Apr 12 1978
From The Space Library
Marshall Space Flight Center announced that the Bethpage, N.Y., plant of Grumman Aerospace Corp. had almost completed fabrication of an automatic device for forming continuous structural beams in space. MSFC had developed the "beam builder" to demonstrate techniques for fabricating large structures in space; the device would form triangular beams from flat rolls of very light materials, a complete section of the beam being easily supported with one hand. Housed in the cargo bay of the Space Shuttle in earth orbit, the machine would form continuous miles-long beams for building large structures such as satellite power systems and service platforms. (Marshall Star, Apr 12/78, 1)
ESA announced that since the end of March its Meteosat 1 had been transmitting daily meteorological data collected by special equipment aboard a French naval vessel in the North Atlantic. ESA had relayed the data to the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in West Germany. The satellite had transmitted messages every 3hr that included the ship's position, and parameters such as wind characteristics, sea states, and air and sea temperatures. The experiment, carried out jointly by the French meteorological service and ESA, had been planned to demonstrate the reliability of automatic communications between ships and the Meteosat 1 <satellite for regular production of meteorological reports. The experiment would last until July and would resume later with other European meteorological services. When operational, the system should include several hundred ships all over the world fitted with Meteosat equipment. (ESA Release, Apr 12/78)
FBIS reported the answer of Konstantin Petrovich Feoktistov, USSR pilot-cosmonaut, when queried on the future of orbital stations. Feoktistov said they would develop as multipurpose scientific laboratories for extra-atmospheric astronomical observations, and for technological experiments to produce materials unobtainable under earth conditions. Orbital stations could seek out the most effective systems to develop methods for research and development and the design of scientific instruments and equipment. He went on to say: "Very broad prospects are opened up for manned stations if they are examined above all as the basis for industrial construction in space. Not everyone shares this view, but I personally believe that within the next few decades the development of technology will make it possible to actually set the task of creating power plants in space." Feoktistov noted that such technology would mean putting millions of tons of diverse equipment into space to assemble enormous and complex structures. Such work could never be fully automated, he pointed out, and would require many people to control the equipment and carry out installation work. This would not happen quickly, he concluded, but it should not be relegated to the realm of fantasy. "After all, 17yr ago Yuri A. Gagarin's flight also seemed a fantastic achievement." (FBIS, Moscow Sotsialisticheskaya Industriya in Russian, Apr 12/78)
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