A body-fitted structured grid approach to simulate breathing mode oscillations during parachute deployment

•Advanced method to design parachutes is needed because its use is being extended to decelerate space capsules landing on surface, safe descent of air taxis in case of propulsion failure etc.•Simulation of parachute deployment from start is a numerically challenging task due to flexible fabric structures and flow separations.•Because of the flow complexities due to strong turbulence effects, a body fitted structured grid topology is needed unlike unstructured or cartesian grids topologies which are less suitable for complex separated flows.•The deployment is a transient phenomenon, therefore a time accurate approach is essential contrary to quasi-steady loose coupling approach currently used with high fidelity fluid/structural equations•Paper presents a time accurate method by using body-fitted structured grids along with Navier-Stokes equations for flows and modal equations for structures.•Results are demonstrated by simulating breathing mode oscillations that can occur during deployment A new grid topology approach suitable for body-fitted structured grids is presented to time-accurately simulate the deployment of parachutes from start. The goal is to provide an alternative efficient body-fitted structured grids to Cartesian/unstructured grids for more accurate modeling of turbulent flows. Time-accuracy essential for deployment is maintained, unlike in the quasi-steady loose coupling methods used elsewhere with Cartesian/unstructured grids. Prediction of breathing mode during deployment is demonstrated. The current paper establishes a new approach for accurately simulating deployments from the start.