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Subject: SPACE Digest V10 #166

SPACE Digest                                     Volume 10 : Issue 166

Today's Topics:
         NASA Headline News for 10/19/89 (Forwarded)
      YOUR CHANCE TO MAKE A REAL CONTRIBUTION TO SPACE!
              Re: Long Duration Facility
        Re: Amroc Helium Pressurization system
                  Re: Flame
             Re: Plutonium in Earth orbit
       Magellan Status for week of 10/17/89 (Forwarded)
           Re: Try thinking before stinking
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: 19 Oct 89 18:10:19 GMT
From: trident.arc.nasa.gov![e-mail]  (Peter E. Yee)
Subject: NASA Headline News for 10/19/89 (Forwarded)

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Thursday, Oct. 19, 1989                      Audio:  202/755-1788
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This is NASA Headline News for Thursday, october 19th......

"galileo is on its way to another world," radioed Atlantis
Commander Don Williams to Mission Control.  At 7:15 last night,
about 6 1/2-hours after liftoff, the crew of the space shuttle
Atlantis successfully sent the spacecraft Galileo on its 6-year
journey to Jupiter.

About an hour later, Galileo's Inertial Upper Stage booster fired
twice...slowing the spacecraft's motion so that it would fall
toward the inner solar system and the first destination...Venus,
on its path to Jupiter.

galileo will fly near Venus in February 1990 and swing twice past
the Earth for gravity assists before going on to a December 1995
arrival at Jupiter.

Atlantis...after a flawless liftoff, has developed a problem with
a cooling system.  Mission Control said shortly after achieving
orbit, the flash evaporator system automatically switched from
its normal low cooling mode using the topper subsystem to the
high load subsystem.  The flash evaporator system switched over
normally to the payload bay radiators when the payload bay doors
were opened, in preparation for deployment of Galileo.  Mission
controllers and the crew will continue to monitor the system.

Meanwhile, during the remaining portion of the flight, the crew
plans to conduct a variety of scientific experiments...and also
use a high-quality Imax movie camera for a documentary for the
National Air and Space Museum.

Landing is currently scheduled for Monday at Edwards Air Force
Base, California.







                         ***********








-----------------------------------------------------------------
                    STS-34 television coverage

NASA Select television will provide near continuous coverage of
the entire STS-34 mission, including in flight crew activities
and change of shift status briefings from Mission Control in
Houston.  Landing is scheduled for Monday afternoon.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon,
Eastern time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC) NASA
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

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

Date: 18 Oct 89 03:27:32 GMT
From: [e-mail]  (Eric William Tilenius)
Subject: YOUR CHANCE TO MAKE A REAL CONTRIBUTION TO SPACE!

AN OPEN LETTER FROM...
                            SPACE STUDIES INSTITUTE
                                 P.O. Box 82
                          Princeton, New Jersey 08542
                               [phone]

Dear Space Enthusiast,

     On June 15, 1989, the Space Studies Institute released a Request for
Proposals for the design of a spacecraft to orbit the Moon and geochemically
map the entire surface from a polar orbit.

     This space probe will be the first private sector space exploration
mission.  SSI first recommended a lunar polar probe mission in 1985 to the
President's National Commission on Space.  Since that time, we have gained
the support of leaders in the aerospace, political, and private sectors.
We also see a shift from defense-related space activity to commercial
space activity, and the Administration is urging for private sector
initiatives and a permanent presence in space.

     The first phase of this mission consists of the review of the Design
Study Proposals, the award of the contract for the Design Study, development
of the mission plan, and establishment of the project management team.  SSI is
currently hiring a Project Manager and is reviewing the proposals.  The
contract will be awarded on December 15, 1989 and work will commence on
January 15, 1990.  The completion of the Study will be on or before July 1,
1990.

     The budget for the first phase of work is $250,000.  It will be
divided as follows:  Design study, $100,000;  Project Management, $75,000;
and Project Funding Study and Initial Phase Fundraising, $50,000.

     SSI is seeking funding from the Corporate and Private sectors.  SSI
Members have pledged $25,000 this quarter.  Corporate and Private donations
will fund the remainder of this first phase.  Already, there has been
significant interest in the media for this mission.

     SSI is seeking support for this important study.  In return for a
donation of $25 or more, you will receive updates on the Lunar Polar
Probe project.

     For a donation of $100 or more to this groundbreaking work, you will
received a signed copy of Dr. Gerard K. O'Neill's book THE HIGH FRONTIER.

     The Space Studies Institute (SSI) was founded in 1977 by Dr. Gerard K.
O'Neill, Professor Emeritus of Physics at Princeton University.  SSI is
a private, non-profit research organization whose major purpose is to
open the High Frontier of space.

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

____  YES!  I want to help make the dream of space colonies and space
manufacturing a reality!  Count on me as a Sustaining Member of the
Space Studies Institute.  To further the Institute's critical research
work here is my tax-deductible gift of:

_____ $100       _____ $75     _____ $50     _____ $25     _____ $15 (student)

_____ In addition, a matching gift will be made by: ________________ (company)

NAME:     __________________________________________________________

ADDRESS:  __________________________________________________________

CITY, STATE, ZIP:  _________________________________________________

PHONE:  Home: _______________________   Work: ______________________

Please make checks payable to Space Studies Institute and mail to:

                         Space Studies Institute
                         P.O. Box 82
                         Princeton, NJ  08542

For your membership donation, you will receive the Institute's excellent
bi-monthly newsletter UPDATE, an SSI membership decal and membership card.

Help open the High Frontier of space -- Join the Space Studies Institute today!

- ERIC -

Eric W. Tilenius     | Princeton Planetary Soc. | [e-mail]
523 Laughlin Hall    | 315 West College         | [e-mail]
Princeton University | Princeton University     | rutgers!pucc.bitnet!ewtileni
Princeton, NJ  08544 | Princeton, NJ  08544     | princeton!pucc!ewtileni
609-734-7677         | 609-734-7677             | COMPUSERVE:  70346,16

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

Date: 18 Oct 89 05:52:47 GMT
From: [e-mail]  (David Palmer)
Subject: Re: Long Duration Facility

In article <[e-mail]> I write:
>I read in the news (L.A. Times, 10/16/89) that the Long Duration Exposure
>Facility (LDEF) is scheduled to re-enter in late November...

Sorry, sorry, sorry.  The satellite that is expected to re-enter is
the solar maximum mission (SMM), a very productive instrument which
should have been reboosted  (no money, that's why.)

I read solar max, and my mind  thought: reentering sat == LDEF.  Especially
since the paper said that three 120 lb pieces will survive reentry.
(This month's weather: Continued cloudiness, some shaking in the Bay area,
and chance of scattered satellite).

Sorry again for the posting (which I have cancelled).

        David Palmer
        [e-mail]
        ...rutgers!cit-vax!tybalt.caltech.edu!palmer
    "Direct quotes don't have to be exact, or even accurate.  Truth is as
    irrelevant to a newspaper as it is to a court of law"
    - Judge Alarcon, 9th circuit court of appeals (paraphrased)

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

Date: 18 Oct 89 16:13:38 GMT
From: mailrus!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!utgpu!utzoo![e-mail]  (Henry Spencer)
Subject: Re: Amroc Helium Pressurization system

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (douglas.h.price,45261,ih,6x203,312 979 3664) writes:
>It's not exactly the same.  A fully fueled liquid rocket on the pad
>is a bomb, and it gets treated as such.  Liquid rockets normally are fueled
>up several hours before launch.  It is apparently regular practice at the
>AMROC test stand to work on the motor directy, even when the LOX tank for
>the test (about 30 feet away) is fully loaded...

I'll bet they don't work on the LOX tank when it's loaded, though.  Note
the difference between a rocket and a test stand.
--
A bit of tolerance is worth a  |     Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology
megabyte of flaming.           | uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry [e-mail]

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

Date: Wed, 4 Oct 89 20:07:26 PDT
From: mordor!lll-tis!oodis01!riacs!rutgers!pnet01.cts.com![e-mail] (Jim Bowery)
To: ucsd!nosc!crash![e-mail]
Subject: Re: Flame

Andy Edeburn writes:
>Alright, let's get a few things straight out there.
>The TITAN has a much a higher risk factor than the shuttle. And
The people who gave the shuttle a 1 in 33 disaster rating while
NASA was giving it a 1 in 100,000 disaster rating are now giving
the TITAN a LOWER risk factor than the shuttle:  The Air Force.

>realistically, RTG's emit _less_ radiation than the average color TV set
Unless their containers are ruptured, as they were during NASA
simulations of explosions.  And while this isn't the first RTG, it
is the largest.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jim Bowery      PHONE: [phone]     BE A SPACE ACTIVIST
PO Box 1981            GET OFF THE NET AND SET UP AN APPOINTMENT WITH YOUR
La Jolla, CA 92038                         CONGRESSMAN!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
UUCP: {cbosgd, hplabs!hp-sdd, sdcsvax, nosc}!crash!pnet01!jim
ARPA: crash!pnet01![e-mail]
INET: [e-mail]

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

Date: 17 Oct 89 22:34:29 GMT
From: aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu![e-mail]  (Steve Masticola)
Subject: Re: Plutonium in Earth orbit

Thouis Jones writes:

] ]My point (and I had hoped I wouldn't need to spell it out in words of
] ]<=2 syllables) is that there is a difference between a prudent risk
] ]and a stupid gamble. Launching a hazardous payload that has a small
] ]chance of returning to Earth is a prudent risk. Launching an RTG which
] ]_will_ re-enter uncontrolled is a stupid gamble.

]     And my point is that your definitions of prudent risk and stupid
] gamble are neither compatible with mine nor necessarily right.

"Not yours and not necessarily right?" I am blinded by the sheer force
of fact and logic behind your argument. Keep working, and perhaps
someday you'll find yourself capable of making a statement with a
nonzero semantic content.

] Just because you have a terrible fear of radiation falling out of the sky
] on you doesn't mean that we should stop using it in RTG's.  If it
] bothers you that much why don't you move to another planet :-)

You're boring me, Thouis. Any sane person _is_ afraid of what can kill
him and cannot be controlled. Any intelligent person will accept some
risk if the potential reward is high enough. Anyone who's both sane
and intelligent will know the difference, and will not accept stupid
chances for low gains.

Is it worth losing your legs to beat a stop light? Is it worth
incinerating 800 people to save $2 per Pinto? Is it worth killing some
good folks to avoid having to launch solar arrays? Apparently you
think so, and don't seem inclined to factor ethics into your thinking.
Stick to noncritical applications, Thouis.

I'll continue to argue this with someone who is capable of arguing
intelligently. That ain't you, Thouis.


- Steve ([e-mail])

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

Date: 19 Oct 89 03:39:48 GMT
From: trident.arc.nasa.gov![e-mail]  (Peter E. Yee)
Subject: Magellan Status for week of 10/17/89 (Forwarded)


                     MAGELLAN WEEKLY STATUS
                          Oct. 17, 1989


     This is the weekly Magellan status report. Monday, Oct. 16,
the Magellan spacecraft is 67,998,310 miles from Earth. Having
passed through perihelion on Oct. 7, the spacecraft is now
slowing and is traveling at 85,768 miles per hour relative to
the sun. The one-way light time is 6 minutes and 5 seconds.

     During perihelion, its closest approach to the sun, Magellan
experienced some manageable performance degradation to the power
panels due to intense solar flare activity, the highest in
decades. Despite this unpredicted environment, the spacecraft has
experienced no permanent failures and remains healthy as it
begins its climb away from the sun back to the vicinity of Earth
orbit.

     Six of the eight star calibrations performed during the
reporting period were fully successful. One had a spurious
interrupt and the other was missed due to accumulated errors
following the change in gyro channels.

     On Oct. 6, the spacecraft was maneuvered to point the High-
Gain Antenna to Earth to playback star calibration data from
Data Management System (DMS) B. But accumulated gyro drift error
caused the antenna to point 1.8 degrees off target and the Deep
Space Network could not lock on to the telemetry. Plans are being
made to replay the data during the Cruise 14 load. The mission
office also switched to backup gyro channels. The drift was
corrected and subsequent star calibrations were successful.

     The problem was thought to be vibration caused by increased
viscosity of motor shaft bearing lubricant resulting from lower
temperatures, and the problem is believed to be unique to one
motor. Remedies are being considered.

     The Cruise 13 command load was uplinked Oct. 14. Cruise 14
will be uplinked Nov. 3 and the stored sequence will begin on
Nov. 6.


     SPACECRAFT
     Distance from Earth (mi)             67,998,310

     Velocity Geocentric                  59,421 mph
              Heliocentric                85,768 mph

     One-way light time                   6 mins, 5 secs

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

Date: 17 Oct 89 15:29:35 GMT
From: swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!ginosko!aplcen!stda.jhuapl.edu![e-mail]  (Jim Meritt)
Subject: Re: Try thinking before stinking

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Henry Spencer) writes:
}In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Christopher John Rapier) writes:
}>... Okay lets say, god forbid, the shuttle explodes again...
}
}Unless it manages to explode in a much more violent fashion than last time,
}Galileo -- like the TDRS aboard Challenger -- ends up on the sea bottom
}more or less intact, and the RTGs can be fished out and re-used if anyone
}wants them.  (Galileo, alas, won't be worth the trouble of fishing out.)
}It has been done before; there are RTGs in orbit that got there on their
}second try.
}
}>Lets say it it smashes into the ocean and, say, 5% of
}>the packing fails and 2 pounds of plutonium escape. Can any of you give
}>more than a hapazard guess as to what effect that will happen to the
}>environment in that area? ...
}
}People are warned not to eat fish from that area for a while.  Period.
}Nuclear weapons, and even whole nuclear submarines, have been lost at sea
}without dire consequences.
}
}>... What if something worse happens? Like the
}>shuttle explodes at around 3 miles? ...
}
}Many pounds of plutonium were being released into the atmosphere every year
}during the heyday of nuclear testing in the late 50s.  It wasn't exactly
}healthy, but we're still around.  Plutonium is not nice stuff, but the
}dangers are exaggerated.

Opinion:  Absolutely no noticable effect.  I believe that the things you
mention are much less harmful than one coming almost straight down at
25,000 miles per hour.  Which one has.  Nobody noticed.

Remember Apollo 13?


"In these matters the only certainty is that nothing is certain"
                    - Pliny the Elder
These were the opinions of :
[e-mail]  - or - [e-mail]  - or - meritt%aplvm.BITNET

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

End of SPACE Digest V10 #166
*******************