Aerodynamic Heating Analysis of Mars Entry Vehicle with a Deployable Aeroshell in a Hypersonic Wind Tunnel

An atmospheric-entry vehicle equipped with a deployable aeroshell can achieve sufficient deceleration even in thin atmospheres. Owing to this capability, deployable aeroshell technology has been proposed as a promising option for Mars exploration missions. In this study, an aerodynamic heating analysis of an atmospheric-entry vehicle with a deployable aeroshell was conducted in a hypersonic wind tunnel. The heat flux distribution on the deployable aeroshell model was measured using infrared thermography, and the flow field was visualized using the schlieren method. The shock stand-off distance was found to vary with the angle of attack ( α ), corresponding to changes in the heat flux distribution. The maximum heat flux on the leeward-side inflatable ring was located near \(\:z=0\) for α  = 10° and 20°, whereas it appeared on both sides of \(\:z=0\) for α  = 30° and 40°. The experimental and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) results were compared in terms of the Stanton number distribution on the front surface of the model; the CFD results exhibited a discrepancy of only approximately 10% compared to the experimental values, demonstrating good quantitative agreement. Based on these findings, the heat flux on the backside of the aeroshell was predicted to be 10% of the stagnation-point heat flux.