Date: Fri, 5 Mar 93 05:17:59 From: Space Digest maintainer Reply-To: Space-request@isu.isunet.edu Subject: Space Digest V16 #276 To: Space Digest Readers Precedence: bulk Space Digest Fri, 5 Mar 93 Volume 16 : Issue 276 Today's Topics: Alternative space station design Apollo Moon Missions ? Fallen Angels Getting people into S Low Earth Orbit in a Mars Blimp? NASP (was Re: Canadian SS Spy Sats (Was: Are La (2 msgs) Supernova may have caused huge void around solar system Welcome to the Space Digest!! Please send your messages to "space@isu.isunet.edu", and (un)subscription requests of the form "Subscribe Space " to one of these addresses: listserv@uga (BITNET), rice::boyle (SPAN/NSInet), utadnx::utspan::rice::boyle (THENET), or space-REQUEST@isu.isunet.edu (Internet). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 4 Mar 93 20:34:37 GMT From: Josh Hopkins Subject: Alternative space station design Newsgroups: sci.space gary@ke4zv.uucp (Gary Coffman) writes: >In article <1993Mar3.194542.5295@aio.jsc.nasa.gov> Dr. Norman J. LaFave writes: >> >>The U.S.has had 6 RTG re-entries with not one leak. The USSR >>had one rupture in Canada, but it was found to have insufficient >>shielding. The safety issue is one of perception. >The Canadian re-entry was a *reactor* not an RTG. Much nastier. Numerous people have pointed this out, but nobody has taken issue with the claim of 6 reentries. I'm aware of only three relevant spacecraft failures, of which one wasn't a reentry and one "leaked successfully." Can someone explain what the other three were, or alternatively, reassure me that I'm not senile? -- Josh Hopkins jbh55289@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu You only live once. But if you live it right, once is enough. In memoria, WDH ------------------------------ Date: 4 Mar 93 07:44:00 GMT From: Roland Dobbins Subject: Apollo Moon Missions ? Newsgroups: sci.space TT> TT>From: tjt@Jpl.Nasa.Gov (Tim Thompson) TT>Newsgroups: sci.space TT>Subject: Apollo Moon Missions ? TT>Date: 25 Feb 1993 01:23:36 GMT TT>Message-ID: <1mh72oINNdu8@elroy.jpl.nasa.gov> TT>Reply-To: tjt@Jpl.Nasa.Gov TT> TT> I am ignorant, I admit it. My memory has failed. Can someone ref TT>tired brain cells, and tell me (us) which Apollo mission to the Moo TT>last one? There couldn't have been too many. TT> TT> Mille Mercis TT> TT>--- TT>------------------------------------------------------------ TT>Timothy J. Thompson, Earth and Space Sciences Division, JPL. TT>Assistant Administrator, Division Science Computing Network. TT>Secretary, Los Angeles Astronomical Society. TT>Member, BOD, Mount Wilson Observatory Association. TT> TT>INTERnet/BITnet: tjt@scn1.jpl.nasa.gov TT>NSI/DECnet: jplsc8::tim TT>SCREAMnet: YO!! TIM!! TT>GPSnet: 118:10:22.85 W by 34:11:58.27 N TT> Apollo 17. I believe that Gene Cernan was the last human to walk on the surface of the Moon. Missions were planned through Apollo 21, but funding was cut due to Vietnam, etc. --- . Orator V1.13 . [Windows Qwk Reader Unregistered Evaluation Copy] ------------------------------ Date: 4 Mar 93 07:44:00 GMT From: Roland Dobbins Subject: Fallen Angels Newsgroups: sci.space FN> FN>From: m0102@tnc.UUCP (FRANK NEY) FN>Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.energy,rec.arts.sf.fandom FN>Subject: Fallen Angels FN>Message-ID: <2001@tnc.UUCP> FN>Date: 25 Feb 93 13:01:26 GMT FN>Reply-To: m0102@tnc.UUCP (FRANK NEY) FN>Followup-To: sci.space FN> FN>In the SF book 'Fallen Angels' by Larry Niven & others, a launch FN>vehicle named PHOENIX was described. In the afterward, it was clai FN>that such a launch vehicle (SSTO/VTOL) could be build for $50M-200M FN> FN>Anyone have information on the design of this critter? FN> FN>The story itself has much to recommend it and I would urge others t FN>read it. It describes the story of two astronauts shot down over t FN>US, after the turn of the century where the greens and the politica FN>(in-)correct have taken over. FN> FN>The astronauts are rescued and returned to their space station (usi FN>PHOENIX prototype) through the efforts of SF Fandom and the SCA. V FN>entertaining and quite thought-provoking. FN> FN>Frank Ney N4ZHG EMT-A NRA ILA GOA CCRTKBA "M-O-U-S-E" FN>Commandant and Acting President, Northern Virginia Free Militia FN>Send e-mail for an application and more information FN>---------------------------------------------------------------- FN>"Whether the authorities be invaders or merely local tyrants, the FN>effect of such [gun] laws is to place the individual at the mercy o FN>the state, unable to resist." FN> - Robert Heinlein, in a 1949 letter concerning "Red Planet" FN>-- FN>The Next Challenge - Public Access Unix in Northern Va. - Washingto FN>703-803-0391 To log in for trial and account info. _Fallen Angels_ is by Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle, and Steven Barnes. Niven and Pournelle have done many many other books together, such as _Footfall_, _The Mote in God's Eye_, _The Gripping Hand_, etc. They also formed the Citizens' Advisory Council on National S[ace Policy, which sold Ronald Reagan on the idea of SDI. Phoenix is the brainchild of Gary Hudson, who appeared as himself in the book. He can be reaced on BIX as "ghudson". --- . Orator V1.13 . [Windows Qwk Reader Unregistered Evaluation Copy] ------------------------------ Date: 4 Mar 93 07:44:00 GMT From: Roland Dobbins Subject: Getting people into S Newsgroups: sci.space JL>Could that be the vehicle commonly called the flying Bumble Bee, wh JL>clai to fame in the ordinary world is the vehicle that opened the s JL>and each episode of the six million dollar man. If I recall correct JL>was aeronautically considered to be unflyable, but flew anyway and JL>for a while touted as a great instrument for flight to and from low JL>orbit. It finally crashed on descent when it touched down and did a JL>up unfortunately a Helo was in the way and the two collided as the JL>goes. I think That its prototypes and other s are still on display JL>the yearly aeronautical show at Edwards airforce base. As I recall, that particular lifting body was called the HL-10, and it was most certainly _not_ designed *not* to fly . . . . --- . Orator V1.13 . [Windows Qwk Reader Unregistered Evaluation Copy] ------------------------------ Date: 4 Mar 93 19:31:29 GMT From: INNES MATTHEW Subject: Low Earth Orbit in a Mars Blimp? Newsgroups: sci.space In article <1993Mar4.043348.7894@ke4zv.uucp> gary@ke4zv.UUCP (Gary Coffman) writes: >I said roughly the same thing Henry, but now I'm wondering. Is a supersonic >blimp possible? Might be an interesting civil transport design, a VTOL SST. I would think that it's probably not possible; not with the materials we have now, and not on this planet. The big problem, assuming you already have a power source capable of pushing a barn door at Mach1, is to keep the nose from caving in. This is already a problem with the (fairly low) speeds used now. Reinforcing the nose enough to keep it rigid would probably make the craft far too heavy. Also, the turbulence experienced in passing the sound barrier would, I think, be enough to do in any LTA we could build. I'd still love to see one, though... -- Matt Innes ------------------------------ Date: 4 Mar 93 07:44:00 GMT From: Roland Dobbins Subject: NASP (was Re: Canadian SS Newsgroups: sci.space CO> CO>From: C.O.EGALON@LARC.NASA.GOV (CLAUDIO OLIVEIRA EGALON) CO>Newsgroups: sci.space CO>Subject: NASP (was Re: Canadian SSF effort ?? ) CO>Date: 20 Feb 1993 19:44:50 GMT CO>Message-ID: <1m61niINNfth@rave.larc.nasa.gov> CO>Reply-To: C.O.EGALON@LARC.NASA.GOV (CLAUDIO OLIVEIRA EGALON) CO> CO>> Aerospace Daily also reports that NASA research CO>> on advanced subsonic and supersonic transport aircraft would CO>> get a big increase under Clinton's budget plan, with $550 CO>> million more programmed in fiscal years 1994-97, and another CO>> $267 million scheduled for FY '98. CO> CO>What about NASP??? CO> CO> Errr . . . that _is_ NASP. It's SSX I'm worried about . . . --- . Orator V1.13 . [Windows Qwk Reader Unregistered Evaluation Copy] ------------------------------ Date: 4 Mar 93 07:44:00 GMT From: Roland Dobbins Subject: Spy Sats (Was: Are La Newsgroups: sci.space DA> DA>Newsgroups: sci.space DA>From: dnadams@nyx.cs.du.edu (Dean Adams) DA>Subject: Re: Spy Sats (Was: Are La DA>Message-ID: <1993Feb23.113753.178@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> DA>Date: Tue, 23 Feb 93 11:37:53 GMT DA> DA>In article <13628.409.uupcb@the-matrix.com> roland.dobbins@the-matr DA>>DA>That report has been around a while... DoD's GROUND based trac DA>>DA>were certainly used and perhaps even one of their airborne plat DA>>DA>it may just be the press jumping to conclusions to think any sa DA>>DA>involved. KH-11 orbits are not all that much higher than the s DA>>DA>would make an intercept pretty tight, and besides the optics ar DA>> DA>>KH-11 is neither the latest nor the greatest "real-time" platform DA>> DA> DA>The ADVANCED KH-11 is... we currently have 2-3 of them up. DA> DA>OR, are you talking about Lacrosse or Aurora? DA> Yes, among others . . . Although those two are primarily ELINT/SIGINT. --- . Orator V1.13 . [Windows Qwk Reader Unregistered Evaluation Copy] ------------------------------ Date: 4 Mar 93 07:44:00 GMT From: Roland Dobbins Subject: Spy Sats (Was: Are La Newsgroups: sci.space DA>Actually, I thought they had most of the basic stuff down pretty we DA>although some was certainly exaggerated at least a bit. Advanced K DA>are supposed to have "near real time" imaging capability, but that DA>does not translate into the continuous view they portrayed. The BI DA>however was that their operation was at NIGHT, and these satellites DA>placed into sun-synchronous polar orbits to optimize their daylight DA>I do not believe they have a significant nighttime imaging capabili DA> ........ DA>That report has been around a while... DoD's GROUND based tracking DA>were certainly used and perhaps even one of their airborne platform DA>it may just be the press jumping to conclusions to think any satell DA>involved. KH-11 orbits are not all that much higher than the shutt DA>would make an intercept pretty tight, and besides the optics are ob KH-11 is neither the latest nor the greatest "real-time" platform up there. --- . Orator V1.13 . [Windows Qwk Reader Unregistered Evaluation Copy] ------------------------------ Date: 4 Mar 93 14:12:06 GMT From: Del Cotter Subject: Supernova may have caused huge void around solar system Newsgroups: sci.space tes@motif.jsc.nasa.gov. (Thomas E. Smith) writes: >> Now, researchers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, >>Greenbelt, Md., say evidence suggests it was formed by the >>supernova or explosion of a star known as Geminga about 340,000 >>years ago. > > Where did this star that no one has seen for hundreds of thousands of >years get its name? I understood it's a contraction of GEMINi GAmma-ray source. I could be wrong. -- ',' ' ',',' | | ',' ' ',',' ', ,',' | Del Cotter mt90dac@brunel.ac.uk | ', ,',' ',' | | ',' ------------------------------ End of Space Digest Volume 16 : Issue 276 ------------------------------