The Magnetometer Instrument on MESSENGER

The Magnetometer (MAG) on the MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) mission is a low-noise, tri-axial, fluxgate instrument with its sensor mounted on a 3.6-m-long boom. The boom was deployed on March 8, 2005. The primary MAG science objectives are to determine the structure of Mercury’s intrinsic magnetic field and infer its origin. Mariner 10 observations indicate a planetary moment in the range 170 to 350 nT R _M³ (where R _M is Mercury’s mean radius). The uncertainties in the dipole moment are associated with the Mariner 10 trajectory and variability of the measured field. By orbiting Mercury, MESSENGER will significantly improve the determination of dipole and higher-order moments. The latter are essential to understanding the thermal history of the planet. MAG has a coarse range, ±51,300 nT full scale (1.6-nT resolution), for pre-flight testing, and a fine range, ±1,530 nT full scale (0.047-nT resolution), for Mercury operation. A magnetic cleanliness program was followed to minimize variable and static spacecraft-generated fields at the sensor. Observations during and after boom deployment indicate that the fixed residual field is less than a few nT at the location of the sensor, and initial observations indicate that the variable field is below 0.05 nT at least above about 3 Hz. Analog signals from the three axes are low-pass filtered (10-Hz cutoff) and sampled simultaneously by three 20-bit analog-to-digital converters every 50 ms. To accommodate variable telemetry rates, MAG provides 11 output rates from 0.01 s⁻¹ to 20 s⁻¹. Continuous measurement of fluctuations is provided with a digital 1–10 Hz bandpass filter. This fluctuation level is used to trigger high-time-resolution sampling in eight-minute segments to record events of interest when continuous high-rate sampling is not possible. The MAG instrument will provide accurate characterization of the intrinsic planetary field, magnetospheric structure, and dynamics of Mercury’s solar wind interaction.     

Time dependent charging of layer clouds in the global electric circuit

There is much observational data consistent with the hypothesis that the ionosphere-earth current density (J_z) in the global electric circuit, which is modulated by both solar activity and thunderstorm activity, affects atmospheric dynamics and cloud cover. One candidate mechanism involves J_z causing the accumulation of space charge on droplets and aerosol particles, that affects the rate of scavenging of the latter, notably those of Cloud Condensation Nuclei (CCN) and Ice Forming Nuclei (IFN) (  and ). Space charge is the difference, per unit volume, between total positive and total negative electrical charge that is on droplets, aerosol particles (including the CCN and IFN) and air ions. The cumulative effects of the scavenging in stratiform clouds and aerosol layers in an air mass over the lifetime of the aerosol particles of 1–10 days affects the concentration and size distribution of the CCN, so that in subsequent episodes of cloud formation (including deep convective clouds) there can be effects on droplet size distribution, coagulation, precipitation processes, and even storm dynamics.     

Design of an innovative multi-stage forming process for a complex aeronautical thin-walled part with very small radii

In this paper, an aeronautical thin-walled part with a complex geometry which has several sharp bends and curvatures in different directions was investigated. This kind of part is difficult to be manufactured only in one stage. Therefore, an innovative multi-stage active hydroforming process assisted by the rigid forming method was designed. In addition, an optimized blank geometry is obtained. In fact, the main focused point of this paper is to propose a new small radius rounded corner forming technique and analyze the mechanism. Two kinds of forming modes of changing a big rounded corner into a small one, which are related to different tangential positions of the die in the process of calibration, are analyzed theoretically. Meanwhile, the stress and strain states of the deformation region are compared. The relationships between the minimum relative radii of rounded corners I and II in the first stage and the hydraulic pressure are calculated by the bending theory. Finally, the influences of the tensile-bulging effect and the interface condition of the double-layer sheet on the forming quality of the specimen are investigated. The achieved results can make a foundation for utilizing the proposed method in forming of thin-walled parts with very small radii.     

The carbonaceous chondrites

The carbonaceous chondrites are a group of stony meteorites characterized by the presence of an appreciable amount of carbonaceous material other than free carbon (diamond and graphite). They have been divided into three subgroups known respectively as Type I, Type II, and Type III. Analyses of Type I meteorites show about 3–5% of carbon and 20% of combined water; they consist largely of hydrated magnesium-iron silicate, magnetite, and magnesium sulfate, contain no chondrules, and have a density about 2.2. Analyses of Type II meteorites show about 2–3% of carbon and 10–15% of combined water; they consist of a groundmass of hydrated magnesium-iron silicate enclosing chondrules of olivine and pyroxene which are almost iron-free, and have a density of 2.6–2.9. Analyses of Type III meteorites show about 0.5–2% of carbon and 2% combined water; they consist largely of olivine (often variable in composition, but averaging 30–40 mole per cent Fe₂SiO₄), with accessory pigeonite and sulfide minerals, and have a density about 3.4.The carbonaceous material and combined water in these meteorites are clearly of extraterrestrial origin, but their significance is not well understood. A biological origin has been claimed for some of the organic compounds on the basis of their composition, but this claim is the subject of considerable dispute. Microscopic objects with regular outline (organized elements) have been recognized in some of these meteorites; some investigators have claimed these to be extraterrestrial fossils, others have ascribed them to terrestrial contamination or considered them to be crystals or crystal aggregates of non-biological origin.