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How does the Space Shuttle use parachutes?
Essentially, you'll find three places on the Space Shuttle where we use parachutes. The first one is on the backs of the astronauts.
The second one is on the back end of the orbiter, and the third is on the Solid Rocket Boosters.
First, let's talk about the astronauts. You know those long, orange launch and entry suits that they wear?
Well, on the back is a parachute. Those are designed for an emergency bailout that they could do
probably below 30,000 feet with the orbiter in some kind of a controlled glide.
You see them putting those on right before they go into the orbiter, while they're in the White Room there at the very last thing.
Now in the back end of the orbiter, you've probably seen this when it comes in to land, after it rolls a little while,
then it deploys a very large parachute. That is to help slow it down. It's one of the things that makes the orbiter safer
and makes it easier for us to land here at Kennedy Space Center.
The third place where you'll find parachutes is on the Solid Rocket Boosters. Now, after they have done their job of boosting for about two minutes,
they continue on in a giant arc. Finally, about 149 miles out to sea, a small drove chute will deploy, which will help stabilize it.
Another small chute will come out, slow it down a little bit, and then three large main parachutes will come up.
Each one of those main parachutes by themselves weighs one ton. So you're looking at three tons of parachute
as it lowers the Solid Rocket Booster down into the ocean.
And that's how we use parachutes on the Space Shuttle.
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