Aerodynamic Interactions and Turbulence Mitigation by Unidentified Aerospace-Undersea Phenomena

Brief

Timothy K. Oliver applies computational fluid dynamics to a class of UAP reports characterized by extreme velocities and absence of detectable propulsion signatures. The central mechanism examined is a postulated boundary layer, effectively a localized force field, that redirects airflow around the vehicle before it can form a turbulent wake or ionized plasma sheath. At hypersonic velocities (Mach 5+), any conventional object would generate a strong bow shock, a plasma envelope that disrupts radar return, and a broadband acoustic signature; Oliver's model shows that an active flow-control boundary of sufficient strength could suppress all three. The analysis extends to undersea travel, addressing the 'transmedium' behavior reported in several U.S. government UAP case files.

Metadata

Category

Phenomenon

Venue

AIAA Aviation 2023

Type

Conference proceedings

Year

2023

Authors

Timothy K. Oliver

DOI

10.2514/6.2023-4324

Access

Paywalled

Instruments

CFD simulation

Tags

UAP-physics, aerodynamics, CFD, propulsion-signatures, transmedium, plasma-physics, technosignature

Key points

• At speeds consistent with credible UAP reports, classical aerodynamics predicts large bow-shock structures and a plasma sheath, neither of which are reported by sensor data in the primary cases examined.
• A hypothetical force-field boundary redirecting oncoming flow around the vehicle perimeter could theoretically prevent boundary-layer separation, eliminating the turbulent wake signature observable on radar and infrared sensors.
• Plasma suppression is the critical constraint: ionized gas at hypersonic velocities causes radar blackout in conventional vehicles, yet reported UAP maintain radar-reflective signatures, a contradiction the force-field model attempts to resolve.
• The paper covers transmedium operation (aerospace and undersea), modeling how an analogous boundary mechanism could enable high-speed underwater travel without cavitation noise or hydrodynamic wake.
• The analysis is explicitly framed as physics-compatible mechanism generation, not a claim of existence, the question posed is whether such behavior is forbidden by known physics, and the answer offered is no.
• Presented at AIAA Aviation 2023, a peer-reviewed professional engineering forum, marking one of the first formal aerodynamics treatments of UAP propulsion-signature suppression in that venue.

Most interesting

• An object traveling at 13,000 mph in atmosphere would ordinarily produce a sonic boom audible for hundreds of miles and a plasma envelope hot enough to glow visibly, the absence of both in multiple sensor-corroborated UAP events is the empirical puzzle this paper targets.
• The paper's title uses the term 'Aerospace-Undersea Phenomena,' matching the framing in several U.S. Department of Defense UAP reports, which describe objects observed transitioning between air and water without deceleration.
• AIAA, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, is the primary professional society for aerospace engineers; its acceptance of this paper for conference presentation represents institutional recognition of UAP aerodynamics as a legitimate research question, not a fringe topic.
• Active flow control as a drag-suppression mechanism is itself a mature aerospace research area (used in boundary-layer suction systems on aircraft); Oliver's contribution is extending the concept to an extreme-performance envelope where the required energy budget becomes extraordinary.
• If the force-field boundary model is correct, the same mechanism that hides propulsion signatures would also render the vehicle effectively invisible to passive infrared tracking at altitude, explaining the 'no heat signature' observations in several Navy aviator accounts.