Overview and Performance of the Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator Instrumentation Suite

On November 10, 2022, NASA launched the Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator (LOFTID) reentry vehicle as a secondary payload on an Atlas V launch vehicle from Vandenburg Space Force Base. The LOFTID technology demonstration mission successfully returned a 6-meter diameter, 70° sphere-cone Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator (HIAD) from low earth orbit. The LOFTID vehicle was instrumented with a suite of sensors that measured high-value science data at over 150 vehicle locations. Thermocouples embedded in the aeroshell monitored the temperature within the flexible thermal protection system and inflatable structure. Heat flux gauges and surface pressure transducers measured the conditions on the vehicle’s rigid nose. Loadcell pins measured the interface loads between the inflatable structure and the centerbody. Onboard visible light cameras and colocated infrared cameras captured a 360° view of structural deflection and temperature distribution on the aft side of the heatshield. The data collected by the LOFTID instrumentation suite enabled reconstruction of the aerodynamic, aerothermal, thermal, and structural performance of the vehicle and provide a wealth of information for the design of future HIAD missions. The LOFTID instrumentation, a summary of the in-flight performance, and examples of data products from the post-flight analysis effort are presented.