Full Size Orion Heat Shield
Entry Systems and Technology Division Chief Dean Kontinos and Thermophysics Facilities Branch Chief George Raiche pose by the Orion/Avcoat Manufacturing Development Unit on display at the NASA Ames Research Center’s 75th Anniversary Open House October 18, 2014. The MDU was produced in 2008/2009 to “practice” building a full scale Orion Heat Shield. This was the first attempt since the early 70’s to make a full scale Avcoat Heat Shield. Much of the Apollo-era documentation was lost (they didn’t have document storage servers like we do today) and so NASA had to re-discover the process. This first MDU is evidence that it was not an easy thing to do. The MDU is a full 5-meters (16.4 feet) in diameter.