DEVELOPMENT AND FLIGHT TEST OF A DEPLOYABLE PRECISION LANDING SYSTEM

A joint NASA Dryden Flight Research Facility and Johnson Space Center program was conducted to determine the feasibility of the autonomous r ecovery of a spacecraft using a ram-air parafoil system for the final stages of entry from space that included a precision landing. The feas ibility of this system was studied using a flight model of a spacecraf t in the generic shape of a flattened biconic that weighted approximat ely 150 lb and was flown under a commerically available, ram-air parac hute. Key elements of the vehicle included the Global Positioning Syst em guidance for navigation, flight control computer, ultrasonic sensin g for terminal altitude, electronic compass, and onboard data recordin g. A flight test program was used to develop and refine the vehicle. T his vehicle completed an autonomous flight from an altitude of 10,000 ft and a lateral offset of 1.7 miles that resulted in a precision flar e and landing into the wind at a predetermined location. At times, the autonomous flight was conducted in the presence of winds approximatel y equal to vehicle airspeed. Several novel techniques for computing th e winds postflight were evaluated. Future program objectives are also presented.