Numerical confirmation of the hysteresis phenomenon in the regular to the Mach reflection transition in steady flows

Numerical calculations based on the Navier-Stokes equations are carried out to investigate the reflection of shock waves over straight reflecting surfaces in steady flows. The results for a flow Mach number of M₀=4.96 confirm the recent experimental findings of Chpoun et al. (1995) concerning the transition from regular to Mach reflection. Numerical calculations as well as experimental results show a hysteresis phenomenon during this transition and the regular reflection is found to be stable in the dual-solution domain in which theoretically both regular and Mach reflection wave configurations are possible.