Notes on the design and operation of aerospace vehicles

Abstract

Geographical, seasonal, and day-to-day variations in the vertical distributions of atmospheric density and temperature must be considered in the design and operation of reentry vehicles. This work is part of a continuing effort to compile, analyze, and present information on the distribution of the atmospheric temperature in a form suitable for use in the design and operation of aerospace vehicles. We have used temperature data obtained from rockets which are mostly based on the datasonde system throughout the decade 1969–1978. Profiles and the individual arrays of coefficients of correlation of the temperature at 20 km with temperature at higher altitudes up to 60 km are shown for each season for locations in the low, middle, and high latitudes.