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Sandia Technology logo A quarterly research and development magazine.

Winter 2006/2007
Volume 8, No. 4

SANDIA TECHNOLOGY

Solar tower testing supports NASA plan — continued

metallic water molecules
Sandia’s John Kelton prepares samples of NASA’s advanced ablative heat shield materials for a test atop the 200-foot solar tower. The materials are designed to shed heat by thermal consumption of their outer layers as the shielded spacecraft maneuvers within planetary atmospheres. (Photo by Randy Montoya)
If the concept can be proven effective it can save almost half of the mass usually taken up in a spacecraft by fuel, according to NASA estimates.

Cheryl Ghanbari, test engineer at the solar tower, subjected the shield materials to their high temperature flight environment, by controlling exposure duration using preprogrammed heliostate movements. Intensity was controlled by varying the number of heliostats used for each test. The Sandia team monitored radiation flux, the intensity of solar energy, using a radiometer that is exposed before and after each test.

metallic water molecules
Sandia’s John Kelton prepares samples of NASA’s advanced ablative heat shield materials for a test atop the 200-foot solar tower. The materials are designed to shed heat by thermal consumption of their outer layers as the shielded spacecraft maneuvers within planetary atmospheres. (Photo by Randy Montoya)
Researchers have conducted more than 100 similar tests on samples ranging from 5-inch-diameter pucks to the current 24- inch square samples during the past three years.

Sandia’s facility is the only place in the country where NASA can test relatively large objects under such intense heat, said Bonnie James, technology manager of aerocapture propulsion technology at Marshall. The project had evaluated thermal test facilities all over the country, but said that it was difficult to find facilities that could test things “larger than a coupon,” a much smaller sample than this test required.

“This is a very unique facility with very unique capabilities,” James said.


Media Contact: Stephanie Holinka (505) 284-9227, slholin@sandia.gov
For more information: www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/news