Numerical Method Comparison on Shaped Sonic Boom Propagation Through Atmospheric Boundary Layer Turbulence

Nonlinear propagation code KZKFourier is used to simulate the propagation of sonic booms through atmospheric boundary layers with turbulence. Use of the recommended “natural” spline numerical method results in the emergence of spiking artifacts at the ends of various ground waveforms after propagating shaped sonic booms through turbulent atmospheric boundary layers. The four other available numerical methods of KZKFourier were investigated under identical atmospheric conditions: linear interpolation, Hermite spline, finite differences, and frequency domain solution. Effects of the post-processing application of a 25% taper to the results of each numerical method were also explored. The Hermite spline method did not produce spiking, is accurate, and has a faster runtime than other options, so this method is recommended for future KZKFourier simulations with similar atmospheric conditions and turbulence levels.