Application of computational fluid dynamics in missile engineering

The Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Group within the APL Air Defense Systems Department has developed a unique resource of personnel and specialized computer hardware and software to effectively practice the discipline of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) throughout the missile development process. A suite of CFD codes is regularly used to predict the performance of conceptual missiles, support and supplement wind tunnel tests, aid in the development of flight-critical hardware, and support forensic analyses of flight anomalies. Key to the successful application of CFD is understanding the limits that the discipline brings to the problem-solving process and diligence in validating both the computational codes and their results. Example problems and CFD solutions presented in the article illuminate the process and illustrate the added value CFD brings to missile engineering.