Wordtrade.com
Cosmology

Space Sciences 4 volume set edited by Pat Dasch (Macmillan Science Library: Thomson/Gale) Space Sciences Vol 1 Space Business edited by Pat Dasch (Macmillan Science Library: Thomson/Gale) Space Sciences Vol 2 Plantary Science and Astromony edited by Pat Dasch (Macmillan Science Library: Thomson/Gale) Space Sciences Vol 3 Humans in Space edited by Pat Dasch (Macmillan Science Library: Thomson/Gale) Space Sciences Vol 4 Our Future in Space edited by Pat Dasch (Macmillan Science Library: Thomson/Gale)

Intended for high school students and above, this four-volume set contains 341 signed articles presenting introductory information on the space sciences including concepts in astronomy, the history of space discovery, applications of space technology, biographies of contributors to the discipline, and careers. Arranged topically by volume and alphabetically within each volume, entries range from 500 to 4,500 words in length. The pages also contain columns with defined terms, formulas, sidebars, and illustrations. Chapters end with bibliographic data and internet resources, when applicable. Each volume begins with quick reference charts of measurements and symbols; a timeline of business and space milestones and human achievements in space; a list of contributors; and an outline of all contents. Illustrated with 400 color and b&w photographs.

Astronomers have studied the heavens for more than two millennia, but in the twentieth century, humankind ventured off planet Earth into the dark vacuum void of space, forever changing our perspective of our home planet and on our relationship to the universe in which we reside.

Our explorations of space-the final frontier in our niche in this solar system-first with satellites, then robotic probes, and finally with humans, have given rise to an extensive space industry that has a major influence on the economy and on our lives. In 1998, US. space exports (launch services, satellites, space-based communications services, and the like) totaled $64 bil­lion. As we entered the new millennium, space exports were the second largest dollar earner after agriculture. The aerospace industry directly em­ploys some 860,000 Americans, with many more involved in subcontracting companies and academic research.

 

Beginnings

The Chinese are credited with developing the rudiments of rocketry-they launched rockets as missiles against invading Mongols in 1232. In the nine­teenth century William Congrieve developed a rocket in Britain based on designs conceived in India in the eighteenth century. Congrieve extended the range of the Indian rockets, adapting them specifically for use by armies. Congrieve's rockets were used in 1806 in the Napoleonic Wars.

 

The Birth of Modern Space Exploration

The basis of modern spaceflight and exploration came with the writings of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky (1857-1935), a Russian mathematics teacher. He described multi-stage rockets, winged craft like the space shuttle developed in the 1970s, space stations like Mir and the International Space Station, and interplanetary missions of discovery.

During the same period, space travel captured the imagination of fic­tion writers. Jules Verne wrote several novels with spaceflight themes. His book, From the Earth to the Moon (1865), describes manned flight to the Moon, including a launch site in Florida and a spaceship named Colum­bia -the name chosen for the Apollo 11 spaceship that made the first lunar landing in July 1969 and the first space shuttle, which flew in April 1981. In the twentieth century, Arthur C. Clarke predicted the role of communi­cations satellites and extended our vision of human space exploration while television series such as Star Trek and Dr. Who challenged the imagination and embedded the idea of space travel in our culture.

The first successful test of the V-2 rocket developed by Wernher von Braun and his team at Peenemiinde , Germany , in October 1942 has been described as the "birth of the Space Age." After World War II some of the Peenemunde team under von Braun came to the United States , where they worked at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico , while others went to Russia . This sowed the seeds of the space race of the 1960s. Each team worked to develop advanced rockets, with Russia developing the R-7, while a series of rockets with names like Thor, Redstone, and Titan were produced in the United States .

When the Russians lofted Sputnik, the first artificial satellite, on Octo­ber 4, 1957 , the race was on. The flights of Yuri Gagarin, Alan Shepard, and John Glenn followed, culminating in the race for the Moon and the Apollo Program of the 1960s and early 1970s.

 

The Emergence of a Space Industry

The enormous national commitment to the Apollo Program marked a new phase in our space endeavors. The need for innovation and technological advance stimulated the academic and engineering communities and led to the growth of a vast network of contract supporters of the aerospace initia­tive and the birth of a vibrant space industry. At the same time, planetary science emerged as a new geological specialization.

Following the Apollo Program, the US . space agency's mission re­mained poorly defined through the end of the twentieth century, grasping at major programs such as development of the space shuttle and the Inter­national Space Station, in part, some argue, to provide jobs for the very large workforce spawned by the Apollo Program. The 1980s saw the beginnings of what would become a robust commercial space industry, largely inde­pendent of government programs, providing communications and informa­tion technology via space-based satellites. During the 1990s many thought that commercialization was the way of the future for space ventures. Com­mercially coordinated robotic planetary exploration missions were conceived with suggestions that NASA purchase the data, and Dennis Tito, the first paying space tourist in 2001, raised hopes of access to space for all.

The terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001 and the US . recession led to a re-evaluation of the entrepreneurial optimism of the 1990s. Many private commercial space ventures were placed on hold or went out of business. Commentators suggested that the true dawning of the commercial space age would be delayed by up to a decade. But, at the same time, the US . space agency emerged with a more clearly defined mandate than it had had since the Apollo Program, with a role of driving techno­logical innovation-with an early emphasis on reducing the cost of getting to orbit and leading world class space-related scientific projects. And mil­itary orders, to fill the needs of the new world order, compensated to a point for the downturn in the commercial space communications sector.

It is against this background of an industry in a state of flux, a discipline on the cusp of a new age of innovation, that this encyclopedia has been pre­pared.

Organization of the Material

The 341 entries in Space Sciences have been organized in four volumes, fo­cusing on the business of space exploration, planetary science and astron­omy, human space exploration, and the outlook for the future exploration of space. Each entry has been newly commissioned for this work. Our con­tributors are drawn from academia, industry, government, professional space institutes and associations, and nonprofit organizations. Many of the con­tributors are world authorities on their subject, providing up-to-the-minute information in a straightforward style accessible to high school students and university undergraduates.

One of the outstanding advantages of books on space is the wonderful imagery of exploration and achievement. These volumes are richly illus­trated, and sidebars provide capsules of additional information on topics of particular interest. Entries are followed by a list of related entries, as well as a reading list for students seeking more information.

 Apollo 15: Complete DownLink Edition, 6 DVD edition (Space History Series: Spacecraft Films) "I have viewed the entire Apollo 15 series you published, and found it to be outstanding. You have really done a great job and a great service to all who remember that era. Thanks for your interest and dedication to the ancient past." - Al Worden, Apollo 15 CMP

In July and early August of 1971, NASA embarked on an ambitious and challenging lunar mission - the journey of Apollo 15 to the Hadley-Apennine region.

The first of the "J" lunar missions, Apollo 15 took the first Lunar Rover to the surface, allowing the crew to explore the beautiful region of Mt. Hadley and Hadley Rille over 3 days.

New science was conducted in orbit as well, with the addition of an array of photographic and scientific instruments in the Apollo CSM.

This 6-disc set tells the amazing story of Apollo 15 through compelling sounds and images of the film and television record of the mission. From training on the Lunar Rover to the first live liftoff from moon, you'll be there for each moment of the TV downlink and each foot of onboard motion picture film. Included are the raw television transmissions from the flight to the moon, all three moonwalks, plus the lunar liftoff, Trans-Earth EVA, in-flight press conference and more. This set also contains multi-angle views of liftoff and coverage of recovery through the statements of the crew on the carrier deck. You'll discover Hadley Rille as you've never seen it before.

Note: Due to the limitations of the source material, there are some short color shifts during the EVAs, resulting from the drop out of one or more colors on the master videotapes. There are some areas where kinescope was used to correct the color drop-out where it was unacceptable.

General Info Apollo 15

Apollo 15 was the fourth mission to land people on the Moon. This mission was the first flight of the Lunar Roving Vehicle that astronauts used to explore the geology of the Hadley Rille/Apennine region. The LRV allowed Apollo 15, 16 and 17 astronauts to venture further from the Lunar Module than in previous missions. Total surface traverses increased from hundreds of meters during earlier missions to tens of kilometers during Apollo 15 and 16 and just over 100 kilometers during Apollo 17.

The successful Apollo 15 manned lunar landing mission was the first in a series of three advanced missions planned for the Apollo program. Its primary scientific objectives were to observe the lunar surface, survey and sample material and surface features in a preselected area of the Hadley-Apennine region, setup and activate surface experiments, and conduct inflight experiments and photographic tasks from lunar orbit.

The space vehicle with a crew of David R. Scott, commander; Alfred J. Worden, command module pilot; and James B. Irwin, lunar module (LM) pilot, was launched on schedule from the NASA Kennedy Space Center, Fla., at 9:34:00 a.m. EST on July 26, 1971.

At 22:04:09 GMT on July 30, the LM descent propulsion system was fired for powered-descent initiation. The LM landed approximately 12 minutes later with sufficient propellant remaining to provide an additional hover time of 103 seconds, had it been required.

During a lunar stay of 66 hr 54 min 53 sec, a 33-min standup extravehicular activity (EVA) and three periods of surface EVA totaling approximately 18.5 hr were performed.

The astronauts were able to collect samples from the low dark plains (maria), the Apennine highlands, and the area along Hadley Rille, a long, narrow winding valley.

Approximately 76 kg of lunar material including soil, rock, core-tube, and deep-core samples were returned to Earth.

Traverses during the three EVA periods were enhanced by use of a Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV). An average speed of 9.6 km/hr was achieved, and speeds up to 12 km/hr were attained over level lunar terrain. The total distance traveled, was 27.9 km, corresponding to a map distance of approximately 25.3 km.

Liftoff of the LM ascent stage occurred at 17:11:23 GMT on August 2 and was monitored by the ground-command television assembly mounted on the LRV. Commanded from Earth, the television assembly was planned to provide coverage after liftoff of the lunar surface and of a lunar eclipse on August 6. Although the television assembly operated successfully during all three EVA periods, the elevation clutch began to slip during the second EVA, and operation deteriorated during the rest of the mission. When activated about 40 hr after LM liftoff, the unit operated satisfactorily for 13 minutes then failed.

Although entry was nominal and all three main parachutes deployed initially, one parachute collapsed before spashdown. However, the CM was landed safely at 20:45:53 GMT, August 7, 1971.

Saturns

The Mighty Saturns (Three DVD Set Part I: The Early Saturns (Launch Vehicle Series: Spacecraft Films) The Saturn family of launch vehicles remains one of the most remarkable achievements in the history of mankind. From the clustered Saturn I using Redstone and Jupiter tankage to the Saturn V moon rocket, the increase in capability represented by the Saturns allowed man to place astounding weights into space, and placed man on the surface of another world.

This remarkable 3-disc set includes newly transferred footage from the National Archives, along with engineering footage from onboard and pad cameras. Along with these remarkable images, you'll see pad work on the early Saturns from SA-1 through the ASTP mission. The set contains a 43-minute original program featuring exclusive new interviews with 5 veteran Saturn project managers and engineers (Konrad Dannenberg, Jim Murphy, Jay Foster, Ed Buckbee, and Bob Lindstrom) as well as multi-angle coverage of all Saturn I & IB launches.

Headline 3

insert content here

WT Main | About WT | Review Links | Contact | Review Sources | Search