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Электронная библиотека астронома-любителя. Книги по астрономии, телескопостроению, оптике.
Дата: 22 мая 1998 (1998-05-22)
От: Alexander Bondugin
Тема: NASA Embraces Space Day '98
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Renee N. Juhans
Headquarters, Washington, DC May 19, 1998
(Phone: 202/358-1712)
NOTE TO EDITORS: N98-34
NASA EMBRACES SPACE DAY '98
NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin will "chat" with students
around the world on May 21 between 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. EDT via
the Internet, as part of this year's Space Day celebration.
Cyber Space Day, an interactive webcast devoted to space,
will broadcast from the Mall in Washington, DC, from 10 a.m. to 6
p.m. EDT. The webcast will allow students to conduct live
interviews with prominent figures from the public and private
sectors who have made significant contributions to space
exploration. Other "chat" participants include: Senator John
Glenn; Barbara Morgan, astronaut candidate/education mission
specialist; David Levy, amateur astronomer, author and comet
discoverer; and Dr. Mae Jemison, former astronaut and college
professor.
"I am pleased to see Space Day focus on education and embrace
children as well as their parents and teachers," said
Administrator Goldin. "NASA appreciates the role Space Day plays
in helping to communicate the importance of science, mathematics
and technology education. These efforts help lay the foundation
for inspiring the children of the world to reach for the stars."
Space Day is sponsored by the National Advisory Board co-
chaired by Sen. Glenn and Norman Augustine, Chairman of the Board
of Lockheed Martin, to stimulate interest in science, math and
technology education through the excitement of space exploration.
NASA along with more than 34 partner organizations in the
educational, scientific, public and private sectors have joined to
celebrate this national event.
The global celebration of Space Day '98 will kick off at 9
a.m. EDT. In recognition of Space Day, NASA Centers around the
country will host the following events:
NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC - May 21st -- Senator John
Glenn, Payload Specialist, STS-95, will serve as featured speaker
at the NASA Research and Human Health Symposium at George
Washington University in the Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre from 2
p.m. - 5 p.m. For more information please visit:
http://www.gwu.edu/~spi
Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, CA - May 21st -- 1,250
elementary school students and their teachers will participate in
over twenty-five activities about the Moon and space exploration.
Students will build a Lunar Prospector model, participate in a
mission simulation, make their own craters, construct a lunar
habitat, and meet astronauts. Additional information on this
event can be found at:
http://lunar.arc.nasa.gov
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA - May 20-21st -- "A
Day on Europa" will take place on May 20-21, since daylight on
Europa lasts about two Earth days. Scheduled activities in numerous American
cities will be transformed into global village events via the Internet.
Highlights will include new imagery of Europa taken by the Galileo
spacecraft and a free panel discussion entitled "Europa - Another
Water World?" For more information go to:
http://www.caltech.edu/~tickets/to.htm
For other A Day on Europa events and activities go to:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov
Kennedy Space Center, Cocoa Beach, FL - May 22-25 -- From May
22-25, the Visitor Complex will host Discover Magazine, Star Trek,
Fox 35 Kids and Cool 105.9 Day. These events will feature
exhibits and appearances by former astronauts including Capt. Alan
Bean, Dr. Ed Gibson, Col. Mike Mullane, Col. Buzz Aldrin, Capt.
Gene Cernan, Cdr. Scott Carpenter, Capt. Wally Schirra, and Dr.
Story Musgrave; as well as special character appearances; a
scavenger hunt; and promotional giveaways. For more information
please call 407/494-4254.
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD - May 21 -- More
than 100 fourth grade students will participate in variety of
activities which include: Space Bingo; Send Your Name to Mars;
Planet Garden; How to Calculate Your Age and Weight on Another
Planet; Exploring Earth From Space; Cyber Space Day; 101 Reasons
to Explore Space; and tours. For more details call 301/286-7031.
Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX - May 20 -- In anticipation
of Space Day, the Challenger Center for Space Science Education
will take fourth through eighth grade students on a special
electronic field trip (EFT) that celebrates the human spirit of
exploration. The event, will be broadcast via satellite, brings
youngsters behind the scenes to witness first-hand how robotic,
human and ground-based missions are used to unveil the mysteries
of our universe.
More information on Space Day '98 activities can be found at the
following URL:
www.spaceday.com
-end-
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=SANA=
Дата: 22 мая 1998 (1998-05-22)
От: Alexander Bondugin
Тема: Scientists Report TRMM Data Exceeding Expectations
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David E. Steitz
Headquarters, Washington, DC May 19, 1998
(Phone: 202/358-1730)
Lynn Chandler
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD
(Phone: 301/286-9016)
RELEASE: 98-83
SCIENTISTS REPORT TRMM DATA EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS
The world's first spaceborne rain radar -- aboard the
Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), a joint U.S.-Japanese
mission -- is exceeding expectations for accuracy and resolution,
and the spacecraft is providing unprecedented insights into
rainfall producing cloud systems over tropical land masses and
oceans.
"We're extremely excited about these new images and the
quality and quantity of the data we're receiving. In several
instances, the data resolution is much better than we had
anticipated," said Dr. Christian Kummerow, TRMM Project Scientist,
at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD.
"Previously, it was not possible to gather radar precipitation
data over the oceans and TRMM has changed all that."
TRMM is NASA's first mission dedicated to observing and
understanding tropical rainfall, which comprises more than two-
thirds of all rainfall, and how it affects the global climate.
Global rainfall is the primary distributor of heat through
atmospheric circulation. The recent El Nino serves as a perfect
example of the atmospheric circulation changes that can result
from a displacement of the normal precipitation patterns in the
central Pacific. More precise information about this rainfall and
its variability is crucial to understanding and predicting global
climate and climate change.
The Precipitation Radar aboard TRMM is the first rain radar
ever launched into space. It measures precipitation distribution
over both land and sea areas. Some of the most dramatic
Precipitation Radar data was received on March 9 over Melbourne,
FL, during the passage of a line of very severe thunderstorms. In
comparing the TRMM radar data of the storm with that taken by
ground-based radars, the three dimensional TRMM radar showed
better vertical resolution of the storm structure. The vertical
structure is critical for determining a storm's overall intensity
as well as determining the height at which the heat release
associated with precipitation is occurring.
Another image released today shows TRMM's radar-derived view
of a severe thunderstorm over Houston, TX. The TRMM radar
demonstrated significantly better capability to define
ambiguities, or occasional "false readings," associated with
ground-based radars.
The TRMM spacecraft fills an enormous void in the ability to
calculate world-wide precipitation because so little of the planet
is covered by ground-based radars. Presently, only two percent of
the area covered by TRMM is covered by ground-based radars.
"Since rainfall represents energy conversion, hurricane
researchers are eager to use the rainfall data as input to
hurricane forecast models," notes Jerry Jarrell, director,
National Hurricane Center.
Also aboard TRMM is the Microwave Imager, providing
exceptional resolution of storm systems. TRMM's Microwave Imager
has better spatial resolution and a new lower frequency channel
than previous instruments, according to Kummerow.
An interesting preliminary finding from the Lightning Imaging
Sensor (LIS), another instrument on the TRMM satellite, is that
its data indicate little lightning over the oceans and 90 percent
of lightning occurring over land. Researchers believe that the
greater lightning activity over land is primarily due to a larger
convection -- or heat -- effect associated with land. This
results in greater ice production and, consequently, more
lightning. "The beauty of TRMM is that with the Precipitation
Radar and the microwave imager, we can test this hypothesis time
and again," said LIS Principal Investigator Hugh Christian, at the
Global Hydrology and Climate Center at the Marshall Space Flight
Center, Huntsville, AL. "TRMM will enable us to gain fundamental
insights into the properties of these convective storms and thus
better estimate the effects on global weather patterns."
The Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES)
instrument aboard the spacecraft measures how much sunlight the
planet's atmosphere, surface and clouds reflect and how much
energy it radiates to space from its store of heat energy. "CERES
achieved new levels of calibration that we've never reached before
in looking at the Earth," said Dr. Bruce Barkstrom, a scientist at
NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, which manages CERES.
"Those new levels will help us reduce the uncertainty of how the
Earth uses the energy from the Sun to drive the climate system."
By studying rainfall regionally and globally, and the
difference in ocean and land-based storms, TRMM is providing
scientists the most detailed information to date on the processes
of these powerful storms, leading to new insights on how they
affect global climate patterns. TRMM's complement of state-of-the-
art instruments will provide extremely accurate measurements of
the distribution and variability of tropical rain and lightning,
and the balance of solar radiation absorbed and reflected by
Earth's atmosphere.
-end-
Hа сегодня все, пока!
=SANA=
Дата: 22 мая 1998 (1998-05-22)
От: Alexander Bondugin
Тема: Hughes To Send HGS-1 Satellite On 2nd Lunar Flyby
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HUGHES GLOBAL SERVICES, INC.
Communications and Customer Relations
P.O. Box 92919 (S10/S323)
Los Angeles, CA 90009
Media Relations (310) 364-6363
Investor Relations (310) 662-9688
www.hughesglobal.com
HUGHES TO SEND HGS-1 SATELLITE ON 2ND LUNAR FLYBY
LOS ANGELES, May 18, 1998 -- Hughes Global Services, Inc., (HGS), which
successfully sent a stranded communications satellite around the moon last
week in an unprecedented salvage mission, is mounting a second lunar flyby
to further improve the orbit.
The satellite, known as HGS-1, passed behind the moon at noon PDT May 13 and
returned to Earth, making its closest approach about 8 p.m. PDT Saturday.
Instead of doing the planned retro burn at that time, Hughes' mission
controllers fired the satellite's motor for a shorter period of time,
allowing the satellite to glide into a looping 15-day orbit. An additional
small burn on June 1 will send the satellite toward its second lunar
encounter.
"While the first pass by the moon was completely successful and accomplished
all of our objectives, we always said we were going for the best obtainable
orbit," said HGS President Ronald V. Swanson. "A second lunar flyby will
make the orbit even better and will increase the satellite's attractiveness
to potential customers. We do not plan any additional lunar maneuvers since
additional passes will result in diminishing improvements."
When the satellite was sent into space last Christmas, the launch vehicle
malfunctioned and left the spacecraft in an unusable, highly elliptical
orbit. Most communications satellites operate from a circular orbit around
the equator.
By sending the satellite around the moon, Hughes used lunar gravity to
improve the resulting orbit once the satellite returned to Earth.
When HGS obtained title to the satellite last month, it agreed to try to
find revenue-producing uses for the satellite and to share profits with the
insurers. A consortium of 27 insurers had owned the satellite after the
original mission was declared a total loss. HGS' primary business is
packaging satellite communications services for governmental entities,
although it is actively seeking commercial interest in the entire satellite
as well.
"Our orbital analysts have done a fantastic job of planning this mission and
predicting the satellite's trajectory thus far," Swanson said. "So we
challenged them to evaluate whether we could improve the orbit further.
"They said one more loop around the moon would improve the orbit, with
little impact on the satellite's operational life -- so we're going for it,"
Swanson said.
The new mission plan involves the same number of post-lunar motor firings,
four. Only the times and durations have changed. The first burn successfully
occurred Saturday night, as scheduled. That burn reduced the satellite's
speed by roughly one-half of what was originally planned. Saturday night's
burn placed HGS-1 into a 15-day orbit with an apogee -- the farthest
distance from the Earth -- of about 293,000 miles (488,000 km).
A second, smaller burn, scheduled for June 1, will nudge the satellite into
position for its second lunar encounter on June 6. The spacecraft will pass
the moon's surface from a distance of 27,000 miles (43,000 km), which is
about seven times farther than the initial lunar encounter on May 13. An
additional motor firing is planned for June 12, to further position the
satellite for its final orbit. The final burn, currently scheduled for June
13, will place the HGS-1 spacecraft into geosynchronous orbit.
Hughes Global Services is a subsidiary of Hughes Space and Communications
Company (HSC), the world's leading manufacturer of geostationary commercial
communications satellites. Scientists and engineers from both HGS and HSC
are taking part in the mission. Both companies are units of Hughes
Electronics Corporation. PanAmSat Corporation, of which Hughes Electronics
is the majority owner, has been providing critical command and tracking
support for the mission through its ground station in Fillmore, Calif.
The earnings of Hughes Electronics are used to calculate the earnings per
share attributable to GMH (NYSE symbol) common stock.
###
Hа сегодня все, пока!
=SANA=
Дата: 22 мая 1998 (1998-05-22)
От: Alexander Bondugin
Тема: New Mars Global Surveyor Image Available
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NEW MARS GLOBAL SURVEYOR IMAGE
A new image taken by the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft is now available
on the MGS home page:
http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mgs/msss/camera/images/5_15_98_ascraeus_release/index
.html
The image caption is appended below.
Ron Baalke
Mars Global Surveyor
Mars Orbiter Camera
Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) High Resolution Images:
Lava Flows On Ascraeus Mons Volcano
Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera Release: MOC2-47a, -47b
Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera Image ID: 578204600.26705
P267-05
(A) [Image]
(A) Portion of U.S. Geological Survey Mars Digital Mosaic. Volcano is about
400 km (250 miles) across at its center. Sun illumination over most of
mosaic is from upper right. Arrow points to location of MOC image shown in
(B).
(B) [Image]
(B) MOC image 26705 (subframe) reproduced at full resolution, about 4.1
meters/pixel (13.4 feet/pixel). Picture shows an area approximately 3.3 x
3.3 km (2.1 x 2.1 miles) in size. Sun illumination is from the lower right.
CAPTION
Ascraeus Mons Volcano:
Like Earth, Mars has many volcanoes and volcanic features. This
high-resolution view shows some of the lava flows near the summit of
Ascraeus Mons, one of the three giant shield volcanoes known as the "Tharsis
Montes". Volcanoes form when magma (molten rock) erupts out onto the surface
of a planet. Based on Viking-era observations, Ascraeus Mons is considered
to be one of the tallest volcanoes on Mars... its summit is more than 11 km
(6.8 miles) above the surrounding plain. The summit is more than 23 km (14
miles) higher in elevation than the place where Mars Pathfinder landed in
July 1997.
Description of MOC Image:
This picture shows an area that is about 20 km (12 miles) higher in
elevation than the Mars Pathfinder landing site. The picture shows three
main features: (1) a crater at the center-right, (2) a sinuous,
discontinuous channel across the upper half, and (3) a rough and pitted,
elevated surface across the lower half of the image.
(1) Crater at center right. Distinguishing meteor craters from volcanic
craters can sometimes be a challenge on Mars. This particular crater was
most likely formed by meteor impact because it has a raised rim and a faint
radial ejecta pattern around the outside of it. This crater is 600 m (2000
feet) across, about 3/4 the size of the famous "Meteor Crater" near Winslow,
Arizona.
(2) Sinuous channel. The type of discontinuous channel running across the
upper half of the image is sometimes refered to as a "sinuous rille". These
are common on the volcanic plains of the Moon and among volcanoes and
volcanic plains on Earth. Such a channel was once a lava tube. It is running
down the middle of an old lava flow. The "tube" looks like a "channel"
because its roof has collapsed. The discontinuous nature of this channel is
the result of the collapse, or "cave-in" of what was once the roof of the
lava tube. It is common for certain types of relatively fluid lavas to form
lava tubes. As it is being emplaced, the outer margins of the lava flow cool
and harden, but the interior remains hot and and continues to flow down-
hill. Eventually, the eruption stops and the lava inside the tube cools,
contracts, and hardens, leaving behind a tube (basically, a long narrow
cave).
(3) Rough elevated surface. The rough, pitted, and elevated surface across
the bottom half of the image is a lava flow. The margins of this feature are
somewhat lobate in form, and the entire feature is elevated above its
surroundings, indicating that it was the last lava flow to pour through this
region.
Putting it All Together: Aa and Pahoehoe Lava Flows:
Shield volcanoes such as Ascraeus Mons form from relatively fluid lavas.
Shield volcanoes on Earth include the well-known Islands of Hawai'i. The
kind of lava that is fluid enough to make shield volcanoes is called basalt.
This is an iron- and magnesium- rich silicate lava that, when cooled, is
usually black or very dark brown.
Basalt lava flows come in two main varieties: Aa and Pahoehoe. These are
Hawai'ian names. "Aa" (pronounced "ah-ah") lava flows have very rough,
jumbly surfaces, and they usually lack lava tubes. "Aa" lava flow surfaces
are very rough to walk on-- thus the term "aa" probably refers to the sound
a person might make when walking on a cooled/solidified aa flow in bare
feet!
"Pahoehoe" (pronounced "pa-hoy-hoy") is a term that means "ropey". The
surfaces of pahoehoe lava flows are generally very smooth and billowy.
Sometimes they have a ropy texture like melted taffy or caramel. Pahoehoe
flows very commonly contain lava tubes.
The rough-surfaced flow across the lower half of the MOC image is
interpreted to be an "aa" lava flow, and the smoother surface with a sinuous
channel running down its center is interpreted to be a "pahoehoe" lava flow.
Both would indicate that the lavas on Ascraeus Mons, at least at this
location, are probably composed of basalt.
More Picture Information:
The MOC picture (B) is a subframe of image #26705, centered approximately at
11.5њN latitude, 103.5њW longitude. It was taken on April 28, 1998, at 4:23
AM Universal Time, on Mars Global Surveyor's 267th orbit around Mars. Orbit
267 was the second-to-last orbit on which observations were obtained before
Mars and the spacecraft passed behind the Sun for several weeks known as
"Solar Conjunction".
The context frame (A) is from a U.S. Geological Survey photomosaic of Viking
Orbiter images obtained in the late 1970s. The bright, wispy feature on the
west (left) side of the volcano is a plume of dust being lofted by wind.
This plume casts a shadow that can be seen below it.
Malin Space Science Systems and the California Institute of Technology built
the MOC using spare hardware from the Mars Observer mission. MSSS operates
the camera from its facilities in San Diego, CA. The Jet Propulsion
Laboratory's Mars Surveyor Operations Project operates the Mars Global
Surveyor spacecraft with its industrial partner, Lockheed Martin
Astronautics, from facilities in Pasadena, CA and Denver, CO.
Hа сегодня все, пока!
=SANA=
Дата: 22 мая 1998 (1998-05-22)
От: Alexander Bondugin
Тема: STARDUST Update - May 15, 1998
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STARDUST Status Report
May 15, 1998
Ken Atkins
STARDUST Project Manager
Assembly, Test, and Launch Operations (ATLO) activities: ATLO
this past week involved harness modifications to achieve a
compatible timing interface and grounding for the Navigation Camera
scan-mirror motor, Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU #2) installation,
Attitude Control System interface testing and spacecraft functional
testing.
The formal ATLO Pre-Environmental Test Review was conducted. The Board
concluded that STARDUST is ready to proceed to its environmental test.
Aerogel: The ATLO Test Unit (ATU) aerogel trays were installed in the
Sample Return Capsule (SRC). The installation procedure was practiced
in the SRC Structural/Thermal Model. JPL aerogel team members
participated in the aerogel collector inspection and installation.
Outreach: After the film "Deep Impact" opening and the announcement of
the new round of name collections, the STARDUST home page jumped to a
peak of 64,239 hits on May 11, and has been averaging 51,600 hits
per day for the week. About 86,000 names have already been
collected. There is a link to the Stardust name collection form
from the Deep Impact homepage at:
http://www.deepimpactmovie.com
STARDUST was also the highlighted feature on the
Space Day home page at:
http://www.spaceday.com/thisweek/index.htm
For more information on the STARDUST mission - the first ever comet sample
return mission, please visit the STARDUST home page:
http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov
Hа сегодня все, пока!
=SANA=
Дата: 22 мая 1998 (1998-05-22)
От: Alexander Bondugin
Тема: NASA Selects Initial Members Of New Virtual Astrobiology Institute
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Douglas Isbell/Don Savage
Headquarters, Washington, DC May 19, 1998
(Phone: 202/358-1547)
RELEASE: 98-84
NASA SELECTS INITIAL MEMBERS OF NEW VIRTUAL ASTROBIOLOGY INSTITUTE
NASA has selected 11 academic and research institutions as
the initial members of the agency's new Astrobiology Institute,
thus launching a major component of NASA's Origins Program.
The selected institutions represent the best of 53 uniformly
first-class proposals submitted, according to NASA officials.
Given that the institute members will remain at their home
organizations, the partnership among the members and NASA will be
carried out primarily via the Internet. This electronic 'virtual'
Institute will bring together astrophysicists, biologists,
chemists, physicists, planetologists and geologists to conduct
interdisciplinary research on the multifaceted issue of life in
the Universe and its cosmic implications. It will also help to
train young scientists in this emerging field.
"These initial members of NASA's Ast
