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Huygens (/ ˈ h ɔɪ ɡ ən z / HOY-gənz) was an atmospheric entry robotic space probe that landed successfully on Saturn's moon Titan in 2005. Built and operated by the European Space Agency (ESA), launched by NASA, it was part of the Cassini–Huygens mission and became the first spacecraft to land on Titan and the farthest landing from Earth a spacecraft has ever made. [3]
In November 1961, Air Force Major Robert White flew the X-15 research aircraft at speeds over Mach 6. [4] [5] On 3 October 1967, in California, an X-15 reached Mach 6.7. [6] The reentry problem of a space vehicle was extensively studied. [7] The NASA X-43A flew on scramjet for 10 seconds, and then glided for 10 minutes on its last flight in 2004.
The X-15 set speed and altitude records in the 1960s, crossing the edge of outer space and returning with valuable data used in aircraft and spacecraft design. The X-15's highest speed, 4,520 miles per hour (7,274 km/h; 2,021 m/s), [ 1 ] was achieved on 3 October 1967, [ 2 ] when William J. Knight flew at Mach 6.7 at an altitude of 102,100 feet ...
The spaceplane also shared its name with NASA's prototype Space Shuttle orbiter, as well as the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise. It was rolled out on 7 December 2009. [16] SpaceShipTwo made its first powered flight in April 2013. Richard Branson said it "couldn't have gone more smoothly". [17]
Early reentry-vehicle concepts visualized in shadowgraphs of high speed wind tunnel tests. The concept of the ablative heat shield was described as early as 1920 by Robert Goddard: "In the case of meteors, which enter the atmosphere with speeds as high as 30 miles (48 km) per second, the interior of the meteors remains cold, and the erosion is due, to a large extent, to chipping or cracking of ...
Sub-orbital space flights, being at a much lower speed, do not generate anywhere near as much [further explanation needed] heat upon re-entry. Even if the orbiting objects are expendable, most [quantify] space authorities [example needed] are pushing toward controlled re-entries to minimize hazard to lives and property on the planet. [citation ...
This maximum altitude is known as the service ceiling (top limit line in the diagram), and is often quoted for aircraft performance. The area where the altitude for a given speed can no longer be increased at level flight is known as zero rate of climb and is caused by the lift of the aircraft getting smaller at higher altitudes, until it no ...
The aerodynamic heating caused will vary accordingly: it is much less for a flight with a maximum speed of only 1 km/s than for one with a maximum speed of 7 or 8 km/s. [ citation needed ] The minimum delta-v and the corresponding maximum altitude for a given range can be calculated, d , assuming a spherical Earth of circumference 40 000 km and ...