Monte Carlo simulation of reentry plasmas

Attention is given to the treatment of ionization and plasma effects in the direct simulation Monte Carlo method. The requirements for accurate modeling of reentry plasmas are discussed along with the difficulties these requirements present. The current method for modeling such plasmas is reviewed and an alternative method is presented. Both methods are applied to the flow of a 10 km/s shock wave in air at 0.1 torr; a flowfield directly relevant to the projected aeroassisted orbital transfer vehicle. The results are compared and the differences between the methods are discussed.