Air speed, angle of sideslip and angle of attack are fundamental aerodynamic parameters for controlling most aircraft. For small aircraft for which conventional detecting devices are too bulky and heavy to be utilized, a novel and practical methodology by which the aerodynamic parameters are inferred using a micro hot-film flow sensor array mounted on the surface of the wing is proposed. A back...

The relationship between tolerances of statically measured geometric parameters and the aerodynamic performance of a sample of manufactured airfoils is investigated in this thesis. The objective is to determine which geometric parameters are the best discriminators of performance, and how these best discriminators are affected by changes in design methodology, manufacturing precision, and desir...

Aerodynamic design optimization of an airfoil for the Mars exploration airplane has been demonstrated by using an evolutionary algorithm. The adaptive range genetic algorithm is used for efficient and robust design optimization. Two-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver is used for accurate aerodynamic performance evaluation. The present computation is parallelized on the SX-6 vector computers in In...

Hummingbirds, with their impressive flight ability and competitive aerial contests, make ideal candidates for applying a mechanistic approach to studying community structure. Because flight costs are influenced by abiotic factors that change systematically with altitude, elevational gradients provide natural experiments for hummingbird flight ecology. Prior attempts relied on wing disc loading ...

This paper discusses the influence of aerodynamic drag torque on the dynamics of a satellite in a very low altitude orbit. The larger atmospheric density in low altitude earth orbits results in significant aerodynamic drag torques acting on the satellite. With a conventional satellite design this may result in instability. This paper shows how the instability can be avoided, and how the aerodyn...

Aerodynamic forces on bridges are commonly separated into static, self-excited, and buffeting force components. By delving into the relationships among force descriptors for static, self-excited, and buffeting components, novel perspectives are developed to unveil the subtle underlying complexities in modeling aerodynamic forces. Formulations for airfoil sections and those based on quasisteady ...

NASA’s Hyper-X Research Vehicle will provide a unique opportunity to obtain data on an operational airframe integrated scramjet propulsion system at true flight conditions. The airframe integrated nature of the scramjet engine with the Hyper-X vehicle results in a strong coupling effect between the propulsion system operation and the airframe’s basic aerodynamic characteristics. Comments on gen...

As aircraft wings become much more flexible due to the use of light-weight composites material, adverse aerodynamics at off-design performance can result from changes in wing shapes due to aeroelastic deflections. Increased drag, hence more fuel burn, is a potential consequence. Without means for aeroelastic compensation, the benefit of weight reduction from the use of light-weight material cou...

Aerodynamic studies using physical models of fossil organisms can provide quantitative information about how performance of defined activities, such as gliding, depends on specific morphological features. Such analyses allow us to rule out hypotheses about the function of extinct organisms that are not physically plausible and to determine if and how specific morphological features and postures...

Aerodynamic drag force breakdown of a typical transport aircraft shows that lift-induced drag can amount to as much as 40% of total drag at cruise conditions and 80-90% of the total drag in take-off configuration. One way of reducing lift-induced drag is by using wing-tip devices. By applying several types of winglets, which are already used on commercial airplanes, we study their influence on ...