Candidate techniques for non-intrusive measurement of flight boundary-layer propertiesTechniques to measure gas composition and chemical activity in the hypersonic boundary layer associated with entry research vehicles and with a tethered satellite deployed at 100-125 km altitude are currently being investigated at the NASA-Langley Research Center. These measurements are appropriate for the study of the aerothermodynamic properties of these vehicles when operating with controlled trajectories in the thermosphere between 125 and 55 km. A number of the required quantitative physical measurements have been identified, and candidate techniques to obtain the measurements without perturbing the flow are being considered. Two candidate techniques are discussed in this paper: a mass spectrometer to analyze the gas composition at the vehicle surface, and Rayleigh scattering to obtain density, velocity, and temperature gradients from the surface to the edge of the boundary layer.
Document ID
19850055469
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Wood, G. M., Jr. (NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, United States)
Hoppe, J. (NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, United States)
Eide, D. G. (NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, United States)
Lewis, B. W. (NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, United States)
Brown, K. G. (Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA, United States)