Centaur/Surveyor nose fairing aerodynamic heating investigation
Aerodynamic heating, delamination and pressure in nose fairing honeycomb core of Atlas Centaur launch vehicle
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Aerodynamic heating, delamination and pressure in nose fairing honeycomb core of Atlas Centaur launch vehicle
Variable density hypervelocity wind tunnel tests on effects of several ramp-fairing, umbilical, and pad configurations on aerodynamic heating to Apollo command module
Performance tests on dynamic jettison hinge loads of Centaur nose fairing
Simulated jettisoning performance of Atlas Centaur nose fairing carrying OAO spacecraft
Thrust-minus-drag forces and pressure distributions of closely spaced twin-jet afterbodies with different inboard-outboard fairing and nozzle shapes
Experimental aerodynamic investigations were conducted on a dual-strut mounted 0.0405-scale representation of the 140A/B outer mold line space shuttle orbiter vehicle. The tests, conducted from 11 Oct., 1974 through 22 Oct., 1974, were primarily to investigate aerodynamic stability and control characteristics of the space shuttle orbiter ferry configuration. Four afterbody fairing configurations and various additions to them in the form of horizontal and ventral fins strakes and other aerodynamic protuberances were tested. Base line data on the basic orbiter with MPS nozzles and bodyflap were recorded. The drag of the optimum ferry configuration was increased to the level of the basic orbiter for possible flight test configurations by the addition of two sizes of perforated speed brakes on the tail cone surface.
An experimental investigation was conducted in the MSFC 14-inch TWT (FA14, TWT 600) to determine the static stability and drag on a 0.004 scale model of the shuttle ascent configuration. The primary objective was to study the possibility of reducing the launch vehicle drag by using Orbiter/ET/SRB fairings, streamlined orbiter fore and aft attach structures, SRB and ET alternative nose configurations, and devices for modifying the flow between the orbiter and ET. The secondary objective was to determine the longitudinal and directional characteristics of the ascent configuration with the most promising of the drag reduction devices installed. Data were obtained for a Mach number range of 0.6 through 4.96 and angles of attack from -5 through 5 degrees at zero degrees side slip angle.
Stratospheric electric field and conductivity measurements are presented for sites of latitude greater than 50 deg N GG, during the months of either April or August, in a variety of weather and solar conditions. Vertical electric field data from balloon flights with an average duration of 18 hours at ceiling, in fair weather, are shown to be appropriately modeled by a simple, exponential, altitude-dependent equation. Data collected over electrified clouds and thunderstorms are presented, along with a discussion of the thunderstorm-related electric currents. Current surges in the atmosphere due to DC currents as well as the spheric are calculated, and it is found that in over 1000 hours of balloon data, no direct solar influence is identified except during major flares.
A reclosable clamshell noise fairing system was developed and successfully flown on a Black Brant VC sounding rocket. The clamshell system involved the design of unique structural and mechanical subsystems to meet the experimenters requirements, withstand environmental conditions of sounding rocket flight and recovery, and be relatively easy to maintain with a clean interface between the experiment detectors and instrumentation section of the payload. The development of the equations of motion of the mechanism are illustrated and results of the test of the Engineering Test Model (ETM) are shown.
Histograms of nearest neighbor spacings of fair weather cumulus at 15 locations over the world's oceans are presented based on the analysis of high resolution Landsat 3 Multispectral Scanner images for amounts of cloud cover ranging from 0.6 to 37.6 percent. These histograms are found to be essentially the same at all locations analyzed, similarly to previous findings on the size distributions and the fractal dimensions of the perimeters for this cloud type. The nearest neighbor spacings are linearly dependent on the effective cloud radii, with a proportionality factor ranging from five to twenty. The histograms peak at about 0.5 km. Nearest-neighbor spacings smaller than about a kilometer, associated with cumulus clouds with an effective radius less than a few hundred meters, have a distribution of cloud centers that is almost indepedent in the horizontal plane and show a tendency for the formation of clumps. Larger spacings of up to thirty kilometers occur and are associated with the larger clouds. These latter spacings are not independent.
This report presents the results of tests made in the 7-by 10-foot wind tunnel and in the 20-foot tunnel of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics to determine the drag of a number of airplane wheels, wheel fairings, and landing gears designed or selected for an airplane of 3,000 pounds gross weight. All tests were made on full-size models; those in the 7-by 10-foot tunnel were made at air speeds up to 80 miles per hour and those in the 20-foot tunnel were made at air speeds up to 100 miles per hour. Although most of the landing-gear tests were made in conjunction with a fuselage and at 0 degree pitch angle, some of the tests were made in conjunction with fuselage plus wings and a radial air-cooled engine and at pitch angles from -5 degrees to 6 degrees to obtain an indication of the general effect of these various items on landing-gear drag. All tests were made in the absence of propeller slipstream.
The tests reported in this report conclude the investigation of landing-gear drag that has been carried out in the NACA 20-foot wind tunnel. They supplement earlier tests (reported in Technical Report No. 485) made with full-scale dummy wheels, wheel fairings, and landing gears intended for airplanes of 3,000 pounds gross weight and include tests of tail wheels and tail skids.
This NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) video release presents footage of the June 19, 1999 installation of the fairing around the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) spacecraft. The spacecraft was previously mated to the Boeing Delta II rocket. Installation took place on Pad A of Launch Complex 17.
Fairings composed of Rigid Fibrous Insulations (RSI) were fabricated, instrumented, and coated using techniques that were recently developed at NASA Ames Research Center. These RSI components are part of a specific assembly of materials which were built onto a wing of a Pegasus flight vehicle. The assembly was designed to collect aerothermal data during a designated mission to deliver a satellite to earth orbit. The objective of the flight experiment is to validate the theory of boundary layer transition at flight speeds in excess of Mach 3. The actual flight experiment is scheduled to occur during the summer of 1998. Fabrication and installation methodologies will be discussed with a brief description of the wing glove assembly.
An investigation of four exhaust-nozzle-afterbody combinations has been conducted in the Langley 9- by 12-inch blowdown tunnel at Mach numbers of 1.93, 2.55, and 3.05. The models were tested on a pylon-mounted nacelle and the jet exhaust was simulated with cold air. Base bleed w a s varied from 0 to about 12 percent of the primary jet weight flow and was discharged in to the base region through either a sonic or supersonic bleed nozzle. The models were tested at zero degree angle of attack and the Reynolds number range was from 8 x 10(exp 6) to 9 x 10(exp 6) per foot. The results indicate that the base pressure and the performance of the exhaust-nozzle-afterbody combinations were little affected gy the high-velocity base bleed. The efficiency of the terminal-fairing model was only slightly less than that of the convergent-divergent nozzle-afterbody combinations; this difference indicates the loss associated with improved transonic efficiency at higher Mach numbers.
NASA missions to Mars confirm presence of surficial particles, as well as dramatic periods of aeolian reworking. Dust deposition on, or infiltration into, exploration equipment such as spacecraft, robotic explorers, solar panel power supplies, and even spacesuits, can pose significant problems such as diminished power collection, short circuits / discharges, and added weight. We report results conducted initially as a science fair project and a study now part of a first year University undergraduate research experience.
The Objective of the project is to develop and demonstrate NDE techniques to assist in the fabrication and operational monitoring of expendable vehicle payload fairings and other composite structures.
The external acoustic liftoff levels predicted for NASA's future heavy lift launch vehicles are expected to be significantly higher than the environment created by today's commercial launch vehicles. This creates a need to develop an improved acoustic attenuation system for future NASA payload fairings. NASA Glenn Research Center initiated an acoustic test series to characterize the acoustic performance of melamine foam, with and without various acoustic enhancements. This testing was denoted as NEMFAT, which stands for NESC Enhanced Melamine Foam Acoustic Test, and is the subject of this paper. Both absorption and transmission loss testing of numerous foam configurations were performed at the Riverbank Acoustical Laboratory in July 2013. The NEMFAT test data provides an initial acoustic characterization and database of melamine foam for NASA. Because of its acoustic performance and lighter mass relative to fiberglass blankets, melamine foam is being strongly considered for use in the acoustic attenuation systems of NASA's future launch vehicles.