The First Mission of Iranian Spacecraft: Heat Shield Design
A. M. Tahsini *
Aerospace Research Institute, Ministry of Science, Research and Technology, Tehran, Iran
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
In the present paper, the Iranian spacecraft is considered, and is studied from an aero thermo dynamic viewpoint to design the proper thermal protection system, for its first mission: the sub-orbital flight. The design procedure is based on the decoupling of the aerodynamic heating phenomena and the solid phase heating process. Due to the sub-orbital mission of this spacecraft as a first flight, an elastomeric material is used as an unconventional heat shield to protect the blunt body reentry vehicle. The full Navier-Stokes equations are used for heat-flux estimation during flight, and the one-dimensional equations for an ablative materials are used to design the thermal protection system, according to the structural criteria.
Keywords: Ablative material, blunt body, design, Iranian spacecraft, reentry, sub-orbital flight, thermal protection system