Drag Coefficients For Partially Inflated Flat Circular Parachutes

Free-body tests were made in the Langley spin tunnel to determine drag coefficients for 1.07-meter-diameter (3.5-foot) flat circular parachutes when restrained by wire frames in a series of shapes representing those that parachutes assume during the inflation process. Both high-porosity (stable) and low-porosity (unstable) parachutes were investigated. The results obtained should be applicable to inflation analyses for flat circular parachutes.

A drop-test investigation has been conducted to determine the stability and drag characteristics of radially vented (duplex) parachutes. Parachutes of two different designs were tested: a large parachute with high geometric porosity and a small parachute with low geometric porosity designed for the same descent velocity with the same load. The results of the tests show that the large high-porosity duplex parachute was very stable in descent, oscillations averaging about [plus-or-minus]3.40; and the average drag coefficient based on the total canopy area and based on the fabric area alone were approximately 0.38 and 0.55, respectively. The small, low-porosity duplex parachute was also very stable in descent, oscillations averaging about [plus-or-minus]4.50; and the average drag coefficients based on the total canopy area and based on the fabric area alone were approximately 0.62 and 0.79, respectively. The oscillations for the cluster of three solid flat circular parachutes, tested for comparison purposes, were [plus-or-minus]7.10. The average drag coefficients based on the total canopy area and the fabric area alone were approximately 0.64 and 0.65, respectively.

A selection of annotated references to unclassified reports and journal articles that were introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system and announced in Scientific and technical aerospace reports (STAR) and International aerospace abstracts (IAA)

A study was conducted to determine the effects of changing scale upon drag coefficients, filling time, peak opening force, and stability for single, unreefed textile parachute canopies. The investigation was confined to Flat Circular, Extended Skirt, Ringslot, Ribless Guide Surface, Circular Flat Ribbon, and Conical Ribbon parachutes operating in the subsonic flow regime at altitudes below 20,000 feet. As an integral part of the study, a survey of the existing literature and test data, a compilation of all pertinent data, and recommendations for future experimental investigations were made. Scaling equations with associated 95-percent confidence intervals were developed for the drag coefficient of the Flat Circular and Extended Skirt parachutes through the use of multiple regression analysis which the indicates the significant variables and their functional forms. Because the available data was poorly distributed, the equations will have to be used circumspectly to avoid misleading conclusions.