Aerothermodynamics and Planetary Entry

Thermal protection of a spacecraft or probe entering a planetary atmosphere is one of the most challenging problems ever attempted. The thermal design of these vehicles requires the coupling of heat transfer and fluid mechanics to predict heating rates. This volume contains a selection of recent studies in aerothermodynamics and planetary entry that were drawn from the AIAA 18th Aerospace Sciences Meeting in Los Angeles, CA in January 1980 and the AIAA 15th Thermophysics Conference in Snowmass, CO in July 1980. They have been reviewed, revised, and updated especially for these volumes. The papers in Volume 77 have been grouped into three chapters: aerothermodynamics, thermal protection, and planetary entry.