|
Atmospheric Neutral Density Experiment
The Atmospheric Neutral Density Experiment (ANDE) is an experiment using two spherical satellites to measure the effects of atmospheric drag on spacecraft. ANDE is part of the Space Test Program of the United States Department of Defense, and was deployed in September 2006 from the Space Shuttle ''Discovery''. Satellites The two spacecraft used for the ANDE mission are the Mock ANDE Active (MAA) sphere (Navy-OSCAR 61) and the Fence Calibration (FCAL) sphere (OSCAR 62). These microsatellites, developed by the Naval Research Laboratory, will measure drag through the use of precision orbit determination. Ground-based lasers will be used to track the orbits of the sphere to with a couple centimeters of accuracy. Perturbations caused by density gradients and winds will be backed out from these measurements. The two ANDE satellites are nearly perfect spheres; this was done to make the drag on the satellites independent of their orientation, and because the drag coefficient, optical cro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Space Shuttle Discovery
Space Shuttle ''Discovery'' ( Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-103) is one of the orbiters from NASA's Space Shuttle program and the third of five fully operational orbiters to be built. Its first mission, STS-41-D, flew from August 30 to September 5, 1984. Over 27 years of service it launched and landed 39 times, aggregating more spaceflights than any other spacecraft to date. The Space Shuttle launch vehicle has three main components: the Space Shuttle orbiter, a single-use central fuel tank, and two reusable solid rocket boosters. Nearly 25,000 heat-resistant tiles cover the orbiter to protect it from high temperatures on re-entry. ''Discovery'' became the third operational orbiter to enter service, preceded by ''Columbia'' and '' Challenger''. It embarked on its final mission, STS-133, on February 24, 2011, and touched down for the last time at Kennedy Space Center on March 9, having spent a cumulative total of nearly a full year in space. ''Discovery'' performed both ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program name was Space Transportation System (STS), taken from a 1969 plan for a system of reusable spacecraft where it was the only item funded for development. The first ( STS-1) of four orbital test flights occurred in 1981, leading to operational flights ( STS-5) beginning in 1982. Five complete Space Shuttle orbiter vehicles were built and flown on a total of 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. They launched from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Operational missions launched numerous satellites, interplanetary probes, and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), conducted science experiments in orbit, participated in the Shuttle-''Mir'' program with Russia, and participated in construction and servicing of the International Space Station (ISS ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vanguard 1
Vanguard 1 (Harvard designation: 1958-Beta 2, COSPAR ID: 1958-005B ) is an American satellite that was the fourth artificial Earth-orbiting satellite to be successfully launched, following Sputnik 1, Sputnik 2, and Explorer 1. It was launched 17 March 1958. Vanguard 1 was the first satellite to have solar electric power. Although communications with the satellite were lost in 1964, it remains the oldest human-made object still in orbit, together with the upper stage of its launch vehicle. Vanguard 1 was designed to test the launch capabilities of a three-stage launch vehicle as a part of Project Vanguard, and the effects of the space environment on a satellite and its systems in Earth orbit. It also was used to obtain geodetic measurements through orbit analysis. Vanguard 1, being small and light enough to carry with one hand, was described by the Soviet Premier, Nikita Khrushchev, as "the grapefruit satellite". Spacecraft design The spacecraft is a aluminium sphere 6 i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
STARSHINE
The STARSHINE (Student Tracked Atmospheric Research Satellite Heuristic International Networking Experiment) series of three (later, a fourth one was also launched) artificial satellites were student participatory missions sponsored by the United States Naval Research Laboratory (the fourth STARSHINE was a NASA mission). Satellite description STARSHINE-1 was a spherical satellite that was fitted with almost nine hundred small mirrors polished by students from around the world. Once launched, a network of over 20,000 students from eighteen countries tracked the satellite by observing sunlight glinting off the mirrors and networked their observations via the Internet. The students used these observations to calculate air drag, solar activity, and other orbit related properties of the satellite. STARSHINE 2 and 3 had systems added to impart spin to these satellites in an effort to improve the solar-reflected flash rate, as well as a number of laser retroreflectors to introduce the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
MIMOSA
''Mimosa'' is a genus of about 590 species of herbs and shrubs, in the mimosoid clade of the legume family Fabaceae. The generic name is derived from the Greek word (''mimos''), an "actor" or "mime", and the feminine suffix -''osa'', "resembling", suggesting its 'sensitive leaves' which seem to 'mimic conscious life'. Two species in the genus are especially notable. One is '' Mimosa pudica'', commonly known as touch-me-not, which folds its leaves when touched or exposed to heat. It is native to southern Central and South America but is widely cultivated elsewhere for its curiosity value, both as a houseplant in temperate areas, and outdoors in the tropics. Outdoor cultivation has led to weedy invasion in some areas, notably Hawaii. The other is '' Mimosa tenuiflora'', which is best known for its use in shamanic ayahuasca brews due to the psychedelic drug dimethyltryptamine found in its root bark. Taxonomy The taxonomy of the genus ''Mimosa'' has gone through several peri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
BLITS
BLITS (Ball Lens In The Space) is a Russian satellite launched on September 17, 2009, as a secondary payload on a Soyuz-2.1b/Fregat, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The satellite is totally passive and spherical, and is tracked using satellite laser ranging (SLR) by the International Laser Ranging Service. The design of BLITS is based on the optical Luneburg lens concept. The retroreflector is a multilayer glass sphere; it provides uniform reflection characteristics when viewed within a very wide range of angles, and can provide a cross-section sufficient for observations at low to medium orbit heights. A similar design was already tested on a smaller laser reflector carried on board of the METEOR-3M spacecraft launched on December 10, 2001. The purpose of the mission was to validate the spherical glass retroreflector satellite concept and obtain SLR ( Satellite Laser Ranging) data for solution of scientific problems in geophysics, geodynamics, and relativity. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Echo Satellite
Project Echo was the first passive communications satellite experiment. Each of the two American spacecraft, launched in 1960 and 1964, were metalized balloon satellites acting as passive reflectors of microwave signals. Communication signals were transmitted from one location on Earth and bounced off the surface of the satellite to another Earth location. The first transmissions using Echo were sent from Goldstone, California to Holmdel, New Jersey on 12 August 1960. The last Echo satellite deorbited and burned up in the atmosphere on 7 June 1969.Astronautix.com, ''Echo'' Background The concept of using orbital satellites to relay communications predated space travel, first being advanced by |
Balloon Satellite
A balloon satellite is inflated with gas after it has been put into orbit. It is also occasionally referred to as a "satelloon", which is a trademarked name owned by Gilmore Schjeldahl's G.T. Schjeldahl Company. List of balloon satellites abbreviations: * pcr = passive communications reflector, satellite reflects microwave signals. * ado = atmospheric density observations * spc = solar pressure calculations, estimate impact of solar wind on orbit. * tri = satellite triangulation, measuring the Earth's surface. * SC = Sensors and camera for earth curvature images Echo 1 and Echo 2 balloon satellites The first flying body of this type was Echo 1, which was launched into a high orbit on August 12, 1960, by the United States. It originally had a spherical shape measuring , with a thin metal-coated plastic shell made of Mylar. It served for testing as a "passive" communication and geodetic satellite. Its international COSPAR number was 6000901 (9th satellite launched ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest Modular design, modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), European Space Agency, ESA (Europe), and Canadian Space Agency, CSA (Canada). The ownership and use of the space station is established by intergovernmental treaties and agreements. The station serves as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory in which Scientific research on the International Space Station, scientific research is conducted in astrobiology, astronomy, meteorology, physics, and other fields. The ISS is suited for testing the spacecraft systems and equipment required for possible future long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars. The International Space Station programme, ISS programme evolved from the Space Station Freedom, Space Station ''Freedom'', a 1984 American proposal to constr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
STS-116
STS-116 was a Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS) flown by Space Shuttle '' Discovery''. ''Discovery'' lifted off on 9 December 2006 at 20:47:35 EST. A previous launch attempt on 7 December had been canceled due to cloud cover. It was the first night launch of a Space Shuttle since STS-113 in November 2002. The mission is also referred to as ISS-12A.1 by the ISS program. The main goals of the mission were delivery and attachment of the International Space Station's P5 truss segment, a major rewiring of the station's power system, and exchange of ISS Expedition 14 personnel. The shuttle landed at 17:32 EST on 22 December 2006 at Kennedy Space Center 98 minutes off schedule due to unfavorable weather conditions. This mission was particularly notable to Sweden, being the first spaceflight of a Scandinavian astronaut (Christer Fuglesang). STS-116 was the final scheduled Space Shuttle launch from Pad 39B as NASA reconfigured it for Ares I launches. The o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Digipeater
In telecommunications, a repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it. Repeaters are used to extend transmissions so that the signal can cover longer distances or be received on the other side of an obstruction. Some types of repeaters broadcast an identical signal, but alter its method of transmission, for example, on another frequency or baud rate. There are several different types of repeaters; a telephone repeater is an amplifier in a telephone line, an optical repeater is an optoelectronic circuit that amplifies the light beam in an optical fiber cable; and a radio repeater is a radio receiver and transmitter that retransmits a radio signal. A broadcast relay station is a repeater used in broadcast radio and television. Overview When an information-bearing signal passes through a communication channel, it is progressively degraded due to loss of power. For example, when a telephone call passes through a wire telephone line, some of the power ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amateur Radio
Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emergency communications. The term "amateur" is used to specify "a duly authorised person interested in radioelectric practice with a purely personal aim and without pecuniary interest;" (either direct monetary or other similar reward) and to differentiate it from commercial broadcasting, public safety (such as police and fire), or professional two-way radio services (such as maritime, aviation, taxis, etc.). The amateur radio service (''amateur service'' and ''amateur-satellite service'') is established by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) through the Radio Regulations. National governments regulate technical and operational characteristics of transmissions and issue individual station licenses with a unique identifying call sign, which m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
