Sep 12 1977
From The Space Library
NASA announced it had scheduled the second free flight of the Space Shuttle orbiter Enterprise on or about Sept. 13 at DFRC with astronauts Joe Engle and Richard Truly as pilots. The free-flight test series called for 3 more flights before the orbiter would go to MSFC for vibration tests early in 1978. (NASA Release 77-186)
MSFC announced that Roy Gibson, director general of the European Space Agency, had visited the center for the first time to discuss the NASA/ESA Spacelab and other NASA programs with MSFC director Dr. William R. Lucas and his staff. Thomas J. Lee, manager of MSFC's Spacelab program office, said the visit would familiarize the ESA official with NASA capabilities and programs "in which the Europeans might be interested as potential areas for future cooperative ventures." (MSFC Release 77-167)
JPL announced that NASA had selected an ion-drive propulsion system rather than the solar sail [see June 21] for use by automated interplanetary shuttles in earth's solar system toward the end of this century. NASA scientists had studied the concepts for a yr before making the choice on the basis of lower risk and greater potential for growth. LeRC had orbited ion rockets, forerunners of the ion-drive spacecraft, in 1969 as part of SERT (space electric rocket tests). Those rockets were still operating in space. Anon-drive ship would carry a cluster of mercury ion engines and generate power from solar-cell arrays converting sunlight to electricity. First use of the ion-drive system might be a Halley’s Comet rendezvous in 1986 by a spacecraft launched from the Shuttle in 1981 or early 1982. (JPL release Sept 12/77; NASA Release 77-187; W Star, Sept 13/77, A-6)
The Natl. Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported a new device to supply near-instantaneous information on hurricane growth and movement in the Caribbean and North Atlantic. The device, an airborne data collection platform on a weather research aircraft, would relay information on pressures, wind speeds, temperatures, and other hurricane data within 15sec from NAAA's Goes 2 orbiting at 35 400km (22 000mi) to the Natl. Hurricane Center in Miami. Conventional transmission of voice radio from aircraft to a ground station would take 5 to 15min. Quick transit of information as hurricanes approached populated centers would allow time for alerts. As no Atlantic hurricanes had occurred this yr until the end of Aug., NOAA had tested the device in actual flight over a tropical depression and would install it in 2 other planes next yr. (NOAA Release 77-240)
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