Flight Tests at Supersonic Speeds to Determine the Effect of Taper on the Zero-Lift Drag of Sweptback Low-Aspect-Ratio Wings
Abstract
Rocket-powered models have been flown to provide an experimental comparison with linearized theoretical calculations for zero-lift drag of sweptback tapered wings having thin, symmetrical, double-wedge airfoil sections. The range of the experimental data is from a Mach number M of 1.0 to 1.8, and theoretical comparisons are made for the test range above M = 1.2. The linearized theory compared very favorably with the experimental results over most of the test range. For a given thickness and aspect ratio, taper generally increased the wing drag at low supersonic speeds but reduced the drag at higher speeds. For a given thickness and taper ratio, the wings of aspect ratio 4 had less drag below M = 1.2, but greater drag above M = 1.2, than the wings of aspect ratio 2.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 1956
- Accession Number
- ADA377310
Entities
People
- Murray Pittel
Organizations
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration