Space agencies worldwide are advancing inflatable heat shields for future Mars missions. These unique heat shields can increase the amount of mass brought back from orbit, making them crucial for safe deceleration and landing on the thin-atmosphered planet.
Currently, space agencies use rigid aeroshells to bring people and cargo back from space, but these have limitations. The larger the aeroshell during re-entry, the more mass can be easily brought back from orbit. However, existing launch vehicle fairings only allow for aeroshells up to four or five meters in diameter.
NASA’s Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator (LOFTID) demonstrated a six-meter-diameter inflatable heat shield, which was the largest blunt-body atmospheric entry ever recorded. The successful test showed that HIAD technology can withstand harsh environments and protect spacecraft during re-entry.
In addition to NASA, other space agencies are also developing inflatable heat shields. Europe’s new project, ICARUS, aims to develop an Inflatable Heat Shield, which could eventually be used for Mars missions. The project has received €10 million in funding from the European Commission and is expected to complete its mission design and system maturation during the first phase.
The development of inflatable heat shields could significantly enhance our ability to explore space, allowing us to bring back larger payloads and conduct longer-duration missions. With NASA’s LOFTID demonstrating the feasibility of these heat shields, it’s likely that we’ll see more advancements in this area as the space community continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible.
Source: https://interestingengineering.com/space/inflatable-heat-shields-for-mars-missions