Return-path: X-Andrew-Authenticated-as: 7997;andrew.cmu.edu;Ted Anderson Received: from hogtown.andrew.cmu.edu via trymail for +dist+/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/usr11/tm2b/space/space.dl@andrew.cmu.edu (->+dist+/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/usr11/tm2b/space/space.dl) (->ota+space.digests) ID ; Wed, 27 Mar 91 01:40:44 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: Precedence: junk Reply-To: space+@Andrew.CMU.EDU From: space-request+@Andrew.CMU.EDU To: space+@Andrew.CMU.EDU Date: Wed, 27 Mar 91 01:40:39 -0500 (EST) Subject: SPACE Digest V13 #302 SPACE Digest Volume 13 : Issue 302 Today's Topics: Re: Refuting Jules Verne? Shuttle Status for 03/18/91 OSF News Briefing (Forwarded) Re: space news from Feb 4 AW&ST Genome Project talk Safety Panel Reports to NASA (Forwarded) Ulysses Update - 03/22/91 Japan Moon Probes article Administrivia: Submissions to the SPACE Digest/sci.space should be mailed to space+@andrew.cmu.edu. Other mail, esp. [un]subscription requests, should be sent to space-request+@andrew.cmu.edu, or, if urgent, to tm2b+@andrew.cmu.edu ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 19 Mar 91 01:04:27 GMT From: voder!pyramid!ctnews!unix386!ward@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Ward Griffiths) Subject: Re: Refuting Jules Verne? JEWELLLW@PURCCVM.BITNET writes: >Does anyone know of a solid (read not UFO-logy) work done on the physics >of Jules Verne's man-launching cannon? I'm interested in the "g"s that >the original crew would have experienced and just how far off the target >the old boy was. > I've guessed that the required initial thrust would have been way too >much for a human to survive? Well, it's been a while since I read the book. Like somewhere around twenty years. So it's possible that the one figure I remember, the depth of the cannon, is incorrect. Fine, take it from me that an order of magnitude probably wouldn't make enough difference to matter. Depth of cannon: 900 feet. I'll round this up to 275 meters. Desired velocity: Close enough to 25,000 miles/hour as makes little difference. Round that down to 11,000 meters/second. Using the standard formulae of V=AT and D=.5AT^2, the back of my envelope gives an average acceleration prior to muzzle ejection at 220,000 meters/seconds^2, with a total time in the cannon of .05 seconds. This gives an acceleration on the order of 22,000 times the surface gravitational acceleration that makes my chiropractor able to afford more Los Angeles County real estate than I can. I doubt that any of the various high-gee tricks found in modern speculation, such as immersion in oxygenated water, would mitigate this enough to let an astronaut survive. It's very possible I slipped a decimal somewhere, but this should be within an order of magnitude or so. I did round earth gravitational acceleration to 10 m/sec^2, since I really hate arithmetic. -- Ward Griffiths, Unisys NCG aka Convergent Technologies The people that make Unisys' official opinions get paid more. A LOT more. =========================================================================== To Hell with "Only One Earth"! Try "At Least One Solar System"! "... the device every conqueror, yes every altruistic liberator should be required to wear on his shield ... is a little girl and her kitten, at ground zero." Captain Sir Dominic Flandry ------------------------------ Date: 18 Mar 91 23:37:52 GMT From: agate!bionet!uwm.edu!caen!sdd.hp.com!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov!baalke@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Ron Baalke) Subject: Shuttle Status for 03/18/91 KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, MAR. 18, 1991 - 10 a.m. STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-A LAUNCH - APRIL WORK IN PROGRESS: - Helium signature test of three main engines and main propulsion system. - Preparations for the Countdown Demonstration Test. WORK COMPLETED: - Installation of the Gamma Ray Observatory payload into Atlantis's payload bay on Sunday. - Gimbal test of the right orbital maneuvering system engine. - Hot fire of the no. 3 auxiliary power unit. WORK SCHEDULED: - Countdown Demonstration Test March 19-20. - Launch Readiness Review March 21. STS-39/DoD - DISCOVERY (OV 103) - OPF BAY 2 LAUNCH - LATE APRIL, EARLY MAY WORK IN PROGRESS: - Replacement of the external tank door hinge housings with modified beefed up housings from Columbia. - Thermal protection system operations. WORK COMPLETED: - Removal of the external tank door hinge housings on Saturday. STS-40/SPACELAB LIFE SCIENCES 1 - COLUMBIA (OV 102) - OPF BAY 1 LAUNCH - MAY WORK IN PROGRESS: - Tests of the power reactant storage and distribution system. - Potable water servicing. - Auxiliary power unit water servicing. - Orbital maneuvering system pod functional tests. - Water spray boiler leak and functional test. - Thermal protection system operations. WORK SCHEDULED: - Installation of the three main engines pending weather. WORK COMPLETED: - Connection of the no. 2 auxiliary power unit fuel line. ___ _____ ___ /_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | baalke@mars.jpl.nasa.gov | | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab | ___| | | | |__) |/ | | |___ M/S 301-355 | Change is constant. /___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | |_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ | ------------------------------ Date: 18 Mar 91 23:40:55 GMT From: agate!bionet!uwm.edu!caen!sdd.hp.com!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov!baalke@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Ron Baalke) Subject: OSF News Briefing (Forwarded) N91-18 MONTHLY SPACE FLIGHT BRIEFING SET FOR MARCH 20 The Office of Space Flight monthly press briefing will take place Wednesday, March 20, from 11:30 to 1:30 p.m. EST. The briefing will be held in Room 425, NASA building 10-B, 600 Independence Ave., S.W. Participating in the briefing will be Dr. William Lenoir, Associate Administrator for Space Flight; Robert Crippen, Director, Space Shuttle; and Richard Kohrs, Director, Space Station Freedom. ___ _____ ___ /_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | baalke@mars.jpl.nasa.gov | | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab | ___| | | | |__) |/ | | |___ M/S 301-355 | Change is constant. /___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | |_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ | ------------------------------ Date: 14 Mar 91 07:00:00 GMT From: agate!linus!philabs!ttidca!quad1!bohica!mcws!p0.f851.n102.z1.fidonet.org!Greg.Titus@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Greg Titus) Subject: Re: space news from Feb 4 AW&ST From: gbt@sequoia.cray.com (Greg Titus) Path: wciu!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!sdd.hp.com!spool.mu.edu!uunet!timbuk!sequoia!gbt Newsgroups: sci.space Subject: Re: space news from Feb 4 AW&ST Message-ID: <161740.20828@timbuk.cray.com> Date: 13 Mar 91 23:00:21 GMT In article dlbres10@pc.usl.edu (Fraering Philip) writes: >In article <1991Mar13.043442.3045@zoo.toronto.edu> henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer) writes: > >>Martin Marietta and Bechtel are scrambling to get pad 40 at the Cape >>rebuilt in time for the Mars Observer launch in Sept 1992. > >What sort of other work does Bechtel do in the aerospace field? ... >... Do they mainly do launch complex ^^^^^^^ >construction, or what? ^^^^^^^^^^^^ > Missed it by one word. ;-) They do complex construction. greg -- -------------------------------------------------------------- Greg Titus (gbt@zia.cray.com) Compiler Group (Ada) Cray Research, Inc. Santa Fe, NM Opinions expressed herein (such as they are) are purely my own. -- : Greg Titus - via FidoNet node 1:102/851 (818)352-2993 : ARPA/INTERNET: Greg.Titus@p0.f851.n102.z1.fidonet.org : UUCP: ...!{elroy!bohica,elroy!wciu,cit-vax!wciu}!mcws!851.0!Greg.Titus : Compu$erve: >internet:Greg.Titus@p0.f851.n102.z1.fidonet.org ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Mar 91 19:05:39 EST From: John Roberts Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are those of the sender and do not reflect NIST policy or agreement. Subject: Genome Project talk [The following is space-related only in the context that recent discussions have implied that the DOE labs must be considered useless for anything except nuclear physics and plasma dynamics, so items like LLNL's Great Exploration proposal can be dismissed out of hand. Critics have similarly argued that LANL doesn't know anything about biology, and thus should keep out of the human genome project. I happen to feel that astonishingly enough, talented people often have or can develop talent in more than one area, and that we should take breakthroughs where we can find them, and not be so sensitive about "traditional" roles. Genome mapping is also of potential use for space medicine, Keith Henson's medical nanomachines, etc. - JWR] ............................................................................ NIST COLLOQUIUM SERIES Rapid DNA Sequencing by Single Molecule Detection Richard A. Keller Los Alamos National Laboratory Friday, March 22, 1991, 10:30 a.m. Green Auditorium, Administration Building (NIST, Gaithersburg, MD) Sequencing the human genome requires listing in order the four different bases that make up DNA, all 3 billion of them. The ability to sequence large fragments of the DNA molecule... is a major need in DNA mapping. Dr. Keller, a senior scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory, is developing a rapid technique to sequence 40kb or larger fragments of DNA at a rate of 100 to 1000 bases per second. The approach relies on fluorescent labeling of the bases in a single fragment of DNA and detection by fluorescence. Dr. Keller will describe this new technique and give an overview of the genome project from the DOE perspective. [Note: increased security measures still in effect, so presumably no admission without prior approval.] John Roberts roberts@cmr.ncsl.nist.gov ------------------------------ Date: 20 Mar 91 01:14:49 GMT From: elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov!baalke@decwrl.dec.com (Ron Baalke) Subject: Safety Panel Reports to NASA (Forwarded) Dwayne C. Brown Headquarters, Washington, D.C. March 20, 1991 (Phone: 202/453-8956) N91-19 AEROSPACE SAFETY ADVISORY PANEL TO PRESENT REPORT TO NASA The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP) will present its annual report to NASA Administrator Richard H. Truly on March 22, 1991, in room 7002, NASA Headquarters, 400 Maryland Ave., S.W., Washington, D.C. at 1:30 p.m. EST. The ASAP was established in the aftermath of the Apollo Command and Service Module spacecraft fire, Jan. 27, 1967. Shortly thereafter, Congress enacted legislation to establish the ASAP as a senior advisory committee to NASA. The panel reviews, evaluates and advises the NASA Administrator on present and future NASA programs and activities. Priority is given to programs that involve the safety of manned flight. Copies of the ASAP report will be distributed at the meeting and will be available in the NASA Headquarters Newsroom (202/453-8400). ___ _____ ___ /_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | baalke@mars.jpl.nasa.gov | | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab | ___| | | | |__) |/ | | |___ M/S 301-355 | Change is constant. /___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | |_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ | ------------------------------ Date: 22 Mar 91 17:33:23 GMT From: magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov!baalke@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu (Ron Baalke) Subject: Ulysses Update - 03/22/91 ULYSSES STATUS REPORT March 22, 1991 Today, the Ulysses spacecraft is approximately 306 million kilometers (190 million miles) from Earth, traveling at a heliocentric velocity of 90,000 kilometers per hour (55,800 miles per hour). By April 14, the spacecraft will have completed half of its journey to Jupiter. Ulysses is approximately 429 million kilometers (267 million miles) away from the giant planet. Ulysses continued on a smooth course through the ecliptic plane this week with routine spacecraft operations and science observations. Mission controllers performed a routine precession maneuver yesterday to improve the Earth-pointing of the spacecraft's High Gain Antenna. The spacecraft remains in good condition. No recurrence of the wobble that was caused by uneven solar heating of the axial boom has been detected. Controllers do not expect a recurrence of the motion until 1994, when the spacecraft is in the region of the sun's south pole. ___ _____ ___ /_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | baalke@mars.jpl.nasa.gov | | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab | ___| | | | |__) |/ | | |___ M/S 301-355 | Change is constant. /___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | |_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ | ------------------------------ Date: 22 Mar 91 07:29:49 GMT From: magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov!baalke@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu (Ron Baalke) Subject: Japan Moon Probes article Washington Times -- 3/21/91 "Japan To Send Probes to Surface of Moon" "Japan endorsed yesterday plans to send a satellite into orbit around the moon and drop probes to study the genesis of 'moon quakes.'" The Times says the $100 million mission would make the Japanese the third group to land a probe on the moon, after the U.S. and the Soviet Union. The story says the probes will be ready in Spring, 1996. ___ _____ ___ /_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | baalke@mars.jpl.nasa.gov | | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab | ___| | | | |__) |/ | | |___ M/S 301-355 | Change is constant. /___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | |_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ | ------------------------------ End of SPACE Digest V13 #302 *******************