Surface pressure measurements on a hypersonic vehicle

Extensive surface pressure measurements were obtained on a hypersonic vehicle configuration at Mach 8 for the purpose of computational fluid dynamics code validation. Experiments were conducted in the Sandia National Laboratories hypersonic wind tunnel. All measurements were made for laminar flow conditions at a Reynolds number (based on model length) of 1.81 x 10{sup 6} and perfect gas conditions. The basic vehicle configuration is a spherically blunted, 10{degree} half- angle cone, with a slice parallel to the axis of the vehicle. To the aft portion of the slice could be attached flaps of varying angle; 10, 20, and 30{degree}. Surface pressure measurements were obtained for angles of attack from -10 to +18{degree}, for various roll angles, at 96 locations on the body surface. All three deflected flap angles produced separated flow on the sliced portion of the body in front of the flap. Because of the three-dimensional expansion over the slice, the separated flow on the slice and flap was also highly three- dimensional. The results of the present experiment provide extensive surface pressure measurements for the validation of computational fluid dynamics codes for separated flow caused by an embedded shock wave.