Brazil is carrying out, until September 19, a new stage to expand the capacity to carry out scientific research in microgravity in space.
Operation Potiguar 2, conducted at the Barreira do Inferno Launch Center (CLBI), in Parnamirim, Rio Grande do Norte, tests, in real flight conditions, the recovery system of the Recoverable Suborbital Microgravity Platform (PSM-R).
The microgravity environment allows research to be carried out in conditions different from those found on the Earth's surface. Among the areas that can benefit are studies of materials, fluids, combustion, biology, medicines and space agriculture.
The platform will be launched by the VS-30 V16 sounding vehicle, developed by the Institute of Aeronautics and Space (IAE). The mission is scheduled to take place from August 31st to September 19th and has around 160 military personnel and civil servants involved in the preparation, integration, launch and recovery of the payload.
The main objective of the second phase of Operation Potiguar is to verify whether the group responsible for recovering the platform works as planned during a flight. The first phase of the operation, in 2024, was mainly focused on verifying procedures and systems associated with the launch.
In practice, recovery allows the platform and transported equipment to be returned for analysis after the flight. The data obtained can help in evaluating systems and developing future scientific missions in a microgravity environment.
Brazilian platform
The VS-30 V16 is approximately 9 meters long, 600 millimeters in diameter and has a mass of around 1.6 tonnes. The simulations used in preparing the mission indicate that the rocket will be able to reach approximately 100 kilometers in altitude and travel around 90 kilometers. The payload, the PSM-R, has an estimated mass of 401 kilograms.
The platform brings together systems necessary for its operation during the flight and for returning to the surface. Among them are the parachute recovery system, modules intended for experiments, service and control module, cold gas system, balancing rings and a mechanism called a yo-yo, used to help control the rotation speed before separating the payload.
According to the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), the platform is related to the Microgravity Program, which selects scientific and technological experiments to be carried out in suborbital and orbital flights.
Recovery Test
The system to be evaluated during the mission is considered an important step in transforming the platform into a structure capable of supporting different scientific experiments.
During the flight, the onboard systems will be monitored by telemetry and tracking resources. After the payload returns, the data collected will be analyzed by the teams responsible for the operation.
The Barreira do Inferno Launch Center also coordinates safety procedures and vehicle monitoring. The operation involves tracking and telemetry systems and requires coordination with the bodies responsible for controlling air and maritime space.
Opened in 1965, CLBI was the first space launch center in South America.
According to the FAB, the unit has already participated in more than 400 rocket launches and accompanied more than 3 thousand vehicles. Among the activities carried out by the center is the tracking of Ariane rockets, in cooperation with the European Space Agency, and support for the monitoring of vehicles launched from the Alcântara Launch Center.
