The F-15B Lifting Insulating Foam Trajectory (LIFT) Flight Test

By: Administration (Nasa), National Aeronaut

A series of flight tests has been performed to assess the structural survivability of space shuttle external tank debris, known as divots, in a real flight environment. The NASA F-15B research test bed aircraft carried the Aerodynamic Flight Test Fixture configured with a shuttle foam divot ejection system. The divots were released in flight at subsonic and supersonic test conditions matching points on the shuttle ascent trajectory. Very high-speed digital video cameras recorded the divot trajectories. The objectives of the flight test were to determine the structural survivability of the divots in a real flight environment, assess the aerodynamic stability of the divots, and provide divot trajectory data for comparison with debris transport models. A total of 10 flights to Mach 2 were completed, resulting in 36 successful shuttle foam divot ejections. Highspeed video was obtained at 2,000 pictures per second for all of the divot ejections. The divots that were cleanly ejected remained structurally intact. The conical frustum-shaped divots tended to aerodynamically trim in both the subsonic and supersonic free-stream flow. Corda, Stephen and Whiteman, Donald and Tseng, Ting and Machin, Ricardo Armstrong Flight Research Center; Johnson Space Center NASA/TM-2006-213674, H-2627 FLIGHT TESTS; FOAMS; INSULATION; F-15 AIRCRAFT; COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS; ASCENT TRAJECTORIES; SPACE SHUTTLES; DEBRIS; EXTERNAL TANKS; FRUSTUMS; FREE FLOW; SUBSONIC FLOW; SUPERSONIC FLOW; PHOTOGRAMMETRY; HIGH SPEED CAMERAS; FLIGHT ENVELOPES; DEGREES OF FREEDOM; PANELS; STRUCTURAL RELIABILITY; DIGITAL TO VOICE TRANSLATORS

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B08FP38RVX
• ISBN13: 9798674395225
• Release Date: January 1
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 58 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.1" x 8.5" x 11.0"