Propulsive Descent Technologies - Powered Descent Retropropulsion in an Atmosphere
Propulsive Descent Technologies will discuss the relevant physics and current state-of-the-art for the EDL applications of retro-propulsion for descent.
EDL↗
SEARCH · Search NASA
Results for “Propulsive Descent”
Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
Apollo experience report: Descent propulsion system
The propulsion system for the descent stage of the lunar module was designed to provide thrust to transfer the fully loaded lunar module with two crewmen from the lunar parking orbit to the lunar surface. A history of the development of this system is presented. Development was accomplished primarily by ground testing of individual components and by testing the integrated system. Unique features of the descent propulsion system were the deep throttling capability and the use of a lightweight cryogenic helium pressurization system.
Hammock, W. R., Jr.↗
Apollo 10 LM-4, descent propulsion system final flight evaluation
Apollo 10 descent propulsion system performance
Seto, R. K. M.↗
Apollo 16 LM-11 descent propulsion system final flight evaluation
The performance of the LM-11 Descent Propulsion System during the Apollo 16 Mission was evaluated and found to be satisfactory. The average engine effective specific impulse was 0.1 second higher than predicted, but well within the predicted 1 sigma uncertainty of 0.2 seconds. The engine performance corrected to standard inlet conditions for the FTP portion of the burn at 50 seconds after ignition was as follows: thrust, 9839 lbf; specific impulse, 306.9 sec; and propellant mixture ratio, 1.592. These values are +0.34, +0.03 and +0.0 percent different, respectively, from the values reported from engine acceptance tests and were within specification limits. Several flight measurement discrepancies that existed during the flight are discussed.
Avvenire, A. T.↗
Apollo 14 mission report. Supplement 5: Descent propulsion system final flight evaluation
The performance of the LM-8 descent propulsion system during the Apollo 14 mission was evaluated and found to be satisfactory. The average engine effective specific impulse was 0.1 second higher than predicted, but well within the predicted l sigma uncertainty. The engine performance corrected to standard inlet conditions for the FTP portion of the burn at 43 seconds after ignition was as follows: thrust, 9802, lbf; specific impulse, 304.1 sec; and propellant mixture ratio, 1603. These values are + or - 0.8, -0.06, and + or - 0.3 percent different respectively, from the values reported from engine acceptance tests and were within specification limits.
Avvenire, A. T.↗
Apollo 16, LM-11 descent propulsion system final flight evaluation
The performance of the LM-11 descent propulsion system during the Apollo 16 missions was evaluated and found satisfactory. The average engine effective specific impulse was 0.1 second higher than predicted, but well within the predicted one sigma uncertainty of 0.2 seconds. Several flight measurement discrepancies existed during the flight as follows: (1) the chamber pressure transducer had a noticeable drift, exhibiting a maximum error of about 1.5 psi at approximately 130 seconds after engine ignition, (2) the fuel and oxidizer interface pressure measurements appeared to be low during the entire flight, and (3) the fuel propellant quantity gaging system did not perform within expected accuracies.
Avvenire, A. T.↗
Apollo 15 mission report, supplement 4: Descent propulsion system final flight evaluation
The results of a postflight analysis of the LM-10 Descent Propulsion System (DPS) during the Apollo 15 Mission are reported. The analysis determined the steady state performance of the DPS during the descent phase of the manned lunar landing. Flight measurement discrepancies are discussed. Simulated throttle performance results are cited along with overall performance results. Evaluations of the propellant quantity gaging system, propellant loading, pressurization system, and engine are reported. Graphic illustrations of the evaluations are included.
Avvenire, A. T.↗
Apollo 12 mission report: Descent, propulsion system final flight evaluation (supplement 5)
The results are presented of the postflight analysis of the Descent propulsion system (DPS) performance during the Apollo 12 Mission. The primary objective of the analysis was to determine the steady-state performance of the DPS during the descent phase of the manned lunar landing. This is a supplement ot the Apollo 12 Mission Report. In addition to further analysis of the DPS, this report brings together information from other reports and memorandums analyzing specific anomalies and performance in order to present a comprehensive description of the DPS operation during the Apollo 12 Mission.
Seto, R. K. M.↗
Techport Input for Propulsive Descent Technologies (PDT) Project
The PDT project will investigate the use of retro propulsion during the supersonic phase of atmospheric entry for Mars missions. The project technical approach involves a combination of procurement and evaluation of commercially provided flight data, development of candidate vehicle configurations, and engineering calibration of computational fluid dynamics models to the available flight data.
Campbell, Charles H.↗
Fabrication Assembly and Test of the Mars Science Laboratory Descent Stage Propulsion System
The Descent Stage Propulsion System (DSPS) is the most challenging and complex propulsion system ever built at JPL. Performance requirements, such as the entry Reaction Control System (RCS) requirements, and the terminal descent requirements (3300 N maximum thrust and approximately 835,000 N-s total impulse in less than a minute), required a large amount of propellant and a large number of components for a spacecraft that had to fit in a 4.5 meter aeroshell. The size and shape of the aeroshell, along with the envelope of the stowed rover, limited the configuration options for the Descent Stage structure. The configuration and mass constraints of the Descent Stage structure, along with performance requirements, drove the configuration of the DSPS. This paper will examine some of the challenges encountered and solutions developed during the fabrication, assembly, and test of the DSPS.
Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)↗
Lessons Learned from the Development of the MSL Descent Stage Propulsion System
Development of the MSL descent stage propulsion system required a number of new propulsion hardware developments incorporating technologies not normally found in spacecraft propulsion subsystems. These developments were driven by the relatively high (25,000 N) maximum thrust level and the requirement for precise throttling of the main engines. This paper presents lessons learned in the course of these developments, including surprises and anomalies discovered at both the component and subsystem levels.
Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL)↗
Design and Development of the MSL Descent Stage Propulsion System
On August 5, 2012, The Mars Science Laboratory mission successfully landed the largest interplanetary rover ever built, Curiosity, on the surface of Mars. The Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) phase of this mission was by far the most complex landing ever attempted on a planetary body. The Descent Stage Propulsion System played an integral and critical role during Curiosity's EDL. The Descent Stage Propulsion System was a one of a kind hydrazine propulsion system designed specifically for the EDL phase of the MSL mission. It was designed, built, and tested at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the design and development of the MSL Descent Stage Propulsion System. Driving requirements, system design, component selection, operational sequence of the system at Mars, new developments, and key challenges will be discussed.
Weiss, Jeffrey M.↗
Mars Science Laboratory Loads Environment and Verification of the Descent Stage Propulsion Lines
No abstract available
descent stage↗
Mars lander propulsion.
Mars landing vehicle descent propulsion, suggesting monopropellant mechanization concept for mission objectives and constraints
Wrobel, J. R.↗
Mars Sample Return Using Commercial Capabilities: Propulsive Entry, Descent, and Landing of a Capsule Form Vehicle
This paper describes a critical portion of the work that has been done at NASA, Ames Research Center regarding the use of the commercially developed Dragon capsule as a delivery vehicle for the elements of a high priority Mars Sample Return mission. The objective of the investigation was to determine entry and landed mass capabilities that cover anticipated mission conditions. The "Red Dragon", Mars configuration, uses supersonic retro-propulsion, with no required parachute system, to perform Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) maneuvers. The propulsive system proposed for use is the same system that will perform an abort, if necessary, for a human rated version of the Dragon capsule. Standard trajectory analysis tools are applied to publically available information about Dragon and other legacy capsule forms in order to perform the investigation. Trajectory simulation parameters include entry velocity, flight path angle, lift to drag Ratio (L/D), landing site elevation, atmosphere density, and total entry mass, in addition engineering assumptions for the performance of the propulsion system are stated. Mass estimates for major elements of the overall proposed architecture are coupled to this EDL analysis to close the overall architecture. Three synodic launch opportunities, beginning with the 2022 opportunity, define the arrival conditions. Results state the relations between the analysis parameters as well as sensitivities to those parameters. The EDL performance envelope includes landing altitudes between 0 and -4 km referenced to the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter datum as well as minimum and maximum atmosphere density. Total entry masses between 7 and 10 mt are considered with architecture closure occurring between 9.0 and 10 mt. Propellant mass fractions for each major phase of the EDL - Entry, Terminal Descent, and Hazard Avoidance - have been derived. An assessment of the effect of the entry conditions on the Thermal Protection System (TPS) currently in use for Dragon missions shows no significant stressors. A useful payload mass of 2.0 mt is provided and includes mass and grow allowance for a Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV), Earth Return Vehicle (ERV), and mission unique equipment. The useful payload supports an architecture that receives a sample from another surface asset and sends it directly back to Earth for recovery in a high Earth orbit. The work shows that emerging commercial capabilities as well as previously studied EDL methodologies can be used to efficiently support an important planetary science objective. The work also has applications for human exploration missions that will also use propulsive EDL techniques
EDL↗
Enabling Pinpoint Landing (PPL) on Mars
Pinpoint landing (PPL) missions will deliver about 1000 kg of useful payload to the surface of Mars. Mid-to-high latitude landing site compatibility is sought which should provide the means to land at sites up to 2.5 km above Mars mean surface altitude. A dispersion and control analysis process is presented which helps to identify the effects of PPL error drivers, quantify the effect of dispersions on landing error and quantify the landing position control capability/authority along the entry path. An entry/descent/landing (EDL) profile is provided. Guided aeroshell is the baseline for all candidate Mars atmospheric entry architectures. A two-stage architecture is considered for the aerodynamic decelerator descent phase: supersonic parachute plus guided subsonic parachute or high-Mach inflatable decelerator plus guided subsonic parachute. The powered descent phase uses propulsive descent stage for soft landing and final error reduction maneuvers. Studies have found that the aeroshell entry face dispersions can be large, but closed-loop guidance can null out resulting errors to within about 2 km. Additionally, projected parachute control is inadequate to correct worst case dispersions without wind forecast data. To mitigate the problems dispersions due to atmospheric uncertainty can be reduced by providing on-board external means to measure density and winds ahead of the vehicle, higher L/D control authority options for the subsonic parachute phase can be investigated, and decelerators with control authority options for the supersonic descent phase can be examined. A navigation error analysis and wind effects summary are included.
aerodynamic↗
Mars Landing Vehicles: Descent and Ascent Propulsion Design Issues
Human and robotic Mars missions often include plans for landing large payloads on the planet’s surface. Thus far, landing of payload of up to approximately 1 metric ton (MT) have been successful. Future human missions have suggested large 5 to 25 MT surface payloads may be needed. Therefore, large landing vehicles with an initial mass of up to 100 MT may be required. In this chapter, the future human payload missions are assessed, investigating the mission velocity changes (delta-V) values for deorbit, deceleration, landing and ascent. The initial masses of single and multi-stage Mars landing vehicles are computed. Issues related to vehicle mass factors and delivering the needed delta-V are discussed.
Mars↗
Propulsion for lunar descent and ascent
Propulsion problems for lunar landing and ascent
PROPULSION SYSTEM↗