A proposed computational technique for obtaining hypersonic air data on a sharp-nosed vehicle

A computational technique has been developed to obtain final air data quantities for a sharp-nosed hypersonic vehicle. Pressure measurements from five flush pressure ports are the only input needed. Four of the ports are installed around the forebody circumference and the fifth is on the nose. The pressure model is based on Lees-modified Newtonian method and corrected by pressure data from computational fluid dynamics analysis. Although this approach is similar to that used for the blunt-nosed space shuttle, it is designed specifically for a sharp-nosed aircraft. The potential of this method has been demonstrated, especially in obtaining values for dynamic pressure and angle of attack.