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STCAEM Cryogenic Aerobrake
Part of American Mars Expeditions
STCAEM Cryo
STCAEM Cryo
Credit: © Mark Wade
American manned Mars expedition. Study 1991. The STCAEM cryogenic / aerobrake (CAB) concept was used as the NASA reference vehicle.

Status: Study 1991. Gross mass: 801,000 kg (1,765,000 lb). Specific impulse: 475 s. Height: 50.00 m (164.00 ft). Span: 30.00 m (98.00 ft).

It offered conceptual continuity with the mainstream Mars transportation studies performed over the previous several years. Its only major new technology development was high-energy aerobraking (HEAB) for planetary capture, but the concept also required a high-thrust cryogenic space engine. Being able to land on Mars using the CAB concept required a successful rendezvous between separately captured vehicles in Mars orbit. The vehicle consisted of three main elements: the Mars Excursion vehicle (MEV), the Mars Transfer Vehicle (MTV) and the Trans-Mars Injection Stage (TMIS).

STCAEM (Space Transfer Concepts and Analyses for Exploration Missions) was a major NASA funded study produced by Boeing in 1991. It provided an exhaustive trade analysis of mission profiles and trajectories for manned Mars missions using four different propulsion technologies (cryogenic chemical with aerobraking, nuclear thermal, nuclear electric, and solar electric). Within each study alternate mission profiles using split/sprint missions, flyby rendezvous, and additional aerobraking were examined. Only the baseline for the Cryogenic AeroBrake mission is presented here. The nominal baseline mission was as follows:

STCAEM Cryogenic AeroBrake Mission Summary:



Family: Mars Expeditions. Country: USA. Spacecraft: STCAEM Cryogenic Aerobrake TMIS, STCAEM Cryogenic Aerobrake MTV, STCAEM MEV. Propellants: Lox/LH2. Agency: NASA, Boeing. Bibliography: 1985, 4423.
Photo Gallery

STCAEM CryoSTCAEM Cryo
Credit: NASA



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