Performance Study of a Power Law Starbody

The performance of a power law starbody, designed for low drag, was calculated numerically and verified experimentally. The methodology of the design shape is presented along with a comparison to other forebody shapes and an evaluation of scaling effects. A starbody was constructed and tested in the University of Queensland reflected shock tunnel, T4, Various test conditions were used to determine both the on-design and off-design performance of the starbody, These results are compared with those of tests done on a cone of equivalent volume and length. The resulting starbody shape is shown to have 20% less drag than the equivalent cone at a Mach number of 6.4 and an Re = 1.5 x 10(6).