global briefing
Mars parachute
testing suffers
setback
The design of the parachute for the European
Space Agency’s second ExoMars mission is
being revised again after an unsuccessful
high-altitude drop test during August.
The second ExoMars mission, which comprises
of the Rosalind Franklin rover and the surface
science platform Kazachok, is planned to launch
next year.
The ExoMars rover and surface platform will be
encapsulated in a descent module, which will be
transported to Mars by a carrier module, following
its launch on board a Proton rocket from
Baikonur, Kazakhstan.
The descent module requires two parachutes,
each one with its own pilot chute for extraction to
help slow the craft prior to landing. Following
separation of the parachutes, the speed must be
suitable for the braking engines to safely deliver
the landing platform and the rover onto the
surface of Mars. The entire Mars descent sequence
from atmospheric entry to landing takes just
six minutes.
Testing prior to launch has been taking place at
the Swedish Space Corporation’s Esrange site. The
first took place last year and demonstrated the
successful deployment and inflation of the largest
main parachute in a low-altitude drop test from
1.2km, deployed by a helicopter. The parachute has
a diameter of 35m, which is the largest parachute
ever to fly on a Mars mission.
On May 28 this year, the deployment sequence
of all four parachutes was tested for the first time
from a height of 29km – released from a
stratospheric helium balloon. While the
deployment mechanisms activated correctly, and
the overall sequence was completed, both main
parachute canopies suffered damage. Following
hardware inspection, engineers modified the
parachutes and bags for a high-altitude test that
was conducted on August 5 of just the larger, 35m
diameter parachute.
A preliminary assessment has shown that the
initial steps were completed correctly, however
damage to the canopy was observed prior to
inflation, similar to the previous test. As a result,
the test module descended under the drag of the
pilot chute alone.
Francois Spoto, the European Space Agency’s
ExoMars team leader said, “It is disappointing that
the precautionary design adaptations introduced
following the anomalies of the last test have not
helped us to pass the second test successfully, but
as always we remain focused and are working to
understand and correct the flaw in order to launch
next year.”
“Landing on Mars is very difficult,” said Spoto.
“We are fully committed to flying a system that
will safely deliver our payload to the surface of
the Mars so that it can conduct its unique
science mission.”
All hardware, videos and recorded telemetries
have now been recovered and are currently under
evaluation and are guiding further modifications,
said the ESA. A further high-altitude test is already
foreseen for the first main parachute before the
end of this year and another qualification attempt
of the second main parachute is anticipated for
early 2020.
The team is also investigating other parachute
test models and conducting ground-based
simulations to mimic the dynamic nature of
parachute extraction. \\
12 SEPTEMBER \\ AEROSPACETESTINGINTERNATIONAL.COM
// The 35m-wide main parachute
that will slow the ExoMars rover’s
descent to Mars was deployed
during a test in May
/AEROSPACETESTINGINTERNATIONAL.COM