3148. Moment of Inertia and Mass Property Measurementsof Control Surfaces of a 747 SP
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Paper
Abstract
The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) project is a joint venture between the National Aviation and Space Administration (NASA), the German Space Agency (DLR), Raytheon Aircraft Integration Systems, and several other contractors to build the largest flying infrared observatory. The 2.5 meter diameter infrared telescope will be carried on board a modified 747SP aircraft. The aircraft is being modified to house the telescope by Raytheon Aircraft Integration Systems. The mass properties (weight, center of gravity, and hinge axis moment of inertia) of the control surfaces on the vertical tail of the aircraft were need by engineers at Raytheon to analyze changes in the flight characteristics of the aircraft due to the modifications.
This paper presents the testing procedures and the results of the tests performed to achieve the desired objectives. Comparisons are made between the on- and off-aircraft moment of inertia test. The on-aircraft inertia measurement was utilized to verify the numbers calculated using the traditional off-aircraft test and to explore the feasibility of performing inertia measurements without removing the control surfaces from the aircraft.
