In-Flight Research on Boundary Layer Transition

The paper reports on the recent research activities of a joint universitary research group, consisting of scientists from five German universities. The main objective is the in-flight investigation of laminar-turbulent boundary layer by means of different measurement techniques as well as numerical simulations. The measurement techniques employed for the flight experiments are surface hot-film arrays, piezofoil arrays and Laser-Doppler anemometry. Additionally, direct numerical simulations concerning the spatial and temporal development of transition on the wing glove are carried out. An overwiev of the employed measuring equipment and numerical methods is given, followed by a discussion of obtained results.