Test Stand

Santa Susana's Extraordinary Past

A Rich History at Santa Susana Field Laboratory

The site of the former Santa Susana Field Laboratory in the Simi Hills occupies a unique place in U.S. and California history. The land, water, plants and animals provided a traditional cultural landscape that supported Native American tribes who inhabited the area. The site’s cattle ranching history is replete with tales of gold prospectors, trophy game hunters and water surveyors who purchased and sold pieces of the site. The rugged open terrain and majestic rock formations interspersed with sculpted oak trees made the area a picturesque setting for television shows and movies that were filmed at the site from 1939 to 1996.

The site was operated for the federal government by various Boeing heritage companies, including North American Aviation, Rockwell International, Atomics International and Rocketdyne. NASA’s operations at the site started in 1973 when it acquired land formerly known as Air Force Plant 57 from the U.S. Air Force. Boeing purchased Rockwell's aerospace and defense unit, acquiring a large portion of the Santa Susana property in 1996. In 2005, Boeing sold Rocketdyne to Pratt & Whitney and retained ownership of prior Rocketdyne property at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory. The last rocket engine test was completed in 2006.

The Space Age at Santa Susana

Rocket engine testing for the U.S. government began at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory in 1947 as America built its space program. The site, which spans 2,850 acres, features remote and rugged rock outcrops that form natural bowls that were deemed ideal for rocket testing.

In 1950, the first American-made large liquid rocket fuel engine was tested at Vertical Test Stand 1, the first of several towering stands erected at Santa Susana. Other milestones soon followed as the site supported virtually every major space program in U.S. history, including:

  • Redstone, which launched the first American satellite in 1958 and the first American-manned flight in 1961.
  • Saturn Apollo, which had 33 missions and landed a man on the moon in 1969.
  • Space Shuttle, the first reusable liquid rocket fuel booster engine for space flight.
  • Delta/Atlas, America's workhorse satellite-launch engine, the last of which was tested at Santa Susana in 2006.

Over the course of nearly 60 years, 17,000 rocket engine tests were conducted at Santa Susana.

Coca Test Stand Coca Test Stand engineers remove exit covers on the J-2 cluster rocket engine. The Coca stands tested the Navaho and Atlas programs, and the Space Shuttle Main Engine.

A Source of Nuclear Power

In 1953, the Santa Susana Field Laboratory also became a center of excellence for research, development and testing of nuclear energy, non-nuclear liquid metals and alternative energy sources, including solar.

Much of the work conducted on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy at the Energy Technology Engineering Center, or ETEC, involved metallic sodium systems. This research on liquid metals technology was used to support the design and development of nuclear power throughout the U.S.

The Sodium Reactor Experiment was one of the first commercial nuclear power plants to provide electricity to the public, powering the city of Moorpark in 1957. The SRE experienced an accident in 1959 when overheating caused fuel damage in the reactor’s core. During the accident, primary power and cooling were maintained, coolant continued to circulate throughout the reactor core and the reactor vessel remained intact, preventing a meltdown. Following the accident, the SRE was repaired and operations continued, without incident, until the end of the project in 1964.

The System for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP) program was developed to test SNAP nuclear reactors in a simulated space environment. The SNAP10A was the first U.S. reactor to be placed into orbit when it was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in 1965.

ETEC also supported studies on advanced solar collectors for commercial electricity production, as well as the development of energy conversion processes designed to turn coal into liquid and gas fuels.

Coca Test Stand The U.S. Department of Energy’s ETEC was a center of excellence research, development and testing of nuclear, non-nuclear liquid metals and alternative energy sources, including solar.

From Research to Remediation, Restoration and Recovery

The modern world has been substantially shaped by technological breakthroughs at the site of the former Santa Susana Field Laboratory. A rocket engine test and energy research site for federal government programs, thousands of workers tested rocket engines used to defend the country, land on the Moon, and launch satellites for GPS and cell phones. It was also a test site for advanced energy research programs. After more than 50 years of operation, rocket engine testing ceased in 2006. Nuclear research ended in 1988. These past operations, which occupied approximately one-fifth of the 2,850- acre site, left residual chemical and radiological contamination in soil and groundwater. Scientific investigations and numerous health studies conducted over many years collectively reinforce that past operations have not affected the health of area residents.

Boeing is conducting extensive investigations and has conducted interim cleanup measures while building the scientific basis for cleanup pending final regulatory approval. Boeing has removed or treated 45,000 cubic yards of soil; analyzed 38,000 soil and groundwater samples; drilled 260 groundwater monitoring and extraction wells; and dismantled more than 300 structures. In addition, Boeing has installed a state-of-the-art groundwater treatment system, built two stormwater containment and filtration systems designed in consultation with a panel of stormwater experts to meet water quality standards that in many cases are stricter than drinking water standards (although there is no human water consumption) and restored 900 acres of land.

In 2022, the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) announced a comprehensive framework that establishes strict cleanup protocols and timelines for Boeing. The framework involves two state agencies — the DTSC and the Regional Board — and accelerates cleanup, reduces the potential for technical disputes and establishes a process to resolve them quickly, avoiding delays from litigation. The comprehensive framework agreement also includes safeguards to protect important environmental and cultural resources at the site, does not impact the validity of the conservation easement recorded on Boeing’s property, and includes an expedited cleanup process to streamline and accelerate cleanup of contamination at Santa Susana.