Precision-Guided High Altitude Payload Recovery

The opportunity exists to develop a reliable, precision-guided descent and recovery system for high altitude payloads. Government agencies launching space, sub-orbital, and near-space payloads desire the ability to safely recover these payloads without the risk of landing in restricted, inaccessible or populated areas. Payloads of particular interest are those involved with aborted launches, improper orbit insertions, and spacecraft operational failures. To assure safe payload returns - a controllable sub-sonic recovery device must be incorporated with a functional hypersonic deceleration device. Autonomous parafoil systems using GPS guidance are the obvious choice for sub-sonic precision recovery. Low-surface-loading, inflatable, hypersonic drag devices can achieve sufficiently low ballistic coefficients to allow parafoil deployment. Once a payload has been decelerated to sub-sonic velocity and a parafoil can be deployed - the parafoil guidance can steer the payload to one of many pre-programmed landing sites. Phase I of the proposed SBIR effort will concentrate on the feasibility of decelerating high altitude, space payloads to velocities that will permit deployment of an autonomous, GPS guided parafoil recovery device. The design will examine uncontrolled reentry payloads such as those encountered with launch failures, sub-orbital flights, and high altitude scientific balloons.