>I'm not sure what kinds of other heavy scientific computing you've done, but CFD is a very difficult field and takes years to understand.

CFD isn't this difficult.

On one side you have partial differential equations (PDEs) describing fluid flow. On the other side you have numerical methods used to solve those PDEs. Put the two together, implement it in code, and you get a rudimentary CFD simulation. For CS students, who typically already have knowledge of numerical methods, coding one of these basic simulations can be done within a semester's worth of focused effort. Venturing into finer, more complex domains and trying to model more advanced flow phenomenons do indeed require years of study, but a beginner -- a 3rd year CS undergrad of all people -- has no need to deal with that stuff when all they want to accomplish is to get their feet wet with the inner workings of the simplest CFD simulation.

So let's not intimidate the poor kid and not oversell the profession. A lot of people love pretending like this stuff is black magic, presumably because it promotes job security, but it just isn't. There are lots of people doing CFD that come from CS and Applied Math backgrounds instead of Engineering or Physics. They all started somewhere. So can the OP.

-------------------------------------

@ /u/AnotherBrownBike

Khan Academy Physics, Fluid Dynamics lectures are your best friend in this.

I would recommend that you start with getting a decent physical understanding of incompressible (also called divergence-free) advection-diffusion equation. This is a simple PDE that describes how particles (or other quantities like energy) are transferred inside a physical system due to the process of diffusion and advection (aka convection). Solving this equation using a numerical solution method for PDEs (such as finite volume or finite element) will allow you to practice the fundamental underpinnings of a CFD code.

Finite Volume methods are more popular in CFD than finite element methods, because they're mathematically easier for people who have a robust understanding of fluid mechanics. That's not going to be the case for you, because you're not studying fluids academically. I would recommend that you focus on finite element methods instead. These are mathematically more challenging -- using them with fluid PDEs require stabilization terms (like SUPG or GLS) to prevent the solution from oscillating. However, the application of finite element methods to fluid PDEs require essentially no knowledge of the physics behind the PDE. It's pure mathematics, and you as a CS student should be well equipped to handle this.

If you're not familiar with finite element methods for solving PDEs, I would strongly recommend starting with a Python library called FEniCS. This is a brilliant finite element solver that allows you to input the bilinear form of your partial differential equation (Google what "bilinear form" is for finite element methods) in Python and generate a solution. This will allow you to practice the mathematics of finite element methods without getting tangled up in the code implementation of the solution process. Solve the Poisson equation first, and then the advection-diffusion.

Simple solvers you might like working with:

EasyCFD -- Educational program intended to teach the basics of a "black-box" CFD solver.

CFD Python -- A Python program designed with a 12-step lesson plan to solving Navier-Stokes equations.

PyFR -- Another Python-based flow solver. Documentation is a bit sparse, so you need an understanding of how CFD works to use it. But once you have that, PyFR's open-source nature allows you to break apart an actual full CFD solver and look at its components before trying to write your own.

Useful literature you might want to check out from your campus library:

White, Fluid Mechanics and/or Cengel and Cimbala, Fluid Mechanics -- Basically the two beginner level fluid mechanics bibles, depending on who you ask. An overwhelming number of engineers out there have had one or the other as their textbook in school. They're both fantastic. Flip a coin.

Moin, Fundamentals of Engineering Numerical Analysis -- Yet another undergraduate bible, this time on numerical methods commonly used by engineers (of all types). It covers material so crucial in all scientific computing that one of my doctoral qualification examiners specifically requested that I know this book from cover to cover.

Anderson, Computational Fluid Dynamics -- Superb introductory book that covers most everything related to CFD. If you're going to buy anything in this list, buy this one.

Hughes, Finite Element Methods -- The bible on finite element methods. The book focuses on structural applications (which do not require stabilization terms) but the mathematics involved are identical regardless of the physics behind the PDE, so this is still a very useful reference.

Zienkiewicz, Taylor and Nithiarasu, Finite Element Method for Fluid Dynamics -- Great supplement to Hughes' book for anyone using FEM on fluid flow. Covers stabilized methods, starting with easy equations (like advection-diffusion) and scaling up all the way to turbulent flows (which you shouldn't bother with right now).

Anderson, Fundamentals of Aerodynamics -- Just putting this down in case you ever need to specifically learn about aerodynamic applications of fluid flow.

Anderson, Introduction to Flight -- Used nationwide as an introductory aerospace engineering book. I recommend it to everybody outside of the industry who wants to work/study in it. Superfluously covers every aspect of the discipline, from structures to propulsion, from aerodynamics to flight control, from aviation to space.

Panton, Incompressible Flow -- Often used as a graduate level book on theoretical fluid mechanics. Focused mathematical approach. Not an easy read, required some prerequisite knowledge of fluid flow (overview of the fundamentals is very brief), but it's the next logical step up when you're ready to take your fluid work further.

/u/another_user_name posted this list a while back. Actual aerospace textbooks are towards the bottom but you'll need a working knowledge of the prereqs first.

Non-core/Pre-reqs:

Mathematics:

Calculus.

1-4) Calculus, Stewart -- This is a very common book and I felt it was ok, but there's mixed opinions about it. Try to get a cheap, used copy.

1-4) Calculus, A New Horizon, Anton -- This is highly valued by many people, but I haven't read it.

1-4) Essential Calculus With Applications, Silverman -- Dover book.

More discussion in this reddit thread.

Linear Algebra

3) Linear Algebra and Its Applications,Lay -- I had this one in school. I think it was decent.

3) Linear Algebra, Shilov -- Dover book.

Differential Equations

4) An Introduction to Ordinary Differential Equations, Coddington -- Dover book, highly reviewed on Amazon.

G) Partial Differential Equations, Evans

G) Partial Differential Equations For Scientists and Engineers, Farlow

More discussion here.

Numerical Analysis

5) Numerical Analysis, Burden and Faires

Chemistry:

1. General Chemistry, Pauling is a good, low cost choice. I'm not sure what we used in school.
   
   

   Physics:
   

   
   2-4) Physics, Cutnel -- This was highly recommended, but I've not read it.
   
   

   Programming:
   

   
   

   Introductory Programming
   

   
   Programming is becoming unavoidable as an engineering skill. I think Python is a strong introductory language that's got a lot of uses in industry.
   
   

2. Learning Python, Lutz
   
   
3. Learn Python the Hard Way, Shaw -- Gaining popularity, also free online.
   
   

   Core Curriculum:
   

   
   

   Introduction:
   

   
   

4. Introduction to Flight, Anderson
   
   

   Aerodynamics:
   

   
   

5. Introduction to Fluid Mechanics, Fox, Pritchard McDonald
   
   
6. Fundamentals of Aerodynamics, Anderson
   
   
7. Theory of Wing Sections, Abbot and von Doenhoff -- Dover book, but very good for what it is.
   
   
8. Aerodynamics for Engineers, Bertin and Cummings -- Didn't use this as the text (used Anderson instead) but it's got more on stuff like Vortex Lattice Methods.
   
   
9. Modern Compressible Flow: With Historical Perspective, Anderson
   
   
10. Computational Fluid Dynamics, Anderson
    
    

    Thermodynamics, Heat transfer and Propulsion:
    

    
    

11. Introduction to Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer, Cengel
    
    
12. Mechanics and Thermodynamics of Propulsion, Hill and Peterson
    
    

    Flight Mechanics, Stability and Control
    

    
    5+) Flight Stability and Automatic Control, Nelson
    
    5+)[Performance, Stability, Dynamics, and Control of Airplanes, Second Edition](http://www.amazon.com/Performance-Stability-Dynamics-Airplanes-Education/dp/1563475839/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1315534435&sr=8-1, Pamadi) -- I gather this is better than Nelson
    
    

13. Airplane Aerodynamics and Performance, Roskam and Lan
    
    

    Engineering Mechanics and Structures:
    

    
    3-4) Engineering Mechanics: Statics and Dynamics, Hibbeler
    
    

14. Mechanics of Materials, Hibbeler
    
    
15. Mechanical Vibrations, Rao
    
    
16. Practical Stress Analysis for Design Engineers: Design & Analysis of Aerospace Vehicle Structures, Flabel
    
    6-8) Analysis and Design of Flight Vehicle Structures, Bruhn -- A good reference, never really used it as a text.
    
    
17. An Introduction to the Finite Element Method, Reddy
    
    G) Introduction to the Mechanics of a Continuous Medium, Malvern
    
    G) Fracture Mechanics, Anderson
    
    G) Mechanics of Composite Materials, Jones
    
    

    Electrical Engineering
    

    
    

18. Electrical Engineering Principles and Applications, Hambley
    
    

    Design and Optimization
    

    
    

19. Fundamentals of Aircraft and Airship Design, Nicolai and Carinchner
    
    
20. Aircraft Design: A Conceptual Approach, Raymer
    
    
21. Engineering Optimization: Theory and Practice, Rao
    
    

    Space Systems
    

    
    

22. Fundamentals of Astrodynamics and Applications, Vallado
    
    
23. Introduction to Space Dynamics, Thomson -- Dover book
    
    
24. Orbital Mechanics, Prussing and Conway
    
    
25. Fundamentals of Astrodynamics, Bate, Mueller and White
    
    
26. Space Mission Analysis and Design, Wertz and Larson

If you're looking to get started, you should start with a good book like this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Computational-Fluid-Dynamics-John-Anderson/dp/0070016852

That book starts out with the basics of Fluid Dynamics equations and is really very good.

Turbulence theory and turbulence modeling is a pretty advanced topic. You will first have to learn about laminar boundary layers, boundary layer equations and then about transition to turbulence, turbulent boundary layers and turbulence modeling.

This is the best book I have read on Boundary Layer theory that covers both laminar and turbulent flow:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/3540662707/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1425473580&sr=8-1&keywords=schlicting+boundary+layer&pi=AC_SY200_QL40&dpPl=1&dpID=41ZQZkmQBNL&ref=plSrch

Turbulence modeling is something you can move on to after that. I recommend this book:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1928729088/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1425473660&sr=8-1&keywords=wilcox+turbulence+modeling

Wilcox goes into much detail about the nature of turbulence and the different methods that have been formulated to model this phenomenon.

Here is a book that talks about the basics of fluid dynamics that is pretty good too:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0123821002/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1425473759&sr=8-1&keywords=kundu+fluid+mechanics&pi=AC_SY200_QL40&dpPl=1&dpID=41h-Ynv4uGL&ref=plSrch


Another great resource is this set of fluid dynamics videos made a few decades ago. They are awesome and will give you a strong conceptual understanding:
http://web.mit.edu/hml/ncfmf.html

There you go. I'm sorry if I was unclear on anything. Let me know about it and I'll be glad to help you out more.

Now could you point me to some material about how you use hydrodynamics in your field? I love to learn about different fields! Thank you in advance!

Aerospace engineering?

I'm not sure if it's required of you, but learning matlab or fortran sooner than later would help.

"Fundamentals of Aerodynamics" by John D. Anderson, Jr. is a great book for information on multiple aerodynamic subjects. I needed it for one class but I'm still using it 2 years later. The newer version is expensive, as always, but you may be able to find an older version online. Hopefully you can see that link. It would be the first link I send to a UK resident that isn't blocked by region...

Taking an interest in flying is also helpful. If you have RC plane or amateur rocket experience; then you have employable experience for certain jobs and hopefully a better understanding of the dynamics of flight and control.

Caffeine. Coffee has been scientifically proven to be the best way to deliver caffeine to your body. During exams, drink liberally.

If you want to get super serious about this game and really know what you're doing, then I'd suggest getting this book and reading up on actual rocket science. Taking a class on astronautics in college was when I personally really started to understand the concepts required by KSP. However, in the interest of saving forty bucks, there's a lot out there on the internet that can teach you this stuff just as easily. Scott Manley's videos are pretty good. I'm also sure that there's some written tutorials out there.

By far the most important concept is that of deltav, which is actually formally written as Δv. Mathematically, this literally translates to change in velocity. When Kerbal Engineering Redux tells you how much Δv one of your stages contains, it's telling you that if there were no gravity, and your ship was floating in a pure vacuum motionless, and you pointed in one direction, and fired your rockets and emptied that entire stage's worth of fuel, that Δv number is how fast your rocket would be going at the end of the burn. Δv is a measure of how much "effort" your stage can put out and how much of a change in velocity it can impart on your rocket as a whole.

Δv is one of the most important concepts in navigating space, because in order to change from one orbit to another, there is a very specific, easily calculable change in velocity that must take place. You probably know that in order to orbit at a certain height above Kerbin, there is a very specific speed that your ship must have in order to maintain a perfectly circular orbit(this is assuming your orbit is perfectly spherical and not elliptical like most orbits are). Similarly, there is a very specific velocity that your ship must have when it leaves that orbit to head to the Mun in order to get that smooth elliptical transfer to the Mun. Therefore the difference in velocity between the circular orbit and the transfer orbit is the Δv that must be imparted onto the vehicle in order to transfer to the Mun. This is approximated for you on those Δv maps like this one.

So, by using Δv maps and maneuver nodes, you can figure out how much Δv you need to make your maneuvers, but now you need to figure out how much fuel you need to perform those maneuvers. That all depends on how much fuel is burned, how efficiently it is burned, how much structural weight is present in the rocket, and the weight ratio between fuel and structure. Another point to consider is that rocket acceleration is not constant, for as the rocket burns fuel, it will constantly get lighter and experience stronger and stronger acceleration, assuming that it is experiencing constant throttling. This has all been simplified by the Tsiolkovsky rocket equation. For all non-air breathing engines, Δv = (g0)(Isp)ln(Mi/Mf), where g0 is the gravitational acceleration at the surface of Kerbin(this is constant everywhere in the game, it's simply a unit conversion constant), Isp is the efficiency of the fuel and the engine burning it, Mi is the initial total mass of the vehicle before the burn, and Mf is the mass of the vehicle after the burn. You can calculate this yourself but since Kerbal Engineering Redux does this for you, why bother? However, it is important to understand the main criteria for adjusting Δv in your designs. g0 and Isp are mainly fixed values. The main variable to adjust in your designs is the mass ratio Mi/Mf. The less dead weight on your vehicle(this includes upper stages that haven't burned yet), and the more fuel burned, the more Δv you'll achieve in your designs. This is also why staging is so important. By staging and dropping your dead weight, you're decreasing structural mass hindering your upper stages and gaining more Δv. If you want to get more serious about your designs, you can add up the masses of the parts you want on your ship in a spreadsheet and calculate optimal staging sizes for your ship using the limited parts in the KSP inventory.

Other considerations are TWR, or Thrust to Weight ratio, which is simply the thrust of that stage matched to the weight of the whole ship. Changing the reference body in Kerbal Engineering simply adjusts the weight for each body. A lander on Minmus doesn't have to be super powerful, and might have a really small TWR on Kerbin, but that doesn't matter because all it needs to take off from Minmus is a TWR greater than 1 on Minmus, whose gravity is way weaker than Kerbin's.

I'll also throw out another tip that I hardly ever see mentioned here. Before you launch, check your center of mass and center of lift. In a rocket, your center of lift should always be below the center of mass. If it isn't, then you need to add stabilizing fins at the bottom of your rocket. A rocket with the center of lift above the center of mass is very likely to flip over backwards during its launch. Also, if you're attaching control surfaces, they're more effective the farther away they are from the center of mass, so it's always important to know where your center of mass is.

• Aerodynamics: Anything written by John Anderson. Specifically Fundamentals of Aerodynamics is a good general text. I have every book he's written and they're all pillars of excellent teaching. If you're just looking to get started, I teach incoming freshmen from his Introduction to Flight book which is very easy to pick up regardless of your level of knowledge.
  
  
• Jet Propulsion: Aircraft Propulsion by Saeed Farokhi. Don't let the name scare you away. This book is my engine bible. He's an excellent professor and his book is a labor of love.
  
  
• Rocket Propulsion: Rocket Propulsion Elements by Sutton & Biblarz is the standard and is the reference I keep on hand for rocket data and theory.
  
  
• Aircraft Design: Jan Roskam's Aircraft Design Series (8 books) contain an amazing wealth of information and serve as a 'cookbook' for aircraft design. Some of the information is dated and it's not always easy to read, but it's the only place you'll find a lot of the information. As a second reference, I keep Nicolai's Fundamentals of Aircraft & Airship Design Part 1 on hand as well. It's very easy to read and I feel it's superior in approach and presentation to Raymer's Aircraft Design: A Conceptual Approach which is what I originally learned from.

Aerodynamics, especially automotive aerodynamics, is a very complex subject. If you pursue this path in undergrad you'll need to get comfortable with advanced calculus and physics, as well as fluid mechanics. From experience, I would highly recommend getting involved with the car project teams at whatever university you decide to go to if you want to pursue a career in motorsport. Motorsport teams are looking for people that are not only exceptionally knowledgeable in their field but also passionate about racing.

As for things to read, there are loads of books on the subject. Understanding Aerodynamics by Doug McLean and Fundamentals of Aerodynamics by Anderson are two aerodynamics books sitting on my bookshelf.

For automotive/motorsport aerodynamics, the following are good books from my bookshelf:

Competition Car Aerodynamics by McBeath

Race Car Aerodynamics: Designing for Speed by Katz

Aerodynamics of Road Vehicles by Schuetz

Note, Aerodynamics of Road Vehicles is a full-on textbook and may be beyond what you're looking for, but it goes into great depth on a number of road vehicle aerodynamic topics.

One last book I came across on Amazon is Amateur Car Aerodynamics by Edgar. I haven't read this book, but the title sounds like the language may be more suited for people who don't have a background in fluid mechanics.

If there are any specific topics in fluid mechanics/aerodynamics that you are looking for I may be able to help find some.

They probably get cited too often as the best fluid mechanics books (at least for aerospace purposes), but John Anderson's books are a really good set to learn from as they have a really nice, linear progression of info. If you get several of them, you'll probably notice a fair bit of overlap in the early chapters since they're written to be pretty self-contained.

Jack Moran's book is also a really good intro and lead-up to computational approaches, with Laney providing a good second step down that line.

> I gotta look at some orbital mechanics books

If you really want to go through with that I highly recommend "Introduction to rocket science and engineering". It goes reasonably into depth but is still accessible with a decent highschool math and physics background. Besides orbital mechanics it covers the basics of pretty much all aspects of rocket science (history, thermodynamics, orbital mechanics, propulsion elements etc.) It is a bit pricey though, you probably want to find it somewhere cheaper.

If you're a bit more advanced (primarily in math) you could also checkout "Fundementals of astrodynamics" which is nice and cheap or "Orbital Mechanics for engineering students" if you really want to make it your job.

I am a mechanical engineer by trade but I am really interested in spaceflight and orbital mechanics so in the past months I have been catching up with those books.

All the stuff I'm quoting here I've taken from http://www.thrivemovement.com/fact_checks.

I'm not necessarily saying I agree with everything on this website by the way, I just think if there's even a remote chance that this is possible we should be open to asking these kinds of questions.

There have been numerous examples of people coming forward with examples of this technology and the being suppressed in some way, shape or form.

Tesla:

Nikola Tesla was an inventor beyond his time. Having obtained dozens and dozens of patents for his work, he experienced several periods of success, though he struggled to finance the Wardenclyffe project. Shrouded in secrecy, the intentions of the project were unclear to the public, however, once desperate for money, Tesla felt that he must reveal them to Morgan in order to secure further financing. Margaret Cheney, author of Tesla: Man Out of Time, estimates that Tesla had misjudged Morgan. “The prospect of beaming electricity to penniless Zulus or Pygmies,” she wrote, left the financier unenthusiastic about the project. Morgan ceased funding shortly thereafter.

Sources:

William J. Broad. "A Battle to Preserve a Visionary's Bold Failure." New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/05/science/05tesla.html.

Ron Chenrow. The House of Morgan (174, 257, 289).

International Copper Association, http://www.copperinfo.com/aboutcopper/index

Tesla’s lab was burned down and he was ostracized – all for trying to implement his vision of unlimited energy for everyone.

In 1895, prior to the completion of his work on the free-energy generator and prior to any patenting, all of Tesla’s equipment, models, and inventions were destroyed when his lab burned down.

Source:

William R. Lyne. Pentagon Aliens. Creatopia Productions, 1993. (283-285): http://www.amazon.com/Pentagon-Aliens-William-Lyne/dp/0963746774

Adam Trombly:

Adam Trombly had been invited to demonstrate one of his generators at the United Nations and the U.S. Senate, but these events were constrained by the first Bush administration. Then the device itself was taken in a government raid.

Former Canadian Ambassador, James George, details the series of events in his book, The Little Green Book on Awakening. In 1981, Adam Trombly filed an international patent application (WO/1982/002126) for his and Joseph Kahn’s co-invention of the “Closed Path Homopolar Machine”, a zero-point energy device. In 1983, Trombly was issued a gag order by the U.S. government to stop development of the “Closed Path Homopolar Machine.” Then sometime before 1989, Trombly’s gag order was dropped and he developed another zero-point energy device with David Farnsworth, called the Piezo Ringing Resonance Generator. In June of 1989, Trombly was scheduled to demonstrate a small version of his Piezo Ringing Resonance Generator at the UN in New York, but at the last minute he was forced to do it at a church down the street.

Afterwards Trombly gave a speech in Dag Hammarskjöld Auditorium at the United Nations in front of an international audience. A few days later, Trombly was scheduled to demonstrate the same device at the US Senate Banking and Finance Committee in Washington. Only Senator Carl Levin and a “handful” of staff were in attendance because the Senior Bush Administration called hundreds of Senators, Congressional Representatives and their staff members for an “off-the-cuff” discussion of the Clean Air Act at the exact same time as Trombly’s demonstration. Thus, the Bush administration successfully diverted attention away from the technology in an effort to censor Trombly.

Source:

James George. The Little Green Book on Awakening. 2009. Published by Barrytown/Station Hill Press, Inc. in Barrytown, New York. (pgs. 89-97).

John Bedini:

Inventor John Bedini began working with Tesla’s theories of “radiant energy” decades ago and has produced an assortment of battery-charging devices that generate more energy than it takes to run them. He announced that he was going to start offering them at low cost. Soon after that, he was attacked in his lab, and warned not to produce the machines. For his own safety he had to let go of marketing free energy devices.

Inventions by John Bedini in the field of “radiant energy” were reported to operate at over 800% efficiency. This document from 1984 reports Bedini’s initial intentions to market such devices.

Source: American National News Service, May 21, 1984: http://www.keelynet.com/bedmot/fullpress.htm

John Hutchinson:

Canadian John Hutchison not only created some free energy batteries, but also used Tesla's theories to counter gravity, to make objects float. This could revolutionize the field of propulsion. His lab was raided and equipment was taken by police and government officials in 1978, 1989, and again in 2000.

Follow these links for more information regarding the details of Hutchison’s scientific discoveries or the raids made against him.

Sources:

“Levitation Physicist John Hutchison Raided At Gunpoint By Canadian Police”: http://www.rense.com/general/raid.htm

TheHutchisonEffect.com

Eugene Mallove:

Eugene Mallove was mysteriously beaten to death in 2004.

Source: Greg Smith. "DNA Sought in 2004 murder of scientist in Norwich." Norwich Bulletin (June 4, 2008): http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/crime/x1427984682/DNA-tie-sought-in-2004-murder-of-scientist-in-Norwich

And then you take into account the sheer amount of money that's in the natural reserves:

"The proven oil and gas and coal reserves are worth north of 200 trillion dollars.” – Steven Greer As of October 2011, crude oil cost $95/barrel and there were approximately 1.2 trillion barrels of oil reserved on Earth. This equals roughly $114 trillion.

Coal cost $80/ton and there were approximately 500 billion tons of coal reserved on Earth. This equals roughly $40 trillion.

Natural gas cost $400/ton and there were approximately 155 billion tons of natural gas reserved on Earth. This equals roughly $62 trillion.

The total value of these energy reserves is $216 trillion.

Source: "World Energy Supply": http://www.theglobaleducationproject.org/earth/energy-supply.php Price of oil source: http://www.wtrg.com/daily/crudeoilprice.html Price of coal source: http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/coal/page/coalnews/coalmar.html Price of natural gas source: http://www.steelonthenet.com/commodity_prices.html

It really does make me think that maybe those guys have just thought of a way to look at things differently from the rest of the scientific world and are getting made to keep quiet about it.

For anyone who is interested in orbital mechanics simulations I've thrown together a very simple MATLAB function that will propagate an orbit in the earth centered earth fixed (ECEF) frame for a desired amount of time from any two line element set (TLE). This propagator assumes only earth's gravity, no perturbations although adding some, like drag, would be a good first project.


The MATLAB function is here:
[Earth_Orbit.m]
(http://pastebin.com/uH8DQWnR) (While needed all the code after line 50 is just to transform the TLE into a state vector so if you're looking to get started don't worry about that too much)

An example of a TLE:
ISS.txt (This one is for the ISS, find a whole bunch at http://www.heavens-above.com/)

You'll also need this lookup table for the Earth's neutation data:
nut80.dat


To use simply save the first pastebin as Earth_Orbit.m the second as ISS.txt and the third as nut80.dat. Put them in the same directory and point MATLAB to that directory. Call Earth_Orbit with the filename of your TLE and the time (sec) you want to see the orbit for.


Example:
Earth_Orbit ('ISS.txt',86400)
This shows the orbit of the ISS for 1 day. Note the ground track shown on the earth model in the output figure isn't correct since the texture is not applied in the correct direction (I think its off by pi but I'm not sure).


If you want to know more I suggest Orbital Mechanics for Engineering Students by Curtis to get started and Fundamentals of Astrodynamics and Applications by Vallado for a more in depth treatment. Be warned even if you're planning on doing relatively simple stuff you're probably going to need to know calculus to get started modeling.


Good Luck!


Credits:
David Vallado for his ECI to ECEF function.
Will Campbell for his Earth Sphere function.

The Lewis book listed below is definitely great as well as the Roskam book, but the Roskam text it is a little over simplified for my liking, since he was the main professor at my university I naturally had to use this book. But a more updated version of this book is http://www.amazon.com/Aircraft-Dynamics-Simulation-Marcello-Napolitano/dp/0470626674/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422294052&sr=8-1&keywords=flight+dynamics.

My favorite dynamics and control book is http://www.amazon.com/Flight-Dynamics-Robert-F-Stengel/dp/0691114072/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1422294052&sr=8-2&keywords=flight+dynamics

Ok the best place to start is always the bible of rocket science
https://www.amazon.com/Rocket-Propulsion-Elements-George-Sutton/dp/0470080248


also this is a great book about overall design

https://www.amazon.com/Spacecraft-Systems-Engineering-Peter-Fortescue/dp/047075012X/ref=pd_sim_14_19?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=047075012X&pd_rd_r=NV7BKDVSN225K69DY2JR&pd_rd_w=m3KtM&pd_rd_wg=XqmQL&psc=1&refRID=NV7BKDVSN225K69DY2JR

Other than rocket engines and structures it would be
https://www.amazon.com/Orbital-Mechanics-Engineering-Students-Aerospace/dp/0080977472/ref=pd_sim_14_5?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0080977472&pd_rd_r=NV7BKDVSN225K69DY2JR&pd_rd_w=m3KtM&pd_rd_wg=XqmQL&psc=1&refRID=NV7BKDVSN225K69DY2JR

https://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Astrodynamics-Dover-Aeronautical-Engineering/dp/0486600610/ref=pd_sim_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0486600610&pd_rd_r=NV7BKDVSN225K69DY2JR&pd_rd_w=m3KtM&pd_rd_wg=XqmQL&psc=1&refRID=NV7BKDVSN225K69DY2JR

After reading that book cover to cover you can branch into multiple aspects of aerospace engineering.

There are also less formal and fun books like https://www.amazon.de/Ignition-informal-history-liquid-propellants/dp/0813507251
or
https://www.amazon.com/History-Liquid-Propellant-Engines-Library/dp/1563476495/ref=pd_sim_14_63?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1563476495&pd_rd_r=NV7BKDVSN225K69DY2JR&pd_rd_w=m3KtM&pd_rd_wg=XqmQL&psc=1&refRID=NV7BKDVSN225K69DY2JR

The wing-mounting location and the horizontal stabilizer location are two different issues.

Where the wings mount to the fuselage is more dependent on the mission of the aircraft. America's military cargo plane workhorses, the C-5, C-17, and C-130, all have high-mounted wings. In modern aircraft, engines are usually mounted on hardpoints on the underside of the wings, imposing a minimum ground clearance requirement. Because the aircraft typically carry tanks/humvees/other things that roll on and off the aircraft on ramps, there is advantage to keeping the fuselage lower to the ground. So, by using high-mounted wings, we can meet the engines' ground clearance and keep the base of the fuselage closer to the ground to help with cargo loading/unloading. The reason you don't typically see commercial airliners with high-mounted wings is for weight savings. The strongest structural points in an aircraft are where the landing gear are supported and where the wings are mounted to the fuselage. Commercial aircraft designers place the main landing gear close to where the wings mount to the fuselage to use the same beefy structures to support both parts of the aircraft, saving weight and thus reducing operating costs.

For the horizontal stabilizer location, I am going to refer to the two common configurations as the conventional tail (horizontal stabilizer at the bottom) and the T-tail (horizontal stabilizer at the top). The conventional tail has lower structural weight compared to the T-tail since the weight of the horizontal stabilizer does not have to be supported through the vertical stabilizer; it is instead connected directly to the fuselage. T-tails are heavier, but the horizontal stabilizer on top of the vertical stabilizer acts as sort-of a winglet/end-plate to the vertical stabilizer, improving its aerodynamic efficiency. Thus, you can reduce the aspect ratio of the vertical stabilizer (shorten it), therefore reducing the overall height of the aircraft. For cargo aircraft when you are moving equipment via a ramp on the back of the aircraft, there is also a reduced chance of whacking something on the horizontal stabilizer when it is at the top of the tail. Also, with the T-tail, the elevators won't disrupt the airflow around the rudder at high angles of attack.

Source: multiple years of studying airplane design, Aircraft Performance and Design by John D. Anderson, Jr.

I'm not sure if this is the book /u/IC_Pandemonium was referring to, but it might be:

The Jet Engine by Rolls-Royce

I haven't had a chance to read it yet but I have heard it is very helpful.

Some other suggestions:

Gas Turbine Theory by Saravanamuttoo

Elements of Gas Turbine Propulsion by Jack Mattingly

Jet Propulsion: A Simple Guide to the Aerodynamic and Thermodynamic Design and Performance of Jet Engines by N.A. Cumpsty
(I think this may be the book /u/IC_Pandemonium was referring to actually. The previous book I have not had a chance to go through but I believe it is supposed to be written very accessibly as well.)

Compressor Aerodynamics by Cumpsty

The Design of High-Efficiency Turbomachinery and Gas Turbines by D.G. Wilson

Hopefully one or a few of these help!

I'd just like to point out that although the Bernoulli effect is secondary, it is in fact still very important. If thrust were the only force at play, then sailing faster than the wind would not be possible. Yet it theoretically is. Picture a properly tuned airfoil effectively tapping in to the internal energy of the fluid in which it moves. Moreover, the experienced sailor knows that optimal sail performance utilizes the residual air flow from the foresail to aid in inducing laminar flow around the main sail. That is why the physics is such that the mainsail is a more efficient sail per area, as the foresail aids in the lift of the mainsail by reducing turbulence. Sources: 1) A Manual of Sail Trim
and 2) Sail Power

This is where it all starts. Katsuhito Ogata's "System Dynamics" book is a good and easy to understand starting reference.

If you want to get into flight controls, you can get the book "Dynamics of Atmospheric Flight" to learn about things like longitudinal stability, aerodynamic derivatives to create a linear model of aircraft, etc.

Howard Curtis has a great book. You will be taught basic orbital calculations (speed, position, other orbital characteristics), and then move on to orbital maneuvers and patched conics. The book also introduces elements of rendezvous. I recommend the use of some software for any sort of orbital mechanics simulations and calculations. MATLAB is an easy tool to use If you familiarize yourself with the ode45() tool. It uses a runga kutta 45 approximation scheme to do the differential equation calculations.

https://www.amazon.com/Orbital-Mechanics-Engineering-Students-Aerospace/dp/0080977472

For flight dynamics, I've got Modern Flight Dynamics by Scmidt on my bookshelf. The book by Stengel looks pretty good too. I've got one of his other books called Optimal Control and Estimation that I like.



For structures of flight vehicles, I don't have any references I like on the subject unfortunately. The books I used for it in school were alright, but not great in my opinion. Lots of books on Amazon will let you have a preview, so you could skim a few there and then secure a copy from your library.

One good but old resource is Missile Aerodynamics by Nielsen. I used it for a similar project designing canards and although technology has progressed a lot since then I think it gives a very good introduction. It's not exactly a light read though.

I love SMAD for spacecraft design! My go-to for orbits stuff (my professional specialty) is "orbital mechanics for engineering students" (http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0080977472?pc_redir=1396560153&robot_redir=1$ and the next one is "fundamentals of astrodynamics and applications" (http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1881883140?pc_redir=1396676486&robot_redir=1).

one of the best books i've read is called "sail power" by Wallace ross??/

http://www.amazon.com/Sail-Power-Complete-Guide-Handling/dp/0394727150

The latest one i picked up is;
http://www.amazon.com/Keelboat-Sportsboat-Racing-Glyn-Charles/dp/1898660379/ref=sr_1_9?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1380591287&sr=1-9&keywords=keelboat

Look at some of the various air tools that are available some of the high speed die grinders and dental tools have some interesting turbine designs. I believe some dental tools have something like a tesla turbine which be fairly easy to construct. This site has some cool products http://www.gyroscope.com/TeslaTurbines/. For books i would suggest some fundamentals of thermodynamics books and http://www.amazon.com/Turbine-Aerodynamics-Axial-Flow-Radial-Flow-Analysis/dp/0791802418/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373036325&sr=1-7&keywords=turbine+design

Understanding Space: An Introduction To Astronautics is the book that I tend to see on most people's bookshelves when it comes to basic space concepts. I'm not sure it's at a high-school reading level, but it's pretty much the foundational book from what I've seen.

BMW (the book above) is the standard intro astrodynamics book. BMW was updated though and I think the following modern book is a great upgrade to an intro book.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486600610/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=1944687462&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=0080977472&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1NCCS2QNN7XXT6N691HX

http://www.amazon.com/Orbital-Mechanics-Engineering-Students-Aerospace/dp/0080977472

Try "Understanding Space: An Introduction to Astronautics" by Jerry Jon Sellers. Great explanations of everything from orbital mechanics to rocket propulsion.

If you want a book to purchase that will give you a fantastic introduction to computational aerodynamics, let me suggest this one written by some colleagues of mine:
Applied Computational Aerodynamics

Is that Understanding Space? Excellent textbook.

The Art and Science of Sails by Tom Whidden chapters 5 and 6. The concepts covered are invaluable. As always there is no substitute for TOW (time on the water, tiller in hand.) Doing circles in a sunfish will teach the new sailer A LOT. Good luck.

Aerodynamics is Aerodynamics, whether we are looking at airplanes, helicopters, wind turbines, or race cars... they all act on the same principles.

I would recommend this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Aerodynamics-Aeronautical-Aerospace-Engineering/dp/0073398101/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342978963&sr=8-1&keywords=aerodynamics

This is the book I learned aerodynamics from, and it gives you great explanations. However, you're going to need to develop a mathematics background to understand even the most basic concepts, but you might be able to figure it out on a more qualitative level just by reading. It's not cheap, but you can look at other editions or international editions that will drive the price waay down.

Understanding Space is really easy to understand. http://www.amazon.com/LSC-Understanding-Space-Introduction-Astronautics/dp/0077230302

Maybe try reading https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnus_effect and if that’s insufficient find an aerodynamics textbook? I’ve heard good things about https://www.amazon.com/dp/1259129918/

Depending on the OP's starting math/engineering background, Understanding Space: An Introduction to Astronautics may be a better starting point.

https://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Space-Introduction-Astronautics-Technology/dp/0073407755

If your looking for some background information the book "Art and Science of Sails" might be a good read.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Science-Sails-Construction/dp/0312044178

I really like Sail Power by Wallace Ross. It will teach you almost everything that you can learn about sailing and sailboats while on dry land.

I really like John D. Anderson's Intro to Flight and Aerodynamics books.

I just snagged this reply posted by bevus on a similar thread, but with a far less stupidly constructed op: http://www.reddit.com/r/conspiracy/comments/zxe9i/nikola_tesla_free_energy_generator_patented_in/

yes i do think people are burning down their labs.

"In 1895, prior to the completion of his work on the free-energy generator and prior to any patenting, all of Tesla’s equipment, models, and inventions were destroyed when his lab burned down." Source: William R. Lyne. Pentagon Aliens. Creatopia Productions, 1993. (283-285): http://www.amazon.com/Pentagon-Aliens-William-Lyne/dp/0963746774

Adam Trombly New Energy Device Demonstration Fact: Adam Trombly had been invited to demonstrate one of his generators at the United Nations and the U.S. Senate, but these events were constrained by the first Bush administration. Then the device itself was taken in a government raid.

Former Canadian Ambassador, James George, details the series of events in his book, The Little Green Book on Awakening. In 1981, Adam Trombly filed an international patent application (WO/1982/002126) for his and Joseph Kahn’s co-invention of the “Closed Path Homopolar Machine”, a zero-point energy device. In 1983, Trombly was issued a gag order by the U.S. government to stop development of the “Closed Path Homopolar Machine.” Then sometime before 1989, Trombly’s gag order was dropped and he developed another zero-point energy device with David Farnsworth, called the Piezo Ringing Resonance Generator. In June of 1989, Trombly was scheduled to demonstrate a small version of his Piezo Ringing Resonance Generator at the UN in New York, but at the last minute he was forced to do it at a church down the street.

Afterwards Trombly gave a speech in Dag Hammarskjöld Auditorium at the United Nations in front of an international audience. A few days later, Trombly was scheduled to demonstrate the same device at the US Senate Banking and Finance Committee in Washington. Only Senator Carl Levin and a “handful” of staff were in attendance because the Senior Bush Administration called hundreds of Senators, Congressional Representatives and their staff members for an “off-the-cuff” discussion of the Clean Air Act at the exact same time as Trombly’s demonstration. Thus, the Bush administration successfully diverted attention away from the technology in an effort to censor Trombly. Source: James George. The Little Green Book on Awakening. 2009. Published by Barrytown/Station Hill Press, Inc. in Barrytown, New York. (pgs. 89-97).

John Bedini New Energy Devices Fact: Inventor John Bedini began working with Tesla’s theories of “radiant energy” decades ago and has produced an assortment of battery-charging devices that generate more energy than it takes to run them. He announced that he was going to start offering them at low cost. Soon after that, he was attacked in his lab, and warned not to produce the machines. For his own safety he had to let go of marketing free energy devices.

Inventions by John Bedini in the field of “radiant energy” were reported to operate at over 800% efficiency. This document from 1984 reports Bedini’s initial intentions to market such devices. Source: American National News Service, May 21, 1984: http://www.keelynet.com/bedmot/fullpress.htm

John Hutchison Lab Raids Fact: Canadian John Hutchison not only created some free energy batteries, but also used Tesla's theories to counter gravity, to make objects float. This could revolutionize the field of propulsion. His lab was raided and equipment was taken by police and government officials in 1978, 1989, and again in 2000. Sources: “Levitation Physicist John Hutchison Raided At Gunpoint By Canadian Police”: http://www.rense.com/general/raid.htm

Eugene Mallove Fact: Eugene Mallove was mysteriously beaten to death in 2004.

Source: Greg Smith. "DNA Sought in 2004 murder of scientist in Norwich." Norwich Bulletin (June 4, 2008): http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/crime/x1427984682/DNA-tie-sought-in-2004-murder-of-scientist-in-Norwich

yes i do think people are burning down their labs.

"In 1895, prior to the completion of his work on the free-energy generator and prior to any patenting, all of Tesla’s equipment, models, and inventions were destroyed when his lab burned down."
Source:
William R. Lyne. Pentagon Aliens. Creatopia Productions, 1993. (283-285): http://www.amazon.com/Pentagon-Aliens-William-Lyne/dp/0963746774


Adam Trombly New Energy Device Demonstration Fact: Adam Trombly had been invited to demonstrate one of his generators at the United Nations and the U.S. Senate, but these events were constrained by the first Bush administration. Then the device itself was taken in a government raid.

Former Canadian Ambassador, James George, details the series of events in his book, The Little Green Book on Awakening. In 1981, Adam Trombly filed an international patent application (WO/1982/002126) for his and Joseph Kahn’s co-invention of the “Closed Path Homopolar Machine”, a zero-point energy device. In 1983, Trombly was issued a gag order by the U.S. government to stop development of the “Closed Path Homopolar Machine.” Then sometime before 1989, Trombly’s gag order was dropped and he developed another zero-point energy device with David Farnsworth, called the Piezo Ringing Resonance Generator. In June of 1989, Trombly was scheduled to demonstrate a small version of his Piezo Ringing Resonance Generator at the UN in New York, but at the last minute he was forced to do it at a church down the street.

Afterwards Trombly gave a speech in Dag Hammarskjöld Auditorium at the United Nations in front of an international audience. A few days later, Trombly was scheduled to demonstrate the same device at the US Senate Banking and Finance Committee in Washington. Only Senator Carl Levin and a “handful” of staff were in attendance because the Senior Bush Administration called hundreds of Senators, Congressional Representatives and their staff members for an “off-the-cuff” discussion of the Clean Air Act at the exact same time as Trombly’s demonstration. Thus, the Bush administration successfully diverted attention away from the technology in an effort to censor Trombly.
Source:
James George. The Little Green Book on Awakening. 2009. Published by Barrytown/Station Hill Press, Inc. in Barrytown, New York. (pgs. 89-97).


John Bedini New Energy Devices Fact: Inventor John Bedini began working with Tesla’s theories of “radiant energy” decades ago and has produced an assortment of battery-charging devices that generate more energy than it takes to run them. He announced that he was going to start offering them at low cost. Soon after that, he was attacked in his lab, and warned not to produce the machines. For his own safety he had to let go of marketing free energy devices.

Inventions by John Bedini in the field of “radiant energy” were reported to operate at over 800% efficiency. This document from 1984 reports Bedini’s initial intentions to market such devices.
Source: American National News Service, May 21, 1984: http://www.keelynet.com/bedmot/fullpress.htm

John Hutchison Lab Raids Fact: Canadian John Hutchison not only created some free energy batteries, but also used Tesla's theories to counter gravity, to make objects float. This could revolutionize the field of propulsion. His lab was raided and equipment was taken by police and government officials in 1978, 1989, and again in 2000.
Sources:
“Levitation Physicist John Hutchison Raided At Gunpoint By Canadian Police”: http://www.rense.com/general/raid.htm

Eugene Mallove Fact: Eugene Mallove was mysteriously beaten to death in 2004.

Source: Greg Smith. "DNA Sought in 2004 murder of scientist in Norwich." Norwich Bulletin (June 4, 2008): http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/crime/x1427984682/DNA-tie-sought-in-2004-murder-of-scientist-in-Norwich

Here is the desktop version of your link

Same here! Unlike others, though, this is the book we are using for astrodynamics.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKCK4lJLQHU

https://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Aerodynamics-John-Anderson-Jr/dp/0073398101

> Orbital Mechanics for Engineering Students by Howard Curtis

that book is dense!! 700 pages, 600 is advance math and formulas. but it does explain everything

the wikipedia page. NASA learning website. and then https://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Aerodynamics-John-Anderson-Jr/dp/0073398101

(dont actually buy it, you can probably find the pdf online)

Ross, Sail Power

Marchaj, several books, and another