Bipolar nickel-metal hydride battery for hybrid vehicles

Hybrid electric vehicles are receiving increased interest as an approach to decrease vehicle pollution, dependence, and consumption of liquid petroleum and meet forthcoming Government vehicle emission standards. A number of schemes are under consideration (heat engine battery, fuel cell battery, peaking battery, inner-city battery, etc.). The success of any of the approaches will be dependent on battery capabilities, i.e., power, density, life, and cost. The nickel-metal hydride system appears to be the most promising of the candidate battery chemistries. Preliminary designs and analysis have been prepared and are presented for various configurations. Initial performance characterization tests are presented. It is concluded that a bipolar package arrangement for the Ni-MH chemistry appears most suited for the hybrid vehicle application considered     

Processing requirements for multisensor low-cost brilliantmunitions

A generic mission for an autonomous brilliant munition is presented and used to identify the functions that embedded signal processors must perform. Based on these functions and other operational factors such as weather, countermeasures, larger search areas, reduced false alarm rates, and increased munition maneuverability, the processing loads in bits/second messages/second, operations/second, and instructions/second are derived. An evaluation of general implementation issues such as the requirements for data fusion, distributed and parallel processing architectures, reliable software, and low-cost hardware is presented     

Application of the Concept of Referenced Radio Navigation

This paper discusses referenced radio navigation, the concept whereby monitoring stations at known locations are used to calibrate out systematic errors in a navigation system. This concept is implemented by broadcasting calibration data to the navigating user for application as real-time corrections to the position fixes made by the user's basic navigation equipment. A method is suggested for the automatic transmission and receiver processing of the correction data. Referenced radio navigation overcomes many of the shortcomings generally associated with long-distance navigation systems, and can increase accuracy and repeatability significantly. The concept is particularly applicable to global navigation systems such as OMEGA, in which propagation or synchronization errors can contribute substantially to the system error budget.     

Planetary protection issues for sample return missions.

Sample return missions from a comet nucleus and the Mars surface are currently under study in the US, USSR, and by ESA. Guidance on Planetary Protection (PP) issues is needed by mission scientists and engineers for incorporation into various elements of mission design studies. Although COSPAR has promulgated international policy on PP for various classes of solar system exploration missions, the applicability of this policy to sample return missions, in particular, remains vague. In this paper, we propose a set of implementing procedures to maintain the scientific integrity of these samples. We also propose that these same procedures will automatically assure that COSPAR-derived PP guidelines are achieved. The recommendations discussed here are the first step toward development of official COSPAR implementation requirements for sample return missions.     

Direct observation of processes in a solidifying dispersion

The evolution of a dispersion under the action of temperature gradients and solidification was followed optically in a transparent molten salt (CsCl) with inclusions of Pb-droplets and gas bubbles. This system is believed to model a solidifying metallic alloy. Rejection of Pb-particles by the solidification front was observed, while large gas bubbles were incorporated. Thermocapillary convection at the gas bubbles considerably distorted the temperature field and even caused local remelting. Marangoni migration of bubbles was not observed, contrary to expectations.     

Variability and origin of permanent radio emission in RS CVn and Algol type binaries

The variability of the radio emission of RS CVn and Algol type binaries has been observed over 70 hours by Lefèvre et al. (1993). In this contribution simple model calculations are applied to discuss the relevant time scales. It is concluded that a significant fraction of the permanent radio emission of these systems is due to flare-like processes of energy release over a wide range of energies.     

Hardware development and tests in the GIRL project

The German Infrared Laboratory GIRL is a liquid helium-cooled telescope with four focal plane instruments dedicated to astronomical and aeronomical observations.Hardware tests were performed with a thermal model of the cryostat and other components as active phase separator, optical switches, main mirror, baffle etc.In the test phase the thermal behavior of the system was checked out in a step by step procedure. The timeline of the individual experiments and of two representative orbits were simulated by electrical heaters. Temperatures and helium flow rates for the different operation modes were measured.An outlook shows that the project phase in 1982 is dedicated to further development and tests of hardware and complete definition and specification of all GIRL systems.     

SMESE: A SMall Explorer for Solar Eruptions

The SMall Explorer for Solar Eruptions (SMESE) mission is a microsatellite proposed by France and China. The payload of SMESE consists of three packages: LYOT (a Lyman imager and a Lyman coronagraph), DESIR (an Infra-Red Telescope working at 35–80 and 100–250 μm), and HEBS (a High-Energy Burst Spectrometer working in X- and γ-rays).

The status of research on flares and coronal mass ejections is briefly reviewed in the context of on-going missions such as SOHO, TRACE and RHESSI. The scientific objectives and the profile of the mission are described. With a launch around 2012–2013, SMESE will provide a unique tool for detecting and understanding eruptions (flares and coronal mass ejections) close to the maximum phase of activity.     

InSight Mars Lander Robotics Instrument Deployment System

The InSight Mars Lander is equipped with an Instrument Deployment System (IDS) and science payload with accompanying auxiliary peripherals mounted on the Lander. The InSight science payload includes a seismometer (SEIS) and Wind and Thermal Shield (WTS), heat flow probe (Heat Flow and Physical Properties Package, HP³) and a precision tracking system (RISE) to measure the size and state of the core, mantle and crust of Mars. The InSight flight system is a close copy of the Mars Phoenix Lander and comprises a Lander, cruise stage, heatshield and backshell. The IDS comprises an Instrument Deployment Arm (IDA), scoop, five finger “claw” grapple, motor controller, arm-mounted Instrument Deployment Camera (IDC), lander-mounted Instrument Context Camera (ICC), and control software. IDS is responsible for the first precision robotic instrument placement and release of SEIS and HP³ on a planetary surface that will enable scientists to perform the first comprehensive surface-based geophysical investigation of Mars’ interior structure. This paper describes the design and operations of the Instrument Deployment Systems (IDS), a critical subsystem of the InSight Mars Lander necessary to achieve the primary scientific goals of the mission including robotic arm geology and physical properties (soil mechanics) investigations at the Landing site. In addition, we present test results of flight IDS Verification and Validation activities including thermal characterization and InSight 2017 Assembly, Test, and Launch Operations (ATLO), Deployment Scenario Test at Lockheed Martin, Denver, where all the flight payloads were successfully deployed with a balloon gravity offload fixture to compensate for Mars to Earth gravity.     

Applications and usage of the real-time Neutron Monitor Database

A high-time resolution Neutron Monitor Database (NMDB) has started to be realized in the frame of the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Commission. This database will include cosmic ray data from at least 18 neutron monitors distributed around the world and operated in real-time. The implementation of the NMDB will provide the opportunity for several research applications most of which will be realized in real-time mode. An important one will be the establishment of an Alert signal when dangerous solar cosmic ray particles are heading to the Earth, resulting into ground level enhancements effects registered by neutron monitors. Furthermore, on the basis of these events analysis, the mapping of all ground level enhancement features in near real-time mode will provide an overall picture of these phenomena and will be used as an input for the calculation of the ionization of the atmosphere. The latter will be useful together with other contributions to radiation dose calculations within the atmosphere at several altitudes and will reveal the absorbed doses during flights. Moreover, special algorithms for anisotropy and pitch angle distribution of solar cosmic rays, which have been developed over the years, will also be set online offering the advantage to give information about the conditions of the interplanetary space. All of the applications will serve the needs of the modern world which relies at space environment and will use the extensive network of neutron monitors as a multi-directional spectrographic detector. On top of which, the decreases of the cosmic ray intensity – known as Forbush decreases – will also be analyzed and a number of important parameters such as galactic cosmic ray anisotropy will be made available to the users of NMDB. A part of the NMDB project is also dedicated to the creation of a public outreach website with the scope to inform about cosmic rays and their possible effects on humans, technological systems and space-terrestrial environment. Therefore, NMDB will also stand as an informative gate on space research through neutron monitor’s data usage.