Preparing for the Meteoritic Return of Stardust

The hypervelocity entry of a sample return capsule on its way back from interplanetary space acts as an artificial meteor, with flow conditions similar to natural m-sized meteoroids. Unlike natural fireballs, a sample return capsule arrives at a known time and its shock emissions and ablation can be studied without the confusion of fragmentation and the obscuring emissions from ablated meteoric metals. The entry of the Stardust Sample Return Capsule (SRC) on Sunday January 15, 2006, was also a real-life test of key risk drivers for future Thermal Protection System (TPS) design, by measuring the amount of radiative heat flux and the ablation response of the TPS. This paper presents results from the calculations made to predict the expected meteoric emissions for the Stardust SRC entry and reevaluates the surface temperature measurements obtained during a prior mission that observed the Genesis sample return.