NASA performs another test of the Orion parachute system

The Orion parachute system completes the seventh drop in a series of eight qualifying tests. Photo Credit: NASA

Last week, NASA tested the parachute system for the space agency's Orion spacecraft, which is designed to send astronauts into the air. deep space in the 2020s.

test was held at the US Army Proving Ground in Yuma, Arizona, and was the seventh decline in a series of eight qualifying tests, according to NASA . Space Agency engineers use these badessments to certify Orion's paratroopers for crewed missions

An artist rendering of the Orion full spacecraft in orbit. The truncated cone-shaped control module at the front of the vehicle is the only part designed to return to the untouched Earth. Image Credit: NASA

For this particular evaluation, a dart-shaped test article was used. The space agency said it was the final test using this device and the next test, scheduled for September, will use a capsule-shaped test article.

NASA stated that this fall was used to demonstrate the robustness of the parachute system. The object was to fly the article at an altitude of about 6.6 miles (10.6 kilometers) before falling off a plane. This altitude allowed him to generate enough speed to simulate almost twice as many forces on the main falls as during a nominal descent.

According to NASA, the system has 11 parachutes in total – three parachutes, three pilot parachutes and three main parachutes. They were designed to reduce the speed of returning a capsule after reentry to ensure ocean safety, said the US Space Agency

once deployed, the main parachutes are designed to reach 35 meters in diameter. However, they are packed in containers on Orion that are the size of a large suitcase. To reach this size, NASA said the chutes were compacted with hydraulic presses of a strength of up to 36,000 kilograms (80,000 pounds) before being baked for two days and sealed under vacuum. The space agency said that gives parachutes a density of about 40 pounds per cubic foot (640 kilograms per cubic meter) – about the same as the wood of an oak tree.

At approximately 16 feet (5 meters) in diameter and 11 meters tall With 3.3 meters tall, the Orion capsule is designed to send people beyond the low Earth orbit for the first time since 1972 Its first test flight took place in December 2014. Launched on a Delta IV rocket, the exploration into orbit The flight test mission 1 ( EFT-1 ) was sent up to 3,600 miles (5,800 kilometers) to test the thermal screen of crafts, parachutes, computers and other objects.

The second flight of an Orion spacecraft, Exploration Mission 1 ( EM-1 ), should be launched on the gigantic Space Launch System ( SLS ) that the NASA also in development. This mission, which will have no personnel on board, will be the first flight of SLS and is currently scheduled for in 2020 . However, it has been delayed several times from its original target of 2017.

EM-2 – the third test flight of capsule design – is expected to send people into the cislunar space in 2023 However, like EM-1, date could change pending development delays.

Courtesy of NASA

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Derek Richardson

Derek Richardson graduated in mbad media, with a specialization in contemporary journalism, from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. In Washburn, he was editor of the student-run newspaper Washburn Review. He also has a blog on the International Space Station called Orbital Velocity. He met with members of the SpaceFlight Insider team during the flight of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 551 rocket with the MUOS-4 satellite. Richardson joined our team shortly thereafter.

His pbadion for space was inflamed when he saw the Space Shuttle Discovery take off in space on October 29, 1998. Today, this fervor is accelerated to orbit and shows no signs of slowing down. After taking courses in mathematics and engineering at the university, he quickly realized that his true calling was to communicate to others about space. Since joining SpaceFlight Insider in 2015, Richardson has strived to improve the quality of our content, eventually becoming our editor. @TheSpaceWriter