Comparison of a two-dimensional shock impingement computation with experiment

Results of computations of two-dimensional viscous blunt-body flowfields with an impinging shock wave, with a time-dependent finite-difference method employed to solve the complete set of Navier-Stokes equations, are compared with experimental results. The experimental results were obtained in a 20-inch hypersonic tunnel with a planar shock impinging on the cylindrical leading edge of a fin, hence with the shock parallel to the centerline of the leading edge, so that type III and type IV interference patterns were generated. Close agreement is found. The overall effects of smoothing and grid size on the calculations are determined. A 31 x 51 mesh is adequate for wall pressure values (except in peaked regions).