Space station integrated wall design and penetration damage control

A methodology was developed to allow a designer to optimize the pressure wall, insulation, and meteoroid/debris shield system of a manned spacecraft for a given spacecraft configuration and threat environment. The threat environment consists of meteoroids and orbital debris, as specified for an arbitrary orbit and expected lifetime. An overall probability of no penetration is calculated, as well as contours of equal threat that take into account spacecraft geometry and orientation. Techniques, tools, and procedures for repairing an impacted and penetrated pressure wall were developed and tested. These techniques are applied from the spacecraft interior and account for the possibility of performing the repair in a vacuum. Hypervelocity impact testing was conducted to: (1) develop and refine appropriate penetration functions, and (2) determine the internal effects of a penetration on personnel and equipment

Spatial Displays and Spatial Instruments

The conference proceedings topics are divided into two main areas: (1) issues of spatial and picture perception raised by graphical electronic displays of spatial information; and (2) design questions raised by the practical experience of designers actually defining new spatial instruments for use in new aircraft and spacecraft. Each topic is considered from both a theoretical and an applied direction. Emphasis is placed on discussion of phenomena and determination of design principles

Feasibility assessment of low cost stereo computer vision in clay target shooting coaching

Clay target shooting is a sport that has been slow to adopt new technology to help automate and improve coaching. Currently gun mounted cameras and shooting simulators are available but these are prohibitively expensive for most shooters. This project aims to determine if a lower cost alternative can be created to provide feedback to new shooters about the distance they missed the target using low cost stereo computer vision. Initially an investigation was undertaken into the use of web cameras and GoPro action cameras for suitability to create a stereo vision system to track the shooter aim and the target position. The focus of this assessment was the camera resolution, frame rate and ability to be synchronized. The assessment found that these consumer-grade cameras all have high resolutions but no ability to be synchronized. Of these cameras the GoPro cameras could record in high definition at much higher frame rates then the web cameras and therefore were selected for the field trials. Field trials to test the accuracy of the low cost stereo vision system were performed in three phases; 'static', 'dynamic' and 'vs coaches'. The static trials were designed to find a baseline accuracy where the effect of frame synchronization errors could be reduced. The dynamic trials were performed to test the system on moving targets and to try and compensate for the synchronization errors. Finally the system was trialed against the judgement of three experienced human judges to test its reliability against the current coaching method. Matlab scripts were written to process the stereo images that were recorded as part of the field trials. Using colour thresholding and a custom filter that was created as part of this project, markers on the gun and the clay target were able to be segmented from the background in the trials. Using these positions the real world coordinates were able to be calculated and the aim of the gun vs target location estimated. The outcome of the trials showed that low cost computer vision can have good accuracy in estimation of gun aim in a static scene. When movement was introduced to the trials the synchronization errors of the cameras resulted in large positional errors. The final outcome of the project determined that low cost stereo computer vision is far less reliable and accurate than human coaches and is not at this time feasible to be used in clay target coaching

Recent Developments in Gun Operating Techniques at the NASA Ames Ballistic Ranges

This paper describes recent developments in gun operating techniques at the Ames ballistic range complex. This range complex has been in operation since the early 1960s. Behavior of sabots during separation and projectile-target impact phenomena have long been observed by means of short-duration flash X-rays: new versions allow operation in the lower-energy ("soft") X-ray range and have been found to be more effective than the earlier designs. The dynamics of sabot separation is investigated in some depth from X-ray photographs of sabots launched in the Ames 1.0 in and 1.5 in guns; the sabot separation dynamics appears to be in reasonably good agreement with standard aerodynamic theory. Certain sabot packages appear to suffer no erosion or plastic deformation on traversing the gun barrel, contrary to what would be expected. Gun erosion data from the Ames 0.5 in, 1.0 in, and 1.5 in guns is examined in detail and can be correlated with a particular non- dimensionalized powder mass parameter. The gun erosion increases very rapidly as this parameter is increased. Representative shapes of eroded gun barrels are given. Guided by a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code, the operating conditions of the Ames 0.5 in and 1.5 in guns were modified. These changes involved: (1) reduction in the piston mass, powder mass and hydrogen fill pressure and (2) reduction in pump tube volume, while maintaining hydrogen mass. These changes resulted in muzzle velocity increases of 0.5-0.8 km/sec, achieved simultaneously with 30-50 percent reductions in gun erosion

Pioneer Venus

Venus before Pioneer, the Pioneer Venus mission, Pioneer Venus spacecraft, scientific investigation, mission to Venus scientific results, and results of Soviet studies of Venus are addressed. A chronology of exploration of Venus from Earth before the Pioneer Venus mission and Venus nomenclature and mythology are provided

Aerospace medicine and biology: A continuing bibliography with indexes (supplement 377)

This bibliography lists 223 reports, articles, and other documents recently introduced into the NASA Scientific and Technical Information System. Subject coverage includes: aerospace medicine and physiology, life support systems and man/system technology, protective clothing, exobiology and extraterrestrial life, planetary biology, and flight crew behavior and performance

Research and Technology, 1995

This report presents some of the challenging research and technology accomplished at NASA Ames Research Center during FY95. The accomplishments address almost all goals of NASA's four Strategic Enterprises: Aeronautics and Space Transportation Technology, Space Sciences, Human Exploration and Development of Space, and Mission to Planet Earth. The report's primary purpose is to inform stakeholders, customers, partners, colleagues, contractors, employees, and the American people in general about the scope and diversity of the research and technology activities. Additionally, the report will enable the reader to know how these goals are being addressed

Research and technology, 1992

Selected research and technology activities at Ames Research Center, including the Moffett Field site and the Dryden Flight Research Facility, are summarized. These activities exemplify the Center's varied and productive research efforts for 1992