Aerodynamics analysis of a hypersonic electromagnetic gun launched projectile

A hypersonic aerodynamics analysis of an electromagnetic gun (EM gun) launched projectile configuration is undertaken in order to ameliorate the basic aerodynamic characteristics in comparison with the regular projectile layout. Static margin and pendulum motion analysis models have been applied to evaluate the flight stability of a new airframe configuration. With a steady state computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation, the basic density, pressure and velocity contours of the EM gun projectile flow field at Mach number 5.0, 6.0 and 7.0 (angle of attack = 0°) have been analyzed. Furthermore, the static margin values are enhanced dramatically for the EM gun projectile with configuration optimization. Drag, lift and pitch property variations are all illustrated with the changes of Mach number and angle of attack. A particle ballistic calculation was completed for the pendulum analysis. The results show that the configuration optimized projectile, launched from the EM gun at Mach number 5.0 to 7.0, acts in a much more stable way than the projectiles with regular aerodynamic layout.