Experimental and Numerical Study of Structural Strength of Flare-Type Membrane Aeroshell with Inflatable Ring

Abstract

In order to support various future activities using spacecrafts, we need to develop a re-entry system which is useful, safe and low-cost. We have studied the structural strength of an inflatable aeroshell, which is a novel re-entry system currently under development within JAXA. In this paper, we investigate the structural strength characteristics of the inflatable aeroshell with respect to its configuration, scale effect and initial out-of-plane deformations. The investigations are carried out by both numerically and experimentally; the results are in good agreement with each other and will benefit efficient structural design of the aeroshell in a future development.