LOFTID

Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator is a NASA mission to test inflatable reentry systems. It is the first such test from Earth-orbital speed. LOFTID was launched on an Atlas V 401 in November 2022 as a secondary payload, along with the JPSS-2 weather satellite. It deployed successfully and landed in the ocean near Hawaii on November 10, 2022.

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Liftoff! Stunning Photos of Successful Launch for JPSS-2, LOFTID

LOFTID Inflatable Heat Shield Test A Success, Early Results Show

NASA’s Successful Launch, Deployment, and Retrieval of LOFTID – An Innovative Inflatable Heat Shield

NASA Launched an Inflatable Flying Saucer, Then Landed It in the Ocean — The LOFTID mission tested a novel approach to guiding spacecraft through the extreme heat of returning from orbit, which could be used to put people on Mars