Two important aspects of the entry and descent of space vehicles are the tactical aspect of having control over the time and location of landing, and the severe mechanical and thermal loading on the vehicle. For manned missions, for instance, the maximum deceleration is usually limited by an upper bound of 3 g to save the occupants from discomfort or worse. Also in case of unmanned (scientific) missions a too strong deceleration might be harmful to the on-board instruments. The thermal load, e.g., the maximum heat flux, the wall temperature distribution over the surface, and the integrated heat load, define to a large extent the design and also the mass of the thermal protection system. Obviously, we want to have the most favourable load on the vehicle. However, complete freedom over the trajectory is usually also not possible: a winged re-entry vehicle like the Space Shuttle is supposed to land on an air strip, so its trajectory should be targeted to the landing location right on from entry. In case of the parachute descent of the Apollo capsules, it was important that they would splash down in the ocean not too distant from the recovery ships.
Guidance, Navigation, and Control
Springer Aerospace Techn.
26.12.2024
166 pages
Aufsatz/Kapitel (Buch)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
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