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Butler, G.

Publications and source records attributed to Butler, G..

Summary presentation to the Artificial Gravity Panel

General requirements for artificial gravity under a wide range of circumstances are considered. Appropriate or feasible ways of filling these requirements are explored with the focus on using tethers. The orbiter itself does not appear to be a good platform for tether research and development. Therefore, tethers that would be attached to space stations are emphasized. However, orbiter demonstrations and external tank demonstrations might be useful in exploring and developing tether operations prior to the space station. The general recommendations include requirements of artificial gravity in medicine and physiology, technology, microgravity sciences, habitability, operations in space, and what artificial gravity would mean to operations in space.

Butler, G.↗

Report of the Artificial Gravity Panel

Tethers can be embodied into NASA's future space station development both as an experimental facility and as a technology for systems enhancement. Early action should be taken to ensure that the basic tether system be baselined into the initial space station architecture and that further concept studies be arranged to embody this basic capability. Space station tethered satellite operations would be continuous, subject to need and occasional association with local spacecraft operations in the proximity of the space station. The use of the tether principles would be further explored for attitude control and/or attitude stabilization damping, and proximity operations. For new tether uses, action should be taken to look at the tether for holding storage uses, proximity operations, and for extension of the capabilities of attached payloads systems. These applications should emphasize dynamic off-vertical tethers, rapid deployment, active-steered tethers, tether-boom combinations, and other concepts.

Butler, G.↗