Simulation of the Dragonfly Subscale Drop Tests

The Dragonfly Entry, Descent, and Landing sequence spends a long duration under parachute. A set of subscale droptests were performed to assess the behavior of the system under parachute. This work covers a comparison of the test results to simulation in the form of statistical comparisons of the achieved nadir angle and lateral attitude rates of the entry vehicle during descent. Overall, comparisons show sensitivity of the results to the wind profile chosen and the method of modeling apparent mass within the parachutes. The simulation results are largely bounding of test results, which indicates the full-scale Titan simulation is also likely bounding to truth.