7 NASA: No root cause for why chunks blow off Artemis ablative head shield during reentry 1st stage. "Independent committee" to be appointed to assign blame. Moon reentry 40% faster than LEO. (arstechnica.com) posted 193 days ago by MOCKxTHExCROSS 193 days ago by MOCKxTHExCROSS +9 / -2 NASA confirms “independent review” of Orion heat shield issue "There's no guarantee that changing the trajectory is the answer," says the Artemis II pilot. 10 comments share 10 comments share save hide report block hide replies
ablative head shield doesn't work in a vacuum
Uh… it also wouldn’t be needed in one. That’s not the point. The point is that it’s needed when no longer in a vacuum.
OK ---- then why mention "Moon reentry 40% faster than LEO"
Completely different systems.
When returning from the moon vs low earth orbit, the reentry speeds are higher, which means more energy to deal with for the heat shield.
Got it ----- thanks