from the station with a spent ATA as well as the European Technology Exposure Facility.
Discovery is also carrying the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, which contains life support racks and science racks, on this 30th mission to the ISS. The astronauts will perform two spacewalks to remove and replace a materials processing experiment outside the European Space Agency's Columbus module.
ATK and NASA have constantly improved their techniques and processes to increase the safety and mission reliability of the RSRMs. These motors have undergone countless subscale material characterization tests that tie together complex analyses with hard data. They have also undergone 27 full-scale ground tests, including a successful five-segment static test performed in October 2003.
"Over the past few decades, ATK and NASA have applied a rigorous testing and upgrades program to ensure the safety and reliability of these motors," said Mike Kahn, ATK Space Systems executive vice president. "These investments directly contribute to the safety and cost-effectiveness of the motors as we move into the Ares I-X and Ares I flights."
The remaining shuttle flights will be supported by ATK's rocket motors while similar versions of the RSRM and BSM motors are being tested and developed for use on NASA's newest crew launch vehicle, Ares I. The Ares vehicle will replace the shuttle, continue to support missions to the ISS and U.S. space exploration for years to come. ATK as the prime contractor, is on schedule and under budget for this historic event. The first prototype of Ares I, the Ares I-X, is scheduled to roll to the launch pad in October, in preparation for its inaugural test flight later that month.
ATK is a premier aerospace and defense company with more than 18,000 employees in 22 states, Puerto Rico and internationally, and revenues of approximately $4.8 billion. News and information can be found on the Internet at www.atk.com.
Certain information discussed in this press release constitutes forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Although ATK believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be achieved. Forward-looking information is subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Among those factors are: assumptions related to the challenges of developing next-generation space launch vehicles; changes in governmental spending, budgetary policies and product sourcing strategies; the company's competitive environment; the terms and timing of awards and contracts; and economic conditions. ATK undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements. For further information on factors that could impact ATK, and statements contained herein, please refer to ATK's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.