SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL AEROSPACE REPORTS

A Biweekly Publication of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
VOLUME 44, ISSUE 7 - April 07, 2006

18 SPACECRAFT DESIGN, TESTING AND PERFORMANCE
Includes satellites; space platforms; space stations; spacecraft systems and components such as thermal and environmental controls; and spacecraft control and stability characteristics.

For life support systems see 54 Man/System Technology and Life Support.

For related information see also 05 Aircraft Design, Testing and Performance; 39 Structural Mechanics; and 16 Space Transportation and Safety.

20060009191 NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, USA

Understanding Space Shuttle Structural Dynamics

James, George; [2004]; 11 pp.; In English; Texas Assoc. of Schools of Engineering Tech. Conference, 22 Oct. 2004, League City, TX, USA; No Copyright; Avail.: CASI: A03, Hardcopy

The Space Shuttle consists of a orbiter, external tank, solid rocket boosters, payload, main engines, mobile launch platform and launch pad (Ground Ops). Structural Dynamics - All structures will vibrate at certain frequencies. The dynamics of the Space Shuttle must be understood in order to make sure it can survive, to control it, to make sure that it can perform its mission, and to keep it from aging prematurely. We understand the structural dynamics of the Space Shuttle by modelling, testing and flying it. Derived from text

Dynamic Structural Analysis; Booster Rocket Engines; Space Shuttles; Space Shuttle Orbiters; Payloads; External Tanks

20060009328 NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, USA

Asymptotic Parachute Performance Sensitivity

Way, DavidW.; Powell, RichardW.; Chen, Allen; Steltzner, Adam D.; January 2006; 9 pp.; In English; 2006 IEEE Aerospace Conference, 4-11 Mar. 2006, Big Sky, MT, USA Contract(s)/Grant(s): 464.02.07.07 Report No.(s): Paper-1465; No Copyright; Avail.: CASI: A02, Hardcopy

In 2010, the Mars Science Laboratory mission will pioneer the next generation of robotic Entry, Descent, and Landing systems by delivering the largest and most capable rover to date to the surface of Mars. In addition to landing more mass than any other mission to Mars, Mars Science Laboratory will also provide scientists with unprecedented access to regions of Mars that have been previously unreachable. By providing an Entry, Descent, and Landing system capable of landing at altitudes as high as 2 km above the reference gravitational equipotential surface, or areoid, as defined by the Mars Orbiting Laser Altimeter program, Mars Science Laboratory will demonstrate sufficient performance to land on 83% of the planet s surface. By contrast, the highest altitude landing to date on Mars has been the Mars Exploration Rover at 1.3 km below the areoid. The coupling of this improved altitude performance with latitude limits as large as 60 degrees off of the equator and a precise delivery to within 10 km of a surface target, will allow the science community to select the Mars Science Laboratory landing site from thousands of scientifically interesting possibilities. In meeting these requirements, Mars Science Laboratory is extending the limits of the Entry, Descent, and Landing technologies qualified by the Mars Viking, Mars Pathfinder, and Mars Exploration Rover missions. Specifically, the drag deceleration provided by a Viking-heritage 16.15 m supersonic Disk-Gap-Band parachute in the thin atmosphere of Mars is insufficient, at the altitudes and ballistic coefficients under consideration by the Mars Science Laboratory project, to maintain necessary altitude performance and timeline margin. This paper defines and discusses the asymptotic parachute performance observed in Monte Carlo simulation and performance analysis and its effect on the Mars Science Laboratory Entry, Descent, and Landing architecture. Author

Parachutes; Descent; Deceleration; Reliability Analysis; Sensitivity; Landing Aids; Drag; Robotics; Laser Altimeters

Source: NASA