Analysis of the Hypersonic Flow Field around the Skylon Vehicle

Based on the first numerical investigation of Skylon [1] the present analysis deals in detail with further possibly problematic areas of Skylon. The main focus is in the detection of shock-shock interactions and their consequences with respect to high local temperatures on the surface. In this context, different possibilities to reduce the high thermal loads are analysed. Furthermore, the influence of the corrugated aeroshell is investigated in order to assess heating rates on the corners for different flow conditions.