Effect of nose shape on three-dimensional stagnation region streamlines and heating rates

A new method for calculating the three-dimensional inviscid surface streamlines and streamline metrics using Cartesian coordinates and time as the independent variable of integration has been developed. The technique calculates the streamline from a specified point on the body to a point near the stagnation point by using a prescribed pressure distribution in the Euler equations. The differential equations, which are singular at the stagnation point, are of the two point boundary value problem type. Laminar heating rates are calculated using the axisymmetric analog concept for three-dimensional boundary layers and approximate solutions to the axisymmetric boundary layer equations. Results for elliptic conic forebody geometries show that location of the point of maximum heating depends on the type of conic in the plane of symmetry and the angle of attack, and that this location is in general different from the stagnation point. The new method was found to give smooth predictions of heat transfer in the nose region where previous methods gave oscillatory results.