heat shield

noun

: a barrier of ablative material to protect a space capsule from heat on its entry into an atmosphere

Examples of heat shield in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The largest heat shield ever made for a crewed spacecraft, it's made of an epoxy novolac resin, called Avcoat, with special additives set in a fiberglass honeycomb matrix. David Szondy, New Atlas, 6 Dec. 2024 The Parker Solar Probe in a clean room in Titusville, Fla., in 2018, after the installation of its heat shield. Denise Chow, NBC News, 1 Dec. 2024 The other effort related to engine reuse is the development of an inflatable heat shield, with the help of NASA, to protect the Vulcan booster engines during reentry back into the atmosphere. Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 27 June 2024 One problem that Starship encountered during its fourth test flight in June, Musk added, was the loss of heat shield tiles — or thousands of small, black hexagons affixed to the spacecraft’s exterior that are meant to shield the vehicle from extreme temperatures during reentry. Jackie Wattles, CNN, 13 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for heat shield 

Word History

First Known Use

1962, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of heat shield was in 1962

Dictionary Entries Near heat shield

Cite this Entry

“Heat shield.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heat%20shield. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

heat shield

noun
: a barrier of insulation to protect a space capsule from heat on its return to earth
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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