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Davies, Carol

Publications and source records attributed to Davies, Carol.

Planetary Mission Entry Vehicles Quick Reference Guide. Version 3.0

This is Version 3.0 of the planetary mission entry vehicle document. Three new missions, Re-entry F, Hayabusa, and ARD have been added to t he previously published edition (Version 2.1). In addition, the Huyge ns mission has been significantly updated and some Apollo data correc ted. Due to the changing nature of planetary vehicles during the desi gn, manufacture and mission phases, and to the variables involved in measurement and computation, please be aware that the data provided h erein cannot be guaranteed. Contact Carol Davies at cdavies@mail.arc. nasa.gov to correct or update the current data, or to suggest other missions.

Davies, Carol

Recent CFD Simulations of Shuttle Orbiter Contingency Abort Aerodynamics

Modern Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) techniques were used to compute aerodynamic forces and moments of the Space Shuttle Orbiter in specific portions of contingency abort trajectory space. The trajectory space covers a Mach number range of 3.5-15, an angle-of-attack range of 20-60 degrees, an altitude range of 100-190 kft, and several different settings of the control surfaces (elevons, body flap, and speed brake). While approximately 40 cases have been computed, only a sampling of the results is presented here. The computed results, in general, are in good agreement with the Orbiter Operational Aerodynamic Data Book (OADB) data (i.e., within the uncertainty bands) for almost all the cases. However, in a limited number of high angle-of-attack cases (at Mach 15), there are significant differences between the computed results, especially the vehicle pitching moment, and the OADB data. A preliminary analysis of the data from the CFD simulations at Mach 15 shows that these differences can be attributed to real-gas/Mach number effects.

Papadopoulos, Periklis

CFD Simulations in Support of Shuttle Orbiter Contingency Abort Aerodynamic Database Enhancement

Modern Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) techniques were used to compute aerodynamic forces and moments of the Space Shuttle Orbiter in specific portions of contingency abort trajectory space. The trajectory space covers a Mach number range of 3.5-15, an angle-of-attack range of 20deg-60deg, an altitude range of 100-190 kft, and several different settings of the control surfaces (elevons, body flap, and speed brake). Presented here are details of the methodology and comparisons of computed aerodynamic coefficients against the values in the current Orbiter Operational Aerodynamic Data Book (OADB). While approximately 40 cases have been computed, only a sampling of the results is provided here. The computed results, in general, are in good agreement with the OADB data (i.e., within the uncertainty bands) for almost all the cases. However, in a limited number of high angle-of-attack cases (at Mach 15), there are significant differences between the computed results, especially the vehicle pitching moment, and the OADB data. A preliminary analysis of the data from the CFD simulations at Mach 15 shows that these differences can be attributed to real-gas/Mach number effects. The aerodynamic coefficients and detailed surface pressure distributions of the present simulations are being used by the Shuttle Program in the evaluation of the capabilities of the Orbiter in contingency abort scenarios.

Papadopoulos, Periklis E.

Grid Generation Issues and CFD Simulation Accuracy for the X33 Aerothermal Simulations

Grid generation issues relating to the simulation of the X33 aerothermal environment using the GASP code are explored. Required grid densities and normal grid stretching are discussed with regards to predicting the fluid dynamic and heating environments with the desired accuracy. The generation of volume grids is explored and includes discussions of structured grid generation packages such as GRIDGEN, GRIDPRO and HYPGEN. Volume grid manipulation techniques for obtaining desired outer boundary and grid clustering using the OUTBOUND code are examined. The generation of the surface grid with the required surface grid with the required surface grid topology is also discussed. Utilizing grids without singular axes is explored as a method of avoiding numerical difficulties at the singular line.

Polsky, Susan