Balloon-Based Disturbance Measurements in the Upper Atmosphere

For prediction of hypersonic aerothermodynamics, knowledge of the relevant disturbance levels is required to determine transition locations in flight at the altitudes of interest. Tao Systems and University of Maryland (UMD) propose to develop a flight platform and measurement system capable of acquiring pressure, temperature, density, velocity fluctuations, and particulates using a miniaturized, high-sensitivity, wide-bandwidth sensor and instrumentation system operating at altitudes above 100 kft. As a result, Air Force will have a flight platform to cost-effectively obtain high-quality flow data in the upper atmosphere as input conditions for flow physics models to more accurately predict in-flight turbulence.