First stage identification of syntactic elements in an extra-terrestrial signal

By investigating the generic attributes of a representative set of terrestrial languages at varying levels of abstraction, it is our endeavour to try and isolate elements of the signal universe, which are computationally tractable for its detection and structural decipherment. Ultimately, our aim is to contribute in some way to the understanding of what ‘languageness’ actually is. This paper describes algorithms and software developed to characterise and detect generic intelligent language-like features in an input signal, using natural language learning techniques: looking for characteristic statistical “language-signatures” in test corpora. As a first step towards such species-independent language-detection, we present a suite of programs to analyse digital representations of a range of data, and use the results to extrapolate whether or not there are language-like structures which distinguish this data from other sources, such as music, images, and white noise.     

The art and science of interstellar message composition: a report on international workshops to encourage multidisciplinary discussion

Throughout the history of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), there has been widespread recognition of the profound societal implications of detecting intelligence beyond Earth. At the SETI Institute, interstellar message construction serves as the focus of a multidisciplinary attempt to prepare for the cultural impact of signal detection and the critical events that would follow. Interstellar message construction at the SETI Institute builds upon the recommendations of the 1991–1992 Workshops on the Cultural Aspects of SETI, while also exploring opportunities for multidisciplinary contributions on new topics. Through a series of international workshops in Toulouse, Paris, Zagreb, Washington, and Bremen, the SETI Institute and partner organizations have fostered broad-based discussion about some of the most important decisions that would follow detection of extraterrestrial intelligence, including “should we reply?” and if so, “what should we say, and how might we say it?”. Several of the themes addressed at these workshops will be highlighted, including the relationship between art and science in designing messages, the value of interactive messages, and the importance of better understanding the nature of language.     

基于 FRFT的多分量对称三角 LFMCW 信号检测

对称三角线性调频连续波（STLFMCW）信号是一种典型的低截获概率雷达信号。提出一种基于分数阶 Fourier变换（FRFT ）的聚类分析与“逐次消去”相结合的多分量STLFMCW信号检测方法。首先把多分量STLFMCW信号变换到FRFT 域,利用聚类分析法实现对最强信号的检测,然后利用“逐次消去”法实现对其它信号的检测,直至检测到所有信号。最后,仿真验证了该方法的有效性。     

Information theory,animal communication,and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence

We present ongoing research in the application of information theory to animal communication systems with the goal of developing additional detectors and estimators for possible extraterrestrial intelligent signals. Regardless of the species, for intelligence (i.e., complex knowledge) to be transmitted certain rules of information theory must still be obeyed. We demonstrate some preliminary results of applying information theory to socially complex marine mammal species (bottlenose dolphins and humpback whales) as well as arboreal squirrel monkeys, because they almost exclusively rely on vocal signals for their communications, producing signals which can be readily characterized by signal analysis. Metrics such as Zipf's Law and higher-order information-entropic structure are emerging as indicators of the communicative complexity characteristic of an “intelligent message” content within these animals’ signals, perhaps not surprising given these species’ social complexity. In addition to human languages, for comparison we also apply these metrics to pulsar signals—perhaps (arguably) the most “organized” of stellar systems—as an example of astrophysical systems that would have to be distinguished from an extraterrestrial intelligence message by such information theoretic filters. We also look at a message transmitted from Earth (Arecibo Observatory) that contains a lot of meaning but little information in the mathematical sense we define it here. We conclude that the study of non-human communication systems on our own planet can make a valuable contribution to the detection of extraterrestrial intelligence by providing quantitative general measures of communicative complexity. Studying the complex communication systems of other intelligent species on our own planet may also be one of the best ways to deprovincialize our thinking about extraterrestrial communication systems in general.     

SETI,extrasolar planets search and interstellar flight: When are they going to merge?

The SETI Permanent Study Group (abbreviated SETI PSG) of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA), with web site: http://www.setileague.org/iaaseti/index.html, is one of the few international venues where, as of 2006, scientists with different backgrounds and from all over the world can meet and discuss recent advances in the scientific, technical and societal aspects of SETI. In particular, the Pe?ek Lecture that traditionally opens in October every year the SETI 1 Session of the International Astronautical Congress (IAC), is intended to describe the updated state-of-the-art in SETI and related fields with the accent on science and technology rather than on the societal consequences of a contact with ET. We have thus come to the conclusion that a Pe?ek Lecture devoted to the interplay between SETI and the rapidly evolving field of the Search for Extrasolar Planets (or Exoplanets) would be quite up-to-date, especially in view of the over 200 exoplanets rapidly discovered in the 11 years between 1995 and 2006. Moreover, besides SETI and Exoplanets, there is a third field of scientific investigation that, although not as mature as the former two fields in terms of experimental research, is striving ahead among many theoretical difficulties but might really change the course of human history when becoming reality: this is the theory (so far) of Interstellar Flight, that would one day enable us to travel across the vast interstellar distances initially by virtues of probes only, and later “in person”.The present Pe?ek Lecture is trying to compare the different grow rate and the (now small) overlap in between these three apparently “unrelated” fields. And even if we can hardly find any answer in these “dark ages” we live, let us at least raise the question: “When are SETI, Exoplanet Searches and Interstellar Flight going to merge in the future of Humankind?”.     

Museums, seti and community awareness

Commentators on the social implications of detecting an extraterrestrial civilisation have stressed the need for community education and awareness during the SETI search, and for public sources of accurate, authoritative information if and when a signal is detected. Museums have a role in community education and are recognised by the community as authoritative sources of expert information. They are, therefore, well placed to be important conduits through which information on the progress of SETI programs and any signal detection can be channelled to the public. Via both exhibitions and in-house educational activities, museums are able to provide long-term community education and awareness programs and can respond quickly with detailed and accurate information in the event of a detection. This paper will consider the role of museums in educating the public about SETI. It will present suggestions for ways in which SETI researchers can develop mutually profitable relationships with museums, and also consider some of the reasons why museums might choose not to become involved with SETI, because of the wildly sensationalised and often mis-informed controversy which has surrounded it.     

运动基航天飞行训练模拟器信号缩比算法研究

当前运动基飞行模拟器对控制信号的缩比以三阶多项式缩比法为主,但其参数确定困难且当缩比幅度较大时易使信号出现较大畸变。而航天飞行模拟中常常会经历线加速度或角速度信号在较大幅值范围内的增大或减小,典型的如返回再入时的过载变化。针对此种情况,一种新的缩比算法——Hermite缩比函数法被提出。首先完善了Hermit缩比法关于最优参数理论的推导和证明;其次,引入变量“缩比度”,在实例仿真中比较了其对两种缩比方法的影响。结果表明,Hermite缩比函数法参数确定方便,其信号单调性的保持不依赖于缩比度的取值,更适合应用于缩比度变化较大的航天飞行模拟中。
     

Health scorecard of spacecraft platforms: Track record of on-orbit anomalies and failures and preliminary comparative analysis

Choosing the “right” satellite platform for a given market and mission requirements is a major investment decision for a satellite operator. With a variety of platforms available on the market from different manufacturers, and multiple offerings from the same manufacturer, the down-selection process can be quite involved. In addition, because data for on-obit failures and anomalies per platform is unavailable, incomplete, or fragmented, it is difficult to compare options and make an informed choice with respect to the critical attribute of field reliability of different platforms. In this work, we first survey a large number of geosynchronous satellite platforms by the major satellite manufacturers, and we provide a brief overview of their technical characteristics, timeline of introduction, and number of units launched. We then analyze an extensive database of satellite failures and anomalies, and develop for each platform a “health scorecard” that includes all the minor and major anomalies, and complete failures—that is failure events of different severities—observed on-orbit for each platform. We identify the subsystems that drive these failure events and how much each subsystem contributes to these events for each platform. In addition, we provide the percentage of units in each platform which have experienced failure events, and, after calculating the total number of years logged on-orbit by each platform, we compute its corresponding average failure and anomaly rate. We conclude this work with a preliminary comparative analysis of the health scorecards of different platforms.The concept of a “health scorecard” here introduced provides a useful snapshot of the failure and anomaly track record of a spacecraft platform on orbit. As such, it constitutes a useful and transparent benchmark that can be used by satellite operators to inform their acquisition choices (“inform” not “base” as other considerations are factored in when comparing different spacecraft platforms), and by satellite manufacturers to guide their testing and reliability improvement programs. Finally, it is important to keep in mind that these health scorecards should be considered dynamic documents to be updated on a regular basis if they are to remain accurate and relevant for comparative analysis purposes, as new information will impact their content.     

Some psychophysiological and behavioral aspects of adaptation to simulated autonomous Mission to Mars

“Mars-105” experiment was executed in March–July 2009 in Moscow, at the Institute for Bio-Medical Problems (IBMP) with participation of European Space Agency (ESA) to simulate some specific conditions of future piloted Mars mission. In the last 35 days of isolation, in order to simulate autonomous flight conditions, some serious restrictions were established for the crew resupply and communication with Mission Control (MC). The objective of the study was to investigate psychophysiological and behavioral aspects (communication) of adaptation during this period of “high autonomy”. We used computerized analysis of the crew written daily reports to calculate the frequencies of utilization of certain semantic units, expressing different psychological functions. To estimate the level of psycho-physiological stress, we measured the concentration of urinal cortisol once in two weeks. To investigate psycho-emotional state, we used the questionnaire SAN, estimating Mood, Activity and Health once in two weeks.During the simulation of autonomous flight, we found out the different tendencies of communicative behavior. One group of subjects demonstrated the tendency to “activation and self-government” under “high autonomy” conditions. The other subjects continued to use communicative strategy that we called “closing the communication channel”. “Active” communication strategy was accompanied by increasing in subjective scores of mood and activity. The subjects, whose communication strategy was attributed as “closing”, demonstrated the considerably lower subjective scores of mood and activity. Period of high autonomy causes specific changes in communication strategies of the isolated crew.     

光学遥感压缩成像技术

基于Shannon采样定理的传统信息获取系统在高空间、时间和谱分辨率及系统其它性能上存在难以突破的瓶颈,压缩采样理论为提升航天遥感信息获取能力提供了新的思路。基于压缩采样理论的成像技术（压缩成像）将采样、压缩和数据处理3个过程完美的结合在一起,避免了传统遥感成像系统“先采样再压缩”方式带来的传感器和计算资源浪费,是未来光学遥感极具潜力的成像方式。文章在简要介绍压缩采样基本理论的基础上,总结和分析了国际上目前提出的光学压缩成像系统原型,设计开展了3组压缩成像物理实验,特别结合航天遥感需求设计了推扫式压缩成像方案,实验结果验证了压缩采样的基本原理,并为未来光学遥感压缩成像系统的设计提供了借鉴。     

人在回路控制指示器信号速率提取特性的描述及最优控制律

控制指示器显示信号的速率提供了人在回路控制的预测信息。本文根据人眼对观测目标位置信息及其运动速度信息的感知特性，提出人眼并行地感知位置幅度和“量测”运动速度等假设，由此给出了操纵者对显示信号速率提取特性的简洁有效的构造性描述。仿真结果与已有的实验数据相比较得到了较好的验证。     

An International Environmental Agreement for space debris mitigation among asymmetric nations

We investigate how ideas from the International Environmental Agreement (IEA) literature can be applied to the problem of space debris mitigation. Space debris pollution is similar to other international environmental problems in that there is a potential for a “tragedy of the commons” effect: individual nations bear all the cost of their mitigation measures but share only a fraction of the benefit. As a consequence, nations have a tendency to underinvest in mitigation. Coalitions of nations, brought together by IEAs, have the potential to lessen the tragedy of the commons effect by pooling the costs and benefits of mitigation. This work brings together two recent modeling advances: (i) a game theoretic model for studying the potential gains from IEA cooperation between nations with asymmetric costs and benefits, (ii) an orbital debris model that gives the societal cost that specific actions, such as failing to deorbit an inactive spacecraft, have on the environment. We combine these two models with empirical launch-share data for a “proof of concept” of an IEA for a single mitigation measure—deorbiting spacecraft at the end of operational lifetime. Simulations of empirically derived and theoretical launch distributions among nations suggest the possibility that voluntary coalitions can provide significant deorbiting gains relative to nations acting in the absence of an IEA agreement.     

航天器在轨运行段遥控作业规范化设计与实现

针对当前航天器长期运行段遥控作业中人工干预环节较多、自动化智能化水平较低、流程标准化较低、要素不完整、事后工作不完整等问题,在分析形成遥控作业规范化需求的基础上,对遥控作业运行流程、功能模块、异常报警处置策略进行设计与规范。将遥控作业分为遥控上行前、中、后三个阶段,在现有基础上增加启动时机合法性自动检测、状态自动判别、时间条件自动驱动、注入结果自动评估、事后安全处置、自动退出、异常情况下循环报警推送处置策略等模块,完成遥控作业编写的规范性设计。最后,选取50颗在轨卫星对规范后的遥控作业进行验证,并与已有的作业进行了量化比对,结果显示,规范化遥控作业显著提升了上行工作的安全性、可靠性和运行效率,可提高航天器在轨稳定运行性。     

Societal Statistics by virtue of the Statistical Drake Equation

The Drake equation, first proposed by Frank D. Drake in 1961, is the foundational equation of SETI. It yields an estimate of the number N of extraterrestrial communicating civilizations in the Galaxy given by the product N=Ns×fp×ne×fl×fi×fc×fL, where: Ns is the number of stars in the Milky Way Galaxy; fp is the fraction of stars that have planetary systems; ne is the number of planets in a given system that are ecologically suitable for life; fl is the fraction of otherwise suitable planets on which life actually arises; fi is the fraction of inhabited planets on which an intelligent form of life evolves; fc is the fraction of planets inhabited by intelligent beings on which a communicative technical civilization develops; and fL is the fraction of planetary lifetime graced by a technical civilization.The first three terms may be called “the astrophysical terms” in the Drake equation since their numerical value is provided by astrophysical considerations. The fourth term, fl, may be called “the origin-of-life term” and entails biology. The last three terms may be called “the societal terms” inasmuch as their respective numerical values are provided by anthropology, telecommunication science and “futuristic science”, respectively.In this paper, we seek to provide a statistical estimate of the three societal terms in the Drake equation basing our calculations on the Statistical Drake Equation first proposed by this author at the 2008 IAC. In that paper the author extended the simple 7-factor product so as to embody Statistics. He proved that, no matter which probability distribution may be assigned to each factor, if the number of factors tends to infinity, then the random variable N follows the lognormal distribution (central limit theorem of Statistics). This author also proved at the 2009 IAC that the Dole (1964) [7] equation, yielding the number of Habitable Planets for Man in the Galaxy, has the same mathematical structure as the Drake equation. So the number of Habitable Planets follows the lognormal distribution as well. But the Dole equation is described by the first FOUR factors of the Drake equation. Thus, we may “divide” the 7-factor Drake equation by the 4-factor Dole equation getting the probability distribution of the last-3-factor Drake equation, i.e. the probability distribution of the SOCIETAL TERMS ONLY. These we study in detail in this paper, achieving new statistical results about the SOCIETAL ASPECTS OF SETI.     

一种立方星编队重构多脉冲机动规划方法

针对立方星轨道机动能力约束,提出一种基于相对轨道根数动力学模型的多脉冲机动规划算法。对于相对轨道面内各分量之间的控制耦合问题,基于“先控制相对形状、后修正迹向距离”的策略,提出了满足速度增量约束的多脉冲机动规划算法;分析了近地轨道 J 2 摄动和大气阻力摄动对相对轨道的影响,并基于线性化的状态转移模型提出了迭代优化策略,以降低立方星在摄动影响下的轨道机动误差。仿真结果表明,所提出的多脉冲机动规划算法在不同任务条件下均可获得有效的机动规划,迭代优化策略可有效地提高终点位置的精度,在基于高精度轨道递推搭建的任务仿真中也验证了算法的有效性,可用于立方星编队构建和重构任务。     

基于最大值投影的运动点目标检测算法及其性能

针对低信噪比序列图像中微弱点状运动目标检测,提出了一种基于最大值投影构造组合帧图像与帧序号图像的检测算法,给出了算法的计算步骤。用建立的检测率和虚警率的分析模型,讨论了检测率、虚警率、信噪比、构造组合帧的图像帧数间的关系。仿真结果表明,通过合理选择组合帧数,该算法可有效检测出低信噪比条件下图像序列中的运动点目标和交叉运动的多点目标。     

A framework for evaluating national space activity

Space technology and resources are used around the world to address societal challenges. Space provides valuable satellite services, unique scientific discoveries, surprising technology applications and new economic opportunities. Many developing countries formally recognize the advantages of space resources and pursue national level activity to harness them. There is limited data or documentation on the space activities of developing countries. Meanwhile, traditional approaches to summarize national space activity do not necessarily capture the types of activity that developing countries pursue in space. This is especially true if they do not have a formal national space program or office. Developing countries pursue national space activity through activities of many types—from national satellite programs to commercial use of satellite services to involvement with international space institutions. This research aims to understand and analyze these trends. This paper introduces two analytical frameworks for evaluating space activity at the national level. The frameworks are specifically designed to capture the activity of countries that have traditionally been less involved in space. They take a broad view of space related activity across multiple societal sectors and disciplines. The discussion explains the approach for using the frameworks as well as illustrative examples of how they can be applied as part of a research process. The first framework is called the Mission and Management Ladders. This framework considers specific space projects within countries and ranks them on “Ladders” that measure technical challenge and managerial autonomy. This first method is at a micro level of analysis. The second framework is called the Space Participation Metric (SPM). The SPM can be used to assign a Space Participation score to countries based on their involvement in various space related activities. This second method uses a macro level of analysis. The authors developed both frameworks as part of a long term research program about the space activities of developing countries. This aspect of the research focuses on harnessing multiple techniques to summarize complex, multi-disciplinary information about global space activity.     

On radiative and conductive heat transfer in spacecraft

The “radiative” boundary condition in a heat conduction problem relates the heat flux in a point of the wall to the temperatures in all the other points of the surface system.That is, this condition is of a “functional” type. This “functional” can be solved in discrete terms by using the conventional technique of dividing the body in small discrete elements or “nodes”. This paper instead presents an approach on a continuous scheme, by which the functional is solved in terms of “spacewise harmonics” of the temperature inside the body; the heat conduction problem is thus reduced to an ordinary form differential system whose unknowns are these “harmonics”. An interative linearized procedure to solve this system is also suggested, by which “exact” solutions are obtained. The merits of these solutions, with respect to practical discrete element computations, are in the better spacewise resolution and in the consequent more accurate treatment of both radiation and conduction. The application of the procedure is, however, limited to particular geometries. It is relevant to note that among these possible geometries many are included of practical interest, like hollow cylinders and polygons, cubic boxes etc. A numerical example completes the work.