Extracting meteorological data from projectile trajectory

The atmospheric conditions are found by knowing only the projectile's flight trajectory and its aerodynamic coefficients together with the initial atmospheric conditions on the ground. The test trajectories were generated as solutions of the modified point mass equations of motion. The correct atmospheric conditions for the generated flight trajectory are obtained from data collected during a weather balloon flight. A nonlinear least squares method then was used to fit the modified point mass equations to the test trajectory by varying the meteorological parameters. Density, temperature, and wind profiles agreed well.