Advances in unsteady computational aerodynamics with separation: The 61st Lanchester memorial lecture

Abstract This paper is based on the Lanchester Lecture of the Royal Aeronautical Society held in London, UK, in October 2023. The lecture discussed the advances in computational modeling of separated flows in aerospace applications since Elsenaar’s Lanchester Lecture in 2000. Elsenaar’s efforts focused on assumptions primarily associated with separation for steady inflow and a static (non-moving) vehicle or component. Since that time, significant advancements in computational hardware, coupled with substantial investments in the development of algorithms and solvers, have led to important breakthroughs in the field. In particular, computational aerodynamics techniques are currently applied to complex aerospace problems that include unsteady or dynamic considerations, such as dynamic stall and gusts, which are discussed. A perspective of the technology developed over the past quarter-century, highlighting their importance to computational aerodynamics is discussed. Finally, the potential of future areas of development, such as machine learning, that may be exploited for the next generation of computational aerodynamics applications is explored.