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Results for “historical development”

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 73 records · Page 4
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1980

An advanced domestic satellite communications system

An updated traffic projection for U.S. domestic satellite communications service covering a period of 15 years; mid-1980 to mid-1995 was prepared. This model takes into account expected technology advances and reductions in transmission costs, legislative and regulatory changes permitting increased competition, and rising energy costs which will encourage more extensive substitution of telecommunications for travel. The historical development and current status of satellite systems are discussed as well as the characteristics of follow-on systems. Orbital arc utilization, spacecraft configuration for single shuttle launch, Earth station configuration, and system costs are examined. Areas which require technology development include multiple beam frequency reuse antennas, on-board switching, intersatellite links, and ka-band operation. Packing and deployment schemes for enclosing the satellite within the shuttle orbiter bay must also be devised.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1980

Computer simulation of engine systems

The paper discusses the availability throughout the government and industry of analytical methods for calculating both the steady state and transient performance of an aircraft engine during an entire flight regime. The historical development of some of the analytical tools capable of evaluating installation effects on engine performance is traced and their present status is described.

Fishbach, L. H.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Solar cell array design handbook - The principles and technology of photovoltaic energy conversion

Photovoltaic solar cell array design and technology for ground-based and space applications are discussed from the user's point of view. Solar array systems are described, with attention given to array concepts, historical development, applications and performance, and the analysis of array characteristics, circuits, components, performance and reliability is examined. Aspects of solar cell array design considered include the design process, photovoltaic system and detailed array design, and the design of array thermal, radiation shielding and electromagnetic components. Attention is then given to the characteristics and design of the separate components of solar arrays, including the solar cells, optical elements and mechanical elements, and the fabrication, testing, environmental conditions and effects and material properties of arrays and their components are discussed.

Rauschenbach, H. S.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Thermal infrared remote sensing of surface features for renewable resource applications

The subjects of infrared remote sensing of surface features for renewable resource applications is reviewed with respect to the basic physical concepts involved at the Earth's surface and up through the atmosphere, as well as the historical development of satellite systems which produce such data at increasingly greater spatial resolution. With this general background in hand, the growth of a variety of specific renewable resource applications using the developing thermal infrared technology are discussed, including data from HCMM investigators. Recommendations are made for continued growth in this field of applications.

Welker, J. E.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Lubrication of rolling element bearings

This paper is a broad survey of the lubrication of rolling-element bearings. Emphasis is on the critical design aspects related to speed, temperature, and ambient pressure environment. Types of lubrication including grease, jets, mist, wick, and through-the-race are discussed. The paper covers the historical development, present state of technology, and the future problems of rolling-element bearing lubrication.

Parker, R. J.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Past applications and future potential of variable stability research helicopters

The historical development of variable-stability research helicopters and some of their previous applications are presented as a guide for assessing their future potential. The features of three general-purpose rotary-wing flight research aircraft that provide complementary capabilities are described briefly, and a number of future applications are proposed.

Hindson, W. S.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Kalman filtering for spacecraft attitude estimation

Several schemes in current use for sequential estimation of spacecraft attitude using Kalman filters are examined. These differ according to their treatment of the attitude error, namely: using the complete four-component quaternion; using a truncated quaternion in which one of the components has been eliminated; or using a quaternion referred to approximate body-fixed axes. These schemes are examined for the case of a spacecraft carrying line-of-sight attitude sensors and three-axis gyros whose measurements are corrupted by noise on both the drift rate and the drift-rate ramp. The analysis of the covariance is carried out in detail. The historical development of Kalman filtering of attitude is reviewed.

Lefferts, E. J.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Thermonuclear processes on accreting neutron stars

Theoretical models for X-ray burst sources that invoke thermonuclear flashes on the surface layers of an accreting neutron star are discussed. The historical development of X-ray burst observation is summarized, and a physical picture of a neutron star undergoing accretion is drawn. Detailed numerical computations of the evolution of the surface layers of such a star are reviewed. The need for general relativistic corrections to the model is pointed out. Finally, comparisons are made with observations of X-ray bursts, the rapid burster, fast X-ray transients, X-ray pulsars, and gamma-ray burst sources.

Joss, P. C.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Passive microwave remote sensing of the earth from space - A review

A brief discussion of the historical development of microwave radiometry from space is provided, followed by a review of radiometer system concepts as applied to spacecraft platforms. One of the earliest meteorological applications of spaceborne radiometry was in global atmospheric temperature sounding. Surface-sensing applications can be divided into three main categories, including ocean, ice, and land. A radiometer system description is presented, and spacecraft considerations are discussed. Spaceborne radiometric sensors are examined, taking into account the Nimbus-5 Microwave Spectrometer, the Electrically Scanning Microwave Radiometer, the Skylab microwave radiometer/scatterometer and altimeter instrument, S-194 on Skylab, the Scanning Microwave Spectrometer on Nimbus 6, the Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer on Seasat and Nimbus 7, Soviet sensors, and an Indian microwave radiometer.

Njoku, E. G.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Space Shuttle payloads - An overview

A review is made of historical developments of NASA-launched payloads as a basis for projecting payload operations configured to fit the Shuttle's capabilities, and the impetus for new spacecraft and applications designs is discussed. Payloads have experienced a growth in size and weight, capacity and lifetime, and have increasingly featured more automation, microminiaturized circuitry, and data processing systems. Launches by the DoD and NASA have averaged about 20/yr. Spacecraft specifically configured for Shuttle launch have had to wait due to development schedule delays. Partial compensation has occurred by the use of the MMS, which fits into both the Delta nose cone and the Orbiter bay. The Landsat-4 and SMM are cited as examples. Successful demonstration of in-orbit servicing of satellites is required in order to attract spacecraft designers who will make full use of the Shuttle's capabilities. Finally, increased standardization of spacecraft shape, interfaces, and components is foreseeen.

Edgecombe, D. S.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Lubrication background

Surface topography, including the various physical methods of measuring surfaces, and the various lubrication regimes (hydrodynamic, elastohydrodynamic, boundary, and mixed) are discussed. The historical development of elastohydrodynamic lubrication is outlined. The major accomplishments in four periods, the pre-1950's, the 1950's, the 1960's, and the 1970's are presented.

Hamrock, B. J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Laser velocimetry in the low-speed wind tunnels at Ames Research Center

The historical development of laser velocimetry and its application to low-speed (less than 100 m/sec) aerodynamic flows in the subsonic wind tunnels at Ames Research Center is reviewed. A fully three dimensional velocimeter for the Ames 7- by 10-Foot Wind Tunnel is described, and its capabilities are presented through sample data from a recent experiment. Finally, a long-range (2.6 to 10 m) velocimeter that is designed to be installed within the test section of the Ames 40- by 80-Foot Wind Tunnel is described and sample data are presented.

Orloff, K. L.↗
NASA NTRS1984

A critical review of noise production models for turbulent, gas-fueled burners

The combustion noise literature for the period between 1952 and early 1984 is critically reviewed. Primary emphasis is placed on past theoretical and semi-empirical attempts to predict or explain observed direct combustion noise characteristics of turbulent, gas-fueled burners; works involving liquid-fueled burners are reviewed only when ideas equally applicable to gas-fueled burners are pesented. The historical development of the most important contemporary direct combustion noise theories is traced, and the theories themselves are compared and criticized. While most theories explain combustion noise production by turbulent flames in terms of randomly distributed acoustic monopoles produced by turbulent mixing of products and reactants, none is able to predict the sound pressure in the acoustic farfield of a practical burner because of the lack of a proven model which relates the combustion noise source strenght at a given frequency to the design and operating parameters of the burner. Recommendations are given for establishing a benchmark-quality data base needed to support the development of such a model.

Mahan, J. R.↗
NASA NTRS1984

A review of chevron-notched fracture specimens

The historical development of chevron notched fracture specimens is reviewed. Stress intensity factors and load line displacement solutions proposed for some of these specimens are compared. The original bend bar configurations up to the present day short rod and bar specimens are reviewed. The results of an analytical round robin that was conducted on chevron-notched specimens are presented. In the round robin, stress-intensity factors for either the chevron notched round rod or square bar specimens were calculated. The consensus stress intensity factor (compliance) solution for these specimens is assessed. The stress intensity factor solutions proposed for three and four point bend chevron notched specimens are reviewed.

Newman, J. C., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Laser velocimetry in the low-speed wind tunnels at Ames Research Center

The historical development of laser velocimetry and its application to low-speed (less than 100 m/sec) aerodynamic flows in the subsonic wind tunnels at Ames Research Center is reviewed. A fully three-dimensional velocimeter for the Ames 7- by 10-Foot Wind Tunnel is described, and its capabilities are presented through sample data from a recent experiment. Finally, a long-range (2.6 to 10 m) velocimeter that is designed to be installed within the test section of the Ames 40- by 80-Foot Wind Tunnel is described and sample data are presented.

Orloff, K. L.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Flight testing of unique aircraft configurations

Some historical developments of flight testing of unique aircraft configurations by NASA and the military sector are documented. Several test aircraft are outlined including the M2-F1 (which was the first Space Shuttle concept ever demonstrated, and contributed to the present design), the X-15, the Flying Wing, the Lunar Landing Research Vehicle, the Oblique Wing Research Aircraft, and the Space Shuttle Enterprise. Future test aircraft such as the forward swept wing X-29A Advanced Technology Demonstrator Aircraft, and the X-Wing vehicle are also mentioned. It is noted that the logical preliminary to flight testing is flight simulation, and that flight testing itself is the vital final component of the development, and seems to be the most direct approach to aircraft evaluations.

Painter, W. D.↗
NASA NTRS1985

History, design and performance of the space shuttle hazardous gas detection system

The Hazardous Gas Detection System (HGDS) is designed to detect leaks hich could result in pre-launch or in-flight fires or explosions resulting from the presence of cryogenic rocket propellants. The historical development, design, and performance of the HGDS is discussed. Data for response time, detection limits, accuracy, and drift are presented. Finally, present and future applications are discussed, and some general conclusions are drawn.

Helms, W. R.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Space research in the era of the space station

The historical development of U.S. space technology is examined as a basis for future programs planned in the field of astrophysics, meteorological and land sciences, and planetary exploration. The background of the NASA space station project is described, as well as other current programs: Voyager II for Uranus and Neptune exploration, Galileo mission for sending probes into the Jovian atmosphere, Venus Radar Mapper, Mars Geochemistry and Climatology Orbiter, and the International Solar Polar mission. Recent advances in in-orbit assembly, refurbishment and repairs are discussed through the example of the Solar Maximum mission spacecraft repair in 1984 and the use of the RMS tool. The U.S. space observatory project with a 20-meter reflector telescope, currently in the early definition stage, is also discussed. Finally, the Soviet Salyut and Soyuz missions, together with the Soviet Union's study of long term flight conditions are mentioned as possible comparison with the NASA work.

Frost, K. J.↗