Existing theoretical analyses and experimental results of the stagnation region in hypersonic flow at low Reynolds number are discussed. The approach based on the thin-shock-layer approxi mation is extended to study flow fields beyond the stagnation region as well as in the shock transition zone. The basic flow model consists of two adjoining thin layers: a shock-transition zone and a shock layer. The system of partial differential equations governing the high-density shock layer reduces to the parabolic type. The system governing the shock-transition zone reduces to ordinary differential equations similar to those of the one-dimensional shock wave. They give rise to a set of conservation relations across the shock, which account for the transport processes immediately behind the shock but do not involve details of shock-wave structure. With the modified Rankine-Hugoniot relations, the flow field in shock layer can be determined independ ently of the shock-transition zone. An essential feature of this formulation is that, when applied in conjunction with nonslip surface conditions, it always yields the appropriate surface heat transfer rate and skin friction (for unit accommo dation coefficients) in the free-molecule limit. (Author).