NASA's Low Density Supersonic Decelerator set for further testing

[F-22Raptor]

NASA teams are continuing preparations for the Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) test off the coast of Hawaii June 2-12. This week the team completed a number of key pre-test procedures, including a successful mate between the test vehicle and balloon support systems.



So, you may be wondering what this LDSD technology is – and why it’s important to future missions to Mars. Put simply, it’s about mass, speed and safety. NASA is planning ambitious robotic and human missions to Mars, which will require larger, more complex spacecraft than we’ve ever flown before. They’ll need to haul sizeable payloads to accommodate long stays on the Martian surface, and must fly back and forth more quickly to minimize human exposure to space radiation. That means finding new ways to slow down when our spacecraft reach their destinations, effectively countering those faster flights and payloads of greater mass.

Current deceleration technologies date back to NASA’s Viking Program, which put two landers on Mars in 1976. The basic Viking parachute design has been used ever since, such as during the 2012 delivery of the Curiosity rover to Mars.

Now NASA seeks to use atmospheric drag as a solution. NASA’s LDSD project, led by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and sponsored by NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate in Washington, is conducting this full-scale flight test of two breakthrough technologies: a supersonic inflatable aerodynamic decelerator, or SIAD, and an innovative new parachute. These devices potentially will help us deliver double the current amount of payload — 1.5 metric tons — to the surface of Mars. They also will greatly increase the accessible surface area we can explore, and will improve landing accuracy from a margin of approximately 6.5 miles to a little more than 1 mile.

All these factors will dramatically increase the success of future missions on Mars.

Supersonic Decelerator Gets a Lift to Prepare for Launch | LDSD 2015 Launch Status Updates

 

[F-22Raptor]

The parachute failed again in todays test.

It just goes to show how hard space is. They have another test planned next year. Hopefully they get some good data to improve the design.

 

[Hindustani78]

KEKAHA, Hawaii (June 8, 2015) The test vehicle for NASA's low-density supersonic decelerator (LDSD) gains altitude after its launch from U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, Hawaii. NASA's LDSD project is designed to investigate and test breakthrough technologies for landing future robotic and human Mars missions, and safely returning large payloads to Earth. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Diana Quinlan/Released)

KEKAHA, Hawaii (June 8, 2015) The test vehicle for NASA's low-density supersonic decelerator (LDSD) launches from U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, Hawaii. NASA's LDSD project is designed to investigate and test breakthrough technologies for landing future robotic and human Mars missions, and safely returning large payloads to Earth. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Diana Quinlan/Released)

KAUAI, Hawaii (June 8, 2015) Sailors assigned to Mobile Diving Salvage Unit (MDSU) 1 Explosive Ordnance Detachment recover the test vehicle for NASA's low-density supersonic decelerator (LDSD) off the coast of the U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, Hawaii. NASA's LDSD project is designed to investigate and test breakthrough technologies for landing future robotic and human Mars missions, and safely returning large payloads to Earth. (U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist John M. Hageman/Released)

KAUAI, Hawaii (June 8, 2015) Sailors assigned to Mobile Diving Salvage Unit (MDSU) 1 Explosive Ordnance Detachment recover the test vehicle for NASA's Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) off the coast of the U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, Hawaii. NASA's LDSD project is designed to investigate and test breakthrough technologies for landing future robotic and human Mars missions, and safely returning large payloads to Earth. (U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist John M. Hageman/Released)