Human productivity in space and systems costs

Human productivity during assembly operations in-orbit is dependent on limits set by fatigue, metabolic rates, learning, and assembly techniques. In order to quantify these effects, tests were conducted in the NASA MSFC Neutral Buoyancy Simulator, in the NASA KC-135 in parabolic flight, and in space with the EASE program during the Shuttle Atlantis mission 61-B. A separate program attempted to relate productivity to system costs. Because of the surprisingly high productivity which had been demonstrated in orbit, it was shown that assembly operations would have only a small effect on system costs at the present level of launch costs. The results of these continuing studies have been reported in a recent paper(1). They will be briefly summarized here and the results updated to include additional cost elements and to examine the effects of reductions in transportation costs, resulting from advances in technology and from increased demand, on system costs. It is shown that, as launch costs are reduced, the assembly costs could become an increasingly important component of the total system costs.     

Simulation of a working process in the pulsejet engine with an aerodynamic valve on the basis of the thermodynamic cycle analysis

A physical and a mathematical model of a working process in the pulsejet engine based on the analysis of the thermodynamic cycle are proposed. The process of self-sustained periodic combustion is connected with special features of elementary processes comprising the cycle, influencing the engine operation and depending on its design parameters. The calculation method is based on the use of fundamental laws of conservation and basic equations of gas dynamics     

Experimental Aspects of Mid-Frequency Pulsations (f≈10–100 mHz) in the Southern Polar Cap

We review the results obtained in the frequency range of Pc3 (22-100 mHz) and Pc4 (7-22 mHz) pulsations at Italian Antarctic stations in the southern polar cap (“Mario Zucchelli”, at Terra Nova Bay, TNB, 80^˚.S; “Concordia”, the Italian/French base at Dome C, DMC, 89^˚.S). The absence of a midnight enhancement in the pulsation power suggests a negligible substorm influence at extreme latitudes, while the sharp noon enhancement, which appears only at TNB, is determined by the closer proximity of the station to cusp related phenomena. The relationship between the frequency of the band-limited signals and the interplanetary magnetic field strength, the cone angle influence, and the higher correlation of the Pc3 power with the solar wind speed in the morning hours suggest a global scenario in which upstream waves would be mainly responsible for the mid-frequency activity in the polar cap. However, the polarization pattern is odd with respect to the predictions for tailward propagating modes.     

绿色制造中的干切削技术

冷却润滑液的存储、使用以及废弃处理需要专门的物流系统,因而费用很高;冷却润滑液处理不当会对人的健康以及环境造成危害;工件经过湿加工后必须进行清洁处理,这都费时费力,同时增加了对系统的要求.基于上述原因,近年来干切削技术受到广泛关注.     

The atmosphere of Jupiter

Current information on the neutral atmosphere of Jupiter is reviewed, with approximately equal emphasis on composition and thermal structure on the one hand, and markings and dynamics on the other. Studies based on Pioneer 10 and 11 data are used to refine the atmospheric model. Data on the interior are reviewed for the information they provide on the deep atmosphere. The markings and dynamics are discussed with emphasis on qualitative relationships and analogies with phenomena in the Earth's atmosphere.Contribution No. 2652 of the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif. 91125, U.S.A.     

High Excitation ISM and Gas

An overview is given of ISO results on regions of high excitation ISM and gas, i.e. HII regions, the Galactic Centre and Supernova Remnants. IR emission due to fine-structure lines, molecular hydrogen, silicates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and dust are summarised, their diagnostic capabilities illustrated and their implications highlighted. Based on observations with ISO, an ESA project with instruments funded by ESA Member States (especially the PI countries: France, Germany, The Netherlands, and the United Kingdom), and with the participation of ISAS and NASA.     

Analysis of Multimodal Systems

The estimation of a multimodal linear system whose mode-to-mode transitions are described by a finite-state Markov chain is described. The problem has application in studying separation standards in an air traffic control environment. An optimal solution is formulated which is computationally infeasible. A suboptimal estimator is then derived which closely approximates the optimal estimator. An example is presented to illustrate the technique.     

Interference between FM Carriers and a Digitally Modulated SCPC Circuit

The interference from the digital single channel per carrier (SCPC) circuits into frequency-modulated carrier systems has been calculated by convolving the desired and the interfering spectra extending the previously published works. Resulting interference noise power in FDM/FM systems covering a wide range of modulation indices and basebands has been presnted. Also plots of interference noise power as a function of the number of SCPC circuits have been presented for various values of carrier power to interference power ratios.     

Satellite fault diagnosis using a bank of interacting Kalman filters

The main objective of this work is development and testing of a detection, isolation, and diagnosis algorithm based on interacting multiple model (IMM) filters for both partial (soft) and total (hard) reaction wheels faults in a spacecraft. This is shown to be accomplished under a number of different faulty mode scenarios for these actuators associated with the attitude control system (ACS) of a satellite. Various operating and faulty conditions due to changes and anomalies in the temperature, the power supply line voltage, and the loss of effectiveness of the torque and the current are considered in each reaction wheel associated with the three axes of the satellite. Once a fault mode is detected and isolated the recovery procedure can subsequently be engaged by invoking appropriate switching control strategies for the ACS. The application of a bank of interacting multiple Kalman filters for detection and diagnosis of anticipated reaction wheel failures in the ACS is described and developed. Compared with other model-based fault detection, diagnosis and isolation(FDDI) strategies developed in the control systems literature, our FDDI strategy is shown, through extensive numerical simulations, to be more accurate and robust with potential for extension to a number of other application areas.     

Probing the era of galaxy formation via TeV gamma ray absorption by the near infrared extragalactic background

We present models of the extragalactic background light (EBL) based on several scenarios of galaxy formation and evolution. We have treated galaxy formation with the Press-Schecter approximation for both cold dark matter (CDM) and cold+hot dark matter (CHDM) models, representing a moderate (z _f 3) and a late (z _f 1) era of galaxy formation respectively. Galaxy evolution has been treated by considering a variety of stellar types, different initial mass functions and star formation histories, and with an accounting of dust absorption and emission. We find that the dominant factor influencing the EBL is the epoch of galaxy formation. A recently proposed method for observing the EBL utilizing the absorption of 0.1 to 10 TeV gamma-rays from active galactic nuclei (AGN) is shown to be capable of discriminating between different galaxy formation epochs. The one AGN viewed in TeV light, Mrk 421, does show some evidence for a cutoff above 3 TeV; based on the EBL models presented here, we suggest that this is due to extinction in the source. The large absorption predicted at energies > 200 GeV for sources at z > 0.5 indicates that observations of TeV gamma-ray bursts (GRB) would constrain or eliminate models in which the GRB sources lie at cosmological distances.Now at University of Chicago, Dept. of Astronomy & Astrophysics.