Preliminary results of a meteorological payload being developed by IITM

A meteorological rocket payload developed at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) using thermistor as a temperature sensor was flight tested on RH-200 rocket at Thumba (08° 32'N, 76° 52'E), India, during February/April 1982 on four occasions. The corrected data obtained with this payload are compared with Russian rocket, M-100, data. The temperature profile obtained with IITM payload is warmer above 45-km, as compared with M-100 temperature profile, on all occasions. Meridional and zonal winds also agree up to 45-km level. Temperature records show a wave pattern varying in amplitude and frequency in the 20 to 45-km range.     

In situ studies of electron density during equatorial spread-F

A Langmuir probe operated in fixed bias mode was launched onboard a RH-560 rocket from the Sriharikota Range (SHAR, Lat.13° 42'N, Geog. Long.80° 14'E, dip 10°) India on October 1, 1980 at 21h03 IST, to study the electron density profile and the electron density irregularities in the equatorial spread-F. The payload was designed to study medium and large scale irregularities. A highly variable and structured electron density profile was obtained. This was the first rocket launch in the Indian zone during spread-F condition.     

Measurements of the energy spectra of charged particles within the vertical-10 rocket experiment

On December 21-st, 1981, at 18.35 hours UT from the territory of the USSR (coordinates - 49°N/L 2/) in implementation of scientific objectives and in accordance with the ‘INTERCOSMOS’ Programme, there was launched the heavy geophysical rocket ‘VERTICAL-10’. The scientific payload included a low-energy two-channel spectrometer for measuring the differential flows of electrons and protons within the energy range 0.1 to 10 keV, covered by 15 exponentially distributed energy levels.     

Transient measurements of HV interaction with the ambient and perturbed space environment

Transient measurements of current collected by a rocket payload charged to several kilovolts negative with respect to the ambient plasma were made during the SPEAR-3 sounding rocket mission. The measurements were taken in short bursts at 1MHz, coincident with the application of the high voltage. The measured current is seen to rise approximately parabolically for approximately 15μs before rolling over into an exponential decay towards steady state current collection. The exponential time constant of 40 to 50μs is interpreted as the characteristic ion-collection sheath formation time for the SPEAR-3 payload.     

Measurements of electrical breakdown in the vicinity of a sounding rocket differentially charged to 10 kV

During the initial period of high voltage biasing of the SPEAR-3 sounding rocket payload, it was observed that electrical breakdown occurred in the gas surrounding the rocket. The breakdown occurred almost all the way to apogee of 289 km on the upleg, but did not recur on the downleg until the payload reached an altitude of 100 km. It is suggested that this behavior can be attributed to payload outgassing on the upleg leading to abnormally high gas pressure near the payload skin. Consideration of a modified Paschen discharge process with varying pressure along the discharge path was found to be consistent with the results.     

鲲鹏elax-1B火箭头体分离后章动运动分析与仿真

2016年4月鲲鹏elax-1B探空火箭在海南儋州台站发射.箭头与箭体分离之后,瞬间进入大章动运动状态,超出预期设计的技术指标范围.基于这种运动现象,分析了鲲鹏elax-1B头体分离后箭头章动可能的产生原因,建立了稀薄大气下准刚体箭头的姿态动力学方程,并通过数字仿真方法模拟了箭头的章动运动.与实际飞行姿态进行对比,得出了导致章动发散的主要原因,为后续探空火箭的设计提供理论参考.      

Responses of the upper middle atmosphere (60–110 km) to the stratwarms of the four pre-map winters (1978/9–1981/2)

The global developments of the four stratospheric events (～20–50 km) are described, using balloon, satellite and rocket data. Winds data for heights of 60–95 km, derived from L.F. drift (52°N, 15°E; Europe) and M.F. radar (52°N, 107°W; Canada), are then compared with the stratospheric data. There is clear evidence that the preliminary planetary waves often penetrate strongly to ～90 km, and that mean wind reversals also occur. However, there are dramatic differences between European and Canadian mesospheric responses.     

Electric field and electron density measurements in the equatorial E-region

A centaure rocket, with payloads of Langmuir probe and Electric field probe, was launched from Thumba (8° 31'N, O° 47'S dip), India on February 12, 1981 at 1057 Hrs IST. The aim of the experiment was to study the role of localised electric fields in the generation of plasma density irregularities through cross field instability and the two-stream instability mechanism. The rocket was launched at a time when Type I irregularities were observed with VHF radar at Thumba.     

The POKER experiment: A 10,800 cm2 MWPC's array payload for hard X-Ray Astronomy

In this paper the POKER-HXR81M hard X-Ray payload is described. The instrument, designed and built at the Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale of Frascati, is a very large array of MultiWire Proportional Counters (MWPC) devoted to stratospheric observations of cosmic sources in the field of hard X-Ray Astronomy. The payload basically consists of four passively collimated MWPC's having a geometric sensitive area of 2,700 cm² each with an efficiency higher than 10% in the operative range 15–200 KeV (80% at 60 KeV) with a square field of view of 5° × 5° FWHM. The overall spectral resolution is 13% at 60 KeV. The four MWPC's are filled with a very pure gas mixture of Xenon-Argon-Isobuthane at high pressure (3 bars).This experiment has been successfully flown during summer 1981 from the Milo balloon facility (Sicily, Italy). The performances of the payload and the preliminary results obtained during the 17 hours flight are discussed.     

Energy deposition in the upper atmosphere in the EXCEDE III experiment

The EXCEDE III sounding rocket flight of April 27, 1990 used a 18 Ampere 2.5 keV electron beam to produce an artificial aurora in the region 90 to 115 km. A “daughter” sensor payload remotely monitored the low-energy X-ray spectrum while scanning photometers measured the spatial profile of prompt emissions of N₂⁺ (1N) and N₂ (2P) transitions (3914Å and 3805Å, respectively). Two Ebert-Fastie spectrometers measured the spectral region from 1800 to 8000Å. On the “mother” accelerator payload, the return current electron differential energy spectra were monitored by an electrostatic analyzer (up to 10 keV) and by a retarding potential analyzer (0 eV to 100 eV). We present an overview of the results from this experiment.     

Measurements of the artificially stimulated precipitation of electrons from the inner radiation belt in the experiment “SPOLOKH-2”

Evidence for an enhancement of the electron flux associated with a barium chaped charge release from “SPOLOKH-2” rocket payload, launched from Volgograd (L = 2.2) on June 29, 1978, will be presented. There is also evidence for a periodic train of particle bursts occurring with about 11 second period during more than 100 seconds after the release. The observed phenomena is interpreted as a “trigger-effect”.     

Structure of the equatorial lower ionosphere from the Thumba Langmuir probe experiments

A Langmuir probe designed and developed at the Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad has been used on a variety of rockets since 1966 from the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station, TERLS (8°31'N, 76°52'E, dip.lat. 0°47'S) to study the structure of the equatorial lower ionosphere. Good quality data is available from a set of twenty five rocket flights conducted during the period 1966 to 1978. This data has been obtained using a single standardised instrument at a single location and using a uniform procedure for data reading and analysis, and adopting a calibration procedure to convert the measured probe currents into electron densities which involves a height dependent calibration factor. The data has been used to establish the gross features of the equatorial lower ionosphere under daytime, night time, morning twilight and evening twilight periods.     

Registration of ELF waves in rocket-satellite experiment with plasma injection

Two rocket experiments KOMBI-SAMA with plasma injection at height 100–240 km were performed in August 1987 in the region of Brazilian magnetic anomaly (L = 1.25). The launching time of the rocket was determined so that plasma injection was at the time when satellite COSMOS 1809 passed as close as possible to magnetic tube of injection. Caesium plasma jet was produced during ≥ 300 s by electric plasma generator separated from the payload. By diagnostic instruments on board of the rocket and the satellite were registered energetic particle fluxes and plasma wave activities stimulated by plasma injection. When the satellite passed the geomagnetic tube intersecting the injection region an enhancement of ELF emission at 140 Hz, 450 Hz by 2 times was registered on board the satellite. An enhancement of energetic particles (E > 40 keV) flux by 4–5 times was registered on board the rocket. Observed ELV emission below 100 Hz is interpreted as generation of oblique electromagnetic ion-cyclotron waves due to drift plasma instability at the front of the plasma jet.     

Measurements of upper atmosphere wind and temperature from meteorological rocket experiments during winter 1979

This institute conducted a series of meteorological rocket experiments for the upper-atmospheric sounding in the winter of 1979. Within the overlap altitude range with balloon flights, a comparison of the results with the standard radiosonde data indicated that the rocket-borne system was reliable. The measurements from foru rocket flights for the region between 20 and 30 km showed a degree of compatibility to each other while those for above 30 km differed considerably from one another. At low latitude, the temperature profiles in the winter stratosphere in general showed a reasonably good agreement with the U.S. Standard Atmospheric Supplements, 1966 (USSAS 66). A temperature of 2–24°C lower than the USSAS 66, however, was recorded in the lower mesosphere. Above 30 km the maximum diurnal variation in temperature was 9°C or so. In the winter, the wind profile showed the westerlies and the maximum wind velocity of 92.1 Msec^?1 was obtained from these experiments at the height of 60 km.     

Horizontal winds in the mesosphere at high latitudes

A total of 146 meteorological rocket flights applying the ‘falling sphere’ technique are used to obtain horizontal winds in the mesosphere at polar latitudes, namely at the Andøya Rocket Range (69°N, 125 flights), at Spitsbergen (78°N, 10 flights), and at Rothera (68°S, 11 January flights only). Nearly all flights took place around noon or midnight, i.e., in the same phase of the semidiurnal tide. Meridional winds at 69°N show a clear diurnal tidal variation which is not observed in the zonal winds. The zonal wind climatology shows a transition from summer to winter conditions with the zero wind line propagating upward from 40 km (end of August) to 80 km (end of September). Zonal winds are smaller at Spitsbergen compared to Andøya which is in line with a common angular velocity at both stations. Meridional winds at noon are of similar magnitude at all three stations and are directed towards the north and south pole, respectively. Horizontal and meridional winds generally agree with empirical models, except for the zonal winds at Antarctica which are similar to the NH, whereas there is a significant SH/NH difference in CIRA-1986.     

Plasma effects of active ion beam injections in the ionosphere at rocket altitudes

Data from ARCS rocket ion beam injection experiments will be primarily discussed in this paper. There are three results from this series of active experiments that are of particular interest in space plasma physics. These are the transverse acceleration of ambient ions in the large beam volume, the scattering of beam ions near the release payload, and the possible acceleration of electrons very close to the plasma generator which produce intense high frequency waves. The ability of 100 ma ion beam injections into the upper E and F regions of the ionosphere to produce these phenomena appear to be related solely to the process by which the plasma release payload and the ion beam are neutralized. Since the electrons in the plasma release do not convect with the plasma ions, the neutralization of both the payload and beam must be accomplished by large field-aligned currents (milliamperes/square meter) which are very unstable to wave growth of various modes. Future work will concentrate on the wave production and wave-particle interactions that produce the plasma/energetic particle effects discussed in this paper and which have direct application to natural phenomena in the upper ionosphere and magnetosphere.     

The HESP/R satellite project

The aim of the HESP/R (High Energy Solar Physics/Radiation) satellite project is to obtain data of γ-ray, hard X-ray soft X-ray, EUV, and visible radiation of solar flares at the next solar maximum in order to study physics of flares. The HESP/R will be a spinning satellite of 4–5 rotations per min., and the spin axis is off-set by a small angle (0.5°–1.0°) from the Sun. Total weight will be 400 kg and launched in 1991 with M-3S-II rocket by ISAS.     

Cell fusion in space: plasma membrane fusion in human fibroblasts during short term microgravity.

During short-term microgravity in sounding rocket experiments (6 min.) the cytoskeleton undergoes changes and therefore it is possible that cell processes which are dependent on the structure and function of the cytoskeleton are influenced. A cell fusion experiment, initiated by a short electric pulse, was chosen as a model experiment for this sounding rocket experiment. Confluent monolayers of primary human skin fibroblasts, grown on coverslips, were mounted between two electrodes (distance 0.5 cm) and fused by discharging a capacitor (68 micro F; 250 V; 10 msec) in a low conductive medium. During a microgravity experiment in which nearly all the requirements for an optimal result were met (only the recovery of the payload was delayed) results were found that indicated that microgravity during 6 minutes did not influence cell fusion since the percentage of fused products did not change during microgravity. Within the limits of discrimination using morphological assays microgravity has no influence on the actin/cortical cytoskeleton just after electrofusion.     

Proposals for an Indian standard tropical atmosphere up to 50 km

In an earlier report [1] the authors proposed an Indian Standard Tropical Atmosphere (ISTA1) from mean sea level to 20 km. This proposal describes adequately the mean conditions from 0° to about 30°N. The present work extends ISTA1 to the higher altitude of 50 km based oni. World Data Center A reports on Rocket firings [2],ii. M-100 rocket data for Thumba, India [3],iii. Northern Reference Atmospheres data of Cole and Kantor [4], andiv. Southern Reference Atmospheres data of Koshelkov [5].The proposed atmosphere, called ISTA7, has a sea level temperature of 30°C and a constant lapse rate of 6.5°C/km up to 16 km, as in ISTA1; from a temperature of -74°C at this altitude, there is a constant lapse rate of -2.3°C/km up to 46 km where the temperature is -5°C; the temperature remains constant thereafter up to 50 km. The fact that variations with longitude are weak except at very high latitudes [4], together with the fact that around 50 km, the temperature increases from low to high latitudes, lead us to propose a constant temperature of -5°C between 46 and 50 km, even though this temperature is slightly higher (by about 5°C) than the Thumba data.$\text{1}$/     

Long duration hard X-ray transatlantic payload

This note describes the HXR80M large area hard X-Ray Astronomy experiment. The payload is scheduled for a flight on board of a transatlantic balloon to be launched the next July from the Milo Base (Sicily), in the framework of the CNR experimental transatlantic campaign.The detectors are two Multiwire Spectroscopic Proportional Chambers (MWSPC) having 2,700 cm² sensitive area each.The two detectors are filled with an extremely pure Xenon-Isobutane mixture (impurity less than 1ppm) at high pressure (3–6 Atm) in order to obtain good spectral resolution and high efficiency. The field of view of the MWSPC's is limited by an array of three collimators each, having respectively 8°×8° and 5°×5° FWHM.The on board data handling is performed by microprocessor controlled electronics. In particular a micro Multichannel Analyzer (μMCA) is employed to obtain the spectrum of the detected photons. The scientific and housekeeping data are send to ground through a 1.2 Kbit PCM HF Telemetry link.The scientific aim of the experiment is the survey of the sky belt around the 38th parallel and in particular the observation of faint galactic objects and galactic binary systems in the range 15–200 keV.