Jan 19 1977
From The Space Library
NASA announced it would share with the city of Hampton, Va., the cost of building a refuse-burning, steam-producing plant to serve the city and four federal agencies in the Tidewater area. First of this type of community facility to be jointly sponsored by a city government and federal agencies, the project was the result of studies at Langley Research Center on better use of potential energy sources and improvement of the environment. Cost of the plant, about $8 million, would be shared by Langley Air Force Base, the City of Hampton, and LaRC, and should be amortized within 20yr. Beginning in 1979, it would consume about 70% of the city's waste and all refuse from LaRC, the air force base, the Army's Fort Monroe, and the VA hospital in Hampton, and would produce about 306 million lb of steam per yr. Built on NASA owned land, the plant would remain the property of NASA though leased to and operated by the city for at least 20yr. Ash produced through special incineration at up to 1800°F would be sterile, nonorganic, and nonpolluting, amounting to a seventh of the refuse burned. (NASA Release 77-8)
A Trident missile successfully launched from Cape Canaveral had passed its first flight test and met all major test objectives, according to a NY Times account. The U.S. Navy reported that the missile, carrying an inert payload, flew nearly its 9500km range to an area near Ascension Is. in the South Atlantic. Like its predecessors, the Polaris and Poseidon strategic missile systems, Trident would become the nation's primary undersea intercontinental weapon. At a cost of $21.5 billion, the Trident missile would be operative well into the 1980s. New Trident class submarines would carry 24 of the new missiles, whereas the Polaris and Poseidon had carried only 16. Ohio, first Trident class submarine under construction, and costing $882 million, would be ready for patrol duty in 1979 with a full complement of 24 Trident missiles, the report said. (NYT, Jan 19/77, A-14; W Post, Jan 19/77, A-16)
The Dept. of Defense announced plans to begin full-scale development of cruise missiles made by Boeing Co. and General Dynamics Corp., with the first to be available in 1979, the Wall St. Journal reported. Cruise missiles (small low-flying pilotless jet planes designed to evade enemy radar) could carry either nuclear or conventional warheads and could be launched from ships, planes, or trucks, or submerged submarines. Boeing and General Dynamics had each developed a cruise missile: Boeing the Air Force version, and General Dynamics, the Navy version called the Tomahawk, designed for launch from submarines and surface vessels. Although the two versions used different airframes, they used the same engines, guidance systems, and warheads. After reviewing both versions, the DOD decided to continue both, and established a joint program office under the direction of Navy Capt. Walter Locke, whose orders required maximum cooperation with the Air Force. In addition to its "short" cruise missile, 1083cm long with a range of 1127km, the Air Farce supported development of a stretch version 1470cm long with a range of 2254km for more distant targets. The DOD also expressed support for advanced technology to refine missile accuracy and for a supersonic version to exceed present speed of 885kph. It had asked Congress for $402.7 million for the programs in FY 1978, up from :$198.7 million in 1977. (WSJ, Jan 19/77, 38)
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