47,853 kg ( 147-cm ( 44,087 kg ( The business end of the GEM-63XL. Source: NASA Northrop Grumman Vice President of Propulsion Systems Charlie Precourt has told NASA, "The GEM-63XL increases thrust and performance by 15 - 20 percent compared to a standard GEM 63." The purpose of the January 21, 2020 test was to validate the performance of the new motor's internal insulation, the grain of its solid propellant, and its ballistics, in a hot-conditioned environment. A previous test of the motor conducted on August 13, 2020, was for a cold-conditioned environment. At today's test, the rocket motor fired for approximately 90 seconds and produced nearly 203,600 kg ( 449,000 pounds) of thrust.