Structures
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” Antoine de Saint-Exupéry — aviator & author
The Structures team owns the structure of Icarus: the primary airframe, the thrust structure, and landing legs that can carry a propulsive touchdown without buckling.
Landing propulsively requires a structure that is both light and stiff: every gram spent here is a gram no other subsystem can have, while too much flex perturbs the controller and can set off a devastating feedback loop.
Team interests
- Airframe and thrust structure design
- Structural analysis and FEA
- Landing load paths and impact dynamics
- Materials selection and mass optimization
- Fabrication and structural testing
Responsible engineers
Projects
In development
Icarus airframe
The primary structure of the lander — designed for engine thrust, translation loads, and propulsive touchdown.