For extra-orbital missions, ablative materials have always been, and still remain, the primary choice for the design of atmospheric entry heat shields. Because of the many uncertainties associated with the usage of such material in complex aerothermal flow environments, it is important to understand and quantify the effects of the phenomena at play. Many specific area of research can lead to a better understanding of the underlying physics of aerothermodymamic ablation. More specifically, the topics discussed will touch upon the coupling of material response and CFD codes using a unified method, the effects of surface chemistry, the importance of non-equilibrium chemistry on the composition of the pyrolysis gas, and the modeling spallation effects.
