Calculation of hypersonic flow with ablation for Pioneer-Venus probe

A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code is developed to calculate the convective heating rate over the Pioneer-Venus Day Probe vehicle with ablation during its entry flight into the planet Venus. The Venusian atmosphere is assumed a pure CO₂ gas, and two-temperature description of nonequilibrium thermochemical state is employed- A material thermal response code named super charring material ablation (SCMA) is coupled with the CFD code to give a consistent wall boundary condition. In order to explain the higher temperature at frustum region shown in the flight data, ablation gas is assumed to be inherently turbulent and is described by the injection-induced turbulence model developed earlier by Park. The calculation gives a consistent and converged solution for typical flight conditions along the trajectory. The higher heating rate at frustum region is indicated.