Determining Atmospheric Conditions from Trajectory Data

Abstract

This report investigates the feasibility of determining atmospheric conditions from a projectile's observed flight. Test trajectories were generated as solutions of the modified point-mass (MPM) equations of motion, using standard atmospheric conditions and specified winds. In a revised version of the MPM equations, the air density, sound speed and wind were re-defined in terms of a small number of parameters. A curve-fitting program then fit the revised equations to the trajectory data by adjusting the parameter values. Density, sound speed and wind profiles obtained from theses fits were in excellent agreement with the original atmospheric data. Thus, the program--although it should be further tested under less idyllic conditions--is entirely feasible.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 01, 1991
Accession Number
ADA242440

Entities

People

  • Gene R. Cooper
  • Jamew W. Bradley

Organizations

  • Ballistic Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Artillery
  • Atmospheres
  • Computational Science
  • Computer Programming
  • Coordinate Systems
  • Curve Fitting
  • Differential Equations
  • Equations
  • Equations Of Motion
  • Mach Number
  • Numerical Analysis
  • Sea Level
  • Standards
  • Temperature Gradients
  • Trajectories
  • Wind

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science/Meteorology
  • Computer Science.
  • Control Systems Engineering.