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System is capable of detecting ultraviolet light emitted by match size flame at distance of 10 ft. System is not affected by high energy or particulate radiation and is therefore particularly suited for applications around nuclear plants and X-ray equipment.
A new class of polymers is provided, namely, poly (diarylsiloxy) arylazines. These novel polymers have a basic chemical composition which has the property of stabilizing the optical and physical properties of the polymer against the degradative effect of ultraviolet light and high temperatures. This stabilization occurs at wavelengths including those shorter than found on the surface of the earth and in the absence or presence of oxygen, making the polymers useful for high performance coating applications in extraterrestrial space as well as similar applications in terrestrial service. The invention also provides novel aromatic azines which are useful in the preparation of polymers such as those described.
The 1956, 1971, and 1973 major dust storms on Mars affected the apparent contrast and extent of the northern polar hood. A survey of photography from seven apparitions indicates that this seasonal feature is consistently prominent and identified in the absence of major storms throughout half of the Martian year. During the 1956 dust storm, the hood was not seen for a period of over one month on Lowell photographs. The effects of a storm are also seen in 1971 International Planetary Patrol photographs; the hood quickly became faint and tenuous even in ultraviolet light, which normally shows it as very bright. Patrol photographs of 1973 cover the complete progression from a prominent and extensive hood before the storm, to an intermittent disappearance at the height of the storm, to the subsequent return of a normal hood as the storm died out.
A review is presented of the current state of knowledge concerning the emitted flux distributions of Ap stars and their ultraviolet photometric variability especially as it relates to photometric and spectrum variability observed in the visible. A table of Ap stars observed in the ultraviolet from space vehicles is presented along with a graph which shows the observed flux distributions, normalized to unity flux at 3320 A, for the Si star theta Aur and for the normal stars 134 Tau and gamma UMa. Attention is given to ultraviolet color indices and ultraviolet light curves for variable Ap stars.
Spectral scans of the Ap star Epsilon UMa made with the Copernicus satellite show strong line blanketing from profuse Cr II and Fe II lines. In the spectral region covering 1900 to 3000 A, about 500 lines are present which suppress the apparent continuum by at least 15-30%. An accurate line-identification list is compiled showing Eu II present in addition to Mn II and Ni II. The identification of Eu II, however, rests on very stringent identification limits for Fe II. If these are relaxed, the existence of Eu II is dubious. There are no broad features in this spectral region which would suggest strong photoionization discontinuities by metals, but one feature near 2137 A might contain the photoionization edge due to Cr I 5S lying 0.94 eV above the ground level. However, a significant correlation between the line-blanketing strength and the amplitude of the OAO-2 ultraviolet light curves was found such that both monotonically increase in the same proportion toward shorter wavelengths. This gives additional strength to the suggestion that variations in the metal line-blanketing cause the observed photometric variations.
The paper examines the role and relative contributions of different forms of energy to the synthesis of amino acids and other organic compounds on the primitive earth and in the solar nebula. Attention is directed mainly to the activation steps and formation of reactive intermediate compounds. Electric discharges appear to be not only the most efficient energy for amino acid synthesis but also yield a mixture of amino acids that is qualitatively and quantitatively the same as that found in the Murchison carbonaceous chondrite. Ultraviolet light is likely to have played a major role in prebiotic synthesis. The reaction of CO plus H2 plus NH3 on the surface of a Fischer-Tropsch catalyst produces reactive intermediates which lead to amino acids and other organic compounds in a much less efficient way than electric discharges.
Long-term survivability of photovoltaic arrays and components in terrestrial environments will require development of adequate protective systems. Highly considered are polymeric encapsulants, a method which was successfully employed in space and aerospace applications to protect critical electrical circuitry. To be employable, however, the polymer encapsulants must themselves be chemically and mechanically resistant to failure in terrestrial service. Chemical resistance includes stability to the degrading actions of ultraviolet light, oxygen, moisture and elevated temperatures in sun rich areas. Programs are underway to identify and develop chemically stable encapsulant candidates. Chemical considerations aside, mechanical failures of the encapsulants must also be avoided in array designs. This paper discusses design considerations for avoiding mechanical failures of polymeric encapsulants, with emphasis on biaxial properties, thermal fatigue, and anisotropy and nonhomogeneity of material properties. The general principles to be presented evolved from actual failures of polymeric materials in engineering applications. Also included are brief remarks on the permeability of polymer materials to atmospheric gases.
The results of two of the three biology experiments carried out on the Viking Mars landers have been simulated. The mixture of organic compounds labeled with carbon-14 used on Mars released carbon dioxide containing carbon-14 when reacted with a simulated Martian surface and atmosphere exposed to ultraviolet light (labeled release experiment). Oxygen was released when metal peroxides or superoxides were treated with water (gas exchange experiment). The simulations suggest that the results of these two Viking experiments can be explained on the basis of reactions of the Martian surface and atmosphere.
The glass resins were deposited by several techniques on 200 micron thick cells and on 50 microns thick wafers. The covered cells were exposed to ultraviolet light in vacuum to an intensity of 10 UV energy-equivalent solar constants at air mass zero for 728 hr. The exposure was followed by a single long thermal cycle from ambient temperature to -150 C. Visual inspection of the samples indicated that all samples had darkened to varying degrees. The loss in short-circuit current was found to range from 8 to 24%, depending on the resin formulation. In another test over 40 glass resin-coated silicon wafers withstood 15 thermal cycles from 100 to-196 C in one or more of the thicknesses tested. Several of the resin-coated wafers were tested at 65 C and 90% relative humidity for 170 hr. No change in physical appearance was detected.
Experiments were designed and performed on silicon solar cells covered with heat-bonded FEP-A in an effort to explain the rapid degeneration of open-circuit voltage and maximum power observered on cells of this type included in an experiment on the ATS-6 spacecraft. Solar cells were exposed to ultraviolet light in vacuum at temperatures ranging from 30 to 105 C. The samples were then subjected to thermal cycling from 130 to -130 C. Inspection following irradiation indicated that all the covers remained physically intact. However, during the temperature cycling heat-bonded covers showed cracking. The test showed that heat-bonded FEP-A covers embrittle during UV exposure and the embrittlement is dependent upon sample temperature during irradiation. The results of the experiment suggest a probable mechanism for the degradation of the FEP-A cells on ATS-6.
Silicon solar cells covered with FEP-A were irradiated in vacuum with ultraviolet light and then subjected to thermal cycling. These accelerated laboratory conditions are believed to be equivalent to those experienced by FEP-A covered cells on the ATS-6 spacecraft and the results indicate a probable mechanism for the faster degradation of the FEP-A covered cells. Heat-bonded FEP-A covers apparently embrittle when exposed to four months of space UV radiation at elevated temperatures, and crack when subjected to thermal cycling during the eclipse period. Low energy proton radiation can then penetrate to the junction of the cell causing degradation of the open circuit voltage and maximum power to occur. An alternate method of application of FEP-A, such as with adhesives, may prevent such cracking.
A new intense ultraviolet light source has been developed from an array of hypocycloidal pinch (HCP) devices. The basic unit of the array is constructed with three disk electrodes and is capable of producing dense plasmas at temperatures up to 10,000,000 K. Very high input power levels to the array are possible without significantly shortening its useful life, in strong contrast with conventional xenon flashlamps. The new light source, when operated with Ar and Xe gas mixtures at high pressures (approximately 5 x 10 to the 4th Pa), produced a light output of over 100 MW in the near-UV spectral range and successfully pumped an iodine photodissociation laser at 1.315 microns. A xenon recombination laser at 2.027 microns was also pumped in the HCP array.
Microscopic cracks or flaws in surface of a workpiece are often detected with fluorescent dye. Dye is spread over surface to be inspected and then washed off. When piece is viewed under ultraviolet light, a glow is seen from dye trapped in any flaws. Intensity of fluorescence gives a rough indication of depth of defect. Fluorescent inspection procedure is fast, inexpensive and simple to perform.
Methods for crosslinking N-methyl substituted aromatic polyamides were investigated in an effort to improve the applicability of these polymers as matrix resins for Kavlar trademark fiber composites. High molecular weight polymers were prepared from isophthaloyl dichloride and 4,4'- bis(methylamino)diphenylmethane with varying proportions of the N,N'bispropargyl diamine incorporated as a crosslinking agent. The propargylcontaining diamines were crosslinked thermally and characterized by infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and thermogravimetric analysis. Attempts were also made to crosslink polyamide films by exposure to ultraviolet light, electron beam, and gamma radiation.
Acrylic film contains screeing agent filtering ultraviolet radiation up to 380 nanometers in wavelength but passes other components of Sunlight. Film used to protect such materials as rubber and plastics degraded by ultraviolet light. Used as protective cover on outdoor sheets or pipes made of such materials as polyethylene or polypropylene and on solar cells.
The characteristics of photoelectric detector systems for use at visible-light, ultraviolet, and X-ray wavelengths are briefly reviewed in the context of the needs of the Spacelab solar-physics facilities. Photoelectric array detectors for use at XUV wavelengths between 90 and 1500 A are described, and their use in the ESA Grazing-Incidence Solar Telescope (GRIST) facility is discussed.
An examination of the materials concerns for a variety of spacecraft components shows that long-term stability within the space environments is a major issue in the design of large space antenna systems. This survey paper will review some of the more recent work on the effect of space environment on (1) thin films, (2) structural composites, and (3) thermal control materials. Degradation in thermal-mechanical and optical properties associated with atmospheric and trapped particles and ultraviolet light will be highlighted. Finally, the dimensional instability associated with microcracking during thermal cycling will be examined and a methodology for estimating thermal fatigue effects from results of mechanical fatigue tests will be presented.
Compact Luneburg-type lenses of rectangular outline as viewed from above have been made by thermal evaporation of As2S3 glass onto single-mode LiNbO3:Ti waveguides through suitably shaped masks and subsequent exposure of the glass to ultraviolet light. The best lenses had speeds of f/5.5 at an aperture of 10 mm and focal spots at reduced aperture about 1.2 times the diffraction-limited size. These lenses have a field of view of at least 25 degrees inside the waveguide.