| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 675.1 | Shuttle Status - 10/26/90 | 4347::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Nov 27 1990 23:23 | 21 |
| From: NASA SpaceLink
Organization: NASA
Monday November 26, 1990 10:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Normal post-flight safing operations are continuing today on
Atlantis in the Orbiter Processing Facility. Cryogenic drain
operations were completed last Friday and the thruster plugs have
been installed on the vehicle. The payload bay door strong backs
are being installed today and the doors are scheduled to be
opened tomorrow.
|
| 675.2 | Shuttle Status - 11/27/90 | 4347::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Nov 27 1990 23:24 | 21 |
| From: NASA SpaceLink
Organization: NASA
Tuesday November 27, 1990 10:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Post-flight safing operations continue on Atlantis in the
Orbiter Processing Facility. Toxic vapor sniff checks continue
today, followed by normal tile repair work. The payload
strongbacks will be bolted into place today and the payload bay
doors opened tonight.
|
| 675.3 | GRO cross-reference | 4347::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Nov 28 1990 00:02 | 5 |
| Information on the Gamma Ray Observatory can be found in note 636.
FYI,
- dave
|
| 675.4 | Shuttle Status - 11/28/90 | 4347::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Nov 29 1990 18:47 | 18 |
| From: NASA SpaceLink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, NOV. 28, 1990 11 A.M.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Post-flight pyrotechnic devices have been safed and prepara-
tions are underway to offload residual propellants from the orbi-
tal maneuvering system pods.
Routine post-flight checks are being conducted on the three
main engines. Post-flight inspections of the thermal protection
system are about 85 percent complete.
|
| 675.5 | Shuttle Status - 11/29/90 | 4347::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Nov 29 1990 18:54 | 22 |
| From: NASA SpaceLink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, NOV. 29, 1990 11 A.M.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Tires have been removed from the main landing gear and will
be removed from the nose gear today. The brakes are scheduled to
be removed today. Orbital maneuvering system a/c motor valves
are being checked.
Preparations are in work to drain lube oil from the
auxiliary power units. Routine post-flight checks and inspections
are continuing on the three main engines and the thermal protec-
tion system.
|
| 675.6 | Shuttle Status - 12/3/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Dec 04 1990 00:04 | 18 |
| From: NASA Spacelink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - Monday, Dec. 3, 1990 9:30 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
The high bay is closed to all non-essential personnel today
while technicians in protective suits continue to drain residual
oxidizer and fuel from the orbital maneuvering system crossfeed
lines and manifold. This operation was started yesterday.
The left OMS pod is scheduled to be removed Friday and
transferred to the HMF for post-flight operations. The three
auxiliary power units have been deserviced of lube oil.
|
| 675.7 | Shuttle Status - 12/4/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Dec 04 1990 18:36 | 19 |
| From: NASA Spacelink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - Tuesday, Dec. 4, 1990 9:30 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Residual oxidizer and fuel propellants were drained from the
orbital maneuvering system crossfeed lines and manifold and the
bay was reopened for normal work early this morning.
Tests of the radar altimeter and landing gear hydraulic
struts are scheduled this week. Preparations are underway to
remove the left OMS pod. Pod removal is scheduled Saturday, to be
followed by transfer to the HMF for post-flight operations. The
number 3 auxiliary power unit was disconnected in preparation for
removal.
|
| 675.8 | launch date for STS-37? | 34823::KAPLOW | Set the WAYBACK machine for 1982 | Tue Dec 04 1990 18:44 | 6 |
| Does anyone know a launch date for STS-37 yet? I heard something
about early April, but have not seen anything definite yet. A long
time personal friend of mine, Jay Apt, is one of the mission
specialists on this flight. Several of us are planning on
travelling to the Cape for the launch, and are looking to make
reservations.
|
| 675.9 | | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Dec 04 1990 18:51 | 4 |
| As of a couple of months ago it was slated to take off on 4-Apr-91.
- dave
|
| 675.10 | Shuttle Status for 12/05/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Dec 05 1990 15:39 | 21 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - Wednesday, Dec. 5, 1990 9:30 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
The bay was cleared of all non-essential personnel this
morning so that technicians could disconnect the left orbital
maneuvering system pod from the orbiter. The bay will be reopened
later today. The pod will be removed tomorrow afternoon and
transferred to the HMF on Saturday.
Main engine drying operations are planned tomorrow. Next
week, heat shields will be removed in preparation for removal of
the three main engines late next week. A test of the orbiter's
interior and exterior lighting system is underway.
|
| 675.11 | Shuttle Status for 12/06/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Dec 06 1990 18:46 | 21 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - Thursday, Dec. 6, 1990 9:30 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Yesterday, technicians disconnected the left orbital
maneuvering system pod from the orbiter. The pod will be removed
tomorrow afternoon and transferred to the HMF on Saturday for re-
quired interval testing.
Main engine drying operations are planned today. Next week,
heat shields will be removed in preparation for removal of the
three main engines late next week. Also next week, the forward
reaction control systems is scheduled to be removed.
|
| 675.12 | Shuttle Status Report - 12/07/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Dec 10 1990 09:56 | 23 |
| From: NASA SpaceLink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, DEC. 7, 1990 10:25 A.M.
STS-37 - Atlantis (OV 104) - OPF Bay 2
Testing of the main propulsion system continues. Low pres-
sure pump torque checks were accomplished overnight. Waste
management systems servicing has also been completed.
The three main engines are scheduled to be removed next Wed-
nesday and Thursday. Preparations are in work to move the left-
hand OMS pod to the HMF tonight for required flight-interval
maintenance.
Auxiliary power unit (APU) lube oil servicing is also
planned. Smoke detection and fire suppression system functional
tests have begun and fire suppression equipment has checked out
well.
|
| 675.13 | Shuttle Status - 12/10/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Dec 11 1990 20:13 | 16 |
| From: NASA Spacelink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - Monday, Dec. 10, 1990 11:30 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
The left orbital maneuvering system pod was transferred to
the HMF on Saturday for required interval testing.
Main engine drying operations are planned today. Heat
shields are being removed in preparation for removal of the three
main engines late this week. Also this week, the forward reaction
control system is scheduled to be removed.
|
| 675.14 | Shuttle Status - 12/11/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Dec 11 1990 20:16 | 15 |
| From: NASA Spacelink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUES. DEC. 11, 1990 10:25 A.M.
STS-37 - Atlantis (OV 104) - OPF Bay 2
Removal of the main engines is scheduled to start tomorrow,
with two engines scheduled to be pulled out on Wednesday and the
third on Thursday.
Powered-up testing continues. TACAN system testing also con-
tinues. Auxiliary power unit valve resistance checks are also un-
derway.
|
| 675.15 | Shuttle Status for 12/12/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Dec 12 1990 17:59 | 22 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - Wednesday, Dec. 12, 1990 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Early this morning, the forward reaction control system was
removed and will be transferred to the Hypergolic Maintenance
Facility today for required tests. The left orbital maneuvering
system pod was transferred to the HMF on Saturday for required
interval testing.
Main engine drying operations have been completed and
preparations to remove the engines are underway. The first engine
is scheduled to be removed tonight and the other two are
scheduled to come out tomorrow.
|
| 675.16 | Shuttle Status for 12/13/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Dec 13 1990 17:41 | 20 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - Thursday, Dec. 13, 1990 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
The number 2 main engine was removed overnight. The other
two engines are being removed today. They will be taken to the
engine shop in the VAB for routine tests and checks.
Technicans are deconfiguring the midbody from the previous
mission. The nose cap is scheduled to be removed tomorrow. In-
spections of the cavity for the forward reaction control system
are underway. Testing of the orbiter's communications system is
underway.
|
| 675.17 | Shuttle Status for 12/14/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Dec 17 1990 17:47 | 23 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, DEC. 14, 1990 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
All three main engines have been removed and transferred to
the VAB engine shop for routine tests and checks. Routine
measurements of the liquid hydrogen 17-inch umbilical are under-
way. The carbon brakes will be removed today and shipped to the
vendor for inspections.
Preparations are underway for removal of the right orbital
maneuvering system pod tonight. The pod will be transferred to
Bay 1 for installation on Discovery.
Technicians are deconfiguring the midbody from the previous
mission. The nose cap {_was removed yesterday. Inspections of the
cavity for the forward reaction control system are continuing.
|
| 675.18 | Shuttle Status for 12/17/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Dec 17 1990 17:49 | 21 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Monday December 17, 1990 9:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
The scheduled power-up of the vehicle occurred this morning.
Payload bay deconfiguration continues in work today. Auxiliary
power unit number 3 was removed Sunday. APU water valve
replacement will take place today. Modifications to install
carbon brakes on the vehicle are beginning today.
|
| 675.19 | Shuttle Status for 12/18/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Dec 18 1990 18:34 | 21 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Tuesday December 18, 1990 11:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Payload bay deconfiguration is scheduled to be completed
today. Auxiliary power unit relief valve work is in progress. APU
water valve replacement occurred yesterday as part of normal
maintenance on the units. Modifications to install carbon brakes
on the vehicle continue today. Work should be completed Thursday.
|
| 675.20 | Shuttle Status for 12/19/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Fri Dec 21 1990 09:43 | 22 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Wednesday December 19, 1990 10:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Modification work to install carbon brakes on the orbiter's
wheels continue today in bay two of the Orbiter Processing
Facility. Work should be completed Thursday. Hydraulic operations
are underway to rotate the elevons and body flap up for normal
borescope inspection. The payload bay doors are scheduled to be
closed tomorrow for the holidays.
|
| 675.21 | Shuttle Status for 12/21/90 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Fri Dec 21 1990 17:45 | 33 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Friday December 21, 1990 11:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Work to install the new carbon brakes on the orbiter's
wheels will continue today. Brakes on the right hand wheel were
competed yesterday. Work on the left hand wheel will pickup this
morning. The payload bay doors were closed on time yesterday.
Modifications to upgrade the general purpose computers will
continue today through the end of first shift. Operations will
again pick up after the first of the year.
# # # #
For more information on KSC's shuttle processing status call
Bruce Buckingham at (407) 867-2468.
(NOTE: This is the final shuttle status report until after the
first of the year. If anything of significance occurs before then
an interim report will be issued.)
MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE FOLKS AT KSC PUBLIC AFFAIRS
|
| 675.22 | Shuttle Status for 01/02/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 03 1991 18:28 | 32 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Wednesday January 2, 1991 10:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Power up of the vehicle is scheduled for Friday, followed by
opening of the payload bay doors. The remote manipulator system,
or robot arm, will be installed this weekend. Work to change out
the general purpose computers on Atlantis continues this week.
Today, auxiliary power unit number 2 will be installed and
the APU water valves will be replaced as scheduled. Helium
systems checkouts and left hand orbital maneuvering system
checkouts will pick up again today.
Modification work to install the new carbon brakes on the
orbiter's wheels will be finished this week.
In the Vehicle Assembly Building, the left aft center solid
rocket booster segment will be lifted and mated to the existing
segment on the mobile launcher platform in high bay 3.
|
| 675.23 | Shuttle Status for 01/04/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Jan 08 1991 19:41 | 29 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, JAN. 4, 1991 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Atlantis is powered up today for routine tests. The new
general purpose computers are being installed in the orbiter.
Connections of the number 3 auxiliary power unit are continuing.
The remote manipulator system is at the OPF and remains scheduled
for installation this weekend. Instrumentation is being installed
for the flutter buffet modification. Atlantis is being readied
for launch scheduled in April.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS - VAB
Booster stacking operations are continuing. The left aft
center segment is being mated to the left booster today. The
left forward center segment is scheduled to be mated early next
week.
Technicians are aligning the new 17-inch liquid hydrogen
disconnect in the proper position on the external tank.
|
| 675.24 | Shuttle Status for 01/07/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Jan 08 1991 21:30 | 18 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, JAN. 7, 1991 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Leak and functional tests of the auxiliary power units are
scheduled this week. Preparations are underway to install the
remote manipulator system. Tests of the orbiter's instrumentation
system are planned. Hydraulic systems operations are planned this
week. Atlantis is being readied for launch scheduled in April.
|
| 675.25 | Shuttle Status for 01/08/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 10 1991 13:18 | 27 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, JAN. 8, 1990 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Overnight, technicians installed the remote manipulator sys-
tem and associated interface tests are planned today. Leak and
functional tests of the auxiliary power units began yesterday and
are continuing. Tests of the power reactant storage and distribu-
tion system are scheduled. Tests of the orbiter's instrumentation
system are planned. Hydraulic systems operations are planned this
week. Atlantis is being readied for launch scheduled in April.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS - VAB
Booster stacking operations are continuing. The left forward
center segment is being mated to the left booster today. The
left forward segment will be mated later this week.
|
| 675.26 | Shuttle Status for 01/09/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 10 1991 13:20 | 28 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, JAN. 9, 1990 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
Tests of the remote manipulator system were successfully
completed. Leak and functional tests of the auxiliary power units
are continuing. Tests of the power reactant storage and distribu-
tion system and of the orbiter's instrumentation system are un-
derway. Preparations are underway to replace windows 1 and 6 be-
cause of blemishes. Hydraulic systems operations are planned this
week. Atlantis is being readied for launch scheduled in April.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS - VAB
Booster stacking operations are continuing. The left forward
center segment was mated to the left booster early this morning.
Also this morning, the left forward segment was transferred to
the VAB.
|
| 675.27 | Payload Status Report for 01/08/91 - Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO) | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 10 1991 13:25 | 43 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Date: 8 Jan 91 23:41:14 GMT
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Payload Status Report
Kennedy Space Center
January 8, 1991
George Diller
407/867-2468
FTS 823-2468
GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY (GRO) STS-37/Atlantis
Fueling of the spacecraft for its on-orbit activity began
today and will last three days. A total of 4200 pounds of
monomethyl hydrazine will be loaded aboard. This is three to
four times more fuel than is required by most spacecraft. The
additional fuel is being carried to allow for extended mission
opportunities.
The test batteries on the spacecraft have been discharged in
preparation for their removal, and the installation of the flight
batteries will follow.
The Instrument Switching Unit (ISU) which was removed on
December 23 is scheduled for reinstallation on Jan. 17. A retest
will follow. The ISU controls the turning on and off electrical
signals to GRO's systems and experiments through a series of
mechanical relays using commands from associated software logic.
During routine ISU testing before Christmas, command signals were
received which had not been generated by the onboard computer
system. When the ISU was tested at the TRW plant in California,
the problem was traced to a shorted relay which had generated the
spurious logic commands.
GRO is tentatively scheduled to be moved from its current
location at the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility (PHSF) to
the Vertical Processing Facility (VPF) on Feb. 6 where final
tests will be performed and work will be done to prepare it for
integration with the Space Shuttle.
|
| 675.28 | Shuttle Status for 01/10/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 10 1991 18:02 | 28 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Thursday January 10, 1991 10:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Fuel cell power reactant and storage distribution system
tests are currently underway. APU leak and functional tests are
in the final stages of work today. APU number 3 will be connected
this weekend. Work will begin today to remove and replace the APU
active cooling system water valve. Seals on the main propulsion
system's liquid oxygen lines will be routinely tested today. The
waste containment system will be thoroughly verified and work to
replace two of the orbiter's windows will continue today.
In the Vehicle Assembly Building, tonight the left forward
solid rocket booster segment will be lifted and mated to the
existing segments on the mobile launcher platform in high bay 3.
|
| 675.29 | Preliminary elements for STS-37 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Fri Jan 11 1991 13:10 | 53 |
| From: [email protected] (Gary A. Morris)
Date: 11 Jan 91 03:50:08 GMT
Organization: Lockheed Engineering and Sciences
Gil gave us Keplerian elements for the ascent profile he is working
on for STS-37. Thought netters might want to start planning for the
STS-37 flight with the all amateur radio crew coming up in April.
CDR - Steve Nagel, N5RAW
PLT - Ken Cameron, KB5AWP
MS1 - Linda Godwin, N5RAX
MS2 - Jerry Ross, (awaiting call)
MS3 - Jay Apt, N5QWL
Plans are to operate the packet robot, voice, and slow scan TV, all on 2
meters. Probably slow scan, voice and packet during crew wake hours and
packet during crew sleep time, for 24-hour SAREX ops (we hope). This is
a 5 day flight. Primary payload is SAREX, with the Gamma Ray Observatory
to be deployed between QSO's if time permits. (ha, just kidding, GRO is
primary, of course :-)
--GaryM
From: WA5NOM (Gil)
Here are elements which match the latest design profile, rotated to the
current launch date of April 8. I posted them on Chuck's JSC Public
Information BBS a few weeks ago. The passes for JSC are in the morning;
0900-1800z.
STS-37
1 00037U 91 98.63611111 .00023000 17236-3 0 28
2 00037 28.4632 240.1995 0006984 279.2831 332.4544 15.37981811 16
Satellite: STS-37
Epoch time: 91098.62500000
Element set: JSC-002
Inclination: 28.4632 deg Space Shuttle Flight STS-37
RA of node: 240.1995 deg Keplerian Elements
Eccentricity: .0006984 from pre-launch post OMS-2 vector
Arg of perigee: 279.2831 deg Launch: 08 APR 91 14:14 utc
Mean anomaly: 332.4544 deg
Mean motion: 15.37981811 rev/day W5RRR
Decay rate: 2.30E-04 rev/day^2 NASA Johnson Space Center
Epoch rev: 1
Gil, WA5NOM
--
Gary Morris Internet: [email protected]
Lockheed, Houston, Texas UUCP: lobster!lescsse!gamorris
Space Station Freedom Internet: [email protected]
N5QWC/W5RRR Phone: +1 713 283 5195
|
| 675.30 | Shuttle Status for 01/11/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Jan 14 1991 08:54 | 27 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Friday January 11, 1991 10:00 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Fuel cell power reactant and storage distribution system
tests and liquid hydrogen leak and functional tests continue in
work today. APU leak and functional tests and final connection
operations also continue today. The outside pane of Atlantis'
window number 1 has been removed. The seals are currently being
cured for installation of the replacement pane. Window number 6
will be changed out next week.
In the Vehicle Assembly Building, the left forward solid
rocket booster segment was lifted and mated to the existing
segments on the mobile launcher platform in high bay 3.
|
| 675.31 | Shuttle Status for 01/15/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 17 1991 19:21 | 38 |
| From: NASA SpaceLink
Organization: NASA
Tuesday January 15, 1991 9:30 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Last night, installation of APU number 3 was completed and
the bay was reopened for normal processing operations. PRSD fuel
cell operations continue and the water spray boiler has been
installed. Main propulsion leak testing continues. Work to
replace window number 6 is on schedule. Hydraulic fill and bleed
operations will be conducted this week following hydraulic
operations on Discovery.
In the Vehicle Assembly Building, the left forward solid
rocket booster segment was pinned to the existing segments on the
mobile launcher platform in high bay 3. The right aft segment
will be transported to the VAB today with stacking operations
scheduled for later today.
STS-40 -- Columbia (OV 102) - VAB High Bay 2
Aft flight deck reconfiguration continues today. Both left
and right hand landing gear strut checks are in work. Tile work
continues today.
Columbia will remain in the VAB until Discovery vacates the
Orbiter Processing Facility, near the end of January.
# # # #
|
| 675.32 | Shuttle Status for 01/16/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 17 1991 19:24 | 41 |
| From: NASA SpaceLink
Organization: NASA
Wednesday January 16, 1991 9:30 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
The exhaust on auxiliary power unit number 3 will be
aspirated today as retesting on the unit continues. Hydraulic
fill and bleed operations will be conducted tonight following
today's hydraulic operations on Discovery. Main engine
installation is currently scheduled to begin this weekend.
The two OMS pods are currently located in the Hypergolic
Maintenance Facility. There, work to install thrusters on the
right hand pod is underway as final quick disconnect checks on
the left hand pod continues.
In the Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 3, build up of the
right solid rocket booster segments continue on the mobile
launcher platform.
STS-40 -- Columbia (OV 102) - VAB High Bay 2
Crews will be working today to remove the provisions stowage
assembly (PSA) from the payload bay. Engineers have determined
than the chin panel is approved for reflight and trouble shooting
of the S-band antenna continues.
Columbia is scheduled to be moved to the Orbiter Processing
Facility later this month following the rollover of Discovery to
the VAB.
# # # #
|
| 675.33 | Shuttle Status for 01/17/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 17 1991 19:26 | 37 |
| From: NASA SpaceLink
Organization: NASA
Thursday January 17, 1991 9:30 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Hydraulic fill and bleed operations were conducted
successfully last night along with checks of the nose wheel
steering mechanism. Hydraulic operations will continue throughout
the remainder of the week. Main engine installation is currently
scheduled to begin this weekend. Preparations are in work today
for this operation.
In the Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 3, build up of the
right solid rocket booster segments continue on the mobile
launcher platform. The right aft center segment will be delivered
to the VAB today.
STS-40 -- Columbia (OV 102) - VAB High Bay 2
The ground service equipment was installed in the payload
bay last night as crews today continue with plans to remove the
provisions stowage assembly (PSA) from the bay. Preparations also
continue to access the dump line nozzle for failure analysis.
Columbia is scheduled to be moved to the Orbiter Processing
Facility later this month following the rollover of Discovery to
the VAB.
# # # #
|
| 675.34 | Shuttle Status for 01/18/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Jan 21 1991 10:14 | 30 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Friday January 18, 1991 9:30 a.m. EST
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING STATUS REPORT
-----------------------------------------------------------------
STS-37 -- Atlantis (OV-104) - OPF Bay 2
Hydraulic operations continue today. The payload bay doors
will be cycled closed then reopened today for K-U band testing.
Preparations for main engine installation are underway. SSME
installation is scheduled to begin Sunday.
In the hypergolic maintenance facility, fifth flight checks
continue on the left hand orbital maneuvering system pod. The
forward reaction control system (FRCS)is undergoing functional
tests this week. Installation of the FRCS into the orbiter is
targeted for late next week.
In the Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 3, buildup of the
right solid rocket booster segments continue on the mobile
launcher platform. The right aft center segment will be lifted
and mated to the stack tonight.
|
| 675.35 | Shuttle Status for 01/22/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Jan 22 1991 17:19 | 23 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, JAN. 22, 1991
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK COMPLETED:
- Three space shuttle main engines installed.
- Fuel cell coolant servicing and sampling.
- Crew module hatch/door functional test.
- Power reactant storage and distribution system test.
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Potable water servicing.
- Functional test of the waste containment system.
- Ku-band antenna testing.
- Window 6 installation.
|
| 675.36 | Shuttle Status for 01/23/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Jan 23 1991 17:48 | 28 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, JAN. 23, 1991
STS-37 - GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Potable water servicing.
- Functional test of the waste containment system.
- Ku-band antenna testing.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6.
- Nose cap closeout photographs.
- Hot oil flush of auxiliary power unit no. 1.
- Installing ordnance for the remote manipulator system.
- Main engine securing operations.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Installation and stowage of the remote manipulator system.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Installation of the nose cap on Thursday.
- Main engine flight readiness test this weekend.
|
| 675.37 | Shuttle Status for 01/25/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Jan 28 1991 19:04 | 41 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, JAN. 25, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Potable water servicing.
- Functional test of the waste containment system.
- Ku-band antenna testing.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6.
- Main engine securing operations.
- Nose cap installation preparations.
- Hot lube oil flush of auxiliary power unit no. 2.
- Preparations to install the forward reaction control system.
- Brazing check valve 3 in the main propulsion system.
- Flutter buffet instrumentation installation.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Nose cap installed last night.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Main engine flight readiness test this weekend.
- Installation of the forward reaction control system next week.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS/EXTERNAL TANK - VAB
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Mating operations for the right forward segment.
- Closeouts of all booster field joints.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Mate of the right forward assembly to the booster next week.
|
| 675.38 | Shuttle Status for 01/28/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Jan 28 1991 19:07 | 44 |
| From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
Nntp-Posting-Host: mars.jpl.nasa.gov
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, JAN. 28, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Main engine flight readiness test.
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Hot lube oil flush of auxiliary power unit no. 2.
- Preparations to install the forward reaction control system.
- Flutter buffet instrumentation installation.
- Potable water servicing.
- Functional test of the waste containment system.
- Ku-band antenna testing.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Brazing check valve 3 in the main propulsion system.
- Hot lube oil flush of auxiliary power unit 1 complete.
- Controller checks of APUs 1 and 2.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Installation of the forward reaction control system this week.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6 this week.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS/EXTERNAL TANK - VAB
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Stacking the right forward assembly to the booster.
- Closeouts of all booster field joints.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Alignment of the boosters.
- Mate of the external tank to the boosters as early as this
weekend.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Connecting the right forward segment to the stack.
|
| 675.39 | Shuttle Status for 01/29/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Jan 29 1991 18:43 | 34 |
| From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, JAN. 29, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Auxiliary power unit functional tests.
- Preparations to install the forward reaction control system.
- Flutter buffet instrumentation installation.
- Potable water servicing.
- Functional test of the waste containment system.
- Ku-band antenna testing.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Main engine flight readiness test on main engines 1 and 3. En-
gine 2's controller backup channel halted during power up. Test
could not be run on engine 2 and controller replacement is re-
quired.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Replacement of the main engine 2 controller and subsequent
flight readiness test of that engine.
- Forward reaction control system scheduled to arrive at OPF
tonight and be installed later this week.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6 this week.
|
| 675.40 | Shuttle Status for 01/30/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Jan 30 1991 18:06 | 39 |
| From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, JAN. 30, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Auxiliary power unit functional tests.
- Preparations to install the forward reaction control system.
- Potable water servicing.
- External tank door latch pull test.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Installation of the main engine 2 controller.
- Forward reaction control system arrived at OPF last night.
- Ku-band antenna testing.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- External tank door functional test tomorrow.
- Main engine 2 flight readiness test next week.
- Installation of heat shields for engines 1 and 3.
- Installation of the forward reaction control system tonight.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6 this week.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS/EXTERNAL TANK - VAB
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Closeouts of all booster field joints and cable routing.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Alignment of the boosters.
- Mate of the external tank to the boosters as early as Monday.
|
| 675.41 | Shuttle Status for 01/31/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Jan 31 1991 19:46 | 29 |
| From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, JAN. 31, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Connections of the forward reaction control system.
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Auxiliary power unit functional tests.
- Potable water servicing.
- Electrical mates of the engine 2 controller.
- External tank door functional test.
- Tire pressure checks.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Forward reaction control system was installed last night.
- External tank door latch pull test.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Main engine 2 flight readiness test next week.
- Installation of heat shields for engines 1 and 3.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6 this week.
|
| 675.42 | Shuttle Status for 02/01/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Feb 04 1991 18:21 | 43 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, FEB. 1, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Connections of the forward reaction control system.
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Auxiliary power unit water servicing.
- Electrical mates of the engine 2 controller.
- Preparations to install the right orbital maneuvering system
pod.
WORK COMPLETED:
- External tank door functional test.
- Potable water servicing.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Right orbital maneuvering system pod to be delivered to OPF
tonight and installed this weekend.
- Main engine 2 flight readiness test next week.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6 this week.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS/EXTERNAL TANK - VAB
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Closeouts of all booster field joints and cable routing.
- Preparations for external tank mate.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Mate of the external tank to the boosters on Monday.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Alignment of the boosters.
|
| 675.43 | Shuttle Status for 02/04/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Feb 05 1991 15:47 | 40 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, FEB. 4, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Connections of the forward reaction control system.
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Troubleshooting the external tank door drive unit.
- Main engine leak tests.
- Installation of heat shields around main engines.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Right orbital maneuvering system pod was connected this
weekend.
- Electrical connections of the forward reaction control system.
- External tank door functional tests.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Tests of the right orbital maneuvering system pod Wednesday.
- Tests of the forward reaction control system tomorrow.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6 this week.
- Engine flight readiness test this week.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS/EXTERNAL TANK - VAB
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Mating the external tank to the boosters.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Closeouts of the solid rocket booster field joints.
|
| 675.44 | Shuttle Status for 02/05/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Feb 05 1991 18:05 | 59 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, FEB. 5, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Main engine leak tests.
- Installation of heat shields around main engines.
- Auxiliary power unit leak and functional tests.
- Checks of the closed circuit television system.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Tests of the right orbital maneuvering system pod.
- Tests of the forward reaction control system.
- Installation of windows 1 and 6 this week.
- Engine flight readiness test this week.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS/EXTERNAL TANK - VAB
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Today, the sling used in mating the external tank to the
boosters will be deattached.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Mating the external tank to the solid rocket boosters last
night.
PAYLOAD STATUS REPPORT
GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY/STS-37 (April, 1991)
Final electrical testing of the Gamma Ray Observatory was
completed on Jan. 23.
Engineers are assessing the significance of an increase in
resistance measured in a diode of one of the remote interface
units (RIU) which recently underwent repair and retesting at the
vendor. These are the electrical interface between the
observatory subsystems and experiments, and the spacecraft's
modular power system and command and data handling system.
The flight batteries were reconditioned on Jan. 29 and a
trickle charge established. On Jan. 30 the Observatory was
rotated to the vertical configuration and placed on its
associated transporter. Interim closeouts of the thermal
blankets were then completed. Yesterday the transportation cover
was placed around the spacecraft in preparation for the one-mile
trip to the Vertical Processing Facility which is scheduled to
begin at 4 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7.
|
| 675.45 | Shuttle Status for 02/06/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Feb 06 1991 18:11 | 35 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, FEB. 6, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Main engine leak tests.
- Installation of heat shields around main engines.
- Auxiliary power unit leak and functional tests.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Window 6 was installed.
- Checks of the closed circuit television system.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Tests of the right orbital maneuvering system pod.
- Tests of the forward reaction control system.
- Engine 2 flight readiness test tomorrow.
- Ammonia boiler servicing tonight.
## STS-37 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS/EXTERNAL TANK - VAB
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Closeouts of the liquid hydrogen umbilical.
|
| 675.46 | Shuttle Status for 02/07/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Feb 07 1991 21:52 | 25 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, FEB. 7, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Main engine hot gas system leak tests.
- Auxiliary power unit leak and functional tests.
- Main engine 2 flight readiness test.
- Functional tests of the forward reaction control system.
- Preparations for the functional test of the landing gear.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Installation of heat shields around main engines 1 and 3.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Tests of the right orbital maneuvering system pod.
- Ammonia boiler servicing rescheduled for tonight.
- Crew Equipment Interface Test this weekend.
|
| 675.47 | Shuttle Status for 02/08/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Fri Feb 08 1991 19:18 | 26 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, FEB. 8, 1991
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Water spray boiler leak and functional tests.
- Main engine 2 flight readiness test.
- Functional tests of the forward reaction control system.
- Preparations to install the left orbital maneuvering system
pod.
- Tests of the right orbital maneuvering system pod.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Landing gear functional tests.
- Checks of the closed circuit television system.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Crew Equipment Interface Test this weekend.
- Installation of the left orbital maneuvering systems pod Satur-
day night.
|
| 675.48 | Shuttle Status for 02/11/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Feb 12 1991 18:56 | 26 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, FEB. 11, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Electrical connections of the left orbital maneuvering system
pod.
- Tests of the right orbital maneuvering system pod today.
- Tests of the main propulsion system.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Crew Equipment Interface Test.
- Main engine no. 2 flight readiness test.
- Forward reaction control system functional tests.
- Installation of the left orbital maneuvering system pod Satur-
day.
- Auxiliary power units serviced with lube oil.
|
| 675.49 | Shuttle Status for 02/12/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Feb 19 1991 17:36 | 24 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, FEB. 12, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Electrical connections of the left orbital maneuvering system
pod.
- Tests of the right orbital maneuvering system pod today.
- Tests of the main propulsion system.
- Inspections of a connector for controller B on water spray
boiler no. 2.
- Installation of heat shields around main engine no. 2.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Interface verification tests of the left orbital maneuvering
system pod.
- Tire pressure checks.
|
| 675.50 | Shuttle Status for 02/13/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Feb 19 1991 17:37 | 25 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, FEB. 13, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Tests of the left orbital maneuvering system pod.
- Tests of the main propulsion system.
- Leak tests of a bellows on water spray boiler no. 2.
- Installation of heat shields around main engine no. 2.
- Inspections of the left inboard elevon.
- Tests of the air data systems and of the Microwave Scanning
Beam Landing System.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Borescope inspections of the thrusters on the foward reaction
control system and the left orbital maneuvering system pod.
- Tire pressure checks.
|
| 675.51 | Shuttle Status for 02/14/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Feb 19 1991 17:39 | 29 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, FEB. 14, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Tests of the left and right orbital maneuvering system pods.
- Leak tests of a bellows on water spray boiler no. 2.
- Inspections of the elevons.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Tests of the air data systems and of the Microwave Scanning
Beam Landing System.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Borescope inspections of the thrusters on the forward reaction
control system and the left orbital maneuvering system pod.
- Connections of the crossfeed lines between the orbital
maneuvering system pods tonight.
|
| 675.52 | Shuttle mission STS-37 preflight briefings | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Feb 19 1991 17:50 | 56 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Date: 19 Feb 91 04:28:35 GMT
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Mark Hess
Headquarters, Washington, D.C. February 15, 1991
(Phone: 202/453-8536)
Barbara Schwartz
Johnson Space Center, Houston
(Phone: 713/483-5111)
N91-11
EDITORS NOTE: SHUTTLE MISSION STS-37 PREFLIGHT BRIEFINGS
News media are invited to attend briefings on Space Shuttle mission
STS-37, Feb. 25 and 26, to be held at the Johnson Space Center (JSC),
Houston and at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, Md. The major
objectives of this mission are to deploy the Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO)
and to conduct a 6-hour EVA (Extravehicular Activity better know as a
"spacewalk") to evaluate proposed Space Station Freedom equipment
operations.
On Feb. 25 at 9 a.m. EST, Lead Flight Director Chuck Shaw will begin
the briefings with a mission overview. At 10 a.m. EST, GRO engineers and
scientists will report on the status and mission of NASA's second great
observatory. This will be followed by briefings on Bioserve-Instrumentation
Technology Associates Materials Dispersion Apparatus (BIMDA) and Protein
Crystal Growth (PCG-III). At 2 p.m. EST, the STS-37 crew will review each
person's flight duties. All briefings will originate from JSC except the GRO
briefings which will be held at GSFC.
The astronauts will be available for round robin interviews following
the briefings. News media wishing to participate in the interview sessions
should contact Barbara Schwartz at (713) 483-5111 by Feb. 20. Media
planning to attend the briefings at GSFC should call Randee Exler (301) 286-
8955.
An EVA workshop has been planned for Feb. 26 beginning at 10 a.m. EST
in JSC Bldg. 9B on the air bearing floor. Activities include a briefing on EVA
planning and equipment development, an opportunity to try out the
equipment, a display of EVA tools and spacesuit and a visit to the
Weightless Environment Training Facility to see astronauts participating in
an EVA training exercise.
The briefings on Feb 25 will be carried on NASA Select television with
two-way audio for press participation at NASA Headquarters, GSFC and other
NASA centers. The round robins and EVA workshop will not be televised.
NASA Select television is carried on SATCOM F2R, transponder 13,
located at 72 degrees west longitude.
|
| 675.53 | Shuttle Status for 02/19/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Feb 20 1991 20:18 | 31 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, FEB. 19, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Install nose landing gear tires.
- Thermal protection system operations.
- Inspections of the external tank door hinges.
- Decay checks of the water spray boilers.
- Interface verification tests of the left orbital maneuvering
system pod.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Electrical redundancy checks of the orbital maneuvering system
pods.
VEHICLE ASSEMBLY BUILDING WORK SCHEDULED:
- STS-37 tank and solid rocket booster stack on mobile launcher
platform 1 was transferred from high bay 3 to high bay 1 yester-
day.
|
| 675.54 | Shuttle Status for 02/22/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Fri Feb 22 1991 18:29 | 23 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, FEB. 22, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Thermal protection system operations.
- Inspections of the external tank door hinges.
- Leak and functional tests of the water spray boilers.
- Inspections of the right inboard elevon seal.
- Leak and functional tests of the galley.
- Aft closeouts.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Test of the orbiter's flight control surfaces tomorrow.
|
| 675.55 | Shuttle Status for 02/25/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Feb 25 1991 18:31 | 30 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, FEB. 25, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Thermal protection system operations.
- Inspections of the inboard elevon seals.
- Aft closeouts.
- Circulating hydraulic fluid in preparation for tests of the
orbiter's flight control aerosurface and a gimbal clearance check
of the three main engines.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Servicing the auxiliary power units with lube oil.
- Functional tests of the waste containment system.
- Retest of the new power drive unit for the left hand external
tank umbilical door.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Transfer the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building on
March 4.
|
| 675.56 | Shuttle Status for 02/26/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Feb 26 1991 18:21 | 23 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, FEB. 26, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Thermal protection system operations.
- Evaluation of a leaking thruster on the right orbital maneuver-
ing system pod.
- Water spray boiler servicing.
- Tests of the orbiter's flight control aerosurfaces and a gimbal
clearance check of the three main engines.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Transfer of the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building on
March 4.
|
| 675.57 | Shuttle Status for 02/27/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Feb 28 1991 12:08 | 29 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, FEB. 27, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL 1991
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Thermal protection system operations.
- Evaluation of a leaking thruster on the right orbital maneuver-
ing system pod.
- Water spray boiler servicing.
- Closeouts of the midbody.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Aerosurface cycling and a gimbal check of the three main en-
gines.
- Payload bay doors were opened.
- Samples of the potable water were good.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Transfer of the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building on
March 5.
|
| 675.58 | Shuttle Status for 03/01/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Mar 05 1991 09:18 | 32 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, MAR. 1, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Preparations for rollover to the VAB on March 6.
- Thermal protection system operations.
- Closeouts of the midbody in preparation for rollover to the
VAB.
- Positive pressure tests of the vehicle.
- Installation of wing struts.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Successful tests of the thruster on the right orbital maneuver-
ing system pod.
- Checks of water spray boiler no. 2.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Payload bay door closure this weekend.
- Transfer of the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building on
March 6.
|
| 675.59 | Shuttle Status for 03/04/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Mar 05 1991 09:19 | 28 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, MAR. 4, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Preparations for roll over to the VAB on March 7.
- Thermal protection system operations.
- Closeouts of the midbody in preparation for rollover to the
VAB.
- Positive pressure tests of the vehicle.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Cleaning of the payload bay.
- Payload bay door closure tomorrow morning.
- Closeout of the aft compartment.
- Transfer of the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building on
March 7.
|
| 675.60 | Shuttle Status for 03/05/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Mar 05 1991 19:16 | 39 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, MAR. 5, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Preparations for roll over to the VAB late on March 7 or early
the next day.
- Closeouts of the midbody and aft compartment in preparation for
rollover to the VAB.
- Positive pressure tests of the vehicle.
- Troubleshooting of noise on main power bus A. Intermittent
spikes occurred when the orbiter's hydraulic system was being ac-
tivated this weekend.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Aft positive pressure test.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Transfer of the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building on
March 7 or 8.
CONCERNS:
- Evaluation of a very small crack on each of the forward lug
hinges of the left and right external tank umbilical door drive
mechanisms is underway. These cracks were found after evaluation
of several dye penetrant tests and borescope inspections. Addi-
tional dye penetrant tests are underway today to recheck all four
lug hinges. A resolution is expected before the orbiter is trans-
ferred to the VAB.
|
| 675.61 | UPI: NASA studies Atlantis cracks | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Mar 06 1991 13:27 | 61 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Date: 5 Mar 91 18:05:24 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- Hairline cracks in hinges aboard the
space shuttle Atlantis are much smaller than those grounding the shuttle
Discovery, but their possible impact on plans to launch Atlantis around
April 5 was not yet clear, officials said Tuesday.
``We know we have two very small cracks on the forward hinges on
Atlantis,'' said NASA spokeswoman Lisa Malone. ``Today we're going to
re-verify the cracks by doing more ... tests and tomorrow we'll get
together with program officials to get a resolution. I don't have a feel
for what they're thinking.''
Carrying the 36,000-pound Gamma Ray Observatory space telescope,
Atlantis originally was scheduled for launch April 4, but ground
processing is running about one day behind schedule. Liftoff on April 5
would be set for 9:18 a.m. EST.
Pending resolution of the crack issue, engineers Tuesday pressed on
with plans to tow the $2 billion spaceplane from its hangar to the
nearby Vehicle Assembly Building late Thursday or early Friday for
attachment to a pair of solid-fuel boosters and an external fuel tank.
Rollout to launch pad 39B is planned for next week.
While Malone would not speculate on how the crack issue might be
resolved, other agency officials said they were optimistic Atlantis can
be safely launched as is.
Discovery's launch on a ``Star Wars'' research mission, originally
set for March 9, was canceled last week because of cracks in the hinges
of two critical doors in the belly of the shuttle that must close
properly in orbit to allow a safe re-entry.
While Atlantis's hinges were initially believed to be crack-free, a
detailed inspection over the weekend turned up a hairline defect in one
of the hinges. By early Tuesday, engineers using penetrating dyes had
found a second crack in another hinge.
Both cracks were characterized as very small and neither extends all
the way through the metal.
``They are significantly smaller than those on both Discovery and
Columbia,'' Malone said.
Just after midnight Wednesday, Discovery is scheduled to be rolled
off pad 39A and hauled back to the Vehicle Assembly Building so it can
be removed from its external tank and towed into a nearby shuttle
hangar.
Engineers plan to replace Discovery's flawed hinge assemblies with
door-closing hardware taken from the new shuttle Endeavour, currently
being prepared for delivery to the Kennedy Space Center.
Assuming the repair work goes smoothly, Discovery will be moved back
to pad 39A for a launch attempt around April 25.
The doors in question, called external tank umblical doors, are
folded back and locked open during launch, allowing 17-inch-wide fuel
lines from the external tank to enter the belly of the orbiter to feed
the ship's three main engines.
After the tank is jettisoned in space, electric motors drive the
doors shut. Both doors are covered with heat-shield tiles and failure of
either panel to close properly could prove disastrous during re-entry
when the belly of the shuttle is exposed to extremely high temperatures.
Engineers said last week the cracks appeared to be the result of
metal fatigue and stress. Sources said Monday that Discovery's doors had
been opened and shut, or ``cycled,'' 80 to 100 times since its last
flight as part of routine ground processing.
Similar cracks were found on the shuttle Columbia, but they were
smaller than those on Discovery. The Atlantis cracks are smaller still.
|
| 675.62 | Shuttle Status for 03/06/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Mar 07 1991 09:33 | 66 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, MAR. 6, 1991 - 11 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Preparations for roll over to the VAB no earlier than 8 a.m.
Friday.
- Positive pressure tests of the vehicle.
- Engineers continue troubleshooting noise seen on main power bus
A. Intermittent spikes occurred when the orbiter's hydraulic sys-
tem was being activated last weekend. This issue is not a con-
straint to rolling over to the VAB. Further tests can be per-
formed in the VAB and at the launch pad.
- Cleaning of the payload bay.
- Tire measurements.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Aft compartment is closed out.
- Right nose landing gear tire was replaced.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Transfer of the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building on
March 8.
CONCERNS:
- Space flight management is continuing their evaluation of small
hairline cracks on the lug hinges on the left and right external
tank umbilical door drive mechanisms. These cracks were found
after evaluation of several dye penetrant tests and borescope in-
spections. A resolution is expected before the orbiter is trans-
ferred to the VAB.
Mark Hess/Ed Campion March 6, 1991
NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. 6:45 p.m. EST
(Phone: 202/453-8536)
Lisa Malone
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
(Phone: 407/867-2468)
#STS-37 MISSION ADVISORY
NASA managers today gave the go ahead for Space Shuttle
Atlantis to be matted to its launch stack in preparation for the STS-37
Gamma Ray Observatory mission. This decision follows an
investigation into small cracks found on the external tank door drive
mechanism housing. Tests and analysis show that the cracks pose no
threat to vehicle performance either on the ground or in flight.
Atlantis is expected to move to the Vehicle Assembly Building for
mating operations on Friday, March 8th. Launch of STS-37 is
targeted for early April. The official launch date will be set at the
Flight Readiness Review later this month.
|
| 675.63 | Shuttle Status for 03/07/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Fri Mar 08 1991 09:33 | 39 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, MAR. 7, 1991 - 11 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Preparations for roll over to the VAB now targeted for late in
the afternoon tomorrow.
- Weight and center of gravity determination.
- Troubleshooting of noise seen on main power bus A has revealed
that the aerosurface amplifier (ASA) no. 1 will need to be re-
placed. This electronic component is located in the aft compart-
ment and is part of the guidance system. This unit provides
aerosurface position information. A frequency response test of
the orbiter's flight control system is required to retest the
unit. This test is scheduled while the vehicle is in the VAB.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Payload bay door closure.
- Final power down.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Transfer of the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building tomor-
row afternoon.
CONCERNS:
- Space flight management cleared Atlantis for flight at a spe-
cial meeting last night to discuss small hairline cracks on the
lug hinges on the external tank umbilical door drive mechanisms.
Tests and analysis show that there will be no threat to vehicle
performance either on the ground or in flight.
|
| 675.64 | Shuttle Status for 03/08/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Fri Mar 08 1991 17:39 | 24 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, MAR. 8, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - OPF BAY 2
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Preparations for roll over to the VAB targeted late afternoon.
- Orbiter transporter operations.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Weight and center of gravity determination.
- Application of korpon corrosive protectant paint
on the lug hinge area.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Mating Atlantis to the external tank this weekend.
- Rollout to Launch Pad 39-B no earlier than March 14.
|
| 675.65 | Shuttle Status for 03/12/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Mar 12 1991 18:31 | 34 |
| From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS - TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 1991 --- 10:30 a.m.
_________________________________________________________________
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - VAB HB 3
LAUNCH -- EARLY APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
* Liquid hydrogen monoball electrical connections
* Orbiter Interface verification tests
* Tile bonding operations near nose cone
* Leak checks of main propulsion system
* Preparations for rollout to pad 39-B
* Hydraulic circulation and sample tests
* Removal of debris shields
* Preparations for receiving payload at pad B Wednesday morning
WORK COMPLETED:
* Liquid oxygen monoball electrical connections
* Orbiter system checks
* Hazardous gas sample line verifications
WORK SCHEDULED:
* Vehicle frequency response test Wednesday
* Payload installation into Payload Changeout Room Wednesday
* Rollout to pad 39-B targeted for early Friday morning
|
| 675.66 | Shuttle Status - March 13 | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Thu Mar 14 1991 10:37 | 46 |
| From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Shuttle Status for 03/13/91 (Forwarded)
Date: 13 Mar 91 18:38:23 GMT
Sender: [email protected]
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS - WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 1991 --- 10:30 a.m.
_________________________________________________________________
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - VAB HB 3
LAUNCH -- EARLY APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
* Orbiter Interface verification tests
* Tile step and gap operations near nose cone
* SRB battery checks
* Vehicle frequency response test
* Preparations for rollout to pad 39-B
* Platform retractions in VAB
* GRO integration into Payload Changeout Room at pad B
(arrived at pad at 4:00 a.m. today)
WORK COMPLETED:
* Liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen monoball electrical
connections
* Leak checks of main propulsion system
* Hydraulic circulation and sample tests
* Removal of debris shields
* SRB APU checks
WORK SCHEDULED:
* Rollout to pad 39-B targeted for 12:01 a.m. Friday
* Following rollout to pad:
- APU hot fire (Friday)
- Payload installation into orbiter payload bay (Sunday)
- Helium Signature test (Monday)
- Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (T-0 on Wednesday)
___ _____ ___
/_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | [email protected]
| | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab |
___| | | | |__) |/ | | |___ M/S 301-355 | Change is constant.
/___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 |
|_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ |
|
| 675.67 | Shuttle Status - March 14 | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Thu Mar 14 1991 13:35 | 33 |
| From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Shuttle Status for 03/14/91 (Forwarded)
Date: 14 Mar 91 16:21:25 GMT
Sender: [email protected]
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, MAR. 14, 1991 - 9:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - VAB
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Preparations for roll out to Launch Pad 39-B with first motion
targeted for 12:01 a.m. Friday.
- Orbiter power down.
- Moving access platforms away from the vehicle.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Retest of the aerosurface amplifier electronic box.
- Bond verifications of 4 tiles around the nose area.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Countdown Demonstration Test March 19-20.
- Launch Readiness Review March 21.
___ _____ ___
/_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | [email protected]
| | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab |
___| | | | |__) |/ | | |___ M/S 301-355 | Change is constant.
/___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 |
|_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ |
|
| 675.68 | Shuttle Status for 03/18/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Mar 19 1991 09:47 | 26 |
| From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, MAR. 18, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-A
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Helium signature test of three main engines and main propulsion
system.
- Preparations for the Countdown Demonstration Test.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Installation of the Gamma Ray Observatory payload into
Atlantis's payload bay on Sunday.
- Gimbal test of the right orbital maneuvering system engine.
- Hot fire of the no. 3 auxiliary power unit.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Countdown Demonstration Test March 19-20.
- Launch Readiness Review March 21.
|
| 675.69 | Shuttle Status Reports - 3/19/91 - 3/25/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Mar 26 1991 09:54 | 96 |
|
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, MAR. 19, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-A
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test began at 8 a.m. today and
T-0 is set for 11 a.m. tomorrow.
- Interface verification tests between the orbiter and the Gamma
Ray Observatory payload.
- Plans to inspect orbiter components in the aft compartment due
to the water intrusion.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Helium signature test of three main engines and main propulsion
system.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Launch Readiness Review March 21.
- Flight Readiness Review March 26-27.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, MAR. 20, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test with T-0 at 11 a.m.
- Preparations for the interface verification tests between the
orbiter and the Gamma Ray Observatory payload.
- Inspections of orbiter components in the aft compartment due to
the water intrusion.
- Preparations for loading hypergolic propellants into the or-
biter.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Mating the Orbiter Midbody Umbilical Unit.
- Start of the countdown test.
- Flight crew sharp edge inspection of the Gamma Ray Observatory.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Gamma Ray interface test tomorrow.
- Loading hypergolic propellants into the orbiter this weekend.
- Launch Readiness Review March 21.
- Flight Readiness Review March 26-27.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, MAR. 21, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Interface verification tests between the orbiter and the Gamma
Ray Observatory payload.
- Inspections of orbiter components in the aft compartment due to
water intrusion.
- Preparations for loading hypergolic propellants into the or-
biter.
- Launch Readiness Review.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Countdown Demonstration Test.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Loading hypergolic propellants into the orbiter beginning late
tomorrow.
- Flight Readiness Review March 26-27.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, MAR. 25, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH - APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Gamma Ray Observatory end-to-end test.
- Hydraulic system conditioning.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Loading of hypergolic propellants into the onboard storage
tanks. Hydrazine was loaded into the orbiter auxiliary power
units and booster hydraulic power units.
- Test of the hydrogen dispersal system.
- Part one of ordnance operations.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Main engine Flight Readiness Test tomorrow. During this test,
the engine sensors are calibrated and the valves on the 3 engines
are cycled and checked.
- Part one of ordnance operations Monday.
- Flight Readiness Review March 26-27.
|
| 675.70 | STS-37 Press Kit is available | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Mar 26 1991 10:04 | 10 |
| The STS-37 Press Kit is available from:
Pragma::Public:[NASA]STS-37.PS
I hope you like the graphics I've added to it -- they are a bit fuzzy, but
it's the best I can do with the equipment I have. (Anyone have a MD300
I can borrow?).
- dave
|
| 675.71 | NASA debates moving up shuttle launch date | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Mar 26 1991 18:02 | 60 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Date: 26 Mar 91 18:44:34 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- NASA managers Tuesday broke ground on a
$56 million processing facility at the Kennedy Space Center that puts
the agency one step closer to turning space station Freedom into
reality, officials said.
``We start processing for our first (space station assembly) flight
roughly four years from today,'' said Richard Kohrs, director of the
space station program.
While federal budget cuts have repeatedly delayed the embattled
project, ``I think when we start this facility and move out in four
years, we're well on our way to assembling the space station,'' he said.
The groundbreaking ceremony coincided with the start of a two-day
flight readiness review to assess the shuttle Atlantis's launch
processing and the outlook for takeoff next week on a five-day mission
to put a $617 million astronomy satellite into orbit.
Engineers have been using April 5 as a target launch date, but work
over the weekend went smoother than expected and Kennedy Space Center
managers were believed to be recommending an April 4 takeoff. A final
decision was expected to be announced Wednesday, after the flight
readiness review.
Atlantis's five-member crew plans to launch the Gamma Ray Observatory
satellite on the third day of the flight, the first of six planned for
1991. If all goes well, astronauts Jerry Ross and Jay Apt will conduct
the first post-Challenger U.S. spacewalk on flight-day four.
With launch preparations in high gear, Kohrs, William Lenoir, NASA's
associate administrator for space flight, and other top agency officials
took time out for a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday for the $56 million
Space Station Freedom Processing Facility.
The hangar-like three-story building, the largest construction
project at the Kennedy Space Center since the Apollo moon program, will
feature 63,000 square feet of space for assembly and testing of space
station components, along with a 5,000-square-foot airlock.
``At this point, it would be hard to over-estimate the significance
of this,'' Lenoir said. ``This is real. We're going turn it into
concrete and steel and in the late 1995 timeframe, we want to be out of
here, on the pad and ready to launch the first assembly flight of the
space station.''
Scheduled to be completed in early 1994, the new processing facility
will be occupied by some 1,000 NASA and contractor workers.
``We're going to have a facility that continues to evolve and grow
over the decades,'' Lenoir said of the space station. ``It's not just a
one-shot thing. This, like the space shuttle, is a facility that we will
continue to operate for decades and decades and it's all going to start
right here at the processing facility.''
NASA just completed a congressionally mandated redesign of space
station Freedom, reducing its size, cost and complexity in the face of
budget cuts totaling $5.7 billion over the next five years.
Under the new plan, shuttle assembly flights are officially scheduled
to begin in the second quarter of 1996 with part-time, ``man-tended''
operations beginning in mid 1997. Full-time, permanently manned status,
using four astronauts instead of eight as originally envisioned, is now
scheduled for 2000. It had been set for 1997 or 1998.
But Lenoir said he is optimistic NASA can beat the new schedule,
possibly beginning construction in late 1995.
Prior to the redesign effort, NASA expected Freedom to cost some $38.
3 billion to build, including development, on-orbit operations and
shuttle transportation. The project now is expected to run some $30
billion, which includes $4 billion already spent.
|
| 675.72 | Shuttle Status for 03/26/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Mar 28 1991 17:26 | 36 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS - TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 1991 --- 10:00 a.m.
_________________________________________________________________
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH -- APRIL
WORK IN PROGRESS:
* Main propulsion system flight readiness test
* Main engine hydraulic operations
* Liquid hydrogen tank pressurization test
* APU filter removal and replacement
* Gamma Ray Observatory battery conditioning
* Flight Readiness Review today and tomorrow
WORK COMPLETED:
* Gamma Ray Observatory end-to-end test
* Hydraulic circulation and sample operations
* Part one of ordnance operations
WORK SCHEDULED:
* Extravehicular Mobility Unit installation Thursday
* Aft closeouts to begin mid-week
* Hypergolic pressurization and ordnance operations Friday
|
| 675.73 | Launch Advisory for 03/27/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Mar 28 1991 17:34 | 33 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Date: 27 Mar 91 20:03:36 GMT
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Edward Campion
Headquarters, Washington, D.C. March 27, 1991
(Phone: 202/453-8536)
Lisa Malone
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
(Phone: 407/867-2468)
STS-37 LAUNCH ADVISORY
NASA managers today set April 5, 1991 as the target launch
date for Space Shuttle mission STS-37. This will be the 39th flight of
the Space Shuttle system and will include deployment of the Gamma Ray
Observatory by the Shuttle Atlantis crew and the first "spacewalk"
performed by Shuttle astronauts since returning to flight.
"The launch team has done a super job in getting us ready to
fly STS-37" said Shuttle Director Robert Crippen. "With the delay in
STS-39 Discovery, the team had a real challenge to meet, and they came
through right on schedule."
The launch window on April 5 opens at 9:18 a.m. EST with the
mission projected to last just over 5 days. A launch on April 5 at the
opening of the window would put landing at Edwards Air Force Base,
Calif., on April 10.
|
| 675.74 | Shuttle Status for 03/28/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Mar 28 1991 17:36 | 31 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS - THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 1991 --- 10:00 a.m.
_________________________________________________________________
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH -- APRIL 5, 1991 at 9:18 a.m. EST
WORK IN PROGRESS:
* Aft engine compartment closeouts
* PRSD reactant purge operations
* Gamma Ray Observatory battery conditioning
* Main engine heat exchanger inspections
* SRB closeouts
WORK COMPLETED:
* Flight Readiness Review concluded yesterday with announcement
of April 5, 1991 as the launch date for mission STS-37
* Extravehicular Mobility Unit installation
* Mass Memory Unit load
* APU number 3 lube oil service
* Liquid hydrogen tank pressurization test
WORK SCHEDULED:
* Hypergolic pressurization and final ordnance operations Friday
* External tank purges this weekend
|
| 675.75 | Details on the GRO and gamma rays | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Fri Mar 29 1991 08:42 | 404 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.features,clari.news.aviation
Subject: Gamma Ray Observatory into orbit
Date: 26 Mar 91 17:55:56 GMT
_ _U_P_I_ _S_p_e_c_i_a_l_
_R_e_p_o_r_t_:_ _S_h_u_t_t_l_e_
_m_i_s_s_i_o_n
_ _S_h_u_t_t_l_e_
_A_t_l_a_n_t_i_s_ _s_e_t_ _t_o_
_l_a_u_n_c_h
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- The shuttle Atlantis is set to blast off
Friday on a five-day flight featuring the first U.S. spacewalk in 5 1/2
years and the launch of a 17-ton astronomy satellite to study the most
violent stars and galaxies in the cosmos.
Kicking off the first of six flights planned for 1991, Atlantis and
its four-man, one-woman crew are scheduled to lift off at 9:18 a.m. EST
Friday, just seven days before the 10th anniversary of the first shuttle
mission on April 12, 1981.
Strapped in aboard Atlantis for the program's 39th launch, will be
commander Steven Nagel, 44, co-pilot Kenneth Cameron, 41, Jerry Ross,
43, Jay Apt, 41, and Linda Godwin, 38. Nagel and Ross are shuttle
veterans while their crewmates are rookies.
``None of them are just another day at the office,'' Nagel said about
Atlantis's mission. ``But I have often looked at this flight and felt
very lucky and fortunate to be assigned to it. It's real exciting to be
carrying up an observatory that's going to ... re-write the astronomy
books as far as gamma ray astronomy.''
The primary goal of the mission is the launch of the 35,000-pound
Gamma Ray Observatory, the heaviest payload ever carried into space
aboard a shuttle.
With the more famous, if flawed, Hubble Space Telescope already in
orbit studying the universe in visible and ultraviolet light, the gamma
ray satellite is the second in a series of four ``great observatories''
designed to map the heavens across the electromagnetic spectrum.
Equipped with four instruments weighing up to 2 tons each, GRO is
expected to spend two years mapping high-energy gamma ray sources across
the entire sky with 10 times the sensitivity of any previous such
satellite. The satellite may be refueled later by a visiting shuttle
crew to extend its mission.
Future satellites in the series will study infrared emissions and X-
rays from deep space targets, giving astronomers a more complete picture
of the universe than ever before.
The launch of GRO is especially exciting to astronomers because gamma
rays, which are blocked by Earth's atmosphere, can only be studied from
space. And they carry clues about the nuclear processes at work in the
hearts of the most violent objects in the known universe.
``The objects that emit gamma radiation include some of the most
exotic members of the celestial zoo: neutron stars, pulsars, quasars,
black holes, places in the universe that tend to contain extremes of
physical conditions of temperature and density and magnetic fields,''
said program manager Alan Bunner.
``So viewing the skies in gamma rays tends to tell us about some of
the most energetic, even violent, phenomena that are going on in the
universe.''
Godwin, operating Atlantis's 50-foot-long robot arm, plans to launch
the boxy solar-powered satellite on the third day of the mission after
engineers on the ground make sure all its systems are operating
properly. If any problems develop, Ross and Apt will be standing by to
carry out an emergency spacewalk.
``If something should break, Jerry and I are all set to go out and
fix it if we need to,'' Apt said. ``We can work on the solar arrays, the
high-gain antenna, the latches that latch the GRO down to the orbiter
and the umbilicals that give it power and telemetry.''
The massive satellite, built by TRW of Redondo Beach, Calif., will
look like a giant insect when its two solar panels are unfolded,
stretching 70 feet from tip to tip and generating 2,000 watts of power.
With GRO safely in orbit, Apt and Ross plan to don spacesuits on the
fourth day of Atlantis's mission and spend six hours in Atlantis's 60-
foot cargo bay testing space station construction techniques.
It will be the first spacewalk by U.S. astronauts since 1985 when,
appropriately enough, Ross completed the second of two ``extra-vehicular
activities,'' or EVAs, that also were devoted to space construction methods.
This time around, Ross and Apt plan to set up a monorail in
Atlantis's payload bay to test the ability of electrical, mechanical and
manually powered carts to move astronauts and equipment about in
weightlessness.
In addition, Apt and Ross will take turns riding on the end of
Atlantis's robot arm to learn more about the performance of the orbital
crane.
The results of the tests likely will play a role in how NASA's
planned space station Freedom is put together in orbit later this
decade, a task that will require numerous spacewalks to complete.
``We're getting a good running start on the whole space station
process by including in this EVA a lot of hardware built by the same
contractors who are building the space station hardware,'' Apt said in
an interview. ``Getting them involved in the shuttle process ... has
been a real benefit to them and to us.''
Throughout the mission, the astronauts, all licensed ``ham'' radio
operators, plan to chat with school children about the progress of the
flight. Other on-board activities will include a protein crystal growth
experiment that could lead to new types of drugs and another involving
materials processing.
If all goes well, Nagel and Cameron will guide Atlantis to a landing
at Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave Desert northeast of Los Angeles
to wrap up a five-day, 12-minute mission.
------
While the spacewalk is the most exciting aspect of the flight, the
launch of the Gamma Ray Observatory is the most significant, opening a
new window on the universe that likely will result in as many new
questions as it does answers about the birth and evolution of the
universe.
``Each of these (great) observatories tells us about a different
regime of temperature, a different aspect of the total picture and so
each mission will provide a different piece of the cosmic puzzle to help
us tackle the fundamental questions of astronomy and astrophysics today,
'' Bunner said.
``GRO is addressing questions of fundamental physics. We're using the
universe as a laboratory to study matter under extreme conditions of
temperature and gravity that man could never reproduce in Earth-bound
laboratories.''
The $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope was the first of the great
observatories to make it into orbit. But in one of NASA's most
embarrassing failures, scientists were dismayed to discover the
telescope's primary mirror was flawed, preventing it from bringing
starlight to a sharp focus.
While Hubble still is able to gather important data, and while
modified cameras and other instruments ultimately will counteract the
blurring problem, GRO project officials went to great lengths to make
sure no similar problems were lurking that could hamper the performance
of the Gamma Ray Observatory.
But unlike its more famous space telescope cousin, GRO is not
equipped with a mirror for the simple reason that the particles, or
``photons,'' making up gamma rays are so energetic they simply would
penetrate and pass through any kind of conventional optical device.
Instead, the Gamma Ray Observatory is equipped with four massive
detectors weighing up to two tons each to indirectly record the passage
of gamma rays packing various amounts of energy. The detectors are so
massive because gamma rays are so penetrating and because they are
relatively rare.
As the gamma rays smash into special liquids and crystals called
scintillators, visible light will be produced that can be studied by
various instruments to learn more about the radiation itself and the
processes that created it.
``There is a lot of difference between the Hubble and the GRO in the
way the signals are collected,'' said project manager John Hraster. ``We
don't have a comparable single system, such as the mirror system.''
Hraster said GRO's four instruments were tested separately and then
all together in separate ``end-to-end tests'' to simulate the
satellite's operation in orbit. The observatory passed with flying
colors and engineers do not anticipate any major problems in orbit.
------
The instruments making up the Gamma Ray Observatory are:
--Oriented Scintillation Spectrometer Experiment (OSSE): Built by Ball
Aerospace Systems Group of Boulder, Colo., for the Naval Research
Laboratory in Washington. Purpose: To detect low-energy gamma rays
generated by radioactive processes. Such radiation can provide insights
into a variety of processes, including the creation of heavy elements in
supernova explosions.
--Imaging Compton Telescope (COMPTEL): Built by Messerschmitt-Boelkow-
Blohm, Munich, Germany, for the Max Planck Institute. Purpose: To study
medium-energy gamma ray sources within and beyond Earth's Milky Way
galaxy such as compact neutron stars and other point sources as well as
diffuse emissions. This is the only GRO instrument that will produce
images.
--Energetic Gamma Ray Experiment Telescope (EGRET): Built by NASA's
Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. Purpose: To study
extremely high-energy gamma rays from a variety of deep space targets. A
primary objective is to study quasars, the most energetic objects in the
known universe.
--Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE): Built by NASA's
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. Purpose: To study brief
gamma ray bursts that occur at random in all areas of the sky. The cause
of such bursts is unknown, although they appear to be associated with
neutron stars.
``We on the science team of the Gamma Ray Observatory are very
excited about what we know we're going to be able to see based on
previous missions and theoretical analysis,'' said project scientist
Donald Kniffen.
``With such a tremendous increase in observing capability ... it's
the unexpected that really adds to the excitement. So we're all eagerly
anticipating the launch and many, many exciting results coming from the
mission.''
What wonders GRO might reveal about the violent universe and its
strange cast of characters remain to be seen. But virtually every
observation will represent a new discovery.
``There is a prediction that at the death of a black hole one should
see a gamma ray burst of a very specific type,'' said Carl Fichtel, co-
principal investigator of the EGRET experiment.
``We have a very special mode on EGRET to look for such a burst.
There's another type of high-energy burst that's associated with a
supernova explosion and we shall be looking for that.''
Another major objective is to look for direct evidence of
``nucleosynthesis,'' the process by which heavy elements are created in
supernova explosions.
When stars exhaust their nuclear fuel, energy is no longer available
to offset the force of gravity. The cores of such suns can then collapse
and as material is crushed together, temperature and pressure increase
to extreme levels.
As a result, new elements can be created in a process that results in
showers of gamma rays.
``In the big bang that created the universe 10 to 20 billion years
ago, we're quite convinced that only hydrogen and helium were produced
in any abundance at that time,'' said James Kurfess, principal
investigator of the OSSE experiment.
``All other heavier nuclei, like carbon, oxygen, aluminum, iron, have
been produced in the fusion processes that power normal stars as well as
explosive events that represent the end point of stellar evolution,
novae and supernovae. One of the objectives of gamma ray astronomy is to
observationally prove these concepts.''
Another hot topic in gamma ray astronomy is the study of black holes
and neutron stars, the ultra-dense objects that are left when stars
explode. In some cases, the gravitational collapse never stops, which
scientists believe can create a black hole, an object with such intense
gravity that not even light can escape.
But dust and gas sucked into a black hole would be accelerated by the
object's titanic gravity, raising temperatures and resulting in the
emission of specific types of gamma rays.
While black holes mark an extreme in stellar evolution, total
collapse is not an inevitable consequence of a supernova. Depending on
the mass of the star, the contraction may stop after electrons and
protons are crushed together, producing an uncharged, stable sphere of
neutrons just a few miles across.
``In a neutron star ... material can rain down onto the star,''
Kurfess said. ``But because of the intense gravitational fields, that
material can be accelerated to such high energies that nuclear reactions
will occur and produce gamma rays that we can see.
``Studying those gamma rays, we can study the processes, the physical
processes taking place in the neutron star as well as the structure of
the star.''
Another major target for GRO's instruments is quasars, compact but
extremely energetic objects that outshine entire galaxies. But it is the
unexpected that likely will produce some of the most profound surprises.
``Since the sky is largely unexplored, it's really like looking at
the universe again with new eyes that we've never had before,'' Fichtel
said. ``I think we may very well find some things that nobody every
thought of.''
_a_d_v_ _w_e_e_k_e_n_d_
_m_a_r_c_h_ _3_0_-_3_1_ _o_r_
_t_h_e_r_e_a_f_t_e_r
From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.features,clari.news.aviation
Subject: Gamma ray bursts mystifying
Date: 26 Mar 91 18:03:43 GMT
_ _U_P_I_ _S_p_e_c_i_a_l_
_R_e_p_o_r_t_:_ _S_h_u_t_t_l_e_
_m_i_s_s_i_o_n
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- NASA's Gamma Ray Observatory satellite
may help astronomers understand what causes mysterious, invisible bursts
of high-energy radiation that pop off at random across the sky like
cosmic flashbulbs.
The flashes might be the result of ``starquakes'' on the surfaces of
ultra-dense neutron stars, thermonuclear explosions caused when
compressed surface material suddenly detonates or the result of
cataclysmic stellar collisions. While neutron stars appear to be
involved, no one knows for sure.
But with the launch of the Gamma Ray Observatory aboard the shuttle
Atlantis late this week, astronomers will be a major step closer to
solving the riddle of ``gamma ray bursts'' and a host of other
astronomical enigmas.
Orbiting high above Earth's radiation-absorbing atmosphere, the $617
million GRO satellite is expected to gather unprecedented data on
quasars, exploding stars, collapsed neutron stars and other extremely
violent objects, including possible black holes.
But few topics in modern astronomy are as baffling as gamma ray
bursts, which were discovered in 1967 by Vela military spy satellites
built to detect nuclear explosions. Such bursts seldom last more than a
few minutes and do not appear to be related to any visible objects.
What produces the radiation, and how far away the objects might be,
is unknown.
``Gamma ray bursts are mysterious and difficult to study because they
don't repeat, they come from random directions at random times,'' said
Alan Bunner, program scientist with the Gamma Ray Observatory program.
``There's nothing there at any wavelength in the quiescent state,
after the event, and after studying them for several years we still
don't know their origin. It's like being in a darkened room with flashes
going on around you and no matter how hard you look there's nothing
there after the event.''
One of four instruments aboard NASA's Gamma Ray Observatory may help
astronomers get to the bottom of the mystery.
The Gamma Ray Observatory is the second in a series of four Hubble
Space Telescope-class astronomical instruments being launched to study
the universe across the electromagnetic spectrum, from low-energy
infrared emissions and visible light to ultrviolet radiation, X-rays and
gamma rays.
Gamma rays are blocked by Earth's atmosphere and as a result, little
is known about how the universe appears in the high-energy domain of the
electromagnetic spectrum.
But studying such radiation is crucial because it provides direct
evidence of the nuclear processes going on in some of the most violent
objects in the universe.
``We know that the gamma ray sky is extremely variable or explosive
on all time scales, from seconds to weeks to years,'' said Gerald
Fishman, principal investigator for the Burst and Transient Source
Experiment -- ``BATSE'' -- aboard GRO.
``If our eyes were sensitive to gamma rays and we were above the
atmosphere, the sky would be an extremely impressive sight. We would see
objects flashing, exploding and flickering on all these different time
scales. Perhaps one of the most impressive of these variable objects are
the gamma ray bursts.''
Such bursts are detected about 100 times a year, occurring at random
across the sky. There is no way to predict their occurrence or location
in the sky.
``For the brighter ones, it's as if a flashbulb goes off somewhere in
the sky (that) completely outshines all other gamma ray sources in the
sky, including the sun,'' Fishman said. ``There's no other phenomena
like this in any other branch of astronomy. We don't even know how far
away they are.''
The bursts appear to be associated with neutron stars, formed in
supernova explosions when gravitational collapse crushes atomic
particles together with such force that only uncharged neutrons survive
in an ultra-dense sphere as small as 10 miles to 12 miles across.
The surface of a neutron star, torn by titanic gravitational forces,
can suffer destructive quakes or thermonuclear explosions, both of which
could result in bursts of gamma rays. Likewise, objects colliding with
neutron stars would produce a shower of radiation.
The Burst and Transient Source Experiment is made up of eight
detector modules mounted on the corners of the box-shaped Gammay Ray
Observatory.
No matter where in the sky a gamma ray burst originates, one of the
BATSE detectors should receive its radiation, allowing astronomers on
Earth to pinpoint its position so optical and radio telescopes can look
for the object that emitted the flash.
``By having the GRO in orbit as much as four or six or eight years,''
Fishman said, ``we're going to be able to see hundreds and hundreds of
these gamma ray bursts and we'll be able to better classify them.''
_a_d_v_ _w_e_e_k_e_n_d_
_m_a_r_c_h_ _3_0_-_3_1_ _o_r_
_t_h_e_r_e_a_f_t_e_r
From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.features,clari.tw.science
Subject: Studying gamma rays requires special tools
Date: 26 Mar 91 18:03:50 GMT
_ _U_P_I_ _S_p_e_c_i_a_l_
_R_e_p_o_r_t_:_ _S_h_u_t_t_l_e_
_m_i_s_s_i_o_n
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- NASA's massive Gamma Ray Observatory
satellite relies on the tools of quantum physics instead of lenses or
mirrors to study high-energy radiation from the most violent objects in
the universe.
The second in a series of four ``great observatories'' expected to
revolutionize humanity's knowledge about the cosmos, the $617 million
Gamma Ray Observatory is scheduled for launch Friday aboard the shuttle
Atlantis.
Data from GRO will complement the visible light and ultraviolet
images taken by the $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope. Future
spacecraft in the great observatories series will study infrared
emissions and X-rays, giving astronomers an integrated look at the
universe across the electromagnetic spectrum.
The importance of studying the entire electromagnetic spectrum is
analagous to listening to a symphony. Unless the listener can hear all
of the instruments, the composer's intent cannot be fully appreciated.
Likewise, astronomers need to see how the universe appears across the
electromagnetic spectrum to fully understand the forces at work in the
cosmos.
In order of increasing energy, the electromagnetic spectrum runs in a
smooth continuum from radio waves to infrared, visible light,
ultraviolet radiation, X-rays and gamma rays.
As might be expected of the most energetic radiation known, gamma
rays are produced by the most violent events in the universe. By
studying such radiation, scientists can gain insights into the elements
involved and the chemical, physical and nuclear processes at work in
objects like stars that are far removed from the observer.
But detecting gamma rays is no small task.
When an atom absorbs energy, orbiting electrons are pushed to higher
orbits. If too much energy is absorbed, electrons can be stripped away
from the atom completely, creating an electrically charged ion.
Otherwise, the electrons eventually will fall back to lower orbits,
giving up the absorbed energy in the form of massless particles called
photons that make up electromagnetic radiation.
But atoms can only absorb and emit radiation in specific amounts that
depend on the nature of the atom in question and how much energy was
involved. Photons carry that energy away and the higher the energy, the
shorter the wavelength of the radiation.
The wavelength of electromagnetic radiation is simply the distance
between two crests (or two troughs) in a ray of light as it ripples
through space.
Wavelengths are measured in ``angstroms'' -- one angstrom equals about
300 millionths of an inch -- and visible light falls between 3,200 and 7,
000 angstroms. High-energy gamma rays, however, have wavelengths shorter
than 0.1 angstroms -- roughly the size of an atomic nucleus.
For that reason, gamma rays are extremely difficult to detect in that
they penetrate normal matter, ruling out traditional mirrors and lenses
to gather and focus such radiation. Instead, scientists rely on quantum
physics to provide the necessary tools.
``Since the wavelengths are so small, you can't use the normal
optical techniques involving lenses and mirrors,'' said GRO project
scientist Donald Kniffen. ``In fact, because they are so energetic,
gamma rays act more like particles, small quanta of energy called
photons, than they do like waves.
``Therefore, the instruments that we use on the Gamma Ray Observatory
are much more like the instruments for particle physics that you might
see around an accelerator.''
GRO's four instruments are equipped with ``scintillators,'' that is,
special liquids or crystals made up of atoms that emit visible light
when struck by gamma rays. One such material is sodium iodide.
The energy packed by such light photons is directly proportional to
the energy of the incoming gamma ray and by studying the byproducts of a
gamma ray interaction, scientists can glean valulable details about the
events that caused the original radiation.
_a_d_v_ _w_e_e_k_e_n_d_
_m_a_r_c_h_ _3_0_-_3_1_ _o_r_
_t_h_e_r_e_a_f_t_e_r
|
| 675.76 | UPI: Countdown begins for shuttle Atlantis | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Apr 02 1991 13:55 | 66 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Date: 2 Apr 91 15:19:21 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- Engineers started a ``textbook''
countdown Tuesday for the shuttle Atlantis, readying the ship for
blastoff Friday on a flight featuring the first post-Challenger
spacewalk and the launch of a new astronomy satellite.
Atlantis's engine compartment was sealed for flight Monday and
engineers started the shuttle's countdown on time at 5:30 a.m. EST
Tuesday after resolving minor problems with the ship's robot arm that
delayed closing the payload bay door.
``Things are looking good, the launch team is back in the saddle
again,'' said NASA test director Al Sofge. ``Everybody is very happy to
be getting ready to launch after a four- to five-month hiatus here and
things are running very, very, very smoothly. I couldn't ask for much
better.''
Atlantis's five-member crew -- commander Steven Nagel, co-pilot
Kenneth Cameron, Jerry Ross, Jay Apt and Linda Godwin -- was scheduled to
fly to the Kennedy Space Center later in the day for final preparations.
If all goes well, Atlantis will blast off on the 39th shuttle mission
at 9:18 a.m. Friday to kick off a five-day mission, the first of six
planned for 1991 and the first since a mission by the shuttle Columbia
in December.
``Things are going well, there are virtually no problems,'' Sofge
said. ``It's, I would say, maybe a textbook launch countdown at this
point.''
The only question mark Tuesday was the weather, with a 30 percent
chance of high winds Friday that could delay liftoff.
The primary goal of Atlantis's flight is the deployment Sunday of the
$617 million Gamma Ray Observatory, a massive 35,000-pound astronomy
satellite sensitive to extremely high-energy radiation generated by the
most violent stars and galaxies in the universe.
With the more famous Hubble Space Telescope already in orbit studying
the universe in visible and ultraviolet light, the gamma ray satellite
is the second in a series of four ``great observatories'' designed to
map the heavens across the electromagnetic spectrum.
Future spacecraft in the series will study infrared emissions and X-
rays from deep space targets, giving astronomers a more complete view of
the cosmos than ever before.
The second major objective of Atlantis's mission is for Ross and Apt
to carry out a six-hour spacewalk on the fourth day of the flight to
test space station construction techniques. The excursion into
Atlantis's payload bay will be NASA's first since the 1986 Challenger
disaster.
If all goes well, Nagel and Cameron will guide Atlantis to a landing
the morning of April 10 at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration originally hoped to
kick off 1991 by launching the shuttle Discovery March 9 on an
unclassified, eight-day ``Star Wars'' research mission.
But the flight was delayed after engineers discovered cracks in the
hinge assemblies of critical fuel line doors in the belly of the orbiter
that must close properly in orbit to allow a safe re-entry.
NASA managers ultimately ordered engineers to haul Discovery off pad
39A and back to its hangar for repairs, delaying the unclassified
military mission until around April 25 and making Atlantis No. 1 on the
launch schedule.
Similar cracks later were found in the hinge assemblies of Atlantis,
Columbia and the new shuttle Endeavour, but in Atlantis's case the
defects were deemed too small to pose any safety threat to the shuttle
or its crew.
Discovery's hinges were replaced by those aboard the shuttle
Columbia, which were repaired and beefed up to preclude any chance of a
failure in orbit.
The work was completed ahead of schedule and Discovery was hauled
back out to pad 39A before dawn Monday. NASA officials say the shuttle
and its seven-man crew should be ready for takeoff around April 25.
|
| 675.77 | Shuttle Status Reports - 03/29/91 - 04/02/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 03 1991 00:56 | 86 |
| [I wish USENET didn't dry up just before a launch... -dg]
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - FRIDAY, MAR. 29, 1991 - 11 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH - APRIL 5
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Pressurization of the hypergolic propellant system tanks.
- Gamma Ray Observatory battery conditioning.
- Purges of the external tank.
- Launch countdown preparations.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Part two of ordnance operations.
- Loading the mass memory units for flight.
- Purges of the power reactant storage and distribution system.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Closeouts of the aft compartment.
- Launch countdown begins at 5:30 a.m. EST, April 2.
- Flight crew arrives at 3:30 p.m. EST, April 2.
- Launch April 5 at 9:18 a.m. EST.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, APR. 1, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH - APRIL 5
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Launch countdown preparations.
- Closeouts of the Gamma Ray Observatory.
- Closing of the payload bay doors tonight for flight.
- Hypergolic system closeouts.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Pressurization of the hypergolic propellant system tanks.
- Gamma Ray Observatory battery conditioning.
- Purges of the external tank.
- Closeouts of the aft compartment. Doors were installed for
flight this morning.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Launch countdown begins at 5:30 a.m. EST, April 2.
- Flight crew arrives at 3:30 p.m. EST, April 2.
- Launch April 5 at 9:18 a.m. EST.
- Weather outlook: 50 percent chance of being within commit
criteria on Friday. Conditions improve Saturday to 80 percent.
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, APR. 2, 1991 - 11:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH - APRIL 5
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Launch countdown began ticking at 5:30 a.m. at the T-43 hour
mark.
- Hypergolic system closeouts.
- Booster closeouts.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Closing of the payload bay doors for flight at 10 a.m. this
morning.
- Installation of a thermal blanket on the robot arm wrist
camera.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Flight crew arrives at 3:30 p.m. EST today.
- Launch April 5 at 9:18 a.m. EST. Launch windows: Friday 9:18
a.m. - 1:25 p.m.; Saturday 9:17 a.m. - 1:26 p.m.
- Weather outlook: 70 percent chance of being within commit
criteria on Friday. On Saturday, there is a 50 percent chance of
favorable weather conditions.
|
| 675.78 | STS-37 Weather Outlook | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 03 1991 00:58 | 46 |
| STS-37 L-3 WEATHER STATUS
Launch Complex 39
L-3 Day Weather Forecast for STS-37
Conditions expected on Friday, 4/5/91
Synopsis: A cold front will be approaching from the West but is
now not expected to be a factor on Friday. It will influence
weather in the event of a 24 hour scrub turnaround as predicted
winds increase. Each day conditions improve during the duration
of the launch period.
At 9:18 a.m. on Friday morning conditions are forecast to be:
Clouds: 2,500 to 6,000 scattered stratocumulus
28,000 to 33,000 broken cirrus
Visibility: 7+ miles
Wind - Pad 39B: SE at 10 knots gusting to 18 knots
Temperature: 74 degrees
Dewpoint: 60 degrees
Humidity: 72%
Precipitation: chance of showers
Probability of launch weather criteria violation at the beginning
of the launch period: 30%
Probability of tanking constraint violation on Friday: 5%
Chance of violation at launch time on Saturday: 50%
Sunday: 30%
Developed by Cape Canaveral Forecast Facility
USAF Air Weather Service
4/2/91
|
| 675.79 | For your viewing enjoyment... NASA Select Schedule | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 03 1991 01:00 | 8 |
| I have the NASA Select schedule (for those lucky few with satellite
dishes) available.
Pick it up from: pragma::public:[nasa]sts-37.nasa_select
It's dated 4/2/91 (revision E).
- dave
|
| 675.80 | NASA is looking for a few good WIMPS | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Wed Apr 03 1991 13:41 | 118 |
| From: [email protected] (MARC McFARLAND)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space
Subject: NASA observatory telescope to search for space 'wimps'
Date: 3 Apr 91 14:46:47 GMT
SEATTLE (UPI) -- Friday's scheduled launch of NASA's Gamma Ray
Obervatory could lead the way to scientists' first look at space
``wimps,'' a University of Washington astronomer says.
During its first year of operation, the observatory telescope
will zero in on a mysterious Milky Way object called Geminda, which
George Lake, astronomy professor at the Seattle school, describes as
``dark matter'' that produces gamma rays.
Astronomers believe gamma rays are a record of explosive
changes and evolution in the universe -- from the Big Bang to black
holes, Lake said.
Lake said Geminga's gamma ray spectrum will test his theory
that Geminda is comprised of dark bits called ``wimps'' -- weakly
interacting massive particles.
``It would be as direct an observation of dark matter as you
could possibly make,'' he said.
Lake said he believes space wimps have avoided detection
because they are usually distributed like a mist across the galaxy.
Clumped wimps would emit far more gamma rays than misty wimps,
he theorized.
Lake said he expects the obervatory, to be taken into space
aboard the shuttle Atlantis, also will show that Geminga actually is
not unusual in the Milky Way galaxy or deeper space.
``In the other sections of the Milky Way halo that GRO (the
observatory) will survey, signature pictures of dark matter clumps
fainter and more distant than Geminga should pop up in nearly every
frame,'' he said.
Lake said ``dark matter'' is believed to account for at least
90 percent of the Universe's mass. Geminga is one of the brightest
sources of gamma rays in the galaxy, he said.
Engineers at Cape Canaveral were working Wednesday to get the
shuttle Atlantis ready for Friday's blastoff. Liquid oxygen and hydrogen
were to be pumped aboard the shuttle to power its electrical cells.
From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Subject: Shuttle Atlantis on track for launch
Date: 3 Apr 91 14:39:23 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- The shuttle Atlantis's pilots practiced
landing procedures Wednesday with the ship's countdown ticking smoothly
toward blastoff Friday on the first of three flights planned over the
next eight weeks.
Atlantis skipper Steven Nagel and co-pilot Kenneth Cameron strapped
in aboard modified NASA jets early Wednesday and made repeated shuttle-
like approaches to the Kennedy Space Center's 3-mile-long runway to
sharpen their landing skills prior to takeoff.
Out at launch pad 39B, meanwhile, engineers sailed through Atlantis's
intricate countdown after an on-time start Tuesday. Early Wednesday,
engineers worked to pump liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen aboard
Atlantis to power the ship's electricity-producing fuel cells.
``We're not working any problems,'' said NASA test director Al Sofge.
``It's basically a textbook countdown. We're glad to be back in business
again. It's been since December since we've launched a vehicle and we're
very happy being back doing what we do best.''
With Air Force meteorologists calling for a 60 percent chance of good
weather at launch time, Atlantis's giant external fuel tank is scheduled
to be filled with a half-million gallons of rocket fuel shortly after
midnight Thursday. Launch is scheduled for 9:18 a.m. Friday.
``Somebody told me to say something not as trite as 'we're ready to
go fly,' but I couldn't think of anything better,'' Nagel told reporters
Tuesday afternoon after the crew's arrival in Florida. ``From what I
understand the shuttle's all ready, the (satellite is) ready and we're
ready. So we're looking forward very much to flying on Friday.''
Joining Nagel, 44, and Cameron, 41, for the 39th shuttle mission will
be Linda Godwin, 38, Jerry Ross, 43, and Jay Apt, 41.
The five shuttle fliers plan to spend five days in orbit before
gliding to a landing next Wednesday morning at Edwards Air Force Base in
California's Mojave Desert.
NASA originally hoped to kick off 1991 by launching Discovery March 9
on an unclassified, eight-day ``Star Wars'' research mission.
But the flight was delayed after engineers discovered cracks in the
hinge assemblies of two critical fuel line doors in the belly of the
orbiter that must close properly in orbit to allow a safe re-entry.
Similar cracks were found in the hinges aboard all of NASA's shuttles
but in Atlantis's case, they were deemed too small to pose a safety
threat and the ship was cleared for launch as is.
Discovery has since been repaired and hauled back out to nearby pad
39A for a launch attempt around April 25. NASA managers hope to follow
that mission by launching the repaired shuttle Columbia in late May on a
Spacelab life sciences mission.
Atlantis's flight, the first since a Dec. 2 takeoff by Columbia, will
get the ball rolling after a four-month hiatus.
``Our preference is ... to launch on a routine basis,'' said NASA
test director Al Sofge. ``It's like a football team. A football team
certainly likes to practice, but they also like to play the games, too.
We like to play the game as often as possible.''
The primary goal of Atlantis's flight is the deployment Sunday of the
$617 million Gamma Ray Observatory, a massive 35,000-pound astronomy
satellite sensitive to extremely high-energy radiation generated by the
most violent stars and galaxies in the universe.
With the more famous Hubble Space Telescope already in orbit studying
the universe in visible and ultraviolet light, the gamma ray satellite
is the second in a series of four ``great observatories'' designed to
map the heavens across the electromagnetic spectrum.
Future spacecraft in the series will study infrared emissions and X-
rays from deep space targets, giving astronomers a more complete view of
the cosmos than ever before.
The second major objective of Atlantis's mission is for Ross and Apt
to carry out a six-hour spacewalk on the fourth day of the flight to
test space station construction techniques. The excursion into Atlantis's
payload bay will be NASA's first since the 1986 Challenger disaster.
|
| 675.81 | Shuttle Status for 04/03/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 03 1991 18:32 | 40 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, APR. 3, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH - APRIL 5
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Launch countdown in progress with no issues.
- Loading of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen into the power
reactant storage and distribution system tanks.
- Eight hour built-in hold at the T-19 hour mark begins at 1:30
p.m. and extends to 9:30 p.m. tonight.
- Flight crew equipment fit checks.
WORK COMPLETED:
- First built-in countdown hold from 9:30 p.m. yesterday to 5:30
a.m. today.
- Flight crew arrived 3:45 p.m. yesterday.
- Crew briefed last night.
- Commander Steve Nagel and Pilot Ken Cameron flew practice
flights in the Shuttle Training Aircraft.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Activation of the orbiter's communications system tonight.
- Disconnection of the Orbiter Midbody Umbilical Unit later
today.
- Retraction of the Rotating Service Structure away from the
vehicle to the launch position at 12 noon tomorrow.
- Launch April 5 at 9:18 a.m. EST. Launch windows: Friday 9:18
a.m. - 1:25 p.m.; Saturday 9:17 a.m. - 1:26 p.m.
- Weather outlook: 60 percent chance of being within commit
criteria on Friday at the opening of the window. On Saturday,
there is a 50 percent chance of favorable weather conditions.
|
| 675.82 | KSC Weather Report for 04/03/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 03 1991 18:48 | 56 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Date: 3 Apr 91 18:51:42 GMT
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
TO: PIOZ/PRESS
FROM: George Diller/NASA-KSC
407-867-2468/FTS 823-2468
Launch Complex 39
L-2 Day Weather Forecast for STS-37
Conditions expected on Friday, 4/5/91
Synopsis: A cold front will be located in the central Gulf of
Mexico with high pressure located in the Atlantic off Cape
Hatteras. Elements affecting the weather criteria probabilities
are possible launch pad wind or crosswind violations, the chance
of ceilings below 8,000 feet, and a slight chance of showers.
At 9:18 a.m. on Friday morning conditions are forecast to be:
Clouds: 3,500 to 7,000 scattered stratocumulus
28,000 to 33,000 broken cirrus
Visibility: 7+ miles
Wind - Pad 39B: ESE at 10 knots gusting to 18 knots
Temperature: 74 degrees
Dewpoint: 60 degrees
Humidity: 72%
Precipitation: chance of showers
Probability of launch weather criteria violation at the beginning
of the launch period: 40%
Probability of launch weather criteria violation over the
duration of the launch period: 20%
Probability of tanking constraint violation on Friday: 0%
Chance of violation at launch time on Saturday: 50%
Sunday: 30%
Developed by Cape Canaveral Forecast Facility
USAF Air Weather Service
4/3/91
|
| 675.83 | | STAR::HUGHES | You knew the job was dangerous when you took it Fred. | Thu Apr 04 1991 12:44 | 12 |
| L-1 activities are proceeding very smoothly.
Weather predictions are 5% chance of violating tanking requirements,
40% chance of violating launch requirements at the beginning of the
window. The window extends to 13:25, or 13:57 if they will accept 1
less TAL site than nominal.
A curious piece of intelligence from the L-1 PC. When being asked about
spacecraft weights, sizes, etc, the GRO project leader said "GRO is the
heaviest civilian satellite carried by the Shuttle". Hmmm.
gary
|
| 675.84 | KSC Weather Report for 04/04/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Apr 04 1991 19:22 | 55 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Date: 4 Apr 91 19:15:43 GMT
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
TO: PIOZ/PRESS
FROM: George Diller/NASA-KSC
407-867-2468/FTS 823-2468
Launch Complex 39
L-1 Day Weather Forecast for STS-37
Conditions expected on Friday, 4/5/91
Synopsis: A cold front will be located in the central Gulf of
Mexico with high pressure located in the Atlantic off Cape
Hatteras. Elements affecting the weather criteria probabilities
are the chance of ceilings below 8,000 feet, and a slight chance
of showers.
At 9:18 a.m. on Friday morning conditions are forecast to be:
Clouds: 3,500 to 5,500 scattered stratocumulus
7,000 to 9,000 broken altocumulus
28,000 to 31,000 scatered cirrus
Visibility: 7+ miles
Wind - Pad 39B: ESE at 10 knots gusting to 18 knots
Temperature: 74 degrees
Dewpoint: 60 degrees
Humidity: 72%
Precipitation: chance of showers
Probability of launch weather criteria violation at the beginning
of the launch period: 40%
Probability of launch weather criteria violation over the
duration of the launch period: 20%
Probability of tanking constraint violation on Friday: 5%
Chance of violation at launch time on Saturday: 50%
Sunday: 30%
Developed by Cape Canaveral Forecast Facility
USAF Air Weather Service
4/4/91
|
| 675.85 | Shuttle Status for 04/04/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Apr 04 1991 19:24 | 50 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, APR. 4, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - PAD 39-B
LAUNCH - APRIL 5
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Launch countdown in progress with no issues.
- T-11 hour built-in hold will resume at 6:58 p.m. EST today.
- Preparations to roll the Rotating Service Structure away from
the vehicle at noon today.
- Final debris walkdowns of the launch pad.
- Stowing flight crew equipment in the orbiter's middeck.
- Configuration of switches in the crew cabin for ascent.
- Loading film in cameras.
- Activation of the orbiter's fuel cells.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Demating the orbiter midbody umbilical unit used in servicing
the orbiter's onboard fuel cell storage tanks.
- Loading of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen into the power
reactant storage and distribution system tanks.
- Flight crew equipment fit checks.
- Commander Steve Nagel and Pilot Ken Cameron flew practice
flights in the T-38 training jets.
- Activation of the orbiter's communications system.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Clearing Launch Pads 39-A and B at 10 p.m. tonight in prepara-
tion for loading propellants into the external tank.
- Tanking begins at 12:58 a.m. tomorrow and will be complete at
3:58 a.m.
- Flight crew will be awakened at 4:23 a.m. tomorrow.
- Crew departure from the Operations and Checkout Building is at
6:03 a.m. tomorrow.
- Crew will begin entering Atlantis' crew cabin at 6:33 a.m.
tomorrow.
- Launch April 5 at 9:18 a.m. EST. Launch windows: Friday 9:18
a.m. - 1:56 p.m.; Saturday 9:17 a.m. - 1:56 p.m.
- Weather outlook: 60 percent chance of being within commit
criteria on Friday at the opening of the window. On Saturday,
there is a 70 percent chance of favorable weather conditions.
|
| 675.86 | NASA Headline News for 04/04/91 (STS-37 news only) | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Apr 04 1991 19:37 | 65 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Date: 4 Apr 91 19:13:45 GMT
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Headline News
Internal Communications Branch (P-2) NASA Headquarters
Thursday, April 4, 1991 Audio Service: 202 / 755-1788
This is NASA Headline News for Thursday, April 4, 1991 . . .
The launch countdown process for the STS-37 Atlantis mission is well
underway at the Kennedy Space Center. Test Director Mike Leinbach this
morning said that the countdown was proceeding extremely smoothly
and that the team was not tracking any problems. The worldwide NASA
communications system verification checks have taken place and the
network is ready to support the launch, as is the Johnson Space Center
Mission Control Complex and Firing Room #3 at Kennedy. The orbiter fuel
cell reactants were loaded aboard yesterday. The launch pad Rotating
Service Structure will be moved to its retracted position today at noon.
The multiple launch site cameras will be loaded with film this afternoon.
This evening at 8:00 pm KSC will close both launch pads in
preparation for cryogenic fuel loading of Atlantis on Pad B.
At 12:58 am tomorrow, Atlantis will come out of a built-in hold as the
countdown is picked up at the T-6 hour mark. Loading of liquid hydrogen
and liquid oxygen into Atlantis' main tanks will then begin. At 3:58 am
the vehicle will enter another built-in hold to allow the KSC ice inspection
team to survey Atlantis' external tank.
The flight crew will be awakened at 4:23 am tomorrow and enter
Atlantis at 6:30. The orbiter should be closed out at 8:15 am. Launch is
set for 9:18 am tomorrow morning. Weather at the primary Trans-Atlantic
Landing site in Banjul, The Gambia, is predicted to be fine. Launch site
weather at Kennedy is expected to improve from a 60 percent
probability of favorable weather at the opening of the window to over 80
percent later in the morning.
There presently are no concerns for either the orbiter systems or the
payload. Test Director Leinbach also said this morning that the Gamma
Ray Observatory-to-Orbiter integration and testing was exceptionally
smooth and trouble-free.
The Gamma Ray Observatory, at 34,643 pounds, will be the heaviest
civilian spacecraft ever launched by the Shuttle system. It has 4,200
pounds of hydrazine propellant, which is also the largest quantity ever to
be loaded aboard any satellite. NASA and GRO prime contractor TRW
took advantage of the additional time before launch, afforded by the
remanifesting, to research engineering and historical test data to verify
that the GRO would not be launched with any of the problems which
accompanied the launch of Hubble. At this time NASA is confident that
every system on the Gamma Ray Observatory is functioning as
designed.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
NASA will provide a special television service during the STS-37
mission to improve the coverage of NASA Select in the Western U.S. and
in Alaska and Hawaii. Each day NASA will transmit a two-hour edited
version of that day's NASA Select events on the Spacenet 1 satellite.
NASA Select is on the F2R satellite located at 72 degrees West Longitude.
Spacenet 1 is much further west at 120 degrees West Longitude. The
transmissions will be made between midnight and 2:00 am Eastern
time on Spacenet 1, transponder 17L. Normal, continuous coverage of the
mission will be on NASA Select on F2R, transponder 13.
|
| 675.87 | No TVs allowed here... | 6297::PHILLIPS | Music of the spheres. | Fri Apr 05 1991 10:32 | 6 |
| Help! I'm being held prisoner in the 5" fab, and incommunicado....
Has the Atlantis lifted off yet?????
--Eric--
|
| 675.88 | Launch Successful | 58457::SKLEIN | Nulli Secundus | Fri Apr 05 1991 10:37 | 6 |
|
Well is is 9:23 am and the shuttle is launched. SRB flight and separation good
and three good engines so far.
Susan
|
| 675.89 | Whew! | 6297::PHILLIPS | Music of the spheres. | Fri Apr 05 1991 10:39 | 4 |
| Re. -1
Thank you, Susan!
--Eric--
|
| 675.90 | ESA participating in GRO mission | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Fri Apr 05 1991 10:42 | 107 |
| From: [email protected] (Bev Freed)
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: ESA's space science dept participates in GRO
Date: 4 Apr 91 04:40:59 GMT
Organization: The NSS BBS, Pittsburgh PA (412) 366-5208
European Space Agency
8-10 Rue Mario Nikis
75738 Paris Cedex 15
Telephone: (3314) 273 7155
Telex: ESA 202 746
FAX: (3314) 273-7560
FOR RELEASE: MARCH 29, 1991 #8
ESA'S SPACE SCIENCE DEPARTMENT PARTICIPATES IN THE GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY
The Astrophysics Division at the European Space Agency's ESTEC (European
Space and Technology Centre) at Noordwijk in the Netherlands built part
of the Imaging Compton Telescope (Comptel), one of the four instruments
carried by NASA's Gamma-Ray Observatory (GRO).
The Observatory, to be launched on 5 April from Cape Canaveral, will be
the heaviest science payload ever deployed by the Space Shuttle in low
Earth orbit -- it weighs over 17 tons and fills half the Shuttle bay.
The Imaging Compton Telescope was built jointly by the Astrophysics
Division at ESTEC, the Max Planck Institute, Garching (Germany), the
Space Research Laboratory at Leiden (The Netherlands), and the
University of New Hampshire (USA).
Comptel detects gamma rays in the 1-30 MeV energy range, using the
Compton scatter principle (the rays scatter in a detector bank, and
are absorbed by a second detector bank 1.5 meters away). Comptel's
operational modes and data-handling are controlled by the Digital
Electronics Assembly developed by scientists and engineers of the Space
Science Department (SSD) under the management of Dr. Kevin Bennett.
On-orbit operations of Comptel will be controlled by computers located
in the United States, all the software and hardware for which has been
developed by SSD. Finally, SSD provided two detectors that will
monitor radio-active sources in order to provide continuous on-board
energy calibration of Comptel.
The Gamma-Ray Observatory is a 3-axis stabilised spacecraft. Its
gamma-ray detectors can be kept pointed in a fixed direction for
observation periods of 14 days each.
GRO's instruments are much larger, more massive, and far more sensitive
than any gamma-ray instruments flown in Space up to now. Size is
crucial for gamma-ray astronomy: large instruments are needed to
detect a significant number of photons in a reasonable amount of time,
because the number of gamma rays from celestial sources is small. A
massive detector is required because gamma-rays are highly penetrating
and can be detected only when they interact with matter.
The Goddard Space Flight Center in the US is responsible for the
development of the Gamma Ray Observatory. The Observatory's operations
will be conducted from Goddard's Payload Operations Control Center
with a remote link to Comptel operations computer in New Hampshire.
Gamma-ray astronomy is the study of celestial objects from their
gamma-ray emissions of photons that have an energy over a million times
that of visible light but whose flux is extremely small.
Gamma-rays are the most energetic of all the forms of electro-magnetic
radiation but Gamma-ray astronomy can only be performed from Space.
Because gamma rays are so penetrating, powerful detectors allow us to
"see" through all the interstellar gas and dust, and out to distant
galaxies.
They help us understand the structure and life-cycle of galaxies, and
give us a unique glimpse of mysterious pulsars and distant quasars.
In 1975 ESA's COS-B satellite used a spark chamber to confirm that
pulsars, and a score of other sources including quasar 3C 273, produce
gamma rays at somewhat higher energies.
"Comptel will make the great break-through in this uncharted lower
energy range just as COS-B did 15 years ago" says Dr. Bennett.
"Detection of gamma rays from Supernovae such as SN 1987-A is a
prime goal, but we are hoping to detect other supernova gamma-ray
emissions as well during the 2- 4-year mission."
For further information, please contact:
Beatrice Lacoste Heidi Graf
ESA/Paris ESTEC Noordwijk (NL)
Tel: (33.1) 42.73.71.55 Tel.: (331) 1719.8.3006
Ria Weiland Evelyn Leoffler-Stegen
ESOC Darmstadt (FRG) ESRIN Frascati (I)
TEL: (49) 6151.90.02.66 Tel.: (39 694.18.02.60
For further information contact the above address or
ESA Washington Office
L'Enfant Plaza, S.W., Suite 7800
Washington, D.C. 20024
Tel: (202) 488-4158
FAX: (202) 488-4930
--- Opus-CBCS 1.14
* Origin: NSS BBS - Ad Astra! (412)366-5208 *HST* (1:129/104.0)
--
Bev Freed - via FidoNet node 1:129/104
UUCP: ...!pitt!nss!freed
INTERNET: [email protected]
|
| 675.91 | | DECWIN::FISHER | Pursuing an untamed ornothoid | Fri Apr 05 1991 11:41 | 12 |
| Update, since no one else did it: They reached orbit just fine. MECO on time.
Almost immediately they discovered a problem with one of the RCS jets. I did
not completely hear the call...something that contained the word "manifold".
In any case, Houston told them "no action required".
When I hung up, they had just started "ETO"...I assume this stands for External
Tank Observation. One of the astronauts photographs the ET as it does its
thing. Don't know how long ETO lasts. Presumbably the ET stays near the shuttle
'till OMS II, which would be on the order of 45 minutes.
Burns
|
| 675.92 | STS37 element set | 3149::BIRO | | Fri Apr 05 1991 11:42 | 14 |
| here is the shuttle orbit.
STS 37 37.1 23.8 17.4 (Launch 99-37- A) Set: 0, Obj: 99037
Epoch Year: 1991 Day: 95.650509260 Orbit # 2
Inclination = 28.46780000 R.A.A.N = 238.42610000
Eccentricity = 0.00067450 Arg of Per = 281.28420000
Mean Anomaly = 78.72720000 Mean Motion = 15.37848888
Drag = 0.23000E-03 Frequency = 0.000
S.M.A. = 6830.5655 Anom Period = 93.6373
Apogee Ht = 457.0127 Perigee Ht = 447.7983
|
| 675.93 | STS-37 in Earth orbit | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Fri Apr 05 1991 12:23 | 105 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Subject: Shuttle Atlantis rockets into orbit
Date: 5 Apr 91 14:33:16 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- The shuttle Atlantis's
five-member crew rocketed into orbit Friday on a mission to launch a
$617 million space observatory that will peer into the hellish cores
of exploding suns, brilliant quasars and other cosmic enigmas.
Two of Atlantis's astronauts also plan to take the first U.S.
spacewalk in more than five years on Monday -- an action-packed
payload bay excursion to test space station construction techniques.
With the 35,000-pound Gamma Ray Observatory nestled in its
payload bay, Atlantis blasted off with a ground-shaking roar at 9:23
a.m. EST -- five minutes late because of low clouds -- kicking off the
first of six shuttle flights planned for 1991.
``Two, one, zero and liftoff of the space shuttle Atlantis and
of Gamma Ray Observatory seeking out the explosive forces of the
universe,'' said launch commentator George Diller as Atlantis
majestically climbed through a partly cloudy sky.
With commander Steven Nagel, 44, and co-pilot Kenneth Cameron,
41, at the controls, Atlantis rolled smoothly about its vertical axis
and arced east over the Atlantic Ocean, thrilling thousands of
spectators as the four-man, one-woman crew thundered away on a
five-day mission.
Joining Nagel and Cameron aboard Atlantis for the 39th shuttle
flight were Linda Godwin, 38, an expert operator of the shuttle's
robot arm, and spacewalkers Jerry Ross, 43, and Jay Apt, 41.
Eight and a half minutes later, Atlantis's three main engines
shut down, putting the ship in its planned preliminary orbit. A rocket
firing 42 minutes into the flight was scheduled to circularize the
shuttle's orbit at an altitude of 280 miles.
The primary goals of the 39th shuttle mission are the
deployment of the Gamma Ray Observatory -- GRO -- satellite Sunday and
a spacewalk the day after by Ross and Apt, the first such excursion by
American astronauts since 1985.
If all goes well, Nagel and Cameron will guide Atlantis to a
touchdown Wednesday morning on a concrete runway at Edwards Air Force
Base in the Mojave Desert northeast of Los Angeles.
Atlantis's mission marks the first of three shuttle launches
planned over the next 50 days, a record flurry of flights triggered by
cracks in critical fuel line doors that forced NASA to delay a March
launch by the shuttle Discovery.
While Atlantis had similar cracks, they were deemed too small
to pose a safety threat and the ship was cleared for takeoff as is.
The now- repaired Discovery, already mounted on nearby pad 39-A, is
scheduled for launch April 25 with the shuttle Columbia set to follow
suit in late May.
Nagel and company faced a light first day in orbit. Along with
activating on-board experiments, Godwin planned to use television
cameras on Atlantis's mechanical arm to inspect the 17.5-ton Gamma Ray
Observatory, the heaviest civilian cargo ever carried aloft by a space
shuttle.
The $617 million GRO satellite is the second in a planned
series of four ``great observatories'' built to study the cosmos with
electronic eyes sensitive to low-energy infrared, visible light and
ultraviolet emissions as well as X-rays and even more powerful gamma rays.
With the $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope already in orbit
snapping pictures in visible and ultraviolet light, four massive
instruments aboard GRO will record extremely high-energy gamma rays
from the most violent objects in the universe.
``The objects that emit gamma ray energies tend to be some of
the most exotic members of the celestial zoo: neutron stars, pulsars,
quasars, black holes, places in the universe where we find extremes of
physical conditions, of temperature, density and magnetic fields,''
said program scientist Alan Bunner.
``Gamma rays are the movers and shakers in the universe. These
high energy events drive the things that are going on in the univese.
So as we view the sky in the light of gamma rays, we tend to see
directly the heart of the energy sources.''
With GRO safely in orbit, Apt and Ross plan to don their
spacesuits the day after the satellite launching for a six-hour
excursion in Atlantis's 60-foot cargo bay to test space station
construction techniques.
It will be the first spacewalk by U.S. astronauts since 1985
when, appropriately enough, Ross completed the second of two
``extra-vehicular activities,'' or EVAs, that also were devoted to
space construction methods.
This time around, Ross and Apt plan to set up a monorail in
Atlantis's payload bay to test the ability of electrical, mechanical
and manually powered carts to move astronauts and equipment about in
weightlessness.
The results of the tests likely will play a role in how NASA's
planned space station Freedom is put together in orbit later this
decade, a task that will require numerous spacewalks to complete.
|
| 675.94 | I wanna press kit! | 6297::PHILLIPS | Music of the spheres. | Fri Apr 05 1991 12:38 | 7 |
| Re. .70
Dave,
Can you post the press kit for STS-37 here, by any chance?
--Eric--
|
| 675.95 | | STAR::HUGHES | You knew the job was dangerous when you took it Fred. | Fri Apr 05 1991 15:10 | 7 |
| It was DTO, Detail Test Objective, which is NASA-speke for a to-do
list. I note that they are carrying several hundred pounds of DTOs per
the press kit (billions and billions of post-its?)
This particular DTO was to photograph the ET.
gary
|
| 675.96 | | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Fri Apr 05 1991 19:37 | 9 |
| Re: .94
No - it's considered bad manners to post large, unreadable files. I
feel I sometimes walk the line with my 500 line postings - press kits
are rather large.
What's wrong with copying it?
- dave
|
| 675.97 | MCC Status Reports 1-4; post OMS-2 element set | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Sat Apr 06 1991 14:12 | 153 |
|
Misson Control Center
Status Report #1
Friday, April 5, 1991, 2:30 p.m. CST
After a flawless liftoff at 8:22:45 a.m. CST, Atlantis and its
five person crew are marching through their flight plan with
almost no anomolies.
Crew members are in the process of setting up operations for the
five day flight. Atlantis' remote manipulator system is being
put through its paces to verify its health prior to the deploy of
the Gamma Ray Observatory on flight day three. Astronauts also
have begun their work with the BioServe ITA Materials Dispersion
Apparatus and have completed unstowing all cabin equipment.
Activation of the Ku-band communications system was delayed
briefly when the antenna failed two self tests. Upon further
analysis by flight controllers it was determined that the
receiver signal is slightly more sensitive than normal but that
the system was safe and ready for use.
A reaction control system jet - RIU - failed off about 10 minutes
after launch. The signature of that failed jet is similar to
occurrences on previous missions and is no impact to the flight.
Atlantis is currently in a 244.2 by 242 nautical mile orbit and
all systems are performing very well.
[MCC Status report #2 was not available -dg]
MISSION CONTROL CENTER
Status Report #3
Saturday, April 6, 1991, 3 a.m. CST
The crew of STS-37 was awakened at 2:22 a.m. CST by music played
by the Marching Illini Band from the University of Illinois.
Band members had a special message for one of their alumni STS-37
commander Steve Nagel. An Illinois native, Nagel graduated from
the University of Illinois in 1969.
The planning shift was quiet and flight controllers report ed
they are not working any major problems.
Today the crew will continue secondary payload activities with
Bioserve ITA Materials Dispersion Apparatus (BIMDA) cell syringe
sample and bio module sample experiments. Television downlinked
today will include payload bay television checkout of the Gamma
Ray Observatory at 5:52 a.m., space suit checkout at 10:52 a.m.
and 12:32 p.m., and SHARE II activities at 1:22 p.m. At 5 p.m.
CST, there will be a replay of flight day 2 activities.
The crew cabin will be depressurized from 14.7 to 10.2 psi and
EVA crew members will prebreathe pure oxygen in preparation for a
possible spacewalk if the need should arise during the Gamma Ray
Observatory deploy and to prepare for the planned spacewalk on
flight day 4.
Mission Control Center
Status Report #4
Saturday, April 6, 1991, 8:15 a.m. CST
Today has been a day of preparation and equipment checks aboard
Atlantis as the crew gears up for tomorrow's deploy of the Gamma
Ray Observatory and the ensuing day's spacewalk by mission
specialists Jay Apt and Jerry Ross.
An in-bay checkout of GRO this morning has shown all of the
observatory's communications and power systems in good shape.
Also this morning, Apt and Ross completed about one hour of
breathing pure oxygen through their launch and entry helmets.
Near the end of that exercise, the crew reduced Atlantis' cabin
pressure to 10.2 psi from its normal 14.7 psi. Atlantis' cabin
pressure will remain at 10.2 psi for the next two days. The pure
oxygen pre-breathing and the reduced cabin pressure prepare Apt
and Ross for the 4.3 psi pure oxygen atmosphere of a spacesuit
by purging nitrogen from their bodies to prevent illness
commonly called "the bends."
Apt and Ross will perform a thorough checkout of their spacesuits
later today as well. All spacecraft systems on Atlantis are
functioning superbly, with few difficulties of any type. The
crew has been ahead of schedule in completing their work
throughout the day.
STS-37 Actual Post OMS-2 Vector
STS-37
FLIGHT DAY ONE STATE VECTOR
ON ORBIT OPERATIONS
(Posted 04/05/91 by Bruce Williamson)
The following vector for the flight of STS-37 is provided by NASA
Johnson Space Center Flight Design and Dynamics Division for use
in ground track plotting programs. The vector is valid for a
Mission Elapsed Time (MET) of 0 days, 5 hours, 42 minutes and
9.45 seconds. This vector represents the trajectory of Atlantis
(OV-104) during on orbit operations following the OMS-2
circularization maneuver, as executed.
Lift off Time: 1991:095:14:22:44.952
Lift off Date: 04/05/91
Vector Time (GMT) : 095:20:04:54.40
Vector Time (MET) : 000:05:42:09.45
Orbit Count : 04
Weight : 240858.0 LBS
Drag Coefficient : 2.0
Drag Area: 1208.46 SQ FT
M50 Elements Keplerian Elements
----------------------- --------------------------
X = -20452020.5 FT A = 3690.1774 NM
Y = -4919299.2 FT E = .001190
Z = -7689397.2 FT I (M50) = 28.27139 DEG
Xdot = 2582.968058 FT/S Wp (M50) = 294.67080 DEG
Ydot = -23571.266865 FT/S RAAN (M50) = 236.34516 DEG
Zdot = 8181.541502 FT/S / N (True) = 18.87223 DEG
Anomalies \ M (Mean) = 18.82814 DEG
Ha = 244.434 NM
Hp = 241.230 NM
Mean of 1950 (M50) : Inertial, right-handed Cartesian system whose
Coordinate System origin is the center of the earth. The epoch
is the beginning of the Besselian year 1950.
X axis: Mean vernal equinox of epoch
Z axis: Earth's mean rotational axis of epoch
Y axis: Completes right-hand system
A: Semi-major axis
E: Eccentricity N: True anomaly
I: Inclination M: Mean anomaly
Wp: Argument of perigee Ha: Height of apogee
RAAN: Right ascension of ascending node Hp: Height of perigee
|
| 675.98 | Success | 52331::ANDRADE | The sentinel (.)(.) | Mon Apr 08 1991 04:27 | 4 |
| GRO has been launched after a spacewalk to fix the deployment of one
of its solar panels.
Gil
|
| 675.99 | | STAR::HUGHES | You knew the job was dangerous when you took it Fred. | Mon Apr 08 1991 09:14 | 7 |
| It was the high gain antenna that gave them problem. The solar
arrays deployed without problem. The HGA was of course the component
that snagged in cables on Hubble (same subsystem in both spacecraft).
They are suiting up now (9:05am EDT) for their second EVA.
gary
|
| 675.100 | MCC Status reports #5-8 (Sat.. P.M. - Sun P.M.) | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 08 1991 09:25 | 161 |
| Mission Control Center
Status Report #5
Saturday, April 6, 1991, 3 p.m. CST
The five-person crew on board Atlantis is wrapping up their
second successful day in space, making final preparations for the
upcoming deploy of the Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO) and the first
EVA since 1985.
Currently, crew members are working with the Space Station Heat
Pipe Advanced Radiator Experiment (SHARE). SHARE II, a follow-on
to an experiment on STS-29, is looking at a new manifold design
for a heat radiating device for Space Station Freedom and at
bubble management in the system.
Earlier in the day the checkout of the Gamma Ray Observatory went
smoothly and all activities planned were completed. GRO, the
heaviest satellite ever carried into space on the Shuttle, will
be released from the remote manipulator arm around 12:53 p.m.
CDT, Sunday, April 7, 1991.
Crew members also inspected the spacesuits that will be used
during the spacewalk planned for flight day 4. Mission
specialists Jerry Ross and Jay Apt will spend six hours in the
payload bay testing a series of translation devices that could be
prototypes of devices used on Space Station Freedom.
All systems on Atlantis are performing well. Crew members will
begin their pre-sleep activities and will turn in for the night
at 5:22 p.m. CST.
Mission Control Center
Status Report #6
Sunday, April 7, 1991, 5 a.m. CDT
The crew of STS-37 awakened at 1:22 am CST to the Marine Corp
Hymn performed by the U. S. Naval Academy band. The music was in
honor of STS-37 pilot Ken Cameron who is a lieutenant colonel in
the U.S.M.C.
Shortly after wake-up a supply water dump was conducted on orbit
28.
Crew members powered up the remote manipulator arm also known as
the orbiter's robot arm and in preparation of the deploy of the
Gamma Ray Observatory. GRO, a space-based observatory designed
to study the universe in an invisible, high-energy form of light
known as gamma rays. At just over 35,000 lbs., GRO will be the
heaviest NASA science satellite ever deployed by a Space Shuttle
into low-Earth orbit. GRO is scheduled to be deployed and
released at an MET of 2/3:30 or about 12:53 CDT.
Overnight flight controllers reviewed the operation of the Space
Station Heat Pipe Advanced Radiator Experiment which occurred
yesterday. SHARE II, a follow up to a similar experiment flown
on STS-29, is an investigation into a new manifold design for a
heat radiating device for Space Station Freedom and at bubble
management in the system. During Saturday's operation of the
experiment crew members saw bubbles develop in the plexiglass
pipes. The bubbles eventually dissolved and the crew will
operate the SHARE again today.
MCC STATUS REPORT -- # 7
11:30 a.m. CDT -- April 7, 1991
STS-37 crew members began preparing for a contingency space
walk at 10:57 a.m. CDT to deploy the high gain antenna on the
Gamma Ray Observatory.
The antenna failed to deploy following five attempts to free
the boom from either the latch mechanism or the drive assembly
used to extend the boom into the proper position for gathering
data.
The deploy and release of the GRO was proceeding smoothly
through deployment of the twin solar array assemblies used to
collect energy from the Sun for charging the internal batteries
of the spacecraft.
Three attempts to deploy the antenna boom were unsuccessful as
controllers at the Payload Operations Control Center at the
Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, tried to
command the latch and drive assemblies back and forth.
The fourth and fifth attempts included slightly maneuvering
the orbiter Atlantis and the robot arm holding the GRO in an
attempt to jar the boom and free it for deploy. These attempts
also were unsuccessful.
At that point extravehicular crewmembers Jerry Ross and Jay
Apt were told to prepare for the spacewalk. If required, the two
crewmembers would go out into Atlantis' payload bay at
approximately 12:45 p.m. CDT.
While Ross and Apt continue to prepare for the extravehicular
activity or spacewalk, controllers at Goddard continue to
troubleshoot the boom deploy problem by sending commands to the
spacecraft.
MCC STATUS REPORT -- # 8
2:45 p.m. CDT -- April 7, 1991
STS-37 crew members Jerry Ross and Jay Apt conducted the first
unscheduled spacewalk since April 1985 to free the Gamma Ray
Observatory's high gain antenna which failed to deploy earlier.
The spacewalk began at 1:39 p.m. CDT and the boom was freed
within 17 minutes by Ross. The HGA was then extended normally
using the electric drive mechanism on the boom itself.
The antenna failed to deploy following six attempts to free
the boom from the latch mechanism used to hold it in the proper
position against the GRO main body for launch and pre-deploy
activities.
The deploy and release of the GRO was proceeding smoothly
through deployment of the solar arrays used to collect energy
from the Sun for charging the internal batteries of the
spacecraft.
Three attempts to deploy the antenna boom were unsuccessful as
controllers at the Payload Operations Control Center at the
Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, tried to
command the latch and drive assemblies back and forth.
The fourth and fifth attempts included slightly maneuvering
the orbiter Atlantis and the robot arm holding the GRO in an
attempt to jar the boom and free it for deploy. These attempts
also were unsuccessful.
The sixth and final attempt prior to the EVA involved
maneuvering the high gain antenna dish five to 30 degrees in
hopes of freeing the boom.
At that point Ross and Apt opened the hatch exposing
themselves to the vacuum of space and Atlantis' payload bay.
Once the boom was freed from the latch assembly, Ross and Apt
began setting up equipment that will be used in Monday's
scheduled six-hour spacewalk to demonstrate hardware for possible
use on Space Station Freedom.
The unscheduled EVA was the first since the 16th Shuttle
mission called STS 51D in April 1985, when Jeff Hoffman and David
Griggs attached a "flyswatter" device to the end of the robot arm
in an attempt to activate a switch on the side of the Syncom
satellite. The satellite was later retrieved and repaired on a
subsequent Space Shuttle mission.
|
| 675.101 | GRO will look for the Great Annihilator | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Mon Apr 08 1991 11:14 | 129 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Subject: Satellite to look for 'great annihilator'
Date: 6 Apr 91 21:02:11 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- NASA's Gamma Ray Observatory
satellite may help prove whether a voracious black hole called the
``great annihilator'' is lurking near the heart of Earth's Milky Way
galaxy.
It also will be on the lookout for mysterious flashes that
might be the results of ``starquakes'' on the surfaces of ultra-dense
neutron stars or thermonuclear explosions caused when compressed
surface material suddenly detonates. While neutron stars appear to be
involved, no one knows for sure.
But with the launch of the Gamma Ray Observatory from the
shuttle Atlantis on Sunday, astronomers will be a major step closer to
solving the riddles of ``gamma ray bursters,'' the ``great
annihilator'' and a host of other exotic objects that hold clues about
the structure and evolution of the cosmos.
A recently discovered source of high-energy gamma rays near
the center of the Milky Way galaxy may be a super-massive black hole
sucking in tremendous amounts of gas and dust, if not whole stars. As
the material is accelerated, it heats up and produces torrents of high
energy radiation.
Or so the theory goes.
``We call this strange gamma ray source the 'great
annihilator,''' said GRO program scientist Alan Bunner. ``This is an
unusual object near our galactic center. It's an object that's also
seen at X-ray energies . ... and this source appears to be a source of
gamma ray emission at a particular energy.
``Now this is just the energy of the gamma rays created when
an electron and its anti-particle, the positron, annihilate each other.
What we have happening here is the 100 percent conversion of matter to
energy according to the famous relationship E equals M-C-squared.''
In other words, radiation from the great annihilator is
identical to that produced when negatively charged electrons interact
with positively charged positrons, particles that are identical in
mass but opposite in charge. In such annihilations, the matter of both
particles is converted into energy.
``The scale of this conversion of matter to energy is
enormous, 400 billion tons of anti-matter per second,'' Bunner said of
the great annihilator. ``If the identification is confirmed, the
energy output of this object is ... 50,000 times the luminosity of our
sun. This source may well be a black hole.''
The great annihilator is located near the center of the Milky
Way, about 30,000 light years from Earth. A light year is the distance
light, traveling at 186,000 miles per second, covers in one year.
While the center of the Milky Way cannot be seen in visible
light because of intervening gas and dust, other types of radiation
can be detected from Earth, including the high energy gamma rays that
would be generated by matter falling into a giant black hole.
Neutron stars and black holes are believed to be the collapsed
cores of once-massive stars that exploded after exhausting their
supplies of nuclear fuel.
Without the energy of nuclear fusion to offset the inward pull
of gravity, the cores of such stars suddenly collapse, breaking atoms
apart and crushing positively charged protons and negatively charged
electrons together to create a sphere of uncharged neutrons. Spinning
neutron stars are called pulsars.
But if a star is massive enough, it can collapse indefinitely,
producing a black hole, an object with such titanic gravity that not
even light can escape.
While such bizarre objects are, by definition, invisible, they
should be detectable through indirect methods and Bunner said if the
great annihilator is, in fact, a black hole, the Gamma Ray Observatory
may be able to shed light on the mystery.
``The easiest way to get the extreme energies to produce a
cloud of positrons and electrons is in the near vicinity of a black
hole, where falling particles get accelerated through tremendous
(gravity) to nearly the speed of light before disappearing,'' he said.
``To look for this special radiation, GRO has unprecedented sensitivity.''
The Gamma Ray Observatory is the second in a series of four
Hubble Space Telescope-class astronomical instruments being launched
to study the universe across the electromagnetic spectrum, from
low-energy infrared emissions and visible light to ultrviolet
radiation, X-rays and gamma rays.
From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Subject: Spacewalkers 'walking on top of the world'
Date: 7 Apr 91 21:39:48 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- Two spacewalking astronauts,
``walking on top of the world'' in the shuttle Atlantis's open payload
bay, took time out from their chores Sunday to marvel at the view as
they sailed 280 miles over Hawaii.
Appropriately enough, astronauts Jay Apt and Jerry Ross
spotted the domes of several telescopes at the summit of an extinct
volcano on the island of Hawaii after fixing a jammed radio antenna on
a $617 million astronomy satellite.
``Talk about a view,'' Apt said, taking a short break from a
space station construction experiment.
``Uh huh,'' Ross said. ``Do you feel like you're walking on
top of the world? And look what's coming, Jay. Hawaii.''
``Tally ho!'' Apt said. ``Maui's coming up and I can see Mauna
Kea and Mauna Loa.''
``Look at the island wakes,'' Ross said.
``Beautiful!'' Apt replied.
``Not a bad way to see Hawaii,'' Ross chuckled, clearly
relishing the view.
As Atlantis sailed past, Apt commented on the clarity of the
view, saying ``I can see the individual domes of the observatories.
A lot of nice little pinpoints.''
|
| 675.102 | MCC Status Reports #9, 10 - Monday | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 08 1991 18:19 | 83 |
| MISSION CONTROL CENTER Status Report #9
STS-37 crew members began their sleep period at a MET of 2/10:30
or about 7:50 p.m.CDT concluding an eventful flight day 3 which
included an unscheduled spacewalk.
Crew members deployed the Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO) at MET
2/8:14 or 5:35 p.m. CDT on orbit 37 about four and a half hours
later than originally scheulded. The delay occured when GROs
high-gain antenna failed to deploy after six attempts to free its
boom.
As a trouble-shooting procedure, mission specialists Jerry Ross
and Jay Apt performed a contingency EVA or spacewallk. The
trouble-shooting procedure worked and crew members successfully
freed the antenna and GRO was deployed. While waiting for the
GRO deploy, the EVA astronauts took advantage of their time in
the payload bay and worked on the EVA development flight
experiments EDFE. The objective of the EDFE is to obtain EVA
data that can be applied to Space Station Freedom design and
assembly as well as future space programs.
The EDFE consists of three separate experiments. Sunday Apt and
Ross worked on one of those three, the Crew Loads Instrumented
Pallet (CLIP) experiment.
CLIP consists of three-quarter torque sensor plates, a soft
stowage assembly, and a foot restraint system mounted to a
structural platform. CLIP is installed on the starboard side of
the orbiter. Crew members performed specific tasks while on the
CLIP that represent tasks used during normal EVAs.
Crew members are scheduled for wake up at MET 2/18:30 or 4 a.m.
CDT to begin flight day 4 and additional work on the EDFE in the
payload bay.
The following messages were read to STS-37 crew members after the
successful spacewalk and Gamma Ray Observatory deployment by
CAPCOM Marsha Ivins at MET 2/9:35:
Dr. Lenard Fisk: Thanks for a really great job to GRO Project
team members onboard Atlantis from the GRO Project team on the
ground. It's a great beginning for the second great observatory.
Brewster Shaw on behalf of Administrator Truly: Pass to the crew
and team congratulations for a job well done. He's very proud of
the team's performance.
"Mom" is grinning so hard his ears are locked behind his head.
Thanks for the great work. "Mom" is a nickname for lead flight
director Chuck Shaw--grinning is a Shaw-ism.
EDFE team: We are extremely pleased with today's EDFE testing.
You looked like a couple of chumps (Marsha jokingly read) I mean
champs. Looking forward to more fun tomorrow.
MISSION CONTROL CENTER Status Report #10
Monday, April 8, 1991, 1:30 pm. CDT
Three and 1/2 hours into their second space walk of STS-37,
Mission Specialists Jerry Ross and Jay Apt have completed their
evaluations of the Crew Equipment Translation Aids experiment.
Ross and Apt became the first two Americans in five years to
venture into the shuttle's cargo bay Sunday when the two
performed an emergency spacewalk to free the high gain antenna on
the Gamma Ray Observatory.
Today's extravehicular activity is a nominal operation to
evaluate translation aids, work station loads and manipulator arm
movements.
The CETA experiment consists of three different movement devices
- manual, mechanical and electrical.
|
| 675.103 | Shuttle Status Report - 04/08/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 08 1991 18:30 | 23 |
| From: NASA Spacelink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, APR. 8, 1991 - 1:30 p.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104)
FLIGHT DAY 4
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Solid rocket booster disassembly operations.
WORK COMPLETED:
- Launched April 5 at 9:22 a.m. EST.
- Tow of the solid rocket boosters in to Hangar AF on Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station on Saturday.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Landing on Wednesday, at 10:34 a.m. EDT, Edwards Air Force
Base, Calif.
|
| 675.104 | UPI: Shuttle crew photographs oil well fires | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 08 1991 18:32 | 31 |
| From: [email protected]
Date: 7 Apr 91 20:48:21 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- The shuttle Atlantis's crew photographed
a ``depressing'' cloud of black smoke Sunday billowing up from out-of-
control oil well fires burning in Kuwait after the Persian Gulf War.
As Atlantis sailed over the Middle East during the ship's 27th orbit
Sunday, the astronauts photographed the region from an altitude of 280
miles. The shuttle's orbit carried it southeast across Saudi Arabia,
almost directly over Riyadh.
Equipped with a battery of cameras and lenses, Atlantis's four-man,
one-woman crew snapped a series of pictures that likely will provide a
bird's-eye view of the devastating fires.
``Houston, I'll tell you, that last pass by the Middle East just
before our wakeup call, I think we got some real good pictures of the
fires,'' commander Steven Nagel radioed mission control in Houston.
``OK, that sounds great,'' replied astronaut Cabana. ``I'm sure the
Earth obs (observations) folks will be happy to look at those.''
``Roger that,'' Nagel said. ``It's quite impressive and depressing at
the same time.''
The same day as the shuttle crew was photographing the fires,
American firefighters managed to extinguish their first Kuwaiti oil well
blaze.
Boots Hansen, 64, and the crew of his Houston-based firm Boots &
Coots combined liquid nitrogen with a stream of water to douse the
blazing well. They reignited the well to let it burn overnight, rather
than leak oil, before their return Monday to cap it.
As many as 500 oil wells were set ablaze by Iraqi forces prior to
their withdrawal from Kuwait at the end of the Persian Gulf War. Experts
say it will take more than a year to extinguish all the fires, which are
being blamed for widespread pollution in the Middle East region.
|
| 675.105 | UPI: Spacewalkers 'walking on top of the world' | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 08 1991 18:33 | 25 |
| From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Date: 7 Apr 91 21:39:48 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- Two spacewalking astronauts, ``walking
on top of the world'' in the shuttle Atlantis's open payload bay, took
time out from their chores Sunday to marvel at the view as they sailed
280 miles over Hawaii.
Appropriately enough, astronauts Jay Apt and Jerry Ross spotted the
domes of several telescopes at the summit of an extinct volcano on the
island of Hawaii after fixing a jammed radio antenna on a $617 million
astronomy satellite.
``Talk about a view,'' Apt said, taking a short break from a space
station construction experiment.
``Uh huh,'' Ross said. ``Do you feel like you're walking on top of
the world? And look what's coming, Jay. Hawaii.''
``Tally ho!'' Apt said. ``Maui's coming up and I can see Mauna Kea
and Mauna Loa.''
``Look at the island wakes,'' Ross said.
``Beautiful!'' Apt replied.
``Not a bad way to see Hawaii,'' Ross chuckled, clearly relishing the
view.
As Atlantis sailed past, Apt commented on the clarity of the view,
saying ``I can see the individual domes of the observatories. A lot of
nice little pinpoints.''
|
| 675.106 | UPI: Astronauts prepared for spacewalk | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 08 1991 18:34 | 63 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Date: 7 Apr 91 21:39:50 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- A door closed to American space
explorers for more than five years reopened Sunday when two intrepid
astronauts ventured into the shuttle Atlantis's open payload bay for the
first spacewalk in more than five years.
Astronauts Jerry Ross, 43, and Jay Apt, 41, had planned to conduct a
spacewalk Monday to evaluate space station construction techniques, but
they were ordered outside a day early to fix a stuck antenna on an
astronomy satellite that delayed its release into space.
With uncounted hours of training under their belts, Ross and Apt made
the job look easy, shaking the stuck antenna boom loose in just 19
minutes and pressing on with portions of the already-planned Monday
spacewalk.
It was the 13th spacewalk in eight of 39 shuttle missions conducted
to date, the first since the 1986 Challenger disaster and only the
second ever carried out on an emergency basis. In addition, Ross became
the first shuttle astronaut to walk in space on separate missions.
Appropriately enough, Ross completed the most recent previous
``extravehicular activity,'' or EVA, on Dec. 1, 1985.
NASA officials said the repair job Sunday demonstrated the value of
humans in space and validated NASA's philosophy of preparing for even
low-risk contingencies.
Spacewalks are inherently hazardous given the vacuum and extreme
temperatures of space.
American astronauts performed spacewalks about once every four months
between April 1983 and December 1985. But the Challenger disaster
brought an abrupt halt to the program, and Ross and Apt because the
first Americans to step out into space in 5 1/2 years.
In a pre-launch interview, Ross said he has seen NASA move from a
conservative posture on spacewalks to a more aggressive attitude and
back to caution following Challenger.
Before Atlantis's launch Friday, Ross said he hoped the results of
Atlantis's mission would remind the agency and budget planners of the
value of workmen in space. Given the success of the repair job, his
message likely will carry extra weight.
``At one point when I first came here to the agency, there was what I
perceived to be a reluctance to do many spacewalks,'' said Ross. ``Some
people would be quoted as saying, 'You're one failure away from certain
death.' There was that kind of mentality in some quarters here.
``But I think as we demonstrated earlier in the shuttle program the
types of things that a man outside in a spacesuit can do to rescue
satellites, to repair items, to put them back into useful service ...
has demonstrated the utility of a man outside doing that type of work.''
Apt and Ross spent hours on the ground training for an emergency
spacewalk, floating suspended in a giant water tank at the Johnson Space
Center in Houston to make sure they knew exactly what to do if the Gamma
Ray Observatory ran into problems.
``If something should break on GRO that needs repair, Jerry and I are
all set to go out and fix it if we need to,'' Apt said before launch.
``We can work on the solar arrays, the high gain antenna, the latches
that latch the GRO down to the orbiter and the umbilicals that give it
power and telemetry.
He said engineers at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt,
Md., and with TRW Inc. of Redondo Beach, Calif., had ``designed a
spacecraft that's just terrific from the standpoint of being (spacewalk)
compatible. We're very confident we can go out and do anything that
needs to be done on it.''
After fixing the Gamma Ray Telescope, Ross and Apt pressed on with
part of the work they had planned to do Monday to test space station
construction work.
|
| 675.107 | UPI: Astronauts wrap up second spacewalk | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 08 1991 18:36 | 78 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.bulletin
Date: 8 Apr 91 19:48:31 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- Two shuttle spacewalkers took turns
zooming along a track in Atlantis's cargo bay Monday, pumping a space-
age railroad handcar and testing other people movers that may be used
during assembly of NASA's space station.
Astronauts Jerry Ross and Jay Apt also took turns riding on the end
of Atlantis's 50-foot robot arm to determine the suitability of such
fragile space cranes for moving future station hard-hats from one point
to another and to determine realistic speed limits for such work.
Ross and Apt began their second spacewalk in as many days at 11 a.m.
EDT Monday when they ventured out into Atlantis's payload bay for a six-
hour spacewalk to complete experiments they began Sunday after repairing
a crippled $617 million astronomy satellite during an emergency
spacewalk.
The excursion Sunday was the first spacewalk in more than five years
and only the second carried out on an emergency basis. The excursion
Monday was more relaxed but nonetheless exciting to the crew.
``Holy cow, what a view!'' Ross, making his fourth spacewalk,
exclaimed as they got to work.
The goal of the second six-hour ``extra-vehicular activity,'' or EVA,
was to evaluate the performance of manual, electrical and mechanically
powered carts to move astronauts and equipment from one point to
another. Similar devices will be needed during construction of NASA's
planned space station Freedom.
With commander Steven Nagel, co-pilot Kenneth Cameron and robot arm
operator Linda Godwin looking on from Atlantis's flight deck, Ross and
Apt quickly got to work, setting up a 48-foot monorail track along the
left side of Atlantis's cargo bay.
They then attached a manually powered footstool-like dolly to the
track and took turns pulling themselves up and down the payload bay,
hitting top speeds of about 4 mph as they appeared to glide effortlessly
along. Then they took turns pulling each other like cargo.
``Boy, this thing glides slick, it really does,'' Apt said as he
towed Ross down the track. ``This is the way to travel around the world.
Virtually no effort's required here. You could move hundreds and
hundreds of feet this way without getting tired.''
The review of the mechanically powered cart, pumped like a railroad
handcar, was not so favorable.
``You can certainly work with a cart like this,'' Apt reported. ``I
don't feel there's any particular gain ... over the manual cart,
however. The coasting is slightly inferior.''
Ross and Apt then turned their attention to the operation of a third
cart powered by an astronaut-cranked 24-volt generator. While it
required ``a fair amount of force'' to get it moving,`` Apt reported,
''the ... motion is very good and the drive feels fairly solid.``
When all was said and done, the astronauts told ground controllers
they both preferred the operation of the simpler, manually powered cart.
``Manual is by far the best,'' Ross said as they packed up the carts.
Despite an action-packed schedule, the astronauts frequently paused
to marvel at the sight of the blue Earth racing by below from their
vantage point 280 miles up.
``That's Cuba, isn't it? There's Florida, the whole Keys. Holy cow,
what a view! I can see the cape,'' Ross said, referring to Cape
Canaveral on Florida's east coast. ``Look at the beautiful colors!''
Later, while Apt was attaching one of the carts to the track, Ross
floated up to Atlantis's rear crew cabin windows and peered inside.
``They're eating!'' he exclaimed to Apt in mock surprise. ``They're
eating!''
``If we knew you were going to peek in, we would have spruced up in
here,'' Cameron quipped.
Ross and Apt pulled off the first U.S. spacewalk in more than five
years Sunday when they floated out into Atlantis's open payload bay in
an emergency bid to free a stuck antenna boom that derailed the launch
of the giant Gamma Ray Observatory satellite.
Not knowing what to expect, Ross reached over and shook the boom,
which immediately swung free to the delight of mission controllers in
Houston and engineers at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt,
Md., where the satellite is operated by remote control.
He and Apt then manually cranked the boom into position using a
special tool to complete the repair job, clearing the way for Godwin to
release the massive 17 1/2-ton observatory into space to accomplish the
primary goal of the 39th shuttle mission.
If all goes well, Nagel and Cameron will guide Atlantis to a landing
Wednesday morning at 7:35 a.m. PDT at Edwards Air Force Base in
California's Mojave Desert.
|
| 675.108 | UPI: Shuttle flight plan (for Tuesday and Wednesday) | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 08 1991 18:38 | 64 |
| From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military,clari.news.top
Date: 8 Apr 91 16:36:05 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- Here is a timeline of events planned for
Tuesday and Wednesday, the final two days of the shuttle Atlantis's
five-day mission (all times in EDT and subject to change):
Tuesday, April 9:
01:38 a.m.: Commander Steven Nagel, 44, co-pilot Kenneth Cameron, 41,
Linda Godwin, 38, Jerry Ross, 43, and Jay Apt, 41, end a six-hour 15-
minute sleep period during their 57th orbit.
03:38 a.m.: Nagel performs a rocket firing to close to within 8 miles
of the Gamma Ray Observatory, a massive 36,000-pound astronomical
instrument deployed by the astronauts two days earlier. The rendezvous
was scheduled as part of a navigation test.
04:38 a.m.: Atlantis' crew cabin is repressurized to 14.7 pounds per
square inch after a spacewalk by Ross and Apt the day before.
05:33 a.m.: Nagel and Cameron conduct a test of Atlantis' flight
control systems to make sure the shuttle will be ready for re-entry and
landing the next day. More experiments are conducted with a prototype
space station ``heat pipe,'' a device used to regulate temperature in
weightlessness.
06:58 a.m.: Nagel and Cameron fire Atlantis' reaction control system
jets in a routine test to make sure the shuttle is ready for re-entry.
07:53 a.m.: Ross and Apt recharge the batteries in their spacesuits
in case they are needed again for an emergency spacewalk.
08:19 a.m.: Nagel and Cameron conduct a series of rendezvous test
maneuvers, using the Gamma Ray Observatory as a target from a distance
of 8 miles.
10:08 a.m. -- The astronauts take an hour off for lunch.
12:28 p.m.: The astronauts begin packing up their gear for re-entry.
03:13 p.m.: Nagel fires Atlantis's reaction control system jets to
break away from GRO for the final time.
03:38 p.m.: The Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment -- SAREX -- is
deactivated and stowed.
06:23 p.m.: The astronauts begin an eight-hour sleep period.
07:00 p.m.: NASA releases a video replay of the day's highlights in
space.
Wednesday, April 10:
02:23 a.m.: Commander Steven Nagel, 44, co-pilot Kenneth Cameron, 41,
Linda Godwin, 38, Jerry Ross, 43, and Jay Apt, 41, end an eight-hour
sleep period during the shuttle's 73rd orbit.
05:27 a.m.: The astronauts begin preparing for re-entry.
06:10 a.m.: Mission controllers give Atlantis's crew permission to
close the shuttle's payload bay doors.
06:44 a.m.: Atlantis's 60-foot-long payload bay doors are closed.
07:12 a.m.: Nagel and Cameron maneuver Atlantis into the proper
position for a rocket firing that will drop the ship out of orbit.
08:00 a.m.: The astronauts don bulky, bright orange spacesuits for
the glide back to Earth.
08:47 a.m.: Cameron prepares Atlantis's hydraulic power units for
start. Three such devices provide the hydraulic power needed to move the
shuttle wing flaps and rudder, and to lower the ship's landing gear.
09:04 a.m.: Flight director Wayne Hale in mission control gives Nagel
formal permission to fire Atlantis's twin orbital maneuvering system
rockets to begin re-entry.
09:27 a.m.: Flying upside down and backwards over the Indian Ocean,
Nagel and Cameron fire Atlantis's twin orbital maneuvering system
rockets to slow the shuttle by 397 feet per second, just enough to drop
the ship out of orbit for a California landing.
10:35 a.m.: Atlantis glides to a touchdown on a concrete runway at
Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., to close out the 39th shuttle mission.
|
| 675.109 | STS-37 STATUS REPORT #11, 5:30 p.m. CDT, April 8, 1991 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Apr 09 1991 09:12 | 38 |
| STS-37 STATUS REPORT #11
5:30 p.m. CDT, April 8, 1991
After spending more than six hours in the vacuum of space,
Astronauts Jerry Ross and Jay Apt, along with their crewmates,
are preparing to end their fourth day in space.
Ross and Apt logged 6 hours, 11 minutes in their space suits
today. Starting depressurization of the airlock at 9:43 a.m. CDT,
Ross and Apt worked on mobility and loads tasks until 3:54 p.m.
CDT, when they began repressurzing the airlock. With the 4 hour,
38 minute unscheduled space walk Sunday to assist in the
deployment of the Gamma Ray Observatory high gain antenna, Ross
and Apt have logged 10 hours, 49 minutes EVA time during STS-37.
While in the cargo bay, Ross and Apt evaluated three mobility
devices that could be prototypes for such instruments on Space
Station Freedom. All three -- manual, mechanical and electrical
cars -- worked as planned but Ross and Apt said they preferred
the manual cart. Apt also completed exercises in the Crew Loads
Instrumentation Pallet and a stiffness test on the remote
manipulator system arm, while Ross completed an arm acceleration
and limp mode test. Several tasks scheduled for today's EVA were
completed during Sunday's space walk, but a manipulator arm rates
test objective was deleted due to slower than expected arm
movements earlier in the activities.
Flight controllers said good night to the crew at 5:15 p.m. CDT.
The astronauts will awaken at 2:22 a.m. for a day filled with
secondary payload activities and a rendezvous test. In that test,
Atlantis will come within 8 nautical miles of the Gamma Ray
Observatory to check the orbiter star tracker's capability for
rendezvous and station keeping.
All systems on Atlantis continue to perform very well.
=
|
| 675.110 | | DECWIN::FISHER | Pursuing an untamed ornothoid | Tue Apr 09 1991 12:36 | 8 |
| Did anyone notice the pix of the astronauts coming out into the cargo bay
the first time? I assume they were taken by an arm-mounted camera. In any
case, it was interesting to see the "door" open. All you could see was a
fairly flimsey thing...I assume it must have been cargo-bay insulation or
padding opening. That implies that the "real" door must open inward. How
big is the airlock anyway?
Burns
|
| 675.111 | ATLANTIS spots MIR | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Tue Apr 09 1991 13:49 | 104 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.bulletin
Subject: Astronauts wind up space chores
Date: 9 Apr 91 14:40:23 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- The Atlantis astronauts tested the
ship's re-entry systems Tuesday, played chase with the satellite they
launched Sunday and spotted the Soviet Mir space station during their
last full day in space.
Winding up a highly successful voyage, shuttle skipper Steven Nagel
and co-pilot Kenneth Cameron planned to maneuver Atlantis to within 8
miles of the Gamma Ray Observatory satellite the astronauts repaired and
launched Sunday to test a new rendezvous technique that could be used if
other systems fail.
``Just before it got dark, the GRO looked very large and bright,''
Nagel radioed as the shuttle closed in. Television views from Atlantis
showed the satellite as a brilliant ``star'' against the black backdrop
of space.
Earlier, the shuttle pilots fired up Atlantis's hydraulic power
system, which has been dormant since launch, and test fired small
steering jets to make sure the spaceship will be ready for re-entry and
landing Wednesday.
The other crew members -- Linda Godwin and spacewalkers Jerry
Ross and Jay Apt -- spent the day wrapping up on-board experiments,
packing up for the glide back to Earth and enjoying the view from 280
miles up.
If all goes well, Nagel and Cameron will guide Atlantis to a
touchdown at 7:35 a.m. PDT Wednesday on a concrete runway at Edwards Air
Force Base, Calif., to close out the first of six shuttle missions
planned for 1991.
Early Tuesday, Atlantis and Mir passed within 130 miles of
each other -- just around the corner by orbital standards -- while
over western Australia with the Soviet spacecraft showing up below the
bowl of the Big Dipper as viewed from the space shuttle.
``Tally ho, Houston!'' Apt said when he visually spotted the
Soviet space station.
There was no immediate word during that flyby or subsequent
encounters on whether the astronauts, using amateur radio gear, were
able to contact cosmonauts Viktor Afanasyev and Musa Manarov, who were
working through their 128th day in space aboard the Mir complex.
As the 39th shuttle flight winds down, NASA officials say Nagel and
company have chalked up a near perfect mission, a flight highlighted by
a successful emergency spacewalk Sunday to free a jammed antenna that
cleared the way for the Gamma Ray Observatory's launch.
It was the first spacewalk by American astronauts in more than
five years and only the second unscheduled, emergency excursion in the
history of the shuttle program.
Ross and Apt then put in a second, already planned spacewalk
Monday to evaluate the performance of manual, electrical and
mechanically powered carts to move astronauts and equipment from one
point to another.
Similar devices will be needed during construction of the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration's planned space station Freedom.
After setting up a 48-foot monorail track along the left side of
Atlantis's cargo bay, the spacewalkers attached a manually powered
footstool-like dolly and took turns pulling themselves up and down the
payload bay, hitting top speeds of about 4 mph as they appeared to glide
effortlessly along. Then they took turns pulling each other like cargo.
``Boy, this thing glides slick, it really does,'' Apt said as he
towed Ross down the track. ``This is the way to travel around the world.
Virtually no effort's required here. You could move hundreds and
hundreds of feet this way without getting tired.''
The review of the mechanically powered cart, pumped like a railroad
handcar, was not so favorable.
Ross and Apt then turned their attention to the operation of a
third cart powered by an astronaut-cranked 24-volt generator. While it
required ``a fair amount of force'' to get it moving,`` Apt reported,
''the ... motion is very good and the drive feels fairly solid.``
When all was said and done, the astronauts told ground controllers
they both preferred the operation of the simpler, manually powered cart.
``Manual is by far the best,'' Ross said as they packed up the carts.
Later, while Apt was attaching one of the carts to the track, Ross
floated up to Atlantis's rear crew cabin windows and peered inside.
``They're eating!'' he exclaimed to Apt in mock surprise.
``They're eating!''
``If we knew you were going to peek in, we would have spruced
up in here,'' Cameron quipped.
Ross and Apt pulled off the first U.S. spacewalk in more than
five years Sunday when they floated out into Atlantis's open payload
bay in an emergency bid to free a stuck antenna boom that derailed the
launch of the giant Gamma Ray Observatory satellite.
|
| 675.112 | Possible 1st ham radio contact | 3149::BIRO | | Tue Apr 09 1991 16:49 | 6 |
| Ok if they spoted MIR and they both had 2 meter radio and
possible packet did they make a radio communicaiton
between the two???
john
|
| 675.113 | Mission Control Center Status Report #12, April 9, 5:00 a.m. CDT | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Apr 09 1991 17:03 | 53 |
|
Mission Control Center Status Report #12
Tuesday, April 9, 5:00 a.m. CDT
STS-37 crew members awakened at 2:22 a.m. CDT to the sounds of
"10,000 Men of Harvard Want Victory Today" by the Harvard Glee
Club in honor of Jay Apt, a Harvard graduate.
Planning flight controllers sent a entry messages and minor
flight plan modifications to Atlantis' crew. A reaction control
system hot fire is scheduled this morning and the cabin will be
repressed from a 10.2 psi level to 14.7 psi.
Crew members will be busy with secondary payloads today. They
have been asked to consume one extra container of fluid during
each meal today as part of Detailed Second Objective 479 and in
preparation for a Wednesday morning landing. DSO 479 is used as
a countermeasure for the effects weightlessness can have on the
human body. In the absence of gravity there is a headward fluid
shift which triggers a fluid loss response. This DSO is an
attempt to help crew members' adjust to gravity upon landing.
Among scheduled activities, Atlantis will perform a rendezvous
test with the Gamma Ray Observatory. In that test, Atlantis will
come within 8 n.m. of the GRO to check orbiter star tracker
capability for rendezvous and station keeping operations. This
maneuver is designed to verify a procedure for short range
station keeping using only the star tracker for navigation. This
maneuver will involve a series of burns. Crew members also will
attempt to talk to family members today using the Shuttle Amateur
Radio Experiment (SAREX).
A troubleshooting procedure for the Space Station Heat Pipe
Advanced Radiator Experiment (SHARE II) was sent to the crew in
their morning mail. During Saturday's operation of the
experiment, crew members saw bubbles develop in the experiment's
plexiglass tubes but they later stopped occurring. SHARE II, a
follow up to a similar experiment conducted during STS-29,
investigates a new manifold design for a heat radiating device
for Space Station Freedom.
This afternoon crew members will stow equipment and store the KU
communications antenna in preparation of a 9:34 a.m. CST
Wednesday landing at Edwards Air Force Base. The de-orbit burn
is scheduled to occur on orbit 77 with landing on orbit 78.
Weather at Edwards looks good for landing with light
northeasterly winds and a scattered cloud deck at 25,000 ft.
Ground controllers reported the Gamma Ray Observatory checkout is
ahead of schedule on its command plan timeline. Atlantis closed
in on GRO at a rate of 4 1/2 n.m. per orbit overnight and
currently is about 52 n.m. from the observatory.
|
| 675.114 | UPI: Astronauts wind up successful mission | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Tue Apr 09 1991 18:36 | 82 |
| From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.bulletin
Date: 9 Apr 91 18:17:47 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- The Atlantis astronauts played chase
with a satellite Tuesday, answered questions from school kids and heard
greetings from the Soviet Mir space station before packing up for
landing Wednesday in California.
With good weather expected, shuttle commander Steven Nagel and co-
pilot Kenneth Cameron planned to guide the 100-ton spaceplane to
touchdown at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., at 7:33 a.m. PDT Wednesday
to wrap up one of the most successful shuttle flights in the 10-year
history of the program.
Nagel, 44, Cameron, 41, astronaut Linda Godwin, 38, and spacewalkers
Jerry Ross, 43, and Jay Apt, 41, spent their final full day in space
wrapping up on-board experiments, stowing loose gear and enjoying the
view from their vantage point 280 miles up.
``Our mission is coming to a close tomorrow, we've had a very
successful one, and we're looking forward to reviewing all of our data
and taking a look at all we've been able to accomplish,'' Cameron told
school kids in Ohio during an amateur radio exchange.
In a different sort of encounter, Atlantis passed just 62 miles over
the Soviet Mir space station Tuesday where cosmonauts Viktor Afanasyev
and Musa Manarov were working through their 128th day in orbit since
launch Dec. 2 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Soviet Central Asia.
During repeated encounters, the Atlantis astronauts, all licensed
``hams,'' attempted to contact their Russian colleagues using the
shuttle's amateur radio gear.
``We did see the Mir space station today, the crew did get a visual
observation of it, and attempted to contact them,'' said re-entry flight
director Wayne Hale. ``The crew heard the Mir space station but it's not
clear that they heard us.''
The primary goal of the 39th shuttle flight, the first of six planned
for 1991, was accomplished Sunday when Ross and Apt carried out an
emergency spacewalk in Atlantis's open payload bay to free a jammed 16
1/2-foot antenna boom on the 17 1/2-ton Gamma Ray Observatory satellite.
Godwin, operating Atlantis's 50-foot robot arm from inside the
shuttle's crew cabin, then was able to launch the $617 million astronomy
satellite on a mission to study the most violent stars and galaxies in
the universe.
The unplanned excursion into Atlantis's cargo hold was the first U.S.
spacewalk in more than five years and only the second ever carried out
on an emergency basis.
A second, already planned spacewalk Monday to test space station
construction equipment went equally well and NASA officials were elated
with the results of the mission.
``We've demonstrated, I think, the value of man in space and working
with complex scientific instruments, not only the Gamma Ray Observatory
and the spacewalks that were done to help it out, but also with the in-
cabin ... experiments,'' Hale said.
``We really believe ... that we send people into space for a reason,
not just for a ride, and this flight has been an excellent demonsration
of that.''
In one of the final experiments of the mission, Nagel and Cameron
guided Atlantis through an intricate orbital ballet Tuesday, bringing
the ship within a scant 9 miles of the Gamma Ray Observatory using data
from the shuttle's ``star trackers,'' devices normally used for routine
navigation purposes.
``Just before it got dark, the GRO looked very large and bright,''
Nagel radioed as the shuttle closed in. Television views from Atlantis
showed the satellite as a brilliant ``star'' against the velvet black
backdrop of space.
Rendezvous procedures usually utilize data from a powerful radar
system. After the successful test Tuesday, however, future shuttle crews
will have a backup system at their disposal in case of a radar failure
that might otherwise derail a critical rendezvous.
Finally, the Atlantis shuttle pilots fired up Atlantis's hydraulic
power system, which has been dormant since launch, and test fired small
steering jets to make sure the spaceship will be ready for re-entry and
landing Wednesday.
Despite its delayed launch, engineers at the Goddard Space Flight
Center in Greenbelt, Md., said the Gamma Ray Observatory was in
excellent condition and sailing through its initial orbital checkout
with no major problems.
With the $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope already in orbit
studying the universe in visible and ultraviolet light, the GRO
satellite will map deep space sources of gamma rays to search for black
holes, exploding stars, mysterious quasars and other especially violent
bodies.
Future satellites in the ``great observatory'' series will study
infrared and X-ray emissions, giving astronomers the most complete view
of the universe in history.
|
| 675.115 | Mission Control Center Status Report #13, 5:30 p.m., April 9, 1991 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 10 1991 09:26 | 37 |
| Mission Control Center Status Report #13
5:30 p.m., April 9, 1991
With cabin equipment and middeck experiments stowed, the five-
person crew of Atlantis is preparing for its return to Earth
Wednesday morning.
Today's activities consisted of finishing experiments and
performing a test with the orbiter's star trackers. Typically,
rendezvous and station-keeping activities are performed with the
orbiter's rendezvous radar through the Ku-band communications
system. However, there are times when the Ku system is needed for
other operations. Detailed Test Objective 822 used Atlantis' star
trackers to maneuver into position 8 nautical miles behind the
Gamma Ray Observatory, a function usually done with the radar
system. Early indications are that the technique was extremely
successful. Atlantis is currently opening its distance from GRO
in preparation for tomorrow's landing operations.
Overall, the eighth flight of Atlantis has been very smooth with
no major orbiter system problems. Payload operation also have
been very successful. Today, crew members complete their work
with the Bioserve ITA Material Dispersion Apparatus, the
Radiation Monitoring Experiment and the Shuttle Amateur Radio
Experiment. Crew members reported limited success in contacting
the Soviet Mir space station. Atlantis astronauts could hear the
Mir cosmonauts but could not confirm that Mir received their
transmissions. The Atlantis crew also had a successful test of
Share II's bubble management test article.
Atlantis is scheduled to perform a 3-minute, 46 second Orbital
Maneuvering System engine deorbit burn about 8:23 a.m. CDT on
orbit 77, changing the orbiter's velocity by 445 feet per second.
The crew will land at Edwards Air Force Base at 9:33 a.m. CDT.
|
| 675.116 | Question for you ham radio folks... | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 10 1991 09:28 | 11 |
| Question from the home front:
If MIR and the Shuttle can communicate with the ground relatively easily
(~200 miles), why is it so hard to chat 60-100 miles across open space?
Is antenna pointing hard (e.g., do they both need an open window facing
each other)?
Curious,
- dave
|
| 675.117 | KSC Shuttle Status - 04/09/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 10 1991 09:31 | 20 |
| From: NASA Spacelink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - TUESDAY, APR. 9, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104)
FLIGHT DAY 5
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Solid rocket booster disassembly operations. Hydrolasing opera-
tions are underway to remove the thermal protection foam and cork
from the boosters.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Landing on Wednesday, at 10:34 a.m. EDT, Edwards Air Force
Base, Calif.
|
| 675.118 | Latest News | 15372::LEPAGE | Welcome to the Machine | Wed Apr 10 1991 10:18 | 7 |
| The return of the Atlantis has been delayed one orbit due to high
winds at Edwards AFB. Controllers are not too optimistic about the
winds dying down by then and the Shuttle may end up staying in orbit
for another day. Stay tuned...
Drew
|
| 675.119 | Not a Technical problem | 3149::BIRO | | Wed Apr 10 1991 11:59 | 12 |
| re: -2
It is very easy for the communicaiton between the 60-100
or any line of sight but it is one of politics... and
workd skedules. If either crew was busy doing a 'critical'
job, plus there is a lot of cordination between the US
and the Soviet plus the need to communicat that to
the crews.. If it does happen it will be a first time
an American Crew has comminicated directly with a Soviet
crew, ( nope before it was satellite ground ground back to satellite)
cheers john
|
| 675.120 | | STAR::HUGHES | You knew the job was dangerous when you took it Fred. | Wed Apr 10 1991 12:41 | 6 |
| re .118
It has been delayed one day. There is a possibility of a landing at
either WSPG or KSC.
gary
|
| 675.121 | ???? | 19576::FISHER | Pursuing an untamed ornothoid | Wed Apr 10 1991 12:44 | 9 |
| It should have landed by now if there were only one orbit delay. Does anyone
know anything?
Also, the clarinet articles imply that they started the APUs yesterday. That's
not true is it? What else could they mean when they said "Finally, the Atlantis
shuttle pilots fired up Atlantis's hydraulic power system, which has been
dormant since launch"?
Burns
|
| 675.122 | one possible explanation | 2607::STONECYPHER | Easter: a time of new life! | Wed Apr 10 1991 12:44 | 21 |
| RE: question about SAREX ham radio communication on 2 meters
I may be wrong with some of my assumptions, but here goes.
They could have been off a bit in their calculations of the doppler shift
between the two spacecraft. Doppler effect will affect the receive
frequency and the transmit frequency. Both MIR and Shuttle hams are running
split -- transmitting on a different frequency from receive. Could be the
shuttle receiver was tuned with a wide band-pass filter, which accomodated
the error in the doppler shift, while perhaps the MIR receiver used a more
narrow band-pass filter. For example, assume the doppler shift at one instant
of time is +6 KHz, but the shuttle crew is using +4.9 KHz, with a 2.4KHz band-
pass filter. Then, they would transmit on the MIR's receive frequency, minus
4.9KHz, and receive on the MIR's transmit frequency, plus 4.9KHz. The MIR
signal would be received by the shuttle crew, since their band-pass filter will
pass signals plus or minus 1.2 KHz, and the error is 1.1 KHz. However, if the
MIR is using a more narrow band-pass filter, you get the idea.
Also, I presume the crews either need a very wide band-pass capability, or the
ability to automatically/dynamically update the frequency shift, since their
angle of attack will most likely not be 180�.
|
| 675.123 | Mission Control Center Status Report #14, April 10, 1991, 12:30 p.m. CDT
| PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 10 1991 15:56 | 49 |
| Mission Control Center Status Report #14
Wednesday, April 10, 1991, 12:30 p.m. CDT
The crew of Atlantis will remain in space today after
unacceptably high winds prevented a landing at Edwards Air Force
Base this morning. The planned landing was waived about an hour
and fifteen minutes prior to today's final opportunity for
deorbiting to Edwards. Atlantis is functioning well and has
enough supplies for the mission to be easily extended through
Saturday, if it were necessary.
Flight controllers currently plan to awaken the crew at 11:30 CDT
tonight to begin preparations for a possible landing tomorrow
morning. Current weather forecasts predict all three of the
Space Shuttle's United State's landing sites -- Edwards Air Force
Base, California; Kennedy Space Center, Florida; and White Sands
Space Harbor, New Mexico -- will be unacceptable tomorrow,
however, improvement in those forecasts is possible.
The current plan is for the flight control team to look at the
weather early tomorrow morning and make a decision to attempt a
landing at either Kennedy or Edwards. Edwards is the primary
landing site for shuttle mission STS-37 and will be chosen if the
weather there is acceptable. If Edward's weather is
unacceptable, shows no signs of improving through tomorrow's
opportunities, and Kennedy's weather is acceptable, flight
controllers may choose to attempt a landing in Florida. White
Sands Space Harbor is not expected to be an option tomorrow
because it is third in preference as a landing site and, in
addition, weather is forecast to be unacceptable in New Mexico.
The earliest flight controllers may make a decision to land in
Florida would be by about 4:10 a.m. CDT tomorrow. The deorbit
burn ignition times and landing times for tomorrow's shuttle
landing opportunities, all stated in central time, include:
ignition at 6:20 a.m. for a Florida touchdown at 7:25 a.m.;
ignition at 7:50 a.m. for an Edward's touchdown at 8:56 a.m.;
ignition at 7:59 a.m. for a Florida touchdown at 9:05 a.m.;
ignition at 9:29 a.m. for an Edward's toucdown at 10:35 a.m.; and
an ignition at 9:38 a.m. for a Florida touchdown at 10:44 a.m.
All of these are possible landing times and places for Thursday.
Atlantis' crew will spend the rest of today working with the
Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment, Space Station Heat Pipe
Advanced Radiator Element experiment, and taking supplemental
still photography and video of scientifically interesting Earth
features. They will go to sleep at 4:30 p.m. CDT.
|
| 675.124 | Airlock | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Apr 11 1991 01:06 | 12 |
| Re: .110
I don't have the exact dimensions, but I'll take a guess (based on
pictures). It's a cylinder about 5-7 feet in diameter and about
10 feet high. There's not a lot in it (lights, O2 breathers, some
controls/displays, and handholds.
I assume the door opens in as well. It seems to be safer and easier
to have an inward opening door if you don't need it for emergency
egress.
- dave
|
| 675.125 | Shuttle Status for 04/10/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Apr 11 1991 09:34 | 22 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, APR. 10, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - FLIGHT DAY 6
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Solid rocket booster disassembly operations. Hydrolasing opera-
tions to remove the thermal protection foam and cork from the
boosters.
- KSC recovery team in position at Edwards.
WORK SCHEDULED:
- Landing scheduled today pending favorable weather, on the
second opportunity, at 12:12 p.m. EDT, Edwards Air Force Base,
Calif.
|
| 675.126 | Coming in... | 15372::LEPAGE | Welcome to the Machine | Thu Apr 11 1991 10:16 | 5 |
| Last I heard (about 9:30 am EDT), the Shuttle has fired its OMS
rockets and is heading for a landing at Edwards AFB around 9:55 EDT.
Drew
|
| 675.127 | | 7672::MOSHER::COOK | Cookamania's running wild! | Thu Apr 11 1991 10:30 | 2 |
|
It landed successfully last I heard.
|
| 675.128 | | STAR::HUGHES | You knew the job was dangerous when you took it Fred. | Thu Apr 11 1991 12:59 | 3 |
| Yup, landed without incident.
gary
|
| 675.129 | Where???? | 58378::R_YURKIW | | Thu Apr 11 1991 13:25 | 3 |
| Where did it land?? KSC or Edwards...
roger
|
| 675.130 | Landed at Edwards | 58457::SKLEIN | Nulli Secundus | Thu Apr 11 1991 16:24 | 0 |
| 675.131 | UPI: Atlantis glides to smooth touchdown | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Apr 11 1991 18:35 | 77 |
| From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.bulletin
Date: 11 Apr 91 19:04:24 GMT
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (UPI) -- The Atlantis astronauts glided
home to a day-late landing Thursday, leaving a revolutionary astronomy
satellite behind in space and ringing out the shuttle program's first
decade with an ``imminently successful'' flight.
Dropping out of a Mojave Desert dawn, Atlantis skipper Steven Nagel
and co-pilot Kenneth Cameron guided the 100-ton orbiter to a flawless
touchdown at 6:55 a.m. PDT to wrap up the 38th mission since the shuttle
Columbia blasted off on the program's maiden voyage 10 years ago Friday.
``Wheels stopped, Houston,'' Nagel called as Atlantis rolled to a
halt on dry lakebed runway 33.
``Copy, wheels stopped Atlantis,'' replied astronaut Brian Duffy from
mission control in Houston. ``Steve, you and your crew did it all and
you made it look easy. Congratulations on a great job.''
Touchdown of the 39th shuttle flight came one day late because of
dangerous crosswinds at Edwards Air Force Base and one day shy of the
10th anniversary of the pioneering April 12, 1981, debut of the world's
first reusable spaceplane.
``It was an imminently successful mission,'' former astronaut Paul
Weitz, deputy director of the Johnson Space Center, said of Atlantis's
flight. ``It's a nice touch to have landed here to remind folks of the
10th anniversary.''
Weitz said the shuttle appeared to be in excellent condition after
its ground-shaking launch Friday and its Thursday re-entry, with only
minimal damage to its heat shield tiles, brakes and other major systems.
After brief physical exams and reunions with family members, Nagel,
44, Cameron, 41, Linda Godwin, 38, and spacewalkers Jerry Ross, 43, and
Jay Apt, 41, boarded a NASA jet and headed for home in Houston.
Re-entry was in doubt until almost the last minute because of
predicted marginal weather at both Edwards and at the Kennedy Space
Center. As it turned out, the forecast was wrong and conditions at both
sites were acceptable as landing time approached.
Despite ideal Florida weather, Atlantis was directed to land at
Edwards primarily because the ship was equipped with new brakes and
engineers wanted to utilize the broad, more forgiving desert runway for
a braking test to gather critical performance data.
Left behind in orbit was the $617 million Gamma Ray Observatory, the
second in a series of four planned ``great observatories'' being
launched by the United States to revolutionize humanity's knowledge
about the birth, evolution and fate of the universe.
The satellite was launched Sunday, after a daring emergency spacewalk
by Ross and Apt to free a jammed 16 1/2-foot antenna boom that failed to
unlatch from the side of the 17 1/2-ton satellite. Without the use of the
antenna, GRO would have been unable to relay its long-awaited data to
the ground.
But Ross was able to free the jammed antenna with a healthy shake and
Godwin, operating Atlantis's robot arm, released the satellite into
space to accomplish the primary goal of the year's first shuttle
mission.
It was the first spacewalk by American astronauts in more than five
years and only the second ever carried out on an emergency basis. The
first occurred in April 1985 when two astronauts aboard the shuttle
Discovery attached homemade tools to the end of the ship's robot arm in
an unsuccessful bid to kick start a faulty satellite.
``We accomplished what we set out to do,'' Weitz said at a news
conference Thursday. ``I think we had the opportunity one more time to
demonstrate the usefulness of manned missions, even in support of our
unmanned programs.''
Ross and Apt followed up their bravura performance Sunday by staging
an already planned spacewalk Monday to test a variety of sled-like carts
that might one day be used to move construction workers and material
from one point to another during assembly of NASA's planned space
station Freedom.
But the major goal of the mission was the launch of the Gamma Ray
Observatory.
Joining the $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope above Earth's
obscuring atmosphere, the GRO satellite is the most advanced spacecraft
ever built to study the extremely high-energy gamma rays emitted by the
most violent objects in the universe.
During its planned two-year mission, the solar-powered GRO's four
massive instruments will search for telltale radiation from black holes,
exploding stars, mysterious quasars and other exotic members of the
celestial zoo to learn more about the nuclear processes responsible for
releasing unimaginable torrents of energy.
|
| 675.132 | Airlock specifics | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Sat Apr 13 1991 12:13 | 11 |
| Re: .110, .124
The airlock has an inside diameter of 63 inches, and it is 83 inches
long (150 cubic feet).
The hatches are 40 inches across and are hinged so that the positive
pressure of the crew cabin keeps them sealed. Therefore the outer
hatch open into the airlock, and the crew access hatch opens inward
to the mid-deck.
- dave
|
| 675.133 | STS-37 LANDING STATEMENT | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Sun Apr 14 1991 16:13 | 20 |
| STS-37 LANDING STATEMENT
4/11/91
Atlantis landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, this
morning at 9:55 am EDT following a nearly perfect flight. The
Gamma Ray Observatory, deployed Sunday, is doing fine and presently
undergoing orbital checkout.
The STS-37 crew awoke this morning at 12:30 am EDT to begin
preparations for today's landing. The choice of a landing site was
predicated on which site, Edwards or Kennedy, had the better weather
the earliest. As it turned out, weather at Dryden was good enough to
support the first of several California landing opportunities.
Atlantis travelled over 2 1/2 million orbital miles during the nearly six
days the STS-37 crew were up. This brings to eight the number of
missions Atlantis has flown since its first flight in October,
1985. Atlantis has deployed several of NASA's highest science priority
payloads -- its previous cargo included the Galileo and Magellan
planetary spacecraft.
|
| 675.134 | KSC Shuttle Status - 04/15/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Mon Apr 15 1991 20:25 | 16 |
| From: NASA Spacelink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, APRIL 15, 1991 - 11 a.m.
STS-37/Gamma Ray Observatory - ATLANTIS (ov-104)
Dryden Flight Research Facility (EAFB), Calif.
Atlantis is in the Mate/Demate Device at DFRF undergoing
preparations for the ferry flight back to KSC. Work to mount the
tail-cone used for ferry flights is in progress. Atlantis is
tentatively scheduled to begin a one-day flight back to KSC on
Tuesday morning. A Ferry Flight Readiness Review meeting will be
held this afternoon to confirm status of ferry flight prepara-
tions and survey projected weather conditions along the route.
|
| 675.135 | Some interpretation needed? | JANUS::BARKER | Jeremy Barker - T&N/CBN Diag. Eng. - Reading, UK | Wed Apr 17 1991 11:48 | 7 |
| The article in .131 uses the phrase ``imminently successful''.
What is this suppoed to mean???
I think it is a spelling error for "eminently successful".
jb
|
| 675.136 | Shuttle Status for 04/16/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 17 1991 14:03 | 19 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - MONDAY, APR. 16, 1991 - 11:30 a.m.
STS-37/GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - DRYDEN
WORK IN PROGRESS:
- Departure of Atlantis and the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft is
planned this morning. A refueling stop will be made at Kelly Air
Force Base, San Antonio, Tex. Weather conditions along the flight
path and the amount of sunlight left in the day will be evaluated
while at Kelly. Officials will determine if the flight will con-
tinue into Florida today or to another stop over site.
|
| 675.137 | Shuttle Status for 04/17/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 17 1991 18:27 | 28 |
| From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - WEDNESDAY, APR. 17, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - AIRBORNE
Atlantis and the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft departed
Columbus Air Force Base, Miss. around 11 a.m. today on the final
leg of the two-day ferry flight. The estimated time of arrival at
KSC is 1:20 p.m. EDT.
Atlantis left Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. yesterday at
1:07 p.m. EDT and made a refueling stop at Kelly Air Force Base,
San Antonio, Tex. Atlantis and the 747 continued east to Columbus
Air Force Base, Miss. where the aircraft and crew remained over-
night.
Once at KSC, Atlantis will be demated from the 747 in the
Mate Demate Device and towed to Orbiter Processing Facility
bay 2.
|
| 675.138 | UPI: Space shuttle diverted to MacDill | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Wed Apr 17 1991 18:49 | 19 |
| From: [email protected]
Date: 17 Apr 91 20:42:57 GMT
TAMPA, Fla. (UPI) -- The space shuttle Atlantis, bolted to the back of
a 747 jumbo jet, landed at MacDill Air Force Base Wednesday after stormy
weather blocked a landing attempt at the Kennedy Space Center.
The $2 billion shuttle and its NASA carrier jet touched down at
MacDill about 1:37 p.m. EDT, acording to Air Force spokesman Mike Paoli.
A NASA spokeswoman said the shuttle was expected to be back on the
ground at the Kennedy Space Center about 8 a.m. EDT Thursday to finally
wrap up the 39th shuttle mission.
Atlantis and its five-member crew blasted off from the Kennedy Space
Center near Cape Canaveral, Fla., on April 5. After launching the $617
million Gamma Ray Observatory satellite and carrying out two spacewalks,
the astronauts glided to a landing April 11 at Edwards Air Force Base,
Calif.
The shuttle left Edwards for its return to Florida on Tuesday about
1:30 p.m. EDT, stopping overnight at Columbus Air Force Base, Miss.,
before continuing on to Florida.
|
| 675.139 | UNH readies GRO | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Thu Apr 18 1991 14:36 | 52 |
| From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.tw.science
Subject: UNH scientists readying gamma ray telescope
Date: 18 Apr 91 16:17:01 GMT
DURHAM, N.H. (UPI) -- University of New Hampshire scientists
and European researchers are activating an orbiting gamma ray
telescope that is expected to provide years of data on invisible space
objects, the head of the project said Thursday.
The telescope was placed in orbit by astronauts aboard the
Space Shuttle Atlantis, which was launched from Cape Canaveral on
April 5.
It was designed and is being operated by scientists from UNH;
the Max Planck Institute in Munich, Germany; the Space Research
Institute of the Netherlands in Leiden, Netherlands, and the European
Space and Techology Center in Noordwijk, Netherlands.
``On Monday we started sending commands to (the telescope),''
said James Ryan, an associate professor and head of the project. ``We
will finish activation on Sunday. Then we have three more weeks of
checking it out. Then we will start doing some science -- finally.''
Ryan said so far all systems are working without a hitch....
sible light. He said even the gamma rays they give off cannot be
accurately observed from Earth because they are blocked by the
atmosphere.
``In our specific energy range it's really the first
comprehensive look we have at the sky,'' Ryan said. ``It's basically
ripe for the picking, all unexplored territory.''
He said stars visible from Earth have a surface temperature of
about 5,000 degrees. The objects that the gamma ray telescope will be
observing have an equivalent temperature of 10 billion degrees.
Ryan said raw data from the telescope will be fed to NASA,
where it will be initially processed. Then the data will undergo
further processing at the Max Planck Institute before being relayed to
the Gamma Ray Observatory at the UNH Institute for the Study of Earth,
Oceans and Space.
He said scientists from all four participants in the project
are working three shifts a day in preparation for activating the
telescope. Once it is functioning, it is expected to operate for at
least two years and possibly up to 10. Even after it is shut down,
scientists will have another five years of work to analyze the data.
The first reports from the telescope are expected in about
five weeks, Ryan said.
|
| 675.140 | KSC Shuttle Status - 04/18/91 | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Thu Apr 18 1991 19:16 | 28 |
| From: NASA Spacelink
Organization: NASA
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - THURSDAY, APR. 18, 1991 - 10 a.m.
STS-37 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - SHUTTLE LANDING FACILITY
Atlantis and the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft arrived at
KSC's Shuttle Landing Facility at 9:37 a.m. today after a short
trip from the overnight stay at McDill Air Force Base, Tampa,
Fla.
Atlantis left Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Tuesday and
made a refueling stop at Kelly Air Force Base, San Antonio, Tex.
Atlantis and the 747 continued east to Columbus Air Force Base,
Miss. where the aircraft and crew stayed Tuesday night. Yester-
day, adverse weather conditions at KSC forced the orbiter to make
an overnight stay in Tampa.
Later this evening, Atlantis will be demated from the 747 in
the Mate Demate Device and towed to Orbiter Processing Facility
bay 2. Power up activities are planned Sunday.
|
| 675.141 | Mission Highlights | PRAGMA::GRIFFIN | Dave Griffin | Sat Apr 27 1991 19:30 | 232 |
|
Mission Highlights STS-37
Space Shuttle Atlantis
April 5-11, 1991
Commander: Steven R. Nagel, Col., USAF
Pilot: Kenneth D. Cameron, Lt. Col., USMC
Mission Specialists:
Linda M. Godwin, Ph.D.
Jerry L. Ross, Lt. Col., USAF
Jay Apt, Ph.D.
Major Mission Accomplishments
% Deployed the Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO) into low-Earth orbit.
The GRO is the heaviest science satellite ever carried by the
Space Shuttle and will provide invaluable data about the most
energetic processes in the universe.
% Conducted an unscheduled spacewalk to free the high-gain
antenna on the GRO when it did not deploy into position.
% Conducted the first scheduled extravehicular activity in more
than five and a half years to test various methods for moving
about the planned Space Station Freedom.
% Conducted tests of elements of the Space Station Heat Pipe
Advanced Radiator Element (SHARE II Middeck) to understand better
the fluid transfer process at work in heat pipes in microgravity
environments. (Sponsored by NASA's Office of Space Flight)
% Processed chemicals with the BioServe ITA Materials Dispersion
Apparatus to characterize the structure of biologic materials.
(Collaborative effort of BioServe Technologies, Instrumentation
Technology Associates, Inc., and researchers at the NASA Ames
Research Center and the Johnson Space Center.)
% Operated the Protein Crystal Growth II experiment to grow
larger, more perfect crystals than can be grown on the ground.
The study of these crystals could lead to improved medicines.
(Sponsored by NASA's Office of Commercial Programs and Office of
Space Science and Applications.)
% Made several hundred contacts with amateur radio operators
around the world and with several schools where students were
able to ask the crew members questions. (Flown for American Radio
Relay League, Amateur Radio Satellite Corporation, NASA's
Educational Affairs Division, and the JSC Amateur Radio Club.)
The Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO), was successfully deployed by the
crew of the Space Shuttle Atlantis on flight day three of the
STS-37 mission. The deployment of the satellite was four and a
half hours later than planned. During pre-deployment operations,
the spacecraft's high-gain antenna boom failed to unfold and
latch into place. Ground controllers at the Goddard Space Flight
Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, repeatedly radioed commands to the
spacecraft to release the antenna boom, but all attempts failed.
Even an attitude maneuver by Atlantis to jar the boom free from
its stuck position failed. If the spacecraft had been launched
into space from an unmanned vehicle, the mission would have been
altered. However, STS-37 crew members Jay Apt and Jerry Ross
were prepared for such a problem and donned their space suits for
an unscheduled extravehicular activity (EVA). Only 17 minutes
after exiting through the airlock hatch, Jerry Ross jiggled the
boom and freed it. He then gently lifted and locked the boom
into its proper position. The spacecraft was released into space
a short time later.
The Gamma Ray Observatory will be studying stellar and
galactic gamma-ray emissions to learn about the most energetic
processes in the universe. GRO is the second of NASA's Great
Observatories. The Hubble Space Telescope, first in the series,
was launched by the Space Shuttle the year before. Two more
Great Observatories are planned --- the Advanced X-ray Facility
and the Space Infrared Telescope Facility.
The unscheduled spacewalk was only one of the highlights
of the STS-37 mission. Planned for the next day in orbit was an
EVA to conduct a series of experiments to evaluate several crew
translation aids for moving crewmembers and equipment about the
planned Space Station Freedom. Taking advantage of the
unscheduled spacewalk the day before, Apt and Ross got a head
start on the activity scheduled for the following day. One test
evaluated various methods of getting around the outside of large
space structures. Using special carts attached to a monorail,
Apt and Ross experimented with manual, mechanical, and electrical
power for moving themselves and equipment from one end of the
payload bay to another. All three methods worked well, but the
crew reported that propelling the cart manually, hand-over-hand,
worked best. Other tests measured forces involved in standard
extravehicular activity tasks, and evaluated the interaction
between an EVA crew member and the remote manipulator system arm.
In this test, Ross and Apt took turns riding the end of the arm
as it was manipulated from the orbiter's cabin by Linda Godwin .
By the completion of the second EVA, Apt and Ross had each logged
a total of 10 hours and 49 minutes spacewalking. Ross, who had
previously spacewalked on the STS-61B mission in 1985, now holds
the Space Shuttle EVA record of 23 hours and 9 minutes.
In material-science experiments on Atlantis' middeck,
STS-37 crew members used bovine insulin to grow protein crystals
in a microgravity environment. On Earth, gravity causes
distortion in the crystal lattice that forms during
crystallization, making it difficult to determine the material's
true structure accurately. In the microgravity environment of
Earth orbit, STS-37 crew members were able to grow larger and
more perfect crystals than can be grown on the ground. These
samples will permit researchers to gain a better understanding of
their crystalline structures. Such information may lead to
improved medicines such as insulin for the treatment of diabetes.
The Protein Crystal Growth II (PCG II) experiment is a
continuation of an earlier experiment flown on the Space Shuttle
and is sponsored by NASA's Office of Commercial Programs and
Office of Space Science and Applications.
In another series of materials-science experiments, crew
members activated an experiment that automatically mixed hundreds
of chemical samples. The BioServe Instrumentation Technology
Associates Material Dispersion Apparatus (BIMDA) is a commercial
device for conducting low-cost biomedical and fluid science
experiments. Experiment sponsors hoped to demonstrate technology
for making microgravity research more affordable to scientists
and small companies. The BIMDA experiment was sponsored through
a collaborative effort by BioServe Technologies, Instrumentation
Technology Associates, Inc., and researchers at the NASA Ames
Research Center and the Johnson Space Center.
In further research supporting the development of Space
Station Freedom, crew members conducted experiments on a
redesigned manifold element for the Space Station Heat Pipe
Advanced Radiator Element. The SHARE II, to be flown on the
coming STS-43 mission, is designed to investigate heat pipe
technology for transferring heat from one location to another.
Heat pipes are extremely efficient heat transfer devices. The
SHARE I experiment, that flew on STS-29 in 1989, was hampered by
the presence of bubbles that formed inside the apparatus.
Designers for the SHARE II Middeck experiment hoped a new
manifold shape would eliminate the problem. Although bubbles did
form at the manifold, they could be dislodged by vigorous tapping
of the apparatus. This experiment was sponsored by NASA's Office
of Space Flight.
In preparation for the STS-37 mission, all five crew
members had qualified for amateur radio licenses. In orbit, each
participated in the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment II (SAREX
II) flown for the American Radio Relay League, the Amateur Radio
Satellite Corporation, NASA's Educational Affairs Division, and
the Johnson Space Center Amateur Radio Club. Hundreds of radio
contacts were made between the crew and ham radio operators
around the world. Several schools across the United States also
participated in the experiment, and students were able to
question STS- 37 crew members directly about their mission. The
first television picture to be received by a spacecraft was
transmitted in a fast-scan mode during this experiment.
Mission Facts
Orbiter: Atlantis
Mission Dates: April 5-11, 1991
Commander: Steven R. Nagel, Col., USAF
Pilot: Kenneth D. Cameron, Lt. Col., USMC
Mission Specialist: Linda M. Godwin, Ph.D.
Mission Specialist: Jerry L. Ross, Lt. Col., USAF
Mission Specialist: Jay Apt, Ph.D.
Mission Duration: 5 days 23 hours 32 minutes
Distance Traveled: 4,020,290 km
Orbital Inclination: 28.45 degrees
Orbits of Earth: 93
Orbital Altitude: 450 km
Payload Weight Up: 16,678 kg
Orbiter Landing Weight: 86,831 kg
Landed: Lakebed runway 33, Edwards Air Force Base, CA
Payloads and Experiments:
GRO - Gamma Ray Observatory
EDFE- EVA Development Flight Experiment
PCG II - Protein Crystal Growth II
RME III - Radiation Monitoring Equipment III
AMOS - Air Force Maui Optical Site Calibration Test
BIMDA - Bioserve Instrumentation Technology
Associates Materials Dispersion Apparatus
SHARE II Middeck - Space Station Heat Pipe Advanced Radiator Element II
Educational Activites:
SAREX II - Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment II
Educational videotaping
Biographies
Commander: Steven R. Nagel (Col., USAF).
Steven Nagel was born in Canton, Illinois, and received a
bachelor of science degree in aeronautical and astronautical
engineering from the University of Illinois. He also earned a
master of science degree in mechanical engineering from
California State University, Fresno. Nagel served as an Air Force
pilot and first flew into space as a mission specialist on the
STS-51 G mission. He also flew as the pilot on the STS-6 A West
German Spacelab D-1 mission.
Pilot: Kenneth D. Cameron (Lt. Col., USMC).
Kenneth Cameron was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned bachelor
and master of science degrees in aeronautics and astronautics
from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Cameron is a
Marine Corps aviator and test pilot. This was his first
spaceflight.
Mission Specialist: Linda Godwin (Ph.D.).
Linda Godwin was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri and received a
bachelor of science in mathematics and physics from Southeast
Missouri State. She also earned a master of science and a
doctorate in physics from the University of Missouri. Godwin
joined NASA in the Payload Operations Division before becoming an
astronaut. This was her first flight into space.
Mission Specialist: Jerry L. Ross (Lt. Col, USAF).
Jerry Ross was born in Crown Point, Indiana, and received a
bachelor of science and master of science degree in mechanical
engineering from Purdue University. Ross previously flew in space
on the STS-61B and STS-27 missions. During the first mission he
made two 6-hour spacewalks.
Mission Specialist: Jay Apt (Ph.D.).
Jay Apt was born in Springfield, Massachusetts but considers
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania his hometown. Apt received a bachelor
of arts degree in physics from Harvard College and a doctorate in
physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Apt began
work for NASA in its Earth and Space Sciences Division at the Jet
Propulsion Laboratory. This was his first space flight.
|
| 675.142 | GRO already detecting gamma rays | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Tue Apr 30 1991 15:36 | 76 |
| Article 1199
From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Subject: Gamma Ray Observatory in good shape
Date: 29 Apr 91 19:10:45 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- A $617 million astronomy satellite
launched from the shuttle Atlantis earlier this month already is beaming
back data about the most violent objects in the universe, officials said
Monday.
Free of any problems like the flawed mirror hobbling the $1.5 billion
Hubble Space Telescope, the Gamma Ray Observatory is scheduled to begin
routine science observations May 16 after a 15-day test and calibration
period that began Sunday.
John Hraster, project manager of the Gamma Ray Observatory, said the
TRW-built spacecraft is sailing through orbital checkout and that no
problems have developed that would hamper astronomical observations.
``The scientists are very elated,'' he said by telephone from the
Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. ``We had a little party
here yesterday. They're very, very positive, the scientists are
definitely very happy about the stuff they're getting so far.''
The ``GRO'' satellite was successfully launched from the shuttle
Atlantis on April 7 after astronauts Jerry Ross and Jay Apt freed a
jammed radio antenna during a daring emergency spacewalk.
Orbiting high above Earth's radiation-absorbing atmosphere, GRO is
expected to gather unprecedented data on quasars, exploding stars,
collapsed neutron stars and other extremely violent objects, including
possible black holes.
With the more famous Hubble telescope already in orbit studying the
universe in visible and ultraviolet light, the gamma ray satellite is
the second in a series of four ``great observatories'' designed to map
the heavens across the electromagnetic spectrum.
Equipped with four instruments weighing up to 2 tons each, GRO is
expected to spend two years mapping high-energy gamma ray sources across
the entire sky with 10 times the sensitivity of any previous such satellite.
With its four instruments up and running, engineers at Goddard began
the 15-day checkout procedure Sunday, aiming GRO at the Crab nebula, the
remnants of an exploded star in the constellation Taurus.
One of GRO's four instruments was built to monitor the entire
sky for mysterious, invisible bursts of gamma rays known to pop off at
random across the sky like cosmic flashbulbs. To the delight of scientists
at Goddard, three such bursts already have been detected by GRO.
Such bursts are detected about 100 times a year, occurring at random
across the sky. There is no way to predict their occurrence or location
in the sky.
The bursts appear to be associated with neutron stars, formed in
supernova explosions when gravitational collapse crushes atomic
particles together with such force that only uncharged neutrons survive
in an ultra-dense sphere as small as 10 miles to 12 miles across.
Spinning neutron stars are called pulsars.
Gamma ray bursts might be the result of ``starquakes'' on the
surfaces of neutron stars, thermonuclear explosions caused when
compressed surface material suddenly detonates or the result of
cataclysmic stellar collisions.
Data from the Gamma Ray Observatory is expected to help scientists
solve that mystery and many more during its two year mission.
``The instruments are all working well, they're gathering data,''
Hraster said. ``They're doing very well in getting good science data.
The routine science will actually start on the 16th of May and by
routine, I mean we'll start on the series of two-week observations, the
main part of the mission.''
|
| 675.143 | Apt's spacesuit had small leak | ADVAX::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Mon May 06 1991 10:54 | 26 |
| Article 1238
From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Subject: Spacewalker springs leak
Date: 3 May 91 15:06:55 GMT
WASHINGTON (UPI) -- Atlantis astronaut Jay Apt accidentally
punctured his spacesuit during an emergency spacewalk last month, but
the leak was too small to be noticed at the time and the astronaut was
never in any danger, a magazine reported Friday.
Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine will report in its
May 6 issue that Apt, working outside in the shuttle Atlantis's cargo
bay April 8, punctured the pressure bladder of his suit by pressing on
a ``palm bar'' in one of his gloves.
The palm bar, used to prevent the pressurized glove from
ballooning as the astronaut's hands move about, also caused enough
abrasion on Apt's hand to cause a small amount of bleeding. The
puncture was found during a routine post-flight inspection.
Aviation Week said the gloves on board the shuttle Discovery,
currently in orbit on a Strategic Defense Initiative research mission,
were modified before the ship's launch Sunday to prevent any such
problems should a spacewalk be required during the flight.
|
| 675.144 | GRO Status Reports | 25626::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Wed May 22 1991 09:16 | 438 |
| Article 13589
From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: sci.astro
Subject: GRO Spacecraft Status Reports (forwarded)
Date: 17 May 91 15:23:25 GMT
Organization: University of Kansas Academic Computing Services
The following are summary reports from the Payload Operations Control Center
staff at GSFC and the GRO project office. GRO continues to perform very
well on orbit.
May 8, 1991
6-MAY-1991> GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY (GRO) WEEKLY STATUS REPORT
---------------------------------------------------------------
The Flight Operations Team in GSFC's Payload Operations Control Center
report the Gamma Ray Observatory spacecraft and its instruments are
performing well. GRO is currently in orbit at an altitude of 287x280
statute miles (462x451 km). All four of GRO's instruments are continuing
operation in calibration phase. This past week, the instruments were
pointed nine degrees off the center of Crab Nebula to collect data for
calibration.
Beginning tomorrow, GRO will be pointed towards the "Galactic Hole", a
region of anomalously low galactic column density. The observatory will
gather calibration data from this pointing for three days before moving
onto the Vela pulsar to continue calibration. Analysis of the propulsion
system pressure transducer and valve misconfiguration anomalies continues.
Findings should be released in mid-June.
29-APR-1991> GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY (GRO) WEEKLY STATUS
----------------------------------------------------------------
The Gamma Ray Observatory spacecraft and its instruments are performing
well. GRO is currently in orbit at an altitude of 287x280 statute miles
(462x451 km). Controllers in GSFC's Payload Operations Control Center
report another highly successful week of operations. All four of GRO's
instruments are operating and instrument calibration is underway. This past
week, the instruments were pointed three degrees off the center of Crab
Nebula to collect data for calibration. The Burst and Transient Source
Experiment (BATSE) recorded three gamma ray bursts (the mysterious flashes
of energy the instrument was designed to study) and provided signals to the
other instruments of these significant gamma ray events. Project officials
are still studying an anomaly in the circuit that enables the instrument to
see certain types of pulsars. The instrument is now operating on the
backup circuit while analysis of the problem is being conducted. BATSE
continues to operate at 100% of scientific capability. This week GRO will
be focused about 9 degrees off the center of the Crab Nebula, beginning a
series of five 3-day pointings for the purpose of calibration. Other
calibration targets include a suspected galactic hole and the Constellation
Vela.
A group of NASA and TRW engineers that met last week to review the cause of
the stuck high-gain antenna boom during the deployment of the Gamma Ray
Observatory has released its report. The committee found that insufficient
clearance was available between the boom thermal insulation and the channel
in which the boom was stored during launch. The assembly procedures used in
construction of the observatory failed to account for the movement of this
insulation during the launch and ascent. It was this insulation that
snagged during the release of the boom prompting astronauts Jay Apt and
Jerry Ross to perform an unscheduled spacewalk. The group studying the
tank one pressure transducer and valve misconfiguration anomalies is still
conducting analysis. Options the group will be focusing on include possible
ground tests to simulate the conditions that led to the problem. Findings
should be released in mid-May, after review by GSFC officials.
April 23, 1991
GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY (GRO) WEEKLY STATUS REPORT (22-APR-1991)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The Gamma Ray Observatory spacecraft and its instruments are performing
well. GRO is currently in orbit at an altitude of 287 x 280 statute miles
(462 x 451 kilometers).
Controllers in GSFC's the Payload Operation Control Center report a highly
successfully week of operations. All four of GRO's instruments have been
operated at full-power. On April 18, the Burst and Transient Source
Experiment (BATSE) recorded its first gamma ray burst. BATSE reported an
anomaly on April 19. Controllers suspect a malfunction in a computer chip
that enables the instrument to see certain types of pulsars. The board
that contains the chip has a redundant side; this duplicate side is now in
use. The suspected malfunctioning computer chip can potentially effect a
small portion of the instrument's capability if it were still in use.
BATSE is now operating at 100% of scientific capability.
On April 21, controllers completed a "very successful" test of GRO's B-side
attitude control electronics. Two groups that met last week presented
findings to GRO project management. The groups convened to study the tank 1
pressure transducer and valve misconfiguration anomalies and the high-gain
antenna deployment problem. Findings will be released in early May, after
review by GSFC officials. Technicians begin spacecraft instrument
calibration activities this week, in anticipation of science operations to
begin in mid-May. GRO's instruments will be trained three degrees off of
the center of the Crab Nebula for the next four days so that all four
instruments can begin calibration.
The B-side safehold system checkout was carried out successfully on 4/21
and 4/22. The GRO Spacecraft was then transitioned back to the A-side, and
after some additional checkouts was slewed to the "Crab-3" target at about
3:00 pm EDT on Monday, 4/22. This is the current pointing.
April 19, 1991
All four instruments are now partially turned on and show no anomalies. The
spacecraft performed successful pitch and yaw maneuver tests. The fixed
head star trackers also appear to be functioning properly. Gyro and
reaction wheels are also performing nominally.
GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY (GRO) STATUS REPORT (09:00 EDT 19-APR-1991)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
CURRENT STATUS: GSFC's Payload Operation Control Center reports that the
GRO is in its normal pointing mode with solar arrays oriented towards the
Sun. GRO is in orbit at an altitude of 287x280 statute miles (462x451
kilometers).
DEVELOPMENTS SINCE LAST REPORT: The Burst and Transient Source Experiment
(BATSE) is continuously operating with high voltage and controllers report
all systems normal. BATSE observed its first Gamma Ray Burst at approx.
08:40 EDT, yesterday, April 18. The Oriented Scintillation Spectrometer
Experiment is going through a series of high voltage turn-ons and
turn-offs. The Energetic Gamma Ray Experiment completed a short
high-voltage turn-on of the spark chamber. The Imaging Compton Telescope
continues to operate at low voltage and high voltage is scheduled for
turn-on this morning. The process will continue over a 24-hour period.
COMMUNICATIONS & DATA HANDLING: Command and telemetry links with the
spacecraft remain excellent.
POWER: The spacecraft solar array performance is better than expected and
the batteries are charged at 100 percent and working well.
ATTITUDE & CONTROL DETERMINATION: GRO continues in a normal pointing mode.
THERMAL: Temperature sensors indicate nominal readings.
PROPULSION: System is stable. The Project Office is evaluating the
information presented by the GSFC and TRW investigation team which met on
April 16-17. The team was formed to investigate the tank one pressure
transducer and the valve position anomaly.
INSTRUMENTS: High voltage turn-on continues today. Instrument calibration
begins no earlier than April 22 to be completed in early May, as planned.
Science operations of the observatory begins in early May.
UPCOMING EVENTS: The B-side attitude control electronics check has been
rescheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. EDT, Sunday, April 21, 1991. Instrument
high voltage turn-on continues.
Article 13590
From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: sci.astro
Subject: GRO Science Status Report (forwarded)
Date: 17 May 91 15:24:07 GMT
Organization: University of Kansas Academic Computing Services
GRO Science Report #10
Friday, May 3, 1991
Eric Chipman, GRO Science Support Center
Questions or comments can be sent to the GRO SSC. Phone 301/286-7764,
email SPAN 7073::CHIPMAN, Internet [email protected].
Report for May 3:
Operations continues as planned. This Report includes an Announcement
of the GRO Fellows selected for 1991, a detailed BATSE science report,
and a request for feedback/comments on a possible Workshop in connection
with the Guest Investigator NRA Release this September.
The GRO Fellowship selection process for this year has been completed, and
the following 5 people are the GRO Fellows for 1991:
Fellow Host Institution Program Title
Michael Briggs University of Alabama/ An Investigation of Temporal
Huntsville Correlations Amongst Gamma-Ray
Burst Spectral Components
Thomas Loredo Cornell University Bayesian Analysis of Gamma-Ray
Data and the Formation of the
Gamma-Ray Burst Continuum
Marco Tavani Lawrence Livermore Gamma-Ray Emission from
National Laboratory Accreting Neutron Stars and
Gamma Rays from Rapidly
Spinning Pulsars
Ralph Wijers Princeton University Probing Neutron Star Evolution
with Gamma Rays
Magda Zbyszewska University of Chicago Theoretical Investigations of
Active Galactic Nuclei
The next Announcement of Opportunity for the GRO Fellowship Program will
be issued by the end of this summer.
********************************************************
BATSE Science Status - April 30, 1991
Gamma-ray Bursts: BATSE has detected 11 gamma-ray bursts since
HV turn-on (Apr. 16). Most of these are believed to be true
cosmic gamma-ray bursts, having detector count ratios
consistent with a distant point source. There have been
several false triggers, thought to be due to high latitude
electrons during disturbed magnetospheric times. There have
been no false triggers due to solar flares or orbiting
nuclear reactors. None of the BATSE cosmic gamma-ray bursts
have been confirmed by other spacecraft, due to a lack of
correlating data.
Two of the detected bursts are of moderate intensity, having
more than 1.0E+5 detected counts. Detailed spectral analysis
will begin soon on these bursts in conjunction with the BATSE
co-investigators at UAH, UCSD and GSFC.
Other Discrete Sources: The Crab and Cyg X-1 are routinely observed
by earth occultation at the proper times, in the appropriate
detectors. The sensitivity appears to be better than the pre-flight
predicted sensitivity (~0.3 Crab, single step). Multiple orbit
overlays will be tried soon for the Crab and other sources. Single
pulses from Vela X-1 (240s) are seen in the raw data at low energies.
Pulsars (on-board folding): The Crab pulsar (33ms) is clearly seen in
30 min. of on-board folding. BATSE plans to utilize these data for
calibration. Data on the following pulsars have been accumulated
so far: Vela Pulsar, Her X-1, SMC X-1, Cen X-3 and 4U0115+634.
Solar Flares: BATSE has been detecting solar flares in the daytime
portion of the GRO orbit above 5 keV in the spectroscopy detectors
and above 20 keV in the large area detectors. Data are being
transferred to BATSE/GRO Guest Investigators on a routine basis.
Flight hardware system: All detectors are fully operational and
operating properly. The burst trigger signal is enabled.
*******************************************************
The GRO Science Support Center has been considering holding a Proposal
Preparation Workshop in connection with the release of the Phase 2 GRO
Guest Investigator Program NRA, which is scheduled for early September
1991. The workshop would be held at GSFC in September. This workshop
would be designed to assist prospective Guest Investigator proposers and
to answer questions about what types of Guest Investigator observations
would be feasible and how to define an observation in terms of exposure
times, instrument modes, etc. These points will all be touched on in
the NRA itself, but given the complex nature of the GRO instrumentation,
some prospective proposers, particularly those with little or no experience
in gamma-ray astrophysics, may find it desirable to attend such a workshop.
The workshop would not be a scientific review of early results from GRO,
except insofar as the early performance of GRO is a guide to proposal
preparation. Any responses from people who feel they would or would not
attend such a workshop would be welcome.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
GRO Science Report #10
Monday, April 29, 1991
Eric Chipman, GRO Science Support Center
Questions or comments can be sent to the GRO SSC. Phone 301/286-7764,
email SPAN 7073::CHIPMAN, Internet [email protected].
Report for April 24-29:
Operations continues as planned, with generally excellent performance
from all instruments. The spacecraft was slewed at approximately noon
EDT yesterday to the "Crab-9" target as listed in the e-mail newsletter
of 4/19. The absolute time calibration of the on-board clock is now
approximately 70 microseconds. Work is in progress to try to improve this
by a factor of 2 or more.
The BATSE team reports that they have developed software workarounds for
the two A-side data collection modes that were not working properly, so
BATSE is now redundant in all modes. BATSE has now observed several cosmic
gamma-ray bursts with burst triggers enabled. They have also checked out
their on-board folding for pulsar observations, and have a light curve for
the Crab pulsar.
EGRET is continuing to process events to determine the best operational
parameters for the instrument. The Crab pulsar can be seen in the EGRET data.
COMPTEL saw some corona on one of their veto dome photomultipliers, so it was
turned off. This PMT was redundant with others, so there is no loss of
data. COMPTEL has now turned on a combination of D1 and D2 modules to
give a 73% observing efficiency. The rest will not be turned on for about
2 weeks, to allow time for outgassing.
OSSE reports that during the period April 23-28 the first activation targets
of the Crab Nebula and the Sun have been used to investigate several
operational modes and to test the background subtraction and pulsar
epoch-folding data analysis techniques.
GRO Science Report #9
Tuesday, April 23, 1991
Eric Chipman, GRO Science Support Center
Questions or comments can be sent to the GRO SSC. Phone 301/286-7764,
email SPAN 7073::CHIPMAN, Internet [email protected].
Report for April 20 - 23:
The B-side safehold system checkout was carried out successfully on 4/21
and 4/22. The GRO Spacecraft was then transitioned back to the A-side,
and after some additional checkouts was slewed to the "Crab-3" target
at about 3:00 pm EDT on Monday, 4/22. This is the current pointing.
BATSE, EGRET and OSSE have turned their High Voltages back on, and are
operating now. COMPTEL is turning their PMTs on in groups, and have
turned on about one-half so far. The process will take several days.
Indications from the first HV tests on COMPTEL are nominal, with some
gamma rays being seen, and less than the expected level of neutrons from
the GRO structure.
BATSE has now enabled their burst triggers. BATSE is now operating using
their side B electronics, since it was found that on the A side, 2 of the
15 data collection modes had minor anomalies. On the B side all 15 data
collection modes work correctly.
When EGRET turned on their HV last week, they saw some unexpected
telemetry readings. A reset of several units of the EGRET electronics
on Saturday, 4/20, cleared up most of these readings, and performance in
the affected areas seems normal now. EGRET plans to configure the telescope
in their best operating mode today, to be ready for the calibration runs.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
GRO Science Report #8
Friday, April 19, 1991
Eric Chipman, GRO Science Support Center
Questions or comments can be sent to the GRO SSC. Phone 301/286-7764,
email SPAN 7073::CHIPMAN, Internet [email protected].
Report for April 16-19:
Activities since the previous report:
The B-side safehold system checkout was delayed from 4/17-18 to 4/21-22, to
permit more preparatory command testing on the simulator. In its place,
the Instrument Activation has proceeded.
OSSE turned on HV on 4/15 for a few orbits, and saw a solar burst. The
OSSE HV is now on full time.
BATSE turned on HV on 4/16. They saw several solar bursts, and one
cosmic gamma ray burst. The burst memory trigger has not yet been
enabled, so these were not recorded with high time resolution. The burst
memory trigger will be enabled today.
EGRET HV was turned on 4/18. The spark chamber high voltage was on for
one real-time pass and gamma rays were seen. The data is now being studied
in detail. There will be a charged particle calibration run today to
obtain a quantitative evaluation of the spark chamber performance.
COMPTEL will be turning on HV today.
As mentioned before, OSSE, EGRET and COMPTEL have a verification program
scheduled to run through 5/15 before the Phase 1 viewing program begins.
BATSE plans to be in its normal observing mode by later today.
Revised Milestones are:
date mission days event
April 21-22 17-18 B-side system (safehold system) checkout
April 23-24 19-20 Complete Instrument Turn-On
Apr 25 - May 15 21-41 Instrument Verification
May 16 42 Begin Phase I Viewing Plan
There have been small changes to some dates and to the Vela position for
the Activation and Verification targets list. The latest plan follows:
(note that these are checkout and calibration pointings for OSSE, EGRET and
COMPTEL, so they should probably not be used as a basis for correlative
observations.
Date Mission Day Tgt Z-Axis(J2000) X-axis
RA DEC RA DEC
4/15-22 11-18 (Turn on) Directions as required by spacecraft
4/23-27 19-23 Crab -3 86.7581 22.0912 357.0275 -0.6637
4/28-30 24-26 Crab -9 89.7689 15.2388 342.4707 47.5049
5/1-3 27-29 Crab -9 89.7689 15.2388 12.3199 -38.5790
5/4-6 30-32 Crab -0 83.5216 22.0172 354.0963 -1.4207
5/7-9 33-35 Gal. Hole 162.4402 57.2573 68.0825 2.7972
5/10-15 36-41 Vela 135.190 -45.110 81.509 30.541
5/16 42 Begin Phase I Viewing Plan
If you wish to receive these reports, please notify Eric Chipman at
S: GROSSC::CHIPMAN or I: [email protected]
Article 13591
From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: sci.astro
Subject: How to get GRO info
Date: 17 May 91 15:28:42 GMT
Organization: University of Kansas Academic Computing Services
I've just posted the most up-to-date information which I've been
able to obtain from the GRO Science Support Center at Goddard Space
Flight Center regarding the current status of the spacecraft itself
and the instruments. This information can be obtained on-line from
the GRO Science Support Center. If you have access to SPAN, you can
set host to GROSSC (7073) and log into the GRONEWS account (no
password). Via internet, the node is grossc.gsfc.nasa.gov with the
same login. You will be placed into a captive account with several
menu options given to you, among them the status reports just
posted. I hope this helps those of you interested in GRO.
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Dr. Edwin V. Bell, II | E-mail: |
| Mail Code 933.9 | (SPAN) NCF::Bell |
| National Space Science | or NSSDC::Bell |
| Data Center | or NSSDCA::Bell |
| NASA | or NSSDCB::Bell |
| Goddard Space Flight Center | (Internet) [email protected] |
| Greenbelt, MD 20771 | |
| (301) 513-1663 | |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|
| 675.145 | GRO may discover 350 GR sources in one year | 25626::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Tue May 28 1991 10:39 | 126 |
| Article 1566
From: [email protected] (LUKE HILL)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.tw.science
Subject: Progress reported in gamma ray detection by NASA satellite
Date: 27 May 91 21:12:13 GMT
SEATTLE (UPI) -- Gamma ray bursts are being detected with
greater frequency and sensitivity than ever before by NASA's Gamma Ray
Observatory, leading scientists Monday to predict new discoveries
within a year about the mysterious celestial ``flash bulb'' radiation.
Deployed into space on April 5 by the shuttle Atlantis, the
35,000- pound orbiter -- the heaviest payload ever carried aloft by a
shuttle -- has detected 31 gamma ray bursts in its first 35 days, said
Gerald Fishman, a NASA astrophysicist at the Marshall Space Flight
Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
Extrapolated over a year's time, the burst frequency would
translate into about 350, compared to the rate of about 80 per year
previously detected by Soviet satellites, said Fishman, the principal
investigator for the Burst and Transient Source Experiment, one of
four experiments being carried out by GRO.
``Even though this is the highest rate that has ever been
seen, it is far less than one would expect if the sources were
distributed uniformly about space,'' Fishman said. ``At our
sensitivity, we would expect to see about 50 gamma ray bursts (per
day). We just don't see large numbers of weak gamma ray bursts.
``It's telling us right away that they are not uniformly
distributed, '' he said.
So far, none of the bursts appears to have come from the same
source, Fishman said.
``Nobody has ever seen them to repeat from the same part of
the sky. They go off in different parts of the sky at random,'' he said.
He said that by the end of the year, a pattern may emerge,
perhaps showing that the bursts come from the galactic plane -- which
would tend to support recent theories that the bursts are coming from
within the galaxy.
``The reason for this discrepancy should become apparent by
the end of the year when we are able to provide a celestial map
showing the location of the gamma ray bursts on the sky. One obvious
possibility for the low rate at our sensitivity is that we are seeing
nearly all the gamma ray bursts that occur within our galaxy -- except
those that are blocked by the Earth,'' Fishman said.
The frequency could suggest the presence of millions of
previously undetectible neutron stars throughout the Milky Way galaxy,
although it is difficult to know for certain because the ``repeat
rate'' of burst sources is unknown, Fishman said.
``They're usually silent. We don't see or hear from them,''
Fishman said. ``But once in a while, they'll decide to do something
like this, give off a gamma ray burst. They don't rotate, so we don't
see them as a pulsar, and they're not in a binary stellar system, so
we don't see them as an X-ray source. They just sit there, undetected,
until they give off a gamma ray burst.
``There may be as many as a million of them, if this rate
holds throughout the galaxy.''
Fisher spoke to reporters prior to presenting his findings to
the American Astronomical Society's 178th national meeting, which
continues through Thursday.
Another important early result from BATSE is that for the
first time, scientists are beginning to classify gamma ray bursts into
types, differentiated primarily by duration, ranging from a tenth of a
second to up to 100 seconds.
``It is becoming more clear that we are dealing with more than
one type of object and probably more than one emission mechanism,''
Fishman said. ``In other words, there is probably more than one answer
to this puzzle of gamma ray bursts.''
Gamma ray bursts were not discovered until 1973, when Vela
military spy satellites built to detect nuclear explosions detected
them by accident.
What produces the radiation, how far away the objects might be
and how often one source might produce a burst is unknown.
``If our eyes were sensitive to the gamma rays and we were
above the atmosphere ... the gamma ray bursts would be the most
impressive of the variable sources and they are perhaps the least
understood,'' Fishman said.
``There's no other comparable phenomenon in all of astronomy.
It's as if a flash bulb goes off in the sky. Where there was nothing,
all of a sudden there's a tremendous flash of gamma rays. Nothing else
in radio or opticals at the same time has been noted.''
Theories have tended to associate the bursts with neutron
stars, which are formed in supernova explosions when gravitational
collapse crushes atomic particles together with such force that only
uncharged neutrons survive in an ultra-dense sphere as small as 10
miles to 12 miles across.
The surface of a neutron star, torn by titanic gravitational
forces, can suffer destructive quakes or thermonuclear explosions,
both of which could result in bursts of gamma rays. Likewise, objects
colliding with neutron stars would produce a shower of radiation.
Fishman likened the launching of GRO to the first use of
telescopes, when whole galaxies and star clusters were lumped into the
term ``nebula'' because they couldn't be seen more clearly.
``I think we're doing a similar thing here. We're lumping
everything together under the title of these gamma ray bursts and I
would predict that it would turn out that we're dealing with more than
one type of object.''
He noted the intense work being conducted on the GRO data and
said, ``We can expect a new view of the gamma ray sky, with
unprecedented sensitivity, by the end of its first year of operation,
with some new discoveries.
``I'm just predicting these discoveries, because anytime you
look at the sky with more sensitivity and more capability, you're
going to see something new. It's just been past experience,'' Fishman
said, adding, ``Stay tuned.''
|
| 675.146 | More on the mysterious gamma ray bursters | MTWAIN::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Tue Sep 24 1991 18:11 | 83 |
| Article 1697
From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space
Subject: Gamma ray bursts mystifying
Date: 23 Sep 91 19:39:08 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- A new class of ``monstrously powerful''
astronomical objects may be needed to explain mysterious bursts of high-
energy radiation that pop off at random across the sky like cosmic
flashbulbs, scientists said Monday.
Data from NASA's $617 million gamma ray observatory satellite,
launched April 7 from the shuttle Atlantis, has wrecked previously
accepted theories about what causes the enigmatic gamma ray bursts and
sent astronomers back to the blackboard to come up with alternative
explanations.
``Understanding gamma ray bursts is one of the holy grails of
astrophysics,'' project scientist Neil Gehrels said at a Washington news
conference. ``Until today, the favorite theory for bursts was explosions
on the surface of neutron stars in our galaxy. That theory is now dead,
or at least in serious need of first aid.''
The satellite, recently renamed the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory in
honor of American physicist Arthur Compton, is the second in a series of
four ``great observatories'' being launched to study the cosmos across
the entire spectrum, from low-energy infrared and visible light to X-
rays and gamma rays.
Gamma rays are blocked by Earth's atmosphere and as a result, little
is known about how the universe appears in the high-energy domain of the
electromagnetic spectrum.
But studying such radiation is crucial because it provides direct
evidence of the nuclear processes going on in some of the most violent
objects in the universe. The Compton Observatory is equipped with four
instruments to study gamma rays at unprecedented levels of sensitivity.
Few topics in modern astronomy are as baffling as gamma ray bursts,
which were discovered in 1967 by Vela military spy satellites built to
detect nuclear explosions. Such bursts seldom last more than a few
minutes and do not appear to be related to any visible objects.
``There's nothing there at any wavelength in the quiescent state,
after the event, and after studying them for several years we still
don't know their origin,'' program scientist Alan Bunner said before
Compton's launch.
``It's like being in a darkened room with flashes going on around you
and no matter how hard you look there's nothing there after the event.''
Before Compton's launch, less-sensitive satellite instruments
detected about 80 to 100 bursts per year. But one of the four
instruments aboard the Compton Observatory has detected 117 gamma ray
bursts since its launch in April.
Astronomers originally thought the flashes were associated with
neutron stars in Earth's Milky Way galaxy.
Neutron stars are formed in supernova explosions when gravitational
collapse crushes atomic particles together with such force that only
uncharged neutrons survive in an ultra-dense sphere as small as 10 miles
to 12 miles across.
The surface of a neutron star, torn by titanic gravitational forces,
can suffer powerful ``starquakes'' or thermonuclear explosions, both of
which could result in bursts of gamma rays. Likewise, objects colliding
with neutron stars would produce a shower of radiation.
If such bursts originated with neutron stars in the Milky Way as many
astronomers believed, one would expect most of them to be seen near the
plane of the galaxy where most of the galaxy's stars are concentrated.
But the 117 gamma ray bursts observed so far by the Compton
Observatory are uniformly scattered across the sky, strongly implyingly
galactic neutron stars are not the source of the radiation.
``There does not appear to be a viable explanation that is consistent
with the theory that bursts are due to galactic neutron stars or any
other known galactic component,'' said Gerald Fishman, principal
investigator for the Burst and Transient Source Experiment aboard Compton.
``This is a significant turning point in our study of these enigmatic
objects. It could very well mean that gamma ray bursts represent a new
type of object or phenomenon previously unknown or undetectable.''
With galactic neutron stars apparently out of the picture, only two,
``rather strange'' possibilities are left, Gehrels said.
``Either the sources are exotic, small objects near our solar system
or they're monstrously powerful distant objects well beyond our galaxy,''
he said. ``If they are distant, then the energy released in the brief
one-second flash of gamma rays is many times the total energy release in
a supernova explosion.''
If the sources of gamma ray bursts were nearby, astronomers would
expect to see fainter bursts from sources farther away. But Compton has
not detected any such fainter sources either in the Milky Way or in
other galaxies.
But if the sources are not close by, they must be generating energy
at levels that cannot be explained by any known astronomical objects.
|
| 675.147 | Comet Zero In | OPG::CHRIS | Capacity! What Capacity ? | Fri Sep 27 1991 06:41 | 4 |
| What sort of energy level would you get say with a comet hitting the
neutron star's surface ?
Chris
|
| 675.148 | Nuked neut | CHEST::HAZEL | Marvin the Paranoid Android was right | Fri Sep 27 1991 10:42 | 13 |
| I would have thought you would get something like a hydrogen bomb
explosion on impact (or just before). A comet is mainly volatile
substances, such as water, which contains lots of light elements such
as hydrogen (about 90% of the matter in the Universe is hydrogen, so
this is a reasonable bet). Because of the energy involved in something
impacting a neutron star, the hydrogen in a comet would be highly
likely to undergo fusion at some point.
A hydrogen bomb is tiny in energy output compared with most energy
processes found in astrophysics.
Dave Hazel
|
| 675.149 | it's an unlikely scenario | JANUS::BARKER | Jeremy Barker - T&N/CBN Diag. Eng. - Reading, UK | Wed Oct 02 1991 08:30 | 12 |
| While there may be an outside chance of a comet existing near a neutron
star it is highly unlikely. Neutron stars are formed by very violent
processes which are likely to disrupt most material within the vicinity of
the star.
Even if a comet did survive in the vicinty it would almost certainly be
disrupted by tidal forces well before it came close to the surface of the
star. However, any matter that happened to fall on the surface of the star
would cause a large release of energy. Unfortunately I do not know how
much energy would be released.
jb
|
| 675.150 | Compton GRO Status Report - September 1991 | MTWAIN::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Wed Oct 02 1991 11:47 | 86 |
| Date: 2 Oct 91 02:23:27 GMT
From: (Ron Baalke)
Subject: Compton GRO Monthly Status Report
Forwarded from the Spacelink BBS
ARTHUR HOLLY COMPTON GAMMA RAY OBSERVATORY
MONTHLY STATUS REPORT
September 30, 1991
NASA's Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (Compton Observatory) spacecraft
and its instruments are performing well.
On September 23, 1991, NASA Headquarters announced that the Gamma Ray
Observatory has been renamed the Arthur Holly Compton Gamma Ray
Observatory in honor of the Nobel Prize-winning American physicist, Dr.
Arthur Holly Compton.
Recent science results from all four instruments aboard the Compton
also were detailed during the September 23 NASA Headquarters press
conference.
Among the most significant findings according to Dr. Neil Gehrels,
project scientist, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, were the
results announced by NASA Marshall Space Flight Center's Dr. Gerald
Fishman. Dr. Fishman is the principal investigator for the Burst and
Transient Source Experiment (BATSE). BATSE is designed to study the
mysterious phenomenon of gamma-ray bursts.
Before the mission, the prevailing belief was that the bursts come
from neutron stars which are concentrated in the disc of the galaxy.
However, BATSE has determined that they come uniformly from all
directions throughout the sky, and therefore, cannot come from neutron
stars.
The BATSE results indicate that either the bursts come from some
exotic small objects very near to our solar system or that they come
from some extremely powerful distant objects located well beyond our
galaxy.
Goddard's Energetic Gamma Ray Experiment Telescope (EGRET) outlined
the discovery of a strong gamma-ray signal from the distant quasar
3C279. Goddard's Dr. Carl Fichtel, principal investigator, said that
this quasar is about six billion light years away and is the most
distant gamma-ray source ever detected.
"The scientific excitement here is that the energy released in these
gamma rays is more than a thousand times the energy emitted from our
galaxy at all wavelengths combined," Gehrels said.
The Oriented Scintillation Spectrometer Experiment (OSSE) captured
the best ever observation of the glow of gamma radiation from the disk
of our galaxy caused by matter and antimatter annihilating each other.
This scientific result does not fit any of the theoretical models,
according to OSSE Principal Investigator Dr. James Kurfess, Naval
Research Laboratory, Washington, DC.
The Imaging Compton Telescope (COMPTEL) images were significant not
only for what they showed, but also for what they didn't show. The
images presented by COMPTEL Principal Investigator Volker Schoenfelder,
Max Planck Institute, Germany, taken at the same time, of the same
source, as those of the high-energy sensitive EGRET, did not show the
mysterious source, Geminga, evident in the EGRET image. COMPTEL views
the gamma-ray sky at intermediate energies.
Upcoming targets for scientific observation include the galaxy
Fairall 9 and the Quasar 3C273.
The Goddard flight operations team reports that the observatory is
functioning well, and data from tape recorder A continue to be analyzed
for patterns in recurring bit errors. The current rate of errors does
not seriously affect science data. Science is being performed without
interruption using both the A tape recorder and the redundant B tape
recorder.
The Compton Observatory is managed and operated by Goddard, for
NASA's Office of Space Science and Applications.
___ _____ ___
/_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | [email protected]
| | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab |
___| | | | |__) |/ | | |__ M/S 301-355 Telos | For every rule, there is
/___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | an exception. There is no
|_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ | exception to this rule.
|
| 675.151 | Gamma ray bursters and the starship theory | MTWAIN::KLAES | All the Universe, or nothing! | Wed Oct 02 1991 12:37 | 279 |
| X-Andrew-WideReply: netnews.sci.space
From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: RE: SPACE Digest V14 #296
Date: 1 Oct 91 11:39:00 GMT
Sender: [email protected]
Lines: 273
Subject: SUMMARY OF OFFLINE DISCUSSION ON DETECTION OF STARSHIP DETECTION
Here is the summary of the offline discussion between myself and Paul
Dietz on the subject of detecting antimatter rockets via gamma ray
emissions. I have edited most trivia from the discussion, but
otherwise the following is pretty much complete.
-----
Tue, 10 Sep 91 17:42 GMT Initial posting by Dale Amon to Space Digest
Subject: SETI via GRO/EGRET
There has been some recent discussion of interstellar travel, so I'd like
to toss in a few ideas.
If, as Dr. Forward states, antimatter rockets will be feasible to us within
the next 50 years, then it is safe to assume that most civilizations with
which we could possibly communicate will either have them or be beyond them.
(the reason why is in the literature)
An antimatter engine generates a searchlight of gamma rays behind it, with
reasonable columnation, particularly since the particles coming out of the
nozzle are near relativistic to start with.
This means that any antimatter rocket will send an interstellar message.
If this gammaray "flashlight" beam were to sweep across our solar system,
it should look like a gamma ray burster, although it would be in the EGRET
energy range unless drastically redshifted. Of course if being used for
interstellar flight, it would certainly become rather shifted...
One could write an equation based on the expansion rate, the distance,
the probability of pointing in a given direction in the celestial sphere
and the expected "density" of ships given various "expected" values of
the number of technological civilizations in the Drake equation within
a certain age range. Since most of these numbers are matters of personal
preference rather than data, this can only tell you the probability of
detecting an antimatter rocket with a given number of civilizations and
a given number of ships/civilization.
What is interesting is that this should be a testable hypothesis. If there
are large numbers of civilizations, we should be able to see their exhausts.
I would expect that the narrow throat of an antimatter rocket would blaze
with the apparent fury of stellar sized phenomena at even thousands of
light years.
If no one has thought to look, please consider doing so. And if you find
something interesting, please give me a footnote on the earthshaking paper
that results...
-----
Tue, 10 Sep 91 13:33:14 EDT Paul Dietz
>An antimatter engine generates a searchlight of gamma rays behind it, with
>reasonable columnation, particularly since the particles coming out of the
>nozzle are near relativistic to start with.
I don't see where you get this. The exhaust from an antimatter engine
will consist of a spray of charged particles -- pions, muons and
(anti)electrons -- with some neutrinos thrown in from their decays.
Few decays of these particles produce photons. There are photons
produced from neutral pion decay, and from electron/positron
annihilation in the reaction chamber, but these come out essentially
isotropically. The very fact that proton/antiproton annihilation
produces mostly charged particles is what would make a high Isp
antimatter engine feasible in the first place: the charged reaction
products could be directed with a magnetic nozzle; photons could
not be.
-----
10-SEP-1991 19:56:53.90 Dale Amon
Most of those particles do break down
at some distance from the nozzle. I seem to remember that one of them gets you
an electron that can recombine.
The particles you mention sound correct for inside the rocket. And because
they are fairly relativistic they travel a fair distance before furthur
break down.
If you have references handy, let me know what the other breakdown paths are.
Even if I'm wrong, those some of those anti-electrons are going to find
some electrons to anihilate with, and the center of mass frame should
focus them in the direction of travel of the ship -e since the e will
be standing still by comparison.
Ultimately just about everything ends up as photons or neutrinos...
------
10-SEP-1991 20:12:04.94 Dale Amon
If you are using anti-hydrogen and hydrogen you are most certainly spewing
e and -e. And e + -e -> y. I am not sure that all these do get used up in
the chamber. True, those that do would cause isotropic release, which is
the reason for some shielding of the crew...
------
Tue, 10 Sep 91 17:13:27 EDT Paul Dietz
The exhaust will contain electrons and positrons, but it will be very
hot (large dispersion in velocities) and dilute, so electron/positron
annihilation in the exhaust should be insignificant (the cross section
goes way down with particle energy). The positrons would be simply
released into the interstellar medium at high energy, where they would
gradually lose energy by synchrotron radiation and eventually annihilate
with background electrons. But this would take a very long time.
And, yes, as I think I said, there would be e-/e+ annihilation in
reaction chamber, but this would be isotropic, not beamed.
------
11-SEP-1991 11:23:27.18 Dale Amon
Forward ignores the +e and -e on the fuel:
The following initial reactions occur:
1) p- + p+ -> Pi0 -> y (isotropic)
pi+
pi-
The Pi+ and Pi- travel 21M in 70NS before breaking down:
2) Pi+ -> vmu + mu+
Pi- -> vmu + mu-
Pi- -> vmu- + mu-
1.85Km and 6.2usec later:
3) mu+ -> vmu- + ve + e+
mu- -> vmu + ve- + e-
with the e+ and e- traveling ~ colinearly.
I am unconvinced that these particles will not find each other and recombine.
I would also suspect that the beam would tend to stay together because of
the fields generated by any charge imbalance.
-------
Wed, 11 Sep 91 09:03:21 EDT Paul Dietz
No, the beam would not stay together. The e+/e- plasma would be
extremely hot, with random motions of many MeV (i.e., a temperature
in the billions of degrees K). A plasma cannot stay together without
a confining external force (a consequence of the virial theorem).
It would expand rapidly, on a dynamic timescale (meaning: at a
substantial fraction of the speed of light).
Now, fast moving positrons don't annihilate very well. In fact, there
are laboratory techniques in which positrons are injected into
ordinary matter (and a "positron microscope" has also been tested).
The positrons have to slow considerably before they can annihilate.
Normal matter has a much higher electron density than the thin exhaust
from an antimatter rocket, so it slows positrons much more efficiently.
-----
11-SEP-1991 15:24:26.22 Dale Amon
However, since the e+ and e- are moving at the same velocity, ie are
in basically the same frame of reference, that will not hold true. wrt
each other they are fairly "cold".
What you say may well be true for annihilation with interstellar gas/plasma.
Also, much depends (from our frame) on how close to c the particles
are traveling. If it is close, they will tend to be focused in a spray
in the direction of travel of the parent particle.
Now I agree that a plasma will not stay together. HOWEVER, this is more like a
neutral particle beam since the net charge should be 0.
-----
Wed, 11 Sep 91 11:35:57 EDT Paul Dietz
You misunderstood my comment about the temperature of the
electron/positron plasma: this is a measure of the average kinetic
energy of these particles in the reference frame moving with the
average velocity of the exhaust. The magnetic nozzle's function
is to convert this random component into directed motion (i.e., it
is a heat engine), but it will not be 100% efficient. In the process
of cooling the exhaust, it also expands quite a bit, which would reduce
the annihilation rate considerably.
The electrons and positrons will have quite a bit of random motion,
since they are created by muon decay well down the magnetic nozzle,
and this decay will give them a significant random velocity component.
Further expansion would reduce this component and cool the plasma,
at the expense of reducing the density of the plasma still further.
The cross section for electron/positron annihilation is on the order of
(r0)^2 (m / E)^2
where r0 is the classical radius of the electron (2.8e-13 cm), m the
electron rest energy, and E the energy of the collision. For E = 1
MeV, this is about 2 e-26 cm^2. Note that the cross section goes down
as the *square* of the energy.
If a gas of 1 MeV particles is confined in a magnetic field of 1 telsa
(a reasonable value far down the magnetic nozzle), the number density
of the particles is at most 2.5e12 cm^-3 (when beta = 1); in all
likelihood, it would be much smaller to avoid plasma instabilities.
If the density of positrons is 1e12 cm^-3, an electron travelling 1 km
through this plasma would have a 1e5 cm x 2e-26 cm^2 x 1e12cm^-3 =
2e-9 chance of annihilating.
The annihilation cross section for muons is down by a factor
of the ratio of the electron/muon mass squared, so it is much smaller.
I don't have numbers for the pion interaction cross sections.
The relevant reaction would likely be:
pi- + pi+ --> 2 pi0
with the pi0's immediately decaying. The pion-proton cross section
peaks around roughly 10^-25 cm^2 at ~100 MeV, roughly the same as
the numbers used above for electrons and positrons.
-----
11-SEP-1991 21:35:18.10 Dale Amon
(Dr. Forward) ... referred me to several papers in JBIS (which I don't
have). .... said to look for a bibliography he and someone
else did. Anyway, the worst case assumption is pretty much as you
indicate, although he assured me that the e- WILL annihilate sooner or
later, and that the energy will outline the path of the rocket if seen
from a distance, although some of the particles may last 10 years.
The papers made an assumption of isotropism, as you suggested, but
Forward says that beaming is not necessarily out of the question. But
that is not his area.
I think he said the muons were moving about .94c, and that the e- might be
even faster, making relativistic beaming conceivable.
The results for detectability were not very impressive in the isotropic case.
-----
Wed, 11 Sep 91 19:09:57 EDT Paul Dietz
I think isotropy is a good assumption for annihilation of positrons
after a delay of years. The particles will get diverted in different
directions by the interstellar magnetic field, so when they do annihilate,
they'll not be going in the same direction.
Also, even when annihilation occurs, the two gamma photons will still
have some spread, so the "beam" would be rather wide even if all
the positrons were monodirectional.
------
END OF SUMMARY
Additional comments, suggested research areas:
The model could be set up by assuming isotropic production and
calculating the gamma flux at a detector of area A and distance d. In
this case the probability of it "pointing" at you is 1. beaming could
be simulated by keeping the output constant but decreasing the solid
angle likewise the probability of it pointing at you.
It would be interesting if someone had the appropriate physics to
study whether relativistic beaming would occur, and if so, what the
actual solid angle would be.
What spectrum would be expected from annihilation of relativistic positrons?
When was the JBIS article modeling the anisotropic case published?
Dale Amon
|
| 675.152 | | FASDER::ASCOLARO | Not Short, Vertically Challenged | Wed Oct 02 1991 14:50 | 9 |
| I wondered when they would begin to use these 'great observatories' for
detecting starships!
Seems to me like a very obvious use. Look for sources that are
constant, with unusual redshifts, etc.
It'll be interesting to see if they find anything .....
Tony
|