Experimental Analysis of Aerodynamic Interactions Occurring on Hypersonic Spacecraft

Experimentalinvestigationshavebeenachievedin theONERAresearch facilitiesof theChalais ‐Meudon Center in order to validate design tools used for the dee nition of a scramjet for a hypersonic spacecraft. Aerodynamic interactions occurring on such a spacecraft have been thoroughly studied, notably 1 ) the shock/shock interactions ahead of the air inlets, 2 ) the shock-wave/boundary-layer interaction and its control inside the air inlet, and 3)the e ow cone uence between an external e ow and an aerospike nozzle jet in an underexpansion condition. These studies contribute to the knowledge of the e ow physics of aerodynamic interactions that occur on hypersonic spacecraft, compensate for the lack of published detailed measurements of such e owe eld patterns, and provide well-documented test cases to validate computer codes.