Artemis 2 Heat Shield Succeeds in Thermal Reentry with 9 Char Locations Compared to 103
NASA confirmed that the Orion capsule's heat shield performed its task as expected, after inspection recorded 9 char locations compared to 103 in Artemis 1.
The US space agency NASA announced that an additional engineering review confirmed previous findings that the Orion capsule's heat shield under the Artemis program performed as expected.
The agency stated that post-recovery inspection recorded nine char locations on the shield, compared to 103 locations during the previous Artemis 1 flight.
NASA explained that this improvement came after deliberately lowering the capsule's atmospheric entry angle, which reduced the thermal load on the shield.
In the same context, NASA indicated that the heat shield for the Artemis 3 mission was installed at Kennedy Space Center last July in preparation for a flight to low Earth orbit next year.
What Do These Terms Mean?
Heat Shield: A layer that protects the capsule from extreme heat generated by friction with the atmosphere during reentry to Earth.
Charring: The loss of part of the protective shield material due to heat, measured by the number of affected locations to determine the shield's performance.
Entry Angle: The angle at which the capsule enters the atmosphere, affecting the amount of heat to which it is exposed.
Artemis: The NASA-led US space program for lunar exploration, under which the Artemis 2 and Artemis 3 missions fall.
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