Atmospheric density, pressure, and temperature are reconstructed along the entry trajectory of the 2012 Mars Science Laboratory mission using forebody pressure data from a single pressure sensor that was located near the stagnation point. Atmospheric reconstruction covers an altitude range of 64–9.5 km, which for Mars Science Laboratory corresponds to Mach numbers between 30 and 1.85. Stagnation pressure coefficients are modeled with numerical solutions of one-dimensional normal shock-wave relations, which ignore viscosity and heat transfer. High-temperature effects of dissociation and vibrational excitation are considered while assuming thermochemical equilibrium. This atmospheric reconstruction based on stagnation pressure data and equilibrium flow modeling is in good agreement with previous studies that used Mars Science Laboratory pressure data from multiple (seven) forebody sensors and three-dimensional nonequilibrium Navier–Stokes modeling. The combined accuracy of the present reconstruction method and the flow model is found to be 1% in hypersonic flight at Mach 28–4 and below 2% during supersonic flight. The method is independent of vehicle geometry, and stagnation pressure coefficients computed along the Mars Science Laboratory entry trajectory are shown to be valid for a wide range of Mars entry missions.


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    Title :

    Atmospheric Reconstruction with Stagnation Pressure Flight Data from Mars Science Laboratory


    Contributors:


    Publication date :

    2017




    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Print


    Language :

    English



    Classification :

    BKL:    55.60 Raumfahrttechnik
    Local classification TIB:    770/7040