Novel Experimental Collection of High Quality Missile Plume Flowfield Data & Model Validation

The accurate prediction of missile plume signatures within the afterburning shutdown regime plays a crucial role in the development of a number of missile defense technologies for Boost Phase Intercept (BPI). These include algorithms for plume-to-hardbody handover, aimpoint selection, system typing, tracking, and the development of critical sensor parameters such as noise equivalent target thresholds. However, current state-of-the-art predictive codes cannot accurately represent the evolution of plume signatures through the afterburning shutdown regime. This results from an inadequate understanding of the associated physics and absence of supportive laboratory flowfield data that correlate flowfield measurements with simultaneous measurements of infra-red (IR) emissions. The proposed Phase I program will lead to detailed plans for obtaining new data sets in the CUBRC LENS shock tunnel facility that duplicate true flight conditions and can be used to improve the predictive capabilities of plume CFD models in the afterburning shutdown regime. The development of the test plans will be closely supported by CFD simulations to ensure that the entire afterburning cessation envelope is covered during the tests. State-of-the-art non-intrusive diagnostic measurements of plume flowfields will be performed at simulated altitudes, and companion measurements of IR emissions will be obtained.