This is the regeneratively-cooled liquid fuel rocket motor designed and built in 1942 by James H. Wyld of the American Rocket Society (ARS) for the Navy. It is a copy of the original Wyld motor, built in 1937 and successfully tested in 1938 and 1941.
One major problem facing early rocket experimenters was a suitable cooling for their motors, which often over-heated. In the regenerative system, the propellant circulates around the motor's cooling jacket before injection into the combustion chamber, where it is ignited with the oxidizer (liquid oxygen). Wyld, with three other ARS members, formed Reaction Motors, Inc. (RMI) in 1941 to develop the Wyld engine. RMI thus produced reliable JATO (Jet-Assisted-Take-Off) motors to help lift large, heavily-loaded planes. The motor was donated to the Smithsonian in 1968 by the Aerojet General Corp.
Display Status
This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Date
1942
Country of Origin
United States of America
Type
PROPULSION-Rocket Engines
Manufacturer
James Hart Wyld
Dimensions
3-D: 24.1 × 14 × 8.9cm, 1.8kg (9 1/2 × 5 1/2 × 3 1/2 in., 4lb.)
Materials
Cooling jacket, steel; rods and bolts, steel; retainer rings (two), Chrome-plated steel; propellant inlet,, non-ferrous, Chrome-plated; B-nut, brass; top fixture (ignitor unit), probably brass; nozzle nut, brass; nozzle, proper, non-ferrous
Inventory Number
A19680226000
Credit Line
Gift of Aerojet General Corporation
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
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