Chemical nonequilibrium effects on the inviscid flow in the windward plane of symmetry of two simplified shuttle configurations
A theoretical study was made to delineate the effects of thermochemical nonequilibrium in the inviscid flow field of a representative space shuttle orbiter configuration. The study was based on experimental pressure data which was used as an input to a stream tube computer program. The pressure data from two configurations are tabulated. Calculations were restricted to the windward plane of symmetry and the calculations covered an altitude range from 200,000 to 250,000 feet at velocities of 16,000 to 24,000 feet per second respectively. Angles of attack of 20 and 40 degrees were included. The calculations show that the nonequilibrium effects are confined largely to the entropy layer expect at the highest altitude, where significant nonequilibrium effects are observed in the entire inviscid flow field.