Space & Astronomy/Space and Astronomy (October 1993).iso/mac/TEXT_ZIP/spacedig/V12_5/V12_585.ZIP/V12_585

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Subject: SPACE Digest V12 #585

SPACE Digest                                     Volume 12 : Issue 585

Today's Topics:
           Re: Big bang discovered 1400 years ago ?
            space news from Sept 24 AW&ST
                 SEDS
              Galileo Update - 11/20/90
               Calculating Tidal Force
              Voyager Update - 11/21/90
        Re: STS 38 Observation Reports -- red?
              Re: Save our Shuttle data?
               Re: New Shuttle Engines
             Re: The Space Plane
             Pioneer 11 Update - 11/16/90
            Re: Magellan Update - 11/12/90

Administrivia:

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

Date: 19 Nov 90 04:27:10 GMT
From: convex!convex.convex.com![e-mail]  (Richard A. Schumacher)
Subject: Re: Big bang discovered 1400 years ago ?

Why, he asked rhetorically, does someone try to justify or reconcile
their faith with science? As an attempt at proselytizing, it looks
silly, and is usually taken up by those who are troubled by their own
doubts.

In <[e-mail]> [e-mail] writes:
>  'The heaven, We have built it with power, Verily We are expanding it.'
>  (Verse 47 of Surah 51).

The writer of the verse conceived of god continually adding on to the
universe as one would add on to a house, and had no inkling of the Hubble
expansion. (Similarly, if I write "my business is expanding", no one
should think I mean that the bathroom ceilings are gradually getting
farther from the floors! Except, perhaps, misguided apologists for the
Book of Richard, a thousand years hence...)

>  "O assembly of Jinns and Men, if you can penetrate regions of the
>  heavens and the earth, then penetrate them! You shall not penetrate
>  them, except with a Power." (Surah 55, The Beneficent, verse 33.)

In other words, "these things can't be done, except with My help". In what
possible way is a god's petty (and inaccurate) taunt a prediction of space
travel?

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

Date: 21 Nov 90 04:53:35 GMT
From: van-bc!ubc-cs!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!utgpu!utzoo![e-mail]  (Henry Spencer)
Subject: space news from Sept 24 AW&ST

NASA study underway on possible countermeasures for the fluid loss that
affects all astronauts in early exposure to free fall.  Most astronauts
lose 3kg or so of water in the first few days, and get it all back within
a similar time after return to Earth.  It is not clear whether this is a
normal and healthy response to free fall, or cause for concern.

Agenzia Spaciale Italiana contracts with General Dynamics for the launch
of the Italy/Netherlands X-ray astronomy satellite, project currently
underway.

Astro mission goes on hold once again due to hydrogen leaks.  Morale is
hurting at KSC.  The problem is definitely not considered a matter of
aging of equipment; the most likely cause is an elaborate inspection
done early this year after traces of corundum/calcite abrasive were found
in Columbia's filters after the LDEF retrieval mission.  The abrasive was
almost certainly left from cleaning and polishing operations done as part
of the reactivation of Mobile Launch Platform 3, first used for the LDEF
mission.  A lot of Columbia's plumbing was opened up to inspect for
abrasive contamination and clean suspect areas, and 50-100 connections
in the hydrogen system in particular had to be opened and then reclosed.
One botched one has already been found.

There is some feeling among the contractors that NASA is being far too
conservative about hydrogen levels:  the old limit was 300ppm, Crippen
raised it to 1000ppm, and the Sept 17 launch scrubbed at 4000ppm... but
10,000ppm is considered safe and hydrogen is not flammable until about
40,000ppm.

NASA studies, in a small way, the idea of building a small winged spacecraft
as a crew ferry and lifeboat for the space station.  It generally resembles
the small Soviet spaceplane flown in four unmanned tests in the 1980s, which
in turn resembles earlier NASA experimental lifting-body designs.  The new
design is called the HL-20; a university-built mockup was unveiled.  It
would weigh about 24klbs and its wings could fold to fit in the shuttle
payload bay.  It could also go up on an expendable, although it is not
clear whether a new one would have to be developed:  only Titan IV is big
enough, and NASA is now unenthusiastic about manned launches using solid
boosters.  The HL-20 is primarily a crew carrier, although it could carry
perhaps 500kg of urgent cargo if it flew with a crew of two.  Design
mission length is three days or less.  Total spending on the concept so
far has been $3M over 6-7 years.

Magellan starts radar mapping after recovery from its troubles.

Intospace (a German private venture) launches another materials experiment
on a Soviet Resurs-F spacecraft; the Casimir payload is looking at growth
of zeolite crystals in microgravity.  Intospace also thinks it now knows
what went wrong with its Cosima protein-crystal experiment last May:  some
changes were made to the experiment after two earlier flights, and revised
seals leaked before or during launch.  Intospace plans to re-fly Cosima
next year.  [Note the message here:  if you fly on Soviet spacecraft, you
can get several debugging flights done before your US counterparts can
fly their experiments even once.]

Aerospatiale-led consortium wins the contract for Turkey's Turksat project.

Picture of Ulysses being installed in Discovery.  [Actually, if I'm not
mistaken, the picture shows part of the IUS, with Ulysses not visible.]
--
"I don't *want* to be normal!"         | Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology
"Not to worry."                        |  [e-mail]   utzoo!henry

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

Date: 20 Nov 90 01:24:40 GMT
From: wuarchive!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!ccut!wnoc-tyo-news!astemgw!choshi!frf![e-mail]  (Raymond Tang)
Subject: SEDS

Can anyone out there give me the SEDS email address.
The address they gave me "LISTSERV@TAMVM1" does't work from
where I am, I remember there is a longer address name which
I sent my original request but I can't remember what it was exactly.
Please email me the info,
Thanks in advance,

Ray
--

            >>>>>>    Ray Tang
                  [e-mail] <-email

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

Date: 20 Nov 90 21:45:11 GMT
From: csus.edu!wuarchive!sdd.hp.com!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov![e-mail]  (Ron Baalke)
Subject: Galileo Update - 11/20/90


                        GALILEO STATUS REPORT
                          November 20, 1990

     Yesterday, Venus data on tracks 1 and 2 of the Galileo spacecraft's tape
recorder was successfully returned via stored sequence controlled playback.
Today, Venus data on tracks 1 and 3 will be playedback; data playback is
presently in process.  Tomorrow, the final playback of Venus data on tracks
2 and 3 is scheduled.  The NIMS (Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer) instrument
will be powered on tomorrow via stored sequence control.
      ___    _____     ___
     /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|
     | | | |  __ \ /| | | |      Ron Baalke         | [e-mail]
  ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |___   Jet Propulsion Lab | [e-mail]
 /___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /|  M/S 301-355        |
 |_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/   Pasadena, CA 91109 |

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

Date: 20 Nov 90 23:09:09 GMT
From: mnemosyne.cs.du.edu!isis![e-mail]  (Eric Bergman-Terrell)
Subject: Calculating Tidal Force



I would like to be able to calculate the combined gravitational forces of
the Sun and Moon on the Earth...  I already have a program that calculates
the following:

Earth-Sun Distance
Earth-Moon Distance
Moon Illuminated Fraction
Position of Sun in a variety of coordinates
Position of Moon in a variety of coordinates
etc.

I have found a method that's almost good enough in  Agnes Acker and Carlos
Jaschek's "Astronomical Methods and Calculations", published by John Wiley
& Sons.  However this method only works for (if memory serves) full moon
and/or new moon.

I want to calculate the combined force for any date & time.

Pointers to the relevant books would be greatly appreciated!

Eric Bergman-Terrell

[e-mail]

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

Date: 21 Nov 90 22:27:56 GMT
From: swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov![e-mail]  (Ron Baalke)
Subject: Voyager Update - 11/21/90


                        VOYAGER STATUS REPORT
                          November 21, 1990

                              Voyager 1

     The Voyager 1 spacecraft collected routine UVS (Ultraviolet Spectrometer)
data on sources HD 164284 and HD 193322.  On November 13, a frame of PWS
(Plasma Wave) data was recorded on the DTR (Digital Tape Recorder) for
future playback.

     On November 14, a TLC (Tracking Loop Capacitor) test was performed on the
spacecraft by the 70 meter antenna in Spain.  A science calibration for the
PLS (Plasma), MAG (Magnetometer), and LECP (Low Energy Charged Particles)
instruments was also executed on the spacecraft; however, no DSN (Deep Space
Network) station was available to receive the downlink of the calibration
sequence.


                              Voyager 2

     The Voyager 2 spacecraft collected routine UVS data on source Feige 7.
On November 13, a frame of PWS data was recorded on the DTR for future
playback.

     On November 14, an entire 34 meter Australia tracking pass was cancelled
due to a complex wide timing failure; the Voyager Project was not notified of
the cancellation so that arrangements could be made to modify the remaining
coverage.  This resulted in a twenty-eight hour and twenty-five minute gap in
Voyager 2 downlink coverage.  Violation of the twenty-four maximum period of
no coverage requirement could have been avoided by DSS (Deep Space Station)
rescheduling.

     The PLS, MAG, CRS (Cosmic Ray), and LECP instruments are measuring and
recording the heliospheric medium and looking for signs of the terminal
barrier of the heliopause.  The PLS instrument is seeing a solar wind speed
average of 450 kilometers/second with a particle density of about 0.013/cm3.
The MAG instrument is reading a magnetic field strength of about 3/4 gamma on
Voyager 2 and 1 1/3 gamma on Voyager 1.  The CRS and LECP instruments continue
to experience low background counts.


            CONSUMABLE STATUS AS OF 11/21/90

P R O P E L L A N T    S T A T U S           P O W E R

           Consumption
           One Week    Propellant Remaining Output Margin

Spacecraft   (Gm)            (Kg)            Watts  Watts

 Voyager 1     5         36.3 + 2.0           367    55
 Voyager 2     6         39.3 + 2.0           370    61

      ___    _____     ___
     /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|
     | | | |  __ \ /| | | |      Ron Baalke         | [e-mail]
  ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |___   Jet Propulsion Lab | [e-mail]
 /___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /|  M/S 301-355        |
 |_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/   Pasadena, CA 91109 |

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

Date: 18 Nov 90 20:57:22 GMT
From: van-bc!rsoft!mindlink![e-mail]  (Bruce Dunn)
Subject: Re: STS 38 Observation Reports -- red?


     Another possibility for the apparent red color of satellites in some cases
might be that the predominant color of deployed flexible solar arrays seems to
be a golden yellow color.  I presume that this is a result of the base support
material (kapton?).  For any satellite requiring a lot of power, the area of
deployed wings or panels of cells is likely to be a lot higher than the area of
the body of the satellite.  By the nature of their use, panels will be oriented
with their flat surface directly facing the sun, leading to the reflections
from the panel dominating the satellite reflections at certain
sun-observer-satellite angles.  The shuttle might appear reddish if for any
reason it was flying in close proximity to a satellite with deployed panels,
and the shuttle was oriented with the black bottom towards the observer.
--
Bruce Dunn   Vancouver, Canada    [e-mail]

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

Date: 18 Nov 90 21:12:14 GMT
From: van-bc!rsoft!mindlink![e-mail]  (Bruce Dunn)
Subject: Re: Save our Shuttle data?

> [e-mail] (Doug Mohney) writes:
>
> [regarding the difficulties in reviving the F1 LOX/Hydrocarbon engine]
>
> Pretty bizarre to think we've come 20 years, with CAD/CAE and materials
> engineering and we can't build something which was put together in the '60s.
> Kinda scary.


     However, there are other examples of the difficulties in replicating old
technology.  Old does not mean non-sophisticated.  We are still struggling to
reproduce the playing qualities of centuries-old violins.  On an even more
basic level, all the CAD/CAE and materials engineering in the world will not
help you in reproducing a flint axehead.  To duplicate something fashioned
100,000 years ago, the most direct route is to be taught by someone who knows
the tricks of flint knapping.  There is often a lot more art in engineering
than the textbooks would indicate.
--
Bruce Dunn   Vancouver, Canada    [e-mail]

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

Date: 19 Nov 90 13:38:08 GMT
From: att!cbnews![e-mail]  (Neil A. Kirby)
Subject: Re: New Shuttle Engines

In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (Dave Hall (Sverdrup)) writes:
>
> 2) F-1 production test facilities were located in the San Fernando valley
> (turbopumps at Rocketdyne/Santa Susana) and Edwards AFB (full-up
> engine tests). These
> facilities are way past the inactive stage - they have been either torn
> down or become completely derelict. You are talking 100's of millions of
> dollars (IMHO) to refurbish them.

Out of curiousity, would the test area at Stennis Space Center (in
Mississippi) be able to do some of the testing?  Stennis tests every SSME,
and the test stands for the Saturn V stack elements are still there.

Neil Kirby
...att!archie!nak

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

Date: 19 Nov 90 16:17:52 GMT
From: usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!ub!ubvmsd.cc.buffalo.edu![e-mail]  (Craig L Cole)
Subject: Re: The Space Plane

In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (John Prentice) writes...
>In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] writes:
>>
>>    I was curious if anyone out there knew anything about a possible space
>>plane. Some magazines mentioned a experimental high altitude "space plane" that
>>could be used to ferry cargo into low earth orbit and could be used commercialy
>>to fly passengers from say...New York to Sydney in five hours. I believe it was
>>called the "X-87" or something like that. Does anyone know what I'm talking
>>about??
>
>Are you talking about the National Aerospace Plane?  It would fit this
>description, although it is a military project and (to my knowledge) there

I'm fairly certain NASP is a commercial venture. What I'm not sure of
is, is NASP the same as the X-29? Maybe the X-29 is the military vehicle
you're talking about.

Anyway, from what I've heard, NASP is coming along pretty well. I think
it was just posted recently that the contractors of NASP all got
together to decide on a final fuselage shape. They also said materials
development (extremely heat resistant, etc.) was also going well.

I'd love to hear more about the the progress of NASP myself.

Craig Cole
[e-mail]
[e-mail]

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

Date: 21 Nov 90 00:56:16 GMT
From: snorkelwacker.mit.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov![e-mail]  (Ron Baalke)
Subject: Pioneer 11 Update - 11/16/90


                      PIONEER 11 STATUS REPORT
                         November 16, 1990

     Attempts to pulse the receiver switch assembly on November 9 were
unsuccessful.  It appears that the stored command sequence, with 0 second
time delays between commands, did not execute.  On November 16, the
sequence will be tried again with 1 second delays.
      ___    _____     ___
     /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|
     | | | |  __ \ /| | | |      Ron Baalke         | [e-mail]
  ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |___   Jet Propulsion Lab | [e-mail]
 /___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /|  M/S 301-355        |
 |_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/   Pasadena, CA 91109 |

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

Date: 18 Nov 90 09:37:00 GMT
From: usc!cs.utexas.edu!evax!utacfd!merch!ijcr![e-mail]  (Darin Arrick)
Subject: Re: Magellan Update - 11/12/90


 You mentioned that Congress must approve Magellan's extended mission.
Why is this?

Darin Arrick, KB5KHR
--- QuickBBS 2.66 (Reg)
 * Origin: I.J.C.R. BBS & B'nai No'ach [Ft.Worth, Texas] (1:130/49)

--
Darin Arrick - via Fidonet node 1:130/49
UUCP: ...!merch!ijcr!Darin.Arrick
INTERNET: [e-mail]

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

End of SPACE Digest V12 #585
*******************