NASA to use shock-absorbers to fix shaking in new Ares rocket

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2008

WASHINGTON (AFP) — NASA say they will use shock-absorbers similar to those used in cars to fix a problem with heavy vibrations in the new Ares rocket, to give astronauts inside the Orion crew capsule a smoother ride.

US space agency engineers have recommended a system employing spring-mounted weights and shock-absorbing tubes between the first and second stage of the rocket to rectify excessive vibrations.

The Ares solid rocket booster is designed to launch the manned Orion capsule -- the planned successor to the space shuttle -- to the moon and eventually Mars.

"It's a lot like the shock absorbers on your car," said Ares project manager Steve Cook, describing the mechanism in a telephone news conference.

"It isolates the vibrations just traveling...