NASA performs final parachute test for Orion's secure return

While SpaceX continues to develop Big Falcon Rocket for missions on the moon and Mars, NASA is also making giant strides towards the first manned Space Launch System (SLS) flights – the massive heavy-lift rocket that would take astronauts in the deep space. further than anyone in the history of manned spaceflight.

An Orion test capsule with its three main parachutes arises in the Arizona desert on September 12th. Photo: NASA

Although the first flight of the huge SLS rocket is abandoned, the second mission, named Exploration Mission-2 (EM-2), will mark a major breakthrough by sending a crew of four for a lunar overflight. The mission, scheduled for 2023, will revolve around the capabilities of the SLS and Orion, the spacecraft placed at the top of the vehicle.

The Orion Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPCV) will welcome astronauts during their journey into deep space and their return. The gear is still in the development phase, but NASA has conducted a series of tests to determine if it works exactly as planned during the flight. A major aspect of these tests is to ensure that Orion safely survives high-speed atmospheric reentry and lands on Earth.

For this, the space agency has studied the performance of a complex skydiving system, designed to reduce re-entry speeds of more than 300 mph at just 20 mph. It includes up to 11 different parachutes and has undergone several tests in the past – all looking at deployment and operation in different scenarios, it's a case of re-entry normal or some kind of failure due to intense aerodynamic forces.

On September 12, NASA conducted the eighth and final test of the parachute system, qualifying it to bring astronauts safely back to EM-2 missions or future deep space missions.

As part of this test, a simulated Orion variant was dropped from a Boeing C-17 flying at nearly 35,000 feet over Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona. The gear was allowed to fall freely for a while, after which the parachute system was triggered.

First, only one set of chutes was deployed, which threw the protective coating of the other chutes. As it happened, the remaining parachutes were deployed, bringing the entire system into action and slowing down the craft for a touchdown safely.

As NASA explained, the system included not only 11 chutes, but also a series of barrel-type mortars, pyrotechnic bolt cutters and over 30 miles of Kevlar lines connecting the Gear with parachute equipment. All this must self-deploy in the exact predefined sequence within 10 minutes of descent through the Earth's atmosphere, which the team noted during the final test.

Prior to this, the team had verified system performance in a series of failure scenarios such as the failure of a mortal affecting the deployment of a single type of parachute or damage to the aircraft. textile component of the chute due to extremely intense aerodynamic forces. stake

"We are working very hard not only to get Orion ready to take our astronauts farther than we have been before, but to make sure they return home safely," said Mark Kirasich, Orion program director. in a statement. "The parachute system is complex and the evaluation of the parachutes several times during our test series gives us confidence that we will be ready for all types of landing days.