Search Results

This paper recalls the initial status of the Mars planet environment, the present status following the arrival of different spacecraft to Mars, and what could happen in the coming years with the arrival of planned missions. It describes the amount of possible ejected hardware currently anticipated for vehicles incoming to Mars: spent rocket stages going to Mars because of interplanetary flight needs, orbiting vehicles discarding hardware and sensor protection, including aero-capture vehicles jettisoning their heat-shields, landing vehicles with airbags, or retro-rocket pollution and potential Earth Return vehicles trying to reduce their mass before leaving the vicinity of Mars in order to save mass and propellant. Planetary protection aspects are described, as well as the existing rules of COSPAR. A comparison with the Earth orbit environment before the space age is provided, as well as what has become of that environment now.

The developed assembly is a Water Controlled Pump Assembly (WCPA) consisting of a hydraulic pump with its mechanical (bearings, seals) and hydraulic fittings. This pump is driven with a brush-less DC motor and its Electronic Control Unit. The manufactured pump package has been made according to ESA specifications. The optimal combination of hydraulic and electro-mechanic is the key of the high overall efficiency: more than 30%.

A new configuration of centrifugal waste liquid separator is presently under development in Microtecnica. Its main feature is the single shaft configuration, which means only one motor drives both the separator sub-assy and the fan, which is unusual for this class of separator. This paper will describe all the reasons for this selection, the features of the system, the performances and the results obtained at the present stage of development.