A blunt capsule is the preferred design for the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) cargo return vehicle, derived from its H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) resupply craft for the International Space Station, and the preliminary design work could begin next April.
The Japanese agency has been analysing options for a cargo return vehicle based on its HTV. To be launched by Japan's H-IIB booster, the HTV is a cylindrical solar-powered vehicle with pressurised and unpressurised payload sections and propulsion and instrument units. It is designed to deliver 6,000kg (13,200lb) of cargo to the ISS from 2008.
JAXA's researchers examined two cargo return options - ejecting a small re-entry vehicle from an adapted HTV, and using a larger capsule replacing the HTV's pressurised section while retaining its instrument and propulsion units. They downselected to the capsule concept because it was more economical to have a larger payload capability.
"The blunt capsule is favoured," says JAXA future space transport research centre senior researcher Kenji Fujii. Of the capsules analysed, the blunt design's payload capability was the highest when compared with its overall mass.
If JAXA's leadership approves the concept, design work would start next April, with a tentative date for first launch in 2011. With the retirement of NASA's Space Shuttle in 2010, JAXA has identified a need for a capability to bring experiments and other material back to Earth. ESA's decision to investigate down-mass capabilities also spurred JAXA to act.
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A blunt capsule design has the highest payload capability, says JAXA |
Source: Flight International
