What programs have been in the Ames Arc Jets in the past?
We have supported almost all of the customers who have flown through the atmosphere all the way from the Apollo through the space shuttle, X-33, X-34 and on into the current programs like the X-37. In the space science world we have supported Pioneer, Viking, Galileo, Mars Pathfinder, Mars Exploration Rover (MER), which is currently on the surface of Mars; all of these programs are part of our heritage. The Stardust space capsule, which will be coming back to earth in January 2006, will reenter our atmosphere at extremely high velocity and that heat shield was tested in our facility. In the future we intend to be a big contributor to the space exploration program. We are a part of a large number of the proposals going in for that program and we hope to develop some new materials and tests for those folks. • How does an arc heater compare to other ways of simulating a space entry environment In thermal protection system (TPS) designs using new materials or concepts, it is difficult to p
