Markus Raffel
Leibniz University of Hannover
Head of the Department of Helicopters
Institute of Aerodynamics and Flow Technology at DLR, the German Aerospace Center
Seminar Information
Engineering Building Unit 2 (EBU2)
Room 479
Seminar Recording Available: Please contact seminar coordinator, Jake Blair at (j1blair@ucsd.edu)
The first part of the presentation describes recent tests and developments of imaging and evaluation techniques for Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) that exploit the forward scattering of tracer particles by placing the camera in-line with the illuminating light source, such as a laser or light emitting diode. The results highlight the most promising approaches of the different imaging configurations and evaluation techniques.
The second part relates to the time before the Wright Brothers: In 1895, Otto Lilienthal patented, built, and flew the world's first practical research aircraft equipped with a set of control surfaces and means. Recent wind tunnel tests have provided new insights into performance, trim condition, flight stability and controllability. A full-scale museum-built replica was flown by the author in 2022 with the support of Windsports Hang Gliding in California.
Markus Raffel (*1962) is Professor of Aerodynamics at Leibniz University of Hanover and Head of the Department of Helicopters at the Institute of Aerodynamics and Flow Technology at DLR, the German Aerospace Center. He started at DLR in 1991, working in the field of experimental aerodynamics. Raffel is the recipient of several science awards from German, French, and US research organizations (e.g.,German Metrology Institute, French National Centre for Scientific Research, American Helicopter Society). He is the leading author of the widely distributed textbook Particle Image Velocimetry, about the most common optical flow diagnostic technique today. He practiced hang gliding in France and California, in preparation for flying Otto Lilienthal’s various gliders and conducted wind tunnel and flight test of mono- and bi-plane replicas. He is author of the first English Lilienthal biography.