MTS Press Kit

8/8/2019 MTS Press Kit

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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS ANDSPACE ADMINISTRATIONv*} Washington, D. C. 20546202-755.8370

FOR RELEASE:AMs, Monday,August 7, 1972p PROJECT: MTS. c atents-IS GENERAL RELEASE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2

METEOROID TECHNOLOGY SATELLITE. . . . . . . 3-10Research Objectives. . . . . . . . . . 3Historical Background. . . . . . . . . 3-4Meteoroids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Meteoroid Detectors... . . . . .. . 4-6Telemetry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Scout Launch Vehicle. .. . . . . 6-7Sequence of Events . . . . . . . . . . 8Tracking and Data Acquisition. 9Personnel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-10K.-I


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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS ANDSPACE ADMINISTRATIONWashingron, D. C. 20546Phone: (202) 755-8370

FOR RELEASE:Konneth C. Atchison AMs, Monday,(Phone: 202/755-3252) August 7, 1972Daniel S. Wentz II (LaRC)(Phone: 703/827-3966)RELEASE NOt 72-155

SPACECRAFT TO EXPLORE METEOROID HAZARD

A satellite designed to gather information on thehazards spacecraft encounter from minute particles inspace, will be launched no earlier than August 13 fromNASA's Wallops Station, Va.

The Meteoroid Technology Satellite i} designed togather engineering and scientific information on meteoroidpenetration rates in a bumper-protected target and toobtain data on meteoroid speeds ad, uantities. By

It will be launched by a scout rocket in a south- 4easterly direction from Wallops Island. The intendedorbit will have an apogee of 815 kilometers (506 statutemiles) and a perigee of 491 kilometers (305 statute miles).The rntellite will circle the Earth every 98 minutes ona path inclined 37.7 degrees to the Equator.

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When successfully in orbit, the Meteoroid TechnologySatellite (MTS) will be named Explorer 46 (XLVI).

Langley Research Center manages the Meteoroid Tech-nology Satellite project under the overall guidance ofNASA's Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology. Langleyis also responsible for the spacecraft, the Scout launchvehicle, and for systems integration. Goddard Space FlightCenter, Greenbelt, Md., is responsible for tracking anddata acquisition for the satellite. Launch support andrelated functions are furnished by Wallops Station.

(END OF GENERAL RELEASE; BACKGROUND INFORMATION FOLLOWS)


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ID BUMPER EXPER I ENrT(12 PANELS-m96 DETECTORS)

AFT FACING SOLAR CELL PANELS (4) ;AD METEOROID IMPACT DETECTORS (12)SPACECRAFT SPIN-Up SYSTEMTHRUSTER ASSEMBLY

IMPACT /OMMAND AND TELEMETRY ANTENNA -(12)CELL PANEL SCOUT 4th STAGE UPPER VDR .

VFLOCITY SCOUT 41th STAGE TELEMETRY SYSTEMTECTOR (2 tScoUT 4 th STA^GE MOTOR

METEOROID IMPACT DETECTOR (40)/ / / \ \ m SOLAR CELL PANELTELEMETRY SYSTEM HOUSING (2 )

BUMPER EXPERIMENTDEPLOYMENT ACTUATOR

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METEROIDTECHNOLOGY SATELLITE

Research ObjectivesIlh Primary objectives of the meteoroid satellite are:tile) o evaluate multi-sheet bumpeor configurations asbt meteoroid protection structuresj and (2) o obtain a better

SIunderstanding of the meteoroid environment in near-Earthtspace.

The MT8 flight will be the firsat attept to find outunder actual space conditions how effectively a multi-sheetbumpf can protect a spaceocraft The bumper concept con-dsit of two thin sheets of metal separated by a spaceof 12.7 millimeteor (one-half inch).deg Laboratoryexp riments suggest that the two sheetf umper may provide better resistance to pnetration thana singJE pheet of metal of greater total thicknessDlightmeasurem nts during the anttcipated one-year life-time of the MTs should provide confirmation of the labora-tory resul1%s.

In addition to the primary bumper experiment, the drMsT8ill carry 12 velocity detectors and 64 capacitnce-c ntypeetcctors to measur the impact flux distribution ofs-mall mass meteoroids.[ ~Historical Background

NA8A and tieo Langley Research Centor have bteen active Ior many years in the effort to obtain a better understandingof the meteoroid environment near the Earth. Accurateknowledge of moteoroids is essential for the efficientdesign of spacecraft intended to remain in Earth orbitfor extended periods.Explorer XVI, a Langley satellite launched inDecember 1962, made the fi'rst statistically significant 4fmeasurements of meteoroid. in near-Earth Space. It wa~followed by Explorer XXIII in November .3t;4. Both carriedpressurized cell detectors of metal .0254 millimeters (.001inch) and .0508 millimeters (.002 inch) thick. ExplorerXXIII provided the first extended fliaht test of the capa-citance-type detector.t

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They were followed by three satellites inntheeseries all launched in 1965. The Pegasus experimentscarried very large areas of capacitance detectors as thick ls.Lngle sheet targets.

Extensive laboratory work has been carried on simul-taneously to expand and interpret flight results and scien-tists and engineers now look to the is experiments to pro-vide further insight and design information derived fromactual flight in space.

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Meteoroids

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Meteoroids are small particles composed of iron,,silicates and other substances which occur naturally in ,4sace. They vary greatly in size and occur sporadicallyand in showers traveling at extremely high speedsn Someare derived from the asteroids which revolve around the Sunbetween Mars and Jupiterl others are believed to come fromithe Outermost regions of our solar system.Meteoroids burnabecome meteors) as they enter thes-atmosphere. Those which reach the Earth are calledmot orites. Scientists have determined that several 4'thaousynd tons of minute meteorites settle on the Earthin a single day.JThese small particles may strike a satellite at;velocities ranging from lo to 73 kilometers (7 to 45 miles)per second, or even faster.

Meteoroid Detectors

The MTS satellite is intended to measure the numbers,mass and velocity of the particles it enccrunters duringits working lifetime with three types of detectors m1d Bumier Cell Detectorsw The principal experimenton M TS we llMandistemorie thean 27a6 square meters 300square feet) of bumper target . Meteoroid penerations of

the complete target (bumper plus main wall. will be r^egis-tered by trossurized c oll etectors. The yarget conistshof an .02S4 millimeter (h.001 inde) stainless steel bumperthounted 12.7 millimeters (one-half inch) in front of ana508 millimeter (.002 inch) thick stainless steel mainwall .


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The bumper target area is divided into 12 panels'each about .48 meters (19 inches) wide and 3.1 meters(10-5 feet) long. In flights, the bumper panels are deployedas four wings (Bee illustration on page 2a). Each panelcontains eight pressurized cells providing a total ofJ96 detectors on the spacecraft.If a meteoroid penetrates both bumper and main wall,there will be a loss of pressure ion the Coll which willbe telemetered to the ground.the stainless steel bumper shoots are mounted on eachside of the pressurized cells with leaf springs whichn allowthem to be collapsed flat against the detector woall Atlaunch, each of the 12 panels is rolled into a cylinder114 millimeters (4.5 inches) in diameter an .48 meters-(19 in~ches) longPanlsg will be deployed in orbit by a motorized boomsystem and gas will flow from 96 separate reservoirs torig~idize the pressure cells.2. Meteoroid 7elocity Detectors. Twelve box-shapedvelocity doe tors will1 ba mounted at various locations onthe central h,.,b of the MTS. Each is 203 millimeters (8inches) lonvi 203 millimeters (8 inches) wiuei and 152millimeters (6 inches) deep. The top and bottom surfacesof the box form two measuring stations a known distanceapart. By timing the flight of a penetrating particlebetween the two stations, the velocity of the particlecan be calculated.The outer surface or front station1 produced by theLTV Aerospace Corporation's Advanced Technology Centerunder a contract to NASA's Manned Spacecraft C anter,eis a thin film polysulfene capacitor 8,000 Angstroms( 0000315 inch) thickl The rear station consists of a.013 millimeter (.005 inch) stainless steel sheet backedby a second capacitore When a particle pidrges the frontcapacitor station, a timer is started If the particlehas sufficient energy to penetrate the thin sheet ofstainllss steel and the second capacitor, the timer stopsThus the time of flight over a known distonce can bedetermined for a meteoroid with sufficient energy topenetrate the steel sheet Project scientists expect theacdetectors to record 15 to 30 time of flight measurementsin a year.

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-6-3. Impact Flux Detectors. The MTS will carry 64capacitordectors to gather information on the populationof very small particles in the regions the satellite Iraverses.The capacitor sensor is an electrical device built 4as a thin sandwich of silicon dioxide between an inner glayer of silicon substrate and an outer film of vapordeposited aluminum. The substrate and :he aluminumconduct electricity, but the silicon diox'de does not. Inflight, the capacitors will be charged-electrically from40 to 60 volts.When a meteoroid penetrates the capacitor, a smallamount of the material is vaporized and ionized in thearea of penetration. As a result, a momentary short circuit 'ccurs and the capacitor discharges. The current flowresulting from this discharge is monitored and recorded.The ionization disappears in less than a millionth ofa second and the capacitor quickly recharges. Thus itexhibits a "self healing" characteristic which makes itparticularly attractive for long term use in space.Two sizes of capacitor sensors will be carried aboardthe MTS. Thirty-two sensors will have a detecting film4000 Angstroms (.0000157 inch) thick and 32 will be 10,000Anrstroms (.0000394 inch) thick.

TelemetryThe MTS will carry two telemetry systems. One operateson ground command to transmit data from all spacecraftmeasurements and provide a tracking signal. It is poweredby batterie- recharged by solar cells.The second system operates continuously in sunlightand transmits data only from the bumper experiment. Itis powered only by solar cells.

Scout Launch VehicleScout is NASA's only solid propellant launch vehiclewith orbital capacity. The first development Scout wasLaunched July 1, 1960. The MTS mission will be the 79thScout launch. Since the Scout was recertified in 1963,he 2aunch vehicle has attained a 94 percent success record.

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Scout is a four-stage solid propellant rocket system.The launch vehicle and the MTS spacecraft will be set onan initial launch azimuth of 90 degrees.The four Scout motors -- Algol III, Castor II, AntaresII and Altair III -- are interlocked with transition sectionsthat contain guidance$, control, ignition, and instrumenta-tion systems, separation mechanisms, and the spin motorsneeded to stabilize the fourth stage. Control is achievedby aerodynamic surfaces, jet vanes and hydrogen peroxide jets.The MTS launch will mark the first use of the Algol IIIand concludes a three-year development program for thatmotor. The Algol III increases Scout's payload capacityfrom 146 kilograms (322 pounds) to 188 kilogramo (415 pounds)in a A55-kilometer (345-statute-mile) easterly orbit.

It will be the largest vehicle ever launched from WallopsStation, Va. . .1the Algol III was designed and built by United Tech-nology Corp., Sunnyvale, Calif. It is 1.14 meters (45inches) in diameter compared with 1.02 meters (40 inches)for the Algol II.The launch vehicle is approximately 22.25 meters(73 feet) long and weighs about 21,485 kilograms (47,365pounds) at liftoff.The Scout program is managed by NASA's Langley ResearchCenter, Hampton, Va. The launch vehicle is built by LTVAerospace Corp, Dallas, Texas.

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-8-SEQUENCE OFr EVENT

Event 'Time (sec.)Liftoff .00First stage burnout 82.14Second stage ignition 82 .

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Second stage burnout 122.21Third stage ignition.0Third stage burnout 182.14Spin-up 559.87Third Stage separation 561.37Fourth stage ignition 566 22Fourth stage burnout 597.49

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Trackingd Data AqSiaitio

William L. Lonrd,Proest Director; Willia T. Burns, Ms

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1-.. Pyrotechni Engineer.Launchdarehicle R.D Fnlish, Headntoue PojcOfe;clydeW Wobters inrcharge of launch operatioens;

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Manned Spacecraft Center

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Paige B. Burbank, co-investigator, impact velocityexperiment.* -NASA Headquarters

Bernard G. Achhanmer, Program Officer.

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