Sep 12 2009
The F-1 Engine
The Saturn V Rocket was a very powerful and mighty machine that carried our astronauts into space and to the moon and home again. We have explored the various components that make up this beast and now we will explore the power behind this rocket.
Five F-1 engines in the first stage of the Saturn V was what was needed to start the mission. A large mass had to be moved and moved very quickly to escape the gravitational pull of Earth. Rocketdyne originally developed the F-1 engine for an Air Force program. After development began, the Air Force suspended the program as it did not have the need for such a large engine. However, the newly created space agency, NASA, saw a need for it and contracted with Rocketdyne to continue the development.
The F-1 engine first ‘static’ test firing was done in 1957 and a full test firing was performed in 1959. Thus, this piece of the Apollo spacecraft was designed and developed before Apollo was even conceived. The engine initially had combustion problems that resulted in continued refinements and development tests through the early 60s.
This engine was the most powerful, single nozzle, liquid-fueled rocket ever used in service. One other engine was designed that would have been more powerful, the M-1; which was ground tested, however, was not put into service. The engine burned RP-1 (kerosene) rocket fuel and used liquid oxygen as the oxidizer. A turbo pump was used to inject fuel and oxidizer into the combustion chamber.
In our post next week, we will continue our review of the F-1 engine and we will give you some ‘numbers’ to have fun with.
