Static and Dynamic Derivatives Estimation of an Image Guided Rocket Using Computational Fluid Dynamics
Karol Bielaszka, Radosław Kamiński, Olgierd Skromak
Abstract. FOK 2 is the second iteration of the FOK rocket developed by the Students’ Space Association at the Warsaw University of Technology. It is an aerodynamically controlled, subsonic rocket powered by a solid rocket motor with an impulse of 1000 Ns. The second iteration differs from the first by employing a seeker, which houses a vision system, instead of a von Karman nosecone. Such drastic changes in the geometry necessitate the re-examination of the rocket’s aerodynamics. Since FOK 1 missions were relatively simple [1], there was no need to perform computational analysis of the rocket’s dynamic coefficients [2]. FOK 2’s mission is more involved: guidance towards a target using visual navigation. Numerous flight simulations and prior flight tests must be conducted to ensure the mission’s success. Having precise aerodynamics, including static and dynamic coefficients, enables good predictive capabilities of the simulations, which allow the design of the guidance and steering algorithms. This is especially important for ensuring both mission success and the safety of the flight test. While static coefficients are relatively straightforward to obtain, dynamic ones require including the motion of the rocket, which demands the usage of the Unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes model. In this paper, the FOK 2’s aerodynamics have been investigated. Both static and dynamic derivatives were calculated. Static analysis was performed for a range of Mach numbers, angles of attack and canard deflection configurations. The generated data served as a basis for conducting the dynamic analysis. The process of obtaining dynamic derivatives differs significantly from the one used to obtain static ones, thus the influence of the canards’ deflection rate on the rocket’s loads will be investigated. As the end goal is to provide an accurate model for controlling a guided rocket, especially in the later phases of flight, where the reaction time is very low and the response of the missile to canard input may sometimes not reach a steady state, more attention must be focused on the oscillations induced by canard motion. Some efforts regarding this can be found in: [3]. In the case of FOK 2, transient analysis was used to study the dynamic response of the rocket under rolling motion. The canards were dynamically deflected, and the angular response was examined in relation to signals of varying frequencies. The performance of the model created as a result of the conducted analysis has been evaluated using flight data and compared against the prior model [1]. Expanding the accuracy of the aerodynamic model used in the association through the application of transient analysis has been a major leap in the numerical capabilities available and has furthered the efforts into creating an accurate guidance system at hand.
Keywords
CFD, Aerodynamics, Steering, Dynamic Response
Published online 7/20/2026, 6 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Karol Bielaszka, Radosław Kamiński, Olgierd Skromak, Static and Dynamic Derivatives Estimation of an Image Guided Rocket Using Computational Fluid Dynamics, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 69, pp 244-249, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644904251-43
The article was published as article 43 of the book CEAS – AIDAA Conference 2025
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
References
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[4] Miedziński, D. et al. “Preliminary design of a homing rocket using image recognition”. In: Proceedings, International Astronautical Congress. 2021.
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