Space & Astronomy/Space and Astronomy (October 1993).iso/mac/TEXT_ZIP/spacedig/V15_1/V15NO112.ZIP/V15NO112

Internet Message Format | 1993-07-13 | 33KB

Date: Sat, 15 Aug 92 05:01:38
From: Space Digest maintainer <[e-mail]>
Reply-To: [e-mail]
Subject: Space Digest V15 #112
To: Space Digest Readers
Precedence: bulk


Space Digest                Sat, 15 Aug 92       Volume 15 : Issue 112

Today's Topics:
            BuckyStalks (was Re: Beanstalks in Nevada Sky)
                          Challenger records
         CONSCIOUSNESS AND SCIENCE DISCUSSION GROUP (3 msgs)
          Energya and Freedom and Soyuz ACRV and... (2 msgs)
                      Galileo Update - 08/14/92
                     He3 Power Source references
           Info on World Space Congress and related events
                    Mars Observer Science Briefing
                               Parsecs?
         Space Science programming positions at U.C. Berkeley
                      Watching a Shuttle launch

    Welcome to the Space Digest!!  Please send your messages to
    "[e-mail]", and (un)subscription requests of the form
    "Subscribe Space <your name>" to one of these addresses: listserv@uga
    (BITNET), rice::boyle (SPAN/NSInet), utadnx::utspan::rice::boyle
    (THENET), or [e-mail] (Internet).
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: 14 Aug 92 14:18:08 GMT
From: "Robert G. Munck" <[e-mail]>
Subject: BuckyStalks (was Re: Beanstalks in Nevada Sky)
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]>,
[e-mail] (Hans Moravec) writes:

>The latest and greatest version of carbon fiber is Buckytubes! ...
>I've read lengths of about a centimeter have been produced,

Wow, where'd you see that??  Any indication of strength?  Electricial
resistance? (for reasons I don't understand, articles about Buckyballs
and -tubes always mention superconductivity.)

How about bendability?  It seems to me that one step toward a macro
structure could be "Buckyrings" in which Buckytubes are bent into a
circle and joined at the ends (emitting Buckyballs), but also woven
together like chain mail to form sheets.  The sheets could then be
formed into tubes, the tubes bent into rings, etc. etc.

I have a bit of a personal interest; I met Bucky in 1979 and we
discussed the possibility of carbon atoms forming geodesic structures.
I don't think we called them "Buckyballs" then, but when I heard the
term a year or so ago, I knew immediately that that was what they were.

Suppose we came up with a (Buckytube-based) material strong enough to
make an Earth beanstalk, and it could be manufactured in mega-kilo lots
for pennies per kilo.  How could we use it to get into space?  Is there
any small-scale, bootstrapping approach that avoids involvement with
Big Dump Organizations like NASA and the US Govt.?

OK, suppose we had that material AND Cold Fusion producing kilowatts
per cc. ...

--
Bob Munck

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

Date: Thu, 13 Aug 92  09:38:59 EDT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: Challenger records

August 13, 1992

Dear Mr. Woods:

I am writing to supplement information posted on the SCI.SPACE
newsgroup on August 11, 1992 regarding the Rogers Commission
report.  The records of the the Presidential Commission on the
Space Shuttle Challenger Accident, chaired by former Secretary of
State William P. Rogers in 1986 were transferred to the National
Archives and Records Administration for permanent preservation,
following the release of the Commission's final report.  The
records have been accessioned in Record Group 220: Records of
Temporary Committees, Commissions, and Boards, and are available
to the public.

Paper and microfilm records from the Challenger (Rogers)
Commission are in the custody of the National Archives, Civil
Reference Branch, Textual Reference Division (NNRC, (202) 501-

5395); electronic records are in the Center for Electronic
Records (NSXA); and video and audio tapes are in the custody of
the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch of the Special
Archives Division (NNSM, [phone]).

with respect to the machine readable (electronic) records, seven
public use text files are available.  This series contains
transcripts of some hearings, meetings, and interviews, text
files of selected affadavits, digests, and reports; and the
INQUIRE index to the Commission's materials.   These files all
fit on one 9-track magnetic tape (6250 bpi) and are available for
$90, or on one 18-track 3480-class tape cartridge (37,781 bpi)
for $80.75, with default technical specifications (EBCDIC,
standard label, default block size).

A handout describing the Commission and its records is available
from the Center for Electronic Records (NSXA), National Archives,
Washington, DC 20408, phone [phone].  We would be happy to
send all interested parties a copy of this information; please
providing your snail mail address.

Sincerely,

Ted Hull
Center for Electronic Records
National Archives
[e-mail]
[e-mail]

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 02:35:58 GMT
From: "David C. Chorlian" <[e-mail]>
Subject: CONSCIOUSNESS AND SCIENCE DISCUSSION GROUP
Newsgroups: soc.culture.indian,soc.college,talk.religion.misc,talk.origins,sci.math,sci.chem,sci.misc,sci.bio.technology,sci.physics,sci.space

In <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Cameron Randale Bass) writes:


>     Then briefly tell me how this is reflected in, say, the development
>     of Maxwell's equations in a way that it was not reflected in,
>     say, the development of Weber's equations or Gauss's law.

>     Be brief.

Wrong subject of investigation.
    The appropriate one would compare British science
and German science, attempting to correlate the relative importance
of electromagnetic investigation with comparable fields of physics
and chemistry, preferred methods of inquiry, methods of transmission
of knowledge, etc. with patterns of social and economic development.
Perhaps some interesting aspect of Maxwell's development of
electromagnetic theory would emerge, but I rather think the
more interesting figure is Faraday--it's the formative figures
who show the influence of the context most significantly.

>                               dale bass
>--
>C. R. Bass                                           [e-mail]
>Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
>University of Virginia
>Charlottesville, Virginia                            [phone]

David B. Chorlian
Neurodynamics Lab   SUNY/HSCB

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 17:30:52 GMT
From: Cameron Randale Bass <[e-mail]>
Subject: CONSCIOUSNESS AND SCIENCE DISCUSSION GROUP
Newsgroups: soc.culture.indian,soc.college,talk.religion.misc,talk.origins,sci.math,sci.chem,sci.misc,sci.bio.technology,sci.physics,sci.space

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (David C. Chorlian) writes:
>In <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Cameron Randale Bass) writes:
>
>
>>     Then briefly tell me how this is reflected in, say, the development
>>     of Maxwell's equations in a way that it was not reflected in,
>>     say, the development of Weber's equations or Gauss's law.
>
>>     Be brief.
>
>Wrong subject of investigation.
>    The appropriate one would compare British science
>and German science, attempting to correlate the relative importance
>of electromagnetic investigation with comparable fields of physics
>and chemistry, preferred methods of inquiry, methods of transmission
>of knowledge, etc. with patterns of social and economic development.
>Perhaps some interesting aspect of Maxwell's development of
>electromagnetic theory would emerge, but I rather think the
>more interesting figure is Faraday--it's the formative figures
>who show the influence of the context most significantly.

    Okay.  Compare 'British' and 'German' science and the 'great
    currents' that required them to be the way they were (Hint: I think
    you'd have an easier time with Maxwell than Faraday).

    Be brief.

                             dale bass
--
C. R. Bass                                           [e-mail]
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia                            [phone]

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 19:06:24 GMT
From: Veeramany Sthanumurthy <[e-mail]>
Subject: CONSCIOUSNESS AND SCIENCE DISCUSSION GROUP
Newsgroups: soc.college,talk.religion.misc,talk.origins,sci.math,sci.chem,sci.misc,sci.bio.technology,sci.physics,sci.space

[Just a humble request. Could you edit the newsgroups line and remove
soc.culture.indian? I realize that the most original of original
contributors to this thread probably put it there - but it ceased
to be relevant a while ago. Flames are welcome: via email please..
I apologize to t.r.m,t.o and whatever other newsgroups are lurking
beyond my 80-column screen people reading this series of articles
for the nth time .. ]

Or better still follow-up to this article ...

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Cameron Randale Bass) writes:
>In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (David C. Chorlian) writes:
>>In <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Cameron Randale Bass) writes:
>>
>>
>>>     Then briefly tell me how this is reflected in, say, the development
>>>     of Maxwell's equations in a way that it was not reflected in,
>>>     say, the development of Weber's equations or Gauss's law.
>>
>>>     Be brief.
>>
>>Wrong subject of investigation.
>>    The appropriate one would compare British science
>>and German science, attempting to correlate the relative importance
>>of electromagnetic investigation with comparable fields of physics
>>and chemistry, preferred methods of inquiry, methods of transmission
>>of knowledge, etc. with patterns of social and economic development.
>>Perhaps some interesting aspect of Maxwell's development of
>>electromagnetic theory would emerge, but I rather think the
>>more interesting figure is Faraday--it's the formative figures
>>who show the influence of the context most significantly.
>
>    Okay.  Compare 'British' and 'German' science and the 'great
>    currents' that required them to be the way they were (Hint: I think
>    you'd have an easier time with Maxwell than Faraday).
>
>    Be brief.
>
>                             dale bass
>--
>C. R. Bass                                           [e-mail]
>Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
>University of Virginia
>Charlottesville, Virginia                            [phone]


Be brief. By all means. Be relevant in newsgroups. Be kind.
Be gentle. While flaming, that is ..

Sthan.
--
   The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the University of
     North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Campus Office for Information
        Technology, or the Experimental Bulletin Board Service.
           internet:  bbs.oit.unc.edu or 152.2.22.80

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 17:38:56 GMT
From: "Allen W. Sherzer" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Energya and Freedom and Soyuz ACRV and...
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Charles Frank Radley) writes:

>Attaching Shuttle to Energia :-

>Have you figured what kind of saving could be achieved
>by flying the Shuttle without its main engines ?

I don't think it would be much. The figures I hear for an
Energia launch is about $500M (at least that's the price
used to estimate Freedom launch). Since that is about what
it costs to launch a Shuttle anyway I don't see much savings.

Now if this allows Shuttle to fly a lot more often and the
Russians can cut the price....

   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?"                               |
+----------------------252 DAYS TO FIRST FLIGHT OF DCX----------------------+

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 13:03:34 GMT
From: Gary Coffman <ke4zv!gary>
Subject: Energya and Freedom and Soyuz ACRV and...
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (George William Herbert) writes:
>
>    Ok, we now have 4 potential solutions (HL-20, Soyuz, 2xPLS above);
>Soyuz is $65 million per flight and $500 million to adapt (massively

This is a questionable number. CIS is now quoting commercial launches
on Proton for $65 million, not including payload, and the US and others
are complaining that that is a below cost figure and unfair trading
practice. The US wants them to charge $85 million like Arianne. Now
add in the cost of a new Soyuz capsule for each flight to get a realistic
number.

>    As you've said, neither PLS nor HL-20 is going to Phase B anytime
>soon, though it's easy to point out that if they don't, we won't have
>a ACRV for PMC Freedom (or for several years later 8-( ).  NASA gets
>half credit for knowing it needs one and fails the exam for not
>acknowledging it and trying to solve the problem by the time the need is
>real... 8-(

But we will have long duration Shuttles by the time of PMC. So the
Shuttle can be crew transport, resupply, material return, and ACRV
until we get something better. Not great, but workable with the current
fleet. We also get the use of the docked Shuttle's middeck and Canadarm
at no extra cost.

Gary

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

Date: 15 Aug 92 00:22:46 GMT
From: Ron Baalke <[e-mail]>
Subject: Galileo Update - 08/14/92
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.astro

Forwarded from Neal Ausman, Galileo Mission Director

                                  GALILEO
                       MISSION DIRECTOR STATUS REPORT
                               POST-LAUNCH
                            August 7 - 13, 1992

SPACECRAFT

1.  On August 7, the final portion of TCM-14 (Trajectory Correction
Maneuver #14), TCM-14D, was performed consisting of one small (0.4 m/sec)
axial burn followed by a three segment lateral burn of 2.3 m/sec.  The
spacecraft performance throughout the maneuver activity was normal and near
expected levels.  In particular, the RPM (Retro-Propulsion Module) tank
pressures and temperatures were normal throughout the four burn segments.
Radio navigation data after TCM-14D indicated about a 1.3 percent overburn.
The integrated 4-portion overburn was about 1.4 percent.

2.  On August 7, the EE-7 (Earth-Earth 7) sequence memory load was uplinked
to the spacecraft.  This sequence covers spacecraft activities from
August 10, 1992 to November 23, 1992.  The sequence was loaded on the
spacecraft without incident.

3.  On August 10, a NO-OP command was sent to reset the command loss timer
to 264 hours, its planned value for this mission phase.

4.  On August 10, the Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) was returned to
Sector 4 from Sector 0 after the completion of TCM-14.  The EPD instrument
was placed in Sector 0 for TCM-14 because it was the predicted least
contamination position for the maneuver.

5.  The AC/DC bus imbalance measurements exhibited some change.  The AC
measurement increased 1 DN and reads 3.3 volts.  The DC measurement has
ranged from 103 DN (11.9 volts) to 160 DN (18.9 volts) and now reads 127 DN
(14.9 volts).  These measurement variations are consistent with the model
developed by the AC/DC special anomaly team.

6.  The Spacecraft status as of August 13, 1992, is as follows:

       a)  System Power Margin -  70 watts
       b)  Spin Configuration - Dual-Spin
       c)  Spin Rate/Sensor - 3.16 rpm/Star Scanner
       d)  Spacecraft Attitude is approximately 6 degrees
           off-sun (lagging) and 40 degrees off-earth (lagging)
       e)  Downlink telemetry rate/antenna-40 bps (coded)/LGA-1
       f)  General Thermal Control - all temperatures within
           acceptable range
       g)  RPM Tank Pressures - all within acceptable range
       h)  Orbiter Science - UVS, EUV, DDS, MAG, EPD, and HIC are
           powered on
       i)  Probe/RRH - powered off, temperatures within
           acceptable range
       j)  CMD Loss Timer Setting - 264 hours
           Time To Initiation - 184 hours


TRAJECTORY

     As of noon Thursday, August 13, 1992, the Galileo Spacecraft trajectory
status was as follows:

        Distance from Earth         97,738,600 miles (1.05 AU)
    Distance from Sun           156,757,800 miles (1.69 AU)
    Heliocentric Speed           49,700 miles per hour
    Distance from Jupiter        660,750,900 miles
    Round Trip Light Time        17 minutes, 38 seconds

SPECIAL TOPIC

1.  As of August 13, 1992, a total of 8109 real-time commands have been
transmitted to Galileo since Launch.  Of these, 3231  were pre-planned in
the sequence design and 4872 were not.  In the past week, 1 real time command
was transmitted and pre-planned in the sequence design.  In addition, 5427
mini-sequence commands have been transmitted since March 1991; 3269 were
pre-planned and 2158 were not.  In the past week, no mini-sequence commands
were transmitted.  Major command activities this week included commands to
reset the command loss timer.
     ___    _____     ___
    /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|     Ron Baalke         | [e-mail]
    | | | |  __ \ /| | | |     Jet Propulsion Lab |
 ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |__   M/S 525-3684 Telos | You can't hide broccoli in
/___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | a glass of milk -
|_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/                     | anonymous 7-year old.

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 15:37:58 GMT
From: Bill Higgins-- Beam Jockey <[e-mail]>
Subject: He3 Power Source references
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (thomas.vandoren) writes:
> One of them was about a proposal to use Helium3 mined from the moon as a power
> source on Earth.  [...]
>    Does anyone have more info, opinions on that proposal?

I'll repeat what I posted a month or so ago: For the latest technical
information,  see the July 1992 issue of *Fusion Technology* (vol. 21,
no. 4) is a "Special Issue on D-3He Fusion."  The August issue of
*Fusion Technology* is another special issue on the same subject, with
more about reactors and less about the Moon.

The original article about this is Wittenberg, Santarius, and
Kulcinski, "Lunar Source of 3He fpr Commercial Fusion Power," *FT*
v10, p.167 (1986).

Bill Higgins                           | In the distant future,
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory  | nuns will be bartenders
Bitnet:      [e-mail]       | aboard starships
Internet:  [e-mail]       | and Sternbach paintings
SPAN/Hepnet:      43011::HIGGINS       | will hang on every wall.

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 18:44:04 GMT
From: Bill Higgins-- Beam Jockey <[e-mail]>
Subject: Info on World Space Congress and related events
Newsgroups: sci.space

I've received requests from people for more information
on the World Space Congress and thought it might be worth posting.

The International Astronautical Federation is a collection of
spaceflight professional groups from most of the countries of the
world.  It holds the biggest space conference of the year (this is the
43rd), at least on *this* planet.  It moves around from city to city
and it's in DC this year, at the Washington Convention Center downtown
(as well as teh Ramada Renaissance Hotel and the Grand Hyatt
Washington.  It's a joint meeting with COSPAR, the Committee on Space
Research, about which I know less, but apparently it's the great space
science confab.  The dual meeting is known as the World Space
Congress.

Of course there are oodles of presentations on all aspects of space
science, astronautical engineering, space law, space education, remote
sensing, etc.

It's being administered by the AIAA.  The hotline for registration
info is [phone].   Fees are now $300, unless you can prove
you're a full-time undergrad or graduate student, in which case it's
$30.

The congress runs from 28 August to 5 September, with most action
happening on the weekdays.  Everybody in the space biz will be there,
including lots of bigshots from all countries.  I just met a couple of
Mir cosmonauts who are touring the country before they attend WSC.

I'm reading a paper on the morning of Friday the 4th, in the
"Communicating to the Public" session, on creating the Usenet FAQs for
sci.space.  (Jon Leech, my coauthor, won't be able to make it.)

Because the WSC is so big, other groups are having meetings clustered
around it.

Students for Exploration and Development of Space are meeting at the
Quality Hotel the weekend of the 28th.   I bet Lisa Weigel would tell
you about it if you sent a request to [e-mail]; also,
stuff has been posted to the SEDS-L list-- look in the archives.

The Association of Space Explorers (astronauts and cosmonauts) is
meeting for a few days ending the 28th.

The Congress includes various receptions held almost every night at
museums, embassies, etc.

The Planetary Society is sponsoring a bunch of stuff:

     A "road rally" for Mars rover vehicles on the Mall the 1st and
     2nd (free admission, 10 AM to 6 PM, near the National Air and
     Space Museum).  They're looking for volunteers to help create a
     Martian landscape on the 29th, and to dismantle it on the 3rd.  Sounds
     like fun, or as much fun as moving rocks and sand can get anyway.

     A "To Mars Together" lecture with Carl Sagan, Alexei Leonov, and Igor
     Volk at NAS on the 28th ($20, less for PlanSoc members, call
     [phone])

      A release party and SETI fundraiser for the Voyager record, $50/ticket,
      $80/pair, at the Hard Rock Cafe on the 29th from 7PM to 9PM.  Call the
      number above.

PlanSoc also makes the following claim about the WSC's "International
Exhibit" at the Washington Convention Center: "ADMITTANCE IS FREE to
members carrying either a business card or a Planetary Society
membership card.  (Sorry, children will not be admitted to the Exhibit
Hall.)"  Will contain... dazzling innovation and state-of-the-art
technology from 13 countries, blah blah blah...

I attended last year's IAF conference in Montreal, learned a lot, and
had a really good time.  This year will be even bigger and fancier.  I
doubt they can beat Montreal's opening ceremonies, though:  The Royal
Canadian Mounted Police Jazz Orchestra, in full uniform, playing a Glenn
Miller medeley at 8:30 on a Monday Morning.  Really wakes you up...

The conference fee is a huge bargain if you are a student and you have
even a small interest in space... GO!  You won't see anything like
this on this continent for years to come.

Hint:  Bring a LARGE mailing tube.  The exhibitions have some great
giveaway posters, but it's awkward to carry them around.

     O~~*         /_) ' / /   /_/ '  ,   ,  ' ,_  _           \|/
   - ~ -~~~~~~~~~/_) / / /   / / / (_) (_) / / / _\~~~~~~~~~~~zap!
 /       \                        (_) (_)                    / | \
 |       |   Bill Higgins   Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory
 \       /   Bitnet:                          [e-mail]
   -   -     Internet:                      [e-mail]
     ~       SPAN/Hepnet/Physnet:                  43011::HIGGINS

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

Date: 15 Aug 92 02:22:29 GMT
From: Ron Baalke <[e-mail]>
Subject: Mars Observer Science Briefing
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.astro

Donald L. Savage
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                   Aug. 14, 1992
(Phone:  [phone])


NOTE TO EDITORS:  N92-74

MARS OBSERVER SCIENCE BRIEFING SCHEDULED AUG. 19

     A media briefing focusing on the scientific aspects of
NASA's upcoming Mars Observer mission is scheduled for 1 p.m.
EDT, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 1992.  The briefing will be held in
the 6th floor auditorium (rm. 6004), 400 Maryland Ave., S.W.,
Washington, D.C.

     Mars Observer is set for launch Sept. 16 from Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.  The spacecraft will be
launched aboard a Titan III rocket with a Transfer Orbit Stage
upper stage.  Following an 11-month cruise, the spacecraft
will enter orbit around Mars.  The spacecraft will use its 7
instruments to make a comprehensive and detailed study of the
planet's atmosphere, surface and interior over the course of 1
full Martian year (687 Earth days).  Mars Observer is the
first U.S. mission to Mars since Viking in 1977.

     Participants will be:
        %  Dr. Wesley Huntress, Director, Solar System sExploration Division,
           NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.
        %  Dave Evans, Project Manager, Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
           Pasadena, Calif.
        %  Arden Albee, Project Scientist, California Institute of Technology,
           Pasadena, Calif.
        %  Michael Malin, Principal Investigator, Mars Observer Camera,
           Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, Calif.
        %  Michael Carr, Interdisciplinary Scientist, Geosciences,
           U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, Calif.
        %  Andrew Ingersoll, Interdisciplinary Scientist,
           Polar Atmospheric Science, California Institute of Technology,
           Pasadena, Calif.

     The briefing will be carried live on NASA Select
television (Satcon F2R, transponder 13, 72 degrees west
longitude) with remote Q. and A. capability.

- end -
     ___    _____     ___
    /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|     Ron Baalke         | [e-mail]
    | | | |  __ \ /| | | |     Jet Propulsion Lab |
 ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |__   M/S 525-3684 Telos | You can't hide broccoli in
/___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | a glass of milk -
|_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/                     | anonymous 7-year old.

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 17:33:32 GMT
From: "Richard M. Mathews" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Parsecs?
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.physics

[e-mail] (Mcirvin) writes:
>Let's check the calculation, in fact....  Rounding and probably
>arithmetic errors are undoubtedly rampant in the above, since I did
>it by hand.

Or to avoid possibilty of errors, just use the "units" program (if you
run Unix):

$ units
you have: parsec
you want: au radian/arcsec
    * 1.000000e+00
    / 1.000000e+00
you have:
$

Parsec is just shorthand for au radian/arcsec.

Richard M. Mathews            D efend
Internet:   [e-mail]         E stonian-Latvian-Lithuanian
UUCP:        ...!uunet!lcc!richard      I ndependence
MIL/BITNET: [e-mail]

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

Date: 14 Aug 92 18:57:53 GMT
From: EUVE Jobs <[e-mail]>
Subject: Space Science programming positions at U.C. Berkeley
Newsgroups: misc.jobs.offered,ucb.jobs,sci.space,sci.astro

                     Map the Unseen Universe

The Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer (EUVE) Project is looking for
talented and enthusiastic professionals to join our team in
exploring and documenting stars and galaxies as they have never
been seen before.

EUVE is a NASA satellite that launched on June 7, 1992.
Its four telescopes were designed and built at the Space Sciences
Laboratory of the University of California, Berkeley. These
high-tech instruments are scanning the sky in the first-ever study
of the extreme ultraviolet, a band of the spectrum that cannot be
seen from Earth. Discoveries await us in this previously unexplored
region of space.

Among the challenges of the EUVE mission is the development of
software to interpret the data gathered by the satellite. This
software will be used to study the entire sky, creating a map of
the locations and intensities of stars and other astronomical
sources emitting EUV radiation, and to convert photon events into
meaningful data for in-depth scientific study.


Scientific Programmer
Box #08-106-11

The Center for EUV Astrophysics, University of California,
Berkeley, seeks candidates for the position of Scientific Programmer
(Programmer/Analyst II) with the EUVE Guest Observer Program.
Responsibilities will involve working closely with
a small team of scientists and programmers on the EUVE Project in
the development and maintenance of software designed to handle data
from the EUVE instrumentation.  Using C, FORTRAN, and SPP languages
on a network of Sun workstations under the Unix operating system,
existing software will be modified.  New software to solve complex
science data analysis tasks will be developed, and most of the
software will be supported in the IRAF environment.  Each programmer
is responsible for documentation of his/her code written.  This
documentation will be of a technical nature, but user guides and
cookbooks will be composed, as well.

Required:
Background in a related field such as computer science, physics or math.
Demonstrated scientific programming ability, with C programming experience.
Experience with the UNIX operating system, image analysis and display
algorithms.  Familiarity with Sun workstations, X-windows, FORTRAN, and
networking systems highly desirable.  Familiarity with databases, SYBASE
in particular, desired. Knowledge of IRAF and SPP preferred.

Applications should include a curriculum vitae and names
of three references, and should be submitted by August 28.

****************************************************************

The position is located  at the  Center for EUV Astrophysics on the
UC  Berkeley  campus.  To  apply,  send  a  resume  and three
references to the UC Employment Office, 220 University Hall,
Berkeley, CA 94720.
Cite the box number given for the position for which you wish to apply.


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

Date: 14 Aug 92 19:10:53 GMT
From: "Charles J. Divine" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Watching a Shuttle launch
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (John Roberts) writes:
>-> True. But I'd be happy to sign a liability release if it would let me watch
>-> a Shuttle launch from a mile or two away.

I've witnessed and photographed shuttle launches from the press site
(about 3 miles away).  At that distance you can feel the ground
rumble.  You can feel the heat of the exhaust on your chest (on a hot
day at that).  It is one impressive event.  I'd say its the most
exciting thing you can watch in public.  Get to within a mile?
No thanks.

>were really fantastic. What fooled me is the limited dynamic range of
>television systems and camera film - with the sensitivity set to pick up
>the body of the Shuttle, the exhaust flames of the SRBs are washed out -
>you only see them at a fraction of their true brightness. In fact, they're

[stuff deleted]

>
>I got some pretty good pictures with a zoom lens set to 300mm. If I had it to
>do over again, I'd probably add my 2X converter and try for 600mm.

A semiprofessional's recommendations (I've photographed 3 shuttle
launches and sold both prints and pictures to magazines of launches as
well as much other stuff):

At 3 miles I got excellent results with a Canon A-1, a Canon 500 mm
and a matched Canon 2X teleconverter.  The effective f/stop was f/16.

Films used were Ektachrome 64.  On a bright sunny day I shot at both
1/500 second and 1/250 second.  1/500 gave really good image of the
exhausts (both liquid and solid).  1/250 gave better over all balance.

If I ever get a chance again, I'd likely opt for Ektar 125 (1 stop
gain) and shoot at 1/500.  That would overexpose the flames, but a
good to excellent lab might well be able to bring them out in custom
prints.

Of course I used a solid tripod and _no_ exposure automation.
A local


--
Chuck Divine

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End of Space Digest Volume 15 : Issue 112
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