Space & Astronomy/Space and Astronomy (October 1993).iso/mac/TEXT/SPACEDIG/V15_0/V15NO007.TXT

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Date: Fri, 17 Jul 92 05:00:05
From: Space Digest maintainer <[e-mail]>
Reply-To: [e-mail]
Subject: Space Digest V15 #007
To: Space Digest Readers
Precedence: bulk


Space Digest                Fri, 17 Jul 92       Volume 15 : Issue 007

Today's Topics:
                   Biosphere: the final inside word
              Chemical unit operations in space (2 msgs)
              Electronic Journal of the ASA - July 1992
                    Help in astro-physics needed!
               Mars Direct: Any Independent Evaluation?
Space Transportation Infrastructure Costs (Was Re: Interstates) (2 msgs)
                         Theoretical problem

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----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: 16 Jul 1992 13:54:49 GMT
From: George William Herbert <[e-mail]>
Subject: Biosphere: the final inside word
Newsgroups: sci.space

    I finally tracked Bernd down again and asked him the right
questions in the right way.  Here's what really happened re: CO2
scrubbers in the Biosphere II project.
    They've had some minimal scrubber ability designed in since
early conceptual stages of the design.  They weren't planning on using
it very much... Bernd quoted me a total capability like (over time)
removing 100ppm CO2 from the atmosphere inside.  They didn't talk
a lot about it but he says it was on their plans and specs they
released, so he's suprised everyone else (me 8-) didn't know about it.
    It was run for 6 weeks in December and Jan. this year when they
found the CO2 levels rising, apparently due to effects from El Nino.
It did what it did and ran out of oomph when they thought it would
and everything stabilized on its own.

Lesson: Ask the correct question (not "Did you Add" but "Did you Have?")
when people are likely to be defensive.  Since everyone's been very
down on Biosphere, Bernd didn't hear the question I thought I was
asking until I rephrased it properly nonthreateningly.  This, of course,
would not happen if people didn't make the Biosphere II crew paranoid
about the seriosuness of their work. 8-)

-george william herbert
[e-mail]  [e-mail]  [e-mail] until 28 aug

------------------------------

Date: 16 Jul 92 11:52:19 GMT
From: John Roberts <[e-mail]>
Subject: Chemical unit operations in space
Newsgroups: sci.space

-From: [e-mail] (Greg Macrae)
-Subject: Re: Chemical unit operations in space
-Date: 15 Jul 92 14:14:00 GMT
-Organization: NASA Lewis Research Center

-The last shuttle flight demonstrated a very high degree of control over
-droplet location, and motion using sound waves, and that was the first
-such experiment ever conducted!

Actually, I think it's been done on previous Shuttle missions, but not with
this degree of precision and versatility.

John Roberts
[e-mail]

------------------------------

Date: 16 Jul 92 11:56:53 GMT
From: John Roberts <[e-mail]>
Subject: Chemical unit operations in space
Newsgroups: sci.space

-From: [e-mail] (Thomas Koenig)
-Subject: Chemical unit operations in space
-Date: 15 Jul 92 06:56:17 GMT
-Organization: University of Auckland, New Zealand.

-I've been wondering a bit about how a chemical plant would look
-like in space.

Much of the experimentation on STS-50 was directed toward finding ways to
process and manipulate materials in microgravity. One example was the surface
tension driven convection experiment. It will probably be a year or more
before all the results are in from those experiments.

John Roberts
[e-mail]

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 16 Jul 92 06:44:58 PDT
From: "IDC, PKO3-1/27D, Pole 27-C, 223-3283" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Electronic Journal of the ASA - July 1992

                          THE ELECTRONIC JOURNAL OF
                  THE ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE ATLANTIC

                       Volume 3, Number 12 - July 1992

                         ###########################

                              TABLE OF CONTENTS

                         ###########################

          * ASA Membership and Article Submission Information

          * New Ears on the Sky: The NASA SETI Microwave Observing Project

               - ARC and JPL SETI Project

          * Winter Star Party 1992 Report - Eric Greene

                         ###########################

                         ASA MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION

        The Electronic Journal of the Astronomical Society of the Atlantic
    (EJASA) is published monthly by the Astronomical Society of the
    Atlantic, Incorporated.  The ASA is a non-profit organization dedicated
    to the advancement of amateur and professional astronomy and space
    exploration, as well as the social and educational needs of its members.

        ASA membership application is open to all with an interest in
    astronomy and space exploration.  Members receive the Journal of the
    ASA (hardcopy sent through United States Mail - Not a duplicate of this
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        For information on membership, you may contact the Society at any
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        or telephone the Society Recording at [phone] to leave your
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        ASA Officers and Council -

        President - Don Barry
        Vice President - Nils Turner
        Secretary - Ingrid Siegert-Tanghe
        Treasurer - Mike Burkhead
        Directors - Bill Bagnuolo, Eric Greene, Tano Scigliano
        Council - Bill Bagnuolo, Bill Black, Mike Burkhead, Frank Guyton,
                  Larry Klaes, Ken Poshedly, Jim Rouse, Tano Scigliano,
                  John Stauter, Wess Stuckey, Harry Taylor, Gary Thompson,
                  Cindy Weaver, Bob Vickers

        ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS -

        Article submissions to the EJASA on astronomy and space exploration
    are most welcome.  Please send your on-line articles in ASCII format to
    Larry Klaes, EJASA Editor, at the following net addresses or the above
    Society addresses:

        [e-mail]
        or - ...!decwrl!verga.enet.dec.com!klaes
        or - [e-mail]
        or - [e-mail]

        You may also use the above addresses for EJASA back issue requests,
    letters to the editor, and ASA membership information.

        When sending your article submissions, please be certain to include
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        DISCLAIMER -

        Submissions are welcome for consideration.  Articles submitted,
    unless otherwise stated, become the property of the Astronomical
    Society of the Atlantic, Incorporated.  Though the articles will not
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    Opinions expressed in the EJASA are those of the authors' and not
    necessarily those of the ASA.  This Journal is Copyright (c) 1992
    by the Astronomical Society of the Atlantic, Incorporated.


                             NEW EARS ON THE SKY:
                  THE NASA SETI MICROWAVE OBSERVING PROJECT

                           ARC and JPL SETI Project

        In support of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's
    (NASA) mandate to investigate the origin, evolution, and distribution
    of life in the Universe, NASA's SETI Microwave Observing Project (MOP)
    is scheduled to become operational this autumn, completing fifteen
    years of research and development.  The objective of the NASA SETI
    Microwave Observing Project is to seek evidence of extraterrestrial
    intelligent life by conducting a comprehensive systematic search of
    a portion of the microwave radio spectrum where there is the least
    background noise from astrophysical sources.

        The SETI Project is testing the hypothesis that biology, intelli-
    gence, culture, and technology are widely distributed phenomena in
    the Universe.  In the Milky Way galaxy, there are approximately four
    hundred billion stars, of which five to ten percent are stable enough
    to support life over evolutionary time scales.  Thus, in this galaxy
    alone, there are approximately twenty billion stars similar to Earth's
    Sun.  If even a small fraction of these life-supporting regions have
    developed biological complexity and intelligence, there may be thousands
    or even millions of technology-using species in the Milky Way at the
    present time.

        Human beings developed technology early in order to control
    their environment and ensure an adequate food supply.  With a secure
    environment, stable food sources, and higher population densities,
    cultural evolution - the transmission of information between indi-
    viduals and generations - supplemented biological evolution.  It
    was during the most recent phase of this process of cultural evolution
    that our communicate social species developed a technological civili-
    zation which has become detectable over interstellar distances due to
    its activities in the radio spectrum.  If other civilizations exist
    and have also exploited the radio spectrum, the electromagnetic
    manifestations of distant societies await detection.

        Cultural activity on Earth has led to the explosive development of
    technology, including radio communication and powerful radars.  Some
    of humanity's earliest broadcasts have by now propagated some seventy
    light years into space, past several hundred solar-type stars.  In
    principle, then, intelligent beings in distant planetary systems could
    learn of our existence by studying radio waves from space, just as we
    could discover any such beings by using similar means.  Given this
    strong possibility, NASA is preparing to conduct the largest search
    ever for the radio emissions of other cultures.

        The SETI Microwave Observing Project (MOP) is managed by the NASA
    Ames Research Center (ARC) at Moffett Field, California, and is being
    jointly carried out by ARC, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in
    Pasadena, California, researchers at participating universities, and
    the NASA Deep Space Network (DSN).

        The SETI Project has not yet begun operations, and no searching
    has been done by NASA.  The planned search will be billions of times
    more comprehensive than all previous efforts by others in this field.
    It will use two complementary search modes:  A Targeted Search and an
    All-Sky Survey.  Both search elements will deploy state-of-the-art
    digital spectrum analyzers and signal processing equipment to carry
    out fully automated observations and data processing activities.
    Plans call for the Targeted Search and All-Sky Survey operations to
    begin on Columbus Day, October 12, 1992, to commemorate the spirit
    of exploration.

        The Targeted Search, conducted by ARC, is designed to examine
    nearly eight hundred solar-type stars within eighty light years of
    Earth in the 1,000 to 3,000 megahertz (MHz) microwave radio band.
    Special wide frequency bandwidth Multi Channel Spectrum Analyzers
    (MCSA) will be deployed at radio astronomy observatories with the
    largest existing antennas, using about five percent of the available
    time.  Some of the large radio telescopes that will be used are the
    National Science Foundation's 305-meter (1,000-foot) diameter antenna
    at Arecibo, Puerto Rico, the Australian 64-meter (210-foot) diameter
    antenna at Parkes, Australia, the Deep Space Network's 70-meter
    (230-foot) diameter antenna at Tidbinbilla, Australia, and the
    National Radio Astronomy Observatory's (NRAO) 42-meter (140-foot)
    diameter antenna at Green Bank, West Virginia.  The Green Bank radio
    telescope will become a dedicated site.  Arecibo will be used to
    inaugurate the SETI Targeted Search on October 12.

        In the Targeted Search, an automatic data analysis subsystem
    will be able to detect the presence of fixed frequency or drifting
    continuous wave (CW) signals or sequences of regularly spaced pulses.
    The increased number of targets, the greater frequency range, and
    the wider variety of detectable signals will give the SETI Project
    capabilities far beyond anything that has been possible in previous
    searches.  The transportable Targeted Search System (TSS) includes a
    Radio Frequency Subsystem (RFS), the Multi Channel Spectrum Analyzer
    (MCSA), a Signal Detection Subsystem (SDS), a System Control Subsystem
    (SCS), and a Data Collection and Archive Subsystem (DCAS).  The RFS
    amplifies the radio waves at the observing frequency and converts them
    to a lower frequency for further processing.  The design pushes state
    of the art with wide instantaneous bandwidth (320 MHz) and continuous
    coverage from 1,000 to 3,000 MHz.  A portion of the RFS has been
    developed to interface to Arecibo Observatory in 1992.

        The MCSA spectrometer divides a dual polarization 10 MHz segment
    of the data from the RFS into 14.3 million channels at a resolution
    of 1 Hertz.  Simultaneous resolutions of 1, 2, 4, 7, 14, and 28 Hertz
    provide sensitivity to pulse durations in the range from 0.025 to 1.5
    seconds.  The MCSA relies on a new custom integrated circuit that was
    designed and fabricated during the past year.

        Every 1.4 seconds for each resolution and polarization,
    approximately one thousand channels with power higher than a threshold
    value are sent to the Pulse Detector for analysis.  At the same time,
    the measured power in all channels at one resolution for both left and
    right circular polarizations, about 28.6 million numbers, are sent to
    the Continuous Wave Detector.  The SDS Pulse Detector searches the
    MCSA's thresholded data for groups of three pulses with a common
    spacing that may be part of a regularly spaced pulse train.  In the
    CW Detector, data are stored on arrays of disks with a capacity of
    twenty billion bytes of information.  A custom circuit module using
    commercially available parts will implement an efficient detection
    algorithm that sums the energy along a representative set of potential
    signals within the range of possible frequency drift rates.  This
    implementation achieves a sensitivity within 1 dB of optimum.  The SCS
    schedules observations, configures the TSS, points the telescope, and
    evaluates potential signals reported by the SDS.  Powerful HP9000
    workstations have been acquired and code developed to implement the
    basic functions required for observations on Columbus Day.

        The All-Sky Survey, conducted by JPL, will search the entire
    celestial sphere over the 1,000 to 10,000 MHz frequency range,
    including spot bands up to 25,000 MHz.  This strategy is designed to
    cover the possibility that technologically advanced communities are
    emitting strong signals, possibly as interstellar beacons.  A
    two-million channel digital wide-band spectrum analyzer (WBSA) and a
    signal processor system, designed and built at JPL, will serve as a
    prototype for the SETI Sky Survey processor.  The WBSA features a
    pipelined Fast Fourier Transform architecture that transforms up to 40
    MHz of input bandwidth into 20 Hz bins in the frequency domain.  To
    accommodate the wide bandwidth in real time, the WBSA performs 4.5
    billion operations per second, which exceeds the speed of the fastest
    supercomputers.  The spectrum analyzer is equipped to process two
    simultaneous input channels each with maximum bandwidth of 20 MHz.
    This design allows future expansion to meet the SETI requirement of
    simultaneous search for right and left circularly polarized signals.

        The output data from the WBSA is passed to a signal detection
    module that performs baseline estimation, filtering and threshold
    functions.  The signal detection algorithms are designed to:  (1)
    accommodate variable baselines that are anticipated, e.g., when the
    Sky Survey antenna beam sweeps across background radio sources; (2)
    minimize the effect of radio frequency interference (RFI); (3) apply a
    convolutional filter to increase sensitivity and to provide input to a
    subsequent test that is designed to discriminate candidate signals
    from bursts of RFI; (4) identify candidate signals that exceed a
    selectable threshold.

        According to the Sky Survey scan strategy, the sky will be divided
    into "sky frames" (small areas of the order of fifty square degrees)
    and each sky frame will be scanned at a rate of 0.2 degrees per second.
    The scan pattern was designed to enable candidate signals to be detected
    on adjacent scan lines.  Candidate signals from astronomical distances
    will be found at the same location on adjacent scan lines (after
    compensating for Earth's rotation).  Most sources of RFI will not
    match up in this manner.

        The output of the Sky Survey WBSA is passed to the signal
    detection software in a condensed format as candidate signal reports.
    Each report consists of fourteen bytes that describe the frequency,
    the bandwidth, and the accumulated power before and after the
    application of the convolutional filter.  The signal detection
    subsystem also provides display and data recording outputs.  Screen
    displays are provided to visualize the frequency characteristics and
    the spatial location of detected signals in a sky frame.  After
    extensive field testing of the prototype design and search strategy, a
    fully operational Sky Survey System with sixteen times the capability
    of the prototype, and featuring a thirty-two-million channel spectrum
    analyzer, will be deployed in 1996.

        The Sky Survey observations will be initiated using the new
    high-efficiency 34-meter antenna at the research and development
    station of NASA's Deep Space Communication Complex at Goldstone,
    California.  A major feature of this antenna is an assembly of shaped
    reflectors (radio frequency "mirrors") and waveguides that translate
    the focus of the antenna down to a spacious laboratory below ground.
    With this capability, the antenna can be switched from one experiment
    to another to support a variety of research activities, including the
    test and use of the SETI prototype signal processing subsystem.  The
    Sky Survey will be three hundred times more sensitive than previous
    sky surveys and will also mark the most detailed systematic
    examination ever conducted of the entire sky.

        Field tests are presently underway on the Sky Survey Prototype
    System at Goldstone.  The unmanned MAGELLAN and ULYSSES spacecraft
    currently exploring the solar system have been successfully detected
    during these tests.  Meanwhile, integration testing of the Targeted
    Search MCSA is continuing at Ames.

        As has been noted, the purpose of SETI is to test the hypothesis
    that the technologies of other intelligent organisms are detectable in
    the radio spectrum.  If a signal is found and confirmed, we will know
    that evolutionary biology is an inherent characteristic of some loca-
    tions in the Universe.  Information gathered from other civilizations
    may provide important practical as well as social and philosophical
    benefits.

        Even if the NASA Microwave Observing Project does not detect an
    ETI signal, it will provide benefits to our society.  The technology
    developed to search for faint signals from civilizations in other
    solar systems can be applied to solving problems in medical diagnostic
    imaging, resource exploration, electronics, and aircraft safety.  In
    the course of the search, the NASA MOP will collect a uniquely detailed
    and complete set of astronomical data.  A significant spin-off from
    the NASA SETI Project will be in education.  SETI provides a highly
    stimulating magnet for attracting young people to learn about science
    and mathematics.

        The cost for the ten-year life of the Project averages ten million
    dollars per year - or less than one-tenth of one percent of NASA's
    budget per year - less than one nickel per American each year.

        Related EJASA Articles -

         "Does Extraterrestrial Life Exist?", by Angie Feazel - November 1989

         "Suggestions for an Intragalactic Information Exchange System",
           by Lars W. Holm - November 1989

         "Radio Astronomy: A Historical Perspective", by David J. Babulski
           - February 1990

         "Getting Started in Amateur Radio Astronomy", by Jeffrey M. Lichtman
           - February 1990

         "A Comparison of Optical and Radio Astronomy", by David J. Babulski
           - June 1990

         "The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) in the Optical
           Spectrum, Parts A-E", by Dr. Stuart A. Kingsley - January 1992

         "History of the Ohio SETI Program", by Robert S. Dixon - June 1992


                         WINTER STAR PARTY 1992 REPORT

                                by Eric Greene

        The annual Winter Star Party was held again at Camp Wesumkee Girl
    Scouts Camp on Summerland Key, fifty-three kilometers (thirty-three
    miles) north of Key West, Florida.  I am certain that longer Party
    reports will follow this one.  I hope some of the other travelers will
    take the time to type up their impressions for both the ASA BBS and
    Journals.

        Society attendance at this year's Winter Star Party was great,
    with sixteen members and spouses at the event.  These members included
    Don Barry, Nils Turner, Bill Bagnuolo, Richard Jakiel, Harry Taylor,
    Harry Gelblat, Becky Long, Jim Brant, Eric Greene, Jeff Elledge, Alan
    Peel and his family, David Sanders and his wife, and Jim Rouse and his
    wife.  We were the largest out-of-state contingent attending.  I hope
    even more Society members will come for next year's event!

        This year's WSP extended over a full five-day period.  The gates
    opened on Tuesday, January 28, 1992, at nine in the morning and
    finally closed after Sun "rise" on Sunday, February 2.  The extra
    couple of days were very welcome, since they allowed those arriving
    early a less hurried feeling normal with last year's shorter event.
    It *is* a long drive down to the Florida Keys - about 1,264 kilometers
    (790 miles) from my home in Lilburn, Georgia - and it is tough to
    arrive on a Thursday or Friday and have to leave again on Sunday.

        Once again, Harry Gelblat and I made the drive down together in
    the venerable old 1977 Dodge van, fondly referred to as Fang.  Becky
    Long decided, in the interest of comfort, I am sure, to ride down
    with another vehicle and missed out on all our fun.  We pulled out
    of Harry's driveway Monday evening at 19:40, and, after a relatively
    uneventful drive, arrived at Summerland Key about 10:30 Tuesday
    morning.  Travel was a bit slow due to the rain which accompanied us
    for most of the drive, but we were heartened by the sights of the
    planet Venus and the waning Moon peeking through the clouds as we
    passed Miami at dawn.

        The camping at this year's party was a bit more cramped than
    last year because of the insistence on people not to set up tents and
    vehicles on the southern (ocean) side of the campground road.  The only
    parking/camping allowed on that side was in the shade of the mangrove
    thickets to prevent vehicles/tents from blocking the southern view
    for those parking on the northern side of the road.  This worked out
    pretty well, except for the fact that several hundred vehicles, tents,
    and campers were packed into a fairly small area.  Most people seem
    to like setting up telescopes near their vehicle, and most of the
    telescopes were also sited on the northern side of the campground.

        Having experienced last year's event, we had some idea of the
    layout of the campground and pulled Fang into a spot close to both the
    showers and the vendors' selling areas.  Not having to hike ninety
    meters (one hundred yards) to the men's facilities is a nice touch,
    especially late at night!

        This year's weather was magnificent - at least during the day.
    In fact, the twenty-seven-plus degrees Celsius (eighty-plus degrees
    Fahrenheit) temperatures were a bit warm for most of us.  We spent
    hours underneath a tarp strung out from the side of Fang.  Tuesday
    night was partly cloudy and most people took advantage of this fact to
    catch up on sleep lost during the long drive.  Wednesday and Thursday
    nights were both clear and steady - the prime observing nights of the
    event.  Both Friday and Saturday nights were great disappointments
    since both days were crystal clear, but clouds moved in immediately
    after the Sun had "set".

        Observing was possible between the bands of clouds and most
    people made the most of the situation.  We were catching a bit of a
    northeaster that had covered most of Florida to the north with clouds
    and rain.  One hundred-sixty kilometers (One hundred miles) north of
    us the cloud cover was complete, so the situation could have been much
    worse.  Temperatures during the day on Saturday were dropping and that
    evening was downright chilly.  Not as bad as last year, but still not
    quite as comfortable as on previous nights.

        Since Harry Gelblat and I had both made the rounds of the deep
    southern sky objects last year, we were not pressed to hunt them
    down this year, making observing a bit more casual.  I spent hours
    wandering through the Fornax galaxy cluster and positively identified
    fifteen of its members.  I also "gunned down" several faint galaxies
    in Canis Major as well as seeing my first globular cluster in another
    galaxy, NGC 1049 in the Fornax dwarf galaxy.  Of course we all spent
    long periods at the eyepiece when Eta Carina and Omega Centauri popped
    above the horizon.  Omega is fantastic from 24.5 degrees north
    latitude, appearing as strands of pearls strung across the whole
    field of view!

        The incredible steady air in the Keys allowed using 500x on
    the planet Jupiter with my Celestron 8 and David Sanders took his
    37.5-centimeter (fifteen-inch) Tectron to 750x with great results on
    the Jovian world.  A friend from last year, Steve Biondo of Harbor
    Beach, Michigan, was notching 0.5 arc second doubles and elongated a
    0.3 arc second pair with his fifteen-centimeter (six-inch) Quantum
    Maksutov!  Such atmospheric stability is hard to believe from sea
    level, but it is the rule rather than the exception in the Keys.

        Sunday morning brought an early wake up and final packing of
    our camping and telescope gear.  Harry and I had packed as much as
    possible on Saturday evening to allow a quick getaway on Sunday.  With
    everything stowed, we pulled out of the campsite at 08:00 exactly and
    headed into Marathon for a bite of breakfast.  An uneventful drive
    back to Atlanta put us in Harry's driveway at 21:15.  When you are
    taking Fang on long drives, uneventful trips are something to be
    celebrated!

        Our final impressions?  It was a *great* time!  Speaking to
    others, we learned that camping in the Florida Keys can run
    thirty-five to forty dollars each night for setting up a tent in
    commercial campgrounds.  Getting a five-dollar per night rate at the
    WSP allows for what must be the cheapest winter Florida Key vacation
    possible.  By splitting gasoline costs and careful menu planning
    before leaving, Harry and I both spent about two hundred dollars for
    the whole event from the time we left until our return.  Fang gets
    around nineteen to twenty-two kilometers (twelve to fourteen miles)
    per gallon of gasoline, depending upon how heavy a foot is on the
    accelerator:  Our gas cost was about 160 dollars.  Most of the rest
    of the money was spent on T-shirts, caps, astronomical odds and ends,
    miscellaneous supplies in town like ice and other perishables, and
    eating while on the road.

        My big purchases were some copies of the OBSERVER GUIDE magazines
    (about fifteen issues) and a pair of 20x80 Unitron binoculars.  Harry
    bought a few issues of the same magazine as well as several motors for
    a drive he has planned and a new diagonal mirror (a new telescope,
    Harry?).

        Do *not* count on finding cheap eyepieces at the various vendor
    sales tables; there is no such thing as Star Party Special pricing!
    You are better off just ordering from an inexpensive mail order place
    since the prices are almost identical.  Offerings at the swap table
    can be either very good or very bad, depending on whether they have
    what you are looking for or not.  The point is that this is not a
    good place to make planned equipment purchases, though an occasional
    bargain can be found.

        We both found this year's event to be much better than last year
    because we knew what to expect.  Some of the hassles from last year
    were not a problem because we had already dealt with and knew how to
    work around them.  I expect the same situation is true no matter
    what sort of big event you are attending, but it made this year's
    experience much more pleasant.  As mentioned earlier, the additional
    two days made the Star Party a much more relaxed event.  The longer
    time span also gives better odds of clear weather for at least a
    couple of nights.  It also allows people to get one good night's rest
    after the long drive without feeling valuable observing time is being
    lost.

        Are we going to try it again next year?  Well, let us just say
    Harry and I have already started on a list of things to bring that we
    forgot this year!  The Winter Star Party is a first-class observing
    event in a tropical paradise.  It is well planned, well run, and well
    attended.  The WSP should not be missed if at all possible.  For those
    working people among us, one week's vacation spent attending this
    event is a week well spent.  It provides an ideal location from which
    to center a whole Florida Key vacation with access to Key West,
    Marathon, Islamorada, and other prime Key locations.  Great dining,
    some of the world's finest fishing and diving, and just general
    relaxing under palm trees are all easily available from the WSP site.
    However, they did sell out early this year and have instituted an
    early pre-registration for attendees at this year's event.  If you
    plan on attending next year, send in your registration early!

        Editor's Note:  Refer to Eric Greene's article "Winter Star
    Party 1991: One Traveler's Tale" in the February, 1992 issue of the
    EJASA for his impressions on that Star Party.

        About the Author -

        Eric Greene, ASA Observing Coordinator, is an active and avid
    amateur with a talent for astronomical education and an interest in
    presenting astronomy comprehensively to all levels of interest in
    the field.  Eric is the recipient of the ASA's 1990 Meritorious
    Service Award for his work as the Society's observing coordinator
    and for founding and maintaining the ASA electronic bulletin board
    service (BBS).

        Eric is the author of the following EJASA articles:

        "The Cosmic Distance Scale" - April 1990

        "Aperture Arrogance" - March 1991

        "In Search of the Horsehead Nebula" - April 1991

        "Winter Star Party 1991: One Traveler's Tale" - February 1992


      THE ELECTRONIC JOURNAL OF THE ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE ATLANTIC

                          July 1992 - Vol. 3, No. 12

                           Copyright (c) 1992 - ASA


------------------------------

Date: 16 Jul 92 09:35:10 GMT
From: Mike Zeiner <datmuc!mike>
Subject: Help in astro-physics needed!
Newsgroups: sci.astro,sci.space

Hello!

My brother is an (already finished) physic-student and, as he is having his
final exams in about a fortnight, he want's to clear some problems he is
not able to solve by himself without external help.

In the moment he is preparing himself in astro-physics and in this case
especially in the life-cycle of stars.

While reading about the above theme he found some remarks about a

    "local thermic balance"
    "lokales thermisches Gleichgewicht" in German (I translated it word by word)

which is explained nowhere in his books.
The only information he found was, that it's not quility in the corona
of stars.

Could anybody help please?
Any suggestions, names of books, ideas, etc. are welcome.

As I'm not subscribed to the newsgroups this messages is posted to
answer via e-mail please!

Thanks in advance
(Think I have to apologise for my english -- Sorry!!!)

          /\__       /\__   /\__   /\__ /\__   /\__\__\__
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           /          /      /      /      /    /       /

--
 -----------------------------------------| Mike Zeiner                       |
 | E-mail: [e-mail]             | DAT Informationssysteme GmbH      |
 | Phone:     +49 - (0)89 67901-119       | Gustav-Heinemann-Ring 212         |
 -----------------------------------------| D-8000 Muenchen 83                |

------------------------------

Date: 16 Jul 92 13:44:26 GMT
From: George William Herbert <[e-mail]>
Subject: Mars Direct: Any Independent Evaluation?
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Nick Szabo) writes:
>[random chaos deleted in interests of sci.* status 8-) ]
>When _you_ read the paper, you will find that Ares indeed depends on the
>Shuttle infrastructure, and they do indeed propose an artificial-gravity
>habitat (without provding a design).

Yes and yes (and no, sort of).

I've seen the habitat/crew module design somewhere.  It does exist at
moderate levels (I could work out the concept to further than Zubrin
did in what I saw, but it seemed viable as far as it went).  The module
gets its artificial gravity by staying tethered to its upper stage
(expended for TMI) and spinning with it as the counterweight.
It seemed pretty straightforward to me, though I'll readily agree it's
a concept in need of  a flight test before committing to it.

-george william herbert
[e-mail]  [e-mail]  [e-mail] until 28 aug

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 16 Jul 1992 12:56:08 GMT
From: "Allen W. Sherzer" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Space Transportation Infrastructure Costs (Was Re: Interstates)
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] writes:

>instead of fighting about manned vs unmanned we could jointly promote the
>development of a transportation infrastructure that will greatly lower
>the cost of manned space for their purposes and unmanned space for ever grander
>tours of ever farther places. I make a suggestion that those on here with
>expertise begin to post your ideas for lowering transportation costs.

Instead of more talk, let's *DO* something. A big push will be needed
to keep the SSRT program alive. It is a moderately risky program but
offers the best chance yet to make significant reductions in launch
costs. Let's quit talking and do something.

  Allen

--
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Allen W. Sherzer | "If they can put a man on the Moon, why can't they     |
|  [e-mail]     |  put a man on the Moon?                                |
+----------------------281 DAYS TO FIRST FLIGHT OF DCX----------------------+

------------------------------

Date: 16 Jul 1992 13:39:27 GMT
From: George William Herbert <[e-mail]>
Subject: Space Transportation Infrastructure Costs (Was Re: Interstates)
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Henry Spencer) writes:
>[...]
>I think the demand is going to have to come from the manned programs.
>Most of the unmanned people are very thoroughly locked into the mindset
>of never depending on new technology if they can avoid it.  (As witness
>Cassini being shrunk to fit on a Titan IV without the new SRBs... which
>have now been successfully tested.)  An unmanned program that seriously
>proposes things like the MarinerMk2 Neptune/Pluto concept is not going
>to bang fists on tables and demand better propulsion technology -- they've
>forgotten it's possible.

    If NASA were willing to look past the Shuttle, it would realize
that it could redesign the station in 15klb chunks (ugh), develop the
DC SSTO concept, and fly Freedom in it for less than it'll cost to
fly it on Shuttle as is.
    Anyone for shooting the Shuttle program office people
in the name of progress? 8-)

-george william herbert
[e-mail]  [e-mail]  [e-mail] until 28 aug



<inews fodder>

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 15 Jul 1992 19:12:52 GMT
From: "Michael K. Heney" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Theoretical problem
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (William Gallagher) writes:
>..
>For some writing I'm doing, I need to know whether it
>is possible with current technology to take a manned
>craft to anywhere interesting in space within a
>maximum outward journey time of two months.
>

The answer is "YES", if you discount launch from earth, as you specified
in your question.  Basically, what you'd need to do is assemble a LOT
of fuel and engines in orbit, launch from LEO as a multi-stage vehicle,
build up an incredible speed, and brake at the destination.  It's not
PRACTICAL; a ridiculous fraction of your LEO launch mass would be fuel;
but with enough fuel (ie, no mass constraints), you could reach Mars,
Venus, or Mercury in a matter of weeks.  Use a Mir or Spacelab module,
hook up HUGE O2 and H2 tanks for air/water/power (plus some solar panels);
strap on the boosters, and GO.  All well within current technology.
Can we actually DO it, by January?  No.  Not enough boosters in the pipe
to lift the mass needed to LEO.  Not enough money or will to actually go
and try it anyway.  It would also be risky - you'd lose people during the
LEO assembly phase.

If you were a bit more specific about what you were really trying to do,
someone might be able to give you a more useful answer.  The answer
"Yes, it's possible" really doesn't say much, unless you're solely
concerned with the physics of the problem.

Mike Heney               | Looking for Senior level technical | Reach for the
[e-mail]  | and administrative positions world | Stars!!!
Kensington, MD (near DC) | wide.  Call me.                    |

------------------------------

End of Space Digest Volume 15 : Issue 007
------------------------------