Development of environmental criteria guidelines for aerospace vehicle design

The types of guideline data on natural environmental conditions for the various major geographic locations that are applicable to the design of aerospace vehicles and associated equipment are discussed. Since relationships between aerospace vehicle parameters and atmospheric variables cannot always be clearly defined, there should be a close working relationship and team philosophy between the design/operational engineer and the respective organizations' aerospace meteorologists. Consideration should be given to protecting aerospace vehicles from some extremes by using support equipment and specialized monitoring personnel to advise on the expected occurrence of critical environmental conditions. It is pointed out that the services of these specialized personnel may be very economical in comparison with the more expensive designing that would be necessary to cope with all environmental possibilities. The environment considered here includes wind, atmospheric electricity, upper atmospheric density, and solar wind.