Crawler-Transporter
Encyclopedia
The crawler-transporters are a pair of tracked vehicle
s used to transport spacecraft
from NASA
's Vehicle Assembly Building
(VAB) along the Crawlerway
to Launch Complex 39
. They were originally used to transport the Saturn IB
and Saturn V
rocket
s during the Apollo, Skylab
and Apollo–Soyuz programs. They were then used to transport Space Shuttle
s from 1981 to 2011. The crawler-transporters carry vehicles on the Mobile Launcher Platform
, and after each launch return to the pad to take the platform back to the VAB.
The two crawler-transporters were designed and built by Marion Power Shovel
(now Bucyrus International
) using components designed and built by Rockwell International
at a cost of US$14 million each. They are the largest self powered land vehicles in the world. When they were built, they were the largest tracked vehicles in the world, a title later taken by the German Bagger 288
excavator
.
level within 10 minutes of arc (about 1 feet (30.5 cm) at the top of the Saturn V), while moving up the 5% grade to the launch site. A separate laser docking system provides pinpoint accuracy when the crawler-transporter and Mobile Launch Platform are positioned in the VAB or at the launch pad. A team of nearly 30 engineers, technicians and drivers operate the vehicle.
The crawler has 16 traction motors, powered by four 1341 hp generators, in turn driven by two 2750 hp V16 Alco diesel engine
s. Two 1006 hp generators, driven by two 1065 hp engines, are used for jacking, steering, lighting, and ventilating. Two 201 hp generators are also available to power the Mobile Launcher Platform. The crawler's tanks hold 5000 gallons (18,927.1 l) of diesel fuel, and it burns 125.7 usgal/mi.
The crawler is controlled from two control cabs located at either end of the vehicle, and travels along the 3.5 miles (5.6 km) crawlerway at a maximum speed of 1 mile per hour (0.44704 m/s) loaded, or 2 mile per hour (0.89408 m/s) unloaded. The average trip time from the VAB along the Crawlerway to Launch Complex 39 is about five hours. Each crawlerway is 7 ft (2 m) deep and covered with Alabama and Tennessee river rock for its low friction properties to reduce the possibility of sparks. In 2000, NASA unearthed and restored an Apollo-era segment of the crawlerway to provide access to a high-bay building in order to provide protection from a hurricane.
Kennedy Space Center has been using the same two crawlers, nicknamed "Hans" and "Franz" for the bodybuilding characters
, since their initial delivery in 1965. In their lifetime, they have traveled more than 3400 miles (5,471.8 km), about the same driving distance as Miami to Seattle.
The crawlers were overhauled in 2003 with upgrades to the Motor Control Center, which houses the switchgear and electrical controls of all of major systems onboard, a new engine and pump ventilation system and new diesel engine radiators, and replacement of the two driver cabs on each vehicle (one on each end). NASA had planned to use the crawlers for the Constellation program after the Space Shuttle was retired in 2011; due to their age and need to support the heavier Ares V
and its launch tower, NASA planned to modify the crawler's engines. With the cancellation of the Constellation program, the fate of the crawlers is unknown.
, host Mike Rowe
helps workers maintain a crawler-transporter. Rowe also takes the transporter for a short drive.
The crawler is also featured in the 2011 motion picture, Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
In the Fallout 3
add on pack Broken Steel the fictional US government survivors, The Enclave, have a mobile base built on and into a heavily modified crawler.
Vehicle
A vehicle is a device that is designed or used to transport people or cargo. Most often vehicles are manufactured, such as bicycles, cars, motorcycles, trains, ships, boats, and aircraft....
s used to transport spacecraft
Spacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
from NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's Vehicle Assembly Building
Vehicle Assembly Building
The Vehicle Assembly Building, or VAB, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center was used to assemble and house American manned launch vehicles from 1968-2011. It is the fourth largest building in the world by volume...
(VAB) along the Crawlerway
Crawlerway
The Crawlerway is a wide double pathway at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It runs between the Vehicle Assembly Building and the two launch pads at Launch Complex 39. It has a length of to Pad 39A and to Pad 39B...
to Launch Complex 39
Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39
Launch Complex 39 is a rocket launch site at the John F. Kennedy Space Center on Merritt Island in Florida, USA. The site and its collection of facilities were originally built for the Apollo program, and later modified to support Space Shuttle operations. NASA began modifying LC-39 in 2007 to...
. They were originally used to transport the Saturn IB
Saturn IB
The Saturn IB was an American launch vehicle commissioned by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for use in the Apollo program...
and Saturn V
Saturn V
The Saturn V was an American human-rated expendable rocket used by NASA's Apollo and Skylab programs from 1967 until 1973. A multistage liquid-fueled launch vehicle, NASA launched 13 Saturn Vs from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida with no loss of crew or payload...
rocket
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
s during the Apollo, Skylab
Skylab
Skylab was a space station launched and operated by NASA, the space agency of the United States. Skylab orbited the Earth from 1973 to 1979, and included a workshop, a solar observatory, and other systems. It was launched unmanned by a modified Saturn V rocket, with a mass of...
and Apollo–Soyuz programs. They were then used to transport Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
s from 1981 to 2011. The crawler-transporters carry vehicles on the Mobile Launcher Platform
Mobile Launcher Platform
The Mobile Launcher Platform or MLP is one of three two-story structures used by NASA to support the Space Shuttle stack during its transportation from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39-A at the Kennedy Space Center as well as serve as the vehicle's launch platform...
, and after each launch return to the pad to take the platform back to the VAB.
The two crawler-transporters were designed and built by Marion Power Shovel
Marion Power Shovel
Marion Power Shovel Company designed, manufactured and sold steam shovels, excavators and dragline excavators for use in the construction and mining industries....
(now Bucyrus International
Bucyrus International
Bucyrus International, Inc. , was an American surface and underground mining equipment company. Founded as Bucyrus Foundry and Manufacturing Company in Bucyrus, Ohio, in 1880, Bucyrus moved company headquarters to South Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1893. In its early history, Bucyrus produced steam...
) using components designed and built by Rockwell International
Rockwell International
Rockwell International was a major American manufacturing conglomerate in the latter half of the 20th century, involved in aircraft, the space industry, both defense-oriented and commercial electronics, automotive and truck components, printing presses, valves and meters, and industrial automation....
at a cost of US$14 million each. They are the largest self powered land vehicles in the world. When they were built, they were the largest tracked vehicles in the world, a title later taken by the German Bagger 288
Bagger 288
Bagger 288 , built by the German company Krupp for the energy and mining firm Rheinbraun, is a bucket-wheel excavator or mobile strip mining machine...
excavator
Excavator
Excavators are heavy construction equipment consisting of a boom, stick, bucket and cab on a rotating platform . The house sits atop an undercarriage with tracks or wheels. A cable-operated excavator uses winches and steel ropes to accomplish the movements. They are a natural progression from the...
.
Specifications
The crawler-transporter has a mass of 2721 t (2,721,000 kg; 5,998,778.2 lb) and has eight tracks, two on each corner. Each track has 57 shoes, and each shoe weighs 1984 pounds (899.9 kg). The vehicle measures 131 by. The height from ground level to the platform is adjustable from 20 to 26 ft (6.1 to 7.9 m), and each side can be raised and lowered independently of the other. The crawler uses a laser guidance system and a leveling system to keep the Mobile Launcher PlatformMobile Launcher Platform
The Mobile Launcher Platform or MLP is one of three two-story structures used by NASA to support the Space Shuttle stack during its transportation from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39-A at the Kennedy Space Center as well as serve as the vehicle's launch platform...
level within 10 minutes of arc (about 1 feet (30.5 cm) at the top of the Saturn V), while moving up the 5% grade to the launch site. A separate laser docking system provides pinpoint accuracy when the crawler-transporter and Mobile Launch Platform are positioned in the VAB or at the launch pad. A team of nearly 30 engineers, technicians and drivers operate the vehicle.
The crawler has 16 traction motors, powered by four 1341 hp generators, in turn driven by two 2750 hp V16 Alco diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
s. Two 1006 hp generators, driven by two 1065 hp engines, are used for jacking, steering, lighting, and ventilating. Two 201 hp generators are also available to power the Mobile Launcher Platform. The crawler's tanks hold 5000 gallons (18,927.1 l) of diesel fuel, and it burns 125.7 usgal/mi.
The crawler is controlled from two control cabs located at either end of the vehicle, and travels along the 3.5 miles (5.6 km) crawlerway at a maximum speed of 1 mile per hour (0.44704 m/s) loaded, or 2 mile per hour (0.89408 m/s) unloaded. The average trip time from the VAB along the Crawlerway to Launch Complex 39 is about five hours. Each crawlerway is 7 ft (2 m) deep and covered with Alabama and Tennessee river rock for its low friction properties to reduce the possibility of sparks. In 2000, NASA unearthed and restored an Apollo-era segment of the crawlerway to provide access to a high-bay building in order to provide protection from a hurricane.
Kennedy Space Center has been using the same two crawlers, nicknamed "Hans" and "Franz" for the bodybuilding characters
Hans and Franz
Hans and Franz were characters in a recurring sketch called "Pumping Up with Hans & Franz" on the television sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live...
, since their initial delivery in 1965. In their lifetime, they have traveled more than 3400 miles (5,471.8 km), about the same driving distance as Miami to Seattle.
The crawlers were overhauled in 2003 with upgrades to the Motor Control Center, which houses the switchgear and electrical controls of all of major systems onboard, a new engine and pump ventilation system and new diesel engine radiators, and replacement of the two driver cabs on each vehicle (one on each end). NASA had planned to use the crawlers for the Constellation program after the Space Shuttle was retired in 2011; due to their age and need to support the heavier Ares V
Ares V
The Ares V was the planned cargo launch component of the Constellation program, which was to have replaced the Space Shuttle after its retirement in 2011. Ares V was also planned to carry supplies for a human presence on Mars...
and its launch tower, NASA planned to modify the crawler's engines. With the cancellation of the Constellation program, the fate of the crawlers is unknown.
Cultural references
In a season three episode of Dirty JobsDirty Jobs
Dirty Jobs is a program on the Discovery Channel, produced by Pilgrim Films & Television, in which host Mike Rowe is shown performing difficult, strange, disgusting, or messy occupational duties alongside the typical employees. The show premiered with two pilot episodes in November 2003...
, host Mike Rowe
Mike Rowe
Mike Rowe may refer to:*Michael Rowe, television writer for Futurama*Mike Rowe , host of the Discovery Channel show Dirty Jobs* Mike Rowe , retired Canadian professional ice hockey player...
helps workers maintain a crawler-transporter. Rowe also takes the transporter for a short drive.
The crawler is also featured in the 2011 motion picture, Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
In the Fallout 3
Fallout 3
Fallout 3 is an action role-playing game released by Bethesda Game Studios, and the third major installment in the Fallout series. The game was released in North America, Europe and Australia in October 2008, and in Japan in December 2008 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360...
add on pack Broken Steel the fictional US government survivors, The Enclave, have a mobile base built on and into a heavily modified crawler.
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