| Saturn V dynamic test stand | |
| Nrhp Type: | nhl |
| Location: | Huntsville, Alabama |
| Coordinates: | 34.6308°N -86.6611°W |
| Area: | less than one acre |
| Architect: | Heinz Hilten[1] of NASA |
| Designated Nrhp Type: | October 3, 1985[2] |
| Added: | October 3, 1985 |
| Refnum: | 85002806 |
Saturn V dynamic test stand, also known as dynamic structural test facility,[3] at the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama is the test stand used for testing of the Saturn V rocket and the Space Shuttle prior to the vehicles' first flights. Designated building 4550, it stands 363feet tall and is 98feet square.[4] Its central bay has maximum dimensions of 74feetx74feetft (xft), and it is topped by a derrick capable of moving 200-ton objects in a 70feet radius. An elevator provides access to 15 levels in the structure, and a cable tunnel connects the building to control facilities in the space center's East Test Area.
NASA built the test stand in 1964 to conduct mechanical and vibrational tests on the fully assembled Saturn V rocket. Major problems capable of causing failure of the vehicle were discovered and corrected here.[2] The new building was so tall that in 1966 when the Saturn V first stage was entering, an observer noted, "Fog and clouds hovered around the top of the tall test stand most of the day while the stage was being lifted from its transporter into place inside the stand, said to be the tallest building in Alabama."[5] The stand was used to test how spacecraft behaved when put under vibrating and bending stresses, and to test the connections between major stages of the craft.
It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1985 for its role in the Saturn V program.[2] [6]
In addition to the Saturn V dynamic test vehicle, designated SA-500D, two Space Shuttle test vehicles, Pathfinder and Enterprise, were also tested in this facility.