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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 523 records · Page 29
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NASA NTRS1983

Space Station Needs, Attributes and Architectural Options. Contractor orientation briefings

Requirements are considered for user missions involving life sciences; astrophysics, environmental observation; Earth and planetary exploration; materials processing; Spacelab payloads; technology development; and communications are analyzed. Plans to exchange data with potential cooperating nations and ESA are reviewed. The capability of the space shuttle to support space station activities are discussed. The status of the OAST space station technology study, conceptual architectures for a space station, elements of the space-based infrastructure, and the use of the shuttle external tank are also considered.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1984

Main characteristics of the Large Space Simulation (LSS)

The European Space Agency (ESA) has started the implementation of a Large Space Simulator at its European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) located at Noordwijk, The Netherlands. After its completion in early 1986 this facility will enable mechanical and thermal tests on large satellites. The chamber will be equipped with a collimated solar beam of 6 Meter diameter. In addition Infrared equipment is available as alternative or complementary source of thermal radiation. Also controlled variation of shroud temperatures can be utilised for thermal testing or temperature cycling of hardware. The "Design and Definition Phase" of the project has been successfully completed by the end of 1983. The paper presents the basic concept and major design aspects of this facility. At the time of the conference, the large chamber is already under construction on site.

Peter W. Brinkmann↗
NASA NTRS1983

Shuttle/Centaur - More capability for the 1980's

Design features of the Centaur upper stage for the Shuttle are described, noting interfaces with the Orbiter and intended missions. The Shuttle will carry the Centaur stage into a 241 km eastward orbit, open the payload doors, and by the fourth orbit rotate the Centaur 45 deg so it points out of the bay. An integrated support system will limit the actual equipment added to the Orbiter to 122 kg. Separation from the Orbiter will be effected by a spring-loaded mechanism that will impart a 1/3 m/sec velocity to the Centaur, which carries its own LOX/LH2 fuel supply for two RL 10A-3-3A engines. The fuel is moved to the bottom of the tanks by auxiliary thrusters which propel the Centaur forward. Planned missions for the Shuttle-Centaur are boosting the ESA Solar Polar Mission and launching the Galileo probe in 1986, possibly followed by a Venus radar mapper mission in 1988.

Spurlock, O. F.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Spacelab - Ten years of international cooperation

The history, current status, and future plans of the Spacelab program are reviewed, with a focus on the cooperative relationship between ESA and NASA. The initial decision to undertake the program and the three agreements signed to begin its implementation are examined, and the division of responsibilities and financial contributions is discussed insofar as it affected the management structure. Consideration is given to the major facilities, the 50-mission operational cycle, communications, the currently scheduled activities (through 1985), the prospective later uses, and the ten dedicated discipline laboratories. The importance of continuous mutual support during the planning and development phases is stressed. The program so far is considered a success, in terms of the goals set by the participants and in terms of the resolution of the problems inherent in international technological endeavors.

Bignier, M.↗
NASA NTRS1984

The Origins of Plasmas in the Earth's Neighborhood (OPEN) program

The nature and objectives of the OPEN program are overviewed. The Origins of Plasmas in the Earth's Neighborhood program was conceived in 1979 and proposed as a major new initiative to study the energetics of the earth's space environment by the end of the 1980s. The objectives of OPEN have been integrated into the Global Geospace Study (GGS) segment to the International Solar-Terrestrial Physics (ISTP) program now being planned jointly by NASA, ESA, and Japan. The goals will be to develop a global understanding of the flow of energy from the sun through the earth's space environment above the neutral atmosphere and to define the cause and effect relationships between the plasma physics processes that link different regions of this dynamic environment. A network of four spacecraft will be used, each one carrying an instrument complement to characterize the composition and behavior of the upstream solar wind, the high-altitude polar magnetosphere, the equatorial magnetosphere, and the comet-like geomagnetic tail. Multispectral cameras will also be carried to image polar auroras at ultraviolet, visible and X-ray wavelengths. Experimentalists and theorists on the international team will participate.

Alexander, J. K.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Integrated requirements for a space station

The time-phased mission set developed for the proposed space station program (including the manned facility, coorbiting and remote free flyers and platforms, orbital maneuvering and transfer systems, and storage and service facilities) by the Space Station Mission Requirements Workshop in May 1983, is presented in figures and tables and discussed. The scientific, commercial, and technology-development proposals are characterized, and the requirements for a station and coorbiting platform at 28.5-deg orbital inclination are listed for the period 1991-2000. Japanese, ESA, and Canadian utilization is considered, special requirements are outlined, and functional characteristics are summarized. Developmental strategies to meet the concerns of the user community are suggested.

Pritchard, E. B.↗
NASA NTRS1984

A new wave of communication satellites

Satellites provide at present telephone, television, data, and business services on a national, regional, and international scale, and the geostationary arc has become crowded at C-band (6/4 GHz) and Ku-band (14/11 GHz) frequencies. The evolution and the present state of satellite communications are discussed along with details regarding the development of direct broadcast satellites, the position of Canada with respect to satellite communications, Japanese developments, ESA and Eutelsat, aspects of collaboration between France and Germany regarding communications satellites, the United Kingdom, and the Nordic countries.

Lovell, R. R.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Pathfinder - A technique for improving the targeting accuracy of Giotto

A 'pathfinder' plan to improve Halley's Comet targeting accuracy of ESA's Giotto spacecraft is proposed, by which optical data and orbit information from Soviet VEGA spacecraft are used to produce an updated ephemeris for Halley's Comet. Two versions of the plan are described and the increased targeting accuracy is determined through a linear covariance analysis. In both versions of the plan, NASA Deep Space Net VLBI measurements of VEGA position are exchanged for information from VEGA about its optical pointing angle and Doppler and ranging measurements which are then transmitted to Giotto. In the covariance analysis of targeting accuracy, it is found that by using pathfinder the error in Giotto-Halley targeting can be reduced from 500 to within 100 km. It is predicted that pathfinder will thus substantially improve the amount of data that Giotto will gather from its fly-by of Halley's Comet March 14, 1986.

Campbell, J. K.↗
NASA NTRS1982

A laboratory for life sciences research in space

Biological studies hardware for Spacelab flights are described. The research animal holding facility has modular construction and is installed on a single ESA rack. A biotelemetry system will provide body temperature and EKG/heart rate data from a radio transmitter surgically implanted in the animals' stomachs. A plant growth unit (PGU) will be used to study micro-g plant lignin growth. The PGU is automated and can carry as many as 96 plants. A general purpose work station (GPWS) biohazard cabinet will be flown on Spacelab 4 to control liquid and chemical vapors released during experimentation. Spacelab 4 will be the premier flight of actual animal studies comprising measurements of hematology, muscle biochemistry, blood circulation, fluids and electrolytes, vestibular adaptation, etc., using rats and squirrel monkeys as subjects.

Williams, B. A.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Packet telemetry and packet telecommand - The new generation of spacecraft data handling techniques

Because of rising costs and reduced reliability of spacecraft and ground network hardware and software customization, standardization Packet Telemetry and Packet Telecommand concepts are emerging as viable alternatives. Autonomous packets of data, within each concept, which are created within ground and space application processes through the use of formatting techniques, are switched end-to-end through the space data network to their destination application processes through the use of standard transfer protocols. This process may result in facilitating a high degree of automation and interoperability because of completely mission-independent-designed intermediate data networks. The adoption of an international guideline for future space telemetry formatting of the Packet Telemetry concept, and the advancement of the NASA-ESA Working Group's Packet Telecommand concept to a level of maturity parallel to the of Packet Telemetry are the goals of the Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems. Both the Packet Telemetry and Packet Telecommand concepts are reviewed.

Hooke, A. J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Future ultraviolet experiments, including FUSE/COLUMBUS

Several new facilities for ultraviolet astronomy are under construction or study for launch within the coming decade. These include the Hubble Space Telescope to be launched in 1986 with instruments for spectroscopy, imaging, and photopolarimetry in the ultraviolet; the ASTRO Spacelab payload, also to be launched in 1986 with a similar range of instrumentation; STARLAB, a combined Canadian, Australian and U.S. mission concentrating primarily on imagery; and the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE), which was renamed COLUMBUS. COLUMBUS is currently under study by NASA and ESA as a future joint mission for spectroscopic studies of astrophysical plasmas covering a temperature range from approximately 10 to the 3rd power to approximately 10 to the 7th power k. In order to achieve this objective, the optics should be optimized for wavelengths below 1200 Angstroms, with a total wavelength range from approximately 2000 to approximately 100 Angstroms. The operational concept will be based on experience with IUE, but changes in communications techniques since IUE was designed suggest some interesting new approaches to observing.

Boggess, A.↗
NASA NTRS1984

A fast, programmable hardware architecture for the processing of spaceborne SAR data

The development of high-throughput SAR processors (HTSPs) for the spaceborne SARs being planned by NASA, ESA, DFVLR, NASDA, and the Canadian Radarsat Project is discussed. The basic parameters and data-processing requirements of the SARs are listed in tables, and the principal problems are identified as real-operations rates in excess of 2 x 10 to the 9th/sec, I/O rates in excess of 8 x 10 to the 6th samples/sec, and control computation loads (as for range cell migration correction) as high as 1.4 x 10 to the 6th instructions/sec. A number of possible HTSP architectures are reviewed; host/array-processor (H/AP) and distributed-control/data-path (DCDP) architectures are examined in detail and illustrated with block diagrams; and a cost/speed comparison of these two architectures is presented. The H/AP approach is found to be adequate and economical for speeds below 1/200 of real time, while DCDP is more cost-effective above 1/50 of real time.

Bennett, J. R.↗
NASA NTRS1985

A preliminary analysis of a comet coma sample-return mission

It is pointed out that the exploration and characterization of comets can play a fundamental role in solar system science. Comets are probably primitive products of processes which occurred in the preplanetary solar nebula. The impending return of Halley's comet in 1986 provides an opportunity for a study of comets, and five spacecraft will be launched to intercept Halley. These spacecraft include two sent by the USSR, two by Japan, and one by the European Space Agency (ESA). NASA has recommended two programs for the exploration and characterization of comets. The first mission considered would be a rendezvous with a short-period comet, while the second mission would provide for the return to earth of a sample of the volatile and nonvolatile constituents of the coma of a comet. Developments related to these plans are discussed.

Swenson, B. L.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Spacelab 1 - Mission overview and summary of scientific results

This paper recalls the reasons which led NASA to build the Space Shuttle and ESA to manufacture Spacelab and presents the most important features of the mission where these two elements were combined for the first time. An overview on the objectives of the seven science disciplines participating in this mission is given and selected results as far as known in June 1984 are presented.

Knott, K.↗
NASA NTRS1985

International solar-terrestrial physics program: A plan for the core spaceflight missions

This brochure has been prepared by NASA on behalf of the European Space Agency (ESA), the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (Japan) (ISAS), and the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to describe the scope of the science problems to be investigated and the mission plan for the core International Solar-Terrestrial Physics (ISTP) Program. This information is intended to stimulate discussions and plans for the comprehensive worldwide ISTP Program. The plan for the study of the solar - terrestrial system is included. The Sun, geospace, and Sun-Earth interaction is discussed as is solar dynamics and the origins of solar winds.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1985

Government-to-government cooperation in space station development

A memoranda of understanding was recently signed between the United States (NASA) and three international Space Station partners - Canada, European Space Agency (ESA), and Japan. The international partners are performing parallel Phase B preliminary design studies, concurrent with the U.S., on their proposed elements/systems for possible integration and operation with the U.S. Space Station System complex. During the 21-month Space Station Phase B study, a large amount of technical interface data will have to be transferred between the U.S. and the international partners. Scheduled bilateral technical coordination meetings will also be held. The coordination and large number of interfaces required to integrate the international requirements into the Space Station require a clean interface management organizational structure and operation procedures to accomplish the integration task. The international coordination management organizational structure, management tools, and communications network are discussed including the proposed international elements/systems being studied by the international partners.

Nassiff, S. H.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Norwegian Aerospace Activities: an Overview

Excerpts from a Governmental Investigation concerning Norwegian participation in the European Space Organization (ESA) is presented. The implications and advantages of such a move and a suggestion for the reorganization of Norwegian Aerospace activity is given.

Arnesen, T.↗
NASA NTRS1985

The X-ray spectroscopy of active galactic nuclei

The scientific goals of X-ray spectroscopy of active galactic nuclei are discussed. The underlying energy source, the regions responsible for the optical emission lines, the different types of active galaxies, and cosmology are considered. The requirements for an X-ray mission of broad band width, large collecting area, modest spatial resolution and good spectral resolution are outlined. It is concluded that the ESA XMM mission meets these requirements.

Mushotzky, R.↗