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Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo's Re-entry Tech: the Feather

Posted by samzenpus on from the you-got-to-know-when-to-fold-them dept.

Dutch Gun writes: When most people think about rocket science, they think of the challenge of getting a spacecraft into space. However, the problem of safely re-entering the atmosphere is a daunting challenge as well. Virgin Galactic introduces us to the concept of "the feather," their term for the combination of fixed-wing and capsule based solutions both used by spaceships in the past, and explain how they believe this hybrid approach to be a superior solution. SpaceShipTwo folds its wings in the initial decent, acting a bit like a badminton shuttlecock, when a capsule decent has the most advantages. In the latter part of the decent, the wings are extended, giving the vehicle the advantages of a glider-like landing.

4 of 62 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Spell check? by myrrdyn · · Score: 5, Funny

    How can someone misspell descent three times in two sentences?

    Missing a descent spell check?

    --
    Elen sìla lùmenn' omentielvo
  2. Was explained much better in Black Sky by NotDrWho · · Score: 4, Informative

    For those interested, the documentary Black Sky is a must-see on explaining how this concept (and SpaceShipOne in general) works.

    --
    SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
  3. Probably not better at orbital speed. by mightypenguin · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I have serious doubts that a feathered reentry would work for anything that has orbital reentry speed. There's a reason we have capsules with heat shields, and it's still tricky. We lost a shuttle over damaged heat shields. I suspect there would be strong vibration issues at orbital reentry speed as well that they haven't had to face yet since all of their flights so far (as well as those actually scheduled) have been sub-orbital. That being said, I wish them luck and hope they continue to innovate.

  4. Very nifty, but... by necro81 · · Score: 4, Informative

    The feathering mechanism is very clever and effective, and I'm sure that Richard Branson and Virgin Galactic love getting free advertising on Slashdot. But this concept - the mechanism, the shuttlecock behavior, the passive stabilization - was successfully demonstrated when SpaceShipOne won the X-Prize ... in 2004.

    So please explain, Oh submitter and editors, why are you cluttering up our lives with old news?