The article analyzes the motion of a ballistic missile moving in the atmosphere. It is assumed that there is friction due to the motion of the missile through the atmosphere, and that this force is directly proportional to the speed of the missile projected on a plane parallel to the direction of the gravitational force. With the help of formulas developed in the article, the horizontal distance of the flight can be calculated. Next, the conditions which assure a maximum flight distance are stated in the form of partial differential equations. The general equations are applied to the cases where the thrust of the rocket is constant and where the rocket moves with constant acceleration. The method used to arrive at the optimum direction of thrust (optimality in the sense of maximum range) is due to D. Lauden. The results of the paper show that the optimal conditions of thrust direction in the case of constant acceleration is for the thrust to be constant, as is the case with a ballistic missile moving in a vacuum. (Author)
Optimal Programming of Thrust Direction of a Ballistic Rocket Moving in the Atmosphere
1966
18 pages
Report
No indication
English
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