Aerodynamic instability of capsule with thin and large aeroshell
A thin, large aeroshell technology has been proposed for an innovative reentry capsule. We are investigating the aerodynamic instability and mitigation methods using a coupled analysis approach.

Flow field around capsule with thin and large aeroshell (Density distribution).

Aerodynamic simulation for Hayabusa-type reentry capsule
Hayabusa-type sample return capsule (SRC) is a candidate for application in future sample return missions. However, SRC exhibits aerodynamic instability in the transonic region. We are also investigating instability using high-performance computers and computational science approaches to mitigate it.

Flow field around Hayabusa SRC at transonic speed.

Related paper

• Yusuke Takahashi and Kazuhiko Yamada, “Aerodynamic Heating Analysis of Sample Return Capsule in Future Trojan Asteroid Exploration”, Journal of Thermophysics and Heat Transfer, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Vol. 32, No. 3, July 2018, pp. 547- 559. DOI: 10.2514/1.T4837.