An experimental investigation of base heating on typical Mars entry body shapes.

Hypersonic experiments on wire supported high angle blunt cones were conducted to determine the base heating characteristics. Heating distributions were obtained for several base configurations with variations in free stream Reynolds Number and gas composition. The dependence of the heating in the base region on angle of attack was also investigated. It was found that gas composition effects can be accounted for by comparison at equal Reynolds Number. Angle of attack effects can result in either increasing or decreasing base heating depending upon the location in the base region.