Comparative study of different turbulence modeling approaches to prediction of transonic and supersonic flows past a reentry capsule with balance flaps

Computations of a turbulent flow past a reentry capsule are carried out with the use of two Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) models and Delayed Detached-Eddy Simulations (DDES) in a wide range of the free stream Mach number (M∞ = 0.8-6.0). It is shown that transonic and slightly supersonic mean flows are more sensitive than the high Mach number flows. Other than that, DDES reveals a significant flow unsteadiness and strong oscillations of forces acting on the capsule which may cause an impact on its survivability. A comparison of simulations with the experimental data on mean flow and integral forces demonstrates a fairly good agreement