[meteorite-list] NASA Hypersonic Inflatable Tech Test Set For Virginia Launch July 21

[Ron Baalke]

July 17, 2012

David E. Steitz 
Headquarters, Washington      
202-358-1730 
david.steitz at nasa.gov 

Kathy Barnstorff 
Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va. 
757-864-9886/757-244-8511 
kathy.barnstorff at nasa.gov 

Keith Koehler 
Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Va. 
757-824-1579 
keith.a.koehler at nasa.gov 


RELEASE: 12-236

NASA HYPERSONIC INFLATABLE TECH TEST SET FOR VIRGINIA LAUNCH JULY 21

WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. -- NASA Space Technology Program researchers will 
launch and deploy a large inflatable heat shield aboard a rocket 
travelling at hypersonic speeds this weekend during a technology 
demonstration test from the agency's Wallops Flight Facility on 
Wallops Island, Va. 

NASA has four consecutive days of launch opportunities for the 
agency's Inflatable Re-entry Vehicle Experiment (IRVE-3), starting 
July 21, with the liftoff window from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. EDT each day. 

The test is designed to demonstrate lightweight, yet strong, 
inflatable structures that could become practical tools for 
exploration of other worlds or as a way to return items safely to 
Earth from the International Space Station. During this technology 
demonstration test flight, NASA's IRVE-3 payload will try to re-enter 
Earth's atmosphere at hypersonic speeds -- Mach 5, or 3,800 mph to 
7,600 mph. 

"As we investigate new ways to bring cargo back to Earth from the 
International Space Station and innovative ways to land larger 
payloads safely on Mars, it's clear we need to invest in new 
technologies that will enable these goals," said Michael Gazarik, 
director of NASA's Space Technology Program. "IRVE-3 is precisely the 
sort of cross-cutting technology NASA's Space Technology Program 
should mature to make these future NASA and commercial space 
endeavors possible." 

The IRVE-3 experiment will fly aboard a three-stage Black Brant XI 
launch vehicle for its suborbital flight. The payload and the heat 
shield, which looks like a large, uninflated cone of inner tubes, 
will be packed inside the rocket's 22-inch-diameter nose cone. About 
six minutes after launch, the rocket will climb to an altitude of 
about 280 miles over the Atlantic Ocean. 

At that point, the 680-pound IRVE-3 will separate from the rocket. An 
inflation system similar to air tanks used by scuba divers will pump 
nitrogen gas into the IRVE-3 aeroshell until it becomes almost 10 
feet in diameter. Instruments on board, including pressure sensors 
and heat flux gauges, as well as cameras, will provide data to 
engineers on the ground of how well the inflated heat shield performs 
during the force and heat of entry into Earth's atmosphere. 

After its flight, IRVE-3 will fall into the Atlantic Ocean about 350 
miles down range from Wallops. From launch to splash down, the flight 
is expected to take approximately 20 minutes. 

"We originally came up with this concept because we'd like to be able 
to land more mass and access higher altitudes on Mars," said Neil 
Cheatwood, IRVE-3 principal investigator at NASA's Langley Research 
Center in Hampton, Va. "To do so you need more drag. We're seeking to 
maximize the drag area of the entry system. We want to make it as big 
as we can. The limitation with current technology has been the launch 
vehicle diameter." 

Cheatwood and a team of NASA engineers and technicians have spent the 
last three years addressing the technical challenges of materials 
withstanding the heat created by atmospheric entry and preparing for 
the IRVE-3 flight. The team has studied designs, assessed materials 
in laboratories and wind tunnels, and subjected hardware to thermal 
and pressure loads beyond what the inflatable spacecraft technology 
should face during flight. 

This test is a follow on to the successful IRVE-2, which showed an 
inflatable heat shield could survive intact after coming through 
Earth's atmosphere. IRVE-3 is the same size as IRVE-2, but has a 
heavier payload and will be subjected to a much higher reentry heat. 

IRVE-3 is part of the Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator 
(HIAD) Project within the Game Changing Development Program, part of 
NASA's Space Technology Program. Langley developed and manages the 
IRVE-3 and HIAD projects. 

Journalists interested in attending the IRVE-3 launch at NASA's 
Wallops Flight Facility should contact Wallops Public Affairs Officer 
Keith Koehler at 757-824-1579 or keith.a.koehler at nasa.gov to arrange 
for media accreditation. 

NASA TV will air the IRVE-3 launch live and stream it on the Web at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv 

For more information about IRVE-3 and the HIAD Project, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov/hiad 

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov 
	
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