Open Access Thermodynamic Characterization of High-Speed and High-Enthalpy Plasma Flows

Abstract: This contribution proposes a description of selected experimental activities conducted in aerospace sciences and dedicated to generate experimental data to assess atmospheric entry plasma models. In order to provide comprehensive set of experimental data, high enthalpy shock tube facilities have been developed to generate plasma representative of entry plasma for broad range of trajectory entry conditions. The shock-heated plasma is obtained through adiabatic compression and the resulting post-shock plasma flow exhibits thermodynamic state analogous to actual entry plasma. However, significant insight can be obtained through experiments conducted also with non-equilibrium plasma flows obtained with other methods. The typical methodologies adopted to provide experimental data of interest to enhance entry plasma modeling are sketched for four distinct non-equilibrium plasma kinds produced respectively by four specific ground facilities. The contribution firstly will consider experimental campaigns conducted with a high enthalpy shock tube in order to document in absolute radiance the radiative signature in the UV spectral range of an Earth entry plasma