The Boundary Layer Transition and Turbulence (BOLT II) was successfully launched on March 21 by the Air Force Research Laboratory/Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFRL/AFOSR). The launch took place from NASA’s Wallops Flight Center, Virginia. The Bolt 2 aims to gather scientific knowledge to reasonably understand Boundary Layer Transition (BOLT) and Turbulence (BOLT II) related to hypersonic flight.
Out of this world! Monday’s successful BOLT launch of the two-stage suborbital sounding rocket has paved the way for the next chapter of discovery in this field of basic research.#hypersonics #USAF@AFOSR † @US Air Force †@AFResearchLab
— United States Air Force Materiel Command ✈️ (@HQ_AFMC) March 23, 2022
After the launch of the two-stage suborbital sounding rocket, NASA confirmed that it would pave the way for the next branch of discoveries in this field of research and analysis.
The experiment performed was intended to access hypersonic boundary layer turbulence measurements along with air with little disturbance and high Reynolds numbers observed in flight. Unfortunately, these figures cannot be captured in soil testing facilities.
More about the Bolt 2 and its developers
The BOLT II team is a mix of highly talented researchers. Key collaborations include Texas A&M University along with employees from NASA, CUBRC, University of Minnesota, United States Air Force Academy, University of Maryland, University of Arizona, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
The international collaboration includes the Australian Defense Science and Technology Group, the University of Queensland to name a few. It is under the direct supervision of the Air Force Research Laboratory. The Bolt 2 is the successor to the Bolt 1 and is built in memory of Mike Holden.