Discussion
ULA launched an inflatable heat shield on an Atlas V flight on Thursday. This was a secondary payload for NASA called LOFTID (Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator). It reentered safely and splashed down in the Pacific ocean off Hawaii under parachute.
LOFTID is 20 feet in diameter (6m) and looks like a classic UFO; Especially with its strobe lights flashing as they fished it out.
NASA want to use this technology for planetary reentry for Earth, Mars and other planets. ULA intend to use it for main engine recovery on Vulcan in future. That would require one about twice the size.
Animation and more info from NASA:
https://youtu.be/gzAFaThE6W4
LOFTID is 20 feet in diameter (6m) and looks like a classic UFO; Especially with its strobe lights flashing as they fished it out.
NASA want to use this technology for planetary reentry for Earth, Mars and other planets. ULA intend to use it for main engine recovery on Vulcan in future. That would require one about twice the size.
Animation and more info from NASA:
https://youtu.be/gzAFaThE6W4
Beati Dogu said:
ULA launched an inflatable heat shield on an Atlas V flight on Thursday. This was a secondary payload for NASA called LOFTID (Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator). It reentered safely and splashed down in the Pacific ocean off Hawaii under parachute.
LOFTID is 20 feet in diameter (6m) and looks like a classic UFO; Especially with its strobe lights flashing as they fished it out.
NASA want to use this technology for planetary reentry for Earth, Mars and other planets. ULA intend to use it for main engine recovery on Vulcan in future. That would require one about twice the size.
Animation and more info from NASA:
https://youtu.be/gzAFaThE6W4
The first one was tested in 2009, ballute heat shield concepts have been around for some time, probably '60s, but only recently tested and none have been used for a real mission as far as I know.LOFTID is 20 feet in diameter (6m) and looks like a classic UFO; Especially with its strobe lights flashing as they fished it out.
NASA want to use this technology for planetary reentry for Earth, Mars and other planets. ULA intend to use it for main engine recovery on Vulcan in future. That would require one about twice the size.
Animation and more info from NASA:
https://youtu.be/gzAFaThE6W4
They're lighter than most ablative shields, but higher risk as it needs to deploy.
Tory Bruno posted a video of the Centaur upper stage test explosion:
https://twitter.com/torybruno/status/1646572389193...
It shouldn’t delay the first launch too much though apparently.
https://twitter.com/torybruno/status/1646572389193...
It shouldn’t delay the first launch too much though apparently.
Beati Dogu said:
Now the first launch is officially no earlier than the 4th quarter of 2023 due to the problems with the Centaur upper stage. The tank design needs to be strengthened to avoid it bursting apart. Something they have had years to work on while waiting for the main engines.
A stage which is a slightly updated version of something which has been flying since the 1960s - hoe did they manage to mess it up so badly 
Beati Dogu said:
Now the first launch is officially no earlier than the 4th quarter of 2023 due to the problems with the Centaur upper stage. The tank design needs to be strengthened to avoid it bursting apart. Something they have had years to work on while waiting for the main engines.
Was their original plan not to use the old Centaur (much like SLS is using an interim upper stage), but when the engines looked like they would be years late they then decided there would be time to go for the updated version? Yes, I think initially they were going to use the same Centaur III that flies on the Atlas V rocket. That was to be replaced on Vulcan later with the ACES (Advanced Cryogenic Evolved Stage), but that was cancelled in 2020.
Instead, Vulcan will use the Centaur V upper stage from its first flight. This is based on the Centaur III with influences & insulation technology from ACES. Like ACES, it's wider, with the same 5.4 m (18 ft) diameter as the first stage and slightly taller too.
Centaur III (apart from the version they use for Starliner flights) uses a single RL-10 engine. Centaur V will use two of them as standard.
Vulcan is replacing 3 rockets really; Atlas V, Delta IV and the Delta IV Heavy, so it has to replicate all their mission profiles. Plus it has to be capable of carrying the extended payload fairings that even SpaceX aren't capable of yet. They'll be about 70 ft long on Vulcan. Current Falcon 9 & Heavy fairings are 43 ft long.
Instead, Vulcan will use the Centaur V upper stage from its first flight. This is based on the Centaur III with influences & insulation technology from ACES. Like ACES, it's wider, with the same 5.4 m (18 ft) diameter as the first stage and slightly taller too.
Centaur III (apart from the version they use for Starliner flights) uses a single RL-10 engine. Centaur V will use two of them as standard.
Vulcan is replacing 3 rockets really; Atlas V, Delta IV and the Delta IV Heavy, so it has to replicate all their mission profiles. Plus it has to be capable of carrying the extended payload fairings that even SpaceX aren't capable of yet. They'll be about 70 ft long on Vulcan. Current Falcon 9 & Heavy fairings are 43 ft long.
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