Flight Dynamics of a Coaxial Helicopter Hovering on Mars

Abstract

This thesis develops a fundamental understanding of the flight dynamics and stability of a coaxial helicopter hovering on Mars. A simple flight dynamics solver is built to identify and investigate unique characteristics of Martian hover and validated with Ingenuity chamber test data from NASA JPL. The impact of two key parameters that are unique to the Mars helicopter — an unusually high flap frequency and an unusually low Lock number, are systematically studied. The rotor pitch and roll damping derivatives flip sign on Mars. The hover roots are more unstable, and the impact of wake curvature and inflow gradients on these roots appear unusually high. Even though the simplicity of the solver provided enough latitude to insert correction factors to replicate test data, the underlying causes remain unknown. These and other interesting gaps remain subject for the future researcher. The world of Mars flight dynamics has only been explored for two years and for fifty flights of Ingenuity. Larger, more capable aircraft envisioned for future science missions will encounter this new world and require that these gaps be resolved.