July 1973
From The Space Library
Ames Research Center and Hersh Acoustical Engineering Co. began wind-tunnel experiments to test the effect of serrated rotor edges on the noise level of a simulated jet engine compressor. The concept had been inspired by observations of the owl. A British naval officer had theorized that the owl's unique serrated wing might help explain the bird's quietness in flight. ARC engineer Paul Soderman had discovered through five years' study and testing that comb-like edges did reduce noise at low tip speeds, but the tests had been limited because they were made only statically to simulate a helicopter's hover. (NASA Release 73-144)
Preliminary results of the Naval Research Laboratory's S-009 experiment aboard the Skylab 1 Workshop (launched by NASA May 14) were published by Naval Research Reviews. NRL scientist Dr. Maurice M. Shapiro, principal investigator for S-009, had said the experiment, to study the heavy atomic nuclei among the cosmic ray particles that constantly bombarded the earth from outer space, had obtained more accurate measurement of the relative abundances of nuclei in the primary cosmic ray influx than had previously been obtained from the exposure of sensitive detectors flown on high-altitude balloon flights. Comparisons had already been made between the source composition of cosmic rays and the element abundances in the solar system and in nearby stars. These suggested that certain nuclear processes occurring on a very short time-scale during the explosion of a supernova could be important to the production of cosmic ray nuclei. (Naval Research Reviews, 7/73, 32)
Neilsen Engineering and Research, Inc., began testing the Ames Research Center-developed Randorndec computer-and-analysis method of application to detecting structural weakness in bridges. Under a NASA contract, monthly readings would be taken of bridges at the Highway 85 and 101 interchange in the San Francisco Bay area for one year. The experiment was jointly funded by NASA and the Federal Highway Administration. (NASA Release 73-161)
Compendium of Meteorological Satellites and Instrumentation (NSSaC 73- 02) was published by the National Space Science Data Center, Goddard Space Flight Center. Prepared by the U.S. Air Force Environmental and Technical Applications Center's Air Weather Service, the book included an overview of programs and brief descriptions, orbital information, and operating status of 98 satellites launched or planned since 1959 by the U.S., U.S.S.R., France, and U.K., with some 200 experiments. (Text)
NASA published The Quiet Sun (NASA SP-303) by Skylab 4 Astronaut Edward G. Gibson. In the foreword Dr. Leo Goldberg, Kitt Peak National Observatory Director, said the up-to-date textbook of solar physics was "written from the point of view of a physicist seeking to understand and interpret solar observations in the framework of theoretical physics. This orientation as well as the primary purpose of the book combine to make it a unique and valuable contribution to the literature of solar physics, and a superb textbook for college-level and graduate students." (Text)
A survey of knowledge about technology and research at the Univ. of Michigan by Chairman David Fradin of the Federation of Americans Supporting Science and Technology (FASST) was reported in Air Force Magazine. Of student respondents, 50% to 75% knew the Federal Government was the major source of research and development funds, that it took 6 to 10 yrs to research and develop a new product, that the U.S. had a positive balance of trade in high-technology and agriculture products, and that the trend in U.S. trade had been negative. More than 75% of respondents did not know the amount of Federal expenditure for defense or for human and physical resources, or that aerospace was the Nation's largest manufacturing employer. Scientific effort was deemed unnecessary for national defense by 25% to 50%. From 50% to 75% felt the space program had helped U.S. technical growth, but that money spent in going to the moon had been wasted; they considered tangible space program benefits like new knowledge of the environment to be more important than aerospace leadership, national prestige, or keeping ahead of the U.S.S.R. (AF Mag, 7/73, 90-91)
- June
- July
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
