THERMAL PROTECTION SYSTEM OF THE HUYGENS PROBE DURING TITAN ENTRY: FLIGHT PREPARATION AND LESSONS LEARNED

The entry of the HUYGENS probe in the atmosphere of TITAN on January 14th 2005 was undoubtedly a crucial phase for the success of the mission. The thermal shield completely fulfilled its role to maintain the aerodynamic shape and to protect the probe from excessive heating during its atmospheric entry. After a short recall of the TPS architecture, the paper will focus on the work performed in 2004 within the framework of the final preparation of the mission. Following the heat flux reassessment leading to a significant increase compared to what was considered during the development phase, it was necessary to review accordingly the performance of the Thermal Protection System (TPS) accounting for different topics: - Eventual influence of the UV heating induced by