Investigation of shock-boundary-layer interaction on the spike of a conical-spike nose inlet

Measurements were made of the height of the shock-induced boundary-layer thickening and separation over a Mach number range of 1.6 to 2.0. The behavior of the interaction depended on longitudinal spike position as well as on cone surface Mach number. The cone position affected the interaction by changing the rate of subsonic diffusion and thereby changing the pressure aft of the terminal shock. When the pressure rise due to the interaction exceeded about 1.9, the boundary layer was separated.