Instructed by Dr. Paul A. Blelloch, Senior Vice President, Aerospace Analysis, ATA Engineering

ü From 4–6 November 2025 (3 Days, 3 Classes, 12 Total Hours)

ü Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday from 12–4 p.m. Eastern Time (all sessions will be recorded and available for replay; course notes will be available for download)

ü Taught exclusively to NASA employees, now available as a public course for the first time

ü All students will receive an AIAA Certificate of Completion at the end of the course

OVERVIEW

Coupled Loads Analysis (CLA) is a complex analysis to compute design loads on launch vehicles and spacecraft. The results of CLA are often in the critical path to closing design margins. Therefore, appropriate and accurate CLA results are the basis of successful launch vehicle and spacecraft missions.

The details of any CLA are specific to the launch vehicle and how it flies. However, the building blocks and fundamentals are consistent across all vehicle analyses. This course reviews the key basics of structural dynamics, then uses those fundamentals to create the building blocks of CLA, finally using those building blocks in CLA. At the conclusion of the course, the student will have a foundation to understand and develop new CLA capabilities.

In addition to classic CLA material, much of the course is spent on model development and reduction. Good model reduction is as critical to accurate loads as understanding the theory of numerical integration.

CLA flight events covered are ground loads, liftoff, aerodynamic flight, maneuvering, engine ignitions and shutdowns, staging, and engine oscillations. These are also discussed from the perspective of day of launch assessments, preliminary loads, and interface environments.