Astronomy and Space Science

After seeing some demonstrations and explanations of inverse square relationships,
we will design a lab experiment to measure the brightness of a small light source as a function of distance. You will get information about the inverse square law, which teaches us that the brightness of light is inversely proportional to the square of the distance to the source. After designing the lab we will look for equipment to set up the measurement.

After seeing some demonstrations and explanations of inverse square relationships,
we will design a lab experiment to measure the brightness of a small light source as a function of distance. You will get information about the inverse square law, which teaches us that the brightness of light is inversely proportional to the square of the distance to the source. After designing the lab we will look for equipment to set up the measurement.

Today we construct a scale model solar system.

Scale Model Solar System

We draw a giant scale model of the solar system on a piece of graph paper, and then design one for the campus.

Review Kepler's Laws.

We learn how to plan a space probe mission to another planet.

Basically the steps are:
Draw origin planet and destination planet's orbits.
Draw an ellipse that starts at one planet and ends at another.
Determine the major axis of the space probe's orbit by adding the planets' semi-major axes together.
Divide by 2 to get the semi-major axis of the space probe's orbit.
Determine the period of the space probe's orbit using KIII law.
Divide by 2 to determine the one-way trip time.
Extra credit
Figure the number of degrees the destination planet will move in this time.
Find a date when the earth is 180-this answer away from the destination planet. That's the launch date.


Your task: design a space probe mission to another planet.
Pick a power supply: nuclear or solar as appropriate. Solar power requires bigger backup batteries.
Pick instruments:
telescope/camera; (75)
magnetic field sensor (10;
spectrascope (25); lander (includes temperature, weather, chemical sensor (250)
radar (100);
communication antenna with earth;(50)
gyroscopic stablizer (100);
navigation sensor; (20)
radiation monitor(20)

; the catch is these instruments all weigh different amounts and you can't take everything. Numbers refer to estimated masses in kilograms. Your spacecraft is limited to 400 kilograms of payload not counting the power supply.

Design the spacecraft, give details on its orbital transfer information, sketch a picture of it.

Review Kepler's Laws.

We learn how to plan a space probe mission to another planet.

Basically the steps are:
Draw origin planet and destination planet's orbits.
Draw an ellipse that starts at one planet and ends at another.
Determine the major axis of the space probe's orbit by adding the planets' semi-major axes together.
Divide by 2 to get the semi-major axis of the space probe's orbit.
Determine the period of the space probe's orbit using KIII law.
Divide by 2 to determine the one-way trip time.
Extra credit
Figure the number of degrees the destination planet will move in this time.
Find a date when the earth is 180-this answer away from the destination planet. That's the launch date.


Your task: design a space probe mission to another planet.
Pick a power supply: nuclear or solar as appropriate. Solar power requires bigger backup batteries.
Pick instruments:
telescope/camera; (75)
magnetic field sensor (10;
spectrascope (25); lander (includes temperature, weather, chemical sensor (250)
radar (100);
communication antenna with earth;(50)
gyroscopic stablizer (100);
navigation sensor; (20)
radiation monitor(20)

; the catch is these instruments all weigh different amounts and you can't take everything. Numbers refer to estimated masses in kilograms. Your spacecraft is limited to 400 kilograms of payload not counting the power supply.

Design the spacecraft, give details on its orbital transfer information, sketch a picture of it.

Planet test review plus a trivia lookup on individual planet facts.

This was posted on Yahoo news a few days ago. A great observation if you can manage it.

Mon Dec 26,12:00 PM ET Yahoo News
=20
When the Stardust sample return capsule nose dives back to Earth in =
January,
it will become the fastest human-made object to streak through the
atmosphere.
Scientists and engineers are at the ready to observe the spectacular sky
show=17and savvy skywatchers can join in on the aerial action too.

If all goes to plan, Stardust will release its sample return capsule
carrying comet and interstellar dust particles on Jan. 15 at 12:57 a.m.
Eastern Standard Time (EST). Four hours later, the capsule will enter
Earth's atmosphere, zooming toward Utah and a parachute landing at =
roughly
5:12 a.m. EST.

During its plummet into Utah, the heat-thwarting capsule will skyrocket
across the Western United States [map].=20

According to Stardust officials, the fireball should be visible from San
Francisco perhaps up to and beyond Portland, shooting over Nevada toward =
its
Utah landing. The artificial meteor is expected to peak in brightness as =
it
penetrates deeper in the Earth's atmosphere, lighting up to roughly the
brilliance of Venus for about 90 seconds. That brightness is expected to
peak over Carlin, Nevada.

So if you live in Northern California, Oregon, Washington, Northern =
Nevada,
Southern Idaho or Western Utah you should be able to see some part of
Stardust sky show. The closer you live to the trajectory, which runs =
from
Crescent City, California and then through Winnemucca and Elko Nevada, =
and
finally to Western Utah, the higher the fireworks in the early morning =
sky
will be.=20

Speed record

The velocity of Stardust's sample return capsule as it slices through =
the
Earth's atmosphere is a hasty 28,860 mph (12.9 kilometers per second). =
At
that speed, the capsule surpasses the record set in May
1969 during the return of the Apollo 10 command module, the highest =
speed
ever attained by human
beings: 24,861 mph (11.11 kilometers per second).

Even at that rate, it still doesn't beat the heat seen by the Galileo =
probe
as it plunged into Jupiter's atmosphere on Dec. 7, 1995. The small craft
reached a blistering 106,000 mph (47.4 kilometers per second).=20

But nobody was on the scene to get an eyeful.

Stardust's sample return capsule is a lightweight. It tips the scale at
101-pounds (46 kilograms).=20

In 2004, Genesis=17a sister mission of Stardust=17made a similar return,
jettisoning a sample return capsule four-times the mass of Stardust.=20

Due to improperly placed sensors on the Genesis capsule, however, its
parachute system failed to deploy. That resulted in a precisely placed, =
but
busted-up capsule when the vessel hit the desert landscape at high =
speed.
Despite the hard-landing, researchers remain hopeful they can extract
meaningful science from the returned specimens of solar wind.=20

Science friction

Four hours after release from the main Stardust spacecraft, the sample
return capsule will enter Earth's atmosphere at 410,000 feet (125
kilometers) over the Pacific Ocean.

At this point, the capsule is about 551 miles (886
kilometers) from its landing zone in Utah, and on its way to claim the
record of the fastest human-made object ever to enter Earth's =
atmosphere.

By entry plus 38 seconds, the capsule will have already covered half the
horizontal distance to its landing zone. At this point, friction from =
the
entry is to raise the capsule's heat shield temperature, making it
observable via infrared tracking equipment.=20

At entry plus 52 seconds, at an altitude of 200,000 feet (61 =
kilometers),
the capsule will experience peak
heating: the heat shield's exterior will spike at 365 degrees Fahrenheit
(185 Celsius). Ten seconds later, peak deceleration will occur as the
rapidly slowing capsule experiences 38'gs=17or 38 times the force of =
gravity.

Airborne campaign

After nearly seven years of cruising through space, and surviving its
high-speed fall, the Stardust capsule will be on a heading that leads to =
the
U.S.
Air Force Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR), southwest of Salt Lake =
City.
Spacecraft navigators are looking to plop the capsule into an ellipse 47 =
by
27 miles (76 by 44 kilometers) within the UTTR.

Scientists are anxious to scrutinize the fiery fall of the capsule. Data
collected is expected to help understand how natural material incoming =
from
space is altered as it enters Earth's atmosphere. This information would =
be
helpful in piecing together a story on chemical changes in compounds =
during
that process=17a puzzle piece for astrobiologists that study the origin =
of
life.

A crew of researchers flying on a heavily-instrumented
NASA DC-8 aircraft will study the small, speeding Stardust capsule
returning from space. They face a daunting task of tracking and =
observing
the capsule as it hurtles through the atmosphere and slows before
parachuting into a Utah desert landing zone.

Public invite

The airborne campaign is coming together, with the
DC-8 arriving on Jan. 3 at NASA's Ames Research Center in Silicon =
Valley.
Once there, it will be loaded with science gear. A Jan. 11 first test =
flight
is also on the books. =20

"We have now turned our attention on setting up ground-based =
observations as
well, including involving the public in documenting the reentry," said =
Peter
Jenniskens, principal investigator of the Stardust Sample Return Capsule
Re-entry Observing Campaign. He is a meteor astronomer at the SETI =
Institute
in Mountain View, California.

"Some observations can only be done from the ground, such as listen for =
the
sonic boom and observing the hot air trail in the wake of the sample =
return
capsule drift in front of the Moon," Jenniskens told SPACE.com.=20

"Also, we'd like to involve the public in taking images and video of the
reentry because the view from each location will be a little different,
depending on how the capsule itself shields the light coming from the
front," Jenniskens said.

Viewing tips

Jenniskens and his research colleagues involved in tracking the Stardust
capsule offer several viewing tips

The capsule will approach the landing zone from a westerly direction. =
The
best opportunities for viewing the entry will be along Highway 80 =
between
Carlin, Nevada and Elko, Nevada, and further east to the Utah border, =
where
the capsule's front side can be observed before it passes over the =
observer
on the ground.=20

The peak brightness will decrease further from Carlin, lessening to =
about
the brightness of Venus when seen from Boise, Idaho, and Salt Lake City.
Observers using the naked eye will likely see the capsule as a very =
bright
pinpoint of pink-white light.

For certain viewing locations just north of the trajectory line, the =
capsule
will appear to pass by the Moon=17above it, or below it, depending on =
the
viewer's location.=20

Video, photos welcomed

By choosing their positions carefully, some observers will be able to =
see
the capsule pass in front of the Moon. As seen by the naked eye, the =
capsule
will disappear in the glare of moonlight, but by looking through =
telescopes,
observers may see a tiny dot, perhaps trailed by a dark wake of =
dissipating
heat shield material and hot air.=20

Moving at many times the speed of sound, the capsule will take only two =
to
three video frames to appear to pass by the Moon.

The trail may form a thin line behind the capsule, especially near the =
point
of peak brightness where atmospheric friction and dissipation of heat is
most intense.

If you would like to become part of the observation campaign, Jenniskens
noted, you can help study the reentry by contributing photos or video to
NASA.=20

If you'd like to take part in watching the Stardust capsule's =
history-making
dive into the record books, check out NASA's viewing forum.=20

Quarry in Tow, Stardust Begins Long Journey Home Stardust Captures the =
Best
Comet Image Ever
Aerogel: Stardust's 'Butterfly Net'=20