In preparation for the Mars Landing in 2020, NASA has been conducting several tests for the different components of the rockets planned to be used. In early September, they broke a world record with the largest parachute ever made. The parachute weighs 180 pounds and deployed in 0.4 seconds when coming back into Earth's atmosphere. The payload used in this test was much heavier than the one that's going to be sent to Mars (85% greater to be exact), so in October when NASA met with their JPL team working on it, they decided that it's done with testing and finally ready.
Engineers at NASA's JPL to develop a new testing technique called the Advanced Supersonic Parachute Inflation Research Experiments (APSIRE). These experiments consisted of launching the same type of "sounding rocket" carrying heavier and heavier payloads as the tests progressed. In order to construct the parachute, the team experimented with different ratios of different materials in order to pack it into the rocket, but be strong enough to withstand the implosion. They ended up settling on 3 materials: Nylon, Kevlar, and Technora. It was then up to over 3 million stitches and miles of thread to hold it all together. On September 7, the final test was orchestrated and it was a success. It has been officially certified for the Mars landing in 2020 since October 3.
This new supersonic parachute means faster future rover landings on Mars, and potentially any other planets under study. The issue of a large cargo being transported to another planet will no longer stand in the way of space exploration for NASA thanks to this invention.
Our team has been testing our machine for the invention challenge almost every day. We mimic the conditions of the final stage, and account for any possible errors like the pipe touching any temporary components such as duct tape or clamps. This is similar to the ASPIRE Project JPL since they did the exact same by launching their rockets to specific heights with air pressure that resembled that of where the parachute is expected to deploy on Mars.
The Heavy Lifters have worked together very well since we've been bouncing so many ideas off of each other and careful not to shut anyone down when suggesting improvements in design. One example is how in figuring out how to construct the mechanism that would hold and release our PVC arm, Kaiden suggested drilling in a screw eye to the base and a hook onto the arm that would link up easily enough to pull out. I told her I liked the idea of anchoring the arm in that way, but it seemed like it would take too many holes to drill and too much time; so I suggested just having one hole above the arm when it was in tension, and stick a metal pole through to hold it. In combining our ideas, we found a quick and simple solution to the problem and since then have had multiple successful tests.
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