Media Report on UMaine Inflatable Technology Used by NASA
CompositesWorld and The Maine Edge reported engineers with University of Maine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center are working with NASA to perfect the Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator (HIAD) using UMaine’s inflatable technology expertise. The HIAD is described as a spacecraft nose-mounted “giant cone of inner tubes” stacked like a ring toy and is intended to slow a spacecraft as it enters a planet’s atmosphere, making it possible for a spaceship large enough to carry astronauts and heavy loads of scientific equipment to explore Mars and beyond. UMaine Composites Center engineers used the same inflatable technology for their groundbreaking Bridge-in-a-Backpack.