Image source: topwar.ru
NASA specialists continue to prepare for a manned flight to the moon. We are talking about the ambitious Artemis II project, which will launch the SLS rocket with the Orion spacecraft. At the first stage, the spacecraft will make an orbital "flyby" of the Moon. Next is the landing of astronauts.
As part of the study of the parameters of the future flight, the following were used: The NASA Cabeus supercomputer, as well as the special wind tunnel of the Unitary Plan (Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley– California).
It became known that during testing, the SLS rocket demonstrated vibration exceeding calculations. Moreover, this vibration manifested itself in the attachment points of the solid-fuel boosters. The reason is called the emerging "unstable air flows between the gaps."
To reduce vibration levels, NASA specialists have proposed additional stabilizers. That is, they decided not to change the design of the fasteners themselves. And this is explained by the fact that in the case of structural changes in the fasteners, the deadline for the implementation of a new lunar project may significantly shift to the right.
Now the rocket gets 4 stabilizers to reduce vibration.
At the same time, it was decided to use uPSP (Unsteady Pressure Sensitive Paint) for testing. This is the designation of a special coating that is able to take into account the aerodynamic pressure over time. The principle is as follows: the coating is applied to the tested models, then the load is applied, and special cameras remove fluctuations in the brightness of the paint, which corresponds to fluctuations in pressure.
NASA:
It was the coating that made it possible to identify vibration "anomalies" in the tests of the SLS rocket.
Kristin Morgan, leading the process of increasing the stabilization of the lunar rocket:
The stabilizers themselves are installed by Boeing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.