Description: Thermal protection and flight control are crucial to the success of a planetary entry vehicle. NASA currently utilizes heat-resistant and ablative materials, such as PICA and other carbon-based materials, for thermal protection in high-velocity planetary entries. For planetary entry flight control, NASA typically uses reaction control thrusters, center of gravity shifting with mass ejection, external control surfaces, or a combination of these technologies. However, these heritage technologies will be insufficient for future missions, such as the Mars Sample Return mission, where the entry velocities and peak heat fluxes will be too demanding. Thus, new and innovative technologies are needed to enable and enhance these missions. A novel method of enhancing thermal protection and flight control during planetary entry is by using magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) interaction. During hypersonic flight, a layer of heated, partially ionized plasma exists in front of the vehicle due to a strong bow shock. If a magnetic field is applied to the ionized plasma, the conducting plasma flow experiences a body force known as the Lorentz force. This force increases the shock-standoff distance and, as a result, reduces the convective heat flux experienced. Additionally, the Lorentz force reacts an equal and opposite force that acts as a "plasma drag" and serves as a deceleration mechanism. Typically, flight control is limited in the upper atmosphere of planets because density is too low to produce significant aerodynamic drag. However, the velocity is high enough for sufficient ionization in this upper region, and MHD-induced drag can be utilized for flight control. This MHD-enabled control authority unlocks the ability to fly trajectories with lower heat loads, adding another method of heat flux mitigation. In conjunction with existing and in-development planetary entry technologies, a MHD device would reduce the constraints on current thermal protection systems and flight control mechanisms. Overall, MHD interaction can increase heat flux mitigation, provide a non-mechanical control mechanism, and enhance robustness in uncertain flight conditions. This proposal aims to study the performance of an electromagnetic control mechanism to enhance thermal protection and planetary entry systems. The MHD-induced capabilities can be actively controlled throughout a trajectory by utilizing an electromagnetic device instead of a permanent magnet. The research will experimentally investigate the thermal and aerodynamic performance of a prototype electromagnetic device in a state-of-the-art inductively coupled plasma wind tunnel. The experiments will increase fundamental knowledge of the aerothermal and plasma environment in various planetary atmospheres. Experimental results will be implemented into system performance models and trajectory simulation programs to study the electromagnetic device's system and mission impact. Altogether, this research will provide a prototype electromagnetic control mechanism, ground-based experimentation, and system and mission studies to increase the technology readiness level of MHD control mechanisms. This research will specifically address objectives in TA 9.1 (Aeroassist and Atmospheric Entry) and TA 14.3 (Thermal Protection Systems) in NASA's Technology Roadmaps.