Design of experimental setups for evaluating hover performance of a Martian coaxial rotorcraft

In order to verify whether a small-scale rotorcraft can fly on Mars, this paper is proposed to establish a Martian atmosphere simulator and to design a hover test stand for coaxial rotorcraft rotor. Since the ultra-low air density of Mars is approximately 1/70 of that on the Earth, it is difficult to obtain enough thrust to lift the rotorcraft against Mars gravity. The proposed Martian Atmosphere Simulator (MAS) is composed of an evacuation chamber, a roots pumping system, vacuum gages, and an atmospheric pressure control unit. The seesawed hover stand mounted in the center of MAS, is employed to acquire the thrust and power characteristics with respect to blade collective pitch angle and rotational speeds. Experimental approach is proposed to evaluate the rotorcraft hover performance and endurance on Mars. The experimental setups provide a fundamental platform for further aerodynamics research of different types of blades and rotorcraft hover performance evaluation.