Applications of adjoint theory to problems in aerospace and defence science

The adjoint simulation method is an efficient, computerised method for the performance analysis of linear time varying systems excited by deterministic and/or stochastic inputs. It is based on the impulse response function (or weighting function) of the so-called adjoint system - an associated linear system derived from the original system by clever utilisation of the mathematical principle of duality. We demonstrate the power of adjoint simulation in the context of guided missile homing loop studies and present a Matlab tool for its speedy implementation and execution. As an example, the tool analyses the miss distance performance of a generic guided missile against an evading target in two dimensional space.