Return-path: X-Andrew-Authenticated-as: 7997;andrew.cmu.edu;Ted Anderson Received: from corsica.andrew.cmu.edu via trymail for +dist+/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/usr1/ota/space/space.dl@andrew.cmu.edu (->+dist+/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/usr1/ota/space/space.dl) (->ota+space.digests) ID ; Sat, 1 Jul 89 00:29:41 -0400 (EDT) Message-ID: Reply-To: space+@Andrew.CMU.EDU From: space-request+@Andrew.CMU.EDU To: space+@Andrew.CMU.EDU Date: Sat, 1 Jul 89 00:29:33 -0400 (EDT) Subject: SPACE Digest V9 #525 SPACE Digest Volume 9 : Issue 525 Today's Topics: Voyager 2 Status for 06/27/89 (Forwarded) Tanner to leave NASA (Forwarded) more on Discovery "alien spacecraft" Size limits for rotating Space Ship? Re: Satellite Images - at home! Apollo question private space companies ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 28 Jun 89 00:47:18 GMT From: trident.arc.nasa.gov!yee@ames.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee) Subject: Voyager 2 Status for 06/27/89 (Forwarded) Voyager 2 Status Bulletin June 27, 1989 Voyager 2 this week received and began executing the second load of commands of the observatory phase of the Neptune encounter. The five-week-long command load continues imaging and periodic ultraviolet scans of Neptune. In late July, the spacecraft cameras will begin photographic searches for Neptune's uneven ring system and for new Neptunian moons that would be undetectable from Earth. Efforts on Wednesday, June 28, will focus on a rehearsal of radio science measurements associated with the near-encounter period. The operations readiness test will involve antennas and other ground equipment at the Deep Space Network complexes, the Very Large Array in Socorro, New Mexico, Japan's Usuda Radio Telescope and Australia's Parkes Radio Observatory. Altogether, 38 antennas on four continents will send or receive Voyager 2 telemetry or radio science data during the Neptune encounter. Because the best radio "view" of Voyager and Neptune is from Earth's southern hemisphere, the most critical Deep Space Network tracking will occur at the Australian site. Two of the three largest antennas (one 34-meter and one 70-meter dish) will be assisted in receiving Voyager's signal by the 64-meter Parkes Radio Observatory about 200 miles away. During the most important encounter period, the huge, super-sensitive antennas will simultaneously gather Voyager's faint transmissions, the strength of which amounts to only one 10-quadrillionths (1/10,000,000,000,000th) of a watt by the time the signal strikes the 70-meter antenna surface. An electronic digital wristwatch operates at a power level 20 billion times greater. DISTANCE TO EARTH: 2,663,767,000 miles DISTANCE TO NEPTUNE: 52,687,000 miles HELIOCENTRIC VELOCITY: 42,209 mph ------------------------------ Date: 28 Jun 89 00:44:20 GMT From: trident.arc.nasa.gov!yee@ames.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee) Subject: Tanner to leave NASA (Forwarded) Mark Hess Headquarters, Washington, D.C. June 27, 1989 RELEASE: 89-103 TANNER TO LEAVE NASA E. Ray Tanner, Deputy Director, Space Station Freedom Program and Operations, announced today he plans to retire from NASA effective July 15, 1989. Dr. William B. Lenoir, Associate Administrator for Space Station named Jim Sisson as acting Deputy Director. Sisson currently serves as Deputy Program Manager for the Space Station Freedom Program Office located in Reston, Va., a position he has held since November 1986. Prior to coming to NASA Headquarters, Sisson held key management posts at the Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala., where he was for 24 years, including Manager of the Tethered Satellite System Project, Manager of the Shuttle Projects Office's Engineering and Major Test Management Office and Chief Engineer and later Manager of the Lunar Roving Vehicle Project. He received a bachelors degree in aeronautical engineering in 1958 from Oklahoma University, and studied atomic and nuclear physics at the University of Alabama. Tanner came to the Washington area last December to head the Space Station Freedom Program Office in Reston, Va. Prior to that, Tanner was Manager of the Space Station Projects Office at the Marshall Center which is one of four major work packages involved in the design, test and operation of the Freedom Space Station, a post he had held since August 1988. Tanner joined NASA and the Marshall center in 1960. He held various key management positions, including chief engineer for the Spacelab program from 1979 until 1983, and Deputy Manager of the Spacelab Program Office from 1983 until 1986. He was named Associate Director for Space Systems in the Science and Engineering Directorate in December 1986. He was promoted to Deputy Director for Space Systems in that directorate where he was responsible for assuring engineering adequacy of the Space Station, Hubble Space Telescope, Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility, payloads integrated into the Spacelab orbital laboratory and other payloads assigned to Marshall. Prior to joining NASA, Tanner worked in the flight control division, Army Ballistic Missile Agency, Redstone Arsenal. He was born in Decatur, Ala., in 1934 and received a bachelor of science degree in mathematics from Athens College, Ala., in 1965. He has received numerous NASA awards, including the NASA Exceptional Service Medal in 1983. Tanner is married to the former Mary Zinsmeister of Cullman, Ala. They have three children. ------------------------------ Date: 27 Jun 89 22:43:44 GMT From: zephyr!tektronix!orca!tolkien.WV.TEK.COM!keithr@uunet.uu.net Subject: more on Discovery "alien spacecraft" The Quarterly Report (1st Quarter 1989) of the Fund for UFO Research includes this item: "In mid-March, the Executive Committee was informed that a Baltimore resident had recorded a very provocative statement made during a 'ham' radio rebroadcast of the communications between the space shuttle Discovery and Houston ground control. The statement as recorded was as follows: 'Uh, Houston, this is Discovery. We still have that alien spacecraft under (observance?).' To this there was no response from Houston. (The last word is a bit ambiguous, but the other words -- including 'alien spacecraft' are completely clear.) Subsequent investigations showed that the hams were rebroadcasting 'raw' communications from the spacecraft, rather than communications which had been passed first through Houston control. The so-called 'NASA select' audio channel, which was transmitted by Houston to the Press and other interested news media, *does not include this statement*. This audio tape initiated a search for confirmation that it had, in fact, come from the spacecraft [Discovery, of course, :-)] and was not some bizarre hoax by a ham radio operator who transmitted on the same frequency as the Goddard ham station (WA3NAN). The Fund immediately arranged for a voice analysis to determine if the transmission was authentic and if so, which astronaut made the statement. At this writing, the analysis was inconclusive." If anyone on the net can add any substantive information to help us get to the bottom of this probable hoax, please email or post to the net. (CSICOPers and fanatic skeptics: please don't waste net bandwidth with more gratuitous UFO ridicule, which only confirms your ignorance of the UFO literature.) Thanks in advance for any substantive responses. -Keith Rowell, Tektronix, Wilsonville, OR keithr@orca.WV.TEK.COM ------------------------------ Date: 27 Jun 89 06:39:15 GMT From: uhccux!munnari.oz.au!wcc!tom@humu.nosc.mil (Tom Evans) Subject: Size limits for rotating Space Ship? At a lecture I went to a year ago, a graph was shown giving the size limits for a space station providing artificial gravity by rotation. The max. size limit is due to material strength (two capsules on a rope). The min. size limit is due to coriolis effects in the inner ear. There were other limits (the graph looked like a metallurgical phase diagram). Does anybody know the real figures please? Please post or Cc: me - this group is too popular. --------- Tom Evans tom@wcc.oz | Webster Computer Corp P/L | "The concept of my 1270 Ferntree Gully Rd | existence is an Scoresby VIC 3179 Australia | approximation" Australia | 61-3-764-1100 FAX ...764-1179 | D. Conway ------------------------------ Date: 26 Jun 89 12:09:31 GMT From: mcvax!euroies!kom!gnugent@uunet.uu.net Subject: Re: Satellite Images - at home! In article <53*kerry@ccu.umanitoba.ca>, kerry@ccu.umanitoba.ca (Kerry Stevenson) writes: > Recently, I read a book about amateur radio which told me all about radio, and > mentioned briefly the concept of listening in on signals transmitted from > various type of earth orbiting satellites. Although this in itself is not too > difficult, the book mentioned that some individuals have managed to capture > video signals, from weather satellites for example, and using their home > computer systems have actually printed out images. Also, a recent article in > Spaceflight detailed the impressive setup owned by a Briton, who had managed > to print out oceanic images from the Soviet Okean satellite. This topic is > of some interest to me and I have the following questions: > > - Is this a common activity, or is it done by just a few deranged people? > - What types of satellites are popular for capturing images? > - What equipment (other than computing hardware) is required? > - Are there legalities involved? e.g. are SPOT images encoded? > - Most importantly, are there any referenes, official or otherwise which > can be used to find out more detail? > I won't say its a common hobby, but quite a few people do pursue it. I am actually in Dublin (Ireland), and I know of only three or four others in the country who can receive pictures from weather satellites. It is more common in the UK. The most popular satellites are NOAA 9, 10 and 11 (USA); the Meteor, Cosmos and Okean series (USSR), and the Meteosat series of geosynchronous satellites. The NOAAs transmit visible-light and infra-red pictures, and the Meteors transmit visible-light pictures. The Okean satellite sometimes transmits radar images, but tends to be somewhat intermittent. Meteosat transmits regularly once an hour, but the picture format changes. Visible-light and infra-red images of the helisphere below the satellite, or selected sections are broadcast at various times during the day. The meteosat images are the only ones which have continental outlines superimposed on the images. To receive images from satellites, the first piece of equipment you require is a radio receiver which can receive in the 136-138MHz range. Next you need some form of decoder which feeds the signal into either a framestore or a computer for subsequent storage/display. A simple crossed-dipole aerial is all you need to catch the signal. This basic setup allows you to receive transmissions from the polar orbiting satellites, but not Meteosat. Since Meteosat transmits at 1690GHz, a downconverter is needed along with a dish aerial and a pre-amp to boost the signal. My current kit regularly receives/displays weather pictures from the NOAA series of satellites. I will shortly be upgrading it so I can display images from the Russian satellites. The equipment I assembled myself, from electronic kits supplied by a UK company. A license is required for receiving pictures from the NOAA satellites, but this is a mere formality. The only organisation I know of who are dedicated to weather satellite picture reception are the Remote Imaging Group in the UK. They also supply a range of equipment at reasonable prices. They can probably put you in touch with someone closer to home. The person to contact is: Phil Seaford, 14 Nevis Close, Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire LU7 7XD, England. (Phil is the Secretary of the Remote Imaging Group, and Editor of the groups quarterly Newsletter.) ---------------------------+--------------------------------------------------- Gary Nugent, | Internet: gnugent@vms.eurokom.ie System Support Specialist,| EARN/Bitnet:gnugent@vms.eurokom.ie EuroKom, | uucp: gnugent%vms.eurokom.ie@euroies.uucp University College Dublin,| EuroKom: gary_nugent@eurokom.ie Dublin 4, | Janet: gnugent%vms.eurokom.ie@uk.ac.earn-relay Ireland. | PSImail: PSI%027243159000637::GNUGENT ---------------------------+ "Astronomers love watching | Phone: +353.1.697890 heavenly bodies." | Telex: (0500) 91178 UCD EI ---------------------------+--------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ Date: 28 Jun 89 19:45:07 GMT From: pjm@astro.as.utexas.edu (Phillip MacQueen) Subject: Apollo question Did any of the astronauts ever see the Apollo command/service module while they were on the lunar surface? This was probably possible because of the dark daytime sky, and the large size, high reflectivity and low altitude of the orbiting spacecraft. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Jun 89 19:53:38 GMT From: ccncsu!handel.colostate.edu!bogartc@boulder.colorado.edu (Chris Bogart) Subject: private space companies I made the following request a while back: > > I understand there are, or have been, several private corporations working > on their own launch vehicles, under a loosening of restrictions on non-NASA > launches. Does anyone know if any of these comanies still exist? Please > reply by e-mail and I'll post a summary of responses I get. > I'm interested more in for-profit companies intending to put up > communication satellites or whatever, than in futurist groups like the L-5 > society. Thanks for your help, Here are the (edited) responses I got: ----- From: Dave Newkirk, att!ihlpm!dcn AMROC - has completed most of its testing and is preparing for its first paying customer launch in July. Third Millenium - still in the design process SSI - has already done some suborbital launches using readily available solid boosters, and is planning more. Orbital Systems ----- From: argosy!kevin@decwrl.dec.com (Kevin Van Horn) Yes. Here are the ones I know about. They are all developing launchers for small (~1000 lb.) payloads, though some of them plan to also do larger launchers. Pacific American Launch Systems Developing the Liberty I launcher. They have been built and tested at least one of the stages, and the Air Force is purchasing their test data from them. Space Services Inc. Recently launched a suborbital microgravity experiment for a paying customer. E-Prime I believe they plan on adapting MX boosters for commercial use. American Rocket Co. Developing a hybrid rocket (solid fuel with a liquid oxidizer). Around December they had completed a series of tests culminating in a full-duration burn of their basic motor. Hercules - Orbital Sciences Corp. These two established companies are collaborating to build the Pegasus, a small launcher which is launched by dropping it from an airplane. It has small wings so that it can take off nearly horizontally, spending its effort on attaining orbital velocity instead of on just staying off the ground. I believe they have a launch this summer. ----- From: boulder!utah-cs!esunix!bpendlet@ncar.UCAR.EDU (Bob Pendleton) OSC/Hercules. Building the Pegasus air launched vehicle. First launch should be in about 2 months. 2 of the 3 stages have been static test fired. ----- From: Sylvia Jacyno BITNET: SJACYNO@UGA [E'Prime info:] To get business plan and buying info: (approx 18 cents/shr in 3/89) Gregg Sprigg First Eagle Inc, Denver, Col. 1-800-525-4348 From glossy souvenir brochure of November 88 launch: E'Prime Aerospace Corp PO Box 792 Titusville, Fl 32781-0792 phone 407-269-0900 people you might contact (brief biographies in business plan!) Jack Dowling staff Jim Mizell publicity Rosie Bracewell secretary Ed Bretzius tech services manager Philip Chien computer services ----- Thanks to all the people who responded! Chris Bogart bogartc@handel.cs.colostate.edu ------------------------------ End of SPACE Digest V9 #525 *******************