Lifting center-body land recoverable booster concept.
Land recovery of launch vehicles, applying intersecting pressure vessel theory for shaping of tanks and hinged tail panels
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Land recovery of launch vehicles, applying intersecting pressure vessel theory for shaping of tanks and hinged tail panels
The R-512E (Si-20Cr-20Fe) fused slurry silicide coating process was optimized to coat full size (20in x 20in) single face rib and corrugation stiffened panels fabricated from FS-85 columbium alloy for 100 mission space shuttle heat shield applications. Structural life under simulated space shuttle lift-off stresses and reentry conditions demonstrated reuse capability well beyond 100 flights for R-512E coated FS-85 columbium heat shield panels. Demonstrated coating damage tolerance showed no immediate structural failure on exposure. The FS-85 columbium alloy was selected from five candidate alloys (Cb-752, C-129Y, WC-3015, B-66 and FS-85) based on the evaluation tests which have designed to determine: (1) change in material properties due to coating and reuse; (2) alloy tolerance to coating damage; (3) coating emittance characteristics under reuse conditions; and (4) new coating chemistries for improved coating life.
This paper presents an analysis of a guidance method which uses a reference trajectory. The four state variables needed to prescribe the trajectory are used as follows : Velocity is made the independent variable, and the errors in the rate-of-climb, acceleration, and range variables away from the reference are used to govern the lift. A linearized form of the motion equations is used to show that this represents a third-order control system. First- and second- order control terms (rate of climb and acceleration inputs) are shown to determine the entry corridor depth by stabilizing the trajectory so that the vehicle does not skip back out of the atmosphere or does not exceed a specified acceleration limit. The destabilizing effect that range input (the third-order control term) can have is illustrated and the results indicate that a low value of range input gain must be used at the high supercircular velocities while larger values of range input gain can be used at lower velocities. The usable corridor depth and range capability with this guidance system are demonstrated for a lifting capsule (L/D = 0.5). The practical applications of this system are illustrated with a fixed trim configuration wherein roll angle is used to command the desired lift. The results show that the guidance system requires only one reference trajectory for abort entry conditions as well as for entry conditions near the design values.
In this paper the optimum three-dimensional maneuver in lift and bank control of a reentry vehicle is investigated. The use of the modified Chapman's variables and a normalized lift coefficient allows a general discussion of the optimum control of an arbitrary vehicle reentering any planetary atmosphere. Several planar problems are solved. Using the condition of equilibrium glide, the maximum cross range and the footprint of a reentry vehicle from circular speed are computed in terms of the maximum lift-to-drag ratio.
The flowfield around a Co-Optimization Blunt-body Reentry Analysis Mid-lift/drag-ratio Rigid Vehicle (CobraMRV) vehicle is investigated with a combination of high-speed planar laser Mie scattering (PLMS) and pulse-burst cross-correlation Doppler global velocimetry (PB-CC-DGV). Tests were conducted in the NASA Langley 4-foot Supersonic Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel (UPWT) over a range of different tunnel operating conditions and model configurations. Results indicate a complex shock-boundary layer interaction. Scalar information extracted from the PLMS show the evolution of the bow shock structure, while streamwise velocity measurements indicate the spatial evolution of the shock-boundary layer interaction including the growth of the separation shock foot and eventual reacceleration of the flow at farther downstream locations. Assessment of multiple cases show strong Mach and Reynolds numbers driven effects on the character of the shock-boundary layer interactions. Measurement uncertainties ranged from 50 to 150 m/s throughout the region of interest, driven largely by angular uncertainties and instabilities in the laser pointing. The mean accuracy of the freestream measurements was found to be 5.2-percent of tunnel predicted values.
Manned lifting body flight test program, noting NASA M2-F2 and HL-10 and USAF SV-5P
Transonic aerodynamic characteristics of variable geometry reentry vehicle with hypersonic lift drag ratio
Four space projects' activities are summarized. Design work on the Mars Penetrator Project, in cooperation with the NASA Ames Research Center, is being continued. Efforts are focused on the drilling mechanism which must penetrate the martian subsurface soil to collect and retrieve an uncontaminated sample. The new design consists of a rotary-percussive drill mechanism. This mechanism is optimum for dry drilling, necessary to avoid contamination of the soil sample, in many different soil types. The need for a small, relatively inexpensive device to study the chemical structure of this martian soil was also established. The egg design was chosen for its low cost compared to other systems and potential for a large number of eggs to be deployed on the martian surface. The design process included analysis of the dynamics of reentry, dissipation of heat during reentry, impact with the surface, access to undisturbed soil samples, and ability to gather samples from the soil at three depths. The egg consists of the reentry systems, soil probe lifting system, soil probe package, gas chromatograph, transmitter, and battery power supply. The egg must function only once, but is designed to withstand one martian year. The Mars Mole is designed as a rover-based device which penetrates the martian soil to a depth of up to 10 m, obtains a sample of soil, and returns it to the surface for analysis. The mole was designed to meet the following specifications: (1) weight less than 10 kg; (2) size less than 20 x 20 x 30 cm; (3) power less than 100 W; (4) ability to obtain a sample of at least 5 cc; (5) ability to penetrate fine, loose sand; and (6) need to obtain at least one sample. The space station umbilical connector project is a device which provides the translational motion of the connectors on the Space Station Freedom to allow engagement for power and data transfer. The design is capable of delivering a 20 lb force within the necessary tolerances and will operate reliably in the space environment.
Hypersonic lift-drag ratio and landing modes in manned entry vehicle design
Guidance of low lift-drag ratio vehicle during earth atmosphere reentry
Lift-drag ratio, lift and drag coefficients and angle of attack effects on Gemini and Apollo reentry vehicles measured in shock tunnel under free flight conditions
High altitude hypersonic viscous flow degradation of L/D effects on entry vehicle lateral range capability
Flight tests were made to determine the capability of positioning a gliding airplane for a landing on a 5,000-foot runway with special reference to the gliding flight of a satellite vehicle of fixed configuration upon reentry into the earth's atmosphere. The lift-drag ratio and speed of the airplane in the glides were varied through as large a range as possible. The results showed a marked tendency to undershoot the runway when the lift-drag ratios were below certain values, depending upon the speed in the glide. A straight line dividing the successful approaches from the undershoots could be drawn through a lift-drag ratio of about 3 at 100 knots and through a lift-drag ratio of about 7 at 185 knots. Provision of a drag device would be very beneficial, particularly in reducing the tendency toward undershooting at the higher speeds.
This thesis describes the analysis of the reentry dynamics of a high-performance lifting atmospheric entry vehicle through numerical simulation tools. The vehicle, named SHARP, is currently being developed by the Thermal Protection Materials and Systems branch of NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California. The goal of this project is to provide insight into trajectory tradeoffs and vehicle dynamics using simulation tools that are powerful, flexible, user-friendly and inexpensive. Implemented Using MATLAB and SIMULINK, these tools are developed with an eye towards further use in the conceptual design of the SHARP vehicle's trajectory and flight control systems. A trajectory simulator is used to quantify the entry capabilities of the vehicle subject to various operational constraints. Using an aerodynamic database computed by NASA and a model of the earth, the simulator generates the vehicle trajectory in three-dimensional space based on aerodynamic angle inputs. Requirements for entry along the SHARP aerothermal performance constraint are evaluated for different control strategies. Effect of vehicle mass on entry parameters is investigated, and the cross range capability of the vehicle is evaluated. Trajectory results are presented and interpreted. A six degree of freedom simulator builds on the trajectory simulator and provides attitude simulation for future entry controls development. A Newtonian aerodynamic model including control surfaces and a mass model are developed. A visualization tool for interpreting simulation results is described. Control surfaces are roughly sized. A simple controller is developed to fly the vehicle along its aerothermal performance constraint using aerodynamic flaps for control. This end-to-end demonstration proves the suitability of the 6-DOF simulator for future flight control system development. Finally, issues surrounding real-time simulation with hardware in the loop are discussed.
A general nonlinear programming algorithm (NICO) is discussed. An academic optimization example is given. The NICO multi-input, multi-output control system design is discussed. NICO applications relative to launch vehicle autopilot design, space shuttle static balance, transient response criteria in the design of a reentry vehicle control system, and waterjet propulsion and lift system components sized to a large surface effect ship are noted.
Aerodynamic and structural aspects of rotary atmospheric entry aids, including high temperature rotor material selection, rotor blade design and drag and lift modulation problems
Cartesian-mesh methods are perhaps the most promising approach for addressing the issues of flow solution automation for aerodynamic design problems. In these methods, the discretization of the wetted surface is decoupled from that of the volume mesh. This not only enables fast and robust mesh generation for geometry of arbitrary complexity, but also facilitates access to geometry modeling and manipulation using parametric Computer-Aided Design (CAD) tools. Our goal is to combine the automation capabilities of Cartesian methods with an eficient computation of design sensitivities. We address this issue using the adjoint method, where the computational cost of the design sensitivities, or objective function gradients, is esseutially indepeudent of the number of design variables. In previous work, we presented an accurate and efficient algorithm for the solution of the adjoint Euler equations discretized on Cartesian meshes with embedded, cut-cell boundaries. Novel aspects of the algorithm included the computation of surface shape sensitivities for triangulations based on parametric-CAD models and the linearization of the coupling between the surface triangulation and the cut-cells. The objective of the present work is to extend our adjoint formulation to problems involving general shape changes. Central to this development is the computation of volume-mesh sensitivities to obtain a reliable approximation of the objective finction gradient. Motivated by the success of mesh-perturbation schemes commonly used in body-fitted unstructured formulations, we propose an approach based on a local linearization of a mesh-perturbation scheme similar to the spring analogy. This approach circumvents most of the difficulties that arise due to non-smooth changes in the cut-cell layer as the boundary shape evolves and provides a consistent approximation tot he exact gradient of the discretized abjective function. A detailed gradient accurace study is presented to verify our approach. Thereafter, we focus on a shape optimization problem for an Apollo-like reentry capsule. The optimization seeks to enhance the lift-to-drag ratio of the capsule by modifyjing the shape of its heat-shield in conjunction with a center-of-gravity (c.g.) offset. This multipoint and multi-objective optimization problem is used to demonstrate the overall effectiveness of the Cartesian adjoint method for addressing the issues of complex aerodynamic design. This abstract presents only a brief outline of the numerical method and results; full details will be given in the final paper.
The film shows experimental investigations to determine the landing-energy-dissipation characteristics for several types of landing gear for manned reentry vehicles. The landing vehicles are considered in two categories: those having essentially vertical-descent paths, the parachute-supported vehicles, and those having essentially horizontal paths, the lifting vehicles. The energy-dissipation devices include crushable materials such as foamed plastics and honeycomb for internal application in couch-support systems, yielding metal elements as part of the structure of capsules or as alternates for oleos in landing-gear struts, inflatable bags, braking rockets, and shaped surfaces for water impact.