Paper
5 October 2017 Hyperheat: a thermal signature model for super- and hypersonic missiles
Author Affiliations +
Proceedings Volume 10432, Target and Background Signatures III; 1043209 (2017) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2276943
Event: SPIE Security + Defence, 2017, Warsaw, Poland
Abstract
In performance prediction of IR sensor systems for missile detection, apart from the sensor specifications, target signatures are essential variables. Very often, for velocities up to Mach 2-2.5, a simple model based on the aerodynamic heating of a perfect gas was used to calculate the temperatures of missile targets. This typically results in an overestimate of the target temperature with correspondingly large infrared signatures and detection ranges. Especially for even higher velocities, this approach is no longer accurate. Alternatives like CFD calculations typically require more complex sets of inputs and significantly more computing power.

The MATLAB code Hyperheat was developed to calculate the time-resolved skin temperature of axisymmetric high speed missiles during flight, taking into account the behaviour of non-perfect gas and proper heat transfer to the missile surface. Allowing for variations in parameters like missile shape, altitude, atmospheric profile, angle of attack, flight duration and super- and hypersonic velocities up to Mach 30 enables more accurate calculations of the actual target temperature. The model calculates a map of the skin temperature of the missile, which is updated over the flight time of the missile. The sets of skin temperature maps are calculated within minutes, even for >100 km trajectories, and can be easily converted in thermal infrared signatures for further processing.

This paper discusses the approach taken in Hyperheat. Then, the thermal signature of a set of typical missile threats is calculated using both the simple aerodynamic heating model and the Hyperheat code. The respective infrared signatures are compared, as well as the difference in the corresponding calculated detection ranges.
© (2017) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
S. A. van Binsbergen, B. van Zelderen, R. G. Veraar, F. Bouquet, W. H. C. Halswijk, and H. M. A. Schleijpen "Hyperheat: a thermal signature model for super- and hypersonic missiles", Proc. SPIE 10432, Target and Background Signatures III, 1043209 (5 October 2017); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2276943
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KEYWORDS
Missiles

Infrared signatures

Nose

Sensors

Mid-IR

Skin

Thermal modeling

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