Artemis Moon Program

[NMaude]

This video was uploaded four days ago and it shows the engineering test-model of the SLS payload adapter being moved for testing at NASA Marshal:

These photos and videos show how crews at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, moved and installed the payload adapter that will be used in the Block 1B configuration of the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket from Building 4708, where it was manufactured, into Structural Test Stand 4697 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center on March 13. Teams at Marshall will begin structural testing the engineering development unit of the payload adapter – an exact replica of the flight version of the hardware – this spring. The cone-shaped payload adapter is about 8.5 feet tall and features two metal rings and eight composite panels. The adapter, which will debut on NASA’s Artemis IV mission, is an evolution from the Orion stage adapter used in the Block 1 configuration of the first three Artemis missions. It will be housed inside the universal stage adapter atop the rocket’s more powerful in-space stage, called the exploration upper stage. The payload adapter, like the launch vehicle stage adapter and the Orion stage adapter, is fully manufactured and tested at Marshall, which manages the SLS Program. NASA is working to land the first woman, first person of color, and its first international partner astronaut on the Moo kmn under Artemis. SLS is part of NASA’s backbone for deep space exploration, along with the Orion spacecraft and Gateway in orbit around the Moon and commercial human landing systems, next-generational spacesuits, and rovers on the lunar surface. SLS is the only rocket that can send Orion, astronauts, and supplies to the Moon in a single launch.

 

[Grey Havoc]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OK6jjgQoQK8

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has put out a new Artemis video concerning the possibilities of Starship slowdowns and the possible effects on the Artemis programme:

The week ended on a couple of down notes for NASA's Artemis programs, as reporting by Eric Berger for Ars Technica detailed SLS workforce reductions for Boeing and a study of alternative Artemis missions if there are more SpaceX Starship delays -- as the agency's baseline commitments predict.

Delays to upcoming and future Artemis missions and budget cuts helped lead to a reduction in money for Boeing's SLS work and so the prime contractor for SLS Stages will be reducing SLS headcount by transferring people out of the program or layoffs.

NASA is also looking at a substitute Artemis mission where Orion would rendezvous and dock with a Starship HLS spacecraft in Earth orbit, in case there are more delays in the technology development that SpaceX still needs to complete for Starship to go to the Moon.

Here are links to the two stories:

https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/04...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...-workers-on-sls-rocket-program/&v=xRVd5z1XHy4

https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/04...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...-orion-dock-in-low-earth-orbit/&v=xRVd5z1XHy4

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

00:32 First story: Boeing says it will cut SLS workforce

03:02 Second story: If Starship can't make it to the Moon by 2026, what about Earth orbit rendezvous with Orion?

06:35 Just taking ICPS off SLS Block 1 would probably be a showstopper, a form-fit mass simulator would be much cheaper

08:58 Possible drawbacks to these study alternatives

10:22 Other alternatives to Artemis III lunar landing mission

12:10 Thanks for watching!

And here's another video concerning NASA's investigation into Artemis 1 heat-shield issues post-reentry:

Dive into NASA's ongoing investigation into the heat shield issues encountered during the Artemis 1 moon mission with Orion spacecraft.

 

[Flyaway]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1782831806535873004

View: https://twitter.com/NASA_Marshall/status/1782831806535873004

@NASAhas contracted SpaceX and Blue Origin to provide landing systems to take astronauts to the Moon’s surface. The agency has also asked the two companies to develop cargo versions of their landers to be in use NET the #Artemis VII mission.

MORE https://go.nasa.gov/49SaAzU

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has just put out another Artemis video:

This video takes a look back at the time five years ago in 2019 that NASA made an about-face on the SLS Core Stage Green Run, attempting to cancel it.

It's been three years since the SLS Core Stage Green Run was successfully completed, but it was five years ago, around the time that NASA took the name Artemis for its human exploration efforts, that delays in SLS Core Stage production prompted leadership in NASA appointed by the Trump Administration to look for any way to launch the first Artemis Moon mission before the 2020 election.

In the spring of 2019, a series of trial balloons were released to try to keep that mission, previously named Exploration Mission-1, on the most recent aspirational schedule at the time. The Green Run campaign was not cancelled, but the push to cut it and hold onto the 2020 schedule got pushback from the safety community about the risks and raised questions about why the change of heart.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

01:58 Confusing logic about engines and stages and testing...is that schedule pressure?

04:51 An aside about Core Stage and status at the beginning of 2019

07:11 Administration looks to reduce SLS exposure to lunar landing policy in 2019

09:27 Skipping Green Run studied privately as an option in 2018 before public questions the next year

12:11 Pushback from NASA safety advisory panel, details about Green Run objectives

17:51 Summarizing the power play from the administration

20:50 Thanks for watching!

 

[Rhinocrates]

A short article on Astrolab's rover contender.

If Starship is real, we’re going to need big cargo movers on the Moon and Mars

“I left SpaceX knowing the width of the Starship door.”…

arstechnica.com

A couple of video links from the article.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfT6HIc9OPw

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fwj8wfFo80

 

[Forest Green]

Private moon mission to carry NASA electric moon dust shield in 2024

NASA is sending a technology demonstrator to the moon on the upcoming private Firefly Blue Ghost Mission 1 in order to test how to repel and remove lunar dust using electricity.

www.space.com

 

[NMaude]

Another video from Phillip Sloss about Congress's cuts in the Artemis programme and how it's effecting NASA's SLS programme and Boeing:

After finding out that Boeing is reducing its Space Launch System (SLS) Stages workforce due to cuts by NASA in the SLS budget, we heard about the long-sought change in the budget that allowed it to happen last week.

As detailed in a public presentation to the NASA Advisory Council Human Exploration and Operations committee on Friday, April 26, NASA finally has the desired legal authority from Congress in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget to divide up the Exploration funding from Congress for their Artemis / Moon to Mars programs.

Congress had written specific funding levels into previous appropriations bills going back to when the Obama White House cancelled the Constellation program.

The space agency has not elaborated on why they moved money out of SLS, how big the cut is, or where that money was moved to, but given the declining budgets and needs for other Artemis programs, it's not surprising that NASA made the choice.

The Boeing SLS workforce reduction was first reported by Eric Berger for Ars Technica:https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/04...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...-workers-on-sls-rocket-program/&v=KOE_gkV51ME

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

02:34 The budget change by Congress that led to the SLS cuts by NASA

05:59 "Not less than" this much money versus "up to" that amount

09:20 Current Artemis budget priorities, constraints, and possible conflicts

13:09 Thanks for watching

 

[Flyaway]

Download of the report on the link below.

With the Artemis campaign, NASA intends to return humans to the Moon and build a sustainable lunar presence as a foundation for human exploration of Mars. The Artemis II crewed test flight aims to return humans to lunar orbit for the first time in more than 50 years and send its four crew members farther into space than any human has ever gone. Given the high stakes of the first crewed flight, the Agency is working to identify and mitigate any risks and challenges to ensure the safe return of the Artemis II crew and safeguard NASA’s significant investment in Artemis vehicles and systems.

NASA's Readiness for the Artemis II Crewed Mission to Lunar Orbit - NASA OIG

May 01, 2024

oig.nasa.gov

 

[Forest Green]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/04/08/japan-us-nasa-biden-kishida/

https://twitter.com/x/status/1786363114260218211

View: https://x.com/AirPowerNEW1/status/1786363114260218211

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has just uploaded another video this time it concerns Artemis II's status along with Artemis III:

In this next Artemis video update, I'll look at new or previously unseen pictures of Artemis II and III flight hardware from recently completed miletstones and shown during a recent NASA briefing. Leadership from NASA's Exploration human spaceflight directorate provided most of these pictures during a few hours of updates to the NASA Advisory Council on April 26th.

I'll go over what is seen in some of these pictures and provide some context and background on the hardware.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

00:57 New/unseen pics of Artemis II flight hardware

06:08 New/unseen Artemis III flight hardware pics

09:04 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has just put out another update from NASA concerning Artemis II:

NASA Exploration leadership provided an update on Artemis II progress to the Human Exploration Committee of the NASA Advisory Council a week ago. In this video, I'll go through what the head of the Exploration human spaceflight directorate and the Moon to Mars office said about the ongoing investigation into how the Orion base heatshield performed during Artemis I and work to resolve recent Orion electronics issues.

They also talked about where all the SLS flight hardware is today and planning and preparations for the Orion/SLS circumlunar mission targeting launch in September 2025. The schedule from here to there remains uncertain, and I also recap the next milestones that we are watching for in the next few months.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

00:45 NAC HEO meetings valuable public updates from NASA

01:58 Artemis II status update

05:35 Background on Orion battery issue, update on resolution process

07:52 Orion base heatshield investigation status and forward work

12:50 Thanks for watching!

 

[Michel Van]

Artemis I flight was not so smooth
next issue with electric system do radiation
There issue with heat shield it loose chunks during reentry

this however a issue how the Shield is build
Orion capsule use a tile structure with layer of material that brake off during reentry
Apollo capsule hat similar issues, but not like this.

 

[FighterJock]

Looks like NASA will need to strengthen the heat shield tiles to prevent a Columbia style disaster before NASA ever thinks of launching Artemis 2 to the Moon.

 

[NMaude]

Looks like NASA will need to strengthen the heat shield tiles to prevent a Columbia style disaster before NASA ever thinks of launching Artemis 2 to the Moon.

I have no doubt that NASA has identified the cause of the problem by now and has come up with a solution, it will no doubt require the remanufacture of Artemis II's (And Artemis III's too) which would take time to do.

 

[Archibald]

No panic, seems Apollo 16 had its share of similar "holes".

 

[FighterJock]

So it seems that capsules have their fair share of problems with heat shields if Apollo 16 had them too, I will have my fingers and toes crossed to see if NASA can solve the problem before the launch day.

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has an update on the status of Artemis III and IV:

A final episode on the recent NASA status updates, this time about Artemis III and IV planning and preparations. NASA Exploration leadership provided an update on progress to the Human Exploration Committee of the NASA Advisory Council a week ago. In this video, I'll go through what the head of the Exploration human spaceflight directorate and the Moon to Mars office said about development and production of the Orion and SLS vehicles for Artemis III and IV.

A lot of the discussion was about plans for critical propellant transfer demonstrations between two Starships in Earth orbit some time in 2025. The ability to refuel Starship vehicles in Earth orbit is foundational technology for the system, and the Starship HLS variant relies on developing the technology to enable flights to the Moon. Starship HLS will land two astronauts on the Moon for the U.S. on Artemis III and then return them to Orion in cislunar space for the flight home to Earth.

NASA Exploration leadership provided an overview of the test and some of the work required not just during the demonstration tests, but work that needs to be completed on Starship flight tests before the demonstration can get started.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
01:22 Artemis III planning and preparations status update
06:25 Looking ahead to next year's Starship HLS propellant transfer demonstrations
09:31 NASA Administrator comments about studying alternatives to Artemis III if there are more Starship delays
11:47 Updates on Artemis IV planning and preparations
16:12 initial observations from NAC HEO committee after the briefings
17:25 Thanks for watching!

​

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has just uploaded a new video concerning the importance of NASA OIG reports, ML-2 status and cargo variant of the SLS amongst other things:

While we're still digesting the NASA OIG report released on May 1, NASA's Orion program and prime contractor Lockheed Martin are getting the spacecraft for Artemis II ready for vacuum testing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida as a part of overall assembly and test.

There were a few unusual things in the report, including a little back and forth, which raise a few big picture questions. There was also what was absent from the report and some useful footnotes worth pointing out.

North of where Orion production is at KSC, the structure of the launch platform for Mobile Launcher-2 was moved onto the pedestals at the Launch Complex 39 East Park Site. That milestone, which was completed on May 9, enables assembly of the umbilical tower structure to begin.

There was also an industry conference in Washington, DC this past week that provided a forecast about the Artemis III schedule and another SLS study.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

01:21 Artemis II Orion status

04:00 Don't shoot the OIG, but...

08:37 If OIG does engineering reviews, why only random ones?

09:59 Mobile Launcher-2 platform/base "jack and set"

12:06 An Artemis III HLS schedule note

13:11 Boeing proposes SLS Cargo as an idea for Mars Sample Return

17:09 Footnotes about OIG footnotes

18:49 Thanks for watching!

 

[Rhinocrates]

Axiom's Artemis suit, tried out by a civilian, with a lot of detail about what it feels like as well as how it works.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FerFv7BZAwo&t=5s

 

[TomcatViP]

Imagine an U2, A-12 or X-15 pilot with that suits...

 

[publiusr]

It'd take a shoe-horn to prize them out of a cockpit with that get-up

 

[Grey Havoc]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mQcFR9Ap8o

 

[NMaude]

What if the heat-shield problem is due to manufacturing defects and not the actual ablation material?

 

[publiusr]

Here is a write-up on SLS

https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/1.A35809

 

[NMaude]

Here is a write-up on SLS

https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/1.A35809

It's pay-walled.

On another note Phillip Sloss has just uploaded a new video concerning Artemis II's heat shield and tanker issues for Artemis III:

Updates on the Orion heatshield investigation, the "how many Starship tankers?" question for Artemis III, and cryogenic propellant loading validation testing at Launch Pad 39B headline a quiet week of Artemis news. NASA and its contractors are always busy working, sometimes around the clock, but a lot of that work goes unreported.

In this video, I go through the bits and pieces that were shared about Artemis II preparations, Artemis III planning, and the responses to questions that we're still waiting for.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

00:46 Artemis II Orion heatshield investigation review team getting started

03:57 Artemis II EGS Pad 39B / Mobile Launcher propellant loading verification test

06:44 Artemis II watch items list (once more

)08:16 SpaceX says 15 tankers will need to launch for Artemis III

10:25 Thanks for watching!

​

​

​

 

[Josh_TN]

So from what I can gather, there really is no work around for the Orion capsule. No other manned platform has the necessary capacity, endurance, and delta v.

Question: was the starship lander presumably going to dock with the Gateway and land from there? Would there be any possibility of transferring a crew in LEO via Dragon rather than cis-lunar? The starship lunar lander is not built with that trip in mind, but on the other hand I would assume it has a lot of volume and mass margin to play with. Or is the case that since SS was never designed to be recovered from lunar orbit, I would guess it does not have sufficient fuel to decelerate into a stable earth orbit for a transfer back to a reentry capsule?

 

[publiusr]

Starship needs to be a simple cargo lander for the Moon and tankage left there—crew coming back on smaller capsules who use smaller landers.

I was just reading about Powell’s airship to orbit.

I wonder if that kind of thing would be a better LOFTID type ballute/rogallo wing for big rocket cores.

Don’t know how big it would have to be coming in from the Moon.

This was why I loved the Energia concept—or Shuttle-C…wide, side-mount structures great for OTV aeroshells…with inflates to make them even wider.

 

[Byeman]

Starship needs to be a simple cargo lander for the Moon and tankage left there—crew coming back on smaller capsules who use smaller landers.

Again, you don't get it. Then it wouldn't be Starship and the whole idea and concept falls apart. Starship and Superbooster are forever linked. They will not fly without each other. Starship is an upperstage that is a tanker, lunar lander and Mars lander. Again, cost matters. The production Iine is only going to put out Starships and SuperBoosters.

This was why I loved the Energia concept—or Shuttle-C…wide, side-mount structures great for OTV aeroshells…with inflates to make them even wider.

Any idea with a large diameter payload on Shuttle-C was to put it in a hammerhead fairing on top of the ET.
Saucer payloads flying sideways is unworkable. Flightwise and ground ops wise.

 

[publiusr]

The folks proposing them didn't think so.

It amazes me non-inline shuttle never did cartwheels.

Insulation

3D-MAT, a thermal protection material for the Artemis Generation

The 3-Dimensional Multifunctional Ablative Thermal Protection System (3D-MAT) is a thermal protection material developed as a critical component of Orion, NASA's newest spacecraft built for human deep space missions. It is able to maintain a high level of strength while enduring extreme...

phys.org

On debris

NASA study provides new look at orbital debris, potential solutions

New data analysis indicates that NASA and its partners could have more cost-effective methods for dealing with the growing issue of orbital debris than previously thought.

phys.org

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has uploaded another video this time concerning Artemis III alternatives, an update on the Gateway and Artemis II stacking:

What NASA will do with Artemis III, or whatever mission it baselines to fly after Artemis II, remains in the news as the next Starship test flight approaches in June. SpaceX will narrow its focus on the upcoming Starship test flight to recovery and reusability, which postpones reaching orbit and Artemis objectives a little longer.

This video goes over an update on Gateway assembly and the latest hints that NASA is thinking about other options if Starship is not ready to go to the Moon in 2026 or 2027. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson dropped another hint during Congressional testimony on May 23, about when Artemis II stacking might begin later this year.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

00:21 Note about Artemis II EGS Pad 39B / Mobile Launcher propellant loading test

00:53 A Gateway assembly update

04:01 A hint about when Artemis II stacking might begin

05:49 More talk about Artemis III alternatives

14:32 The focus of Starship testing narrows, how does that impact Artemis?

16:05 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has uploaded a new video about Artemis I with an annotated countdown replay:

This video takes a closer look at footage in the Mission Control room during the Artemis I launch on November 16, 2022. NASA released an edited video clip three weeks after launch; the raw video can be found here:

https://images.nasa.gov/details-jsc20...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...20During%20Artemis%20I%20Launch&v=KfgeuJGhUK8

As the name implies, Mission Control is where the launch and all phases of flight are monitored and controlled, and it is the best place to understand what is happening, as it happens. The flight control team communicates on several channels simultaneously, but the central one is the flight director audio loop that we can hear during most of the edited segments in the raw video.

In this video, we go through many of the people and things that can be seen in the room and some of the things that we said during the launch on the flight director loop.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

00:48 Historical ascent flight control team video: STS-125

01:42 STS-51F ascent flight control team film

03:45 Ground Control console and history

06:05 INCO console and history

09:02 Flight Director console and front displays

10:05 First calls on the Flight Director loop video

12:48 Terminal countdown calls on the loop

16:21 Calls on the loop during launch

23:28 Flight control team loop approaching Main Engine Cut-Off (MECO)

26:24 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has just uploaded a video concerning the future of the SLS:

What the future of SLS looks like is the question in this video, as the future gets more cloudy. NASA's new super heavy-lift rocket has demonstrated it can go to the Moon, but the agency is trying to reduce costs at the same time as the SLS program is working on two future upgrades.

The transition from government program contracts to a commercial launch service was supposed to start this year, but the middle of the year approaches with no updates from NASA so far on the progress of negotiations.

Congress remains committed to SLS, but uncertainty about this transition leaves some big picture questions about what the future looks like.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

02:01 All quiet on the SLS front

03:09 What is happening with the transition to commercialization?

07:28 What is happening with the current SLS contracts in the meantime?

11:22 Does the contract uncertainty affect production?

12:40 Thanks for watching!

​

 

[dan_inbox]

Does this forum really really need a new post every time this person publishes something on his youtube channel?
Probably the members who are interested have understood your high opinion of it and have subscribed?

 

[NMaude]

Does this forum really really need a new post every time this person publishes something on his youtube channel?

In my opinion, yes, I have found Phillip Sloss's SLS/Artemis videos to be highly informative and a good sense on how progress is going.

 

[BlackBat242]

Also, while I do have an interest in all the various space programs ongoing... I have not, nor will I likely ever, subscribe to anybody's youtube channel!

 

[NMaude]

I just stumbled across interesting video about the VAB at the Kennedy Space Centre:

The VAB or Vehicle Assembly Building is where NASA has constructed rockets for more than half a century. Lets explore the inside!

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

00:55 - Building Overview

03:32 - Inside

06:04 - Saturn V / Apollo Program

09:31 - Space Shuttle

12:58 - SLS

15:10 - Brilliant

Video Summary:

The Vehicle Assembly Building has been used since the 1960s to build the rockets before they lift off from the launch pad. It has been primarily used by 3 rockets: the Saturn V, the Space Shuttle, and SLS or Space Launch System. The smaller part of the building has the Low Bays, and the main part of the building has the High Bays. There are 4 High Bays, and then down the center of the building is the Transfer Aisle. Large yellow cranes help move the pieces of the rocket. There's the Transfer Aisle Crane and then the 4 High Bay Cranes. As the rockets are assembled there are retraceable Work Platforms that can be moved in to enclose the rocket. The Crawler-Transporter helps move the rockets to the launch pad along the Crawlerway.

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss put out a video three days ago concerning the schedule od Artemis II and Artemis III:

SLS finally has a planning date to deliver the Artemis II Core Stage from its New Orleans factory to Kennedy Space Center, and in this video there's another hint about when it might be stacked for next year's launch. For Artemis III, now that Starship has successfully demonstrated a soft landing, how much closer to the on-orbit propellant transfer demonstration is SpaceX? While waiting to hear back from NASA about future contracting for SLS production, the video also takes a closer look at some Artemis news and notes from the past few weeks.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

The AmericaSpace story by Alex Longo noted in the video is here:

https://www.americaspace.com/2024/06/...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...le-launchers-slidewire-baskets/&v=l8ZmtzfJW58

00:00 Intro

01:00 Crawler Transporter-2 maintenance in the VAB

01:39 Another Artemis II stacking schedule hint

03:44 NASA provides a Artemis II Core Stage rollout date

05:32 Artemis III Orion production milestone note

06:43 Axiom Space spacesuit and SpaceX Starship compatibility testing for Artemis III

07:36 Still waiting to hear about SLS production contract status

08:01 Mars Sample Return alternatives awarded study contracts, Boeing did not win one

08:42 Will Starship flight test success help SpaceX catch up to Artemis III schedule?

13:08 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has just put out a new video concerning preparations for the delivery of the Artemis II first-stage and some questions concerning Artemis III:

What's left to get the Artemis II SLS Core Stage ready to ship? That's one of the topics in this Artemis news update video. NASA provided a few news and notes about Gateway module assembly, Exploration Ground Systems validation testing, and the continuing post-flight analysis from Artemis I, but the question about what will happen with Artemis III remains a big topic of interest.

NASA is still not ready to elaborate publicly about their backup plans for Artemis III, but with only two years left until Orion, SLS, and Starship need to be ready to fly, the mystery about mission possibilities and the feasibility of the options is growing. We'll continue to go down this rabbit hole and with no end to the uncertainty in sight, we'll be returning to these questions again.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro

00:34 Artemis news and notes

04:17 A quick review of the big picture for Artemis II and III

08:00 What's left to get the Artemis II SLS Core Stage ready for shipment?

14:07 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

I'm posting this new Scott Manley video about how NASA tests heat-shields as there have been concerns over the unexpected heavy erosion of the Artemis 1 CM's heat-shield:

At NASA Ames Research Center in California there is a specialized wind tunnel facility known as the ArcJet complex. This is for testing heat shields on spacecraft, high temperature, highly ionized plasma is created by heating the air with an electric arc, and then the high pressure plasma flows out a rocket nozzle at hypersonic speeds into a test chamber where samples of thermal protection material are tested.

Find out more at NASA Ames official Arcjet site.https://www.nasa.gov/ames/arcjet-comp...