The Lockheed Martin-led team developing the Orion crew exploration vehicle completed fabrication of the world's largest heat shield structure. The shield is 16.4 feet in diameter and protects the spacecraft and its crew from the extreme temperatures experienced during re-entry. The work was completed at Lockheed Martin's composite development facility in Denver, Colo. The heat shield will be applied to the Orion ground test article, which is the first full-sized, flight-like test article for Orion, being built at the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. (Source: Lockheed Martin, 03/01/10)
NEWS: A digest of aerospace, defense and technology news from the Gulf Coast I-10 region
Monday, March 1, 2010
Orion marks milestone with heat shield
The Lockheed Martin-led team developing the Orion crew exploration vehicle completed fabrication of the world's largest heat shield structure. The shield is 16.4 feet in diameter and protects the spacecraft and its crew from the extreme temperatures experienced during re-entry. The work was completed at Lockheed Martin's composite development facility in Denver, Colo. The heat shield will be applied to the Orion ground test article, which is the first full-sized, flight-like test article for Orion, being built at the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. (Source: Lockheed Martin, 03/01/10)
