This critical study of NASA's space shuttle program provides an in-depth examination of the events, decisions, and policies that may have contributed to the horrific destruction of the shuttles Challenger and Columbia. It first traces the early development of NASA's shuttle program, specifically examining the problems associated with the designs of shuttles OV-099 (which was to become Challenger) and OV-102 (which was to become Columbia). The reader is then taken through a detailed look at the first successful flights made by Challenger and Columbia and the cancellation of top-secret Shuttle flight 51-C (which would have launched under nearly identical weather conditions as the ill-fated Challenger). An in-depth assessment of the shuttles' disastrous final launches follows, including detailed accounts of the post-flight search and rescue operations, the official investigations into each accident, and the impact of each disaster on the future of NASA's manned space program.

Aviation noise remains the primary hindrance to expansion of airport and airspace capacity in the United States. This book describes the development and practice of U.S. aircraft noise regulation, as well as the practical consequences of regulatory policy. Starting in the pre-jet transport era, the book traces the development of the modern framework for characterizing, standardizing, predicting, disclosing, and mitigating aircraft noise and its effects on airport-vicinity communities. Among other matters, the book treats noise-related consequences of the 1978 deregulation of the airline industry; prediction and mitigation of community reaction to airport noise; land use compatibility planning; recent research and industry trends; and some suggestions for potential improvements to current policy. Initial chapters describe the assumptions underlying aircraft noise regulation, and lay out the chronology of U.S. aircraft noise regulatory practice. Later chapters provide overviews of population-level effects of aviation noise, including health effects, speech and sleep interference, and annoyance. Readers will learn why predictions of the prevalence of aircraft noise-induced annoyance have systematically underestimated adverse community response to aircraft noise, and how such underestimation has complicated approval and funding of airport and airspace improvement projects. They will also learn why attempts at noise-compatible land use planning are seldom fully successful.

All typical and special modal and response analysis methods, applied within the frame of the design of spacecraft structures, are described in this book. It therefore addresses graduate students and engineers in the aerospace field.

The year 2007 will see the 50th anniversary of the Space Age, which began with the launching of Sputnik by the Soviet Union in October 1957. Since that time, the development of space technology has revolutionised many aspects of life on Earth, from satellite television to mobile phones, the internet and micro-electronics. It has also helped to bring about a revolution in the use of military force by the most powerful states.

Space is crucial to the politics of the postmodern world. It has seen competition and cooperation in the past fifty years, and is in danger of becoming a battlefield in the next fifty. The International Politics of Space is the first book to bring these crucial themes together and provide a clear and vital picture of how politically important space has become, and what its exploitation might mean for all our futures.

Michael Sheehan analyses the space programmes of the United States, Russia, China, India and the European Space Agency, and explains how central space has become to issues of war and peace, international law, justice and international development, and cooperation between the worlds leading states. It highlights the significance of China and India's commitment to space, and explains how the theories and concepts we use to describe and explain space are fundamental to the possibility of avoiding conflict in space in the future.

This ground-breaking book will be of great interest to students of international relations, space politics and security studies.

The possibility that humans are not alone in the Universe and might in the future come in close contact with other intelligences is one of the most intriguing questions of human history and has deep implications for our understanding of the Universe and ourselves. In this book the subject is dealt with in an interdisciplinary way, giving the scientific and technological implications, discussing the philosophical and religious connotations and rebuffing the pseudo-scientific statements. Based on our current scientific understanding of the Universe, the possibility of extraterrestrial life is discussed, summarizing cosmic, chemical and biological evolution. What we now know of the Universe suggests that life is common and extraterrestrial intelligent life is a possibility. The problem of searching for extraterrestrial intelligent beings is often reduced to radio telescope technology or the possibility of decoding a possible message. In many cases the idea of ETIs is loaded with anthropomorphism. The author discusses problems such as: what is intelligence? What is consciousness? Should we expect ETIs to be conscious beings and other philosophical issues? also examined and the possibilities of true contact with other intelligent beings are considered. At the heart of this book is an examination of the viability of future astronautics which would enable closer human contact with ETI than through radio messages taking thousands of years to reach their destination. The possibility of faster-than-light space travel is considered. The book addresses readers with an interest in general science, but also those with a humanist background, interested in the great philosophical debate about human nature, in particular the question of whether there is other intelligent life in the Universe, and the author counterbalances recent theories such as 'rare earth'.

This book presents the first comprehensive history of innovation at NASA, bringing together experts in the field to illuminate how public-private and international partnerships have fueled new ways of exploring space since the beginning of space travel itself. Twelve case studies trace the messy, risky history of such partnerships, exploring the role of AT&T in the early development of satellite technology, the connections between the Apollo program and Silicon Valley, the rise of SpaceX, and more. Some of these projects have succeeded, and some have failed; all have challenged conventional methods of doing the public's business in space. Together, these essays offer new insights into how innovation happens, with invaluable lessons for policymakers, investors, economists, and members of the space community.

Every rock has a story tell, and none more so than those which have fallen from the sky: meteorites. Originating in the Asteroid Belt between Mars and Jupiter, these rocky fragments offer clues not just to the earliest origins of the Solar System but also to Earth's very survival into the future. Sky at Night presenter, Dr Tim Gregory takes us on a journey through the very earliest days of our Solar System to the spectacular meteorite falls that produced 'fiery rain' in 1792, to the pre-solar grains (literally stardust) that were blown in from other solar systems and are the oldest solid objects ever discovered on earth. Meteorites reveal a story much bigger than ourselves or our planet. As Tim says, 'it is an epic beyond compare'.

This revised edition provides an up-to-date summary of the field of ultra-high energy cosmic rays, dealing with their origin, propagation, and composition,. The authors reflect the enormous strides made since the first edition in the realm of experimental work, in particular the use of vastly improved, more sensitive and precise detectors. The level remains introductory and pedagogical, suitable for students and researchers interested in moving into this exciting field. Throughout the text, the authors focus on giving an introductory overview of the key physics issues, followed by a clear and concise description of experimental approaches and current results. Key Features: Updates the most coherent summary of the field available, with new text that provides the reader with clear historical context. Brand new discussion of contemporary space-based experiments and ideas for extending ground-based detectors. Completely new discussion of radio detection methods. Includes a new chapter on small to intermediate-scale anisotropy. Offers new sections on modern hadronic models and software packages to simulate showers.

NASA's history is a familiar story, one that typically peaks with Neil Armstrong taking his small step on the Moon in 1969. But America's space agency wasn't created in a vacuum. It was assembled from pre-existing parts, drawing together some of the best minds the non-Soviet world had to offer. In the 1930s, rockets were all the rage in Germany, the focus both of scientists hoping to fly into space and of the German armed forces, looking to circumvent the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles. One of the key figures in this period was Wernher von Braun, an engineer who designed the rockets that became the devastating V-2. As the war came to its chaotic conclusion, von Braun escaped from the ruins of Nazi Germany, and was taken to America where he began developing missiles for the US Army. Meanwhile, the US Air Force was looking ahead to a time when men would fly in space, and test pilots like Neil Armstrong were flying cutting-edge, rocket-powered aircraft in the thin upper atmosphere. Breaking the Chains of Gravity tells the story of America's nascent space program, its scientific advances, its personalities and the rivalries it caused between the various arms of the US military. At this point getting a man in space became a national imperative, leading to the creation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, otherwise known as NASA.

"Exceptionally absorbing and thrilling. ... Masterful." -Nature A "magnificent" (Scientific American), genre-defying narrative of the most ambitious science project ever conceived: NASA's deep space mission to Europa, the Jovian moon where might swim the first known alien life in our solar system In the spirit of Tom Wolfe and John McPhee, The Mission is an exuberant master class of creative nonfiction that reveals how a motley, determined few expanded the horizon of human achievement. When scientists discovered the first ocean beyond Earth, they had two big questions: "Is it habitable?" and "How do we get there?" To answer the first, they had to solve the second, and so began a vivacious team's twenty-year odyssey to mount a mission to Europa, the ocean moon of Jupiter. Standing in their way: NASA, fanatically consumed with landing robots on Mars; the White House, which never saw a science budget it couldn't cut; Congress, fixated on going to the moon or Mars-anywhere, really, to give astronauts something to do; rivals in academia, who wanted instead to go to Saturn; and even Jupiter itself, which guards Europa in a pulsing, rippling radi ation belt-a halo of death whose conditions are like those that follow a detonated thermonuclear bomb. The Mission is the Homeric, never-before-told story of modern space exploration, and a magnificent portrait of the inner lives of scientists who study the solar system's mysterious outer planets. David W. Brown chronicles the remarkable saga of how Europa was won, and what it takes to get things done-both down here, and up there.

Fifty years after Sputnik, artificial satellites have become indispensable monitors in many areas, such as economics, meteorology, telecommunications, navigation and remote sensing. The specific orbits are important for the proper functioning of the satellites. This book discusses the great variety of satellite orbits, both in shape (circular to highly elliptical) and properties (geostationary, Sun-synchronous, etc.). This volume starts with an introduction into geodesy. This is followed by a presentation of the fundamental equations of mechanics to explain and demonstrate the properties for all types of orbits. Numerous examples are included, obtained through IXION software developed by the author. The book also includes an exposition of the historical background that is necessary to help the reader understand the main stages of scientific thought from Kepler to GPS.

This book is intended for researchers, teachers and students working in the field of satellite technology. Engineers, geographers and all those involved in space exploration will find this information valuable.

"Michel Capderou s book is an essential treatise in orbital mechanics for all students, lecturers and practitioners in this field, as well as other aerospace systems engineers."

Charles Elachi, Director, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory"

This third edition of The Physics of the Interstellar Medium continues to introduce advanced undergraduates to the fundamental processes and the wide range of disciplines needed to understand observations of the interstellar medium and its role in the Milky Way galaxy. The book is suitable for undergraduate students studying physics, astronomy, and astrophysics. The book also provides concise and straightforward discussions of interstellar physics and chemistry that are useful for more experienced readers. The book leads readers through the range of physical processes operating on both large and small scales that occur in the interstellar medium. It explores the relationship between the dusty, tenuous gas in interstellar space and the formation of stars and planets. This new edition also describes exciting developments in the field of astrochemistry and its interaction with interstellar physics, and the roles played by interstellar dust grains in interstellar physics and chemistry. Simple models in each chapter, together with problems at the end of each chapter, encompass interdisciplinary applications in atomic, molecular, solid state, and surface physics, and gas dynamics. This popular textbook provides a useful overview and grounding in the study of the interstellar medium and brings insight into many aspects of physics. Features An authoritative textbook in the field at this academic level Provides a wide introduction to the interstellar medium whilst remaining accessible and concise Revised throughout, presenting a modern understanding of the interstellar medium

This book provides a contemporary look at spaceports, not only from relevant technological drivers, policies, and legal perspectives, but also from impacts associated with airspace use and aviation stakeholders. Economic, business, financial, and environmental considerations; issues facing airports transitioning to air and space ports; and spaceport planning are discussed. Through case and event studies, research and analysis, along with information obtained through professional experience, this book provides an overview of the many benefits, unique challenges, and issues facing commercial spaceports and spaceport operators. Each chapter is a standalone key topic such that the reader can focus on the most compelling issues relevant for them or can view the book as an integrated whole for a full perspective. While examples and case studies come largely from the United States, the reader can draw conclusions that are independent of country and situation. Information on other nation-state policies and advancements, among other topics, is provided to give a global perspective, further expanding the relevancy and benefits of the book to both domestic and international audiences. An Introduction to the Spaceport Industry: Runways to Space fills a gap in the literature, providing professionals, government officials, researchers, professors, and students deep insights into the fast-growing commercial spaceport industry.

This book provides a contemporary look at spaceports, not only from relevant technological drivers, policies, and legal perspectives, but also from impacts associated with airspace use and aviation stakeholders. Economic, business, financial, and environmental considerations; issues facing airports transitioning to air and space ports; and spaceport planning are discussed. Through case and event studies, research and analysis, along with information obtained through professional experience, this book provides an overview of the many benefits, unique challenges, and issues facing commercial spaceports and spaceport operators. Each chapter is a standalone key topic such that the reader can focus on the most compelling issues relevant for them or can view the book as an integrated whole for a full perspective. While examples and case studies come largely from the United States, the reader can draw conclusions that are independent of country and situation. Information on other nation-state policies and advancements, among other topics, is provided to give a global perspective, further expanding the relevancy and benefits of the book to both domestic and international audiences. An Introduction to the Spaceport Industry: Runways to Space fills a gap in the literature, providing professionals, government officials, researchers, professors, and students deep insights into the fast-growing commercial spaceport industry.

Presents an overview of recent research on the original of solar phenomena that affect Earth s technological systems.

This topical issue is based on the presentations given at the 26th National Solar Observatory (NSO) Summer Workshop held at the National Solar Observatory/Sacramento Peak, New Mexico, USA from 30 April to 4 May 2012. This unique forum brought together experts in different areas of solar and space physics to help in developing a full picture of the origin of solar phenomena that affect Earth s technological systems. The articles include theory, model and observation research on the origin of the solar activity and its cycle, as well as a discussion on how to incorporate the research into space-weather forecasting tools.

This volumeis aimed at graduate students and researchers active in solar physics and space science.

Previously published in "Solar Physics," Vol. 289/2, 2014."

This select volume of historical documents is organized chronologically, spanning from 1914 to the present. Divided into eight chapters, it includes a narrative introduction to each historical period. This collection of historical documents provides insight into the history of the United States in its pursuit of the peaceful uses of outer space, with emphasis on the manned space program of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, as well as commercial American activities supporting human spaceflight in the early 21st century. Rocketry and space technology have served varied goals throughout the Space Age: pure research, as well as research applied for national security, national prestige, and commercial profit. There have been varied actors as well, among them individuals supported by philanthropists as well as governments, intergovernmental organizations, international consortiums, and for-profit corporations. This book focuses on space exploration, and in particular, human space exploration, leading to the questions, "Why have humans gone into outer space in the past?" and "Why will they do so in the future?" These documents help readers to examine the variety of fascinating answers to those questions. Provides readers with a broad overview of the U.S. history of human spaceflight from its beginnings to the present, and of the early 20th century rocketry that preceded it Provides a basis for in-depth studies of more specific topics in U.S. space history via source documents Presents the technocratic and commercial development of space technology as a push-pull relationship in which each propels the other into the future

In this remarkable oral history, Slava Gerovitch presents interviews with the men and women who witnessed Soviet space efforts firsthand. Rather than comprising a "master narrative," these fascinating and varied accounts bring to light the often divergent perspectives, experiences, and institutional cultures that defined the Soviet space program.

In September 2011, the GRAIL mission launched two unmanned spacecraft to the Moon, which entered into lunar orbit on December 31, 2011 and January 1, 2012. They orbited the Moon until December 17, 2012, when they impacted the surface near the Moon's north pole. This book contains three review articles co-authored by the GRAIL Science Team and Guest Scientists that describe the reasons for the GRAIL mission, the development of the necessary technology, and the design of the mission to acquire the most precise measurements of the lunar gravity field possible today. The book provides a detailed description of the GRAIL mission's scientific objectives, the instrumentation and its required performance, the complex simulation of the measurement system for determining the gravity field, and the innovative education and public outreach of the mission directed toward middle-school students who could select areas of the Moon for imaging with the onboard MoonKam camera system. This volume is aimed at researchers and graduate students active in solar system science and planetology. Originally published in Space Science Reviews journal, Vol. 178/1, 2013.

Emphasizing the importance of the space programme to the scientific, social and cultural history of the last half of the 20th century, this brief history celebrates the almost unimaginable technological leap that the space programme represents, a feat of teamwork, innovation, dedication and mastery unprecedented in the history of mankind. Walsh's narrative begins just before the Mercury programme, covers the original seven astronauts, the Gemini and Apollo programmes, through Skylab and up to the space shuttle. The glories and emotion of space exploration are presented against the backdrop of the Cold War, the presidential administrations of Eisenhower, JFK, LBJ, Nixon, Ford and Carter, and other singificant events in US history. The positive accomplishments of the astronauts are put in context of an increasingly negative domestic situation in the '60s and '70s, the Bay of Pigs, civil rights, assassinations, growing involvement in and dissension about Vietnam, the Watergate scandal, and Nixon's resignation.

When the first sputnik was launched and the space era began, few gave thought to the possible negative impact that putting satellites into orbit may have. In fact, man's space activity has led to the formation of a new media named ' space debris', i.e. manmade objects and their fragments launched into space, currently inactive and no longer serving any useful purpose.
Space Debris: Hazard Evaluation and Mitigation will be of interest to readers unfamiliar with the issues as well as experts and designers as it introduces concepts related to the problems of space ecology featuring actual data on the space debris environment, new mathematical models for space debris evolution, production and self-production, description of the existing software, and concepts for shield design. Methods of collision risk assessment depending on attitudes and inclinations of orbits, collision hazard evaluation and suggestions for preventative measures are also covered.

Physics of Fluids in Microgravity provides a clear view of the latest research and progress in the different fields of fluid research in space at the beginning of the International Space Station Era. The topics presented include bubbles and drops dynamics, Marangoni flows, diffusion and thermodiffusion, solidification and crystal growth. The results obtained so far are, in some cases, to be confirmed by extensive research activities on the International Space Station, where basic and applied microgravity experimentation will take place in the years to come.

This volume identifies and evaluates the relationship between outer-space geography and geographic position (astrogeography), and the evolution of current and future military space strategy. In doing so, it explores five primary propositions. First, many classical geopolitical theories of military development are fully compatible with the realm of outer space. Second, how geographical position relates to new technology. Such evolution has developed through sea, rail and air power. Space power is the logical and apparent heir. Third, the special terrain of solar space dictates specific tactics and strategies for efficient exploitation of space resources. Fourth, the concept of space as a power base in classical, geopolitical thought will easily conform to the use of outer space as an ultimate national power base. Finally, a thorough understanding of the astromechanical and physical demarcations of outer space can prove useful to planners, and will prove critical to military strategists in the future. An optimum deployment of space assets will be essential on the current terrestrial and future-based battlefield.

Investigations in space have been conducted in both manned and unmanned space vehicles. Space: Technologies, Materials and Structures explains the development of hardware and instrumentation designed to operate in the severe conditions of space. For the operation and repair of such vehicles, engineers and scientists must consider a broad range of practical issues, such as the construction and mounting of extended large structures, discussed here using the Mir space station as a case study. Another consideration is the manufacture of permanent joins by welding and brazing, as well as the application of various coatings by thermal evaporation. Astrophysicists, engineers and applied mathematicians will benefit from this volume.

The Six was an extraordinary cohort of women recruited by NASA in the seventies. Ride was just one member of the Six. Greeted in Houston by make-up bags designed for use in space, no designated locker rooms and flight suits that didn't fit, they went on to break barriers on earth and in space. In 1983 Sally Ride became the first American woman to go into space. Anna Fisher was assigned to her first space flight while pregnant. Judy Resnik was killed in the Challenger explosion in 1986. But her legacy - and that of all the Six - lives on. This sparkling history reveals their journey through NASA's outreach programme, rigorous tests and training, sexism, press attention, and the solidarity with which they overcame obstacles and launched into space.