One big area where aerocapture could have enormous payoffs would be for when the transit vehicle returns to the Earth from the moon or Mars. It seems they could test this idea relatively inexpensively with one of the bigger sounding rockets or perhaps a Delta II class booster. I think you could test it in the same way they tested the Apollo heat shields on one of the early unmanned missions (I think it was Apollo 4). They launched the CM/SM into a high trajectory, then accelerated it as it approached the Earth until it hit the atmosphere at roughly the same velocity as it would returning from the moon. It worked. For aerocapture, you could build a scale model of the design and accelerate it towards the Earth. Instead of doing a direct reentry, you'd try for an aerocapture instead. It seems possible that such a test could be conducted for well under $100 million if a large sounding rocket could meet the needs. Using a Delta II, the test would probably be more expensive but not excessively so.
Space/Science » in reply to We almost did
The concept may be old but the details are still challenging
The whole thread (30 posts)
- Orbiting but not Landing on Mars
- And What Are You Talking About With Regard To Launch Windows?
- It's Far Past Time You Read Something On Using Martian Resources Raoul
- "You need to take your return fuel with you to a Martian moon which means you also need the fuel to carry it. "
- re: It's Far Past Time You Read Something On Using Martian Resources Raoul
- The problems with using Martian resources for the return trip.