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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 217 records · Page 12

Microlock- a minimum weight radio instrumentation system for a satellite

The design, construction and laboratory testing of a satellite tracking system are described. The tracking mechanism employs a low power, lightweight flight transmitter in conjunction with a receiving system of advanced design. The flight transmitter will radiate 3 mw for three months and will provide two narrow hand telemetering channels in a unit having a total weight of 2 lb. The ground receiving equipment is capable of acquiring and tracking the beacon signal at a line-of-sight distance of 3000 miles and at any azimuth and elevation angle. Interferometer antennas could he used to determine the angular position of the satellite with an accuracy of one milliradian, which is equivalent to approximately ±0.04 sec in the determination of the period.

Earth Satellites↗

Television observations from Surveyor III

Surveyor III landed on the lunar surface at 00:04 GMT, on Day 110, 1967, approximately 23 hr after local sunrise on the Moon. The first pictures were taken by the television camera at 01:02 GMT. The camera was operated extensively for the first period of lunar visibility from the Goldstone Tracking Station of the Deep Space Network and, except on Day 115, on each successive Goldstone pass of the Moon until the Sun set over the Surveyor III landing site on Day 123. During this period, the Sun rose from an elevation angle of 11° in the east to within 3° of the zenith and then sank almost due west of the spacecraft. Many pictures were obtained of the illuminated eastern horizon in the period immediately preceding sunset. In addition to those received at the Goldstone Station, some were obtained at the Canberra, Australia, station of the Deep Space Network. There were 6315 television pictures taken during the first lunar day of the Surveyor III mission.

Surveyor III spacecraft↗

Radiosonde data system.

Automatic radiosonde data processing system providing azimuth and elevation angles, temperature, humidity, etc

AUTOMATIC DATA PROCESSING SYSTEM↗

Ionospheric effects in solar eclipses

Ionospheric effects in solar eclipse compared with full sun conditions at same elevation angle, emphasizing E, F and D regions ion and electron composition

Bowhill, S. A.↗

Rocket flight performance of a preprototype Apollo 17 UV spectrometer S-169

The design, construction, testing, calibration, flight performance and flight data of an Ebert ultraviolet spectrometer are described which is an accurate representation of the conceptual design of the Apollo 17 UV spectrometer. The instrument was flown in an Aerobee 350 rocket from Wallops Island, Va., at 7:10 p.m. EDT on June 10, 1971 to an altitude of 328 km with a solar elevation angle of about 11 deg.

Fastie, W. G.↗

Analysis of requirements for GEOS-C laser cube-corner reflector panels

A mathematical analysis of the tradeoffs and requirements was performed to develop an improved array design which will give stronger returns at lower elevation angles and reduce pulse spread in the return. It was determined that a zenith angle of 75deg can be obtained with an array with an area of 0.28 sq m, if the array is shaped on the surface of a 45 deg cone whose axis is coincident to the satellite axis. The total weight of the truncated pyramid array with 270 cube corners is calculated to be not more than 50% greater than the GEOS 2 array, while the efficiency is increased 275%.

Minott, P. O.↗

Lineaments that are artifacts of lighting, part G

Apollo 15 orbital photographs, particularly those taken at low sun elevation angles, are examined revealing grid patterns of lineaments. Preliminary results of experiments demonstrate that spurious lineaments and grid patterns can be produced and that the directions are dependent in part upon the position of the light source. The experiments were designed to duplicate the effect of bright sunlight reflecting from a hummocky surface with little or no diffuse light in the shadowed areas.

Howard, K. A.↗

Near-terminator photography, part R

The advantages resulting from the use of near-terminator photography in lunar surface investigations are discussed. It is pointed out that, under near-terminator conditions, small changes in slope produce greater contrast changes than at high sun elevation angles. This desirable phenomenon is confirmed by an examination of the near-terminator photography taken during the Apollo 15 mission. Many of the photographs obtained show lunar surface areas within a few degrees of the terminator and are therefore of significant geologic interest. In addition, many geologic features stand out in a distinct manner not normal in conventional lunar photography, thus providing additional data on the surface morphology and the configuration of a large number of lunar surface structures.

Head, J. W.↗

Atmospheric pressure, density, temperature and wind variations between 50 and 200 km

Data on atmospheric pressure, density, temperature and winds between 50 and 200 km were collected from sources including Meteorological Rocket Network data, ROBIN falling sphere data, grenade release and pitot tube data, meteor winds, chemical release winds, satellite data, and others. These data were analyzed by a daily difference method and results on the distribution statistics, magnitude, and spatial structure of the irregular atmospheric variations are presented. Time structures of the irregular variations were determined by the analysis of residuals from harmonic analysis of time series data. The observed height variations of irregular winds and densities are found to be in accord with a theoretical relation between these two quantities. The latitude variations (at 50 - 60 km height) show an increasing trend with latitude. A possible explanation of the unusually large irregular wind magnitudes of the White Sands MRN data is given in terms of mountain wave generation by the Sierra Nevada range about 1000 km west of White Sands. An analytical method is developed which, based on an analogy of the irregular motion field with axisymmetric turbulence, allows measured or model correlation or structure functions to be used to evaluate the effective frequency spectra of scalar and vector quantities of a spacecraft moving at any speed and at any trajectory elevation angle.

Justus, C. G.↗

NASA balloon: Aircraft ranging, data and voice experiment

A series of tests to evaluate, at L-band, the ranging, voice, and data communications concepts proposed for the air traffic control experiment of the Applications Technology Satellite-F are described. The ground station facilities, balloon platforms and the aircraft were supplied by the European Space Research Organization. One ground simulation and two aircraft flights at low elevation angles were conducted. Even under high interference conditions good performance was obtained for both voice communications and side tone ranging. High bit errors occurred in the data channels resulting in false commands. As a result of the experience gained in operating the equipment in an aircraft environment several recommendations were made for improving the equipment performance.

Wishna, S.↗

Tropospheric range-rate tracking data correction

A formula for correcting the tropospheric error in range-rate satellite tracking data is given. The formula is based on the method which was used to obtain corrections for elevation-angle and range data. In addition, an improved method is given for calculating some of the parameters required in the correction formulas.

Marini, J. W.↗

Ionospheric scale height from the refraction of satellite signals.

Accurate observations of the elevation angle of arrival of 20 MHz signals from the polar orbiting satellite Beacon-B for a 20 month period have provided transmission ionograms which may be reduced to give Hp the scale height at the peak of the ionosphere. Noon seasonal averages of Hp are 1.35 (in winter) to 1.55 (in summer) times greater than the scale height obtained from bottom-side ionograms. A comparison of scale height at the peak with routine measurements of total content and peak electron density indicates that the O+/H+ transition level is above 1000 km during the day but comes down to about 630 km on winter nights. A predawn peak in the overall scale height is caused by a lowering of the layer to a region of increased recombination and is magnified in winter by low O+/H+ transition levels.

Heron, M. L.↗

System design of the ATS-F RFI measurement experiment.

Description of the system design of an RFI measurement experiment regarding optimal sharing of the 5.925- to 6.425-GHz frequency band between the ATS-F synchronous satellite and terrestrial telecommunication systems. The parametric measurements made will include transmitted and received power levels, propagation-path loss and variations as a function of range, elevation angle, RF polarization, and geographical location of interference sources. The technical objectives of the C-band RFI experiment are outlined, a functional diagram of the total system for the RFI measurement experiment is presented, and the design features of the receiver RF and IF circuits, the filters and detectors, and the computer control are summarized. A basic RFI measurement plan is presented which defines and briefly states the measurement procedure, which involves a number of different measurement modes, each of which is described in detail.

Henry, V. F.↗

Task three: Report: STDN Antenna and preamplifier cost tradeoff study

The general goal of this task, STDN Antenna and Preamplifier G/T Study, was to determine cost-effective combinations of antennas and preamplifiers for several sets of conditions for frequency, antenna elevation angle, and rain. The output of the study includes design curves and tables which indicate the best choice of antenna size and preamplifier type to provide a given G/T performance. The report indicates how to evaluate the cost effectiveness of proposed improvements to a given station. Certain parametric variations are presented to emphasize the improvement available by reducing RF losses and improving the antenna feed.

Source record↗

Investigations of the ionospheric using radio signals from artificial satellites

The occurrence and characteristics of ionospheric irregularities in medium latitudes and in polar regions were measured using radio signals from artificial satellites. Ionospheric changes during quiet and disturbed conditions were also measured. Electron density, elevation angle, and amplitude and frequency of these high frequency signals were determined as well as the direction of their arrival.

Titheridge, J. E.↗