Aerodynamic and aerothermodynamic analysis of high-speed earth re-entry capsule

This paper deals with the computational fluid dynamics analysis of a capsule entering the earth atmosphere at the end of a sample return mission. Several numerical simulations have been carried out to assess the flowfield environment past a sphere-cone capsule, by using non-equilibrium reacting gas approximations. Heat shield ablation and effects of flow plasma radiation on capsule aeroheating are also accounted for in the flowfield analysis. The issue of aerodynamic and aerothermodynamic performance of the entry spacecraft in the framework of a super-orbital re-entry scenario is addressed.