Questions tagged [parachute]
A parachute is an object used to slow down objects. It's often found in either a round or rectangular shape. In regards to space travel it's often used to slow down capsules after re-entry allowing for safe landing or to slow down space shuttles after landing.
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Would a balloon pop if dropped from space?
Could a "simple" inflated party balloon be dropped from space entering an atmosphere? The first case at orbital speed, the second case just outside the atmosphere and the third interplanetary?
The ...
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Why don't 3-parachute descent systems collide and collapse?
The Orion reentry vehicle will have a parachute system. Like Apollo, they'll have 3:
Orion Parachute Drop Test on May 1, 2013
A model of NASA's Orion spacecraft glides ...
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Why can't you just parachute down right from orbit?
This will surely seem, at least at first sight, a completely stupid idea, seeing the usual “space isn't high away, it's fast away”, and that the heat shields which actually are used need to withstand ...
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What are the disadvantages of parachute+airbag for atmospheric landing, versus rocket-based?
After Sojourner success, repeated by Spirit and Opportunity, it seemed like we had developed a fail-proof system for atmospheric landing for our probes: there's very little that can go wrong with the ...
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What is the speed of crew Dragon upon splashdown?
After reentry, what is the speed of the Dragon 2 capsule right before splashdown?
What g-force is received upon splashdown?
At the time of writing, this answer gives such information for many other ...
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Does the Mars2020 lander need a new parachute design?
The EarthSky.org article Supersonic parachute test off Virginia coast March 27 and the linked YouTube video NASA’s Mars 2020 Supersonic Parachute: Test Flight #1 describes a recent test launched by a ...
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Did any Apollo missions have backup parachutes?
NASA's Apollo modules, the ones that went to the moon, had a fairly standard-for-the-time reentry method: Hit the atmosphere at the right angle, deploy a parachute after things are done burning up, ...
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Why do you need a heat shield on Mars entry if the atmosphere is so thin?
Mars' atmosphere is only .088 psi. Is that enough to cause heat at high altitude? Shouldn't you be able to fly close to the surface at orbital speeds like on the moon? How does a parachute work with ...
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Why no parachutes in the Orion AA2 abort test?
On July 2, 2019, the Ascent Abort 2 test of the Orion spacecraft was performed, with the Orion command module ascending on a solid rocket booster, then firing its launch escape system to safely ...
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What skipped test on Genesis would have detected the backwards-inserted accelerometer which didn't deploy the parachute?
What precautions are planned to prevent samples returned from Mars crashing and releasing organisms on Earth? and this answer to Why would bringing samples from Mars back to Earth be a “civilization-...
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Does the FAA still license the people who fold human-rated reentry parachutes?
One of the links in the question International Orange? is the History.com article The Amazing Handmade Tech That Powered Apollo 11’s Moon Voyage which says of Apollo capsule re-entry and landing ...
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How does a landing spacecraft control main parachute inflation?
In a recent post from SpaceX about Crew Dragon parachute test you can see how the main parachutes are deployed in semi-folded state, after a while they inflate a bit and after another while they ...
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What happens to Insight's parachute on Mars?
All of the animations I see show the heat shield detaching and falling to the ground, then Insight detaching and landing. There is no information about what happens with the upper part of the heat ...
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Why does Blue Origin claim Virgin Galactic's spaceplane doesn’t have an escape system whereas Virgin Galactic's passengers are wearing parachutes?
https://twitter.com/blueorigin/status/1413521631717122059 (mirror):
vs. https://space.stackexchange.com/a/54072/1111 by John Thomas:
[Virgin Galactic's passengers] do appear to be wearing parachutes....
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Use of steerable parachutes for re-entry
Apart from testing Rogallo wing for Gemini capsules are there any cases of use of steerable parachutes/wings for final phase of re-entry of space vehicle?
When landing in big steppe or ocean it doesn'...
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What is it about parachutes that makes people always want to "re-invent the wheel"?
For technology that involves complex engineering issues, standardization and specialization is extremely helpful. If I want to design a complex ASIC IC I don't design it from scratch, I just drag-and-...
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Why is InSight's nylon parachute a "soft good"?
NBC News' Mars InSight's landing team leader is all 'nerves and excitement' ahead of risky touchdown includes a conversation with Rob Grover, "who leads the team in charge of InSight's landing at ...
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Modelling for the LDSD parachute - what are the issues with scale models and software simulations?
The LDSD1 parachute is too large to test in any current wind tunnel, the only test possible on the ground was the rocket sled test.
In this NASA Edge episode (starting at 15:12), Ian Clark talked ...
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How do Crew Dragon's main parachutes deploy?
As far as I can tell, there are two distinct "doors" on Crew Dragon that house parachute-related equipment. In the below picture, I've outlined the upper door in yellow and the lower one in ...
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Do the passengers in Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity spacecraft have a parachute or some other way to escape the spacecraft if needs be?
Do the passengers in Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity spacecraft have a parachute or some other way to escape the spacecraft if needs be?
In the VSS Enterprise crash that occurred on October 31, 2014, the ...
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How exactly were solid-fuel rockets added to the parachute lines of the Voskhod capsule?
This answer notes that Voskhod:
...added a small solid-fuel rocket to the parachute lines. It fired as the descent module neared touchdown, providing a softer landing.
How exactly did they safely ...
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Are there any studies or technology envisioned for Mars entry and landing without a parachute?
Are any space agencies examining the possibility of a Mars landing without a parachute?
It wasn't clear to me if the use of the HIAD (Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator) would eliminate ...
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Source for details on Exomars parachute damage?
(diagram credit ESA)
With Ars Technica reporting today that a two-year launch delay is likely because of parachute problems, I went looking for details.
ESA press releases linked in the article are ...
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