Maximum reentry drag deceleration revisited

The analytic formulation of the maximum reentry drag deceleration problem is modified to include (1) the motion of the atmosphere due to earth rotation and (2) an accurate, multi-layer atmospheric density model. It is demonstrated that peak deceleration depends on drag coefficient values except in the case of isothermal layers, where the density profile is an exponential function. Despite the assumption of constant drag coefficient, peak deceleration was analytically predicted to an accuracy of 7% or better, over a wide range of initial conditions, as compared with simulation results. At peak deceleration Mach numbers lower than 8, however, the accuracy of the theoretical formulation will degrade unless the Mach number dependence of the inviscid drag coefficient is taken into consideration.