20,160 research outputs found
Optimized bolted joint
A method is disclosed for joining segments of the skin of an aircraft. The ends of the skin are positioned in close proximity or abutt each other. The skin is of constant thickness throughout the joint and is sandwiched between splice plates, which taper in thickness from the last to the first bolt rows in order to reduce the stiffness of the splice plate and thereby reduce the load transfer at the location where bypass loads are the highest
Hypersonic structures: An aerodynamicist's perspective, or one man's dream is another man's nightmare
The relationship between hypersonic aerodynamic and structural design is reviewed. The evolution of the hypersonic vehicle design is presented. Propulsion systems, structural materials, and fuels are emphasized
Space shuttle: Aerodynamic characteristics of a composite booster/040A orbiter launch configuration with fin and booster body configuration effect contribution
An investigation was made of the fin configuration and booster body configuration effects on a composite booster/040A orbiter launch configuration. Aerodynamic performance and stability characteristics in pitch and yaw were obtained. Configurations tested included two stepped cylindrical bodies of different lengths with a conical nose, four fin shapes of various sizes and aspect ratios mounted in different positions around the base of the bodies, two base flare angles and three 040A orbiter configurations. The orbiter variations included a tailless configuration and two tail sizes. A tailless booster launch configuration with deflected petals (expanded flare sectors) was also tested. The model scale was 0.003366. Data were converted to coefficient form in near real time, punched on cards, and tabulated. The cards used in conjunction with a Benson-Lehner plotter were used to provide plotted data. At the end of the test, tabulated input forms were completed for the SADSAC computer program to aid in publishing the final test data report
The Number of Incipient Spanning Clusters in Two-Dimensional Percolation
Using methods of conformal field theory, we conjecture an exact form for the
probability that n distinct clusters span a large rectangle or open cylinder of
aspect ratio k, in the limit when k is large.Comment: 9 pages, LaTeX, 1 eps figure. Additional references and comparison
with existing numerical results include
Characteristics of trapped proton anisotropy at Space Station Freedom altitudes
The ionizing radiation dose for spacecraft in low-Earth orbit (LEO) is produced mainly by protons trapped in the Earth's magnetic field. Current data bases describing this trapped radiation environment assume the protons to have an isotropic angular distribution, although the fluxes are actually highly anisotropic in LEO. The general nature of this directionality is understood theoretically and has been observed by several satellites. The anisotropy of the trapped proton exposure has not been an important practical consideration for most previous LEO missions because the random spacecraft orientation during passage through the radiation belt 'averages out' the anisotropy. Thus, in spite of the actual exposure anisotropy, cumulative radiation effects over many orbits can be predicted as if the environment were isotropic when the spacecraft orientation is variable during exposure. However, Space Station Freedom will be gravity gradient stabilized to reduce drag, and, due to this fixed orientation, the cumulative incident proton flux will remain anisotropic. The anisotropy could potentially influence several aspects of Space Station design and operation, such as the appropriate location for radiation sensitive components and experiments, location of workstations and sleeping quarters, and the design and placement of radiation monitors. Also, on-board mass could possible be utilized to counteract the anisotropy effects and reduce the dose exposure. Until recently only omnidirectional data bases for the trapped proton environment were available. However, a method to predict orbit-average, angular dependent ('vector') trapped proton flux spectra has been developed from the standard omnidirectional trapped proton data bases. This method was used to characterize the trapped proton anisotropy for the Space Station orbit (28.5 degree inclination, circular) in terms of its dependence on altitude, solar cycle modulation (solar minimum vs. solar maximum), shielding thickness, and radiation effect (silicon rad and rem dose)
The lowest singlet-triplet excitation energy of BN: a converged coupled cluster perspective
The notoriously small excitation energy of the BN
diatomic has been calculated using high-order coupled cluster methods.
Convergence has been established in both the 1-particle basis set and the
coupled cluster expansion. Explicit inclusion of connected quadruple
excitations is required for even semiquantitative agreement with
the limit value, while connected quintuple excitations still have
an effect of about 60 cm. Still higher excitations only account for
about 10 cm. Inclusion of inner-shell correlation further reduces
by about 60 cm at the CCSDT, and 85 cm at the CCSDTQ level. Our
best estimate, =18340 cm, is in excellent agreement with
earlier calculations and experiment, albeit with a smaller (and conservative)
uncertainty. The dissociation energy of BN() is =105.740.16
kcal/mol and =103.570.16 kcal/mol.Comment: J. Chem. Phys., in pres
Indications for a slow rotator in the Rapid Burster from its thermonuclear bursting behaviour
We perform time-resolved spectroscopy of all the type I bursts from the Rapid
Burster (MXB 1730-335) detected with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer. Type I
bursts are detected at high accretion rates, up to \sim 45% of the Eddington
luminosity. We find evidence that bursts lacking the canonical cooling in their
time-resolved spectra are, none the less, thermonuclear in nature. The type I
bursting rate keeps increasing with the persistent luminosity, well above the
threshold at which it is known to abruptly drop in other bursting low-mass
X-ray binaries. The only other known source in which the bursting rate keeps
increasing over such a large range of mass accretion rates is the 11 Hz pulsar
IGR J174802446. This may indicate a similarly slow spin for the neutron star
in the Rapid Burster
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