The new heat shield is called Pridwen, named after the shield donned by King Arthur.
Pridwen is made of a high-temperature alloy fabric, and uses origami-inspired folding techniques to decrease its size and occupy as little physical space as possible while not in use. Typical ablative heat shields are as wide as whatever spacecraft they are shielding. They are rigid and heavy, and rely on the gradual burning off of material to deflect heat absorption away from the spacecraft.
Pridwen's ability to deploy and expand its size creates a surface area large enough to evenly distribute and radiate heat away without damaging the shield's fabric, which allows it to be folded up and stowed again for reuse. The origami shield's increased size also creates sufficient air-drag to slow its descent enough to eliminate the need for parachutes. Leading up to Pridwen's first atmospheric test flight, Space Forge has conducted drop tests at altitudes up to 10.5 miles , and has been rehearsing to catch the probe with a hover net during its fall back to Earth.
#Pridwen: A reusable heat shield that allows for the safe atmospheric re-entry of #satellites 🛰Unlike standard ablative heat shields, it won't burn up upon re-entry. Check out our test drop ⬇️https://t.co/cfhF0g8UbZ@esa #Space #ForgeStar pic.twitter.com/BvpAKhyZ5RAs a company, Space Forge has much loftier goals than just producing heat shields. For Space Forge, Pridwen serves as a stepping-stone into a soon-to-be-booming space manufacturing industry.
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