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At least 19 records

Aerodynamic Loading Characteristics at Mach Numbers from 0.80 to 1.20 of a 1/10-Scale Three-Stage Scout Model

Aerodynamic loads results have been obtained in the Langley 8-foot transonic pressure tunnel at Mach numbers from 0.80 to 1.20 for a 1/10-scale model of the upper three stages of the Scout vehicle. Tests were conducted through an angle-of-attack range from -8 deg to 8 deg at an average test Reynolds number per foot of about 4.0 x 10(exp 6). Results indicated that the peak negative pressures associated with expansion corners at the nose and transition flare exhibit sizeable variations which occur over a relatively small Mach number range. The magnitude of the variations may cause the critical local loading condition for the full-scale vehicle to occur at a Mach number considerably lower than that at which the maximum dynamic pressure occurs in flight. The addition of protuberances simulating antennas and wiring conduits had slight, localized effects. The lift carryover from the nose and transition flare on the cylindrical portions of the model generally increased with an increase in Mach number.

Kelly, Thomas C.↗

Aerodynamic Characteristics in Pitch and Sideslip of a 1/15-Scale Model of the Scout Vehicle at a Mach Number of 2.01

An investigation has been made t o determine the aerodynamic characteristics in pitch and sideslip of a 1/15-scale model of the Scout vehicle at a Mach number of 2.01. The effects of two sets of cruciform fins, of inline and indexed fin arrangements, a flare , and accessories such as antennas, launch fittings, and control tunnels were measured for combined angles of attack and sideslip to about 8deg. The tests were made in the Langley 4- by 4-foot supersonic pressure tunnel at a Reynolds number of 4 x 10(exp 6) per foot. The Addition of the rear fins or the flare increased the longitudinal and directional stability, whereas the front fins, either indexed or inline, had a destabilizing effect. All configurations became directionally unstable with increasing angle of attack. The accessories had only a small effect on the aerodynamic characteristics other than an increase in axial force.

Robinson, Ross B.↗

Near Earth Asteroid Scout Thrust and Torque Model

The Near Earth Asteroid (NEA) Scout is a solar sail mission whose objective is to scout at least one Near Earth Asteroid in preparation for manned missions to asteroids. NEA Scout will use a solar sail as the primary means of propulsion. Thus it is important for mission planning to accurately characterize the thrust of the sail. Additionally, the solar sail creates a relatively large solar disturbance torque that must be mitigated. For early mission design studies a flat plate model of the solar sail with a fixed center of pressure was adequate, but as mission concepts and the sail design matured, greater fidelity was required. Here we discuss the progress to a three-dimensional sail model that includes the effects of tension and thermal deformation that has been derived from a large structural Finite Element Model (FEM) developed by the Langley Research Center. We have found that the deformed sail membrane affects torque relatively much more than thrust. We have also found that other than uncertainty over the precise shape, the effect of small (approximately millimeter scale) wrinkles on the diffusivity of the sail is the leading remaining source of uncertainty. We demonstrate that millimeter-scale wrinkles can be modeled analytically as a change in the fraction of specular reflection. Finally we discuss the implications of these results for the NEA Scout mission.

Heaton, Andrew↗

High-Speed Load Distribution on the Wing of a 3/16-Scale Model of a Scout-Bomber Airplane with Flaps Deflected

The tests reported herein were made for the purpose of determining the high-speed load distribution on the wing of a 3/16 scale model of a scout-bomber airplane. Comparisons are made between the root bending-moment and section torsional-moment coefficients as obtained experimentally and derived analytically. The results show good correlation for the bending-moment coefficients but considerable disagreement for the torsional-moment coefficients.

Barnes, Robert H.↗

Near Earth Asteroid Scout Solar Sail Thrust and Torque Model

The Near Earth Asteroid (NEA) Scout is a solar sail mission whose objective is to scout at least one Near Earth Asteroid to help prepare for human missions to Near Earth Asteroids. NEA Scout will launch as a secondary payload on the first SLS-Orion mission. NEA Scout will perform a small trim maneuver shortly after deploy from the spent SLS upper stage using a cold gas propulsion system, but from that point on will depend entirely on the solar sail for thrust. As such, it is important to accurately characterize the thrust of the sail in order to achieve mission success. Additionally, the solar sail creates a relatively large solar disturbance torque that must be mitigated. For early mission design studies a flat plate model of the solar sail with a fixed center of pressure was adequate, but as mission concepts and the sail design matured, greater fidelity was required. Here we discuss the progress to a three-dimensional sail model that includes the effects of tension and thermal deformation that has been derived from a large structural Finite Element Model (FEM) developed by the Langley Research Center. We have found that the deformed sail membrane affects torque relatively much more than thrust; a flat plate model could potentially model thrust well enough to close mission design studies, but a three-dimensional solar sail is essential to control system design. The three-dimensional solar sail model revealed that thermal deformations of unshielded booms would create unacceptably large solar disturbance torques. The original large FEM model was used in control and mission simulations, but was resulted in simulations with prohibitive run times. This led us to adapt the Generalized Sail Model (GSM) of Rios-Reyes. A design reference sail model has been baselined for NEA Scout and has been used to design the mission and control system for the sailcraft. Additionally, since NEA Scout uses reaction wheels for attitude pointing and control, the solar torque model is essentially to successfully design the NEA Scout momentum management control system. We have also updated the estimate of diffusivity used for the aluminized sail material based on optical testing of wrinkled sail material. The model presented here represents the current state of the art of NASA's ability to model solar sail thrust and torque.

Heaton, Andy↗

Wind-tunnel evaluation of a 21-percent-scale powered model of a prototype advanced scout helicopter

An exploratory wind tunnel investigation of a 21 percent scale powered model of a prototype advanced scout helicopter was conducted in the Langley 4 by 7 Meter Tunnel. The investigation was conducted to define the overall aerodynamic characteristics of the Army Helicopter Improvement Program (AHIP), to determine the effects of the rotor on the aerodynamic characteristics and to evaluate the effect of a mast mounted sight on the aircraft stability characteristics. Tests covered a range of thrust coefficients, advance ratios, angles of attack and angles of sideslip and were run for both rotor on and rotor off configurations. Results of the investigation showed that the prototype configuration was longitudinally unstable with angle of attack for all configurations tested. The instability was due to unfavorable interference effects between the horizontal tail and the wake shed from the engine pylon and rotor hub, which caused a loss of horizontal tail effectiveness. The addition of the mast mounted sight had little effect on the stability of the model, but it caused an alteration in the rotor lift distribution that resulted in substantial interference drag for the sight.

Phelps, A. E., III↗

Transonic Wind-Tunnel Investigation of the Fin Loads on a 1/8-Scale Model Simulating the First Stage of the Scout Research Vehicle

An investigation to determine the fin loads on a 1/8-scale model simulating the first stage of the Scout research vehicle was made in the Langley 8-foot transonic tunnel at Mach numbers from 0.40 to 1.20. Tests were conducted over an angle-of-attack range from about -10 to 10 deg and at a Reynolds number per foot of approximately 3.5 x 10(exp 6). Results of the tests indicate that for a given angle of attack, negative tip-control deflections caused decreases in normal-force and fin-bending-moment coefficients and increases in pitching-moment coefficient, as would be expected. The effects were slight at a model angle of attack of -10 deg where tip-control stall had probably occurred but increased with an increase in angle of attack.

Kelly, Thomas C.↗

Solar Sail Torque Model Characterization for the Near Earth Asteroid Scout Mission

Near Earth Asteroid Scout (NEA Scout) was a mission to test solar sail propulsion for orbital transfer from cislunar space to flyby and image an asteroid. One of the goals of the mission was to characterize the solar torque on the sail to ensure successful attitude control for the orbit transfer and imaging the asteroid. The simulation used to develop the flight attitude control software uses the generalized model for solar sails, a tensor equation of the forces and torques on sails of arbitrary shape. Rios-Reyes and Scheeres developed a general process to update the torque tensor coefficients using estimates of sail torque over a range of directions to the sun. Their process was adapted and implemented for the specific case of NEA Scout using spacecraft telemetry collected during sail characterization maneuvers in combination with simulation models and parameters. The NEA Scout maneuvers were limited to the operating range of the mission and constraints of the control hardware and allowed safe testing of each attitude before proceeding to the next. The NEA Scout reaction wheel speeds are used to measure accumulated momentum, while the Active Mass Translator (AMT) position is used to subtract out the torque from the center of mass crossed with the sail force and isolate the torque from only the sail shape. The process was tested by running attitude control simulations of the characterization maneuvers, generating simulated telemetry, estimating the solar torques, then using a least squares estimating the solar torque coefficients using least-squares and then performing a least-squares fit to the solar torque tensor coefficients. These estimated coefficients were tested by evaluating the solar torques under the same conditions as the simulated telemetry and comparing to the true simulated torques. Solar force model updates can be performed separately by observing the effect of the sail on the trajectory, and the torque model can be refined using those solar force updates. This process met the needs of the NEA Scout mission and can be adapted to characterize the solar torque for other missions with different sails.

solar sail↗

Solar Sail Torque Model Characterization for the Near Earth Asteroid Scout Mission

Near Earth Asteroid Scout (NEA Scout) was a mission to test solar sail propulsion for orbital transfer from cislunar space to flyby and image an asteroid. Had it succeeded, one of the mission goals was to characterize the solar torque on the sail to ensure successful attitude control for the orbit transfer and imaging the asteroid. The simulation used to develop the flight attitude control software uses the generalized model for solar sails, a tensor equation of the forces and torques on sails of arbitrary shape. Rios-Reyes and Scheeres developed a general process to update the torque tensor coefficients using estimates of sail torque over a range of directions to the sun. Their process was adapted and implemented for the specific case of NEA Scout using spacecraft telemetry collected during sail characterization maneuvers in combination with simulation models and parameters. The NEA Scout maneuvers were limited to the operating range of the mission and constraints of the control hardware and allowed safe testing of each attitude before proceeding to the next. The NEA Scout reaction wheel speeds are used to measure accumulated momentum, while the Active Mass Translator (AMT) position is used to subtract out the torque from the center of mass crossed with the sail force and isolate the torque from only the sail shape. The process was tested by running attitude control simulations of the characterization maneuvers, generating simulated telemetry, estimating the solar torques, then using a least squares estimating the solar torque coefficients using least-squares and then performing a least-squares fit to the solar torque tensor coefficients. These estimated coefficients were tested by evaluating the solar torques under the same conditions as the simulated telemetry and comparing to the true simulated torques. Solar force model updates can be performed separately by observing the effect of the sail on the trajectory, and the torque model can be refined using those solar force updates. This process met the needs of the NEA Scout mission and can be adapted to characterize the solar torque for other missions with different sails.

solar sail↗

Transonic Wind-Tunnel Investigation of the Static Longitudinal Aerodynamic Characteristics of Several Configurations of the Scout Vehicle and of a Number of Related Models

Results have been obtained i n t h e Langley 8-foot transonic pressure tunnel at Mach numbers from 0.40 t o 1.20 for several configurations of the Scout vehicle and f o r a number of related models. Tests extended over an angle-of-attack range from about -10 degrees to 10 degrees at a Reynolds number per foot of about 3.8 x 10 sup 6.

Kelly, Thomas C.↗

Investigation of the Static Longitudinal and Lateral Stability Characteristics of a 0.10-Scale Model of a Three-Stage Configuration of the Scout Research Vehicle at Mach Numbers of 2.29, 2.96, 3.96, and 4.65

An investigation w a s made i n the Langley Unitary Plan wind tunnel o determine the effects of fin area and the effects of antennas and w iring tunnels on the static longitudinal and lateral stability of a 0 .10- scale model of a three- stage configuration of the Scout vehicle. The tests were performed at Mach numbers of 2.29, 2.96, 3.96, and 4. 65 6 and at Reynolds numbers of about 3.5 X 10 per foot.

Jernell, Lloyd S.↗

Electronic delay ignition module for single bridgewire Apollo standard initiator

An engineering model and a qualification model of the EDIM were constructed and tested to Scout flight qualification criteria. The qualification model incorporated design improvements resulting from the engineering model tests. Compatibility with single bridgewire Apollo standard initiator (SBASI) was proven by test firing forty-five (45) SBASI's with worst case voltage and temperature conditions. The EDIM was successfully qualified for Scout flight application with no failures during testing of the qualification unit. Included is a method of implementing the EDIM into Scout vehicle hardware and the ground support equipment necessary to check out the system.

Ward, R. D.↗

Passive Roll Stabilization of the Near Earth Asteroid Scout Solar Sail Mission

The Near Earth Asteroid (NEA) Scout is a small satellite, solar sail mission set to launch on Artemis I. Analysis of the NEA Scout solar radiation pressure model determined that, for certain solar incidence angles, there exists at least one locally stable equilibrium point about the “roll” axis, or the axis normal to the solar sail plane. This analysis is extended to three other geometrically similar solar sail models, and a Lyapunov stability analysis is conducted demonstrating that the stable equilibria are locally stable for the majority of roll angles in a wide range of solar incidence angles. Under certain assumptions, it is possible that only two axis control is required for non-spinning solar sails. If the roll axis is controlled, an active rate damping controller can be designed to asymptotically stabilize the system. Simulation results are presented that follow the stability analysis, where in the homogenous case, the system enters a limit cycle and, in the actively damped case, the system asymptotically converges to the equilibrium point.

Ivan Rodrigues Bertaska↗

Applications of Suits spectral model to wheat

Canopy reflectance calculations for a spring type Mexican wheat, Penjamo, are compared with published data on Scout winter wheat. Good agreement exists between model calculations and experimental data in the spectral range, 500 nm to 750 nm, suggesting that the model parameters for wheat can be applied to different cultivars of wheat in the same growth stage. Wheat canopy reflectance is dependent upon surface soil type and this dependency is examined with the Suits' spectral model. In this particular growth stage wheat reflectance is shown to be nearly independent of soil reflectance in the visible wavelengths and progressively dependent at longer wavelengths in the infrared.

Chance, J. E.↗

Description of the US Army small-scale 2-meter rotor test system

A small-scale powered rotor model was designed for use as a research tool in the exploratory testing of rotors and helicopter models. The model, which consists of a 29 hp rotor drive system, a four-blade fully articulated rotor, and a fuselage, was designed to be simple to operate and maintain in wind tunnels of moderate size and complexity. Two six-component strain-gauge balances are used to provide independent measurement of the rotor and fuselage aerodynamic loads. Commercially available standardized hardware and equipment were used to the maximum extent possible, and specialized parts were designed so that they could be fabricated by normal methods without using highly specialized tooling. The model was used in a hover test of three rotors having different planforms and in a forward flight investigation of a 21-percent-scale model of a U.S. Army scout helicopter equipped with a mast-mounted sight.

Phelps, Arthur E., III↗

Investigation of the Aerodynamic Characteristics of Two Preliminary Designs of Scout Research Vehicle at Mach Numbers from 1.77 to 4.65

A wind-tunnel investigation has been conducted to determine the aerodynamic characteristics of two preliminary designs of the Scout research vehicle. The first model was tested at Mach numbers from 1.77 to 2.87 at Reynolds numbers of 3.7 x 10(exp 6) to 4.0 x 10(exp 6) per foot. A variable angle-of-attack range of -2 degrees to 14 degrees was used in determining the effect of nose shape, size of interstage flare base diameter, size of trapezoidal first-stage fins, and fin tip-control deflection on the aerodynamic characteristics of the model.

Keynton, Robert J.↗