Aerial view picture of Aerojet Rocketdyne ’ s Redmond , Washington facility .
Image of NASA ’ s Perseverance Rover being lowered to the surface of Mars by Sky Crane . Eight Aerojet Rocketdyne MR-80B descent thrusters powered the Sky Crane ’ s descent and hover over the planet ’ s surface .
The NEXT-C next-generation solar electric propulsion system designed and built by Aerojet Rocketdyne being integrated into NASA ’ s Double Asteroid Redirection Test ( DART ) spacecraft . Credit : NASA / Johns Hopkins APL / Ed Whitman
Illustration of DART , from behind the NEXT – C ion engine . Credit : NASA / Johns Hopkins APL
According to Young , another movie moment is coming in summer 2021 , with the launch of the DART program ( Double Asteroid Redirection Test ), a planetary defense mission via NASA . Young said that NASA will be the project lead , with Johns Hopkins University ’ s Applied Physics Laboratory managing the project , and industry partners , such as Aerojet Rocketdyne , providing support .
Armageddon , the 1998 blockbuster film starring Bruce Willis , could have used this technology when they had to defer an asteroid from hitting earth with a degenerate group of oil riggers .
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While the possibility of an asteroid hitting Earth may have existed 30 years ago , or longer — the investment for asteroid deferment has now come to fruition , and Aerojet Rocketdyne is supporting a mission that may be a proving ground for this type of technology .
At the Redmond location , Young said they have 420 employees and about 30 contractors . Young came to the company about four years ago with a background in law enforcement and a passion for supporting the defense industry .
He said , “ We are the second largest space company in the state of Washington , outside of Blue Origin .”
As a former Air Force criminal and counterintelligence agent , his career sounds much like a movie character as well . But , in his role of GM at the Redmond plant , he said he has full responsibility for safety of the employees and of the products that they develop .