Aerobraking: A promising way to explore Neptune and its moon

A new study suggests that a spacecraft could use an inflatable decelerator to enter orbit around Neptune with the help of its largest moon, Triton.Get a daily digest of the latest news in tech, science, and technology, delivered right to your mailbox. Subscribe now.

The duo propose using a technology called Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator , successfully tested last year, to perform an aerobraking maneuver.What is Aerobraking? It is a method for slowing down a spacecraft and lowering its orbital speed by using the drag of a planet's or moon's atmosphere. What are its benefits? Well, it saves weight and fuel for any space mission.

The researchers have calculated that using LOFTID, a giant inflatable heat shield attached to the front of the spacecraft, they could use Triton's atmosphere to reduce its speed by about 60% in one pass. That’s a major positive for a successful mission, allowing the spacecraft to enter a stable orbit around Neptune without using much fuel.

The study, however, does not specify what kind of scientific objectives such a mission would have, but there are many reasons to be interested in Neptune and its moons.

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