吉尔南再入测量站在美国战略武器试验中的作用

吉尔南再入测量站(KREMS)是一个雷达测量站,位于马绍尔群岛中夸贾林珊瑚礁的罗伊—纳慕岛。该站是夸贾林导弹靶场的一部份,为各种导弹试验和空间跟踪任务收集雷达测量数据。这些数据可供各有关部门用来鉴定弹道导弹再入系统、防御系统以及美国和外国的卫星系统。本文对吉尔南再入测量站、测量能力及其在弹道导弹试验和空间跟踪活动中的作用等方面做了介绍。     

自动液氮加注系统

大量的光谱学的实验和其它物理测量必须在持续一段时间的液氮温度中进行。从最简单的杜瓦瓶到精心制做的自动冷却剂流体     

低燃速的端羧基聚丁二烯丙烯腈(CTBN)推进剂

对端羧基聚丁二烯丙烯睛(CTBN)液体共聚物为粘合剂的极低燃速的复合固定推进剂进行了论证。本计划的目的是,研制一种用于燃气发生器的(StarterCartridge)、压力在70公斤/厘米~2(100磅/英寸~2)下,燃速指标为1.78毫米/秒(0.070英寸/秒)的推进剂。选择了双环氧交链系统的低丙烯睛 CTBN 粘合剂,因为它的老化性能和工艺性能较之一般的粘合剂材料优越。在改进的 MK6气体发生器装置中,用浇注单孔圆柱形的、端面包复和外圆柱面包复的推进剂药柱进行弹道性能评定。用50%双级配的过氯酸胺、30%CTBN 粘合剂和20%装填密度高的硝基胍组成的推进剂配方成功地满足了设计要求,在要求的压力与温度25℃(77°F)下,达到了1.70毫米/秒(0.067英寸/秒)的燃速指标。当压力在35公斤/厘米~2(500磅/英寸~2)到70公斤/厘米~2(1000磅/英寸~2)范围内,温度在-54℃和74℃之间时,所测得的温度敏感系数π=0.36%/℃(0.20%/°F)。通过初步的力学性能和物理性能试验表明,此种类型的药柱设计在工作条件下,是合格的。因此,这种推进剂用于各种低燃速的场合似乎是有吸引力的。     

冲压发动机试验和模拟技术

模拟冲压发动机工作状态的流动条件需要独特的地面试验能力、暂冲式吹风试车台是一个经济设备,它能满足高流量和高压力比的要求。污染空气加热器提供了一种灵活而廉价的模拟弹道温度变化的有效方法。自由射流试验中,适当地模拟进口流动条件对发动机研制起着很重要的作用。本文讨论了冲压发动机地面试验要求,评论了直联式与自由射流的试验中模拟可用参数的方法,描述了满足气动模拟要求的技术与设备,并已证实是有效的。     

磁层顶位置的卫星观测

本文用了自1963年到1979年卫星穿越磁层顶的1024个观测资料计算了向阳侧磁层顶椭球面的参数。企图从这些资料得出星际磁场和太阳风热压强对向阳侧磁层顶位置和形状的影响大小。但数值计算和理论分析都表明,目前所具有的观测资料的精度不足以获得星际磁场和太阳风热压强影响的数值。本文分析了各种因素所造成的在计算该椭球面参数时的不确定性。进而提出了对进一步工作的建议。该椭球面的平均大小、形状和方位的观测值与理论预计值是非常一致的。      

M stars as targets for terrestrial exoplanet searches and biosignature detection

The changing view of planets orbiting low mass stars, M stars, as potentially hospitable worlds for life and its remote detection was motivated by several factors, including the demonstration of viable atmospheres and oceans on tidally locked planets, normal incidence of dust disks, including debris disks, detection of planets with masses in the 5-20 M() range, and predictions of unusually strong spectral biosignatures. We present a critical discussion of M star properties that are relevant for the long- and short-term thermal, dynamical, geological, and environmental stability of conventional liquid water habitable zone (HZ) M star planets, and the advantages and disadvantages of M stars as targets in searches for terrestrial HZ planets using various detection techniques. Biological viability seems supported by unmatched very long-term stability conferred by tidal locking, small HZ size, an apparent short-fall of gas giant planet perturbers, immunity to large astrosphere compressions, and several other factors, assuming incidence and evolutionary rate of life benefit from lack of variability. Tectonic regulation of climate and dynamo generation of a protective magnetic field, especially for a planet in synchronous rotation, are important unresolved questions that must await improved geodynamic models, though they both probably impose constraints on the planet mass. M star HZ terrestrial planets must survive a number of early trials in order to enjoy their many Gyr of stability. Their formation may be jeopardized by an insufficient initial disk supply of solids, resulting in the formation of objects too small and/or dry for habitability. The small empirical gas giant fraction for M stars reduces the risk of formation suppression or orbit disruption from either migrating or nonmigrating giant planets, but effects of perturbations from lower mass planets in these systems are uncertain. During the first approximately 1 Gyr, atmospheric retention is at peril because of intense and frequent stellar flares and sporadic energetic particle events, and impact erosion, both enhanced, the former dramatically, for M star HZ semimajor axes. Loss of atmosphere by interactions with energetic particles is likely unless the planetary magnetic moment is sufficiently large. For the smallest stellar masses a period of high planetary surface temperature, while the parent star approaches the main sequence, must be endured. The formation and retention of a thick atmosphere and a strong magnetic field as buffers for a sufficiently massive planet emerge as prerequisites for an M star planet to enter a long period of stability with its habitability intact. However, the star will then be subjected to short-term fluctuations with consequences including frequent unpredictable variation in atmospheric chemistry and surficial radiation field. After a review of evidence concerning disks and planets associated with M stars, we evaluate M stars as targets for future HZ planet search programs. Strong advantages of M stars for most approaches to HZ detection are offset by their faintness, leading to severe constraints due to accessible sample size, stellar crowding (transits), or angular size of the HZ (direct imaging). Gravitational lensing is unlikely to detect HZ M star planets because the HZ size decreases with mass faster than the Einstein ring size to which the method is sensitive. M star Earth-twin planets are predicted to exhibit surprisingly strong bands of nitrous oxide, methyl chloride, and methane, and work on signatures for other climate categories is summarized. The rest of the paper is devoted to an examination of evidence and implications of the unusual radiation and particle environments for atmospheric chemistry and surface radiation doses, and is summarized in the Synopsis. We conclude that attempts at remote sensing of biosignatures and nonbiological markers from M star planets are important, not as tests of any quantitative theories or rational arguments, but instead because they offer an inspection of the residues from a Gyr-long biochemistry experiment in the presence of extreme environmental fluctuations. A detection or repeated nondetections could provide a unique opportunity to partially answer a fundamental and recurrent question about the relation between stability and complexity, one that is not addressed by remote detection from a planet orbiting a solar-like star, and can only be studied on Earth using restricted microbial systems in serial evolution experiments or in artificial life simulations. This proposal requires a planet that has retained its atmosphere and a water supply. The discussion given here suggests that observations of M star exoplanets can decide this latter question with only slight modifications to plans already in place for direct imaging terrestrial exoplanet missions.     

Origin of informational polymers and the search for non-terran life: protection of the polymeric state of DNA by phosphate minerals

An in-depth analysis of the effects exerted on the DNA backbone by 25 crystal phosphate minerals is reported. Degradation of DNA oligomers was performed with two different reactions: Hydrolysis following Nucleophilic Degradation (HND), initiated by the nucleophilic addition of formamide on both purine and pyrimidine nucleobases, and Hydrolysis following Nucleophilic Substitution (HNS) carried on by water and starting with the removal of a nondegraded base. A complete panel of effects on the phosphoester bonds, from protection to enhanced instability to absence of interference, is described. These effects differ in the different degradation pathways and in different physical-chemical conditions. The relationship between the hardness of the mineral and its protective ability is discussed. In addition to its interest per se, this study was prompted by the observed catalytic abilities of soluble and mineral phosphates (Saladino et al., 2006c) on the synthetic reactions by formamide. The relevance of these observations in the search for nonterran life is discussed.     

创新引领航空航天业未来

多年来,航空航天业一直是技术创新最为活跃的行业之一,在各平台和子系统的开发中取得了大量的科研成果。客观地说,航空航天业不仅是现代社会最具影响力的创新之源,而且是将这些科技成果转化为巿场竞争力的典范。在这些丰硕的创新成果中,以GPS、涡轮发动机、电传飞控和无人飞行器等为代表的技术创新,在推动工程技术进步,提高社会生产力的同时,也为企业创造了大量财富。在尚未完全走出经济危机的今天,重拾"创新"话题,对航空航天业的下一步发展将十分必要。据此,美国《航空周刊与空间技术》杂志的一些资深编辑与美国一家称为CRA的全球性咨询机构组成了一个团队,围绕这个话题进行了为期4个月的采访和调查,其对象既包括像雷神公司、波音公司、EADS这样的行业巨头,也有以技术创新先锋著称的洛克希德·马丁公司的"臭鼬"工作队和波音公司的"鬼怪"工作队,还有美国空军和一些富于创新精神的大学实验室等。我们相信,梳理并归纳他们的言论与思想,对正在努力跻身于世界航空之林的中国航空业会有所启迪。     

推进技术

回顾了50年来液体火箭发动机技术的发展历程,展望了21世纪液体火箭发动机技术的发展,即充分利用和改进现有火箭发动机,降低成本,提高可靠性,提高性能和适应性;研制和发展新型可重复使用的先进的火箭发动机,同时加强基础理论研究和关键技术的预研,以适应人类开发空间资源的需要。     

指控中心STS轨道器各系统飞行监视操作自动化

约翰逊航天中心任务操作部(MOD)的主要任务是为空间运输(STS)系统提供地面保障和训练宇航员。随着轨道器飞行频度增加,而且航天计划日益成为国家的科技实用资源,用现有方法和设施提供高质量的保障、产品以及宇航员训练面临着极其严峻的挑战。为此正在进行几项工作,通过应用自动化技术(特别是在遥测监视和分析领域)减轻目前压在训练有素的操作人员肩上的重担。利用由操作人员设计和开发的软件,分阶段引进多任务分布式工作站的工程也在顺利进行。确立了一种用户开发样机的新概念,样机与现有集中式监视系统同时工作,相互参照评价,然后分阶段投入实用。从概念提出到样机移交,用户和开发者的广泛参与可确保评价、改进,以及最重要的——验收高度成功。