Estimation of Drag Coefficient From Radar Tracked Trajectory Data of an Artillery Shell

Abstract

An attempt is made to estimate aerodynamic parameters using radar tracked coordinates of a free flight artillery shell. The present paper proposes schemes using maximum likelihood method to estimate average values of drag coefficient and its functional dependence on Mach number by processing trajectory data of an artillery shell. The proposed schemes were validated by applying these on simulated trajectory data of a routinely used artillery shell. Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that both schemes could advantageously be used to estimate drag coefficient using radar tracked trajectory data of an artillery shell.