Spacecraft Thermal Management

Catalog description

This course will overview the physical princples governing existing spacecraft thermal management technologies, including conductive and radiative heat transfer, passive and active fluid transport, and ablation. One focus of the class is on thermal protection, which consists of materials and systems designed to protect spacecraft from extreme temperatures, particularly during atmospheric entry. Additionally, we discuss thermal control systems, which maintain all vehicle surfaces and compnents within an appropriate temperature range throughout all mission phases. Integral to the class is the reading and discussion of scientific research articles on the topics of spacecraft thermal control and protection.