Saturday, January 31, 2009
Aneutronic Fusion for Interplanetary Space Travel
Fusion power and propulsion is going to be a major component of interplanetary spacetravel. In this video a sample reactor is modelled and explained
Video of Chinese spacewalk with commentary
China's first spacewalk. Notice things flying out into space.
Russia Space Agency Plans To Build Own Orbital Station
Moscow (RIA Novosti) Jan 30, 2009
Russia's Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) will propose to the government the construction of a low-orbit space station to support future exploration of the Moon and Mars, an agency official said Thursday.
"We will soon propose to our government a project to construct a low-orbit complex, which could serve as a foundation for the implementation of the lunar program and later on - the Mars program," Alexei Krasnov, director of manned flight programs at Roscosmos, told a news conference in Moscow.
Krasnov said that Russia, as well as other countries, "is looking at the Moon in a mid-term perspective, and would want not only to go there and come back, but to establish a lunar base, which would allow us to start exploring Mars in the future."
"These are our intentions, but we are working hard to ensure that these plans get adequate financial and legislative support from the government," the official said.
Russia, a pioneer in robotic lunar research, abandoned its lunar exploration program with the end of the Moon race in the mid-1970s, but the idea of exploring the Earth's natural satellite has been revisited recently, due to ambitious international projects to develop the Moon's resources and to use it as a stepping-stone for further space exploration.
Roscosmos earlier said its first unmanned flight to the Moon would include a lunar orbiter to fire 12 penetrators across diverse regions to create a seismic network. These will be used to research the origins of the Moon.
Krasnov also said Roscosmos would propose extending the use of the International Space Station (ISS) until 2020.
The orbital assembly of the ISS began with the launch of the U.S.-funded and Russian-built Zarya module from Kazakhstan on November 20, 1998. Zarya, which means 'dawn,' was the ISS's first component.
The project has taken longer than the planned five years, and as of July 2008 the station was approximately 76% complete.
"We are considering the extension of ISS service life at least until 2020, but this decision must be adopted by the governments of all 15 countries participating in the project," Krasnov said.
The project currently involves NASA, Roscosmos, the Canadian Space Agency, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and 11 members of the European Space Agency (ESA).
Source: RIA Novosti
Russia's Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) will propose to the government the construction of a low-orbit space station to support future exploration of the Moon and Mars, an agency official said Thursday.
"We will soon propose to our government a project to construct a low-orbit complex, which could serve as a foundation for the implementation of the lunar program and later on - the Mars program," Alexei Krasnov, director of manned flight programs at Roscosmos, told a news conference in Moscow.
Krasnov said that Russia, as well as other countries, "is looking at the Moon in a mid-term perspective, and would want not only to go there and come back, but to establish a lunar base, which would allow us to start exploring Mars in the future."
"These are our intentions, but we are working hard to ensure that these plans get adequate financial and legislative support from the government," the official said.
Russia, a pioneer in robotic lunar research, abandoned its lunar exploration program with the end of the Moon race in the mid-1970s, but the idea of exploring the Earth's natural satellite has been revisited recently, due to ambitious international projects to develop the Moon's resources and to use it as a stepping-stone for further space exploration.
Roscosmos earlier said its first unmanned flight to the Moon would include a lunar orbiter to fire 12 penetrators across diverse regions to create a seismic network. These will be used to research the origins of the Moon.
Krasnov also said Roscosmos would propose extending the use of the International Space Station (ISS) until 2020.
The orbital assembly of the ISS began with the launch of the U.S.-funded and Russian-built Zarya module from Kazakhstan on November 20, 1998. Zarya, which means 'dawn,' was the ISS's first component.
The project has taken longer than the planned five years, and as of July 2008 the station was approximately 76% complete.
"We are considering the extension of ISS service life at least until 2020, but this decision must be adopted by the governments of all 15 countries participating in the project," Krasnov said.
The project currently involves NASA, Roscosmos, the Canadian Space Agency, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and 11 members of the European Space Agency (ESA).
Source: RIA Novosti
Black Sky: The Race For Space
Found this looking around on YouTube last night. It's a nice documentary done about the flight testing and construction of Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne and White Knight that won the Ansari X prize several years ago. Makes building a spaceship seem so easy.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
NASA Tests Engine Technology for Landing Astronauts on the Moon
01.14.09
A technology development engine that may help NASA safely return astronauts to the lunar surface has successfully completed its third round of testing. The goal of these tests is to reduce risk and advance technology for a reliable and robust rocket engine that could enable America's next moon landing.
The tests by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne in West Palm Beach, Fla., helped to gather data on this concept engine that might play a role in the next stage of human exploration of the moon. Most rockets make spacecraft travel faster. The goal of a lunar lander descent engine is to slow the vehicle so astronauts can land safely.
The Common Extensible Cryogenic Engine, or CECE, is a deep-throttling engine, which means it has the flexibility to reduce thrust from 100 percent down to 10 percent -- allowing a spacecraft to gently land on the lunar surface. The 13,800-pound thrust engine uses extremely cold liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen as propellants.
During the test, the engine was successfully throttled from a high of 104 percent of the engine's potential down to eight percent, a record for an engine of this type. A cryogenic engine is needed to provide high performance and put more payload on the surface of the moon. The CECE demonstrator has evaluated two engine configurations during three rounds of hot-fire testing.
"The first test series in 2006 was a challenge but showed promise," said Tony Kim, Deep Throttling Engine project manager at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. "Testing in 2007 provided an in-depth examination of low-power-level throttling and engine performance characteristics. This third cycle we actively addressed and found solutions to the challenges we faced."
The team carefully assessed test results that showed pressure oscillations in the engine at lower throttle levels called "chugging." Chugging may not be a concern for the engine itself, but the resulting vibrations could have the potential to resonate with the structure of the rocket and cause problems for the lander or crew.
Injector and propellant feed system modifications successfully eliminated engine chugging by controlling liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen flow to the combustion chamber. The latest engine configuration incorporates a new injector design and propellant feed system that carefully manages the pressure, temperature and flow of propellants.
"The technology developed from this effort will help engineers successfully design future cryogenic engines to meet the throttling requirements of the Constellation Program's Altair lunar lander," Kim said.
The CECE is based on the existing Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne RL10 upper stage rocket engine. Previous first-hand flight experience, as well as this data, will allow engineers to develop simulation models that can focus testing for efficiency and effectiveness.
The CECE collaboration includes engineers from Marshall, NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, and Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. NASA has invested in CECE technology since 2005 as part of the Propulsion and Cryogenics Advanced Development project at Glenn. The project is funded by the Exploration Technology Development Program in NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate.
A technology development engine that may help NASA safely return astronauts to the lunar surface has successfully completed its third round of testing. The goal of these tests is to reduce risk and advance technology for a reliable and robust rocket engine that could enable America's next moon landing.
The tests by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne in West Palm Beach, Fla., helped to gather data on this concept engine that might play a role in the next stage of human exploration of the moon. Most rockets make spacecraft travel faster. The goal of a lunar lander descent engine is to slow the vehicle so astronauts can land safely.
The Common Extensible Cryogenic Engine, or CECE, is a deep-throttling engine, which means it has the flexibility to reduce thrust from 100 percent down to 10 percent -- allowing a spacecraft to gently land on the lunar surface. The 13,800-pound thrust engine uses extremely cold liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen as propellants.
During the test, the engine was successfully throttled from a high of 104 percent of the engine's potential down to eight percent, a record for an engine of this type. A cryogenic engine is needed to provide high performance and put more payload on the surface of the moon. The CECE demonstrator has evaluated two engine configurations during three rounds of hot-fire testing.
"The first test series in 2006 was a challenge but showed promise," said Tony Kim, Deep Throttling Engine project manager at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. "Testing in 2007 provided an in-depth examination of low-power-level throttling and engine performance characteristics. This third cycle we actively addressed and found solutions to the challenges we faced."
The team carefully assessed test results that showed pressure oscillations in the engine at lower throttle levels called "chugging." Chugging may not be a concern for the engine itself, but the resulting vibrations could have the potential to resonate with the structure of the rocket and cause problems for the lander or crew.
Injector and propellant feed system modifications successfully eliminated engine chugging by controlling liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen flow to the combustion chamber. The latest engine configuration incorporates a new injector design and propellant feed system that carefully manages the pressure, temperature and flow of propellants.
"The technology developed from this effort will help engineers successfully design future cryogenic engines to meet the throttling requirements of the Constellation Program's Altair lunar lander," Kim said.
The CECE is based on the existing Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne RL10 upper stage rocket engine. Previous first-hand flight experience, as well as this data, will allow engineers to develop simulation models that can focus testing for efficiency and effectiveness.
The CECE collaboration includes engineers from Marshall, NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, and Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. NASA has invested in CECE technology since 2005 as part of the Propulsion and Cryogenics Advanced Development project at Glenn. The project is funded by the Exploration Technology Development Program in NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate.
NASA Seeks Concept Proposals for Ares V Heavy Lift Rocket
WASHINGTON -- On Monday, Jan. 5, NASA issued a request for proposal for the Ares V rocket that will perform heavy lift and cargo functions as part of the next generation of spacecraft that will return humans to the moon. The request is for Phase I concept definition and requirements development for the Ares V rocket. Proposals are due to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., no later than 1 p.m. CDT on Feb. 9.
The request for proposal defines the procurement approach for Phase I of the Ares V acquisition. The contract work will include developing products to enable NASA to successfully complete the system requirements review and system definition review, critical milestones in the development of the rocket. Completion of the system definition review will verify the design concept and demonstrate mission objectives can be met.
The solicitation includes five separate work packages available for bid. Work packages one through four include the payload shroud that will protect the Altair lunar lander during launch, the Earth Departure Stage, the core stage, and avionics and software. The products for these work packages include assessing point of departure architecture, assessing risks and opportunities, trade studies and analysis, assessment of NASA requirements and a final report. The fifth work package includes a first stage concept for an upgraded solid rocket fueled booster.
Marshall will manage the contracts, which will be awarded through a full and open competition. The selections will be made in the spring of 2009. The period of performance for each contract is 18 months with two, one-year options.
For more information about the request for proposal, visit:
http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/sol.cgi?acqid=131145#Draft%20Document
For information about NASA's Ares rockets, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ares
The request for proposal defines the procurement approach for Phase I of the Ares V acquisition. The contract work will include developing products to enable NASA to successfully complete the system requirements review and system definition review, critical milestones in the development of the rocket. Completion of the system definition review will verify the design concept and demonstrate mission objectives can be met.
The solicitation includes five separate work packages available for bid. Work packages one through four include the payload shroud that will protect the Altair lunar lander during launch, the Earth Departure Stage, the core stage, and avionics and software. The products for these work packages include assessing point of departure architecture, assessing risks and opportunities, trade studies and analysis, assessment of NASA requirements and a final report. The fifth work package includes a first stage concept for an upgraded solid rocket fueled booster.
Marshall will manage the contracts, which will be awarded through a full and open competition. The selections will be made in the spring of 2009. The period of performance for each contract is 18 months with two, one-year options.
For more information about the request for proposal, visit:
http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/sol.cgi?acqid=131145#Draft%20Document
For information about NASA's Ares rockets, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ares
NASA a Step Closer to First Flight Test of Next Crew Launch Vehicle
HAMPTON, Va. -- NASA is a step closer to the first flight test of the rocket that will send humans on their way to the moon as part of the agency's Constellation Program. Rocket hardware critical for the test, known as Ares I-X, was completed this week at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. The flight of Ares I-X will be an important step toward verifying analysis tools and techniques needed to develop Ares I, NASA's next crew launch vehicle.
The Langley-designed and built hardware is engineered to represent the Orion crew module and a launch abort system that increases crew safety. In late January, the rocket elements will be shipped from Langley to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This hardware and other elements from around the country will be integrated into the Ares I-X rocket, the first in a series of unpiloted test vehicles.
The test launch is scheduled to lift off from Kennedy during the summer of 2009. It will climb about 25 miles in altitude during a two-minute powered flight, continuously measuring vehicle aerodynamics, controls and performance of the rocket's first stage. The launch will culminate with a test of the separation of the first stage from the rocket and deployment of the accompanying parachute system that will return the first stage to Earth for data and hardware recovery.
"This launch will tell us what we got right and what we got wrong in the design and analysis phase," said Jonathan Cruz, deputy project manager at Langley for the Ares I-X crew module and launch abort system. "We have a lot of confidence, but we need those two minutes of flight data before NASA can continue to the next phase of rocket development."
The simulated crew module and launch abort system will complete the nose of the rocket. About 150 sensors on the hardware will measure aerodynamic pressure and temperature at the nose of the rocket and contribute to measurements of vehicle acceleration and angle of attack. The data will help NASA understand whether the design is safe and stable in flight, a question that must be answered before astronauts begin traveling into orbit and beyond.
To ensure the rocket's flight characteristics are understood fully, extreme care was taken to fabricate the simulated crew module and launch abort tower precisely. To compare flight results with preflight predictions confidently, these full-scale hardware components needed to be accurate reflections of the shape and physical properties of the models used in computer analyses and wind tunnel tests.
The simulated crew module is a full-scale representation of the vehicle that will ferry astronauts to the International Space Station by 2015, to the moon in the 2020s and, ultimately, to points beyond. The conical module has the same basic shape as the Apollo module but, at approximately five meters in diameter, is significantly larger. The launch abort system simulator is 46 feet in length. It will fit over the crew module and tower above it, forming the nose of the rocket.
Researchers and managers at Langley worked to overcome multiple challenges as the Orion crew module and launch abort system simulators took shape. One team performed fabrication and assembly work in conjunction with an off-site contractor, and another team installed the sensors once the crew module and launch abort tower were completed.
"We are a highly matrixed team -- a lot of people from various organizations -- that had to work together successfully on a tight schedule," explained Kevin Brown, project manager at Langley for the Ares I-X crew module and launch abort system project.
To view a video clip and still photos of construction of the crew module and launch abort system, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/flighttests/aresIx/aresIX_progress.html
Video file of the simulated Ares I-X crew module and launch abort system will air on NASA Television. For schedule and downlink information, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
For more information about the Ares I-X test flight and the Constellation Program, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/constellation
The Langley-designed and built hardware is engineered to represent the Orion crew module and a launch abort system that increases crew safety. In late January, the rocket elements will be shipped from Langley to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This hardware and other elements from around the country will be integrated into the Ares I-X rocket, the first in a series of unpiloted test vehicles.
The test launch is scheduled to lift off from Kennedy during the summer of 2009. It will climb about 25 miles in altitude during a two-minute powered flight, continuously measuring vehicle aerodynamics, controls and performance of the rocket's first stage. The launch will culminate with a test of the separation of the first stage from the rocket and deployment of the accompanying parachute system that will return the first stage to Earth for data and hardware recovery.
"This launch will tell us what we got right and what we got wrong in the design and analysis phase," said Jonathan Cruz, deputy project manager at Langley for the Ares I-X crew module and launch abort system. "We have a lot of confidence, but we need those two minutes of flight data before NASA can continue to the next phase of rocket development."
The simulated crew module and launch abort system will complete the nose of the rocket. About 150 sensors on the hardware will measure aerodynamic pressure and temperature at the nose of the rocket and contribute to measurements of vehicle acceleration and angle of attack. The data will help NASA understand whether the design is safe and stable in flight, a question that must be answered before astronauts begin traveling into orbit and beyond.
To ensure the rocket's flight characteristics are understood fully, extreme care was taken to fabricate the simulated crew module and launch abort tower precisely. To compare flight results with preflight predictions confidently, these full-scale hardware components needed to be accurate reflections of the shape and physical properties of the models used in computer analyses and wind tunnel tests.
The simulated crew module is a full-scale representation of the vehicle that will ferry astronauts to the International Space Station by 2015, to the moon in the 2020s and, ultimately, to points beyond. The conical module has the same basic shape as the Apollo module but, at approximately five meters in diameter, is significantly larger. The launch abort system simulator is 46 feet in length. It will fit over the crew module and tower above it, forming the nose of the rocket.
Researchers and managers at Langley worked to overcome multiple challenges as the Orion crew module and launch abort system simulators took shape. One team performed fabrication and assembly work in conjunction with an off-site contractor, and another team installed the sensors once the crew module and launch abort tower were completed.
"We are a highly matrixed team -- a lot of people from various organizations -- that had to work together successfully on a tight schedule," explained Kevin Brown, project manager at Langley for the Ares I-X crew module and launch abort system project.
To view a video clip and still photos of construction of the crew module and launch abort system, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/flighttests/aresIx/aresIX_progress.html
Video file of the simulated Ares I-X crew module and launch abort system will air on NASA Television. For schedule and downlink information, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
For more information about the Ares I-X test flight and the Constellation Program, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/constellation
NASA Radar Provides First Look Inside Moon's Shadowed Craters
WASHINGTON -- Using a NASA radar flying aboard India's Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, scientists are getting their first look inside the moon's coldest, darkest craters.
The Mini-SAR instrument, a lightweight, synthetic aperture radar, has passed its initial in-flight tests and sent back its first data. The images show the floors of permanently-shadowed polar craters on the moon that aren't visible from Earth. Scientists are using the instrument to map and search the insides of the craters for water ice.
"The only way to explore such areas is to use an orbital imaging radar such as Mini-SAR," said Benjamin Bussey, deputy principal investigator for Mini-SAR, from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md. "This is an exciting first step for the team which has worked diligently for more than three years to get to this point."
The images, taken on Nov. 17, 2008, cover part of the Haworth crater at the moon's south pole and the western rim of Seares crater, an impact feature near the north pole. Bright areas in each image represent either surface roughness or slopes pointing toward the spacecraft. Further data collection by Mini-SAR and analysis will help scientists to determine if buried ice deposits exist in the permanently shadowed craters near the moon's poles.
These first images and other information about NASA's Mini-SAR, also known as Mini-RF, can be found at:
http://www.nasa.gov/mini-rf
"During the next few months we expect to have a fully calibrated and operational instrument collecting valuable science data at the moon," said Jason Crusan, program executive for the Mini-RF Program for NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate in Washington.
Mini-SAR is one of 11 instruments on the Indian Space Research Organization's Chandrayaan-1 and one of two NASA-sponsored contributions to its international payload. The other is the Moon Mineralogy Mapper, a state-of-the-art imaging spectrometer that will provide the first map of the entire lunar surface at high spatial and spectral resolution. Data from the two NASA instruments will contribute to the agency's increased understanding of the lunar environment as it implements America's space exploration plan, which calls for robotic and human missions to the moon.
Chandrayaan-1 launched from India's Satish Dhawan Space Center on Oct. 21 and began orbiting the moon Nov. 8. The Applied Physics Laboratory performed the final integration and testing on Mini-SAR. It was developed and built by the Naval Air Warfare Center and several other commercial and government contributors. The Applied Physics Laboratory's Satellite Communications Facility is Chandrayaan-1's primary ground station in the Western Hemisphere.
For more information about the Moon Mineralogy Mapper, visit:
http://m3.jpl.nasa.gov
For more information about Chandrayaan-1, visit:
http://www.isro.org/Chandrayaan
The Mini-SAR instrument, a lightweight, synthetic aperture radar, has passed its initial in-flight tests and sent back its first data. The images show the floors of permanently-shadowed polar craters on the moon that aren't visible from Earth. Scientists are using the instrument to map and search the insides of the craters for water ice.
"The only way to explore such areas is to use an orbital imaging radar such as Mini-SAR," said Benjamin Bussey, deputy principal investigator for Mini-SAR, from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md. "This is an exciting first step for the team which has worked diligently for more than three years to get to this point."
The images, taken on Nov. 17, 2008, cover part of the Haworth crater at the moon's south pole and the western rim of Seares crater, an impact feature near the north pole. Bright areas in each image represent either surface roughness or slopes pointing toward the spacecraft. Further data collection by Mini-SAR and analysis will help scientists to determine if buried ice deposits exist in the permanently shadowed craters near the moon's poles.
These first images and other information about NASA's Mini-SAR, also known as Mini-RF, can be found at:
http://www.nasa.gov/mini-rf
"During the next few months we expect to have a fully calibrated and operational instrument collecting valuable science data at the moon," said Jason Crusan, program executive for the Mini-RF Program for NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate in Washington.
Mini-SAR is one of 11 instruments on the Indian Space Research Organization's Chandrayaan-1 and one of two NASA-sponsored contributions to its international payload. The other is the Moon Mineralogy Mapper, a state-of-the-art imaging spectrometer that will provide the first map of the entire lunar surface at high spatial and spectral resolution. Data from the two NASA instruments will contribute to the agency's increased understanding of the lunar environment as it implements America's space exploration plan, which calls for robotic and human missions to the moon.
Chandrayaan-1 launched from India's Satish Dhawan Space Center on Oct. 21 and began orbiting the moon Nov. 8. The Applied Physics Laboratory performed the final integration and testing on Mini-SAR. It was developed and built by the Naval Air Warfare Center and several other commercial and government contributors. The Applied Physics Laboratory's Satellite Communications Facility is Chandrayaan-1's primary ground station in the Western Hemisphere.
For more information about the Moon Mineralogy Mapper, visit:
http://m3.jpl.nasa.gov
For more information about Chandrayaan-1, visit:
http://www.isro.org/Chandrayaan
NASA's Kepler Spacecraft Ready to Ship to Florida
MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. – Engineers are getting ready to pack NASA's Kepler spacecraft into a container and ship it off to its launch site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.
The mission, scheduled to launch on March 5, 2009, will seek to answer an age-old question -- are there other Earths in space?
"Kepler is ready to begin its journey to its launch site, and ultimately to space, where it will answer a question that has been pondered by humankind at least as long ago as the ancient Greeks," said James Fanson, the project manager for the mission at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
Kepler will monitor more than 100,000 stars for signatures of planets of various sizes and orbital distances. It has the ability to locate rocky planets like Earth, including those that lie in a star's "habitable zone," a region where liquid water, and perhaps life, could exist. If these Earth-size worlds do exist around stars like our sun, Kepler is expected to be the first to find them, and the first to measure their frequency.
"Kepler's mission is to determine whether Earth-size planets in the habitable zone of other stars are frequent or rare; whether life in our Milky Way galaxy is likely to be frequent or rare," said William Borucki, the Kepler science principal investigator at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
Kepler is currently at Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. in Boulder, Colo. It passed all its environmental tests ensuring that it is prepared for the harsh trip to space. It also passed what's called the "pre-ship review," meaning that it is ready to be shipped via convoy to Florida in early January. Its first stop will be Astrotech in Titusville, Fla., where the spacecraft will be processed before being carried to its launch pad at Cape Canaveral. Kepler will launch atop a Delta II rocket.
"An outstanding team of engineers overcame some difficult hurdles to achieve this considerable milestone," said Ball Aerospace Program Manager John Troeltzsch. "The culmination of this effort will put a spectacular mission in orbit designed to increase our understanding of the cosmos."
Kepler is a NASA Discovery mission. In addition to being the home organization of the science principal investigator, NASA Ames Research Center is responsible for the ground system development, mission operations and science data analysis. Kepler mission development is managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. is responsible for developing the Kepler flight system and supporting mission operations.
For more information about the Kepler mission, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/kepler
For more information about extrasolar planets and NASA's planet-finding program, visit:
http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov
The mission, scheduled to launch on March 5, 2009, will seek to answer an age-old question -- are there other Earths in space?
"Kepler is ready to begin its journey to its launch site, and ultimately to space, where it will answer a question that has been pondered by humankind at least as long ago as the ancient Greeks," said James Fanson, the project manager for the mission at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
Kepler will monitor more than 100,000 stars for signatures of planets of various sizes and orbital distances. It has the ability to locate rocky planets like Earth, including those that lie in a star's "habitable zone," a region where liquid water, and perhaps life, could exist. If these Earth-size worlds do exist around stars like our sun, Kepler is expected to be the first to find them, and the first to measure their frequency.
"Kepler's mission is to determine whether Earth-size planets in the habitable zone of other stars are frequent or rare; whether life in our Milky Way galaxy is likely to be frequent or rare," said William Borucki, the Kepler science principal investigator at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
Kepler is currently at Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. in Boulder, Colo. It passed all its environmental tests ensuring that it is prepared for the harsh trip to space. It also passed what's called the "pre-ship review," meaning that it is ready to be shipped via convoy to Florida in early January. Its first stop will be Astrotech in Titusville, Fla., where the spacecraft will be processed before being carried to its launch pad at Cape Canaveral. Kepler will launch atop a Delta II rocket.
"An outstanding team of engineers overcame some difficult hurdles to achieve this considerable milestone," said Ball Aerospace Program Manager John Troeltzsch. "The culmination of this effort will put a spectacular mission in orbit designed to increase our understanding of the cosmos."
Kepler is a NASA Discovery mission. In addition to being the home organization of the science principal investigator, NASA Ames Research Center is responsible for the ground system development, mission operations and science data analysis. Kepler mission development is managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. is responsible for developing the Kepler flight system and supporting mission operations.
For more information about the Kepler mission, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/kepler
For more information about extrasolar planets and NASA's planet-finding program, visit:
http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov
Lancets Flights Probe Supersonic Shockwaves
EDWARDS, Calif. -- NASA is concluding a series of flight tests to measure shock waves generated by an F-15 jet in an effort to validate computer models that could be used in designing quieter supersonic aircraft.
The Lift and Nozzle Change Effects on Tail Shock, or Lancets, project embodies research aimed at enabling the development of commercial aircraft that can fly faster than the speed of sound without generating annoying sonic booms over land. Supersonic flight over land generally is prohibited because of annoyances caused by their noise.
A sonic boom is created by shock waves that form on the front and rear of an aircraft. The boom loudness is related to the strength of the shock waves. The formation of the shock waves is dependent on the aircraft geometry and the way in which the wing generates lift.
During the flight tests at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in Edwards, Calif., one of two F-15s generally followed 100 feet to 500 feet below and behind the other, measuring the strength of the leading aircraft's shock waves at various distances using special instruments. Global Positioning System relative positioning was used to guide the pilot of the probing aircraft to a test position and for accurate reporting of measurement locations.
Lancets is the latest in a series of NASA projects investigating the effects of aircraft geometry and lift on the strength of shock waves.
NASA previously teamed with private companies to study the effect of aircraft shape on the strength of shock waves and whether adding a nose spike to an aircraft affects the strength of its shock waves in order to validate design tools for aircraft fore-bodies.
A NASA F-15B was used as the test aircraft for the flights. It was ideally suited for Lancets because its canards and engine nozzles can be adjusted in flight.
Canards are small airfoils in front of the wing that are designed to increase the aircraft's performance. Adjusting the canards changes the lift of the main wing, which varies how much wing lift contributes to the strength of the shock waves. This cannot be done on a conventional aircraft without making expensive modifications to the wing. Adjusting the engine nozzles alters the exhaust plumes from the engines, which varies how much the rear of the aircraft contributes to the strength of the shock waves.
A second NASA F-15B was the probing aircraft. It was fitted with a special nose spike for taking shock strength measurements.
The flight results will be used by computational fluid dynamics researchers at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va.; NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif.; and at Dryden to develop and validate improved tools that incorporate aft-shockwave effects in the prediction of sonic booms. The flight data also will be made available to interested university and industry partners in order to further their research objectives.
The research is funded and managed by the Fundamental Aeronautics Program, part of NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
For high resolution photos to support this release, visit:
http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Photo/
For information about NASA's aeronautics research programs, visit:
http://www.aeronautics.nasa.gov
The Lift and Nozzle Change Effects on Tail Shock, or Lancets, project embodies research aimed at enabling the development of commercial aircraft that can fly faster than the speed of sound without generating annoying sonic booms over land. Supersonic flight over land generally is prohibited because of annoyances caused by their noise.
A sonic boom is created by shock waves that form on the front and rear of an aircraft. The boom loudness is related to the strength of the shock waves. The formation of the shock waves is dependent on the aircraft geometry and the way in which the wing generates lift.
During the flight tests at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in Edwards, Calif., one of two F-15s generally followed 100 feet to 500 feet below and behind the other, measuring the strength of the leading aircraft's shock waves at various distances using special instruments. Global Positioning System relative positioning was used to guide the pilot of the probing aircraft to a test position and for accurate reporting of measurement locations.
Lancets is the latest in a series of NASA projects investigating the effects of aircraft geometry and lift on the strength of shock waves.
NASA previously teamed with private companies to study the effect of aircraft shape on the strength of shock waves and whether adding a nose spike to an aircraft affects the strength of its shock waves in order to validate design tools for aircraft fore-bodies.
A NASA F-15B was used as the test aircraft for the flights. It was ideally suited for Lancets because its canards and engine nozzles can be adjusted in flight.
Canards are small airfoils in front of the wing that are designed to increase the aircraft's performance. Adjusting the canards changes the lift of the main wing, which varies how much wing lift contributes to the strength of the shock waves. This cannot be done on a conventional aircraft without making expensive modifications to the wing. Adjusting the engine nozzles alters the exhaust plumes from the engines, which varies how much the rear of the aircraft contributes to the strength of the shock waves.
A second NASA F-15B was the probing aircraft. It was fitted with a special nose spike for taking shock strength measurements.
The flight results will be used by computational fluid dynamics researchers at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va.; NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif.; and at Dryden to develop and validate improved tools that incorporate aft-shockwave effects in the prediction of sonic booms. The flight data also will be made available to interested university and industry partners in order to further their research objectives.
The research is funded and managed by the Fundamental Aeronautics Program, part of NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
For high resolution photos to support this release, visit:
http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Photo/
For information about NASA's aeronautics research programs, visit:
http://www.aeronautics.nasa.gov
The Variety of Roles Fulfilled By Led Lighting Devices
The Variety of Roles Fulfilled By Led Lighting Devices
Author: Groshan Fabiola
At present, LEDs are extensively used in many different branches of the industry, taking many different forms and fulfilling a wide range of roles. Miniature LED devices are incorporated in thousands of products, including computer components, VCR, DVD, Stereo, Audio and Video equipments, gaming devices, security equipments, mobile phones, digital cameras, medical instruments, encoders, optical switches, fiber optic communication devices, etc.
While miniature LEDs play a set of crucial roles when they are integrated into small-sized technological products, larger scale LEDs can be successfully used as sources of illumination. LED lighting devices have proved to be the best alternative to traditional light sources (particularly incandescent and fluorescent light devices) and have already replaced such illuminating devices in many segments of the industry. LED lighting devices are nowadays commonly used for emergency / police vehicle lighting, traffic and rail lighting, accent lighting pathways, marker lights, emergency lighting exit signs, architectural lighting and signage channel letters, etc.
LED lighting devices have evolved considerably over the last few years and nowadays offer a wide range of benefits (energy efficiency, impressively long life span, durability, wide range of colors, no UV emissions, flexible design, silent operation, low-voltage power supply, easy to maintain) that render them superior to traditional, obsolete sources of light. Thanks to their advantages, LED lighting devices have become very popular and at present they are in great demand, being produced for both industrial and private, household use. Although LED illuminating sources such as LED bulbs, LED pods and LED tubes are already extremely reliable, economical, safe and durable, scientists claim that future designs will be substantially more efficient and a lot more affordable, incorporating high tech, innovative materials.
The great features of LED lighting devices (especially the wide range of colors and the economical character of LEDs) have caught the attention of many advertising companies and agencies that have rapidly started to use various designs for commercial purposes. Thus, LED bulbs, LED tubes, LED pods and various other LED lighting devices are nowadays included in most advertising panels and commercial signs, producing a multitude of vivid, bright colors. In addition, through inventive, imaginative combinations of colored LEDs, breathtaking color-changing effects can be produced by dynamically activating various arrays of LED lighting devices.
Some existing fixtures utilizing variable-intensity LEDs can produce more than 16 million colors, generating remarkable effects such as color washing, cross fading, random color changing, strobing and variable strobing. Such fixtures are easy to install and can be easily controlled via a PC or digital device. Multicolor LEDs can be used for lighting signage, decorative interiors, art exhibition interiors, simple and complex architectural structures, or the interior of different entertainment venues (clubs, discos, etc).
Both simple and complex LED lighting devices nowadays fulfill many different roles inside public and private institutions, industrial establishments, art and entertainment venues or simply private residences. While more complex LED lighting devices are more expensive, simple LED lighting devices such as LED bulbs, LED pods, LED displays and LED tubes have become increasingly more affordable. Such products come with long-term warranty certificates and can be purchased from a wide variety of offline and online specialized stores.
So, if you want to find out more about LEDs or even about LED Lighting , you should visit these links.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/the-variety-of-roles-fulfilled-by-led-lighting-devices-61301.html
About the Author:
So, if you want to find out more about LEDs or even about LED Lighting , you should visit these links.
Author: Groshan Fabiola
At present, LEDs are extensively used in many different branches of the industry, taking many different forms and fulfilling a wide range of roles. Miniature LED devices are incorporated in thousands of products, including computer components, VCR, DVD, Stereo, Audio and Video equipments, gaming devices, security equipments, mobile phones, digital cameras, medical instruments, encoders, optical switches, fiber optic communication devices, etc.
While miniature LEDs play a set of crucial roles when they are integrated into small-sized technological products, larger scale LEDs can be successfully used as sources of illumination. LED lighting devices have proved to be the best alternative to traditional light sources (particularly incandescent and fluorescent light devices) and have already replaced such illuminating devices in many segments of the industry. LED lighting devices are nowadays commonly used for emergency / police vehicle lighting, traffic and rail lighting, accent lighting pathways, marker lights, emergency lighting exit signs, architectural lighting and signage channel letters, etc.
LED lighting devices have evolved considerably over the last few years and nowadays offer a wide range of benefits (energy efficiency, impressively long life span, durability, wide range of colors, no UV emissions, flexible design, silent operation, low-voltage power supply, easy to maintain) that render them superior to traditional, obsolete sources of light. Thanks to their advantages, LED lighting devices have become very popular and at present they are in great demand, being produced for both industrial and private, household use. Although LED illuminating sources such as LED bulbs, LED pods and LED tubes are already extremely reliable, economical, safe and durable, scientists claim that future designs will be substantially more efficient and a lot more affordable, incorporating high tech, innovative materials.
The great features of LED lighting devices (especially the wide range of colors and the economical character of LEDs) have caught the attention of many advertising companies and agencies that have rapidly started to use various designs for commercial purposes. Thus, LED bulbs, LED tubes, LED pods and various other LED lighting devices are nowadays included in most advertising panels and commercial signs, producing a multitude of vivid, bright colors. In addition, through inventive, imaginative combinations of colored LEDs, breathtaking color-changing effects can be produced by dynamically activating various arrays of LED lighting devices.
Some existing fixtures utilizing variable-intensity LEDs can produce more than 16 million colors, generating remarkable effects such as color washing, cross fading, random color changing, strobing and variable strobing. Such fixtures are easy to install and can be easily controlled via a PC or digital device. Multicolor LEDs can be used for lighting signage, decorative interiors, art exhibition interiors, simple and complex architectural structures, or the interior of different entertainment venues (clubs, discos, etc).
Both simple and complex LED lighting devices nowadays fulfill many different roles inside public and private institutions, industrial establishments, art and entertainment venues or simply private residences. While more complex LED lighting devices are more expensive, simple LED lighting devices such as LED bulbs, LED pods, LED displays and LED tubes have become increasingly more affordable. Such products come with long-term warranty certificates and can be purchased from a wide variety of offline and online specialized stores.
So, if you want to find out more about LEDs or even about LED Lighting , you should visit these links.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/the-variety-of-roles-fulfilled-by-led-lighting-devices-61301.html
About the Author:
So, if you want to find out more about LEDs or even about LED Lighting , you should visit these links.
Energy Compensation Using Solar Power Stations in Space
Energy Compensation Using Solar Power Stations in Space
Author: s.sankar
1. INTRODUCTION: FUTURE ENERGY NEEDS Mankind has recently enhanced its living standard and its population in an explosive way. In fact, the human population quadrupled and primary power consumption increased 16-fold during the 20th century [1]. The consumption of energy, food, and material resources is predicted to increase 2.5 fold in the coming 50 years. As a result of our efforts for better life, we have come to face, in this 21st century, serious global issues threatening our safe life or even our existence itself on our mother planet earth. These are issues such as global warming, environmental degradation, declining nutrition on land and sea from rising CO2, and rapid decrease of fossil reservoir. Since the living standard and the population of developing countries are increasing continuously, the demand of energy will be several times larger than that of today's requirement by the time of the half way of this century. In 2000, the world had 6.1 billion human inhabitants. This number could rise to more than 9 billions in the next 50 years as shown in Fig.-1. This future population increase is mostly due to very rapid increase in less developed countries although the number in more developed countries will be almost constant (about 1 billion) or rather decrease [2]. Fig.- 1 World Population Prospects [2] The explosive increase in the human population inevitably requires an exponential increase in the consumption of energy, food, and material resources. One primary power source at present comes from fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas. However, the fossil fuels have two serious factors which prevent them from being used for a long term as primary power source. One is their limited amount that does not last long if used with the same or higher pace than that of today (Fig.-2). The other is their negative feature of emitting carbon dioxide, one of the green house gases, which causes the global warming. Fig.- 2 Pattern of Global Energy Dependence [3] Fig.-3 Atmospheric carbon dioxide monthly mean mixing ratios. Data prior to May 1974 are from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO, blue), date since May 1974 are from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA, red). A long term trend curve is fitted to the monthly mean values [4] Atmospheric CO2 has increased from 275 parts per million (ppm) before the industrial era begun to 379 ppm in March 2004 as shown in Fig.-3. Some scientists suggest that it will pass 550 ppm this century. Climate models and paleoclimate data indicate that 550 ppm, if sustained, could eventually produce global warming comparable in magnitude but opposite in sign to the global cooling of the last Ice Age [5]. Global energy demand continues to grow along with worldwide concerns over fossil fuel pollution, the safety of nuclear power and waste, and the impact of carbon-burning fuels on global warming. As a result sustainable energy sources like solar, wind, hydropower, biomass, geothermal, hydrogen, ocean thermal, tidal power etc are drawing prime attention, out of which solar power is the most promising one. Terrestrial solar power has too many limitations like atmospheric attenuation, daily and seasonal variation, and affects by climate conditions etc. To overcome these limitations concept of Solar Power from Space is getting momentum, which was first proposed by Czech-American engineer Peter Glaser as a solution to the oil crises of the 1970s [6]. Solar Power from Space is a proposed concept to place a gigantic solar power station in space orbiting around the earth that uses microwave power transmission to beam solar power to a very large antenna on earth where it can be used in place of conventional power sources. 2. SPACE SOLAR POWER (SSP) vs TERRESTRIAL SOLAR POWER (TSP) The SSP concept arose because space has several major advantages over earth for the collection of solar power. Space is free from day-night cycle, atmosphere, clouds, dust, rain, fog and other climatic changes, so it would receive 30% more intense and at least eight times more sunlight than that of at ground constantly and continuously unaffected by the weather. In geosynchronous orbit it would receive sunlight almost 24 hours a day hence avoiding the expensive storage facilities necessary for earth-based solar power systems. Since earth’s axis is tilted, it would be in earth’s shadow only for 70 minutes maximum at late night when power demands are at their lowest, during 42 days near the equinoxes [7] as shown in Fig.-5. Fig.-5 Daily duration of eclipses as a function of the date [7] 3. SSP: SYSTEM DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGIES The SSP system is composed of a space segment and a ground power receiving site (Fig.-6). Space segment consists of mainly three parts; solar energy collector to convert the solar energy into DC (Direct Current) electricity, DC-to-microwave converter, and large antenna array to beam down the microwave power to the ground. Ground power receiving site uses a device called rectenna (rectifying antenna) to receive and rectify the microwave power beam. The rectenna system converts the microwave power back to DC power which is then converted to conventional AC (Alternating Current), and is connected to existing electric power networks. Assuming typical values for efficiencies like 15% for solar panels to convert solar energy into DC, 70% conversion rate in the space segment from DC to microwave, 90% beam (power) collection efficiency, and 80% conversion rate for rectenna from microwave to DC in ground segment, the estimated over-all efficiency is approximately 7.5 %. With such efficiency a SSP space segment would be of size of about 50 km2 (5 km x 10 km) to generate 5 GW DC power on earth (Fig.-6) . Fig.-6 : Reference Model: 5 GW GEO based Space Solar Power Station Designed by US Department of Energy (DOE) and NASA in 1979 [8] 3.1 -SOLAR CELL: EFFICIENT STRUCTURES In the very near future, breakthroughs in nanotechnologies promise significant increase in solar cell efficiencies from current 15% values to over 50% levels. That might decrease required size of space segment by about 3 fold. Author proposes Metal-Metal junction cavity solar cell which theoretically promises to increase solar-electric conversion efficiency many folds. A cavity of metal m2 (work function W2) with thin polish of metal m1 (work function W1, W1, W2 , Fig.-7) on inner surface, with a pin hole is kept at the focus of the solar concentrator coinciding the pinhole and focus. Pinhole is covered with transparent glass to protect inner polish of cavity from atmospheric reaction. Such cavity behaves as metal-metal junction solar cell (termed as M-M cavity solar cell) with various features (described below) leading to enhancement of solar-electric conversion efficiency. · The major loss in usual structures is the reflection loss (about 30%) but in M-M cavity solar cell once ray enters in cavity, undergoes multiple inner reflecti
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/cell-phones-articles/energy-compensation-using-solar-power-stations-in-space-685742.html
About the Author:
Author: s.sankar
1. INTRODUCTION: FUTURE ENERGY NEEDS Mankind has recently enhanced its living standard and its population in an explosive way. In fact, the human population quadrupled and primary power consumption increased 16-fold during the 20th century [1]. The consumption of energy, food, and material resources is predicted to increase 2.5 fold in the coming 50 years. As a result of our efforts for better life, we have come to face, in this 21st century, serious global issues threatening our safe life or even our existence itself on our mother planet earth. These are issues such as global warming, environmental degradation, declining nutrition on land and sea from rising CO2, and rapid decrease of fossil reservoir. Since the living standard and the population of developing countries are increasing continuously, the demand of energy will be several times larger than that of today's requirement by the time of the half way of this century. In 2000, the world had 6.1 billion human inhabitants. This number could rise to more than 9 billions in the next 50 years as shown in Fig.-1. This future population increase is mostly due to very rapid increase in less developed countries although the number in more developed countries will be almost constant (about 1 billion) or rather decrease [2]. Fig.- 1 World Population Prospects [2] The explosive increase in the human population inevitably requires an exponential increase in the consumption of energy, food, and material resources. One primary power source at present comes from fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas. However, the fossil fuels have two serious factors which prevent them from being used for a long term as primary power source. One is their limited amount that does not last long if used with the same or higher pace than that of today (Fig.-2). The other is their negative feature of emitting carbon dioxide, one of the green house gases, which causes the global warming. Fig.- 2 Pattern of Global Energy Dependence [3] Fig.-3 Atmospheric carbon dioxide monthly mean mixing ratios. Data prior to May 1974 are from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO, blue), date since May 1974 are from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA, red). A long term trend curve is fitted to the monthly mean values [4] Atmospheric CO2 has increased from 275 parts per million (ppm) before the industrial era begun to 379 ppm in March 2004 as shown in Fig.-3. Some scientists suggest that it will pass 550 ppm this century. Climate models and paleoclimate data indicate that 550 ppm, if sustained, could eventually produce global warming comparable in magnitude but opposite in sign to the global cooling of the last Ice Age [5]. Global energy demand continues to grow along with worldwide concerns over fossil fuel pollution, the safety of nuclear power and waste, and the impact of carbon-burning fuels on global warming. As a result sustainable energy sources like solar, wind, hydropower, biomass, geothermal, hydrogen, ocean thermal, tidal power etc are drawing prime attention, out of which solar power is the most promising one. Terrestrial solar power has too many limitations like atmospheric attenuation, daily and seasonal variation, and affects by climate conditions etc. To overcome these limitations concept of Solar Power from Space is getting momentum, which was first proposed by Czech-American engineer Peter Glaser as a solution to the oil crises of the 1970s [6]. Solar Power from Space is a proposed concept to place a gigantic solar power station in space orbiting around the earth that uses microwave power transmission to beam solar power to a very large antenna on earth where it can be used in place of conventional power sources. 2. SPACE SOLAR POWER (SSP) vs TERRESTRIAL SOLAR POWER (TSP) The SSP concept arose because space has several major advantages over earth for the collection of solar power. Space is free from day-night cycle, atmosphere, clouds, dust, rain, fog and other climatic changes, so it would receive 30% more intense and at least eight times more sunlight than that of at ground constantly and continuously unaffected by the weather. In geosynchronous orbit it would receive sunlight almost 24 hours a day hence avoiding the expensive storage facilities necessary for earth-based solar power systems. Since earth’s axis is tilted, it would be in earth’s shadow only for 70 minutes maximum at late night when power demands are at their lowest, during 42 days near the equinoxes [7] as shown in Fig.-5. Fig.-5 Daily duration of eclipses as a function of the date [7] 3. SSP: SYSTEM DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGIES The SSP system is composed of a space segment and a ground power receiving site (Fig.-6). Space segment consists of mainly three parts; solar energy collector to convert the solar energy into DC (Direct Current) electricity, DC-to-microwave converter, and large antenna array to beam down the microwave power to the ground. Ground power receiving site uses a device called rectenna (rectifying antenna) to receive and rectify the microwave power beam. The rectenna system converts the microwave power back to DC power which is then converted to conventional AC (Alternating Current), and is connected to existing electric power networks. Assuming typical values for efficiencies like 15% for solar panels to convert solar energy into DC, 70% conversion rate in the space segment from DC to microwave, 90% beam (power) collection efficiency, and 80% conversion rate for rectenna from microwave to DC in ground segment, the estimated over-all efficiency is approximately 7.5 %. With such efficiency a SSP space segment would be of size of about 50 km2 (5 km x 10 km) to generate 5 GW DC power on earth (Fig.-6) . Fig.-6 : Reference Model: 5 GW GEO based Space Solar Power Station Designed by US Department of Energy (DOE) and NASA in 1979 [8] 3.1 -SOLAR CELL: EFFICIENT STRUCTURES In the very near future, breakthroughs in nanotechnologies promise significant increase in solar cell efficiencies from current 15% values to over 50% levels. That might decrease required size of space segment by about 3 fold. Author proposes Metal-Metal junction cavity solar cell which theoretically promises to increase solar-electric conversion efficiency many folds. A cavity of metal m2 (work function W2) with thin polish of metal m1 (work function W1, W1, W2 , Fig.-7) on inner surface, with a pin hole is kept at the focus of the solar concentrator coinciding the pinhole and focus. Pinhole is covered with transparent glass to protect inner polish of cavity from atmospheric reaction. Such cavity behaves as metal-metal junction solar cell (termed as M-M cavity solar cell) with various features (described below) leading to enhancement of solar-electric conversion efficiency. · The major loss in usual structures is the reflection loss (about 30%) but in M-M cavity solar cell once ray enters in cavity, undergoes multiple inner reflecti
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/cell-phones-articles/energy-compensation-using-solar-power-stations-in-space-685742.html
About the Author:
Historical Background and Design of Robotics
Historical Background and Design of Robotics
Author: s.sankar
Robotics History Definition of a 'Robot' First use of the word 'Robot' First use of the word 'Robotics' Three Laws of Robotics The First Robot 'Unimate' Modern Industrial Robots Benefits of Robots Definition of a 'Robot' According to the Robot Institute of America (1979) a robot is: "A reprogrammable, multifunctional manipulator designed to move material, parts, tools, or specialized devices through various programmed motions for the performance of a variety of tasks". A more inspiring definition can be found in Webster. According to Webster a robot is: "An automatic device that performs functions normally ascribed to humans or a machine in the form of a human." First use of the word 'Robot' The acclaimed Czech playwright Karel Capek (1890-1938) made the first use of the word ‘robot’, from the Czech word for forced labor or serf. Capek was reportedly several times a candidate for the Nobel prize for his works and very influential and prolific as a writer and playwright. The use of the word Robot was introduced into his play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) which opened in Prague in January 1921. In R.U.R., Capek poses a paradise, where the machines initially bring so many benefits but in the end bring an equal amount of blight in the form of unemployment and social unrest. The play was an enormous success and productions soon opened throughout Europe and the U.S. R.U.R's theme, in part, was the dehumanization of man in a technological civilization. You may find it surprising that the robots were not mechanical in nature but were created through chemical means. In fact, in an essay written in 1935, Capek strongly fought that this idea was at all possible and, writing in the third person, said: "It is with horror, frankly, that he rejects all responsibility for the idea that metal contraptions could ever replace human beings, and that by means of wires they could awaken something like life, love, or rebellion. He would deem this dark prospect to be either an overestimation of machines, or a grave offence against life." [The Author of Robots Defends Himself - Karl Capek, Lidove noviny, June 9, 1935, translation: Bean Comrada] There is some evidence that the word robot was actually coined by Karl's brother Josef, a writer in his own right. In a short letter, Capek writes that he asked Josef what he should call the artificial workers in his new play. Karel suggests Labori, which he thinks too 'bookish' and his brother mutters "then call them Robots" and turns back to his work, and so from a curt response we have the word robot. First use of the word 'Robotics' The word 'robotics' was first used in Runaround, a short story published in 1942, by Isaac Asimov (born Jan. 2, 1920, died Apr. 6, 1992). I, Robot, a collection of several of these stories, was published in 1950. One of the first robots Asimov wrote about was a robotherapist. A modern counterpart to Asimov's fictional character is Eliza. Eliza was born in 1966 by a Massachusetts Institute of Technology Professor Joseph Weizenbaum who wrote Eliza -- a computer program for the study of natural language communication between man and machine. She was initially programmed with 240 lines of code to simulate a psychotherapist by answering questions with questions. Three Laws of Robotics Asimov also proposed his three "Laws of Robotics", and he later added a 'zeroth law'. Law Zero: A robot may not injure humanity, or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm. Law One: A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm, unless this would violate a higher order law. Law Two: A robot must obey orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with a higher order law. Law Three: A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with a higher order law. The First Robot: 'Unimate' After the technology explosion during World War II, in 1956, a historic meeting occurs between George C. Devol, a successful inventor and entrepreneur, and engineer Joseph F. Engelberger, over cocktails the two discuss the writings of Isaac Asimov. Together they made a serious and commercially successful effort to develop a real, working robot. They persuaded Norman Schafler of Condec Corporation in Danbury that they had the basis of a commercial success. Engelberger started a manufacturing company 'Unimation' which stood for universal automation and so the first commercial company to make robots was formed. Devol wrote the necessary patents. Their first robot nicknamed the 'Unimate'. As a result, Engelberger has been called the 'father of robotics.' The first Unimate was installed at a General Motors plant to work with heated die-casting machines. In fact most Unimates were sold to extract die castings from die casting machines and to perform spot welding on auto bodies, both tasks being particularly hateful jobs for people. Both applications were commercially successful, i.e., the robots worked reliably and saved money by replacing people. An industry was spawned and a variety of other tasks were also performed by robots, such as loading and unloading machine tools. Ultimately Westinghouse acquired Unimation and the entrepreneurs' dream of wealth was achieved. Unimation is still in production today, with robots for sale. The robot idea was hyped to the skies and became high fashion in the Boardroom. Presidents of large corporations bought them, for about $100,000 each, just to put into laboratories to "see what they could do;" in fact these sales constituted a large part of the robot market. Some companies even reduced their ROI (Return On Investment criteria for investment) for robots to encourage their use. Modern Industrial Robots The image of the "electronic brain" as the principal part of the robot was pervasive. Computer scientists were put in charge of robot departments of robot customers and of factories of robot makers. Many of these people knew little about machinery or manufacturing but assumed that they did. (There is a common delusion of electrical engineers that mechanical phenomena are simple because they are visible. Variable friction, the effects of burrs, minimum and redundant constraints, nonlinearities, variations in work pieces, accommodation to hostile environments and hostile people, etc. are like the "Purloined Letter" in Poe's story, right in front of the eye, yet unseen.) They also had little training in the industrial engineer's realm of material handling, manufacturing processes, manufacturing economics and human behavior in factories. As a result, many of the experimental tasks in those laboratories were made to fit their robot's capabilities but had little to do with the real tasks of the factory. Modern industrial arms have increased in capability and performance through controller and language development, improved mechanisms, sensing, and drive systems. In the early to mid 80's the robot industry grew very fast primarily due to large investments by the automotive industry. The quick leap into the factory of the future turned into a plunge when the integration and economic viability of these efforts proved disastrous. The robot industry has only recently recovered to mid-80's revenue levels. In the meantime there has been an enormous shakeout in the robot industry. In the US, for example, only one US company, Adept, remains in the production industrial robot arm business. Most of the rest went under, consolidated, or were sold to European and Japanese companies. In the research community the first automata were probably Grey Walter's machina (1940's) and the John's Hopkins beast. Teleoperated or remote controlled devices had been built even earlier with at least the first radio controlled vehicles built by Nikola Tesla in the 1890's. Tesla is better known as the inventor of the induction motor, AC power transmission, and numerous other electrical devices. Tesla had also envisioned smart mechanisms that were as capable as humans. An excellent biography of Tesla is Margaret Cheney's Tesla, Man Out of Time, Published by Prentice-Hall, c1981. SRI's Shakey navigated highly structured indoor environments in the late 60's and Moravec's Stanford Cart was the first to attempt natural outdoor scenes in the late 70's. From that time there has been a proliferation of work in autonomous driving machines that cruise at highway speeds and navigate outdoor terrains in commercial applications. Fully functioning androids (robots that look like human beings) are many years away due to the many problems that must be solved. However, real, working, sophisticated robots are in use today and they are revolutionizing the workplace. These robots do not resemble the romantic android concept of robots. They are industrial manipulators and are really computer controlled "arms and hands". Industrial robots are so different to the popular image that it would be easy for the average person not to recognize one. Benefits Robots offer specific benefits to workers, industries and countries. If introduced correctly, industrial robots can improve the quality of life by freeing workers from dirty, boring, dangerous and heavy labor. it is true that robots can cause unemployment by replacing human workers but robots also create jobs: robot technicians, salesmen, engineers, programmers and supervisors. The benefits of robots to industry include improved management control and productivity and consistently high quality products. Industrial robots can work tirelessly night and day on an assembly line without an loss in performance. Consequently, they can greatly reduce the costs of manufactured goods. As a result of these industrial benefits, countries that effectively use robots in their industries will have an economic advantage on world market
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/electronics-articles/historical-background-and-design-of-robotics-590065.html
About the Author:
Assistant professor in lord venkateswara engineering college.I am doing phd in sathyabama university, Tamil Nadu,India.
Author: s.sankar
Robotics History Definition of a 'Robot' First use of the word 'Robot' First use of the word 'Robotics' Three Laws of Robotics The First Robot 'Unimate' Modern Industrial Robots Benefits of Robots Definition of a 'Robot' According to the Robot Institute of America (1979) a robot is: "A reprogrammable, multifunctional manipulator designed to move material, parts, tools, or specialized devices through various programmed motions for the performance of a variety of tasks". A more inspiring definition can be found in Webster. According to Webster a robot is: "An automatic device that performs functions normally ascribed to humans or a machine in the form of a human." First use of the word 'Robot' The acclaimed Czech playwright Karel Capek (1890-1938) made the first use of the word ‘robot’, from the Czech word for forced labor or serf. Capek was reportedly several times a candidate for the Nobel prize for his works and very influential and prolific as a writer and playwright. The use of the word Robot was introduced into his play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) which opened in Prague in January 1921. In R.U.R., Capek poses a paradise, where the machines initially bring so many benefits but in the end bring an equal amount of blight in the form of unemployment and social unrest. The play was an enormous success and productions soon opened throughout Europe and the U.S. R.U.R's theme, in part, was the dehumanization of man in a technological civilization. You may find it surprising that the robots were not mechanical in nature but were created through chemical means. In fact, in an essay written in 1935, Capek strongly fought that this idea was at all possible and, writing in the third person, said: "It is with horror, frankly, that he rejects all responsibility for the idea that metal contraptions could ever replace human beings, and that by means of wires they could awaken something like life, love, or rebellion. He would deem this dark prospect to be either an overestimation of machines, or a grave offence against life." [The Author of Robots Defends Himself - Karl Capek, Lidove noviny, June 9, 1935, translation: Bean Comrada] There is some evidence that the word robot was actually coined by Karl's brother Josef, a writer in his own right. In a short letter, Capek writes that he asked Josef what he should call the artificial workers in his new play. Karel suggests Labori, which he thinks too 'bookish' and his brother mutters "then call them Robots" and turns back to his work, and so from a curt response we have the word robot. First use of the word 'Robotics' The word 'robotics' was first used in Runaround, a short story published in 1942, by Isaac Asimov (born Jan. 2, 1920, died Apr. 6, 1992). I, Robot, a collection of several of these stories, was published in 1950. One of the first robots Asimov wrote about was a robotherapist. A modern counterpart to Asimov's fictional character is Eliza. Eliza was born in 1966 by a Massachusetts Institute of Technology Professor Joseph Weizenbaum who wrote Eliza -- a computer program for the study of natural language communication between man and machine. She was initially programmed with 240 lines of code to simulate a psychotherapist by answering questions with questions. Three Laws of Robotics Asimov also proposed his three "Laws of Robotics", and he later added a 'zeroth law'. Law Zero: A robot may not injure humanity, or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm. Law One: A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm, unless this would violate a higher order law. Law Two: A robot must obey orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with a higher order law. Law Three: A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with a higher order law. The First Robot: 'Unimate' After the technology explosion during World War II, in 1956, a historic meeting occurs between George C. Devol, a successful inventor and entrepreneur, and engineer Joseph F. Engelberger, over cocktails the two discuss the writings of Isaac Asimov. Together they made a serious and commercially successful effort to develop a real, working robot. They persuaded Norman Schafler of Condec Corporation in Danbury that they had the basis of a commercial success. Engelberger started a manufacturing company 'Unimation' which stood for universal automation and so the first commercial company to make robots was formed. Devol wrote the necessary patents. Their first robot nicknamed the 'Unimate'. As a result, Engelberger has been called the 'father of robotics.' The first Unimate was installed at a General Motors plant to work with heated die-casting machines. In fact most Unimates were sold to extract die castings from die casting machines and to perform spot welding on auto bodies, both tasks being particularly hateful jobs for people. Both applications were commercially successful, i.e., the robots worked reliably and saved money by replacing people. An industry was spawned and a variety of other tasks were also performed by robots, such as loading and unloading machine tools. Ultimately Westinghouse acquired Unimation and the entrepreneurs' dream of wealth was achieved. Unimation is still in production today, with robots for sale. The robot idea was hyped to the skies and became high fashion in the Boardroom. Presidents of large corporations bought them, for about $100,000 each, just to put into laboratories to "see what they could do;" in fact these sales constituted a large part of the robot market. Some companies even reduced their ROI (Return On Investment criteria for investment) for robots to encourage their use. Modern Industrial Robots The image of the "electronic brain" as the principal part of the robot was pervasive. Computer scientists were put in charge of robot departments of robot customers and of factories of robot makers. Many of these people knew little about machinery or manufacturing but assumed that they did. (There is a common delusion of electrical engineers that mechanical phenomena are simple because they are visible. Variable friction, the effects of burrs, minimum and redundant constraints, nonlinearities, variations in work pieces, accommodation to hostile environments and hostile people, etc. are like the "Purloined Letter" in Poe's story, right in front of the eye, yet unseen.) They also had little training in the industrial engineer's realm of material handling, manufacturing processes, manufacturing economics and human behavior in factories. As a result, many of the experimental tasks in those laboratories were made to fit their robot's capabilities but had little to do with the real tasks of the factory. Modern industrial arms have increased in capability and performance through controller and language development, improved mechanisms, sensing, and drive systems. In the early to mid 80's the robot industry grew very fast primarily due to large investments by the automotive industry. The quick leap into the factory of the future turned into a plunge when the integration and economic viability of these efforts proved disastrous. The robot industry has only recently recovered to mid-80's revenue levels. In the meantime there has been an enormous shakeout in the robot industry. In the US, for example, only one US company, Adept, remains in the production industrial robot arm business. Most of the rest went under, consolidated, or were sold to European and Japanese companies. In the research community the first automata were probably Grey Walter's machina (1940's) and the John's Hopkins beast. Teleoperated or remote controlled devices had been built even earlier with at least the first radio controlled vehicles built by Nikola Tesla in the 1890's. Tesla is better known as the inventor of the induction motor, AC power transmission, and numerous other electrical devices. Tesla had also envisioned smart mechanisms that were as capable as humans. An excellent biography of Tesla is Margaret Cheney's Tesla, Man Out of Time, Published by Prentice-Hall, c1981. SRI's Shakey navigated highly structured indoor environments in the late 60's and Moravec's Stanford Cart was the first to attempt natural outdoor scenes in the late 70's. From that time there has been a proliferation of work in autonomous driving machines that cruise at highway speeds and navigate outdoor terrains in commercial applications. Fully functioning androids (robots that look like human beings) are many years away due to the many problems that must be solved. However, real, working, sophisticated robots are in use today and they are revolutionizing the workplace. These robots do not resemble the romantic android concept of robots. They are industrial manipulators and are really computer controlled "arms and hands". Industrial robots are so different to the popular image that it would be easy for the average person not to recognize one. Benefits Robots offer specific benefits to workers, industries and countries. If introduced correctly, industrial robots can improve the quality of life by freeing workers from dirty, boring, dangerous and heavy labor. it is true that robots can cause unemployment by replacing human workers but robots also create jobs: robot technicians, salesmen, engineers, programmers and supervisors. The benefits of robots to industry include improved management control and productivity and consistently high quality products. Industrial robots can work tirelessly night and day on an assembly line without an loss in performance. Consequently, they can greatly reduce the costs of manufactured goods. As a result of these industrial benefits, countries that effectively use robots in their industries will have an economic advantage on world market
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/electronics-articles/historical-background-and-design-of-robotics-590065.html
About the Author:
Assistant professor in lord venkateswara engineering college.I am doing phd in sathyabama university, Tamil Nadu,India.
Automation and Industrial Robots
Automation and Industrial Robots
Author: Frank Vanella
The importance of automation and robots in all manufacturing industries is growing. Industrial robots have replaced human beings in a wide variety of industries. Robots out perform humans in jobs that require precision, speed, endurance and reliability. Robots safely perform dirty and dangerous jobs. Traditional manufacturing robotic applications include material handling (pick and place), assembling, painting, welding, packaging, palletizing, product inspection and testing. Industrial robots are used in a diverse range of industries including automotive, electronics, medical, food production, biotech, pharmaceutical and machinery. The ISO definition of a manipulating industrial robot is “an automatically controlled, reprogrammable, multipurpose manipulator”. According to the definition it can be fixed in place or mobile for use in industrial automation applications. These industrial robots are programmable in three or more axes. They are multi-functional pieces of equipment that can be custom-built and programmed to perform a variety of operations. The major advantages of industrial robots is that they can be programmed to suit industry specific requirements and can work continuously for years, consistently meeting high manufacturing quality standards. The economic life span of an industrial robot is approximately 12-16 years. Due to their persistent accuracy industrial robots have become an indispensable part of manufacturing. Industrial robots are classified into different categories based on their mechanical structure. The major categories of industrial robots are:
Gantry (Cartesian) Robot: They are stationary robots having three elements of motion. They work from an overhead grid with a rectangular work envelope. They are mainly used to perform ‘pick and place’ actions. Gantry robots have all their axes above the work making them also ideal for dispensing applications.
SCARA Robots: (Selectively Compliant Articulated Robot Arm) These robots have 4 axes of motion. They move within an x-y-z coordinated circular work envelope. They are used for factory automation requiring pick and place work, application and assembly operations and handling machine tools.
Articulated robots: An articulated robot has rotary joints. It can have from two to ten or more interactive joints. Articulated robots are well suited to welding, painting and assembly.
Basic industrial robot designs can be customized with the addition of different peripherals. End effectors, optical systems, and motion controllers are essential add-ons. End effectors are the end-of-arm-tooling (EOAT) attached to robotic arms. Grippers or wrenches that are used to move or assemble parts are examples of end effectors. End effectors are designed and used to sense and interact with the external environment. The end effectors’ design depends on the application requirements of the specific industry. Machine Vision systems are robotic optical systems. They are built-on digital input/output devices and computer networks used to control other manufacturing equipment such as robotic arms. Machine vision is used for the inspection of manufactured goods such as semiconductor chips. Motion controllers are used to move robots and position stages smoothly and accurately with sub-micron repeatability. Industrial robots fill the need for greater precision, reliability, flexibility and production output in the increasingly competitive and complex manufacturing industry environment.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/gadgets-and-gizmos-articles/automation-and-industrial-robots-530388.html
About the Author:
AESG, Automation Equipment Services Group Inc. - experts in automation and robotic equipment maintenance and customer support. To get more information on automation and robotics , visit our website!
Author: Frank Vanella
The importance of automation and robots in all manufacturing industries is growing. Industrial robots have replaced human beings in a wide variety of industries. Robots out perform humans in jobs that require precision, speed, endurance and reliability. Robots safely perform dirty and dangerous jobs. Traditional manufacturing robotic applications include material handling (pick and place), assembling, painting, welding, packaging, palletizing, product inspection and testing. Industrial robots are used in a diverse range of industries including automotive, electronics, medical, food production, biotech, pharmaceutical and machinery. The ISO definition of a manipulating industrial robot is “an automatically controlled, reprogrammable, multipurpose manipulator”. According to the definition it can be fixed in place or mobile for use in industrial automation applications. These industrial robots are programmable in three or more axes. They are multi-functional pieces of equipment that can be custom-built and programmed to perform a variety of operations. The major advantages of industrial robots is that they can be programmed to suit industry specific requirements and can work continuously for years, consistently meeting high manufacturing quality standards. The economic life span of an industrial robot is approximately 12-16 years. Due to their persistent accuracy industrial robots have become an indispensable part of manufacturing. Industrial robots are classified into different categories based on their mechanical structure. The major categories of industrial robots are:
Gantry (Cartesian) Robot: They are stationary robots having three elements of motion. They work from an overhead grid with a rectangular work envelope. They are mainly used to perform ‘pick and place’ actions. Gantry robots have all their axes above the work making them also ideal for dispensing applications.
SCARA Robots: (Selectively Compliant Articulated Robot Arm) These robots have 4 axes of motion. They move within an x-y-z coordinated circular work envelope. They are used for factory automation requiring pick and place work, application and assembly operations and handling machine tools.
Articulated robots: An articulated robot has rotary joints. It can have from two to ten or more interactive joints. Articulated robots are well suited to welding, painting and assembly.
Basic industrial robot designs can be customized with the addition of different peripherals. End effectors, optical systems, and motion controllers are essential add-ons. End effectors are the end-of-arm-tooling (EOAT) attached to robotic arms. Grippers or wrenches that are used to move or assemble parts are examples of end effectors. End effectors are designed and used to sense and interact with the external environment. The end effectors’ design depends on the application requirements of the specific industry. Machine Vision systems are robotic optical systems. They are built-on digital input/output devices and computer networks used to control other manufacturing equipment such as robotic arms. Machine vision is used for the inspection of manufactured goods such as semiconductor chips. Motion controllers are used to move robots and position stages smoothly and accurately with sub-micron repeatability. Industrial robots fill the need for greater precision, reliability, flexibility and production output in the increasingly competitive and complex manufacturing industry environment.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/gadgets-and-gizmos-articles/automation-and-industrial-robots-530388.html
About the Author:
AESG, Automation Equipment Services Group Inc. - experts in automation and robotic equipment maintenance and customer support. To get more information on automation and robotics , visit our website!
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Outer Space and International Legal Control
Outer Space and International Legal Control
Author: SREEKUMAR CHATHUAR
The development of modern space technology has opened wide prospects for the humankind to know about the outer space and have access to it peacefully. In the meantime, there has been a tendency of capitalizing on a nation's advantages in its space technology to pursue its own absolute security. The outer space explorations conducted by the developed countries had in its initial stages only an academic outlook but gradually it transformed into a military one, this rose apprehensions with regard to International peace and security. For years, many countries have done a lot for the attainment of a grand goal for the peaceful use of the outer space. Since the late 1950s, the UN General Assembly has listed the outer space issue on its agenda and signed a couple of documents, contributing positively to the restrictions on and prevention of weaponization in the outer space. On 13 December, 1958 the general assembly of the United Nations passed a resolution 1348(X111) where in it recognized the “common interest of mankind in the outer space and that outer space shall be used for peaceful purposes only”. On 12 December 1959 the general assembly passed another resolution1471 entitled “International cooperation in the peaceful uses of Outer space”, subsequently many resolutions were passed by the general assembly which ultimately resulted in the Treaty of principles Governing the Activities of State in the Exploration and Use of Outer space including the Moon and other Celestial bodies in 1966 which came to be known as the Outer Space Treaty, 1966 . The treaty was opened for signature in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union on January 27, 1967, and entered into force on October 10, 1967. As of January 2007, 98 countries are states-parties to the treaty, while another 27 have signed the treaty but have not yet completed ratification. The Outer Space Treaty represents the basic legal framework of international space law. Among its principles, it bars States Parties to the Treaty from placing nuclear weapons or any other weapons of mass destruction in orbit of Earth, installing them on the Moon or any other celestial body, or to otherwise station them in outer space. It exclusively limits the use of the Moon and other celestial bodies to peaceful purposes and expressly prohibits their use for testing weapons of any kind, conducting military maneuvers, or establishing military bases, installations, and fortifications (Art.IV). However, the Treaty does not prohibit the placement of conventional weapons in orbit.
The treaty explicitly forbids any government from claiming a celestial resource such as the Moon or a planet, since they are province of mankind. Art. II of the Treaty states, in fact, that "outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means and each state party from whose territory or facility an object is launched ,is internationally liable for damage to another state party to the Treaty or to its natural or judicial person by such object or its components on the earth ,in air or in outer space , including the moon and other celestial bodies (Article VII).One of the major setbacks of the space treaty was that it did not provide for any international control machinery to look after the implementing of the provisions in the treaty , it did not provide for compulsory jurisdiction of the international court of justice for the settlement of disputes. On December 12, 1977 the assembly decided to enlarge the membership of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer space from 37 to 47 by regulation 32/196-B.The legal sub-committee of the committee discussed the legal aspects of the possible hazards of the use nuclear powered satellites and priority was given to the drafting of a moon treaty and the legal implications of remote sensing of earth from Space. Consequently, the Agreement Governing the Activities of State in the Moon and Other Celestial bodies was adopted by the general assembly in 5 December 1979.The treaty clearly laid down that the states parties should use the moon exclusively for peaceful purposes. The moon and its resources are the common heritage of mankind (Article I).The treaty provides that the exploration and use of moon shall be the province of all mankind and shall be carried out for the benefit and in the interests of all countries irrespective of their degree of economic or scientific development (Article IV).
Yet another milestone in the process of establishing peaceful use of outer space was the UNISPACE 82 formally known as the Vienna Conference on the Exploration and the Peaceful Uses of Outer space which was held at Vienna from August 9 to August 22 1982.The conference appealed the states especially the states having nuclear capability not to increase arms race beyond earth. A report adopted by consensus asked the states to follow Outer Space Treaty which has exclusively forbidden the use of weapons of mass destruction in the outer space.
But in spite of these measures the world has witnessed the super powers continuing with the production of weapons of mass destruction for satisfying their thirst for world domination. Following a vote on the draft resolution in the Disarmament Committee at the United Nations Head quarters on 25 October 2005, the United States representative said that “that there was no arms race in outer space and, thus, no arms control problem to address. Addressing also the draft on the promotion of transparency and confidence-building in outer space, which had not yet been considered, she said there was unprecedented cooperation in civil and commercial activities in outer space. Moreover, there was already an extensive and comprehensive system for limiting certain uses of outer space, and the existing multilateral outer space arms control regime already adequately dealt with the non-weaponization of space. The United States was committed to the peaceful exploration and use of space by all nations for peaceful purposes, but 'peaceful purposes' included appropriate defence activities in pursuit of national security and other goals. Her country took seriously its commitment to carry on all United States activities in the exploration and use of outer space in accordance with international law, in the interest of maintaining international peace and security and promoting international cooperation and understanding. Thus, she saw no reason for international institutions to address a non-existent arms race in outer space.” This reflects the implied policy of the superpowers like the United States of not stepping back from the commitment of establishing a military base in the outer space for establishing their unprecedented superiority over its fellow nations.
The General assembly of the United Nations is the organ which is most concerned with the activities of the nations in the outer space. The proposals for the establishment of a Special Enterprisory Organisation for the Space have not found much consensus among the states. To sum up, there is a need for a universal policy for the regulation of outer space activities .The countries should reach at consensus and should establish an international body for ensuring peaceful use of the outer space for the common benefit of mankind.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-and-safety-articles/outer-space-and-international-legal-control-507153.html
About the Author:
SREEKUMAR CHATHUAR
LAW STUDENT,NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF ADVANCED LEGAL STUDIES,
KERALA,INDIA.
Author: SREEKUMAR CHATHUAR
The development of modern space technology has opened wide prospects for the humankind to know about the outer space and have access to it peacefully. In the meantime, there has been a tendency of capitalizing on a nation's advantages in its space technology to pursue its own absolute security. The outer space explorations conducted by the developed countries had in its initial stages only an academic outlook but gradually it transformed into a military one, this rose apprehensions with regard to International peace and security. For years, many countries have done a lot for the attainment of a grand goal for the peaceful use of the outer space. Since the late 1950s, the UN General Assembly has listed the outer space issue on its agenda and signed a couple of documents, contributing positively to the restrictions on and prevention of weaponization in the outer space. On 13 December, 1958 the general assembly of the United Nations passed a resolution 1348(X111) where in it recognized the “common interest of mankind in the outer space and that outer space shall be used for peaceful purposes only”. On 12 December 1959 the general assembly passed another resolution1471 entitled “International cooperation in the peaceful uses of Outer space”, subsequently many resolutions were passed by the general assembly which ultimately resulted in the Treaty of principles Governing the Activities of State in the Exploration and Use of Outer space including the Moon and other Celestial bodies in 1966 which came to be known as the Outer Space Treaty, 1966 . The treaty was opened for signature in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union on January 27, 1967, and entered into force on October 10, 1967. As of January 2007, 98 countries are states-parties to the treaty, while another 27 have signed the treaty but have not yet completed ratification. The Outer Space Treaty represents the basic legal framework of international space law. Among its principles, it bars States Parties to the Treaty from placing nuclear weapons or any other weapons of mass destruction in orbit of Earth, installing them on the Moon or any other celestial body, or to otherwise station them in outer space. It exclusively limits the use of the Moon and other celestial bodies to peaceful purposes and expressly prohibits their use for testing weapons of any kind, conducting military maneuvers, or establishing military bases, installations, and fortifications (Art.IV). However, the Treaty does not prohibit the placement of conventional weapons in orbit.
The treaty explicitly forbids any government from claiming a celestial resource such as the Moon or a planet, since they are province of mankind. Art. II of the Treaty states, in fact, that "outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means and each state party from whose territory or facility an object is launched ,is internationally liable for damage to another state party to the Treaty or to its natural or judicial person by such object or its components on the earth ,in air or in outer space , including the moon and other celestial bodies (Article VII).One of the major setbacks of the space treaty was that it did not provide for any international control machinery to look after the implementing of the provisions in the treaty , it did not provide for compulsory jurisdiction of the international court of justice for the settlement of disputes. On December 12, 1977 the assembly decided to enlarge the membership of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer space from 37 to 47 by regulation 32/196-B.The legal sub-committee of the committee discussed the legal aspects of the possible hazards of the use nuclear powered satellites and priority was given to the drafting of a moon treaty and the legal implications of remote sensing of earth from Space. Consequently, the Agreement Governing the Activities of State in the Moon and Other Celestial bodies was adopted by the general assembly in 5 December 1979.The treaty clearly laid down that the states parties should use the moon exclusively for peaceful purposes. The moon and its resources are the common heritage of mankind (Article I).The treaty provides that the exploration and use of moon shall be the province of all mankind and shall be carried out for the benefit and in the interests of all countries irrespective of their degree of economic or scientific development (Article IV).
Yet another milestone in the process of establishing peaceful use of outer space was the UNISPACE 82 formally known as the Vienna Conference on the Exploration and the Peaceful Uses of Outer space which was held at Vienna from August 9 to August 22 1982.The conference appealed the states especially the states having nuclear capability not to increase arms race beyond earth. A report adopted by consensus asked the states to follow Outer Space Treaty which has exclusively forbidden the use of weapons of mass destruction in the outer space.
But in spite of these measures the world has witnessed the super powers continuing with the production of weapons of mass destruction for satisfying their thirst for world domination. Following a vote on the draft resolution in the Disarmament Committee at the United Nations Head quarters on 25 October 2005, the United States representative said that “that there was no arms race in outer space and, thus, no arms control problem to address. Addressing also the draft on the promotion of transparency and confidence-building in outer space, which had not yet been considered, she said there was unprecedented cooperation in civil and commercial activities in outer space. Moreover, there was already an extensive and comprehensive system for limiting certain uses of outer space, and the existing multilateral outer space arms control regime already adequately dealt with the non-weaponization of space. The United States was committed to the peaceful exploration and use of space by all nations for peaceful purposes, but 'peaceful purposes' included appropriate defence activities in pursuit of national security and other goals. Her country took seriously its commitment to carry on all United States activities in the exploration and use of outer space in accordance with international law, in the interest of maintaining international peace and security and promoting international cooperation and understanding. Thus, she saw no reason for international institutions to address a non-existent arms race in outer space.” This reflects the implied policy of the superpowers like the United States of not stepping back from the commitment of establishing a military base in the outer space for establishing their unprecedented superiority over its fellow nations.
The General assembly of the United Nations is the organ which is most concerned with the activities of the nations in the outer space. The proposals for the establishment of a Special Enterprisory Organisation for the Space have not found much consensus among the states. To sum up, there is a need for a universal policy for the regulation of outer space activities .The countries should reach at consensus and should establish an international body for ensuring peaceful use of the outer space for the common benefit of mankind.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-and-safety-articles/outer-space-and-international-legal-control-507153.html
About the Author:
SREEKUMAR CHATHUAR
LAW STUDENT,NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF ADVANCED LEGAL STUDIES,
KERALA,INDIA.
Chandrayaan-1, India’s First Mission to Moon
Chandrayaan-1, India’s First Mission to Moon
Author: Moon Ch. Deka
It was a tremendous achievement in Indian space research programme soon after historic launching of Chndrayaan-1 to the orbit of the Moon. Once again India has proved that India is one of the advanced countries as concern to the space borne technology in the world. This achievement came to harness the goal of success due to some important relevant India’s space organizations which are mainly of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Space Application Centre (SAC), National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), and Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS), National Physical laboratory (NPL), Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) etc. India is also very advanced in techniques of space borne application due to availability and dissemination of good digital satellite data. There are good resolution of satellite data derived from sensors like LISS-III, LISS IV and Panchromatic camera in the visible and Near Infra Red band of EMR spectrum which are the important tools as concern to the management and exploration of natural resources in the earth. The satellite data has been derived from many Remote Sensing & Cartographic Satellites (IRS Series) and Communication & Metrological Satellites (INSAT Series). Being a one of the world’s advanced research centre the ISRO have had ambitious moon mission plan before long time ago but it had implemented since 2003. The mass of Chandrayaan-1 was 1380 kg at the Launching pad and it was projected successfully by indigenous Polar Satellite Launce Vehicle (PSLV-11) at 6-21 am on 22nd Oct’08 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre located Sriharikota of Andhrapradesh which is about 100 km north of Chennai. The mass of Chandrayaan –1 was 1050 Kg at Geostationary Trajectory Orbit (GTO) located at 36,000 km from the earth surface. The Chandrayaan-1 has finally reached after performing 20 days of journey to its intended final circular lunar orbit at a height of 100 km above the lunar surface besides landing of Moon Impact of Probe (MIP) with the Indian tri color Flag. After the Chandrayaan-1 Mission , ISRO’s have another project of Chandrayaan -2 in 2011 and planning for putting two men mission into the space with an estimated cost of 120 billion in 2015 besides future planning of artificial satellites to the Mars in 2020 which would be the another history to join the nations of super space club . The distance of the Moon is located at an average altitude of 384,400 km from the Earth. The diameter of Moon is about 3476 km along with mass of 7.35e22 kg (7.35 × 10 22 kg. In fact, Moon mission progamme had been started since 1959. The fist mission of Soviet spacecraft Luna2 had successfully visited the Moon in 1959. The first man Neil Armstrong had landed was on July 20, 1969 and the last was in December 1972 by the Apollo Mission. The rock samples were also collected by robotic missions and Moon’s mapping had also been done with the help of digital images sent by Sensors aboard on spacecraft. It has been found by the astrophysicist and geologist that the most rocks on the surface of the Moon seem to be between 3 to 4.6 billion years old that is almost equivalent the age of hard Precambrian rocks of the Earth. It is known that Moon has no geological activities due to absence of any physical and chemical behaviour including atmosphere and rains. Yet there are still to derive the detail data of Lunar Surfaces and its interior composition as there are continuously developing of updated sensors systems like latest Charged Couple Device of Thematic Mapper for evaluation of high resolution digital pan images and mini Synthetic aperture Radar for gathering information on scattering of lunar surfaces and presence of thickness of ice pool including mineralogical exploration with the help of Radar Images which was not developed in earlier during the 1970 to 1990. Moreover, the advanced countries in space technology including India do not want to loose to take advantages for future planning of extraction of energy and to set up space borne platform on nearest extraterrestrial body for acceleration of ongoing space research programmes. The Helium (3He) is an important isotope which is vital reactants of second generation of fuel to produce nuclear energy. This isotope is abundant in the Moon’s surface as well as to its interior which is an important reactant to meet the energy requirement. Around 25 tones of He reactants is equivalent to produce energy required by USA in one year. The another important point is that as the Chandrayaan –I reached the Moon’s orbit which reveals India’s dreams of future space mission will not be farthest as because of PSLV-11 crossed the distance of 340,000 kms from the earth. These are vital reasons for which the Moon Mission is very demandable. Though this Chandrayaan-I Mission was expected before few years ago yet the time may be a strategically accurate period due to carrying latest payloads could be more demandable and a have maximum probability for tie up with the other developing courtiers in terms of transfer of technology and to guide them a space research oriented programme. All total 11 numbers of 55 KG payloads or scientific instruments have been calibrated on the Moon Mission Chandrayaan-1. Out of it 6 payloads developed by ISRO which are CCD Terrain Mapping Camera (TMC) , CCD Hyper Spectral Imager (HySI), Ranging Instrument (LLRI), High Energy X-ray Spectrometer (HEX), Moon Impact Probe (MIP) , Chandrayaan-1 X-ray Spectrometer (C1XS) and two payloads developed by ESA (European Space Agency) which are of Near-IR Spectrometer (SIR-2), Sub Kev Atom reflecting Analyzer (SARA), and one payload Radiation Dose Monitor Experiment (RADOM ) developed by Bulgarian Science Academy and two payloads namely Miniature Synthetic Aperture Radar (MiniSAR) and Moon Mineralogy Mapped (M3). From the onboard payloads developed by the respective nations it can be assumed their destination to gather more information in the different field of subjects from this earth’s satellite. As a first step to Mission Moon the ISRO, India have shown keen interested to derive the scientific data in all the aspects like origin of Moon, thematic terrain evaluation derive from the high resolution of PAN images ( Digital data from Panchromatic Camera), mapping of mineralogical exploration, to generate an improved model for the lunar gravity field, to get technological required data for future soft landing missions to moon by orbiting in a close range and finally to carry out high quality X-ray spectroscopic mapping of the Moon. Based on boarding indigenous instruments it is an initial complete packages of Moon Mission series of Chandrayaan –I which would definitely help to India’s target for Manned Moon Mission in 2020. Though Apollo and Lunar unmanned missions had sent earlier by Nations like USA, European Space Agency, Russia, Japan and China yet the recent unmanned Chandrayaan –1 has created a remarkable history in the world’s space technological programmes. This has been successful because of renowned Indian Space Scientist and Engineers for their excellent efforts to develop space technology indigenously on associated with IRS and INSAT series of satellites apart from tremendous development of Polar Satellite Launched Vehicle (PSLV) and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV). All total 50 numbers of artificial satellites have been launched to the earth’s orbit within the spans of 35 years. The history will begins as Chandrayaan –I revolves around the Moon once every orbital period of 117 minutes at an altitude of 100 X100 km lunar polar orbit with an mass of 523 kg to become a history of another chapter of space technology along with the registering the sixth Indian nation that have sent unmanned spacecraft to the Moon. The calibrated payloads of different Nations like National Aeronautics Space Agency of USA (NASA), European Space Agency (ESA) and Bulgarian science Academy are a matter of Indian’s pride and symbol of friendly relation apart from scientific cooperation to harness the goal of success in the space borne technology. It may be noted that SIR-2 and SARA payloads of ESA would carry out the data on the field of Chemical and Magnetic mapping of Moon for its history of origin and composition. The RADOM payloads are very interesting to have gathered the monitoring of radioactive elements like Helium (He), Rubidium (Rb) and Thorium (Th). On the other hand, SAR payloads of the NASA of USA is interested to detect water ice in the permanently shadowed regions on the Lunar poles up to a few meters depth along with M3 payload for mapping of lunar mineral resources at high spatial and spectral resolution to support planning for future, targeted missions. The transmission of data in the different digital format from Payloads of Chandrayaan’s -I to the ground station equipped with remotely controlled devices situated near the Bangalore would be the very fruitful as because Chandrayaan –I orbits has been fixed at a 100 km from the Lunar surfaces . In general remote sensing satellites are placed in a polar orbit at a distance from 700 kms to 900 kms from the surface of the earth. This Chandrayaan –I ‘S will have to be achieved 100 X 100 km lunar polar orbit finally where it may have been interesting to interpretation the digital images and transmission of radiation energy. Apart from CCD hyper spectral imager, pan camera there are other spectrometers devices to know the spectral distribution of EMR from the lunar surface in the C1XS (X Ray Spectrometer) would use X-ray fluorescence technique (1.0-10 keV) for measuring abundance of elements like Mg, Al, Si, Ca, Fe, Ti distributed over the surface of the Moon to know the origin of the earth’s satellite. On the other hand the SIR-2(Infrared) Spectrometer will measure the soil texture, structure, moisture content and vegetation to know the landscape of the lunar surface in detail. Moreover NASA and ESA‘s bid for payloads on Chandrayaan-I has revealed to carry out the many optimistic solution and clues from the earth’s satellites for the next generation of exploration of Lunar. This is true that space science and its advance research are necessary to become a powerful nation in the world. The space technology helps to evaluate natural resource mappings in the earth and other planets. Moreover, the country gets more benefited by using updated space technology in different fields like natural resource mapping and any other country planning including Military mapping, antiterrorism plan etc. etc. That is why space research and its updated evaluation is a matter of country’s prestige. The USA is assumed as a superior only because of their advanced space research power and its application for their powerful constellation of 24 numbers of global positioning satellites where the entire world is dependent on their spatial positioning systems. Of course GLONASS positioning of Russia is also going on which India could be a partner in the coming days. It may be indicated that the important space research organization in the world are National Aeronautics Space Agency of USA, Russia’s Federal Space Agency (Roskosmos), remote Sensing Technology Centre (RESTEC), Institute of Space and Astronautically Science (ISAS) of Japan , China National Space Administration and agency, European Space Agency and finally Indian Space Research Organization. China successfully put two manned spacecraft into orbit in 2003 and 2005, respectively, becoming the third country to send an astronaut into space after the United States and the Soviet Union. Hope India‘s plan to put two men in space in the 2015 may have come out successfully to make a another remarkable history as a fourth nations to project astronauts into space.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/science-articles/chandrayaan1-indias-first-mission-to-moon-628764.html
About the Author:
Writer profession is a Geologist and is expertised in RS & GIS technology and have interested to do work in Municipal GIS including various urban planning.
Author: Moon Ch. Deka
It was a tremendous achievement in Indian space research programme soon after historic launching of Chndrayaan-1 to the orbit of the Moon. Once again India has proved that India is one of the advanced countries as concern to the space borne technology in the world. This achievement came to harness the goal of success due to some important relevant India’s space organizations which are mainly of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Space Application Centre (SAC), National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), and Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS), National Physical laboratory (NPL), Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) etc. India is also very advanced in techniques of space borne application due to availability and dissemination of good digital satellite data. There are good resolution of satellite data derived from sensors like LISS-III, LISS IV and Panchromatic camera in the visible and Near Infra Red band of EMR spectrum which are the important tools as concern to the management and exploration of natural resources in the earth. The satellite data has been derived from many Remote Sensing & Cartographic Satellites (IRS Series) and Communication & Metrological Satellites (INSAT Series). Being a one of the world’s advanced research centre the ISRO have had ambitious moon mission plan before long time ago but it had implemented since 2003. The mass of Chandrayaan-1 was 1380 kg at the Launching pad and it was projected successfully by indigenous Polar Satellite Launce Vehicle (PSLV-11) at 6-21 am on 22nd Oct’08 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre located Sriharikota of Andhrapradesh which is about 100 km north of Chennai. The mass of Chandrayaan –1 was 1050 Kg at Geostationary Trajectory Orbit (GTO) located at 36,000 km from the earth surface. The Chandrayaan-1 has finally reached after performing 20 days of journey to its intended final circular lunar orbit at a height of 100 km above the lunar surface besides landing of Moon Impact of Probe (MIP) with the Indian tri color Flag. After the Chandrayaan-1 Mission , ISRO’s have another project of Chandrayaan -2 in 2011 and planning for putting two men mission into the space with an estimated cost of 120 billion in 2015 besides future planning of artificial satellites to the Mars in 2020 which would be the another history to join the nations of super space club . The distance of the Moon is located at an average altitude of 384,400 km from the Earth. The diameter of Moon is about 3476 km along with mass of 7.35e22 kg (7.35 × 10 22 kg. In fact, Moon mission progamme had been started since 1959. The fist mission of Soviet spacecraft Luna2 had successfully visited the Moon in 1959. The first man Neil Armstrong had landed was on July 20, 1969 and the last was in December 1972 by the Apollo Mission. The rock samples were also collected by robotic missions and Moon’s mapping had also been done with the help of digital images sent by Sensors aboard on spacecraft. It has been found by the astrophysicist and geologist that the most rocks on the surface of the Moon seem to be between 3 to 4.6 billion years old that is almost equivalent the age of hard Precambrian rocks of the Earth. It is known that Moon has no geological activities due to absence of any physical and chemical behaviour including atmosphere and rains. Yet there are still to derive the detail data of Lunar Surfaces and its interior composition as there are continuously developing of updated sensors systems like latest Charged Couple Device of Thematic Mapper for evaluation of high resolution digital pan images and mini Synthetic aperture Radar for gathering information on scattering of lunar surfaces and presence of thickness of ice pool including mineralogical exploration with the help of Radar Images which was not developed in earlier during the 1970 to 1990. Moreover, the advanced countries in space technology including India do not want to loose to take advantages for future planning of extraction of energy and to set up space borne platform on nearest extraterrestrial body for acceleration of ongoing space research programmes. The Helium (3He) is an important isotope which is vital reactants of second generation of fuel to produce nuclear energy. This isotope is abundant in the Moon’s surface as well as to its interior which is an important reactant to meet the energy requirement. Around 25 tones of He reactants is equivalent to produce energy required by USA in one year. The another important point is that as the Chandrayaan –I reached the Moon’s orbit which reveals India’s dreams of future space mission will not be farthest as because of PSLV-11 crossed the distance of 340,000 kms from the earth. These are vital reasons for which the Moon Mission is very demandable. Though this Chandrayaan-I Mission was expected before few years ago yet the time may be a strategically accurate period due to carrying latest payloads could be more demandable and a have maximum probability for tie up with the other developing courtiers in terms of transfer of technology and to guide them a space research oriented programme. All total 11 numbers of 55 KG payloads or scientific instruments have been calibrated on the Moon Mission Chandrayaan-1. Out of it 6 payloads developed by ISRO which are CCD Terrain Mapping Camera (TMC) , CCD Hyper Spectral Imager (HySI), Ranging Instrument (LLRI), High Energy X-ray Spectrometer (HEX), Moon Impact Probe (MIP) , Chandrayaan-1 X-ray Spectrometer (C1XS) and two payloads developed by ESA (European Space Agency) which are of Near-IR Spectrometer (SIR-2), Sub Kev Atom reflecting Analyzer (SARA), and one payload Radiation Dose Monitor Experiment (RADOM ) developed by Bulgarian Science Academy and two payloads namely Miniature Synthetic Aperture Radar (MiniSAR) and Moon Mineralogy Mapped (M3). From the onboard payloads developed by the respective nations it can be assumed their destination to gather more information in the different field of subjects from this earth’s satellite. As a first step to Mission Moon the ISRO, India have shown keen interested to derive the scientific data in all the aspects like origin of Moon, thematic terrain evaluation derive from the high resolution of PAN images ( Digital data from Panchromatic Camera), mapping of mineralogical exploration, to generate an improved model for the lunar gravity field, to get technological required data for future soft landing missions to moon by orbiting in a close range and finally to carry out high quality X-ray spectroscopic mapping of the Moon. Based on boarding indigenous instruments it is an initial complete packages of Moon Mission series of Chandrayaan –I which would definitely help to India’s target for Manned Moon Mission in 2020. Though Apollo and Lunar unmanned missions had sent earlier by Nations like USA, European Space Agency, Russia, Japan and China yet the recent unmanned Chandrayaan –1 has created a remarkable history in the world’s space technological programmes. This has been successful because of renowned Indian Space Scientist and Engineers for their excellent efforts to develop space technology indigenously on associated with IRS and INSAT series of satellites apart from tremendous development of Polar Satellite Launched Vehicle (PSLV) and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV). All total 50 numbers of artificial satellites have been launched to the earth’s orbit within the spans of 35 years. The history will begins as Chandrayaan –I revolves around the Moon once every orbital period of 117 minutes at an altitude of 100 X100 km lunar polar orbit with an mass of 523 kg to become a history of another chapter of space technology along with the registering the sixth Indian nation that have sent unmanned spacecraft to the Moon. The calibrated payloads of different Nations like National Aeronautics Space Agency of USA (NASA), European Space Agency (ESA) and Bulgarian science Academy are a matter of Indian’s pride and symbol of friendly relation apart from scientific cooperation to harness the goal of success in the space borne technology. It may be noted that SIR-2 and SARA payloads of ESA would carry out the data on the field of Chemical and Magnetic mapping of Moon for its history of origin and composition. The RADOM payloads are very interesting to have gathered the monitoring of radioactive elements like Helium (He), Rubidium (Rb) and Thorium (Th). On the other hand, SAR payloads of the NASA of USA is interested to detect water ice in the permanently shadowed regions on the Lunar poles up to a few meters depth along with M3 payload for mapping of lunar mineral resources at high spatial and spectral resolution to support planning for future, targeted missions. The transmission of data in the different digital format from Payloads of Chandrayaan’s -I to the ground station equipped with remotely controlled devices situated near the Bangalore would be the very fruitful as because Chandrayaan –I orbits has been fixed at a 100 km from the Lunar surfaces . In general remote sensing satellites are placed in a polar orbit at a distance from 700 kms to 900 kms from the surface of the earth. This Chandrayaan –I ‘S will have to be achieved 100 X 100 km lunar polar orbit finally where it may have been interesting to interpretation the digital images and transmission of radiation energy. Apart from CCD hyper spectral imager, pan camera there are other spectrometers devices to know the spectral distribution of EMR from the lunar surface in the C1XS (X Ray Spectrometer) would use X-ray fluorescence technique (1.0-10 keV) for measuring abundance of elements like Mg, Al, Si, Ca, Fe, Ti distributed over the surface of the Moon to know the origin of the earth’s satellite. On the other hand the SIR-2(Infrared) Spectrometer will measure the soil texture, structure, moisture content and vegetation to know the landscape of the lunar surface in detail. Moreover NASA and ESA‘s bid for payloads on Chandrayaan-I has revealed to carry out the many optimistic solution and clues from the earth’s satellites for the next generation of exploration of Lunar. This is true that space science and its advance research are necessary to become a powerful nation in the world. The space technology helps to evaluate natural resource mappings in the earth and other planets. Moreover, the country gets more benefited by using updated space technology in different fields like natural resource mapping and any other country planning including Military mapping, antiterrorism plan etc. etc. That is why space research and its updated evaluation is a matter of country’s prestige. The USA is assumed as a superior only because of their advanced space research power and its application for their powerful constellation of 24 numbers of global positioning satellites where the entire world is dependent on their spatial positioning systems. Of course GLONASS positioning of Russia is also going on which India could be a partner in the coming days. It may be indicated that the important space research organization in the world are National Aeronautics Space Agency of USA, Russia’s Federal Space Agency (Roskosmos), remote Sensing Technology Centre (RESTEC), Institute of Space and Astronautically Science (ISAS) of Japan , China National Space Administration and agency, European Space Agency and finally Indian Space Research Organization. China successfully put two manned spacecraft into orbit in 2003 and 2005, respectively, becoming the third country to send an astronaut into space after the United States and the Soviet Union. Hope India‘s plan to put two men in space in the 2015 may have come out successfully to make a another remarkable history as a fourth nations to project astronauts into space.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/science-articles/chandrayaan1-indias-first-mission-to-moon-628764.html
About the Author:
Writer profession is a Geologist and is expertised in RS & GIS technology and have interested to do work in Municipal GIS including various urban planning.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Pushing the Boundaries of Space in the 21st Century
Pushing the Boundaries of Space in the 21st Century
Author: Martin Mcallister
When man set foot on the Moon during the Apollo programme in 1969, this was considered the first step in the exploration of our solar system, allowing mankind to go beyond our home planet and find answers to questions that have occupied the minds of scientists, philosophers and visionaries for many centuries.
What was once science fiction is becoming reality. Many around the globe expected the 21st century to be one of space travel and planetary exploitation. However, the political and economical drivers needed to nurture and drive such advancements have been lacking since the end of the Apollo programme, shifting the focus of space endeavours from interplanetary to Earth bound and allowing for developments in Earth observation, telecommunication and navigation.
In the past decade, several national and international space programmes have been showing increased interest in space exploration. The United States, Europe, Japan, China, Russia and India have been planning and/or executing a number of robotic planetary missions. In addition, the United States has announced its plans to return to the Moon, and Europe has endorsed the Aurora programme with the ultimate goal of a manned mission to Mars by 2033.
Despite this renewed drive behind space exploration, the contrast with respect to the Apollo era is that the space organisations and nations involved are aiming to achieve their goals within limited financial budgets and at carefully calculated risks. This results in a ‘step by step’ approach allowing for the required technologies to be tested and demonstrated during programmes that include several technology demonstrating missions. The European Aurora programme is a good example of this approach, where each of its missions builds on proven technologies and aims to demonstrate new ones. Its first mission, ExoMars , builds on ESA’s experience gained on Mars Express, and focuses on demonstrating advanced rover technology, aided by the experience gained by NASA during the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) missions.
The above example also demonstrates another feature of today’s exploration programmes: International Cooperation. Driven by the need for cost effectiveness and risk reduction, national and international space agencies are seeking cooperation and enabling the exchange of knowledge, expertise and resources. NASA’s Mars lander mission, Phoenix, will be assisted during its descent and entry by ESA’s Mars Express orbiter for data relay, while ESA’s ExoMars mission baseline relies on NASA’s MRO for data relay. Such cooperation also extends to the scientific output of the various missions.
One aerospace consultancy, VEGA, believes that ensuring cost effectiveness, risk reduction and seeking international cooperation, are the key factors in maintaining the momentum of the space exploration programmes and their success. This requires advanced technologies to be implemented, not only on the space segments, but also on the ground segments, allowing for reduction of costs during the design, test and validation, and operational phases of the missions. Risk reduction and cooperation are assisted by standardisation, efficient interfaces and knowledge management, and effective training.
Recently, training solutions have been instrumental for some of ESA’s most challenging missions; with the implementation of a programme of sustained development to ensure they continue to meet the requirements for all forthcoming challenging exploration missions.
In addition to NASA’s vision to return to the moon, ESA’s Aurora programme, the European national lunar mission studies (Germany, UK, Italy, France), and the exploration activities of Japan, China, Russia and India, there are several entrepreneurial activities developing technologies to enable access to space for mankind. Almost four decades since the first landing on the moon, today we seem to be reminded of Tsiolkovsky’s words again: “The Earth is the cradle of humanity, but mankind cannot stay in the cradle forever.“
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/science-articles/pushing-the-boundaries-of-space-in-the-21st-century-159267.html
About the Author:
Author: Martin Mcallister
When man set foot on the Moon during the Apollo programme in 1969, this was considered the first step in the exploration of our solar system, allowing mankind to go beyond our home planet and find answers to questions that have occupied the minds of scientists, philosophers and visionaries for many centuries.
What was once science fiction is becoming reality. Many around the globe expected the 21st century to be one of space travel and planetary exploitation. However, the political and economical drivers needed to nurture and drive such advancements have been lacking since the end of the Apollo programme, shifting the focus of space endeavours from interplanetary to Earth bound and allowing for developments in Earth observation, telecommunication and navigation.
In the past decade, several national and international space programmes have been showing increased interest in space exploration. The United States, Europe, Japan, China, Russia and India have been planning and/or executing a number of robotic planetary missions. In addition, the United States has announced its plans to return to the Moon, and Europe has endorsed the Aurora programme with the ultimate goal of a manned mission to Mars by 2033.
Despite this renewed drive behind space exploration, the contrast with respect to the Apollo era is that the space organisations and nations involved are aiming to achieve their goals within limited financial budgets and at carefully calculated risks. This results in a ‘step by step’ approach allowing for the required technologies to be tested and demonstrated during programmes that include several technology demonstrating missions. The European Aurora programme is a good example of this approach, where each of its missions builds on proven technologies and aims to demonstrate new ones. Its first mission, ExoMars , builds on ESA’s experience gained on Mars Express, and focuses on demonstrating advanced rover technology, aided by the experience gained by NASA during the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) missions.
The above example also demonstrates another feature of today’s exploration programmes: International Cooperation. Driven by the need for cost effectiveness and risk reduction, national and international space agencies are seeking cooperation and enabling the exchange of knowledge, expertise and resources. NASA’s Mars lander mission, Phoenix, will be assisted during its descent and entry by ESA’s Mars Express orbiter for data relay, while ESA’s ExoMars mission baseline relies on NASA’s MRO for data relay. Such cooperation also extends to the scientific output of the various missions.
One aerospace consultancy, VEGA, believes that ensuring cost effectiveness, risk reduction and seeking international cooperation, are the key factors in maintaining the momentum of the space exploration programmes and their success. This requires advanced technologies to be implemented, not only on the space segments, but also on the ground segments, allowing for reduction of costs during the design, test and validation, and operational phases of the missions. Risk reduction and cooperation are assisted by standardisation, efficient interfaces and knowledge management, and effective training.
Recently, training solutions have been instrumental for some of ESA’s most challenging missions; with the implementation of a programme of sustained development to ensure they continue to meet the requirements for all forthcoming challenging exploration missions.
In addition to NASA’s vision to return to the moon, ESA’s Aurora programme, the European national lunar mission studies (Germany, UK, Italy, France), and the exploration activities of Japan, China, Russia and India, there are several entrepreneurial activities developing technologies to enable access to space for mankind. Almost four decades since the first landing on the moon, today we seem to be reminded of Tsiolkovsky’s words again: “The Earth is the cradle of humanity, but mankind cannot stay in the cradle forever.“
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/science-articles/pushing-the-boundaries-of-space-in-the-21st-century-159267.html
About the Author:
Orbital Relationship Of The Moon
Orbital Relationship Of The Moon
Author: Simone Poleggi
The Moon is the Earth's natural satellite. It orbits the Earth on a regular basis, much the same as the Earth orbits the Sun. The orbit of the Moon around the Earth creates several interesting conditions and in fact can greatly influence the Earth and everyone on it.
The Moon orbits the Earth with a synchronous rotation. This means that nearly the same face of the Moon is faced towards the Earth at all times. In fact, only 59% of the face of the Moon can ever be observed from Earth. As the moon rotates, it also completes its orbit.
The Moon completes one orbit of the Earth in 27.3 days, but because during this time, the Earth is also moving, a full lunar cycle is 29.5 days. These lunar cycles are responsible for the phases of the moon. The lunar cycle begins with the new moon. The new moon is when the moon first appears as a small sliver. Some cultures and even some calendars will use this new moon as the basis for the beginning of a new month.
Over the course of the next 14 or so days, the lighted face of the moon will continue to become larger and larger. During this process, the moon cycle is called waxing gibbous. After 1 week, it will resemble a half moon and after the approximately 14 days, it will resemble a full Moon. Over the course of the next 14 or so days, the lighted face of the moon will decrease. This is the waning gibbous cycle. At the end of 7 days, it will be half a moon and by the end of 14 days, the lighted area will disappear and the cycle will begin again.
This cycle brings up the first of the orbital effects of the moon on society and culture. The 29.5 day moon cycle corresponds to 1 month. The 12 cycles per year corresponds to the 12 months of the year. The approximately 7 days from each half of the moon corresponds to 1 week. Further more, this cycle of the Moon also corresponds to the menstrual cycle of many women.
The moon's synchronous rotation as it orbits the Earth also causes the tides. As the moon orbits the Earth, the gravitational pull of the Moon is causing water to bulge towards it, causes a tide. This similar force will exist on the far side of the Earth as well, hence there are two tide cycles every day.
The Moon's orbit causes eclipses to occur as well. There are two kinds of eclipses, the solar eclipse and the lunar eclipse. The lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth is between the sun and the moon. The lunar eclipse is unique in that we are able to view the shadow of the Earth being cast on the moon. When the Moon is between the Sun and the Earth, we see a solar eclipse. The Moon is passing over the surface of the Sun.
There are so many effects of the Moon's orbit. It has a very unique relationship with us. It has affected our culture, our physical being and even the forces of nature that shape our world. The Moon shows us how interconnected we are to the universe around us.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/orbital-relationship-of-the-moon-294391.html
About the Author:
Written by Simone Poleggi. Find more information on la Luna and Eclissi Lunare
Author: Simone Poleggi
The Moon is the Earth's natural satellite. It orbits the Earth on a regular basis, much the same as the Earth orbits the Sun. The orbit of the Moon around the Earth creates several interesting conditions and in fact can greatly influence the Earth and everyone on it.
The Moon orbits the Earth with a synchronous rotation. This means that nearly the same face of the Moon is faced towards the Earth at all times. In fact, only 59% of the face of the Moon can ever be observed from Earth. As the moon rotates, it also completes its orbit.
The Moon completes one orbit of the Earth in 27.3 days, but because during this time, the Earth is also moving, a full lunar cycle is 29.5 days. These lunar cycles are responsible for the phases of the moon. The lunar cycle begins with the new moon. The new moon is when the moon first appears as a small sliver. Some cultures and even some calendars will use this new moon as the basis for the beginning of a new month.
Over the course of the next 14 or so days, the lighted face of the moon will continue to become larger and larger. During this process, the moon cycle is called waxing gibbous. After 1 week, it will resemble a half moon and after the approximately 14 days, it will resemble a full Moon. Over the course of the next 14 or so days, the lighted face of the moon will decrease. This is the waning gibbous cycle. At the end of 7 days, it will be half a moon and by the end of 14 days, the lighted area will disappear and the cycle will begin again.
This cycle brings up the first of the orbital effects of the moon on society and culture. The 29.5 day moon cycle corresponds to 1 month. The 12 cycles per year corresponds to the 12 months of the year. The approximately 7 days from each half of the moon corresponds to 1 week. Further more, this cycle of the Moon also corresponds to the menstrual cycle of many women.
The moon's synchronous rotation as it orbits the Earth also causes the tides. As the moon orbits the Earth, the gravitational pull of the Moon is causing water to bulge towards it, causes a tide. This similar force will exist on the far side of the Earth as well, hence there are two tide cycles every day.
The Moon's orbit causes eclipses to occur as well. There are two kinds of eclipses, the solar eclipse and the lunar eclipse. The lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth is between the sun and the moon. The lunar eclipse is unique in that we are able to view the shadow of the Earth being cast on the moon. When the Moon is between the Sun and the Earth, we see a solar eclipse. The Moon is passing over the surface of the Sun.
There are so many effects of the Moon's orbit. It has a very unique relationship with us. It has affected our culture, our physical being and even the forces of nature that shape our world. The Moon shows us how interconnected we are to the universe around us.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/orbital-relationship-of-the-moon-294391.html
About the Author:
Written by Simone Poleggi. Find more information on la Luna and Eclissi Lunare
The Moon – Its Age and Origin – an Important Question Still Under Discussion
The Moon – Its Age and Origin – an Important Question Still Under Discussion
Author: Stig Kristoffersen
The moon – its age and origin – An important question still under discussion
Age of the moon
Prof. Oliver Schaeffer and Postdoctoral Fellow John Funkhouser were part of the team that announced the first dating of the age of the Moon to be about 4 billion years. This was based on the rock samples brought back by the Apollo 11 astronauts, the first humans to walk on the Moon, in July, 1969. These findings, the first scientific report based on analysis of lunar material actually retrieved from the Moon, were reported in the September 19, 1969, issue of Science under the authorship of "The Lunar Sample Preliminary Examination Team," of which Prof. Schaeffer was a member. They were presented in a much more extensive form at a Lunar Science Conference of all mission investigators in Houston and published in an extraordinary 380-page "Moon Issue" of Science on January 30, 1970.
Stony Brook's team, led by Oliver Schaeffer, determined the concentration and isotopic signature of argon gas contained in lunar samples. They combined these data with potassium concentrations for the same samples to derive an age of about 4 billion years for the Moon. This initial determination by the Stony Brook-led team has been corroborated by several other research teams using complementary techniques. Obtaining the age of the moon, our nearest neighbor, is a scientific milestone that has deepened our understanding of the early history of Earth and helped set boundaries for dating the origin of life on Earth.
How was the Moon formed and how did it come to have its present orbit around the Earth?
There are five dominant theories which have been proposed for the formation of the Moon.
1.The Fission Theory: The Moon was once part of the Earth and somehow separated from the Earth early in the history of the Solar System. The present Pacific Ocean basin is the most popular site for the part of the Earth from which the Moon came.
2.The Capture Theory: The Moon was formed somewhere else, and was later captured by the gravitational field of the Earth.
3.The Condensation Theory: The Moon and the Earth condensed together from the original nebula that formed the Solar System.
4.The Colliding Planetesimals Theory: The interaction of earth-orbiting and Sun-orbiting planetesimals (very large chunks of rocks like asteroids) early in the history of the Solar System led to their breakup. The Moon condensed from this debris.
5.The Ejected Ring Theory: A planetesimal the size of Mars struck the earth, ejecting large volumes of matter. A disk of orbiting material was formed, and this matter eventually condensed to form the Moon in orbit around the Earth.
A detailed comparison of the properties of Lunar and Earth rock samples has placed very strong constraints on the possible validity of these hypotheses. For example, if the Moon came from material that once made up the Earth, then Lunar and Terrestrial rocks should be more similar in composition than if the Moon was formed somewhere else and only later was captured by the Earth.
These analyses indicate that the abundances of elements in Lunar and Terrestrial material are sufficiently different to make it unlikely that the Moon formed directly from the Earth.
Generally, work over the last 10 years has essentially ruled out the first two explanations and made the third one rather unlikely.
Preferred theory of origin for the moon
At present the fifth hypothesis , that the Moon was formed from a ring of matter ejected by collision of a large object with the Earth, is the favored hypothesis; however, the question is still a matter for discussions in the scientific environment and there are many details remaining to the accounted for.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/the-moon-its-age-and-origin-an-important-question-still-under-discussion-385691.html
About the Author:
He has a background as civil engineer and geoscientist. He has worked mainly within the oil and gas industry from the mid 1980s. He has written some few fictional novels as well as author of some professional litterature within oil and gas sector, he is now an editor of some web sites, mainly within the travel business.
Author: Stig Kristoffersen
The moon – its age and origin – An important question still under discussion
Age of the moon
Prof. Oliver Schaeffer and Postdoctoral Fellow John Funkhouser were part of the team that announced the first dating of the age of the Moon to be about 4 billion years. This was based on the rock samples brought back by the Apollo 11 astronauts, the first humans to walk on the Moon, in July, 1969. These findings, the first scientific report based on analysis of lunar material actually retrieved from the Moon, were reported in the September 19, 1969, issue of Science under the authorship of "The Lunar Sample Preliminary Examination Team," of which Prof. Schaeffer was a member. They were presented in a much more extensive form at a Lunar Science Conference of all mission investigators in Houston and published in an extraordinary 380-page "Moon Issue" of Science on January 30, 1970.
Stony Brook's team, led by Oliver Schaeffer, determined the concentration and isotopic signature of argon gas contained in lunar samples. They combined these data with potassium concentrations for the same samples to derive an age of about 4 billion years for the Moon. This initial determination by the Stony Brook-led team has been corroborated by several other research teams using complementary techniques. Obtaining the age of the moon, our nearest neighbor, is a scientific milestone that has deepened our understanding of the early history of Earth and helped set boundaries for dating the origin of life on Earth.
How was the Moon formed and how did it come to have its present orbit around the Earth?
There are five dominant theories which have been proposed for the formation of the Moon.
1.The Fission Theory: The Moon was once part of the Earth and somehow separated from the Earth early in the history of the Solar System. The present Pacific Ocean basin is the most popular site for the part of the Earth from which the Moon came.
2.The Capture Theory: The Moon was formed somewhere else, and was later captured by the gravitational field of the Earth.
3.The Condensation Theory: The Moon and the Earth condensed together from the original nebula that formed the Solar System.
4.The Colliding Planetesimals Theory: The interaction of earth-orbiting and Sun-orbiting planetesimals (very large chunks of rocks like asteroids) early in the history of the Solar System led to their breakup. The Moon condensed from this debris.
5.The Ejected Ring Theory: A planetesimal the size of Mars struck the earth, ejecting large volumes of matter. A disk of orbiting material was formed, and this matter eventually condensed to form the Moon in orbit around the Earth.
A detailed comparison of the properties of Lunar and Earth rock samples has placed very strong constraints on the possible validity of these hypotheses. For example, if the Moon came from material that once made up the Earth, then Lunar and Terrestrial rocks should be more similar in composition than if the Moon was formed somewhere else and only later was captured by the Earth.
These analyses indicate that the abundances of elements in Lunar and Terrestrial material are sufficiently different to make it unlikely that the Moon formed directly from the Earth.
Generally, work over the last 10 years has essentially ruled out the first two explanations and made the third one rather unlikely.
Preferred theory of origin for the moon
At present the fifth hypothesis , that the Moon was formed from a ring of matter ejected by collision of a large object with the Earth, is the favored hypothesis; however, the question is still a matter for discussions in the scientific environment and there are many details remaining to the accounted for.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/the-moon-its-age-and-origin-an-important-question-still-under-discussion-385691.html
About the Author:
He has a background as civil engineer and geoscientist. He has worked mainly within the oil and gas industry from the mid 1980s. He has written some few fictional novels as well as author of some professional litterature within oil and gas sector, he is now an editor of some web sites, mainly within the travel business.
Space Jobs - Choosing the Right Path Into Space
Space Jobs - Choosing the Right Path Into Space
Author: Gavin Bowyer
Very few of you reading this will ever actually work in space - we have another 50 years before a few percent of working people do that. But if you want to be an Astronaut (Cosmonaut, Taikonaut), you have two options: 1 Get a good education in science or technology, a pilots licence, diving qualifications, and wait in line with millions of other people. 2 Go into highly lucrative business of any kind (except anything to do with space), save up 20-30 million, and buy a ticket. This is a lot easier than option 1. If you can spare a few hundred billion, you could be the first person to walk on Mars. (If you need a good engineer to help you, I can think of one or two). On the other hand, if you want to get a bit closer to the space business, perhaps sending some other poor fool to Mars, you need to think carefully about your education and training choices, and apply for jobs with the right outfits. Let's define the Space business, as a whole, to see where the careers are. Space Agencies Space activities are still dominated by Governments, through their Space Agencies. The Agencies run scientific missions and encourage the development of space technology. They do not make any money, and therefore their programmes depend entirely upon political support. They do what no sensible profit making enterprise would do - take big risks, which result in the most spectacular successes (soft landing a probe on the surface of Titan, the mysterious moon of Saturn) and failures (Beagle2 crashing into Mars). Even though commercial entities did most of the work, they did so to make a profit or for strategic commercial reasons. Agencies are also the only bodies to run manned spaceflight programmes. The near exception is Scaled Composites/Virgin Galactic who are selling sub-orbital flights for the first time more than 40 years after a government achieved it. The worlds leading national space agencies are in the US, Russia and China, with a club of European countries subscribing to the European Space Agency.. There are a few others, with the Canadian Space Agency being notable for its exceptional bang-for-buck. (The UK does not have a Space Agency). Space Agencies employ civil servants (direct employees) and contractors (who look like employees, but can be dispensed with at short notice). There is a limit to what you can do as a contractor, so the more senior, important jobs are done by civil servants. Strangely, contractors tend to be more experienced in practical things than civil servants. It is a lot easier to get a job with a company supplying contractors to a Space Agency than it is to get a staff job. Space Agencies oversee or supervise scientific or technology programmes - if you want to do research or make spaceships, Agency jobs are a bit too abstracted from where the real work is done (for ESA - for NASA less so). The exceptions are the 'Ops' jobs, where testing is done and missions are controlled - you get to sit in a comfy chair, wear a headset, talk on the loops, and make expensive typing mistakes. Space Agencies also employ managers, administrators, IT people, accountants, lawyers, doctors, as well as engineers and scientists. Agencies have recruitment websites, but you need also to find the 'Work Order Contractor' recruitment websites. I'm not going to give them a free advertisement here, they are easy to come across. Big (Tier One) Industry and their suppliers These people make their money building spacecraft and launchers. There are not many of them worldwide, and they are large engineering organisations. Some of them employ contractors for similar reasons given above. ESA calls these Prime Contractors which emphasises that there are other sorts of contractors - subcontractors. In fact, most of the bits of a spacecraft assembled by a Prime are made by subcontractors who specialise. Most of the people worldwide who work in the space industry specialise in one product or another - thrusters, momentum wheels, startrackers, TWTs, booms, etc, and in the process get very good at it. So, for an real engineer, at entry level, the subcos is where it's at. Applications organisations These entities use space technology - for broadcast, telecoms, commercial remote sensing, navigation products. Working for them is space related, yes, but firmly Earth bound. You do not have to have your head above the stratosphere to succeed. Space Research organisations These academic outfits are where it all started, and they continue to use their imaginations to go further and further into the Universe. If you're looking for an exciting career in the Space industry why not search through the latest Space Jobs at r4space.com and visit our resources section for more usefull tips.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/recruitment-articles/space-jobs-choosing-the-right-path-into-space-705533.html
About the Author:
Gavin Bowyer runs the website http://www.r4space.com The site was developed to provide a link between space professionals and employers and as a resource center for the space professional
Author: Gavin Bowyer
Very few of you reading this will ever actually work in space - we have another 50 years before a few percent of working people do that. But if you want to be an Astronaut (Cosmonaut, Taikonaut), you have two options: 1 Get a good education in science or technology, a pilots licence, diving qualifications, and wait in line with millions of other people. 2 Go into highly lucrative business of any kind (except anything to do with space), save up 20-30 million, and buy a ticket. This is a lot easier than option 1. If you can spare a few hundred billion, you could be the first person to walk on Mars. (If you need a good engineer to help you, I can think of one or two). On the other hand, if you want to get a bit closer to the space business, perhaps sending some other poor fool to Mars, you need to think carefully about your education and training choices, and apply for jobs with the right outfits. Let's define the Space business, as a whole, to see where the careers are. Space Agencies Space activities are still dominated by Governments, through their Space Agencies. The Agencies run scientific missions and encourage the development of space technology. They do not make any money, and therefore their programmes depend entirely upon political support. They do what no sensible profit making enterprise would do - take big risks, which result in the most spectacular successes (soft landing a probe on the surface of Titan, the mysterious moon of Saturn) and failures (Beagle2 crashing into Mars). Even though commercial entities did most of the work, they did so to make a profit or for strategic commercial reasons. Agencies are also the only bodies to run manned spaceflight programmes. The near exception is Scaled Composites/Virgin Galactic who are selling sub-orbital flights for the first time more than 40 years after a government achieved it. The worlds leading national space agencies are in the US, Russia and China, with a club of European countries subscribing to the European Space Agency.. There are a few others, with the Canadian Space Agency being notable for its exceptional bang-for-buck. (The UK does not have a Space Agency). Space Agencies employ civil servants (direct employees) and contractors (who look like employees, but can be dispensed with at short notice). There is a limit to what you can do as a contractor, so the more senior, important jobs are done by civil servants. Strangely, contractors tend to be more experienced in practical things than civil servants. It is a lot easier to get a job with a company supplying contractors to a Space Agency than it is to get a staff job. Space Agencies oversee or supervise scientific or technology programmes - if you want to do research or make spaceships, Agency jobs are a bit too abstracted from where the real work is done (for ESA - for NASA less so). The exceptions are the 'Ops' jobs, where testing is done and missions are controlled - you get to sit in a comfy chair, wear a headset, talk on the loops, and make expensive typing mistakes. Space Agencies also employ managers, administrators, IT people, accountants, lawyers, doctors, as well as engineers and scientists. Agencies have recruitment websites, but you need also to find the 'Work Order Contractor' recruitment websites. I'm not going to give them a free advertisement here, they are easy to come across. Big (Tier One) Industry and their suppliers These people make their money building spacecraft and launchers. There are not many of them worldwide, and they are large engineering organisations. Some of them employ contractors for similar reasons given above. ESA calls these Prime Contractors which emphasises that there are other sorts of contractors - subcontractors. In fact, most of the bits of a spacecraft assembled by a Prime are made by subcontractors who specialise. Most of the people worldwide who work in the space industry specialise in one product or another - thrusters, momentum wheels, startrackers, TWTs, booms, etc, and in the process get very good at it. So, for an real engineer, at entry level, the subcos is where it's at. Applications organisations These entities use space technology - for broadcast, telecoms, commercial remote sensing, navigation products. Working for them is space related, yes, but firmly Earth bound. You do not have to have your head above the stratosphere to succeed. Space Research organisations These academic outfits are where it all started, and they continue to use their imaginations to go further and further into the Universe. If you're looking for an exciting career in the Space industry why not search through the latest Space Jobs at r4space.com and visit our resources section for more usefull tips.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/recruitment-articles/space-jobs-choosing-the-right-path-into-space-705533.html
About the Author:
Gavin Bowyer runs the website http://www.r4space.com The site was developed to provide a link between space professionals and employers and as a resource center for the space professional
Kepler Space Telescope's Hunt for Another Planet Earth
Kepler's Hunt for Another Planet Earth in Space
Author: James William Smith
The United Nations has named 2009 the International Year of Astronomy. The year was chosen by the United Nations because it marks the four hundred year anniversary of Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei's first observations using a telescope.
The International Year of Astronomy will feature a number of interesting international space projects and events. The European Space Agency has plans to launch a roving laboratory to Mars. Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic service plans to offer commercial sub-orbital space flights that should commence in 2009. Russia should be able to launch its laboratory module for the International Space Station.
However, the most exciting mission in the International Year of Astronomy may well be the NASA Discovery Mission called Kepler. NASA intends to send a probe into space capable of finding small planets like Earth that have the possibility of supporting life. The Kepler telescope is looking for planets in the "habitable zone" of their star or at distances that would allow oceans to exist.
To date, more than two hundred extra solar planets have been found, but none of these discoveries is a planet similar to the Earth. The fact is that it is very difficult to detect a planet as small as Earth in orbit around a distant star. A tiny planet like Earth only reflects the light from the star and does not shine on its own. In addition, this faint planet light appears to be so close to the much brighter star that they are almost impossible to tell apart. The 2009 Kepler Space Laboratory is being designed to go beyond the Hubble Telescope and traditional Earth-bound telescopes to locate rocky Earth-sized planets.
Kepler will be a space-based probe with a cost of over five hundred fifty million dollars. It will use state of the art technology (optical interferometry) that has been refined only within the last two decades. The Kepler probe will be launched into an Earth-trailing orbit around the Sun by a Delta booster rocket. Its telescope is being designed to precisely measure the light from stars in a one hundred square degree part of the sky in the constellation of Cygnus to discover both the size and orbit of undetected new worlds.
It is estimated that the target area of the telescope's observation is home to more than one hundred thousand stars. The spacecraft's photometer will be able to detect small decreases in stellar brightness when a planet "transits" its star. Three transits with a consistent period, brightness change, and duration will provide NASA scientists with evidence of the detection of an extra-solar planet. Kepler is scheduled to focus exclusively on the constellation Cygnus target area for four years with a possible two-year extension.
The Kepler probe is important not only for what it may find, but also for what it may not find. For example, if Kepler can't locate smaller planets like Earth, it may be that planets with "habitable zones" are rare in space. Earth may indeed be truly unique. However, if planets with a size and location similar to Earth are discovered, there would be Earth-like planets to target for subsequent NASA space missions.
The launch of Kepler is now only one year away and will mark an effort to discover our place in the universe. If you believe unidentified flying objects (UFO) exist or simply that life indeed must exist elsewhere, NASA’s Kepler mission should be a highlight in the International Year of Astronomy.
Of course, the ultimate question in space exploration is the question, are we alone in the universe? In 2009, the Kepler Space Laboratory begins the journey to find out the answer, as it fulfills its mission to hunt for life supporting planets like Earth in space.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/news-and-society-articles/keplers-hunt-for-another-planet-earth-in-space-352432.html
About the Author:
James William Smith has worked in Senior management positions for some of the largest Financial Services firms in the United States for the last twenty five years. He has also provided business consulting support for insurance organizations and start up businesses. He has always been interested in writing and listening to different viewpoints on interesting topics.
Visit his website at
http://www.eworldvu.com/international/
Author: James William Smith
The United Nations has named 2009 the International Year of Astronomy. The year was chosen by the United Nations because it marks the four hundred year anniversary of Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei's first observations using a telescope.
The International Year of Astronomy will feature a number of interesting international space projects and events. The European Space Agency has plans to launch a roving laboratory to Mars. Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic service plans to offer commercial sub-orbital space flights that should commence in 2009. Russia should be able to launch its laboratory module for the International Space Station.
However, the most exciting mission in the International Year of Astronomy may well be the NASA Discovery Mission called Kepler. NASA intends to send a probe into space capable of finding small planets like Earth that have the possibility of supporting life. The Kepler telescope is looking for planets in the "habitable zone" of their star or at distances that would allow oceans to exist.
To date, more than two hundred extra solar planets have been found, but none of these discoveries is a planet similar to the Earth. The fact is that it is very difficult to detect a planet as small as Earth in orbit around a distant star. A tiny planet like Earth only reflects the light from the star and does not shine on its own. In addition, this faint planet light appears to be so close to the much brighter star that they are almost impossible to tell apart. The 2009 Kepler Space Laboratory is being designed to go beyond the Hubble Telescope and traditional Earth-bound telescopes to locate rocky Earth-sized planets.
Kepler will be a space-based probe with a cost of over five hundred fifty million dollars. It will use state of the art technology (optical interferometry) that has been refined only within the last two decades. The Kepler probe will be launched into an Earth-trailing orbit around the Sun by a Delta booster rocket. Its telescope is being designed to precisely measure the light from stars in a one hundred square degree part of the sky in the constellation of Cygnus to discover both the size and orbit of undetected new worlds.
It is estimated that the target area of the telescope's observation is home to more than one hundred thousand stars. The spacecraft's photometer will be able to detect small decreases in stellar brightness when a planet "transits" its star. Three transits with a consistent period, brightness change, and duration will provide NASA scientists with evidence of the detection of an extra-solar planet. Kepler is scheduled to focus exclusively on the constellation Cygnus target area for four years with a possible two-year extension.
The Kepler probe is important not only for what it may find, but also for what it may not find. For example, if Kepler can't locate smaller planets like Earth, it may be that planets with "habitable zones" are rare in space. Earth may indeed be truly unique. However, if planets with a size and location similar to Earth are discovered, there would be Earth-like planets to target for subsequent NASA space missions.
The launch of Kepler is now only one year away and will mark an effort to discover our place in the universe. If you believe unidentified flying objects (UFO) exist or simply that life indeed must exist elsewhere, NASA’s Kepler mission should be a highlight in the International Year of Astronomy.
Of course, the ultimate question in space exploration is the question, are we alone in the universe? In 2009, the Kepler Space Laboratory begins the journey to find out the answer, as it fulfills its mission to hunt for life supporting planets like Earth in space.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/news-and-society-articles/keplers-hunt-for-another-planet-earth-in-space-352432.html
About the Author:
James William Smith has worked in Senior management positions for some of the largest Financial Services firms in the United States for the last twenty five years. He has also provided business consulting support for insurance organizations and start up businesses. He has always been interested in writing and listening to different viewpoints on interesting topics.
Visit his website at
http://www.eworldvu.com/international/
A New Era of Space Travel is on the Horizon
A New Era of Space Travel is on the Horizon
Author: James William Smith
Data from public opinion polls indicate that nearly fifty million people would like to visit space. In fact as many as two million people each year would take the journey beyond the outer limits of Earth’s gravity. The public's fascination with space travel means the potential development of a space travel tourism industry with revenues that could amount to $10 billion or more every year.
Therefore, it really is not hard to understand the interest in commercial space travel by private business. In fact, more than six companies are working to making commercial space travel a reality. However, the company that is closest to becoming the industry pioneer is Virgin Galactic. The company is a well funded joint venture of Richard Branson, Burt Rutan, and Paul Allen.
Eager future space travelers should consider that the development of Virgin Galactic's Space Ship Two is nearly completed and could be performing test flights by the end of the year into space. The spacecrafts successful predecessor, Spaceship One, last reached space on October 4, 2004, winning the $10m Ansari X Prize. The larger and more powerful, Space Ship Two, is being built to accommodate two pilots and six passengers. Indeed, there will be enough room on board to experience the freedom of movement in the zero gravity of space. Initially, Virgin Galactic has ordered five spaceships to begin the business of commercial space travel and tourism.
The Spaceships will launch from the Virgin Galactic's spaceport which is currently under construction in the state of New Mexico. The spaceport will be the first commercial space launch and control facility in the United States. The $200m spaceport project is designed to cover 27 square miles. It will feature a mission control station, runways, and the Virgin Galactic headquarters. Much of the facility will be built underground.
Customers that want to experience commercial space travel have been lining up for tickets. 75 people have already paid the entire $200,000 fee. William Shatner, Sigourney Weaver, and Paris Hilton are reported to be among the early space tourists while hundreds of others have put down more than thirty million dollars in deposits to reserve their seat for a flight on Virgin’s Spaceships. However, the initial experience of commercial space flight will be brief and it will not exactly represent a bargain ride. Passengers will spend just under 10 minutes in space at an altitude of only 65 miles, high enough to experience free fall and to see the curvature of the earth.
Of course, the creation of the new space travel tourism industry comes with government regulations. Already the United States Federal Aviation Administration has published its guidelines for commercial space travel, one hundred and twenty three pages of regulations that require disclosure and passenger training. Requirements include a disclosure on the number of trips the spacecraft has made into orbit and a history of its problems as well as a notice that the spacecraft has not been government certified. Also required is pre flight training for passengers in order to be properly prepared to handle emergencies such as a fire or loss of cabin pressure. Passengers will also be subject to the no-fly list currently operating in the US which is designed to stop terrorists boarding regular passenger flights.
It is expected that once people experience future commercial space travel, that they will want to make space their ultimate vacation destination. Therefore, the next innovative commercial space business venture may be the orbiting space hotel. Robert Bigelow, who made his fortune with hotel chain Budget Suites Of America, is already working on a prototype orbiting hotel. Bigelow has invested $75 million into the project, with a estimate of $425 million more a necessary commitment for the future.
His orbiting hotel venture is being developed under the corporate name of Bigelow Aerospace. The firm has successfully completed the first phase of the project by launching a small pod that inflates aloft called Genesis I. It is the first in a series of launches scheduled every six months for the next two and a half years. Genesis I has marked the beginning of what could be the first privately funded space station. The project is a prototype for cheap, livable, interconnecting rooms for commercial use in space similar in design to the International Space Station. In fact, Genesis I was an early concept for the ISS that was researched through funding by NASA. Robert Bigelow has since purchased the rights to the patent of the technology for his Genesis prototype.
Spaceports, flights to space, and orbiting hotels in space, indicate that a new era of commercial space travel and tourism is on the horizon. It will surely represent another small step for the creativity of man and a potentially giant leap to profitable opportunity for business and commercial enterprise of every kind.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/exotic-locations-articles/a-new-era-of-space-travel-is-on-the-horizon-380526.html
About the Author:
James William Smith has worked in Senior management positions for some of the largest Financial Services firms in the United States for the last twenty five years. He has also provided business consulting support for insurance organizations and start up businesses. Visit his website at http://www.eWorldvu.com
Author: James William Smith
Data from public opinion polls indicate that nearly fifty million people would like to visit space. In fact as many as two million people each year would take the journey beyond the outer limits of Earth’s gravity. The public's fascination with space travel means the potential development of a space travel tourism industry with revenues that could amount to $10 billion or more every year.
Therefore, it really is not hard to understand the interest in commercial space travel by private business. In fact, more than six companies are working to making commercial space travel a reality. However, the company that is closest to becoming the industry pioneer is Virgin Galactic. The company is a well funded joint venture of Richard Branson, Burt Rutan, and Paul Allen.
Eager future space travelers should consider that the development of Virgin Galactic's Space Ship Two is nearly completed and could be performing test flights by the end of the year into space. The spacecrafts successful predecessor, Spaceship One, last reached space on October 4, 2004, winning the $10m Ansari X Prize. The larger and more powerful, Space Ship Two, is being built to accommodate two pilots and six passengers. Indeed, there will be enough room on board to experience the freedom of movement in the zero gravity of space. Initially, Virgin Galactic has ordered five spaceships to begin the business of commercial space travel and tourism.
The Spaceships will launch from the Virgin Galactic's spaceport which is currently under construction in the state of New Mexico. The spaceport will be the first commercial space launch and control facility in the United States. The $200m spaceport project is designed to cover 27 square miles. It will feature a mission control station, runways, and the Virgin Galactic headquarters. Much of the facility will be built underground.
Customers that want to experience commercial space travel have been lining up for tickets. 75 people have already paid the entire $200,000 fee. William Shatner, Sigourney Weaver, and Paris Hilton are reported to be among the early space tourists while hundreds of others have put down more than thirty million dollars in deposits to reserve their seat for a flight on Virgin’s Spaceships. However, the initial experience of commercial space flight will be brief and it will not exactly represent a bargain ride. Passengers will spend just under 10 minutes in space at an altitude of only 65 miles, high enough to experience free fall and to see the curvature of the earth.
Of course, the creation of the new space travel tourism industry comes with government regulations. Already the United States Federal Aviation Administration has published its guidelines for commercial space travel, one hundred and twenty three pages of regulations that require disclosure and passenger training. Requirements include a disclosure on the number of trips the spacecraft has made into orbit and a history of its problems as well as a notice that the spacecraft has not been government certified. Also required is pre flight training for passengers in order to be properly prepared to handle emergencies such as a fire or loss of cabin pressure. Passengers will also be subject to the no-fly list currently operating in the US which is designed to stop terrorists boarding regular passenger flights.
It is expected that once people experience future commercial space travel, that they will want to make space their ultimate vacation destination. Therefore, the next innovative commercial space business venture may be the orbiting space hotel. Robert Bigelow, who made his fortune with hotel chain Budget Suites Of America, is already working on a prototype orbiting hotel. Bigelow has invested $75 million into the project, with a estimate of $425 million more a necessary commitment for the future.
His orbiting hotel venture is being developed under the corporate name of Bigelow Aerospace. The firm has successfully completed the first phase of the project by launching a small pod that inflates aloft called Genesis I. It is the first in a series of launches scheduled every six months for the next two and a half years. Genesis I has marked the beginning of what could be the first privately funded space station. The project is a prototype for cheap, livable, interconnecting rooms for commercial use in space similar in design to the International Space Station. In fact, Genesis I was an early concept for the ISS that was researched through funding by NASA. Robert Bigelow has since purchased the rights to the patent of the technology for his Genesis prototype.
Spaceports, flights to space, and orbiting hotels in space, indicate that a new era of commercial space travel and tourism is on the horizon. It will surely represent another small step for the creativity of man and a potentially giant leap to profitable opportunity for business and commercial enterprise of every kind.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/exotic-locations-articles/a-new-era-of-space-travel-is-on-the-horizon-380526.html
About the Author:
James William Smith has worked in Senior management positions for some of the largest Financial Services firms in the United States for the last twenty five years. He has also provided business consulting support for insurance organizations and start up businesses. Visit his website at http://www.eWorldvu.com
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