samedi 23 octobre 2021

Asteroid - The Massalia family

 







Moscow Planetarium logo.


Oct. 23, 2021

Asteroid families are fragments of large asteroids that collided and collapsed. During collisions, the parent asteroids can completely collapse, but there are also families in which the parent asteroid remained intact or almost intact.


If the object that collided with the asteroid was not very large, then it can knock out many small fragments from the asteroid, which then make up the family. Moreover, the mass of the main asteroid is more than 90% of the mass of the family. So the Massalia family was formed, named after the largest representative.

The main asteroid of the family was discovered in 1852 by the Italian astronomer Annibale de Gasparis at the Capodimonte Observatory in Naples. It was named after the Greek name of the French city of Marseille. It was the twentieth main belt asteroid discovered, therefore its official name is 20 Massalia.

This family consists of many small fragments that were knocked out of it as a result of a collision with another smaller cosmic body. Massalia is about 150 km across, concentrating more than 99% of the mass of the entire family. The second largest asteroid of this family (7760) 1990 RW3 does not exceed 7 km in diameter. There are more than 6,000 small asteroids in the Massalia family.

According to scientists, the Massalia family was formed 150-200 million years ago. It is divided into two regions, between which is the main asteroid of the family. Moreover, the density of asteroids in these areas is less than in the central zone around Massalia. The family belongs to the group of asteroids of the spectral class S, with a predominantly silicate composition. This family includes about 0.8% of the main belt asteroids. The Massalia family may be a source of interplanetary dust in this region of the asteroid belt, resulting from secondary collisions of small asteroids of this family.

Source: Moscow Planetarium.

Related links:

ROSCOSMOS Press Release: https://www.roscosmos.ru/33077/

Moscow Planetarium: https://www.roscosmos.ru/tag/moskovskiy-planetariy/

Asteroid: https://www.roscosmos.ru/tag/asteroid/

Images, Text, Credits: ROSCOSMOS/Moscow Planetarium/Orbiter.ch Aerospace/Roland Berga.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

KARI - Nuri maiden launch

 







KARI - Korea Aerospace Research Institute logo.


Oct. 23, 2021

Nuri maiden launch

Nuri was launched on its first flight from the Naro Space Center, South Korea, on 21 October 2021, at 08:00 UTC (17:00). Nuri (누리호), also known as KSLV-II (Korea Space Launch Vehicle-2) is a three-stage liquid-propellant launch vehicle developed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI).

Nuri maiden launch

The first stage of KSLV-II has four 75-ton liquid engines, designed to generate a combined thrust of 300 tons.

Korea Space Launch Vehicle (Nuri)

Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI): https://www.kari.re.kr/eng.do

Image, Video, Text, Credits: Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI)/SciNews/Orbiter.ch Aerospace/Roland Berga.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

NASA Fully Stacked for Moon Mission, Readies for Artemis I

 







NASA - ARTEMIS-1 Exploration Mission patch.


Oct 23, 2021

NASA’s Orion spacecraft is secured atop the agency’s powerful Space Launch System rocket, and the integrated system is entering the final phase of preparations for an upcoming uncrewed flight test around the Moon. The mission, known as Artemis I, will pave the way for a future flight test with crew before NASA establishes a regular cadence of more complex missions with astronauts on and around the Moon under Artemis. With stacking complete, a series of integrated tests now sit between the mega-Moon rocket and targeted liftoff for deep space in February 2022.

“It’s hard to put into words what this milestone means, not only to us here at Exploration Ground Systems, but to all the incredibly talented people who have worked so hard to help us get to this point,” said Mike Bolger, Exploration Ground Systems program manager. “Our team has demonstrated tremendous dedication preparing for the launch of Artemis I. While there is still work to be done to get to launch, with continued integrated tests and Wet Dress Rehearsal, seeing the fully stacked SLS is certainly a reward for all of us.”


Image above: Teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida lifted the Orion spacecraft and placed it atop the Space Launch System (SLS) Moon rocket, completing assembly for the Artemis I flight test. Image Credit: NASA.

Each of the test campaigns will evaluate the rocket and spacecraft as an integrated system for the first time, building upon each other and culminating in a simulation at the pad to prepare for launch day.

Interface Verification Testing - verifies the functionality and interoperability of interfaces across the elements and systems. Teams will conduct this test from the firing room in the Launch Control Center and will start by powering up Orion to charge the batteries and perform health and status checks of various systems. Next, the teams will do the same to check interfaces between the core stage and boosters and the ground systems, and ensure functionality of different systems, including core stage engines and booster thrust control, as well as the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS). A final integrated test, with all wire harnesses installed throughout the rocket and spacecraft, will verify their ability to talk to each other and to ground systems.

Program Specific Engineering Testing- ensures functionality of a variety of different systems. Following the interface verification test for the core stage and boosters, additional testing will perform several checks in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) for the core stage and booster systems, such as a booster thrust control test. Later, engineers will conduct an additional engineering test during the visit to  pad 39B for wet dress rehearsal.

End-to-End Communications Testing - integrated test of radio frequencies from mission control to SLS, ICPS, and Orion – all to demonstrate our ability to communicate with the ground. This test uses a radio frequency antenna in the VAB, another near the pad that will cover the first few seconds of launch, as well as a more powerful antenna that uses the Tracking Data Relay Satellite and the Deep Space Network.

Orion Spacecraft Joins Artemis I Moon Rocket at Kennedy. Image Credit: NASA

Countdown Sequencing Testing - conducts a simulated launch countdown inside the VAB to demonstrate the ground launch software and ground launch sequencer, which checks for health and status of the vehicle sitting on the pad. The teams will configure the rocket in the VAB for launch and run the sequencer to a predefined point in the countdown – testing the responses from the rocket and spacecraft and ensuring the sequencer can run without any issues. On launch day, the ground launch sequencer hands off to the rocket and spacecraft and an automated launch sequencer takes over around 30 seconds before launch.

Wet Dress Rehearsal Testing - demonstrates the ability to load cryogenic, or supercold, propellants, including detanking the propellants with the Artemis I rocket at the launch pad on the mobile launcher. Several weeks before the actual launch, Artemis I will roll the roughly four miles to Pad 39B atop the crawler-transporter. There it will undergo checkouts at the pad, and teams will practice the launch countdown and then recycle back to T-10 minutes to demonstrate the ability to scrub a launch and de-tank.

Prior to rolling out to the pad for wet dress, teams will conduct the first of a two-part test of the flight termination system inside the VAB. Once the systems are verified, the 322-foot-tall rocket will roll back into the VAB for final inspections and checkouts, including the second part of the flight termination system test, ahead of returning to the pad for launch.

Artemis I stacked

Leading up to launch, Artemis I mission operations teams also will continue additional launch simulations to run the team through its paces, ensuring they are ready for any scenario with this new vehicle come launch day.

The agency will set a specific date for the launch following a successful wet dress rehearsal. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I will provide a foundation for human deep space exploration and demonstrate our commitment and capability to extend human existence to the Moon and beyond prior to the first flight with crew on Artemis II.

Related article:

Lift Underway to Top Mega-Moon Rocket with Orion Spacecraft
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/10/lift-underway-to-top-mega-moon-rocket.html

Related links:

Artemis: https://www.nasa.gov/artemisprogram

Artemis I: https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-1

Orion Spacecraft: https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/orion/index.html

Space Launch System (SLS): https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html

Moon to Mars: https://www.nasa.gov/topics/moon-to-mars/

Images (mentioned), Video (NASA/ESA), Text, Credits: NASA/Kathryn Hambleton.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

vendredi 22 octobre 2021

Crew Stepping Up Upcoming Cargo Mission and Crew Swap Preps

 







ISS - Expedition 66 Mission patch.


October 22, 2021

The Expedition 66 crew will have a restful weekend before stepping up preparations next week for an intense period of Russian resupply ship and SpaceX Crew Dragon vehicle activities. However, the International Space Station residents are wrapping up the work week with a host of maintenance activities.

NASA Flight Engineers Megan McArthur and Mark Vande Hei worked on robotics activities in the NanoRacks Bishop airlock attached to the end cone of the Tranquility module during the afternoon. McArthur kicked off the work uninstalling the tiny GITAI robotic arm, located in Bishop, that is testing its abilities to perform routine support work saving the crew time. Vande Hei joined her afterward stowing the experimental robotic arm’s components, cleaning up Bishop, then closing its hatch.

International Space Station (ISS). Animation Credit: NASA

Flight Engineer Akihiko Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) started his morning flushing the oxygen generation system’s hoses of contaminants. Then the three-time station resident turned his attention in the afternoon toward assisting the two NASA astronauts with the Bishop cleanup work.

Over in the European Columbus laboratory module, NASA Flight Engineer Shane Kimbrough uninstalled science hardware that tests new radiation measurement techniques to make way for orbital plumbing work. Commander Thomas Pesquet of ESA (European Space Agency) took over the plumbing duties and replaced water valves behind a research rack located in Columbus.


Image above: Oct. 21, 2021: International Space Station Configuration. Four spaceships are parked at the space station including Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus space freighter; the SpaceX Crew Dragon vehicle; and Russia’s Soyuz MS-19 crew ship and ISS Progress 78 resupply ship. Image Credit: NASA.

Two cosmonauts are sleeping in today after adjusting their shifts two days ago to monitor the undocking then the redocking of the ISS Progress 78 resupply ship. The automated maneuvers saw the Progress 78 back away from the Poisk module on Wednesday night then redock to the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module just after midnight on Friday. Roscosmos Flight Engineers Pyotr Dubrov and Anton Shkaplerov were on duty checking the Progress’ systems ready to take over and remotely control the spacecraft from the Zvezda service module if necessary.

The next cargo craft to replenish the crew will be the ISS Progress 79 when it launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in the middle of next week. It will dock two days later to the aft port of Zvezda where it will stay for about seven months.

Progress MS-17 relocation

A crew swap is scheduled to begin in just over a week. The four astronauts of the SpaceX Crew-3 mission are due to blast off aboard the Crew Dragon Endurance on Oct. 31 at 2:21 a.m. from Florida toward the orbiting lab. Commander Raja Chari will lead Pilot Thomas Marshburn with Mission Specialists Kayla Barron and Matthias Maurer inside Endurance and dock to the Harmony module’s forward port about 22 hours later.

Several days after that, four astronauts who have been on the station since April will return to Earth inside the Crew Dragon Endeavour completing the SpaceX Crew-2 mission. Kimbrough will lead McArthur, Hoshide and Pesquet back home for a retrieval by NASA and SpaceX personnel off the coast of Florida.

Related links:

Expedition 66: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition66/index.html

NanoRacks Bishop airlock: https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/spinoff/New_Doorway_to_Space

Tranquility module: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/tranquility/

GITAI robotic arm: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8321

Columbus laboratory module: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/europe-columbus-laboratory

New radiation measurement techniques: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7434

Poisk module: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/poisk-mini-research-module-2

Zvezda service module: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/zvezda-service-module.html

Harmony module: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/harmony

Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/overview.html

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Animation (mentioned), Image (mentioned), Video, Text, Credits: NASA/Mark Garcia/NASA TV/SciNews.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Hubble Watches an Intergalactic Dance

 







NASA / ESA - Hubble Space Telescope  (HST) patch.


Oct 22, 2021


This observation from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope showcases Arp 86, a peculiar pair of interacting galaxies which lies roughly 220 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Pegasus. Arp 86 is composed of the two galaxies NGC 7752 and NGC 7753 – NGC 7753 is the large spiral galaxy dominating this image, and NGC 7752 is its smaller companion. The diminutive companion galaxy almost appears attached to NGC 7753, and it is this peculiarity that has earned the designation “Arp 86” – signifying that the galaxy pair appears in the Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies compiled by the astronomer Halton Arp in 1966. The gravitational dance between the two galaxies will eventually result in NGC 7752 being tossed out into intergalactic space or entirely engulfed by its much larger neighbor.

Hubble observed Arp 86 as part of a larger effort to understand the connections between young stars and the clouds of cold gas in which they form. Hubble gazed into star clusters and clouds of gas and dust in a variety of environments dotted throughout nearby galaxies. Combined with measurements from ALMA, a gigantic radio telescope perched high in the Chilean Andes, these Hubble observations provide a treasure trove of data for astronomers working to understand how stars are born.

Hubble Space Telescope (HST)

These observations also helped sow the seeds of future research using the NASA/ESA James Webb Space Telescope. Due to launch later this year, Webb will study star formation in dusty regions like those in the galaxies of Arp 86.

For more information about Hubble, visit:

http://hubblesite.org/

http://www.nasa.gov/hubble

http://www.spacetelescope.org/

Text Credits: European Space Agency (ESA)/NASA/Lynn Jenner/Image, Animation Credits: ESA/Hubble & NASA, Dark Energy Survey, J. Dalcanton.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Space Station Science Highlights: Week of October 18, 2021

 







ISS - Expedition 66 Mission patch.


Oct 22, 2021

Crew members aboard the International Space Station conducted scientific investigations during the week of Oct. 18 that included demonstrating robotic technology, studying impurities in protein crystal growth, and testing single-board computing in space.

The space station has been continuously inhabited by humans for 20 years, supporting many scientific breakthroughs. The orbiting lab provides a platform for long-duration research in microgravity and for learning to live and work in space, experience that supports Artemis, NASA’s program to go forward to the Moon and on to Mars.

Here are details on some of the microgravity investigations currently taking place:

Lending a (robotic) hand


Animation above: The Nanoracks-GITAI Robotic Arm set up inside of the Bishop Airlock. This investigation demonstrates the versatility and dexterity of the robot as it conducts common crew activities and tasks on the space station. Animation Credit: NASA.

Nanoracks-GITAI Robotic Arm demonstrates performance of a robot, designed by GITAI Japan Inc, as it conducts tasks such as pushing buttons, flipping switches, and plugging in cables, with supervision and teleoperations from the ground. Using robots to support crew activities and assist with on-orbit servicing, assembly, and manufacturing tasks could reduce cost and improve crew safety on future missions. This robotics technology also has applications on Earth, including in disaster relief, deep-sea excavation, nuclear power plants, and other harsh and potentially dangerous settings. During the week, crew members set up hardware and cameras for a run of the investigation.

Analyzing impurities for better crystal growth


Image above: View of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Kibo laboratory, with MAXI visible at the bottom left. MAXI continuously monitors the entire sky for transient galactic phenomena. Image Credit: NASA.

An ongoing investigation from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Advanced Nano Step monitors, records, and analyzes how specific impurities affect the quality of protein crystals grown in space. Microgravity makes possible production of higher-quality crystals, but impurities on the crystal surface can affect growth. By helping to identify the types of impurities involved, this experiment could improve the growth rate as well as reduce sample preparation time. Results could advance capabilities for research on and production of materials and drugs in space, as well as prove useful for crystallization trials conducted on Earth. Nano Step test equipment allows researchers to directly observe the growing surface of protein crystals and enables measurements not previously possible. Crew members replaced solution cells for the experiment during the week.

Cheaper, faster computing


Image above: A preflight view of hardware for SpaceDuino, which studies the capabilities and potential economic benefit of single-board computing technology in space. Image Credit: NASA.

Arduino, Raspberry Pi, and other single-board computers have increased in computational power, reliability, and availability while decreasing in cost. SpaceDuino studies the technical capabilities and potential economic benefits of such technologies in space. These systems may reduce the cost and power needed for acquisition and control of data, increasing the opportunities for microgravity-based research as well as enabling more efficient use of resources. Single-board computers also could offer low-cost options for students and researchers to build and fly reprogrammable experiments with faster turn-around. During the week, crew members installed and activated the experiment.

Other investigations involving the crew:

- JAXA’s MAXI, which monitors X-ray sources and variabilities from the exterior of the space station, has discovered new celestial events and created a catalog for high Galactic-latitude sky sources. A recently published paper from the study provides data crucial for understanding the nature of black hole emissions.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=593

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/ac07a3/meta

- Pilote, an investigation from ESA (European Space Agency), tests the effectiveness of remote operation of robotic arms and space vehicles using virtual reality and haptics, or simulated touch and motion. Results may influence the design of workstations and interfaces for future spacecraft and space habitats.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8347

- Cool Flames Investigation with Gases, part of the ACME series of studies, observes chemical reactions of cool flames, which burn at lower temperatures. Nearly impossible to create in Earth’s gravity, cool flames are easily created in microgravity and studying them may improve understanding of combustion and fires on Earth.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8270

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1651

- RFID Recon tests using radio frequency identification tags to identify and locate cargo on the space station using the space station’s free-flying Astrobee robots. The technology could help crew members find items more quickly and efficiently and enable more efficient packing, reducing launch mass and stowage volume.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7722

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Facility.html?#id=1891

- Probiotics, another JAXA investigation, studies whether probiotics or beneficial bacteria can improve immune function on long-duration space missions.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=2047


Image above: Chili pepper plants growing in the Advanced Plant Habitat for Plant Habitat-04, which conducts microbial analysis to improve understanding of plant-microbe interactions in space and assesses the flavor, texture, and nutrition of the peppers. Image Credit: NASA.

- Plant Habitat-04 grows chili peppers in the Advanced Plant Habitat and conducts microbial analysis to improve understanding of plant-microbe interactions in space as well as assessment of flavor, texture, and nutrition.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8276

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Facility.html?#id=2036

- HRF Veg focuses on the overall health benefits to crew members of having various plants and fresh food available. The investigation uses psychological surveys and crew evaluations of the flavor and appeal of plants that are grown on the space station for other investigations.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8434

Space to Ground: Pepper Countdown: 10/22/2021

Related links:

Expedition 66: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition66/index.html

Nanoracks-GITAI Robotic Arm: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8321

Advanced Nano Step: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7468

SpaceDuino: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8506

ISS National Lab: https://www.issnationallab.org/

Spot the Station: https://spotthestation.nasa.gov/

Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/overview.html

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Animation (mentioned), Images (mentioned), Video (NASA), Text, Credits: NASA/Ana Guzman/John Love, ISS Research Planning Integration Scientist Expedition 66.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Permafrost thaw could release bacteria and viruses

 







ESA - European Space Agency patch.


Oct. 22, 2021

When considering the implications of thawing permafrost, our initial worries are likely to turn to the major issue of methane being released into the atmosphere and exacerbating global warming or issues for local communities as the ground and infrastructure become unstable. While this is bad enough, new research reveals that the potential effects of permafrost thaw could also pose serious health threats.

Thawing permafrost

As part of the ESA–NASA Arctic Methane and Permafrost Challenge, new research has revealed that rapidly thawing permafrost in the Arctic has the potential to release antibiotic-resistant bacteria, undiscovered viruses and even radioactive waste from Cold War nuclear reactors and submarines.

Permafrost, or permanently frozen land, covers around 23 million square kilometres in the northern hemisphere. Most of the permafrost in the Arctic is up to a million years old – typically the deeper it is, the older it is.

In addition to microbes, it has housed a diverse range of chemical compounds over millennia whether through natural processes, accidents or deliberate storage. However, with climate change causing the Arctic to warm much faster than the rest of the world, it is estimated that up to two-thirds of the near-surface permafrost could be lost by 2100.

Thawing permafrost releases greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide and methane – to the atmosphere, as well as causing abrupt changes to the landscape.

However, research, published recently in Nature Climate Change, found the implications of waning permafrost could be much more widespread – with potential for the release of bacteria, unknown viruses, nuclear waste and radiation, and other chemicals of concern.

Arctic permafrost hazard storage

The paper describes how deep permafrost, at a depth of more than three metres, is one of the few environments on Earth that has not been exposed to modern antibiotics. More than 100 diverse microorganisms in Siberia’s deep permafrost have been found to be antibiotic resistant. As the permafrost thaws, there is potential for these bacteria to mix with meltwater and create new antibiotic-resistant strains.

Another risk concerns by-products of fossil fuels, which have been introduced into permafrost environments since the beginning of the industrial revolution. The Arctic also contains natural metal deposits, including arsenic, mercury and nickel, which have been mined for decades and have caused huge contamination from waste material across tens of millions of hectares.

Now-banned pollutants and chemicals, such as the insecticide dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane, DDT, that were transported to the Arctic atmospherically and over time became trapped in permafrost, are at risk of re-permeating the atmosphere.

In addition, increased water flow means that pollutants can disperse widely, damaging animal and bird species as well as entering the human food chain.

There is also greater scope for transportation of pollutants, bacteria and viruses. More than 1000 settlements, whether resource extraction, military and scientific projects, have been created on permafrost during the last 70 years. That, coupled with the local populace, increases the likelihood of accidental contact or release. Despite the findings of the research, it says the risks from emergent microorganisms and chemicals within permafrost are poorly understood and largely unquantified. It states that further in-depth research in the area is vital to gain better insight into the risks and to develop mitigation strategies.

The review’s lead author, Kimberley Miner, from NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said, “We have a very small understanding of what kind of extremophiles — microbes that live in lots of different conditions for a long time — have the potential to re-emerge. These are microbes that have coevolved with things like giant sloths or mammoths, and we have no idea what they could do when released into our ecosystems.

“It’s important to understand the secondary and tertiary impacts of these large-scale Earth changes such as permafrost thaw. While some of the hazards associated with the thaw of up to a million years of material have been captured, we are a long way from being able to model and predict exactly when and where they will happen. This research is critical.”

ESA’s Diego Fernandez added, “Research being conducted as part of the ESA–NASA Arctic Methane and Permafrost Challenge within our Science for Society programme is vital to understanding the science of the changing Arctic. Thawing permafrost clearly poses huge challenges, but more research is needed. NASA and ESA are joining forces to foster scientific collaboration across the Atlantic to ensure we develop solid science and knowledge so that decision-makers are armed with the correct information to help address these issues.”

Related links:

Nature Climate Change: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-021-01162-y

Observing the Earth: https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth

Images, Text, Credits: ESA/Getty Images/Miner, K.R., D’Andrilli, J., Mackelprang, R. et al. Emergent biogeochemical risks from Arctic permafrost degradation. Nature Climate Change 11, 809–819 (2021).

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Proba-1 Celebrates 20th Birthday In Orbit

 




ESA - Proba-1 Mission logo.


Oct. 22, 2021

On this day, twenty years ago, ESA’s first small satellite, Proba-1 (Project for On Board Autonomy), was launched with just one goal – to prove technologies in space.

Proba 1 viewing angles

But, once in orbit, that same small satellite quickly proved to be not so little in its capabilities.

Today, twenty years on Proba-1, which was intended to survive just two years, is still going strong as an Earth Observation mission and its legacy is already future-proofed into the next decade.

Measuring just 60 x 60 x 80 cm, Proba-1 autonomoulsy performs advanced guidance, navigation and control processing,  as well as  payload resources management. Its two imaging instruments – the Compact High Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (CHRIS) and the panchromatic High Resolution Camera (HRC) – have provided more than 1000 images of more than 1000 sites. The images have been vital for monitoring several environmental concerns, from assessing how different lad use strategies in Namibian savannah as affect the vegetation growth, to  on vegetation types in Central Nambia’s savannahs, or helping to map and understand alpine snow cover in Swiss National Parks.

Mini Earth-observer Proba-1's 20 years in orbit

The micro-satellite was developed by ESA's General Support Technology Programme (GSTP) and built by an industrial consortium led by the Belgian company Verhaert.

Proba-1 marked a change towards small missions in European space industry. While CubeSats and are more and more common and available these days, Proba 1 was ESA’s first venture into small missions. The mission was developed in just three years – an unheard of feat at the time when missions often took more than 10 years to launch. It also marked the beginning of a series of Proba satellites, including Proba-2, Proba-V and the currently-in-testing Proba-3,

“In its time, it was completely innovative,” reminisces Frederic Teston, the Project Manager for Proba. “In terms of the technology, in terms of the development time, in terms of the low cost – it was all brand new.”

In twenty years, none of the primary units have actually failed and the spacecraft remains operational on all primary systems at this time. The satellite fulfilled many firsts for ESA – from being the first to use a lithium-ion battery (now an ubiquitous technology) to being the first ESA spacecraft with fully autonomous capabilities.  

This meant it was designed to perform virtually unaided, running everyday tasks like navigation, payload and resource management with little involvement by staff at ESA's ground station in Redu, Belgium.

Automatic autonomy

Normally, the code to autonomously run parts of the mission, such as the altitude and orbit control system (AOCs), is written in a specific way. First, the functions and actions of this system and each of the others onboard are detailed and cleared. Then, once the engineers are happy with them, they are translated into software specifications and then finally someone writes the software for these functions specifically. It’s a long loop, so if something doesn’t work or needs to change then it’s a long process.

But part of the reason the Proba-1 mission could be launched so quickly is that it circumvented this loop by developing a tool that automatically generated the software and allowed engineers to quickly change the functions and parts of a system without needing an entirely new code to be
written.

Proba 1 schematic

“We modelled everything in a software, which people recognise as the ancestor of matlab,” explains Pierrik Vuilleumier, who was on the Proba-1 team. “From the radiation or the orbit, to the magnetic field and the sun’s position. It was all modelled in the tool so at the end we pressed the button and automatically generated software that was compiled and linked with the on board software. Forty thousand lines of code for on board tools and thirty thousand plus for the on ground simulators.”

The tool also keeps all documentation in the model as well, meaning it’s easy to train new engineers to use it.

“Some myths about code generation live on today, but I believe we busted them all 20 years ago,” says Vuilleumier.

This automatic software generation has evolved and is commonplace for Proba missions nowadays, but it’s still not mainstream for all missions, despite the productivity gain and shorter development times.  

New space before new space

Proba-1 also highlights how using COTS parts (Commercial Off-The-Shelf) instead of high grade ones can be far more cost- and time- effective and a true pay off – something that is becoming more and more a part of ESA’s strategy to develop and improve new technologies for space.

“We were the first to fly lithium batteries. By then, experts would prognose a 6 months lifetime in space at best. Now, 20 years later, we don’t notice any degradation of those batteries. They are 23 years old!” exclaims Vuilleumier.

HRC image of the Pyramids of Giza

Commercial parts are often considered to be more risky, or to have less reliability, but the Proba team showed that with proper engineering, their hardware has lived for 20 years now in the harsh environment of space and has demonstrated their worth.

Despite taking such a short time to develop, the project wasn’t always smooth sailing. Vuilleumier recalls the weeks before launch when the engineers, already in India ready for testing prior to the launch on PSLV, were frantically scrambling to finish coding the software.

“Was it exciting working on something that hadn’t been done before? Maybe for five minutes when you see something works, but before and after it’s more stress than excitement,” laughs Teston. “But we showed it is possible that things don’t always have to take longer or be more expensive. We showed it’s possible to do faster, cheaper missions.”

Technologies onboard:

Weighing just 14 kg, CHRIS is the smallest hyperspectral imager ever flown in space and can see down to a resolution of 17 metres and acquire up to five images at a time, at up to 62 spectral channels. CHRIS exploits the platform agility to obtain views of the same area from several directions, which allows extraction of additional angular information. CHRIS data are used by ESA projects and in support of the International Charter for Space and Major Disasters – an agreement to make space resources available to civil protection agencies responding to natural disasters.

Proba’s other imager, HRC, is a small-scale monochromatic camera, taking 25-km square images to a resolution of five metres.

Some of the FDIR (Failure Detection, Isolation and Recovery) actions automatically switch over to redundant units to mitigate transitory radiation effects but otherwise everything runs as it did 20 years ago.

For more information: https://earth.esa.int/eogateway/missions/proba-1

Animation, Images, Text, Credits: European Space Agency (ESA).

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Exodus of civilization into space - Ideology of space expansion. Part 21

 








Human Space Expansion logo.


Oct. 22, 2021

THE IDEOLOGY OF SPACE EXPANSION

Sergey L. MOROZOV

Cand. Sci. (Medicine), leading research scientist, National Development Institute of the RAS, Moscow, Russia, sergey.morozov@asgardia.space

ABSTRACT I

Space community is the sixth in succession socio-politic paradigm of the civilization. There are two polar opposite views on space ideology: geocentric and cosmocentric. The challenge is to look from space at

Earth as at one of civilization’s numerous spacecrafts and to perceive it as an ordinary part of space nature. It is 88 constellations and not gods of Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome that will become orienting points for cosmonauts-astronauts.

There are no earth tops and bottoms, days and nights, no seasons, equinoxes, solstices, months varying length and no moon phases in space. Space community’s spacecrafts will be absolutely independent of

Earth’s industrial potential as well as of Earth itself as the community’s life-spring and the cradle of civilization.

The sixth socio-economic paradigm is cosmocentric and astrocentric. This makes it different from the five previous paradigms which were geocentric: primitive communal, slave-owning, feudal, capitalist and socialist. Five

Basic ideas of space expansion are stated in the article.

Keywords: space community, geocentrism, cosmocen- trism, astrocentrism, homeostatic ark, NASA centrifugal spacecraft. Sergey Lvovich MOROZOV.

Candidate of Medical Sciences, Leading Researcher, National Institute of Development RAS, Moscow, Russia, sergey.morozov@asgardia.space

ANNOTATION I 


Space society is the sixth socio-economic formation of civilization. There are two diametrically opposed points of view on cosmic ideology: geocentric and cosmocentric.

The challenge is to look from space to Earth as

On one of the many spaceships of civilization and perceive the Earth as an ordinary part of the nature of space. Landmarks for astronauts-astronauts will be 88 constellations, and not the gods of Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome.

In space there is no earthly top and bottom, day and night, there are no seasons of the year, no equinoxes, no solstices, no months of different sizes, no phases of the moon. The spaceships of the space society will be completely independent of the industrial potential of the Earth and of the Earth itself as its source and the cradle of civilization.

The sixth socio-economic formation is cosmocentric, or astrocentric, and in this it differs from the five previous geocentric ones: primitive communal, slave-owning, feudal, capitalist and socialist. The article outlines five main ideas of space expansion.

Key words: space society, geocentrism, cosmocentrism, astrocentrism, homeostatic ark, NASA centrifuge spacecraft.

I. INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION IN SPACE

What will be the main parameters of homeostatic arks [1]? What will replace the modern ISS, Space Shuttle and Soyuz? The creation of artificial gravity is the main condition for long-term manned expeditions in deep space.

S.P.Korolev began designing a spacecraft with artificial gravity to reach and master the Moon and Mars back in 1963. To reduce its size, he proposed using a counterweight - a system of interconnected rotating bodies. For the orbital ship, the counterweight was to be the empty last stage of the launch vehicle, which today is simply thrown away.

NASA astronauts Gordon and Konrad implemented Korolev's idea on a spaceship

Gemini 11. The launch was made on September 12, 1966 at 14:42:27 UTC, landing on September 15, 1966 at 13:59:35 UTC.

They connected the last stage of the Agena XI missile to the Gemini 11 with a 30-meter cable. The system revolved around a common center of mass with a shoulder - a radius of about 15 meters - that is, it was almost equal to the size of the TsF-18 centrifuge at the Yu.A. Gagarin CTC, which has a shoulder - a radius of rotation of 18 meters.

The Gemini - Agena line connected by a cable was brought into rotation. With the help of the Agena engines, the apogee of the orbit was raised to a record height: 1372 km (853 miles) [2]. The world's first centrifuge spacecraft was created.

II. THE CONCEPT OF TOTAL SPACE INDUSTRIALIZATION

Astronaut flights to the International Space Station are of great importance to the space industry, but the ISS has a limited orbital duration. The wall thickness of the station is ≈2-3 mm of aluminum (in some places - only ≈1 mm). She is not able to protect the crew from the destructive effects of cosmic radiation.

Therefore, NASA has strict standards for staying on the ISS for astronauts. Due to the negative effects of radiation, a 45-year-old man is allowed to stay in near space for 344 days (≈11.5 months) versus 187 days (≈6.2 months) for a 45-year-old woman [3].

In this case, according to the conditions of "reversible" destruction of the skeleton, there is a strict limitation of the time spent in microgravity conditions, it is ≈450 ÷ 600 days [≈15 ÷ 20 months]. Thus, today the radiation limit is ≈2 ÷ 4 times stricter than the microgravity limit.

Image above: Creation of artificial gravity on the spacecraft: two parts of the spacecraft, connected by ropes, are brought into rotational motion around the common center of mass by radiation ≈2 ÷ 4 times tougher than the limitation by microgravity.

During relatively short-term flights in low orbits in the vicinity of the Earth below the Van Allen radiation belt, the microgravity factor is in the shadow of the radiation threat - it is not yet paid serious attention to.

Image above: To protect a large industrial space settlement from radiation, it is necessary to apply passive protection, the mass of which will be at least 4.5 tons for every two square meters of the outer walls: the total mass of this protection will be almost 10 million tons.

But in long-term interplanetary flights, the microgravity factor will inevitably dominate all other threats.

For a real flight to Mars "there and back" it will take at least 33 months (2¾ years or about 990 days) [4], which is more than twice the theoretically calculated critical level of 450 days (1 about 15 months) for a person to be in the conditions microgravity.

The ISS was born on November 20, 1998. On this day, at 9:40 Moscow time, the first element of the "space constructor" - the "Zarya" module - departed from Baikonur. Zarya is 12.6 m long and 4.1 m in diameter.

Now this module is used mainly as a warehouse. During the first three years of the ISS construction, the Russian Mir station was also in space. Therefore, the ISS construction crews lived on it. The first humans entered the ISS on November 2, 2000. The American segment of the ISS has already been fully built, and the creation of the Russian segment has been delayed, it is planned to be completed only by 2020.

By 2019, the outer casing of the International Space Station began to gradually collapse due to the use of materials in it that were unable to withstand the effects of harsh cosmic radiation for a long time.

At the same time, the estimated life of the ISS ends in 2020. However, in 2015

Roscosmos and NASA have agreed to extend the life of the station until 2024 in the form in which it is now located [5].

At the moment, it is obvious that the ISS is outdated morally and physically even before the completion of its construction and putting into final operation. It makes no sense for the United States to develop the ISS in the long term. Instead, NASA plans to:

1) creation of a large orbital station in earth orbit (up to 50 crew members);

2) creation of a small orbital station in the orbit of the moon;

3) creation of a habitable base on the moon;

4) manned expeditions to Mars;

5) landing of people on the surface of Mars;

6) commissioning of two new manned shuttle ships for changing crews operating at orbital stations [6, 7].

A modern manned spacecraft is, first of all, an integral part of a specific program. It makes no sense to develop a new ship without knowing the tasks of its operation. New US spacecraft are being designed not only for the delivery of cargo and crews to the ISS, but also for the purpose of flights to Mars and the Moon, for which the ISS is unsuitable in principle.

The closer the planned decommissioning date is, the more actively there is talk about an alternative to the ISS. They offer a variety of options.

Back in the second half of the 20th century, projects appeared to create real autonomous industrial cities in orbit. You can remember

O'Neill's Island, Bernal's Sphere or Stanford Torus. All of them were projects of giant orbital stations with artificial gravity, designed for thousands of inhabitants.

It seemed that each of the projected space industrial megalopolises would be able to provide itself financially and maintain autonomous working capacity, which, of course, is very important in the context of the gradual development of the complete independence of permanent residence stations (STs) from the industrial complex of the Earth.

Now such projects seem to the world community too complicated, expensive and even somewhat naive. However, experts from DC United Space Structures, Washington, DC United Space Structures, Bill Kemp and Ted Mazeyka, do not seem to think so. In any case, their projects are clearly created under the influence of the titans of the past years.

The experts proposed a whole family of industrial stations. The diameter of the smallest of them was 30 meters (shoulder - radius of rotation - 15 meters), and the diameter of the middle one was 100 meters. It is on the latter option that the greatest hopes are pinned. In any case, DC United Space Structures presented images of this station and diagrams of its internal structure [8, 9].

According to American scientists, in order to protect a large industrial space settlement from radiation, it is necessary to apply passive protection, the mass of which would be at least 4.5 tons for every two square meters of the outer walls (2.25 tons per 1 square meter of surface).

That is, the total mass of this protection will be equal to almost 10 million tons. Naturally, the task of delivering such a gigantic cargo to orbit cannot be performed purely technically, given the current level of technological development of the space industry.

Hundreds of reusable rocket systems are needed. A total, unprecedented industrialization of space is needed in the era of space society, which gradually naturally and inevitably comes into the history of civilization following the industrialization of the primitive communal, slave-owning, feudal, capitalist and socialist.

We are talking, first of all, about a huge industrial space orbital spacecraft-centrifuge NASA ("mushroom" ship), against the background of which even such an impressive ship as the "Space Shuttle" will seem small. But the development of DC United Space Structures is, rather, a compromise between the existing ISS and the giant orbital cities of science fiction writers.

The NASA mushroom spacecraft will have a diameter of 100 meters and a length of 500 meters. The ISS has a much more modest size: its width is 109 meters, and its length is 73.15 meters with a living part of 4.44 meters in diameter.

The habitable volume of the promising station - NASA's "mushroom" spacecraft - will be 2.8 million cubic meters, which is approximately 3000 times more than the volume of the modern ISS, which has 916 m3. On the other hand, for example, the DC United Space Structures project cannot be compared with the Bernal Sphere either, because the diameter of the latter, according to the idea, was supposed to be 16 km.

Such a city will be able to accommodate simultaneously from 20 to 30 thousand inhabitants. It is planned as a large industrial complex with full self-sufficiency, as the center of the space industry.

At the same time, the "mushroom" will inherit the main idea of old projects - artificial gravity. It is planned to create it by rotating the station around the central axis (shoulder - radius of rotation - 50 meters). It will be a "centrifuge in space", the rotation speed of which will be ≈4.25 rpm (≈255 revolutions per hour). This will generate a centrifugal force approximately equal to ≈1 g = 9.8 m / s². It will allow everyone on board the station to avoid weightlessness and feel like on the surface of the Earth.

For a limited period of time, a person can adapt to weightlessness, but it will become much more difficult to perform habitual actions. Warming up food, taking a shower, going to the toilet - all these things familiar to earthlings are not so easy to do on board the ISS.

Weightlessness negatively affects the human body as a whole in the long term. One of the most unpleasant effects of weightlessness is rapid muscle atrophy, including the muscle of the heart and the muscle tissue of the blood vessels. Destruction of the bone skeleton, the hematopoietic system of the red bone marrow, followed by a progressive decrease in all basic physical parameters of the body.


Image above: Homeostatic Ark - the development of DC United Space Structures - is, rather, a compromise between the existing ISS and the giant orbital cities of science fiction writers.

To combat the negative effects of weightlessness, the ISS today uses special simulators with varying degrees of efficiency.

But it is impossible to completely avoid the named consequences with their help.

Therefore, it would be preferable not to have them at all, introducing artificial gravity for the entire spacecraft as a whole, or at least only for its residential part, in combination with reliable protection of the crew from hard space radiation.

We do not yet know anything about the long-term problems (more than 15 months) of human being in microgravity. Many Soviet cosmonauts and American astronauts have been in space for short periods of time many times. But no one has ever lived there continuously for many years (more than 15 months).

Projects like the one conceived by DC United Space Structures imply long-term human presence in space.

“If we want to stay in space for more than a year, we need to make an artificial gravity system on the NGN, or we will endanger the lives of people,” says Bill Kemp, founder and CEO of United Space Structures.

In the United States, the upper criterion (limit) of the continuous stay of an astronaut in zero gravity is considered to be about 12 months.

You will have to get used to the conditions of the space "mushroom". Artificial gravity has noticeable differences from its natural counterpart on the surface of the Earth.

So, walking in the direction of rotation of the station will be similar to descending a slope, and there will be a feeling of the floor leaving from under your feet. If you walk in the opposite direction, you get the feeling of going uphill. And when walking perpendicular to the rotation, the astronaut will feel that he is "tipping" to the side.

“The chosen speed of rotation depends on the radius-arm of the rotating object and the degree of artificial gravity that we need: the larger the radius, the lower the speed of rotation, and vice versa,” says Kemp.

III. NASA INDUSTRIAL ORBITAL SPACE CENTRIFUGE PROJECT

The main cylindrical body of the orbital station ("mushroom stem") will rotate in one direction, and the dome ("cap") - in the opposite direction. This is necessary to compensate for the gyroscopic effect, or the stabilizing effect of the spinning top. Otherwise, it is difficult to control and orient the station in space.


Image above: The unique conditions of the station will allow it to become a platform for revolutionary research in the field of biology and medicine. For the first time, it will be possible to study the long-term consequences of man's stay in space.

Such a design is required for the further arrangement of the docking module, which is supposed to receive spacecraft. The station is planned to be made using composite materials, some of which are yet to be created.


Image above: The Wheel of Life is an industrial space station module. Herman Potocnik-Noordung (1928).

At the base of the station will be located industrial equipment for collecting space resources, which contain, for example, comets or asteroids.

Then - a section where several spaceships will be waiting in the wings, for example, for a flight to the Moon or Mars. In the images presented by DC United Space Structures, the spacecraft have a futuristic appearance: so far nothing like this exists.

Further, production facilities will be located. Microgravity creates unique conditions for production, so the benefits of the new station are difficult to overestimate. Closer to the "hat" of the giant "mushroom" will be placed a hotel, a 3D arena and other recreation areas.

The largest part of the station - its dome - is supposed to serve as a place to grow food for the crew, which is extremely important within the framework of the concept of self-sufficiency. In addition, it is in the dome that the command center, the equipment necessary for the work of the station's crew, and a rescue ship will be located, which in the event of an emergency will deliver people to Earth.

The unique conditions of the station will help to better understand the climate changes taking place on Earth. The station can also become a platform for revolutionary research in the field of biology and medicine. For the first time, it will be possible to study the long-term consequences of a person's stay outside their home planet.

There are a lot of options for using the mushroom spacecraft. At the same time, unlike O'Neill's "Island", "Bernal's Sphere" or "Stanford Torus", it cannot be regarded as a kind of new world where earthly civilization would find its autonomous salvation in the event of a global catastrophe. The dependence of the first versions of a promising orbital station on the industrial complex of the Earth will remain very significant.

When exactly do they plan to build the station? Construction, according to preliminary data, will take about 30 years: this is three times longer than it took to build the ISS.

And the estimated cost of the project is immeasurably higher - $ 300 billion (approximately $ 10 billion a year).

In 1977, O'Neill's project to build a homeostatic ark (stations with artificial gravity) failed in the United States due to its high cost of about $ 100 billion.

For comparison: today, the current annual maintenance of the ISS alone costs NASA $ 4 billion, which makes these projects competing and fully explains NASA's desire not to have meaningless expenses in the long term, preferring the construction of a more advanced space object, which is an orbiting industrial city in the form of a homeostatic ark-ship-"mushroom" (Fig. 2).

But how exactly will the DC United Space Structures station be built? According to the idea, for this they use special insect-like robots that have many "arms" to simultaneously perform various tasks. While no such device exists yet, the concept of orbiting construction robots has been around for many years.

So, when creating the ISS, "Kanadarm-1" and "Kanadarm-2" were used. The latter robot plays a key role in the assembly and maintenance of the space station. It moves equipment and materials within the ISS, assists the crew in outer space, and maintains instruments and other payloads on the surface of the station. For the manufacture of construction robots, as well as the centrifuge station itself, they plan to use the latest composite materials.

IV. ECOLOGY OF SPACE

The project from DC United Space Structures is, in fact, just a bold initiative, a well-developed design plan. The creators themselves note that they do not yet have the opportunity to answer all the technical challenges. It is not entirely clear how exactly they are going to achieve protection from radiation. The developers hope that the corresponding technologies will be created in the future.

A large station will also need reliable protection from cosmic dust and debris, which is becoming more and more in orbit. Now there are about 17.8 thousand relatively large objects, the size of which is 10 cm. If we talk about small (from 1 mm in size), then their specialists number more than one billion.

How dangerous is it? In 1983, a tiny grain of sand, approximately 0.2 mm in diameter, left a serious crack and a 0.4 mm depression in the Space Shuttle's porthole. Much later, in 2016, a centimeter pothole was found on the glass of the ISS window, supposedly left by a tiny piece of paint or metal.

In other words, at an orbital speed of more than 27 thousand km / h, even a 10-centimeter fragment can become fatal. So the risk for the ISS is very high. What then can we say about a larger object with thousands of people on board?

V. CALCULATION OF THE OPTIMUM FRAME PARAMETERS OF SPACE HOMEOSTATIC ARKS

Hermann Potocnik-Noordung published a book on manned interplanetary stations in 1928.

The Noordung project envisaged the creation of an artificial gravity for the crew by arranging living quarters and auxiliary premises on the rim of a wheel with a diameter of 30 meters (shoulder-radius 15 meters) rotating at a speed of 8 rpm or ≈480 revolutions per hour with an acceleration of ≈9 , 8 m / s² = 1 g [10].

In the real version, the centrifuges-ships in orbit will always be paired tori rotating in opposite directions to compensate for the angular momentum. The question arises about calculating the minimum allowable shoulder - the radius of rotation. With a decrease in the radius of rotation, the peripheral speed of different parts of the body increases and, therefore, its percentage change in the direction from the legs to the head (or vice versa - from the head to the legs) of a standing person increases.

A gradient arises, that is, the distribution of artificial gravity in the direction "head - legs" or "legs - head". In other words, more gravity will act on the legs than on the head, or vice versa when placed backwards. There will be no such distributed gradient if the person is located on the floor - then the head and legs will be on the same line of distance from the center of rotation.

Tests on centrifuges have established that this change between the extreme parts of the body should not exceed 10-15%; otherwise, during the movements of the cosmonaut, Coriolis accelerations, unfavorable for his well-being, will appear.

Based on the average height of a person (≈1.8 meters), it is easy to calculate the lower limit for the circumferential speed of rotation of the cab. It is equal to about 6.7 m / s [11].

The size of the shoulder - the radius of rotation of the SPP should be in the range from ≈25 to 3600 meters for a stable achievement of the level of artificial gravity equal to that of the Earth at ≈1.0 g.

The minimum shoulder is the radius of rotation of such a station, calculated according to the classical formula:

a = ω²R,

a - acceleration (a = 1.0 g = 9.8 m / s²), ω - angular velocity (measured in radians per second, ɷ = 0.6260 rad / s), R - radius (R ≈25 m).

One revolution per minute corresponds to a revolution of ≈0.1046 radians per second (2πR / 60 sec = 0.1046667 rad / sec) (Fig. 3).

If the shoulder - the radius of rotation is ≈100 meters, then in order to obtain an acceleration of 9.8 m / s² (1 g), rotation must occur at a speed of about three revolutions per minute or ≈180 revolutions per hour.

If the shoulder - the radius of rotation of the SPP is ≈900 meters, then in order to obtain an acceleration of 9.8 m / sec², the rotation should occur at a speed of approximately one full revolution per minute or 60 revolutions per 1 hour (1-hour cycle ). It will be a grandiose space clock, consisting of two double, coaxial, rotating in different directions tori.

A similar version of the SPP with a diameter of 1800 meters was proposed by Wernher von Braun in 1951-1952.

If the shoulder - the radius of rotation is ≈3600 meters, then in order to obtain an acceleration of 9.8 m / s², the rotation must occur at a speed of approximately 0.5 (½) revolutions per minute (one full revolution in two minutes) or 30 revolutions in 1 hour (2-hour cycle in 60 full revolutions).

If the shoulder-radius is ≈2.7 meters (small radius centrifuge), then in order to obtain an acceleration of 9.8 m / s², rotation must occur at a speed of approximately 18.25 revolutions per minute or ≈1095 revolutions per 1 hour.

In a compact version, a small-radius centrifuge (≈2.7 meters) can be used not only for periodic training in the "gym" of the orbital station, but also for individual sleep.

It is believed that if cosmonauts spend eight hours every day on such a simulator centrifuge-bed, theoretically this can remove some of the gravitational problems in long-term expeditions [12].

But astronauts are unlikely to perceive more than 1000 revolutions per hour as a comfortable rotational speed of a small-radius centrifuge. However, a decrease in the rotation frequency, although it will partially reduce the effect of microgravity on the level of destruction of the skeleton, will not completely solve it.

Small-radius centrifuges are a kind of intermediate temporary palliative that does not solve the problem of permanent residence in space for the entire spectrum of the space population, including women in labor, newborns, children, young people and the elderly, as well as animals and birds.

As can be seen from the above calculations, to solve these new problems of building homeostatic arks, space complexes with shoulders - radii of rotation in the range from 100 to 3600 meters are needed with the best results at ark radii from 1000 to 4000 meters.

In space, at the first stages of its exploration in the mode of permanent residence on NGN, only such “space” mega-sizes will be adequate.

Space colony. Illustration by Don Davis. 1970

Historically, the predecessor of all modern spacecraft-centrifuges is the famous TsF-18 centrifuge at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, which has a mass of 305 tons.

Her cabin accommodates two subjects at once. The arm of the apparatus is a radius of rotation of ≈18 meters, at which the share of the influence of Coriolis acceleration on the vestibular apparatus becomes insignificant, and the person no longer notices that he is being twisted - it seems to him that he is flying in a straight line. The lack of sensation of rotation makes it possible to present the G-forces in their purest form - as they would be felt during the linear motion of the ship.

In 1971, a technical assignment was drawn up for the construction of a new large centrifuge for Star City. It turned out that for the domestic industry to create such a machine is not an easy task.

Firstly, this would require stopping several aircraft factories for a considerable time. Secondly, technologies for creating large-scale precision mechanics were available only to countries that had experience in the manufacture of hydraulic units, and the USSR was by no means a leader in this area. The choice fell on the Swedish company ASEA [13], which has been successfully building centrifuges for a long time.

Scandinavian machine builders produced products of much smaller size than required by the customer, but they coped with the technical task of Star City perfectly - still TsF-18 has a significant unexploited resource. ASEA estimated its services at 11 tons of gold.

It took 10 years to realize the designers' idea, and the result of the work of the Swedish engineers was a real work of art - a dynamic simulator with an 18-meter lever. The starting power of the TsF-18 is 27 megawatts.

The TsF-18 centrifuge was put into operation in 1981. It is capable of developing overloads up to 30 units (30 g) with a maximum acceleration gradient of 5 g / s. The design provides for the evacuation of the cabin up to 20 mm Hg. Art., temperature variation from +5 to +55 ° C, as well as a change in the gas composition of the cabin atmosphere.

An overload of ≈30 g is achieved at approximately ≈38.63 rpm (≈2318.23 rpm), this is the maximum design value for the TsF-18 centrifuge.

Centrifuge TsF-18 at the Yu.A. Gagarin Central Industrial Complex

At ≈21.16 revolutions per minute (≈1269.74 revolutions per hour), the overload will reach ≈9 g, that is, the calculated value that is used today to train the cosmonaut's body when simulating an emergency situation arising from an AES orbit using an emergency ballistic trajectories.

At ≈15.77 revolutions per minute (≈946.41 revolutions per hour), the overload will reach ≈5 g, that is, the calculated value that is used today for routine training of the cosmonaut's body when simulating the launch of spacecraft into a low near-Earth orbit of satellites. At ≈7.05 rpm (≈423.24 rpm), the overload will reach ≈1 g.


Image above: The construction of a large centrifuge for Star City was carried out by the Swedish company ASEA. For Scandinavian machine builders, this was a fundamentally new technical task - traditionally they produced products of a much smaller size.

During the tests, three types of seats are used - regular seats, Kazbek-UN space seats and seats used in Russian Air Force fighters. While the astronaut is spinning, seven doctors constantly monitor his physical condition.

The construction of a centrifuge with a radius arm (in the form of a tubular truss) with a length of 18 meters required special industrial technologies. The most interesting unit of the apparatus is a huge support-and-guide plain bearing, on which the shoulder-radius of the TsF-18 rotates almost silently. In fact, the centrifuge is placed on a closed container, into which oil is pressed with the help of rotary pumps.

At the start, the centrifuge rises to the height of the oil film - only 40 microns, but this microscopic layer is enough to ensure smooth rotation at high speeds in a very economical mode.

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12. Yurtikova O. Iskusstvennaya gravitatsiya i sposoby ee sozdaniya. Fb.ru. Available at: http://fb.ru/article/274686/iskusstvennaya-gravitatsiya-i-sposobyi-ee-sozdaniya (Retrieval date: 20.12.2018).

13. Tsentr podgotovki kosmonavtov im. Yu. A. Gagarina: lestnitsa v kosmos. Fishki.net. Available at: https://fishki.net/2226620-centr-podgotovki-kosmonavtov-im-ju-a-gagarina-lestnica-v-kosmos.html (Retrieval date: 20.12.2018).

© Morozov S.L., 2018

Article history: Received: 12.24.2018.

Accepted for publication: 14.01.2019

Moderator: L.A. Gess

Conflict of interest: none

For citation: Morozov S.L. The ideology of space expansion // Aerospace sphere. 2019. No. 1 (98). S. 50-61.

Sergey Lvovich Morozov is the author of the Asgardian space calendar  https://youtu.be/Cn-fG2N001o Author: Ph.D. Morozov Sergey Lvovich.

List of publications on Orbiter.ch Space News:

Exodus of civilization into space - On the issue of standardization of the uniform space time of the Asgardian calendar in the AIS and the UN. Part 20
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/09/exodus-of-civilization-into-space-on.html

Exodus of civilization into space - The US decided to overtake China? "Plus the renewable electrification of the whole country?". Part 19.1
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/08/exodus-of-civilization-into-space-us.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Selenic Strategy - UN Ideology in the XXI Century? Part 18.1.2
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/08/exodus-of-civilization-into-space.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Homeostatic Ark & Permanent bases on the Moon and Mars. Part 18.5
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/07/exodus-of-civilization-into-space.html

Exodus of civilization into space - American Jobs Plan. Part 18.4
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/06/exodus-of-civilization-into-space.html

Exodus of civilization into space - The space age of civilization began its new Third stage (civil). Part 18.3
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/06/exodus-of-civilization-into-space-space.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Selenic Strategy - Ideology of the UN in the XXI Century. Part 18.2
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/05/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_31.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Selenic Strategy - UN Ideology in the XXI Century. Part 18.1
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/05/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_25.html

Space Toilet and Problems of Intestinal Stick Infection. Part 17.7
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/05/space-toilet-and-problems-of-intestinal.html

Three Historical Stages of Cosmonautics Development. Part 17.6
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/05/three-historical-stages-of-cosmonautics.html

Brief Background to Selenopolitics (Industrial Colonization of the Moon). Part 17.5
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/05/brief-background-to-selenopolitics.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Creation of the first ever mobile homeostatic ark (HA) in the USA. Part 16
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/05/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_5.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Apocalypse; View from the UK. Part 15
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/05/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_3.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Comparison of plans of NASA and Roscosmos. Part 14
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/05/exodus-of-civilization-into-space.html

The ideology of space expansion - The question of pregnancy and childbirth in zero gravity. Part 17.4
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/the-ideology-of-space-expansion.html

Colonization of the Moon - The source of the power, wealth and power of civilization in the Universe. Part 17.3
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/colonization-of-moon-source-of-power.html

Space manned industrialization of the XXI century - the golden age of civilization. Part 17.2
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/space-manned-industrialization-of-xxi.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Humanity's strategy to create stationary and mobile Homeostatic arks. Part 17.1
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_21.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Tsiolkovsky Galactic State. Part 9
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_19.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Symbol of the End of the XXI century. Part 8
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_16.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Stopping the process of increasing value added. Part 7
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_14.html

Exodus of civilization into space - The sixth socio-economic formation of civilization. Part 6
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space-sixth.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Space man. Part 5
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space-space.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Biological End of the World. Part 4
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_7.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Geochronological Ice Ages, periods, eras. Part 3
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space_5.html

Exodus of civilization into space - Astrophysical End of the World. Part 2
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/04/exodus-of-civilization-into-space.html

The ideology of space expansion - Space calendar. Part 1
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/03/the-ideology-of-space-expansion-space.html

Related links:

About Ph.D. Morozov Sergey Lvovich: https://zen.yandex.ru/media/id/5fbb90753e3ad265054f930a/ob-avtore-kanala-5fbd2bf80b4af80149fb12c2

Original article in Russian on Zen.Yandex:
https://zen.yandex.ru/media/id/5fbb90753e3ad265054f930a/ishod-civilizacii-v-kosmos-chast-21-ideologiia-kosmicheskoi-ekspansii-61483a21800cd44002b553fd

Asgardia website: https://asgardia.space/

Author: Ph.D. & Asgardia Member of Parliament (AMP) Morozov Sergey Lvovich / Zen.Yandex. Editor / Translation: Orbiter.ch Aerospace, by Roland Berga, Asgardia Member of Parliament (AMP), Founder & Owner of Orbiter.ch Aerospace.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch