Living and working in space
A brief overview is presented of the space station concept. Living conditions in space, space station design, and space logistics are briefly examined.
Armstrong, Linda↗
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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
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Working group written presentation: Meteoroid/orbital debris effects on materials
Low earth orbit (LEO) is the most significant region relative to orbital debris, since the flux of orbital debris peaks in the region from 800 to 1000 kilometers, and the relative velocities of objects in LEO are about 10 kilometers per second. The flux and relative velocities of objects in geosynchronous orbit (GEO) are small, so that debris is not considered to be a problem in GEO. The meteoroid environment is independent of orbit or altitude, so that its effects are the same in LEO and GEO. The effects of orbital debris and meteoroid impacts can be divided into two broad regions: (1) Erosion and pitting; Small particles (less than 100 microns) are very numerous. Impacts from these generally do not lead to penetration of surfaces, but cause pitting and erosion. The Solar Max surfaces were peppered with thousands of tiny impact pits. (2) Catastrophic impacts; Large debris particles are few in number relative to small debris, so that the probability of an impact is low. However, the effects of an impact of a large particle at 10 kilometers per second are devastating. These effects are examined.
Potter, Andrew↗
Working group written presentation: Trapped radiation effects
The results of the Trapped Radiation Effects Panel for the Space Environmental Effects on Materials Workshop are presented. The needs of the space community for new data regarding effects of the space environment on materials, including electronics are listed. A series of questions asked of each of the panels at the workshop are addressed. Areas of research which should be pursued to satisfy the requirements for better knowledge of the environment and better understanding of the effects of the energetic charged particle environment on new materials and advanced electronics technology are suggested.
Vampola, Alfred L.↗
Nonlinear response of a blade-stiffened graphite-epoxy panel with a discontinuous stiffener: Work in progress
The problem of calculating detailed stress distributions around discontinuities in buckled, composite structural components for use with the various analytical failure prediction techniques has not been thoroughly explored. The purpose here is the application of computational methods to the detailed stress analysis problem which is the focus of this session of the workshop. One approach to uncovering the difficulties of this type of analysis and to providing specific directions for future research in this area is a direct attack on the problem using currently available analysis tools. A candidate problem has been selected and experiences from calculating its structural response are described.
Knight, Norman F., Jr.↗
Living and working on Mars
The maintenance of a permanent base on Mars is discussed, focusing on the utilization of resources from the Martian environment. The availability of water and oxygen on the planet is assessed. The use of an airshell for compressing the atmosphere, the resources which could be extracted from Martian dirt, and the possibility of terraforming, or altering the Martian environment, are examined.
Mckay, Christopher P.↗
Hierarchical Ada robot programming system (HARPS)- A complete and working telerobot control system based on the NASREM model
HARPS is a telerobot control system that can perform some simple but useful tasks. This capability is demonstrated by performing the ORU exchange demonstration. HARPS is based on NASREM (NASA Standard Reference Model). All software is developed in Ada, and the project incorporates a number of different CASE (computer-aided software engineering) tools. NASREM was found to be a valid and useful model for building a telerobot control system. Its hierarchical and distributed structure creates a natural and logical flow for implementing large complex robust control systems. The ability of Ada to create and enforce abstraction enhanced the implementation of such control systems.
Leake, Stephen↗
Working with people to improve productivity and quality: A bibliography with indexes, 1984-1988
This bibliography contains 253 anotated references to reports and journal articles entered into the NASA scientific and technical information database 1984 to 1988.
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Graphic overlays in high-precision teleoperation: Current and future work at JPL
In space teleoperation additional problems arise, including signal transmission time delays. These can greatly reduce operator performance. Recent advances in graphics open new possibilities for addressing these and other problems. Currently a multi-camera system with normal 3-D TV and video graphics capabilities is being developed. Trained and untrained operators will be tested for high precision performance using two force reflecting hand controllers and a voice recognition system to control two robot arms and up to 5 movable stereo or non-stereo TV cameras. A number of new techniques of integrating TV and video graphics displays to improve operator training and performance in teleoperation and supervised automation are evaluated.
Diner, Daniel B.↗
Scientific work environments in the next decade
The applications of contemporary computer graphics to scientific visualization is described, with emphasis on the nonintuitive problems. A radically different approach is proposed which centers on the idea of the scientist being in the simulation display space rather than observing it on a screen. Interaction is performed with nonstandard input devices to preserve the feeling of being immersed in the three-dimensional display space. Construction of such a system could begin now with currently available technology.
Gomez, Julian E.↗
The Clouds distributed operating system - Functional description, implementation details and related work
Clouds is an operating system in a novel class of distributed operating systems providing the integration, reliability, and structure that makes a distributed system usable. Clouds is designed to run on a set of general purpose computers that are connected via a medium-of-high speed local area network. The system structuring paradigm chosen for the Clouds operating system, after substantial research, is an object/thread model. All instances of services, programs and data in Clouds are encapsulated in objects. The concept of persistent objects does away with the need for file systems, and replaces it with a more powerful concept, namely the object system. The facilities in Clouds include integration of resources through location transparency; support for various types of atomic operations, including conventional transactions; advanced support for achieving fault tolerance; and provisions for dynamic reconfiguration.
Dasgupta, Partha↗
Mars Aeronomy Observer: Report of the Science Working Team
The Mars Aeronomy Observer (MAO) is a candidate follow-on mission to Mars Observer (MO) in the Planetary Observer Program. The four Mariner and two Viking spacecraft sent to Mars between 1965 and 1976 have provided a wealth of information concerning Martian planetology. The Mars Observer, to be launched in 1990, will build on their results by further examining the elemental and mineralogical composition of the surface, the strength and multipolar composition of the planetary magnetic field, the gravitational field and topography, and the circulation of the lower atmosphere. The Mars Aeronomy Observer is intended to address the last major aspects of Martian environment which have yet to be investigated: the upper atmosphere, the ionsphere, and the solar wind interaction region.
Hunten, Donald M.↗
Work, exercise, and space flight. 1: Operations, environment, and effects of spaceflight
The selection, training, and operations of space flight impose significant physical demands which seem to be adequately met by the existing physical training facilities and informal individual exercise programs. The professional astronaut population has, by selection, better than average health and physical capacity. The essentials of life on earth are adequately met by the spacecraft. However, as the human body adapts to weightlessness, it is compromised for the usual life on earth, but readaptation is rapid. Long term flight without countermeasures will produce major changes in the cardiovascular, respiratory, musculoskeletal and neuromuscular systems. There is strong theoretical and experimental evidence from 1-g studies and limited in-flight evidence to believe that exercise is a key counter-measure to many of these adaptations.
Thornton, William↗
Soil bed reactor work of the Environmental Research Lab. of the University of Arizona in support of the research and development of Biosphere 2
Research at the Environmental Research Lab in support of Biosphere 2 was both basic and applied in nature. One aspect of the applied research involved the use of biological reactors for the scrubbing of trace atmospheric organic contaminants. The research involved a quantitative study of the efficiency of operation of Soil Bed Reactors (SBR) and the optimal operating conditions for contaminant removal. The basic configuration of a SBR is that air is moved through a living soil that supports a population of plants. Upon exposure to the soil, contaminants are either passively adsorbed onto the surface of soil particles, chemically transformed in the soil to usable compounds that are taken up by the plants or microbes as a metabolic energy source and converted to CO2 and water.
Frye, Robert↗
Graphics modelling of non-contact thickness measuring robotics work cell
A system was developed for measuring, in real time, the thickness of a sprayable insulation during its application. The system was graphically modelled, off-line, using a state-of-the-art graphics workstation and associated software. This model was to contain a 3D color model of a workcell containing a robot and an air bearing turntable. A communication link was established between the graphics workstations and the robot's controller. Sequences of robot motion generated by the computer simulation are transmitted to the robot for execution.
Warren, Charles W.↗
A scientific program for infrared, submillimeter and radio astronomy from space: A report by the Management Operations Working Group
Important and fundamental scientific progress can be attained through space observations in the wavelengths longward of 1 micron. The formation of galaxies, stars, and planets, the origin of quasars and the nature of active galactic nuclei, the large scale structure of the Universe, and the problem of the missing mass, are among the major scientific issues that can be addressed by these observations. Significant advances in many areas of astrophysics can be made over the next 20 years by implementing the outlined program. This program combines large observatories with smaller projects to create an overall scheme that emphasized complementarity and synergy, advanced technology, community support and development, and the training of the next generation of scientists. Key aspects of the program include: the Space Infrared Telescope Facility; the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy; a robust program of small missions; and the creation of the technology base for future major observatories.
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Performance of a high-work, low-aspect-ratio turbine stator tested with a realistic inlet radial temperature gradient
A 0.767-scale model of a turbine stator designed for the core of a high-bypass-ratio aircraft engine was tested with uniform inlet conditions and with an inlet radial temperature profile simulating engine conditions. The principal measurements were radial and circumferential surveys of stator-exit total temperature, total pressure, and flow angle. The stator-exit flow field was also computed by using a three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver. Other than temperature, there were no apparent differences in performance due to the inlet conditions. The computed results compared quite well with the experimental results.
Stabe, Roy G.↗
Overview of the fatigue/fracture/life working group program at the Lewis Research Center
Constitutive and life prediction models are developed and verified for materials typically used in hot gas path components of reusable space propulsion systems over the range of relevant operating environments. The efforts were centered on the development of crack initiation life prediction methods, while the efforts of a counterpart group were centered on the development of cyclic crack propagation life prediction methods. The complexion of the active tasks are presented. A significant new task started this year will incorporate the various material constitutive and life prediction models developed in this program into a comprehensive creep-fatigue damage analysis and life assessment computer code. The program will function as a postprocessor to general structural analysis programs (such as finite element or boundary element codes) using the output of such analyses (stress, strain, and temperature fields as functions of time) as the input to the damage analysis and life assessment code. The code will be designed to execute on engineering/scientific workstations and will feature a windowing, mouse-driven user interface. Current plans call for the code to be finished and made available for use in mid 1991.
Mcgaw, Michael A.↗
Science program for an imaging radar receiving station in Alaska. Report of the science working group
It is argued that there would be broad scientific benefit in establishing in Alaska an imaging radar receiving station that would collect data from the European Space Agency's Remote Sensing Satellite, ERS-1. This station would acquire imagery of the ice cover from the American territorial waters of the Beaufort, Chukchi, and Bering Seas. This station, in conjunction with similar stations proposed for Kiruna, Sweden, and Prince Albert, Canada would provide synoptic coverage of nearly the entire Arctic. The value of such coverage to aspects of oceanography, geology, glaciology, and botany is considered.
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