Parachute development
Vorticity is best known for our expertise in parachute system development. Our capability spans system analysis, design, development and testing.
// KEY CAPABILITIES
Concept design and simulation
For supersonic and subsonic parachute recovery systems
Full aerodynamic characterisation, flight dynamics, and trajectory simulations
For end-to-end sequence, from descent to landing
6 degree of freedom multi-body simulations of complete parachute sequences.
Testing and qualification support
Including wind tunnel and flight validation
// KEY CASE STUDY - HUYGENS
Vorticity staff designed, developed, and tested the Huygens parachute system, landing safely the first European interplanetary lander. This included design, development, and qualification of the three parachutes, mortar, container and sequencing mechanisms. Vorticity validated the system through 9 wind tunnel tests, low-altitude drop tests, and a high-altitude drop test (SM2).
The outcome was a successful landing of a probe on Saturn’s moon Titan in 2005.
// PARACHUTE SIMULATION METHODOLOGY
Vorticity is at the forefront of understanding of parachute physics and has developed simulation methods to predict inflation, aerodynamic performance, flight dynamics and trajectory prediction. Vorticity has developed key proprietary simulation softwares and analysis. The image on the left below show the point-wise tracking of a parachute in a wind-tunnel, and on the right, a visualisation from Vorticity's proprietary simulation visualisation software.
// KEY CASE STUDY - PARACHUTE ENGINEERING TOOL
The Parachute Engineering Tool software developed by Vorticity enables ESA engineers to conduct analyses of parachutes procured from international partners; to perform systems engineering tasks and to consider undertaking European parachute developments for space missions. In addition to developing state-of-the-art parachute engineering analysis tools, Vorticity has pioneered the use of CFD/FSI techniques for parachute analysis in support of Huygens post-flight analysis, NASA Mars Science Laboratory, ExoMars, and UK Space Agency studies.
// WIND TUNNEL TESTING
Vorticity has long-standing experience of testing parachutes in wind tunnels. The team tested the ExoMars ringslot parachute, the second stage design, at the NRC-CNRC (Conseil National de Recherces du Canada) 9m x 9m subsonic wind tunnel.
For the ESA Supersonic Parachute Research project, the Vorticity team designed and tested parachutes in the NRC-CNRC 1.5 m x 1.5 m supersonic wind tunnel between Mach 1.6 and Mach 2.1.
Vorticity has also conducted testing at the NASA Glenn 10ft x 10ft Supersonic wind tunnel and the NASA Ames National Full-Scale Complex (NFAC), as pictured below.
Vorticity designs, tests, and delivers parachute systems for terrestial, and extra-terrestrial applications.
