The U.S. space agency says it has signed a contract with American Tank and Vessel Inc. of Mobile, Ala., for a rocket engine test stand. The installation of a test cell diffuser and associated systems in the A-3 test stand will be made at NASA's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi.

On Monday, Jan 5, NASA issued a request for proposal for the Ares V rocket that will perform heavy lift and cargo functions as part of the next generation of spacecraft that will return humans to the moon.

NASA's newest high-performance rocket engine, the J-2X, successfully completed its critical design review Thursday at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.

ATK Thiokol is headed to the moon, says NASA. The Utah rocket-maker's solid fuel boosters are critical components in the space agency's $104 billion plans announced Monday to send humans back to the moon within the next 13 years, NASA administrator Michael Griffin said in a press briefing.