是筹划卫星战的时候了

美国国家安全空间系统在管理方面实行的改革,应当看成是全面重新评价美国的军事空间政策的机会。自从１９９１年以来,形势已发生了很大的变化。如果我们还把只适用于冷战时期的政策继续延用到大大变化了的２１世纪,那么,将会导致灾难性的后果。制订军事空间政策的中心...     

单一物质的热力学性能近似计算

本文介绍针对固定温度点的热力学函数 (如焓、熵、比热 )综合近似计算法。该方法已成功地用来近似计算温度范围为 10 0～ 2 0 0 0 0 K的 150 0个热力学函数表。用内含近似计算程序包的 TD软件系统对混合物参数进行热力计算的结果证明,该多项式在求解多组元系统计算中迭代问题时具有很高的可靠性。      

SOLID3: a multiplex antibody microarray-based optical sensor instrument for in situ life detection in planetary exploration

The search for unequivocal signs of life on other planetary bodies is one of the major challenges for astrobiology. The failure to detect organic molecules on the surface of Mars by measuring volatile compounds after sample heating, together with the new knowledge of martian soil chemistry, has prompted the astrobiological community to develop new methods and technologies. Based on protein microarray technology, we have designed and built a series of instruments called SOLID (for "Signs Of LIfe Detector") for automatic in situ detection and identification of substances or analytes from liquid and solid samples (soil, sediments, or powder). Here, we present the SOLID3 instrument, which is able to perform both sandwich and competitive immunoassays and consists of two separate functional units: a Sample Preparation Unit (SPU) for 10 different extractions by ultrasonication and a Sample Analysis Unit (SAU) for fluorescent immunoassays. The SAU consists of five different flow cells, with an antibody microarray in each one (2000 spots). It is also equipped with an exclusive optical package and a charge-coupled device (CCD) for fluorescent detection. We demonstrated the performance of SOLID3 in the detection of a broad range of molecular-sized compounds, which range from peptides and proteins to whole cells and spores, with sensitivities at 1-2?ppb (ng?mL?1) for biomolecules and 10? to 103 spores per milliliter. We report its application in the detection of acidophilic microorganisms in the Río Tinto Mars analogue and report the absence of substantial negative effects on the immunoassay in the presence of 50?mM perchlorate (20 times higher than that found at the Phoenix landing site). Our SOLID instrument concept is an excellent option with which to detect biomolecules because it avoids the high-temperature treatments that may destroy organic matter in the presence of martian oxidants.     

Divergence and phylogeny of firmicutes from the cuatro ciénegas basin, Mexico: a window to an ancient ocean

Abstract The Cuatro Ciénegas Basin (CCB) has been identified as a center of endemism for many life-forms. Nearly half the bacterial species found in the spring systems have their closest relatives in the ocean. This raises the question of whether the high diversity observed today is the product of an adaptive radiation similar to that of the Galapagos Islands or whether the bacterial groups are \"survivors\" of an ancient sea, which would be of interest for astrobiology. To help answer this question, we focused on Firmicutes from Cuatro Ciénegas (mainly Bacillus and Exiguobacterium). We reconstructed the phylogenetic relationships of Firmicutes with 28 housekeeping genes and dated the resulting tree using geological events as calibration points. Our results show that marine Bacillus diverged from other Bacillus strains 838?Ma, while Bacillus from Cuatro Ciénegas have divergence dates that range from 770 to 202?Ma. The members of Exiguobacterium from the CCB conform to a much younger group that diverged from the Andes strain 60?Ma and from the one in Yellowstone 183?Ma. Therefore, the diversity of Firmicutes in Cuatro Ciénegas is not the product of a recent radiation but the product of the isolation of lineages from an ancient ocean. Hence, Cuatro Ciénegas is not a Galapagos Archipelago for bacteria but is more like an astrobiological \"time machine\" in which bacterial lineages survived in an oligotrophic environment that may be very similar to that of the Precambrian. Key Words: Firmicutes-Cuatro Ciénegas-Precambrian-Molecular dating-Western Interior Seaway. Astrobiology 12, 674-684.     

高温圆箔热流计

已经发展了一种工作温度高达1950°F的新型的圆箔热流计。它的最重要的特点是在高温时,保持了高的灵敏度,而一般传统的康铜箔·铜热流计,在高温时灵敏度将下降30％以上。此外,由于使用了低导热率的圆箔,较高的热电功率输出,改进了时间常数,使其灵敏度获得了成倍的增长。热流计组件的全焊接结构,使它能适应在任何一种金属材料中工作。这些特点,除了高温灵敏度以外,也可以从其他一些标准热电偶如镍铬箔·康铜中获得。文中列出了标准热电偶材料的一些性能数据,并与新型的圆箔热流计在不同温度时的灵敏度作了对比。     

用电视信号测得的距离进行通信卫星的轨道确定

确定通信卫星轨道时,人们通常是采用由一个或多个地面站测得的距离和角度跟踪数据。最近提出了一种由电视同步信号得到精确距离数据的方法,1982年11月份已用于天狼星联合试验。以这种方法获得的测距数据能令人满意地用于卫星轨道确定过程。