Development and laboratory testing of a thermal emission velocimeter for application to an erosion nose tip test facility

A thermal emission velocimeter concept was explored and a system was developed for use in measuring particle velocities up to 5,000 meters per second in a reentry erosion facility. The particles, ranging from 10 to 100 micrometers in diameter, are generated to study reentry nose tip erosion and ablation. The approach passively utilizes optical components of a laser transit anemometer coupled to a microprocessor data management system. The system was laboratory tested and has inherent characteristics which should produce quality data in the severe and noisy environment of a reentry test facility. The system sensitivity has been calculated to measure velocity of micrometer sized particles whose temperature are minimally 1700 K.