Installing the tip of SHEFEX II
Installing the tip of SHEFEX II
Hannah Böhrk and Henning Elsässer, installing the ceramic heat shield tiles. The two researchers, from the DLR Institute of Structures and Design, have been working on the design and integration of the spacecraft nose, and the construction of the heat shield for the body of SHEFEX II. Their institute developed the ceramic fibre composite being used here. The use of new materials, which retain their strength at temperatures above 1500 degrees Celsius, makes the use of sharp edges in hypersonic re-entry vehicles possible.
