Session VI: Extreme Environments Page 1 of 16 Pages Assessment of PWT Conditions for the STARDUST Post-Flight Evaluation R. Wernitz, M. Fertig, G. Herdrich, S. Löhle, M. Winter, H.-P. Röser Institut für Raumfahrtsysteme (IRS), Universität Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 31, D-70569 Stuttgart ABSTRACT On January 15th 2006, the STARDUST capsule re-entered Earth’s atmosphere after its almost seven year journey with a re-entry speed of 12.8 km/s. Data on heat shield erosion and plasma characterization is considered to be very valuable for the vehicle design for further missions since the entry conditions are typical for hyperbolic re-entries for sample return missions e.g. from Mars. During an observation mission aboard the NASA DC-8 airborne observatory the SLIT experiment was conducted. Here, a conventional spectrometer in a Cerny Turner configuration was fed by fiber optics with light collected by a small mirror telescope. Data was taken during 30 s around peak heating until the capsule left the accessible observation region. The emission of CN as a major erosion product of the PICA (Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator) heat shield material as well as N 2 + and different atoms could be monitored successfully during that time. Planck temperatures as well as rotational and vibrational temperatures of CN and N 2 + were extracted along the visible trajectory. The paper provides a short summary of the obtained spectra for different flight altitudes of STARDUST. Furthermore a comparison to the results of numerical simulations of the plasma emission with PARADE and URANUS radiation / flow field simulations will be presented. In order to further interpret the obtained data, ground testing at the IRS plasma wind tunnels (PWT) is required. Thus, suitable measurement techniques for testing must be selected, essentially including emission spectroscopy in order to facilitate plasma characterization and consequently the comparability of PWT experimental results to the data obtained during STARDUST observation. Furthermore, testing conditions are identified and assessed. Here, constant surface heat flux is chosen as a general testing condition in a first approach. In addition, different ablative materials for testing are selected, starting with graphite as a basic material and including if possible the original PICA TPS or else, similar materials.