The preliminary design requirements of a long endurance aircraft capable of flight within the Martian environment was determined. Both radioisotope/heat engine and PV solar array power production systems were considered. Various cases for each power system were analyzed in order to determine the necessary size, weight and power requirements of the aircraft. The analysis method used was an adaptation of the method developed by Youngblood and Talay of NASA-Langley used to design a high altitude earth based aircraft. The analysis is set up to design an aircraft which, for the given conditions, has a minimum wingspan and maximum endurance parameter. The results showed that, for a first approximation, a long endurance aircraft is feasible within the Martian environment. The size and weight of the most efficient solar aircraft were comparable to the radioisotope powered one.
Preliminary Design of a Long-Endurance MARS Aircraft
1990
14 pages
Report
No indication
English
Aircraft , Jet & Gas Turbine Engines , Aircraft power supplies , Mars atmosphere , Propulsion system performance , Radioisotope batteries , Remotely piloted vehicles , Solar arrays , Aircraft design , Energy conversion , High altitude , Low reynolds number , Photovoltaic cells , Roving vehicles , Space exploration
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