Current heat shields are rigid, and the size needed for a large spacecraft carrying humans to Mars won't fit in a rocket.
NASA's flexible design, however, takes up less space since it would expand and inflate before entering Mars' atmosphere.
Current heat shields are rigid, and the size needed for a large spacecraft carrying humans to Mars won't fit in a rocket.
NASA's flexible design, however, takes up less space since it would expand and inflate before entering Mars' atmosphere.