Safe Landings from Space with Aero Sekur

July 10, 2014 - PRLog -- A series of ESA commissions that date back over ten years, have positioned Aero Sekur as a pioneer and leading European specialist in inflatable structures, parachutes and air filtration.

Latest projects include a new generation airbag system in development under an ESA contract for small Mars landers. Additionally, under a Thales Alenia Space – Italia S.p.A contract, the flight unit of the flotation recovery system for the Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle (IXV) project has been delivered.

Other ESA sponsored work for Aero Sekur’s Space division are a parachute for the Mars descent module andHEPA filters for planetary protection, also contracted to TAS-I: flight models for the 2016 mission for both will be delivered during third quarter, 2014. Additional Aero Sekur ESA projects have included heat shields for atmospheric re-entry, inflatable modules / mechanisms and research equipment to establish if zeolite on Mars can be used for plant growth. The projects play a significant role in ESA’s next stage Space initiatives.

Aero Sekur capabilities illustrated by the airbag advancements include structural integrity verification and an ability to simulate extra-terrestrial Martian landing conditions. The parachute system shows expertise in the control of descent modules to land on extra-terrestrial surfaces. Knowledge-transfer from the company’s terrestrial expertise in air quality management has benefitted Aero Sekur’s production of Space modules.

AgroSpace Advancements:

The sixth International AgroSpace Workshop took place in Sperlonga (LT), Italy in May 2014. Reinforcing Aero Sekur’s pivotal role in AgroSpace developments, the company partnered Federlazio Latina for event organisation, with support from Regione Lazio and the Latina Chamber of Commerce. Scientific collaboration was given by the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) and University of Arizona in Tucson.

The main focus of the 2014 workshop was ‘Analogue Testing – The First Step towards Space’. The latest scientific and technological innovations in the field of protected cultivation of crops (plant physiology and closed-loop production systems) were analysed and state of the art international research on systems for the cultivation of plants in extreme environments (Space, Moon,  Mars, polar or desert regions on the Earth) were presented, with particular attention to the Life Support System (LSS).

Footnote:

The safety system specialist, Aero Sekur, reports strong growth across all divisions: airborne, defence and Space. Expansion has been supported by the launch of Sekur Space and Technology (SST) Srl and the appointment of over 100 new employees over the last eight years.  The company’s new Space and Innovation Division is located near Turin, in the heart of Italy’s Space development region.