NASA’s test run of a Mars landing system came to a quick end on Monday when the saucer-shaped vehicle’s parachute failed to open high over the Pacific Ocean, a NASA TV broadcast showed.
The system, called the Low-Density Sonic Decelerator (LDSD) was elevated high into the atmosphere over the remote Hawaiian island of Niihau by a balloon, which, at its maximum size, is as large as a football stadium, making it the largest inflatable ever tested.
The aim of the design is to safely deliver a heavy manned spacecraft to Mars.
At this dizzying height the descent began, and the donut-like Supersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator (SIAD) inflated with pressurized gas, which helped to slow the fall.
Phase two of the descent was supposed to involve a 100 foot (30 meters) diameter parachute opening and slowing it down even further. However, the parachute only opened partially in what was called a “partial chute” by the NASA commentators.
Reaching Mach 4, #LDSD‘s SIAD deployed & inflated. Chute deployed, but did not inflate. We’ll study data from this test to learn & improve.
— NASA Technology (@NASA_Technology) June 8, 2015
