Stability of the Low Reynolds Number Compressible Flow Past a NACA0012 Airfoil

With stratospheric flight or martian exploration in perspective, the compressibility influence on wake dynamics of a NACA0012 profile is investigated. The unsteady flow past airfoil at characterized using direct numerical simulations for various angles attack and Mach numbers up to . Steady flows obtained selective frequency damping (SFD) technique are used as base states global linear stability analysis. both angle Reynolds number most amplified mode characteristics first investigated incompressible regime. Then, effects subcritical regime considered. A stabilizing destabilizing effect observed depending number. For , has close critical threshold, which results an earlier Hopf bifurcation, whereas increasing always decrease growth rate well above threshold. Finally, decreases with