Large-Eddy Simulation of the unsteady supersonic flow around a Mars entry capsule at different angles of attack

Time-evolving high-fidelity simulations of an entry capsule in a supersonic flight regime have been performed at different angles of attack (0 degrees, 5 degrees, 10 degrees and 15 degrees) in Mars' atmosphere. The aim is to contribute to the understanding of the critical unsteady phenomena that arise during the descent phase, gaining insights on the optimal design choices to ensure a safe atmospheric entry and a successful landing procedure. Turbulent structures effectively solved via Implicit Large-Eddy Simulation technique allow us to evaluate the flow properties and the capsule's response both in space and time, placing special attention to the analysis of the turbulent motions responsible for the oscillatory and unsteady dynamics. Ultimately, Proper Orthogonal Decomposition is employed to provide a low-order model of the wake dynamics.