Experimental characterization of ultraviolet radiation of air in a high enthalpy plasma torch facility

978-5-94588-165-5International audienceDuring atmospheric reentry, a plasma is formed ahead of the surface of the vehicle and the excited particle present in the plasma produces ra-diative heating §uxes to the surface of the vehicle. A high-temperature air plasma torch operating at atmospheric pressure was used to experimentally reproduce atmospheric reentry conditions. A high-resolution and absolute intensity emission spectrum (full width at half maximum (FWHM) = 0.064 nm) was obtained from 200 to 450 nm and then compared with computational results provided by the SPECAIR code [1]. This paper discusses the comparison of the two spectra over this wavelength range in order to con¦rm the validity of the calculation and provide direction to improve the calculated spectrum