LOS ANGELES - Inversion Space Company announced it has received a $350,000 NASA contract to study how its Arc reentry spacecraft could support an Earth-based demonstration of aerocapture, a maneuver that uses aerodynamic forces to slow a spacecraft and place it into orbit around a planetary body.

NASA's Shared Services Center awarded Inversion the firm-fixed-price purchase order. The study is scheduled to run through 30 June 2027. The NASA procurement notice identifies NASA Ames Research Center as the location supporting performance of the effort.

Under the study, Inversion will examine how its Arc spacecraft could support an aerocapture demonstration. The company says the work will include mission design, aerodynamics, trajectory analysis, and vehicle definition.

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Aerocapture background

Aerocapture is an orbital-insertion technique in which a spacecraft arriving at a planet on a high-energy trajectory uses aerodynamic forces during a controlled atmospheric pass to dissipate energy and enter a captured orbit. The approach can reduce the amount of propellant needed for orbital insertion compared with an all-propulsive maneuver.

NASA has studied aerocapture for decades as a potential way to reduce the mass and propulsion requirements of planetary missions. NASA research has identified potential applications at Mars, Venus, Titan, Uranus and Neptune, as well as an Earth demonstration intended to mature the technology for future planetary missions.

Aerocapture has not yet been demonstrated at a planetary destination. NASA researchers have proposed an Earth demonstration to generate flight data and reduce technical risk before applying the maneuver to future planetary missions. One NASA study describes an Earth demonstration vehicle intended to exercise capabilities relevant to planetary aerocapture while reducing the risks associated with the concept.

NASA research indicates that aerocapture could provide particularly significant benefits for missions to the outer planets. Studies of potential Uranus missions, for example, have found that aerocapture could reduce propulsive mass requirements and enable more direct trajectories, potentially reducing cruise time.

Arc is a maneuverable reentry spacecraft that Inversion is developing for applications including rapid cargo delivery from space, hypersonic testing, and national-security missions. The company says the spacecraft is designed for precise, controlled atmospheric flight at hypersonic velocities.