Hypercone (spacecraft)

A hypercone is a mechanism for atmospheric reentry deceleration proposed for use by future Mars landing missions. It is an inflatable structure combining characteristics of both heat shields and parachutes. NASA's Low Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) program is testing out some of these new devices and in April 2012 performed a trial run on a rocket sled test to replicate the forces a supersonic spacecraft would experience prior to landing.

Hypercone (spacecraft)

A hypercone is a mechanism for atmospheric reentry deceleration proposed for use by future Mars landing missions. It is an inflatable structure combining characteristics of both heat shields and parachutes. NASA's Low Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) program is testing out some of these new devices and in April 2012 performed a trial run on a rocket sled test to replicate the forces a supersonic spacecraft would experience prior to landing.