Base Pressure on Wings and Bodies with Turbulent Boundary Layers

At present there is no satisfactory theory for calculating the pressure which acts at the blunt base of an object traveling at supersonic velocity. In fact, the essential mechanism determining the base pressure is only imperfectly understood. As a result, the existing knowledge of base pressure is based almost entirely on experiments. The main object of this paper is to summarize the principal results of the many wind tunnel and free flight measurements of base pressure on both bodies of revolution and blunt trailing edge airfoils. A relatively simple method of estimating base pressure is presented, and an indication is given as to how the characteristics of base pressure play an essential role in determining the shape of an aerodynamically efficient object for supersonic flight.