NASA Common Research Model: A History and Future Plans

Abstract

The NASA Common Research Model (CRM) has enabled many formal and informal international cooperative activities and has enabled aeronautical researchers and engineers in industry, government, and academia to work together across organizational and international borders sharing results on relevant problems for the benefit of all. The NASA Common Research Model (CRM) was conceived in 2007 and its aerodynamic design completed in 2008 responding to needs broadly expressed both within the US and international aeronautics communities for modern/industry-relevant and open/public geometries coupled with advanced experimental data for applied computational fluid dynamic validation studies. This paper provides a brief history of the development of the CRM, along with a summary of wind tunnel model data that has been obtained over the past 10 years. This paper presents data obtained from the NASA Langley National Transonic Facility, the Ames 11-ft Transonic Wind Tunnel and the European Transonic Windtunnel. Sample comparisons are given between the three wind tunnels for lift, drag and pitching moment. Several CRM-derivatives that have been developed are also summarized in this paper.