A search for optical beacons: implications of null results

Over the past few years a series of searches for interstellar radio beacons have taken place using the Parkes radio telescope. Here we report hitherto unpublished results from a search for optical beacons from 60 solar-type stars using the Perth-Lowell telescope. We discuss the significance of the null results from these searches, all of which were based on the interstellar contact channel hypothesis. While the null results of all searches to date can be explained simply by the nonexistence of electromagnetically communicating life elsewhere in the Milky Way, four other possible explanations that do not preclude its existence are proposed: (1) Extraterrestrial civilizations desiring to make contact through the use of electromagnetic beacons have a very low density in the Milky Way. (2) The interstellar contact channel hypothesis is incorrect, and beacons exist at frequencies that have not yet been searched. (3) The search has been incomplete in terms of sensitivity and/or target directions: Beacons exist, but more sensitive equipment and/or more searching is needed to achieve success. (4) The search has occurred before beacon signals can be expected to have arrived at the Earth, and beacon signals may be expected in the future. Based on consideration of the technology required for extraterrestrial civilizations to identify target planets, we argue that the fourth possibility is likely to be valid and that powerful, easily detectable beacons could be received in coming centuries.     

Eye light flashes on the Mir space station

The phenomenon of light flashes (LF) in eyes for people in space has been investigated onboard Mir. Data on particles hitting the eye have been collected with the SilEye detectors, and correlated with human observations. It is found that a nucleus in the radiation environment of Mir has roughly a 1% probability to cause an LF, whereas the proton probability is almost three orders of magnitude less. As a function of LET, the LF probability increases above 10 keV/micrometer, reaching about 5% at around 50 keV/micrometer.     

Long-term operation of "Orlan" space suits in the "Mir" orbiting station: experience obtained and its application

The started assembly of the International Space Station (ISS) and its further operation will call for a great number of extravehicular activity sorties (EVA) to be performed by ISS crews. Therefore, of great importance is to make use of the EVA experience gained by cosmonauts in the process of 15-year operation of the Mir orbiting station (OS). Over the 15-year period, Mir crewmembers wearing Orlan type semi-rigid space suits have accumulated 158 man/sorties from the orbiting station. Crewmembers used 15 suits in orbit and some of the suits were in operation for more than 3 years. The paper presents principal design features, which provide effective and safe operation of orbit-based suits, and briefly describes procedures for preparation and maintenance of suit systems, which ensure long-term operation of space suit in orbit. The paper gives results of the space suit modifications, presents suit performance characteristics and lists novel or upgraded components of the space suit and its systems. The paper also summarizes improvements in the Orlan type suits described in some earlier publications. They refer, in the first run, to the improvement of space suit operations characteristics and reliability, and the utilization of the Orlan type space suit in the ISS program. The paper analyses the experience gained and drawbacks detected and observations made, and gives statistical data on long-term space suit operations aboard the Mir station. The paper reviews certain problems in the process of EVAs performed from the station, and describes the ways of their solution as applied to the further utilization of the suit within the ISS program.     

Study of cosmic rays and light flashes on board Space Station MIR: the SilEye experiment.

The SilEye experiment aims to study the cause and processes related to the anomalous Light Flashes (LF) perceived by astronauts in orbit and their relation with Cosmic Rays. These observations will be also useful in the study of the long duration manned space flight environment. Two PC-driven silicon detector telescopes have been built and placed aboard Space Station MIR. SilEye-1 was launched in 1995 and provided particles track and LF information; the data gathered indicate a linear dependence of FLF(Hz) ( 4 2) 10(3) 5.3 1.7 10(4) Fpart(Hz) if South Atlantic Anomaly fluxes are not included. Even though higher statistic is required, this is an indication that heavy ion interactions with the eye are the main LF cause. To improve quality and quantity of measurements, a second apparatus, SilEye-2, was placed on MIR in 1997, and started work from August 1998. This instrument provides energetic information, which allows nuclear identification in selected energy ranges; we present preliminary measurements of the radiation field inside MIR performed with SilEye-2 detector in June 1998.     

Halo White Dwarfs and Baryonic Dark Matter

We describe the formation of hot intergalactic gas along with baryonic remnants in galaxy halos. In this scenario, the mass and metallicity of the hot intracluster and intragroup gas relates directly to the production of baryonic remnants during the collapse of galactic halos. We construct a schematic but self-consistent model in which early bursts of star formation lead to a large remnant population in the halo, and to the outflow of stellar ejecta into the halo and ultimately the Local Group. We consider local as well as high redshift constraints on this scenario. This study suggests that the microlensing objects in the Galactic halo may predominantly be 0.5M white dwarfs, assuming that the initial mass function for early star formation favored the formation of intermediate mass stars with m 1M. However, the bulk of the baryonic dark matter in this scenario is associated with the ejecta of the white dwarf progenitors, and resides in the hot intergalactic medium.     

Cognitive performance aboard the life and microgravity spacelab

The impact of microgravity and other stressors on cognitive performance need to be quantified before long duration space flights are planned or attempted since countermeasures may be required. Four astronauts completed 38 sessions of a 20-minute battery of six cognitive performance tests on a laptop computer. Twenty-four sessions were preflight, 9 sessions were in-orbit, and 5 sessions were postflight. Mathematical models of learning were fit to each subject's preflight data for each of 14 dependent variables. Assuming continued improvement, expected values were generated from the models for in-orbit comparison. Using single subject designs, two subjects showed statistically significant in-orbit effects. One subject was degraded in two tests, the other was degraded in one test and exceeded performance expectations in another. Other subjects showed no statistically significant effects on the tests. The factors causing the deterioration in the two subjects can not be determined without appropriate ground-based control groups.     

Measurements of radiation exposure in civil aircraft

The radiation exposures on 12 flights of German airlines were measured with an active dosemeter based on two silicon semiconductors. The dependence on the date, altitude and route of the flights was studied. Measured dose rates and preliminary dose equivalent rates of the individual flights are given and compared with model calculations.     

Prolonged weightlessness, reference frames and visual symmetry detection

We evaluated the influence of prolonged weightlessness on the performance of three cosmonauts to bilateral symmetry detection in the course of a 15-day-long Russian-French mission CASSIOPEE 96 aboard the MIR station. We tested the influence of weightlessness on subjects' performance as a function of the retinal orientation of axis of symmetry. as a function of type of stimuli (closed versus multi-elements shapes) and as a function of visual field presentation (at fixation, left visual field. right visual field). The results indicate firstly a difference between presentation at fixation versus away of fixation. Away of fixation, no effect of microgravity on performance was shown. A hypothesis of hemispheric specialization for symmetry detection was not supported as well. At fixation, an effect of micro-gravity was shown and more interestingly, the effect was quite different as a function of type of shapes used. suggesting that symmetry detection is a multiple-stage process.     

Cellular responses to gravity: extracellular, intracellular and in-between.

Our understanding of gravitational effects (inertial effects in the vicinity of 1 x g) on cells has matured to a stage at which it is possible to define, on the basis of experimental evidence, extracellular effects on small cells and intracellular effects on eukaryotic gravisensing cells. Yet undetermined is the nature of response, if any, of those classes of cells that are not governed solely by extracellular physical events (as are prokaryotes) and are devoid of obvious mechanical devices for sensing inertial forces (such as those possessed by certain plant cells and sensory cells of animals). This "in-between" class of cells needs to be understood on the basis of the combination of intracellular and extracellular gravity-dependent processes that govern experimentally-measurable variables that are relevant to the cell's responses to modified inertial forces. The forces that certain cell types generate or respond to are therefore compared to those imposed by approximately 1 x g in the context of cytoskeletal action and symmetry-breaking pathways.