Return-path: X-Andrew-Authenticated-as: 7997;andrew.cmu.edu;Ted Anderson Received: from corsica.andrew.cmu.edu via trymail for +dist+/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/usr1/ota/space/space.dl@andrew.cmu.edu (->+dist+/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/usr1/ota/space/space.dl) (->ota+space.digests) ID ; Thu, 15 Jun 89 05:16:22 -0400 (EDT) Message-ID: <4YZrDOG00UkVM70E5s@andrew.cmu.edu> Reply-To: space+@Andrew.CMU.EDU From: space-request+@Andrew.CMU.EDU To: space+@Andrew.CMU.EDU Date: Thu, 15 Jun 89 05:16:11 -0400 (EDT) Subject: SPACE Digest V9 #487 SPACE Digest Volume 9 : Issue 487 Today's Topics: Re: Space Station Computer System Committee On Peaceful Uses of Outer Space Re: Kremlin reveals space budget China, Japan and Europe Space Programs - on PBS 6/13 and 6/20 September Georgia Star Party and SERAL Convention Re: Getting news about China from space ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 13 Jun 89 07:42:24 GMT From: vsi1!daver!lynx!neal@apple.com (Neal Woodall) Subject: Re: Space Station Computer System In article V131Q5CG@UBVMSC.CC.BUFFALO.EDU (John Taylor) writes: >Why PS/2's? Why the Micro Channel bus in particular? If they want to >use PC's, why not the (vastly superior) Apple Mac? Oh well... :( You are joking, right? While I am no fan of the IBM PC's and PS's, calling the Mac a "superior" machine is kind of like saying that an amoeba is superior to a bacteria. What is it that you think makes the Mac so superior to the IBM? OK, so the Motorola 68030 is a better processor than the 80386 (IMHO)...that doesn't make the Mac a "superior" machine.... Maybe things have changed since the last time I looked inside a Mac, but back then, they did not even have a DMA controler!!! They used programed I/O to move data from the disk to memory!!! Yuck! This is what I now like to refer to as "spin lock" (thanks, Kendall, for this great new term!). The only thing that makes the Mac any good at all is the Mac human interface, this will probably not be of any consequence for the space station software. Besides, as others on the net have pointed out, the space station machines are NOT PS 2's, but rather are a new design based on Intel 80386 chips and the micro channel bus. Perhaps the designers will have enough common sense to put a few DMA channels on the thing..... One thing I am kind of hazy on: what are the relative merits of the micro channel vs. the NuBus? I am a VME man myself, so perhaps one of you "gurus" out there could post some "pros and cons" of the two. Neal I am the NRA! ------------------------------ Date: 13 Jun 89 12:49:05 GMT From: ccnysci!patth@nyu.edu (Patt Haring) Subject: Committee On Peaceful Uses of Outer Space Ported to USENET from UNITEX NETWORK via UNITEX BBS: 201-795-0733 We want ** your ** news bulletins: (FAX: 212-787-1726 : Attention: James Waldron, Ph.D.) or ...!uunet!rutgers!rubbs!unitex To subscribe to the UNITEX mailing list, send your subscription request to: unitex-request@rubbs.UUCP COMMITTEE ON PEACEFUL USES OF OUTER SPACE The Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space continued its general exchange of views this morning, hearing 12 statements. Many representatives spoke of the need to establish a legal framework for the peaceful uses of outer space and the sharing of space benefits with developing countries. Statements were made by Nigeria, Romania, Poland, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Japan, France, Canada, the Netherlands and Cuba. The Committee will meet again at 3 p.m. today to conclude its general exchange of views and take up the issue of ways and means of maintaining outer space for peaceful purposes. Committee Work Programme The Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space met this morning to conclude its general exchange of views. Statements JOHN OBAKPOLOR (Nigeria) said the 1982 United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNISPACE 82) continued to sustain hope in the abundant potential of multilateral co-operation. The work of the Scientific and Technical Sub-Committee attested to the conviction that, given the necessary political will, the United Nations could play a decisive role in securing outer space for peaceful purposes and for the benefit of all mankind. New challenges had been posed by technological achievement, he said. The question of remote sensing of the earth by satellites and the use of nuclear power sources in space represented significant scientific progress in space exploration but were also issues capable of producing dire consequences for the security and environmental interests of many States if not correctly handled. The questions of the delimination of outer space and the utilization of the geostationary orbit were considerations of interest to many States, as were their views about the type of activities being undertaken by spy satellites and military-oriented spacecraft. Greater attention must be focused on those issues. In order to maintain outer space for peaceful use, hostile competition and the arms race in outer space must be eliminated as obstacles to common objectives, and viable peaceful international activities must be devised, broadened and vigorously pursued at multilateral, regional and bilateral levels, he said. Availability of adequate resources for development assistance, especially to the developing nations, and contributions to the Outer Space Affairs Division, were vital ingredients to promote necessary technical training programmes and educational opportunities which, among others, could contribute to multilateral co-operation within the United Nations. The question of remote sensing of the earth by satellites represented an area where international co-operation could be enhanced, he said. By enabling developing countries to benefit directly and fully from the use of remote-sensing technology through access to data reception and products from remote sensing, international co-operation would invariably replace the "current perception of opportunism and remote-sensing brigandage" which commercialization of sensing activities tended to imply on the part of the developed States. Sharing of technologies, experiences and information in that connection would thus promote the goals and objectives of remote sensing. Nigeria was also interested in preventing radioactive contamination of the human environment and outer space by space debris. PAUL GRECU (Romania) said there was growing awareness in the international community of the danger posed by the militarization of outer space; every effort must be made to reverse that phenomenon. All States should contribute to the elimination of the nuclear-arms race, particularly in outer space. An important step towards that end would be the conclusion of an international treaty on the use of outer space exclusively for peaceful purposes, and an agreed legal framework to regulate the problems relating to space vehicles, to protect the environment and avoid accidents. The Committee could play an important role in that process. He said the peaceful use of outer space should benefit all the countries, particularly the developing countries. Romania supported establishment of a world space organization to foster co-operation in practical fields and to assist developing countries in gaining access to the scientific, technological and other applications resulting from space studies. The United Nations should promote co-operation among States, provide experts, programmes and computer assistance to third world countries, organize international scientific meetings and encourage data and information exchange on scientific achievements and their practical applications. Regarding nuclear power sources in outer space, Romania supported elaboration of an international legal instrument to increase security in that area. There was a need to establish a more precise definition of security criteria and rules governing the use of such sources of energy than were provided in International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) norms. The establishment of an outer space delimitation line should not prejudice the interests of States in connection with the protection of their national air space. The geostationary orbit should be used more efficiently, equitably and * Origin: UNITEX --> Toward a United Species (1:107/501) -- unitex - via FidoNet node 1:107/520 UUCP: ...!rutgers!rubbs!unitex ARPA: unitex@rubbs.FIDONET.ORG -- Patt Haring | Vote * YES * for creation of rutgers!cmcl2!ccnysci!patth | misc.headlines.unitex patth@ccnysci.BITNET | email votes to: patth@ccnysci.UUCP ------------------------------ Date: 13 Jun 89 16:29:22 GMT From: rochester!dietz@rutgers.edu (Paul Dietz) Subject: Re: Kremlin reveals space budget In article <14396@bfmny0.UUCP> tneff@bfmny0.UUCP (Tom Neff) writes: >Anyway it's a total straw man to talk about a "Great Red Hope" as if >readers here have all been praying for the Soviets to do something >for us, and now they won't. By "Great Red Hope" I meant the attempts to use the example of the Soviet space program to motivate the US government to spend more on space (like the space station TV ad), and as a "proof" that it is currently worthwhile to put men in space. I didn't mean that the Soviets would actually do something for us. Come now, aren't you hoping for a "Sputnik, the Sequel" to shock the government into spending more on NASA? > Most discussion here treats the massive Soviet space presence as a > commonplace fact, not some kind of "hope." By massive Soviet space presence, do you mean the large number of cosmonauts in orbit right now? Paul F. Dietz dietz@cs.rochester.edu ------------------------------ Date: 13 Jun 89 20:49:15 GMT From: att!mtuxo!tee@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (54317-T.EBERSOLE) Subject: China, Japan and Europe Space Programs - on PBS 6/13 and 6/20 "Innovation," which airs at 9pm on PBS-Thirteen in the NJ-NY area, is showing a 2-part program on the Chinese, Japanese and European space programs, tonight, June 13, and next Tuesday, June 20. Other PBS stations carry Innovation at other times and Channel 13 probably rebroadcasts the show sometime during the week. I would take any optimistic views of the Chinese program with a grain of salt until the current mess in Beijing gets sorted out. It seems likely that any civilian space initiatives will be set back a few years, and that anything spent on space will likely be for military purposes. -- Tim Ebersole ...!att!mtuxo!tee or {allegra,ulysses,mtune,...}!mtuxo!tee ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Jun 89 22:33:33 CDT From: walls%ssl.span@Fedex.Msfc.Nasa.Gov X-St-Vmsmail-To: FEDEX::"space+@andrew.cmu.edu" I wanted to throw in a few comments on the discussion about the computers planned for Space Station Freedom. I didn't have anything to do with the decision, or know much about the planned processors, but maybe I can throw some light on some of the things that have come up. Why not use an off the shelf computer? Because space is very different than a computer room, or even an office desk. There is a lot more free radiation to scramble chips, and although a crash on Earth is often annoying, it can be fatal if it's attached to your air supply (and even more dangerous things!). The closest to "off the shelf" that might be reasonable would be something that DOD uses, which is "rad hard", or at least mil spec. Pretty much all of those are dogs for speed, and about as far from off the shelf as you can get. The 80386 stuff is a leap forward, there. People can at least write some of the code on affordable, off-the-shelf '386 PC's. Note that disk drives have never been fully qualified, so big virtual memory machines are certainly not simple to build. Why not use off-the-shelf unix? Do you want to bet your life Berkley unix won't crash? NASA is pretty fanatic about software verification, which means having source around, another problem. My guess is that the planned flight system involves some kind of Posix compliant OS, preferably government owned, that integrates well with Ada, since everything is supposed to be in Ada. Just a guess. Why so many? A lot of them will be used as distributed controllers. There will be a processor in each experiment rack, just to keep track of power, thermal, life support, and other system parameters, as well as others as needed for experiments. These would normally never be acessed directly by either an astronaut or from the ground. Instead the data would be collected and distributed by yet other processors. The '486 isn't hopeless, either. That would be the logical upgrade, even if no plans are in the works yet. The station will be there for thirty years, so swapping out computer boards along the way is pretty much inevitable. These comments are mine, and probably bear no relationship with the official views of NASA or anybody else. Bryan Walls walls@ssl.msfc.nasa.gov bwalls@nasamail.gov ------------------------------ Date: 13 Jun 89 18:22:38 GMT From: cmpbsps@pyr.gatech.edu (Don Barry) Subject: September Georgia Star Party and SERAL Convention ANNOUNCING The 1989 Georgia Star Party and 1989 SERAL Convention an activity of the Astronomical Society of the Atlantic, the Astronomical League, the Southeast Region of the Astronomical League, and the Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy From 28 September through 1 October, the Astronomical Society of the Atlantic will host the the Georgia Star Party(tm) at the Rock Eagle 4-H Convention center in the dark skies of the Georgia countryside. Activities will include deep-sky observation, special talks by renowned amateur and professional astronomers, workshops on aspects of amateur astronomy, and also an astronomy swap and trade event. Dr. Hal McAlister, president of the International Astronomical Union's Commission on Binary Star Research, will speak at the Saturday convention Banquet. The Business meeting of the Southeast Region of the Astronomical League will also be held. Other speakers and tentative talks are: Dr. Douglas Gies -- "The Case for Black Holes" Dr. Ingemar Furenlid -- "Spectroscopy and What Stars are Made Of" Dr. Bill Bagnuolo -- "A Professional Telescope with Amateur Technology" Mr. Ed Dombrowski -- "The Cosmic Distance Ladder" Mr. Don Barry -- "How to Make a Contribution to Astronomy" (quite a few more are expected) The convention will be held at the Rock Eagle retreat some 50 miles east of Atlanta. The center features 56 cabins on a scenic lake, surrounded by hardwood trees which will be entering autumn foliage. A complete package, including three nights cabin accomodation, eight meals, registration and all events, is available at very reasonable rate -- send mail for more information. All organizations involved are non-profit. The convention begins Thursday September 28 at Noon and ends Sunday, October 1 at 2 p.m. Registration is available at standard rates until 15 August and at a higher rate afterwards. Registration information, scheduling of programs, and other inquiries may be made by electronic mail to cmrfbaa@prism.gatech.edu or by regular mail to Don Barry Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy Georgia State University Atlanta, Georgia 30303 (404) 651-2932 Messages may also be left on the Society's answering machine at (404) 264-0451. If you are an amateur astronomer, this is an event you won't want to miss. We'll see you in September! ------------------------------ Date: 7 Jun 89 14:32:44 GMT From: usc!orion.cf.uci.edu!uci-ics!zardoz!tgate!irsx01!ka3ovk!drilex!axiom!linus!alliant!merk!spdcc!ftp!poopsie!seth@bloom-beacon.mit.edu (Seth D. Hollub) Subject: Re: Getting news about China from space In article <4026@merlin.usc.edu> denniskr@nunki.usc.edu (Dennis Kriz) writes: >... could satellite photos from spacecraft like Spot >make any difference. I mean that's how the networks covered the Chernobyl >accident when it first broke. I doubt that such a satellite could detect >individual tanks but perhaps it could detect masses of them. Maybe it could >detect them deployed by bridges, intersections and the like. Any comments? CNN reported in the last 24-36 hours that the US (govt) had satellite images showing 300K troops in a ring around Bejing. Reportedly this caused the US to encourage anyone who was planning to leave to expedite their travel plans. No source for the images was mentioned, nor were the images shown (not surprised). Spot probably can't detect individual soldiers, but may be able to detect masses of people and things. US platforms can detect individuals. Seth -- "Segments: Just Say No!", "Whadya mean there's no control key?" seth@vax.ftp.com, ...ftp!poopsie!seth, 18 Rindge Av, Camb. Ma, 02140 USA Earth ------------------------------ End of SPACE Digest V9 #487 *******************