Feb 26 1992
From The Space Library
A new bearingless rotor system developed by McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Company, Mesa, Arizona, which promised to be a significant advance in helicopter technology, was tested by NASA. The tests, conducted in Ames Research Center wind tunnel, evaluated the rotor concept and gathered data to help develop computer programs needed to design a new generation of hearingless rotors. The new system, which eliminates hinges and bearings that usually connect the blades to the rotor shaft, is the key to the innovative system. The blades have advanced airfoils and are made of high strength composites. The technology was expected to have many benefits, including easier maintenance and lower fuel use. "The new rotor system would allow for faster, more agile, more cost effective and safer helicopters," said Steve Jacklin, project manager for the wind tunnel test at the Ames Research Center. (NASA Release 92-27)
Reuters reported that two telecommunications satellites worth more than $350 million were placed into orbit for Japan and the Arab League after launch from a European base in French Guiana. (Reuters, Feb 26/92)
The General Accounting Office recommended that NASA should not award a planned contract for the data management portion of the Earth Observing System it had slated for deployment during the coming decade. Citing past criticism of NASA's handling of data from its space missions, the GAO report emphasized that the Space Agency should work toward the long-term viability of a new data system. (W Times, Feb 26/92)
Fearing that unemployed scientists in the former Soviet Union might put their talents to use building weapons of mass destruction for unsavory regimes, the United States, Germany, and Russia announced the formation of an inter-national center to promote "non-military endeavors." (P Inq, Feb 26/92)
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