Ground/Flight Test Engineering and Test Operations

Qualis provides engineering, operational, and configuration management support to ground test facilities and flight test operations during the development and early operational phases of launch vehicles and spacecraft. Our support includes test planning, instrumentation, test support, data gathering and evaluation, and design recommendations leading to mission assurance and risk evaluation.

We are experienced developing test requirements, test objectives, and test plans. For example, Qualis personnel designed, developed and flight-tested the Advanced Video Guidance System (AVGS) for the DARPA Orbital Express program and also tested and supported development of micro-thrusters for the Gravity Probe B experiment. We review the pressure traces from every Solid Rocket Motor flight for the Space Shuttle for performance and health monitoring. We also review the flight hardware for quality assurance.

Currently, Qualis is assisting with the specifications of all aerothermal development flight instrumentation for the Ares I-X and Ares I vehicles.

Our areas of expertise include:

• Test requirements
• Test planning
• SRM health monitoring
• Radiation effects
• Plume Definitions
• Launch Stand Plume Impingement
• Base Flowfield Definition
• Plume Radiation
• Plume Induced Base Region Convection
• Plume Induced Flow Separation
• Short Duration Base Heating Testing
• Base Region Thermal Protection System Design/Verification
• Model/Flight Instrumentation
• Radiation and Convection Predictions
• Flight Instrumentation
• Flight Data Analysis