Multi-body Hypersonic Aerodynamics

When a missile or rocket stage separates at hypersonic speeds—above five times the speed of sound—the shockwaves from each body can slam into the other, potentially causing collision or structural failure. This project tackles a gap in fundamental understanding: how multiple objects interact aerodynamically when they separate at extreme speeds. Current design rules for multibody separation rely heavily on expensive flight tests or simplified models that miss complex shockwave interference. The researchers will use Cranfield’s hypersonic gun tunnel to physically measure these interactions with static models, and pair those experiments with high-order computer simulations that model both the fluid dynamics and the changing trajectories of separating bodies. The work is fundamental science. It does not aim to produce a new material or device. But a deeper, validated understanding of multibody hypersonic aerodynamics could improve the reliability of missile systems, re-entry vehicles, and future space launch stages. Similar fundamental research into shockwave interactions has previously enabled safer supersonic aircraft designs and more efficient rocket staging. Here, the payoff is safer, more predictable separation events in defence and aerospace applications—systems most people never see, but which depend on getting this physics exactly right.