Growing Influence and Need for CFD Research

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Advanced computational technologies are transforming cadet and faculty research at the Air Force Academy.
Using these cutting-edge computational tools, cadets and faculty are conducting virtual experiments and modeling highly-complex aerodynamics. This provides the students with excellent learning opportunities while
simultaneously addressing the challenges of flight in order to produce safer, more aerodynamically efficient and stable aircraft.

The Modeling and Simulation Research Center (MSRC) has created an environment allowing faculty and cadets to perform Modeling and Simulation (M&S), using real-world High Performance Computing (HPC) tools. This
research directly supports NASA, Department of Defense, National Science Foundation, Department of Homeland Security and Air Force research programs.

The MSRC is playing a critical role in the application of advanced computational fluid dynamics (CFD), the use of which is improving the safety and success rate of flight testing and dramatically reducing aircraft design,
acquisition, and certification costs. One of the MSRC's ongoing projects is Computational Stability and Control (COMSAC) which is developing methodologies for using virtual flight testing models in CFD to understand
unpredicted dynamics occurring in flight tests. Cadets and faculty are currently simulating multiple F-16 flight maneuvers to understand the effects associated with control surface movement and aircraft response to
aerodynamic loads.

Advanced CFD tools, such as advanced meshing techniques, hybrid turbulence modeling, and systems identification analysis are greatly improving the design and testing of modern-day aircraft and "could potentially
save billions of dollars" according to Dr. Keith Bergeron, MSRC director. Dr. Bergeron said of previous aircraft programs that "despite their best efforts using the best available predictive capabilities, nearly every major fighter
program since 1960 has had costly nonlinear aerodynamic or fluid-structure interaction issues
that were not discovered until flight testing". He also said that "Using advanced computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methods; simulations are now capable of capturing the unsteady nonlinear aerodynamic behavior that leads to the various static and dynamic instabilities
associated with highly-maneuverable aircraft."

The center aspires to providing cadets with extensive, learning-focused opportunities both in and out of the lab. Over 90 cadets participated in computational aerodynamics and physics courses during the 2009/2010 academic year and the center sponsored five
cadets and two faculty researchers to conduct cadet summer research programs in Hawaii and Florida in the summer of 2010.

Cadets in the Aeronautics Department are using
computational methods to accurately determine static and dynamic stability and control characteristics of fighter aircraft with various weapons configurations. These methods are being successfully applied to the F-16C and the F-22. The simulations and the proposed
modeling process will result in improved stability and control analysis as compared to the traditional wind-tunnel generated database approach. The new approach will also provide flexibility when encountering new weapons configurations needed by the warfighter.

The center has also continued to conduct research on airdrops and fluid-structure interactions. Cadets are using a combination of experiments and CFD to identify key aspects of airflow around aircraft that influences the
airdrop of cargo and mission personnel. Another long-term project is the center's Aero- Servo-Optics research to develop an accurate understanding and predictive capability of the effects of boundary and shear layers on optical performance of airborne laser systems.

A collaborative effort with the Academy's Center of Innovation known as Mission Fabric and Flexible Distributed Control/Coordination is also underway. The goal of this project, funded in part by the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is to build a network designed
as a system of systems to place intelligence at the node-level and enhance distributed collaboration and ad hoc group action to create a single complex adaptive system. The success of last year's experiment has led to an
additional $3M in funding from OSD and DHS.
The MSRC provides Air Force Academy cadets with learning-focused, sponsored research opportunities using state-of-the-art computational tools in support of real-world problems. As stated by Dr. Bergeron, "Today's
high performance computational technologies open a new approach to the application of the principles of science toward satisfying Air Force needs. These M&S capabilities enable our cadets to perform research that would only have been found in graduate-level programs
five years ago".