Apr 22 1993
From The Space Library
Measurements taken recently in Barrow, Alaska, one of several ozone monitoring stations, revealed the first signs of ozone depletion over North America. The depletion, however, was far less severe than that found over Antarctica. (USA Today, Apr 22/93)
Fourteen scientists, most of them from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), said that world ozone had dropped to its lowest levels since scientists began monitoring the protective layer. The drop might be a delayed effect of the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991. The scientists emphasized that the findings did not mean that the Northern Hemisphere was experiencing an "ozone hole" like the one that forms over the South pole, and that the ozone hole did not pose a significant health threat. The new findings were based on observations by several Earth-orbiting satellites operated by NASA and NOAA and confirmed by ground-based ozone monitoring instruments. (NASA Release 93-74; AP, Apr 22/93, Apr 23/93; USA Today, Apr 23/93; W Post, Apr 23/93; B Sun, Apr 23/93; WSJ, Apr 23/93; NY Times, Apr 23/93)
NASA announced that an American satellite had detected the most intense flash of gamma radiation observed in the two years of its operation. The burst, known as "the super bowl" event because it occurred on the day of this year's national championship game, appeared to produce 10 times more energy than any previously observed gamma-ray burst. The burst also led scientists to say that the bursts were not the product of merely hot "cooking objects," but of particles being accelerated to near the speed of light and being emitted in focused beams, or jets. The new findings suggested that the bursts originated far beyond the Milky Way Galaxy. (NASA Release 93-72; Reuters, Apr 22/93; W Post, Apr 23/93; NY Times, Apr 23/93; B Sun, Apr 23/93; APN, Apr 4/23)
NASA announced that a NASA F-15 research aircraft made a touchdown on April 21, using only engine power for control. The plane landed at NASA's Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility, Edwards, California. The flight was part of NASA's attempt to develop a computer-assisted engine control system that lets a plane land safely with only engine power if its normal control surfaces are disabled. (NASA Release 93-75)
NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin announced that Bryan O'Connor, Deputy Director of the Space Station redesign team, would take over management of the Space Station effort in order to accommodate a request by the team's leader, Joseph F. Shea, that his workload be reduced. Shea submitted his resignation as Assistant Deputy Administrator for Space Station analysis; he was to serve as Special Advisor to the Administrator and advisor to O'Connor. (NASA Statement on Advisory Committee Meeting)
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