ExoMars Flush Air Data System: Experimental and Numerical Investigation

Abstract

The atmospheric reconstruction based on a flush air data system requires knowledge of the surface pressure distribution, which depends on various factors such as the Mach number, angle of attack, and aeroshell geometry of the entry vehicle. The purpose of this work is to provide this information for the postflight analysis of the entry, descent, and landing module of ExoMars 2016, which is called Schiaparelli. Because the flow around the capsule cannot be duplicated exactly in ground testing facilities, and to account for the uncertainties in physical modeling by numerical simulation, a hybrid approach is chosen for the study. First, the atmospheric entry is simulated experimentally, and these experiments are then simulated numerically. The experimental and numerical results are compared and discussed. The almost perfect agreement validates the numerical tool, which is applied afterward to the analysis of the entry flight of Schiaparelli. A focus lies on the understanding of experimental uncertainties and on the impact of necessary numerical simplifications.