Implementation of a semianalytic satellite theory with recovery of short period terms

First order averaging is applied to the artificial satellite problem to obtain the averaged orbit which includes the secular, long and medium period effects of the oblateness of the Earth and the third body perturbations of the moon and sun. Perturbation theory is then used to recover the short period effects due to J₂, the moon, and sun. The perturbation analysis is carried out by means of Lie series and is developed through the first order. Optimization of the resulting short period series was then accomplished in several steps: first all separate algebraic coefficients were precalculated and stored; then all redundant SIN/COS calls were eliminated; next all repetition of numeric and algebraic coefficients were precalculated in pairs; application of the distributive principle allowed a significant reduction in additions and multiplications; finally trigonometric identities were used to further reduce the SIN/COS computations. The result of this optimization along with an interpolator for the averaged equations of motion results in a computer program which requires only $\text{1}\text{6}$ the CPU time (with no loss in accuracy) of the original non-optimized test program.     

The Noise Model of the SEIS Seismometer of the InSight Mission to Mars

The SEIS (Seismic Experiment for Interior Structures) instrument on board the InSight mission to Mars is the critical instrument for determining the interior structure of Mars, the current level of tectonic activity and the meteorite flux. Meeting the performance requirements of the SEIS instrument is vital to successfully achieve these mission objectives. The InSight noise model is a key tool for the InSight mission and SEIS instrument requirement setup. It will also be used for future operation planning. This paper presents the analyses made to build a model of the Martian seismic noise as measured by the SEIS seismometer, around the seismic bandwidth of the instrument (from 0.01 Hz to 1 Hz). It includes the instrument self-noise, but also the environment parameters that impact the measurements. We present the general approach for the model determination, the environment assumptions, and we analyze the major and minor contributors to the noise model.     

Comparison of Electrooptic Modulation Methods

A comparison is made among normal AM, wide-band analog FM, and PCM as applied to transmission of real-time TV pictures via an electrooptic space communication system. The comparison is based on the requirement to receive a subjectively noise-free TV picture. Based on the results of this comparison, it is concluded that analog-FM subcarrier modulation is the best practical choice for transmission of real-time TV pictures in space via a laser beam. In addition to providing performance equivalent to that of coherent PCM, this type of modulation can be implemented with comparatively simple equipment.     

Antenna Beam-Shape Factor in Scanning Radars

The method by which the antenna beam-shape factor is taken into account in scanning radars has been reexamined. The ``conventional' method is shown to give results within ±0.25 dB of the ``correct' results, which provides ample justification of its use over the past years. However, by basing the procedure on the assumption of a properly matched postdetection integrator, and leaving the question of nonoptimum postdetection integration to be treated as a separate problem, somewhat more accurate results can be obtained. This study has also called attention to the fact that a mismatched postdetection integrator results in only half the degradation in performance that a corresponding predetection mismatch would cause.     

Tightly closed ecological systems reveal atmospheric subtleties – experience from Biosphere 2

Processes which produce slow changes in air composition in a closed ecological system (CES) may not be noticed if the leak rate of the CES is significant. Dilution of the system’s air with outside air can mask these processes. A tightly closed CES provides the opportunity for slow changes to accumulate over time and be observed and measured. Biosphere 2 (volume 200,000 m³) had a low leak rate of less than 10 percent per year. Oxygen declined slowly at varying rates reflecting seasonal influences, which averaged to about 140 ppm per day during the first 16 months of the two-year closure. Computer simulations of the observed rate of oxygen loss combined with other hypothetical leak rates suggest that the decline would have been hidden by a leak rate as low as one percent per day. Sealing Biosphere 2 involved rigorous design specifications and inclusion of two expansion chambers (called “lungs”) to accommodate expansion/contraction of the atmosphere, which enabled limiting the pressure difference between inside and outside atmospheres to the range of ±8 Pa (0.08 mBar). Measurement of leak rate was by two methods: the first, measuring the rate of deflation of the lungs while holding a constant elevated pressure differential enabled calculation of an estimated leak rate within the usual operating pressure differential range; the second was to measure the progressive dilution of trace gases spiked into the atmosphere. Both methods confirmed leakage to be less than 10 percent per year. Operational data from the 40 m³ Laboratory Biosphere is used to illustrate how normal variations of temperature, humidity and barometric pressure would combine to force leakage and rapidly dilute the internal atmosphere if it were not equipped with a lung. It is demonstrated that very high degrees of closure for a CES enable experimental observation of small imbalances in atmospheric cycles or slow accumulation of trace gases that could otherwise be masked by dilution with atmosphere external to the CES.     

Deep Impact Mission Design

The Deep Impact mission is designed to provide the first opportunity to probe below the surface of a comet nucleus by a high-speed impact. This requires finding a suitable comet with launch and encounter conditions that allow a meaningful scientific experiment. The overall design requires the consideration of many factors ranging from environmental characteristics of the comet (nucleus size, dust levels, etc.), to launch dates fitting within the NASA Discovery program opportunities, to launch vehicle capability for a large impactor, to the observational conditions for the two approaching spacecraft and for telescopes on Earth.     

Deep Impact: A Large-Scale Active Experiment on a Cometary Nucleus

The Deep Impact mission will provide the first data on the interior of a cometary nucleus and a comparison of those data with data on the surface. Two spacecraft, an impactor and a flyby spacecraft, will arrive at comet 9P/Tempel 1 on 4 July 2005 to create and observe the formation and final properties of a large crater that is predicted to be approximately 30-m deep with the dimensions of a football stadium. The flyby and impactor instruments will yield images and near infrared spectra (1–5 μm) of the surface at unprecedented spatial resolutions both before and after the impact of a 350-kg spacecraft at 10.2 km/s. These data will provide unique information on the structure of the nucleus near the surface and its chemical composition. They will also used to interpret the evolutionary effects on remote sensing data and will indicate how those data can be used to better constrain conditions in the early solar system.     

Mercury’s Atmosphere: A Surface-Bounded Exosphere

The existence of a surface-bounded exosphere about Mercury was discovered through the Mariner 10 airglow and occultation experiments. Most of what is currently known or understood about this very tenuous atmosphere, however, comes from ground-based telescopic observations. It is likely that only a subset of the exospheric constituents have been identified, but their variable abundance with location, time, and space weather events demonstrate that Mercury’s exosphere is part of a complex system involving the planet’s surface, magnetosphere, and the surrounding space environment (the solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field). This paper reviews the current hypotheses and supporting observations concerning the processes that form and support the exosphere. The outstanding questions and issues regarding Mercury’s exosphere stem from our current lack of knowledge concerning the surface composition, the magnetic field behavior within the local space environment, and the character of the local space environment.