NASA just inflated its new-age spaceship heat shield for Mars

One needs to overcome the most ornery physics to land a rocket ship on Mars.

The thick atmosphere helps slow that bullet. The aerodynamics on Mars are not good. The densest air on Mars is three times the altitude of Mount Everest, making it the most dense planet in the solar system.

According to NASA, less than half of the missions have succeeded.

They would like to send people there.

Jim Reuter is NASA's associate administrator for the space technology mission. It is thick enough to cause problems and not thin enough to help you.

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Space scientists think they have figured out a way to pull more air out of thin air.

The inflatable heat shield may be the key. The Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator, or HIAD, is a technology that could be used to land astronauts on the Red Planet.

A team at the space agency's Langley Research Center in Virginia is about to try out their skills in space. Scientists and engineers gathered earlier this week to see the heat shield inflated for the last time before it goes into space.

The LOFTID mission will take the experiment up with a weather satellite on a trip around Earth that passes over the North and South poles. After the satellite's delivery, the heat shield will inflate as the plane lands.

The heat shield ballooned out in a cavernous laboratory at a small demonstration on Wednesday. The contraption was 20 feet wide, about the size of a small carousel, with a catwalk stretched over top for scientists and engineers to cross it.

NASA Langley researchers demonstrate the inflation of a heat shield for the final time on Earth before it undergoes a test in space this November. Credit: Elisha Sauers

NASA has used rocket engines and heat shields to land its craft. The aeroshell protects the landers from the heat of reentering.

The heat shield technology used to get to Mars has been used by engineers for decades.

The technology is limited. The diameter of a rocket's nose cone is what holds the landers. The heavier the load can be, the bigger the aeroshell is. It will take about 20 to 45 tons to send astronauts to Mars. They've only managed to land two tons on the ground.

The old method has constrained landings to Mars' northern lowlands below the base elevation level.

NASA has used the same classic heat shield technology to land on Mars since the Viking mission in the 1970s. Credit: NASA

An inflatable heat shield can be used that way.

The system is made of inner-tube-like rings. The synthetic material is 15 times stronger than steel. The plan is to use it higher up in the atmosphere of Mars to expand NASA's landing options.

The experts said that it's a more realistic solution than a bundle of parachutes.

You can land 1.5 metric ton with classic technology. It's the equivalent of a golf cart. A ranch house with 20 to 40 metric tons is fully furnished and has a car in the garage. You have to have that.

A demonstration mission for the inflatable heat shield will launch in November. Credit: NASA

The ride and the recovery of NASA equipment will be provided by the United Launch Alliance. The rocket will leave the base. The heat shield will reduce the LOFTID vehicle's speed from over 25 times the speed of sound to under 610 mph.

The inflated system will fall into the ocean with a parachute. During the descent, the data recorder will be thrown into the water to be retrieved by a boat.

Something is in the mission for ULA. The company's civil space program director said that the heat shield technology could help them recover spent boosters for reuse. The business wants to use it for its heavy-lift rocket, which makes up about 60 percent of the cost.

"This is a giant leap in aeroshell technology, to be able to bring our engines back quickly, easily, safely, and reuse that technology instead of throwing it away," said Egan.