Futuramic’s tooling for NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) was used to complete the welding of the Artemis III core stage liquid oxygen tank dome at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility. Many Futuramic tools helped complete this job and included the Dome Rounding Tool, Overhead Lift Equipment, Gore Weld Tool, Circumferential Weld Tool, Segmented Ring Weld Tool, and the Plug Welders.
“Teams completed the welding of the Artemis III core stage liquid oxygen tank dome at the NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. Crews moved the dome, which is the top of the tank. The dome was moved to an assembly area where it will be loaded into a robotic welder that will join it with the forward barrel to create half of the liquid oxygen tank. Later another barrel and dome will be added to complete the entire tank. The Space Launch System (SLS) core stage liquid oxygen tank holds 196,000 gallons of super-cooled liquid propellant that serves as one of the propellants for the four RS-25 engines. The SLS core stage is made up of five unique elements: the forward skirt, liquid oxygen tank, intertank, liquid hydrogen tank, and the engine section. The liquid oxygen and the liquid hydrogen tank will provide propellant to the four RS-25 engines to produce more than two million pounds of thrust to help launch NASA’s Orion spacecraft, astronauts, and supplies beyond Earth’s orbit to the Moon” – via NASA Image and Video Library
Circumferential Dome Welding Tool (CDWT)
This image shows a completed Dome being removed from the Circumferential Dome Welding Tool (CDWT) designed and built by Futuramic. This tool positions and secures the Y-Ring, Gore Dome and Upper Dome for circumferential Friction Stir Welding welding. This dome may be used on either a Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) or Liquid Oxygen (LOX) Tank.
Circumferential Dome Welding Tool (CDWT) and Gore Weld Tool (GWT)
This image shows a completed Dome being removed from the Circumferential Dome Welding Tool (CDWT) designed and built by Futuramic. This tool positions and secures the Y-Ring, Gore Dome and Upper Dome for circumferential Friction Stir Welding welding. This dome may be used on either a Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) or Liquid Oxygen (LOX) Tank. To the left is the Gore Weld Tool (GWT) used to weld together the Gore Dome. The GWT was also designed and built by Futuramic.
Dome Rounding Tool, OHME, and Cell A Removable Platform
This image shows a completed Dome being loaded into the Dome Rounding Tool and OHME for loading the rounded dome into the Vertical Assembly Center. The Dome Rounding Tool was designed and built by Futuramic. This tool precision rounds a dome to a known diameter and holds it in the rounded state while being loaded into the Vertical Assembly Center for welding to tank barrel sections. In the background you see the Cell A removable platform designed and built by Futuramic. This is a massive removable platform that allows a tank to be stacked in the work cell and the platform installed or removed using a unique offset CG OHME. This Unique design is required to provide safe clearance from the flight hardware.
Segmented Ring Tool (SRT)
Futuramic’s Segmented Ring Tool used to weld together the segments for a “L” or “Y” Ring prior to machining. Photo Credit: Futuramic
Plug Weld Tool (PWT)
All domes have the ends of the welds closed out the Plug Weld Tool. The plug weld tools were designed and built by Futuramic. Photo Credit: Futuramic
Completed Dome Photos from NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility
Michoud Assembly Facility Photo Credit: NASA / Michael DeMocker
About Artemis III
Artemis III is the second crewed mission of the program, and the first to land astronauts on the Moon. The crew will visit the Moon’s south pole to search for water, study its surface, test technologies, and learn to work on a world outside Earth.
