Concept study on adding return capability to HTV

The H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) named "KOUNOTORI (White Stork)" is the Japanese unmanned spacecraft that delivers supply cargo to the International Space Station (ISS). The second flight of "KOUNOTORI" has been successfully completed up to March 30 2010. With the completion of HTV development, Japanese human space technology has moved closer to realize manned spacecraft. Next approach is recognized as to acquire capability for return in moderate environment with guided re-entry. Studies on re-entry spacecraft or a return vehicle have been conducted in Japan, since 2004. Such vehicle studied in Japan is focused on adding return capability to the HTV or HTV Return system (HTV-R). This paper describes the recent results of concept study for HTV-R, which includes the trade-off study of candidate configurations, system studies.