Flight dynamics modeling and simulation of hypersonic vehicles in reentry phase

Flight dynamics modeling of hypersonic vehicles is of prime importance for the design and simulation of control system. Hypersonic vehicles feature unique and complex flight dynamics characteristics due to variations of wide speed and altitude range, which are not existent with conventional airplanes. The purpose of this research is to model a hypersonic vehicle in the reentry phase and provide an insight into the inherent dynamics. Based on data acquired from tunnel, an aerodynamic database was built. The uncertainty of model was discussed. Furthermore, the design method of control system was introduced. Finally, nonlinear simulations of a control system using MATLAB/SIMULINK show that the designed control system can track attitude demands from 60 kilometer to landing site.