Modeling and Simulation of the Dragonfly Drogue Parachute Opening Loads Using POST2

The Dragonfly project is a New Frontiers Program mission that will launch in 2028 and deliver a rotorcraft to Titan, Saturn's largest moon. The entry, descent, and landing (EDL) phase highly depends on the drogue and main parachute subsystem due to Titan's dense atmosphere and relatively low gravity. As such, the deployment of the drogue parachute represents a critical event to ensure a successful descent. This study provides an overview of the modeling and simulation efforts to quantify the drogue opening loads using a heritage method and by evaluating the bridle elastic loads to assess hardware risk. The elastic loads yielded a more representative estimate for quantifying the loads the parachute and entry vehicle will undergo. This study showed that the inflation models drive these loads more so than the elastic properties of the bridles, and tuning the drogue deployment timing can minimize the opening loads.