EMPIRE User Manual
This is the user manual for EMPIRE, a simulation code for electromagnetics and plasma physics.
Engineering topics
Publications and source records attributed to Turner, C. D..
This is the user manual for EMPIRE, a simulation code for electromagnetics and plasma physics.
For the last several years, an investigation has been conducted regarding the feasibility of unmanned, airborne, High-Altitude Powered Platforms (HAPP), and High Surveillance Platforms for Over-the-Horizon Targeting (HI-SPOT). These airborne platforms have been proposed as a means of achieving a continuous regional communication-relay or for continuous regional surveillance for use in agricultural research or military applications, i.e., fleet support. These platforms would offer improvements over existing orbiting satellites. These improvements are related to better resolution and increased mission flexibility. The required mission endurance up to six months, would be obtained through the use of either solar power, a cryogenically fueled engine, or microwave-power. Attention is given to airborne platform configuration, structure, structural and aerodynamic modeling, modal analysis, and flutter analysis.
Modeling studies of the interaction of a delta wing aircraft with direct lightning strikes were carried out using an approximate scale model of an F-106B. The model, which is three feet in length, is subjected to direct injection of fast current pulses supplied by wires, which simulate the lightning channel and are attached at various locations on the model. Measurements are made of the resulting transient electromagnetic fields using time derivative sensors. The sensor outputs are sampled and digitized by computer. The noise level is reduced by averaging the sensor output from ten input pulses at each sample time. Computer analysis of the measured fields includes Fourier transformation and the computation of transfer functions for the model. Prony analysis is also used to determine the natural frequencies of the model. Comparisons of model natural frequencies extracted by Prony analysis with those for in flight direct strike data usually show lower damping in the in flight case. This is indicative of either a lightning channel with a higher impedance than the wires on the model, only one attachment point, or short streamers instead of a long channel.