Flowfield simulation about the SOFIA Airborne ObservatoryThe Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes equations have been applied to Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) configurations. Comparisons between numerical and experimental results are made in two-dimensions for free shear layers and a rectangular cavity, and in three-dimensions for simplified SOFIA geometries. Dominant acoustic behaviour of the cavity flows compare well with experiment. The sensitivity of the solutions to changes in grid cell size and artificial dissipation levels are shown. Furthermore, optical path distortion due to the flow field is modelled using geometrical constructs. The results demonstrate the viability and usefulness of the present computational methods for this class unsteady applications.
Document ID
19920045593
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Atwood, Christopher A. (NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Van Dalsem, William R. (NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)