The atmosphere of Venus

The investigations of Venus take a special position in planetary researches. It was just the atmosphere of Venus where first measurements in situ were carried out by means of the equipment delivered by a space probe (Venera 4, 1967). Venus appeared to be the first neighbor planet whose surface had been seen by us in the direct nearness made possible by means of the phototelevision device (Venera 9 and Venera 10, 1975). The reasons for the high interest in this planet are very simple. This planet is like the Earth by its mass, size and amount of energy obtained from the Sun and at the same time it differs sharply by the character of its atmosphere and climate. We hope that the investigations of Venus will lead us to define more precisely the idea of complex physical and physical-chemical processes which rule the evolution of planetary atmospheres. We hope to learn to forecast this evolution and maybe, in the far future, to control it. The last expeditions to Venus carried out in 1978 — American (Pioneer-Venus) and Soviet (Venera 11 and 12) — brought much news and it is interesting to sum up the results just now. The contents of this review are:

1. The planet Venus — basic astronomical data.
2. Chemical composition.
3. Temperature, pressure, density (from 0 to 100 km).
4. Clouds.
5. Thermal regime and greenhouse effect.
6. Dynamics.
7. Chemical processes.
8. Upper atmosphere.
9. Origin and evolution.
10. Problems for future studies

Here we have attempted to review the data published up to 1979 and partly in 1980. The list of references is not exhaustive. Publications of special issues of magazines and collected articles concerning separate space expeditions became traditional last time. The results obtained on the Soviet space probes Venera 9, 10 (the first publications) are collected in the special issues of Kosmicheskie issledovanija (14, Nos. 5, 6, 1975), analogous material about Venera 11, 12 is given at Pis'ma Astron. Zh. (5, Nos. 1 and 5, 1978), and in Kosmicheskie issledovanija (16, No. 5, 1979). The results of Pioneer-Venus mission are represented in two Science issues (203, No. 4382; 205, No. 4401) and special issue of J. Geophys. Res. (1980). We shall mention some articles to the same topic among previous surveys: (Moroz, 1971; Sagan, 1971; Marov, 1972; Hunten et al., 1977; Hoffman et al., 1977) and also the books by Kuzmin and Marov (1974) and Kondrat'ev (1977). Some useful information in the part of ground-based observations may be found in the older sources (for example, Sharonov, 1965; Moroz, 1967). For briefness we shall use as a rule the abbreviations of space missions names: V4 instead of Venera 4, M10 instead of Mariner 10 and so on. The first artificial satellites of Venus in the world (orbiters Venera 9 and 10) we shall mark as V9-O, V10-O unlike the descent probes V9, V10. Fly-by modules of Venera 11 and Venera 12 we shall mark as V11-F and V12-F. Pioneers descent probes — Large (Sounder), Day, Night and North — will be marked as P-L, P-D, P-Ni, P-No, orbiter as P-O, and bus as P-B.     

研究转子内流动的大尺寸轴流压气机实验装置和动态测量技术

本文在评述国外同类技术的基础上,介绍近年研制成的,以研究转子内流动为主要对象的低速大尺寸轴流压气机实验装置和动态测量技术,包括实验台、旋转四坐标全电动探针位移机构、并行多通道高速数据采集器、高频压力探针及一整套高频压力探针、热丝和激光多普勒动态测量技术,列举了典型的转子内和转子进、出口复杂流场测量结果。      

Modelling Electrostatic Sheath Effects on Swarm Electric Field Instrument Measurements

The Electric Field Instrument (EFI) was designed to measure ionospheric ion flow velocities, temperatures and distribution functions at the ram face of the European Space Agency’s Swarm spacecraft. These flow velocities, combined with the known orbital velocity of the satellite and local magnetic field, will be used to infer local electric fields from the relation E=?v×B. EFI is among a class of many particle sensors and flow meters mounted on satellites to monitor in situ plasma conditions. The interpretation of the measurements made with EFI and similar sensors relies on a spacecraft sheath model. A common approach, valid in the relatively cold and dense ionospheric plasma, is to assume a potential drop in a thin sheath through which particle deflection and energisation can be calculated analytically. In such models, sheath effects only depend on the spacecraft floating potential, and on the angle of incidence of particles with respect to the normal to the surface. Corrections to measurements are therefore local as they do not depend on the geometry of nearby objects. In an actual plasma, satellites are surrounded by electrostatic sheaths with a finite thickness. As a result, local corrections to particle distribution functions can only be seen as an approximation. A correct interpretation of measured particle fluxes or particle distribution functions must, at least in principle, account for the extent and shape of the sheath in the vicinity of the measuring instrument. This in turn requires a careful analysis of the interaction of the satellite with the surrounding plasma, while accounting for detailed aspects of the geometry, as well as for several physical effects. In this paper, the validity of the thin sheath model is tested by comparing its predictions with detailed PIC (Particle In Cell) calculations of satellite-plasma interaction. Deviations attributed to sheath finite thickness effects are calculated for EFI measurements, with representative plasma parameters encountered along the planned Swarm orbit. Finite thickness effects of the plasma sheaths are found to induce EFI velocity measurement errors not exceeding 37 m/s, with larger errors occurring in plasmas that are simultaneously tenuous (10⁹ m^?3 or lower) and warm (0.5 eV or higher).     

Science Objectives and Rationale for the Radiation Belt Storm Probes Mission

The NASA Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) mission addresses how populations of high energy charged particles are created, vary, and evolve in space environments, and specifically within Earth’s magnetically trapped radiation belts. RBSP, with a nominal launch date of August 2012, comprises two spacecraft making in situ measurements for at least 2 years in nearly the same highly elliptical, low inclination orbits (1.1×5.8 RE, 10^°). The orbits are slightly different so that 1 spacecraft laps the other spacecraft about every 2.5 months, allowing separation of spatial from temporal effects over spatial scales ranging from ～0.1 to 5 RE. The uniquely comprehensive suite of instruments, identical on the two spacecraft, measures all of the particle (electrons, ions, ion composition), fields (E and B), and wave distributions (d E and d B) that are needed to resolve the most critical science questions. Here we summarize the high level science objectives for the RBSP mission, provide historical background on studies of Earth and planetary radiation belts, present examples of the most compelling scientific mysteries of the radiation belts, present the mission design of the RBSP mission that targets these mysteries and objectives, present the observation and measurement requirements for the mission, and introduce the instrumentation that will deliver these measurements. This paper references and is followed by a number of companion papers that describe the details of the RBSP mission, spacecraft, and instruments.     

Bow Shock and Upstream Phenomena at Mars

Mars Global Surveyor is the sixth spacecraft to return measurements of the Martian bow shock. The earlier missions were Mariner 4 (1964), Mars 2 and 3 (1972), Mars 5 (1975) and Phobos 2 (1989) (see reviews by Gringauz, 1981; Slavin and Holzer, 1982; Russell, 1985; Vaisberg, 1992a,b; Zakharov, 1992). Previous investigations of planetary bow shocks have established that their position, shape and jump conditions are functions of the upstream flow parameters and the nature of the solar wind — planet interaction (Spreiter and Stahara, 1980; Slavin et al., 1983; Russell, 1985). At Mars, however, the exact nature of the solar wind interaction was elusive due to the lack of low altitude plasma and magnetic field measurements (e.g., Axford, 1991). In fact our knowledge of the nature of the interaction of Mars with the solar wind was incomplete until the arrival of MGS and the acquisition of close-in magnetic field data (Acuña et al., 1998). As detailed by a series of review papers in this monograph, the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) mission has now shown that the Mars environment is very complex with strong, highly structured crustal magnetic remnants in the southern hemisphere, while the northern hemisphere experiences the direct impingement of solar wind plasma. This review paper first presents a survey of the observations on the Martian bow shock and the upstream phenomena in the light of results from all the missions to date. It also discusses the kinetic properties of the Martian bow shock compared to the predictions of simulations studies. Then it examines the current status of understanding of these phenomena, including the possible sources of upstream low-frequency waves and the interpretations of localized disturbances in the upstream solar wind around Mars. Finally, it briefly discusses the open issues and questions that require further study.     

Double-decoupled inverse design of natural laminar flow nacelle under transonic conditions

The inverse design based on the pressure distribution is an essential approach to realize the improvement of Natural Laminar Flow(NLF) performance for nacelles. However, the direct definition of target pressure distribution at design point is challenging for the dilemma to consider the constraints of shock wave and laminar flow at the same time. In addition, the universality of method will be limited when the inverse design is strongly coupled with the solver. Thus, a double-decoupled methodolog...     

Experimental investigation of flow and distortion mitigation by mechanical vortex generators in a coupled serpentine inlet-turbofan engine system

The performance of compact, aggressive ducts in advanced propulsion systems is limited by the internal flow separation coupled with the formation of secondary counter-rotating vortices that give rise to intensive flow distortions at the duct exit. An experimental investigation was conducted to study the flow field and passive suppression of flow separation and Aerodynamic Interface Plane (AIP) distortion in a serpentine air inlet duct. Tests were performed by a turbofan engine at several Engine Operating Points (EOPs) from 56% (idle) to 100% (max). A large total pressure deficit region arose at the upper part of the AIP, which was associated with the upper surface flow separation. Using the new mechanical S-type vortex generators in two longitudinal positions (VG1 and VG2), separation and loss were diminished at the upper part of the duct and AIP. The VG2 arrangement attained the maximum reductions in distortion coefficients which were 73.72%, 60.7% and 37.8% in DC(90°), DC(60°) and ΔP_C/P metrics, respectively. In the next step of the study, some unsteady aspects of the flow field were analyzed inside the duct. The separation onset and reattachment points were determined by the standard deviation of static pressure on the upper surface. The AIP spectral distribution showed that the boundary of low pressure and high pressure recovery regions was dominated by the maximum fluctuations. Furthermore, the PSD diagram of several probes at AIP revealed the vortex shedding frequency and its higher harmonics at separation region. The energy content of distinct unsteady spectral features in the bare configuration was significantly reduced using VGs, which showed the improvement of flow at the duct exit.     

Transition prediction and sensitivity analysis for a natural laminar flow wing glove flight experiment

Natural laminar flow technology can significantly reduce aircraft aerodynamic drag and has excellent technical appeal for transport aircraft development with high aerodynamic efficiency. Accurately and efficiently predicting the laminar-to-turbulent transition and revealing the maintenance mechanism of laminar flow in a transport aircraft’s flight environment are significant for developing natural laminar flow wings. In this research, we carry out natural laminar flow flight experiments with different Reynolds numbers and angles of attack. The critical N-factor is calibrated as 9.0 using flight experimental data and linear stability theory from a statistical perspective, which makes sure that the relative error of transition location is within 5%. We then implement a simplified e^N transition prediction method with a similar accuracy compared with linear stability theory. We compute the sensitivity information for the simplified e^N method with an adjoint-based method, using the automatic differentiation technique (ADjoint). The impact of Reynolds numbers and pressure distributions on TS waves is analyzed using the sensitivity information. Through the sensitivity analysis, we find that: favorable pressure gradients not only suppress the development of TS waves but also decrease their sensitivity to Reynolds numbers; there exist three special regions which are very sensitive to the pressure distribution, and the sensitivity decreases as the local favorable pressure gradient increases. The proposed sensitivity analysis method enables robust natural laminar flow wings design.     

Airside pressure drop characteristics of three analogous serpentine tube heat exchangers considering heat transfer for aero-engine cooling

This study explores the design, analysis, and air pressure drop assessment of three analogous air–fuel heat exchangers consisting of thin serpentine tube bundles intended for use in high Mach number aero-engines. In high speed flight, the compressor bleed air used to cool high temperature turbine blades and other hot components is too hot. Hence, aviation kerosene is applied to precool the compressor bleed air by means of novel air–fuel heat exchangers. Three light and compact heat exchangers in...     

任意回转面亚、跨音流场计算方法

本文所设计的任意回转面亚、跨音流场的计算软件 ,能根据叶型和进出口条件分析流动特性 ,并自动选择精确和节省机时的合适的数值解法。用户在给出叶型坐标和定解条件后 ,可以得到叶面马赫数分布或压力分布 ,全流场的等马赫数或等压图     

Transient flow characteristics and performance of a solid rocket motor with a pintle valve

The pintle valve is currently the most promising technology among all thrust control methods for solid rocket motors. Pintle structure and working condition play a critical role in the successful operation of a pintle motor. Here, 2D transient simulations of a pintle motor using dynamic meshing are performed. Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations are solved with the implementation of an RNG k–ε turbulence model. In cold flow test, emphasis is placed on the effect of pintle structure, and in hot flow test, emphasis is placed on the effect of propellant pressure exponent. Validation is performed first by comparing the present results with available cold-test experimental data. This shows that the transient simulations can provide good predictions for pintle motors with a relative error of less than 2% in terms of the chamber pressure. It can be found that, when the gas supply system is different, the working principles and conditions of pintle motors are different. The feedback process in propellant combustion has a significant impact on its operation and the effect on the pintle motor performance of different pintle structures is achieved by different variations in the equivalent throat area. Finally, the pressure exponent is an important parameter in hot flow test and changes of thrust in hot flow test are not monotonic, because changes in the flow field and motor performance are asynchronous.     

Direct correlations between coronal transients and interplanetary disturbances

Major interplanetary shock waves have often been successfully associated with major solar flares. The interplanetary response to weaker solar events, e.g., eruptive prominences (EP) and slow coronal transients, is far less pronounced. Recently, progress has been made by combining the newly-available data of white-light-coronagraph measurements from the earth-orbiting satellite P78/1 (these data show the development of coronal transients between 2.5 and 10 R _bd, in-situ plasma measurements from the HELIOS solar probes positioned mostly above the Sun's limb at solar distances between 60 and 200 R _bd (showing the reactions of the interplanetary plasma), ground based Hα-coronagraphs (showing in a few cases the evolution of EP's from the Sun's limb up to 1.5 A_bd). In the years 1979 to 1981 about 25 uniquely associated events were identified, 19 of which allow some detailed analysis. The events can be sorted into three main categories:

The ‘flare-type’: 13 events, probably all of them flare-related, transient speeds v _t from 560 to 1460 km s^?1, no evidence for post-acceleration of the transient (indicating impulsive injection), all transients followed by drastic interplanetary shock waves, some of them probably involving magnetic clouds.

The ‘EP-type’: 4 events, none of them flare-related, at least one was observed as an Hα-EP, transient speed from 200 to 410 km s^-1, all post-accelerated (indicating ‘driven’ injection), all followed by shocks with at least one magnetic cloud, one showing presence of He⁺ and O²⁺ behind the shock.

The ‘NCDE-type’: 2 events, one observed as an Hα-EP, the other without known solar source, v _t , = 130 and 470 km s^?1, one post-accelerated, the other one not, considerable density increase in interplanetary plasma (however, in pressure equilibrium with surroundings), one event including shock, the other not. These two events may not belong to the same category.

Our results are not completely consistent with previous work which is mainly based on data from the Skylab era, 1973/74. This could be due to the different phase in the solar cycle. The study is being continued.     

The Two Wide-angle Imaging Neutral-atom Spectrometers (TWINS) NASA Mission-of-Opportunity

Two Wide-angle Imaging Neutral-atom Spectrometers (TWINS) is a NASA Explorer Mission-of-Opportunity to stereoscopically image the Earth’s magnetosphere for the first time. TWINS extends our understanding of magnetospheric structure and processes by providing simultaneous Energetic Neutral Atom (ENA) imaging from two widely separated locations. TWINS observes ENAs from 1–100 keV with high angular (～4°×4°) and time (～1-minute) resolution. The TWINS Ly-α monitor measures the geocoronal hydrogen density to aid in ENA analysis while environmental sensors provide contemporaneous measurements of the local charged particle environments. By imaging ENAs with identical instruments from two widely spaced, high-altitude, high-inclination spacecraft, TWINS enables three-dimensional visualization of the large-scale structures and dynamics within the magnetosphere for the first time. This “instrument paper” documents the TWINS design, construction, calibration, and initial results. Finally, the appendix of this paper describes and documents the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) instrument calibration facility; this facility was used for all TWINS instrument-level calibrations.     

β Cephei stars from a photometric point of view

This is an observational review, with an emphasis on photometric data and their interpretation. Two lists are presented, one containing β Cephei stars, and the other, β Cephei suspects. These lists then serve as a basis for discussing such topics as the location of β Cephei stars in the observational and theoretical H-R diagrams, the evolutionary state of these stars, the period-luminosity and period-luminosity-color relations, and observational identification of pulsation modes. The paper also includes references to recent work connected with the theoretical discovery that an opacity mechanism is responsible for the excitation of β Cephei-star pulsations. Finally, observational programs for verifying the consequences of this discovery are suggested.     

Assessment and improvement of k-ω-γ model for separation-induced transition prediction

The purpose of this work is to improve the k-ω-γ transition model for separationinduced transition prediction. The fundamental cause of the excessively small separation bubble predicted by k-ω-γ model is scrutinized from the perspective of model construction. On the basis,three rectifications are conducted to improve the k-ω-γ model for separation-induced transition.Firstly, a damping function is established via comparing the molecular diffusion timescale with the rapid pressure-strain timescale...     

Numerical simulation of compression corner flows at Mach number 9

A hypersonic vehicle encounters a wide range of conditions during its complete flight regime. These flight conditions may vary from low to high Mach numbers with varying angles of attack. The near-wall viscous dissipation associated with flows at combined high Mach and Reynolds numbers leads to significant wall heat transfer rates and shear stresses. The shock wave/boundary-layer interaction results in a flow separation region, which commonly augments total pressure losses in the flow and lowers the efficiency of aerodynamic control surfaces such as fins installed on a vehicle. The standard turbulence models, when used to resolve such flows, result in incorrect separation bubble size for large separated flows. Therefore, it results in an inaccurate aerodynamic load, such as the wall pressures, skin friction distribution, and heat transfer rate. In previous studies, the application of the shock-unsteadiness correction to the standard two-equation k-ω turbulence model improved the separation bubble size leading to an accurate pressure prediction and shock definition with the assumption of constant Prandtl number. In the present work, the new shock-unsteadiness modification to the k-ω turbulence model is applied to the hypersonic compression corner flows. This new model with variable Prandtl number is based on the model parameter, which depends upon the local density ratio. The computed wall pressures, heat flux and flow field are compared to the experimental data. A parametric study is carried out by varying compression deflection angles, free stream Reynolds number and wall temperatures to compute the flow field and wall data accurately, particularly in the shock boundary layer interaction region. The new shock-unsteadiness modified k-ω model with variable Prandtl number shows an accurate prediction of initial pressure rise location, pressure distribution in the plateau region and heat flux in comparison to the standard k-ω model.     

叶尖掉块对跨声速压气机气动性能影响

为了支撑服役环境下压气机气动性能的评定,通过数值仿真研究了叶尖掉块对跨音速压气机转子气动性能的影响规律和机制。首先利用实验结果对数值仿真方法进行校验,验证了方法的可靠性,进一步对不同形式叶尖掉块下压气机气动性能进行了仿真分析。研究结果表明转子叶尖掉块会使得压气机正常工作状态下压比和效率略有降低,导致压气机近失速点流量明显增大;在大流量工况下压气机气动性能与掉块叶片的相对位置并无直接关联,但在近失速点,掉块叶片不相邻时会使得对压气机压比和效率下降更多,但近失速点流量对掉块叶片相对位置的变化并不敏感;转子叶尖掉块会增强叶尖区域泄漏流动,强的泄漏流动与叶片通道激波发生相互作用会引起泄漏涡的破碎,引起较大的流动堵塞和损失,导致压气机气动性能衰减;掉块叶片产生的流动堵塞和吸力面气流的膨胀加速会影响到吸力面侧的掉块叶片,进而限制泄漏流的发展,使得流动堵塞和损失维持在较低水平,但这种影响会随着掉块叶片距离的增大而减弱。     

高压压气机低速模拟试验

 设计了一台用于模拟高压压气机内部流场结构的四级重复级低速大尺寸模型压气机。对该低速模型压气机的模拟级(即第3级)进行了详细流场测量。流场测量结果以及三维流场计算结果与模拟目标值的对比表明,低速模型压气机基本达到了设计目标,在70%叶高以下,低速模型压气机可以反映出高速原型的流场结构,同时也表明所采用的"相似准则"是基本可靠的;受加工因素的影响,转子叶片的叶尖间隙明显大于设计值,从而导致在70%叶高以上区域,低速模型压气机的流场参数与设计目标存在一定的偏差,无法模拟出高速原型的流场结构。