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Date: Thu, 1 Apr 93 05:55:25
From: Space Digest maintainer <digests@isu.isunet.edu>
Reply-To: Space-request@isu.isunet.edu
Subject: Space Digest V16 #400
To: Space Digest Readers
Precedence: bulk
Space Digest Thu, 1 Apr 93 Volume 16 : Issue 400
Today's Topics:
Irish Re-entry or AURORA/DIPPER
Irish re-entry or AURORA/DIPPER? II
Nasa & Congress
Why is Venus so bad?
Welcome to the Space Digest!! Please send your messages to
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(THENET), or space-REQUEST@isu.isunet.edu (Internet).
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 31 Mar 1993 23:04:19 GMT
From: apryan@vax1.tcd.ie
Subject: Irish Re-entry or AURORA/DIPPER
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.astro
Between 0:10UT and 0:13UT on Wed. March 31 many people in Ireland saw two
bright (mag -1 or brighter) lights travelling slowly across the sky. One
advanced amateur astronomer, John Fitzsimons, from his observatory a few miles
outside Sligo town on the west coast saw the object rise in the NW and pass 70
deg. up in the SW 35 seconds later, eventually setting in the SE. He reported
four other mag. 4 objects trailing behind it. The whole assembly left a glowing
wite 'mist' that persisted for 3 or 4 minutes. John is one of the country's
best astrophotographers (if not the best) and has built an impressive
observatory around his Celestron-11. He seems convinces it was a satellite re-
entering the atmosphere and burning up.
Based largely on John's sighting Astronomy Ireland believed the satellite
re-entry was the correct interpretation but a number inconsistencies have led
Leo Enright (BBC Ireland correspondent) to suggest it was a special type of
aircraft possibly Aurora or Dipper (Dipper?). We're no aviation experts so
maybe you can help? (This story has made the front page, national TV & radio)
One inconsistency is that the two bright lights appear to be the same
brightness and flying 'abreast' separated by 2 to 3 deg. rather than one after
the other. If re-entering 50 miles up this puts them at least 2 miles apart can
fragments get this far apart during re-entry?
Secondly, a sighting was made from Glastonbury, Somerset (U.K.) which puts the
object heading out across the English channel - BUT AT 0:40UT which is 300
miles in 30 minutes i.e. 600mph roughly. Leo Enright suggests that this in
particular shows it must have been a craft of some description. He hypothesises
that a military craft like Aurora/Dipper possibly got into trouble in the
Atlantic and headed toward Shannon airport as a possible landing site, was told
not to land such a craft in a neutral country and possibly continued on to
the base in Spain?
Nothing showed up on radar in Shannon airport (or so they say).
Could a natural object in space 'graze' the Earth's atmosphere at such a speed?
Leo Enright says the 'four mag 4 objects' following the craft are consistent
with reports of other sightings of Aurora or more likely Dipper and the effects
seen in its 'exhaust' contrail.
Is there any chance it could still have been a satellite re-entry (or natural
object)?
P.S. sorry I was not following the Aurora thread going on in sci.space over the
past few weeks. I thought it would not affect me. Didn't know base in Scotland!
-Tony Ryan, "Astronomy & Space", new International magazine, available from:
Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 1, Ireland.
(WORLD'S LARGEST ASTRO. SOC. per capita - unless you know better?)
6 issues (one year sub.): UK 10.00 pounds, US$20 surface (add US$8 airmail).
ACCESS/VISA/MASTERCARD accepted (give number, expiration date, name&address).
Newslines (48p/36p per min): 0891-88-1950 (UK/N.Ireland) 1550-111-442 (Eire).
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 31 Mar 1993 23:09:05 GMT
From: apryan@vax1.tcd.ie
Subject: Irish re-entry or AURORA/DIPPER? II
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.astro
Sorry, in a rush. Forgot if I asked one very imposrtant question:
Does anyone know if ANYTHINH re-entered the atmosphere early on
UT day of March 31 (or even March 30)? Or who I could ask this question
of and get a conclusive answer?
-Tony Ryan, "Astronomy & Space", new International magazine, available from:
Astronomy Ireland, P.O.Box 2888, Dublin 1, Ireland.
(WORLD'S LARGEST ASTRO. SOC. per capita - unless you know better?)
6 issues (one year sub.): UK 10.00 pounds, US$20 surface (add US$8 airmail).
ACCESS/VISA/MASTERCARD accepted (give number, expiration date, name&address).
Newslines (48p/36p per min): 0891-88-1950 (UK/N.Ireland) 1550-111-442 (Eire).
------------------------------
Date: 31 Mar 93 20:31:38 GMT
From: fred j mccall 575-3539 <mccall@mksol.dseg.ti.com>
Subject: Nasa & Congress
Newsgroups: sci.space
In <C4IK2J.GzF.1@cs.cmu.edu> 18084TM@msu.edu (Tom) writes:
>BTW, Fred, you've really crossed the border, since you admit that the ideas
>you support can only be carried out with coercive power. Now that's really
>f***in' intolerant, so get off yer high horse about tolerance.
No, Tommy, I "admit" that there are such things as 'market failures'
which necessitate intervention by other than capitalist forces to
correct.
Get a clue, little boy, and go salve your wounded pride in my not
considering you infallible in some other fashion. I'm not interested
in your ego games.
--
"Insisting on perfect safety is for people who don't have the balls to live
in the real world." -- Mary Shafer, NASA Ames Dryden
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred.McCall@dseg.ti.com - I don't speak for others and they don't speak for me.
------------------------------
Date: 1 Apr 93 02:10:23 GMT
From: "Elizabeth A. Madigan" <eam13@po.CWRU.Edu>
Subject: Why is Venus so bad?
Newsgroups: sci.space,rec.scuba
In a previous article, prb@access.digex.com (Pat) says:
>In article <OIVINDT.93Mar30202040@petrus.fagmed.uit.no> oivindt@fagmed.uit.no (Oivind Toien) writes:
>|
>|In a previous record dive (dry) at NUTEC, Bergen, Norway to about 500
>|m they used a Heliox mixture most of the time except during the descent
>|were the gas mixture contained some nitrogen. The idea was the the
>|effect of N2 narcosis should reduce the effect of high pressure nerve
>|syndrome.
>|Several of the divers suffered serious injury. Although technology
>|seems to develop infinitely, physiology sets certain limits...
>|
>>In a program on the Norwegian channel 2 yesterday it was said that 1
>>of 7 divers are injured (per dive...) in dive operations in the North
>>Sea occuring at more than 300 m.
>
>
>My understanding is that Commercial diving has some real problems
>following the Navy Dive tables. Even if you rigorously follow them,
>that multiple diving causes some form of Micro Nitrogen bubbles
>in the nervous tissue. Long term studies of the spinal tissues
>of commercial divers shows large amounts of nerve damage.
>
>There is some movement to require deep diving bells, where the divers
>can live underwater for extended periods and undergo
>slow decompression.
>
>pat
>
>
And let's not forget long term damage to the bone tissue as well-
osteonecrosis. Ever see an old commercial diver walk? Looks painful
and is debilitating.
Liz
------------------------------
End of Space Digest Volume 16 : Issue 400
------------------------------