Making color infrared film a more effective high altitude sensor

Infrared color film for remote sensors at high altitude

Experimental assembly of structures in EVA: Hardware morphology and development issues

A large body of data was obtained by MIT during neutral boyancy testing at Marshall Space Flight Center from 1980 to the present. These efforts, and the most significant results are summarized. The Experimental Assembly of Structure in EVA (EASE) flight experiment was undertaken to validate these results and flown on the STS 61-B in November 1985. The EASE experiment hardware is discussed and how the experiment goals dictate its size, shape, and operational characteristics, are illustrated

Land use in the northern Coachella Valley

Satellite imagery has proved to have great utility for monitoring land use change and as a data source for regional planning. In California, open space desert resources are under severe pressure to serve as a source for recreational gratification to individuals living in the heavily populated southern coastal plain. Concern for these sensitive arid environments has been expressed by both federal and state agencies. The northern half of the Coachella Valley has historically served as a focal point for weekend recreational activity and second homes. Since demand in this area has remained high, land use change from rural to urban residential has been occurring continuously since 1968. This area of rapid change is an ideal site to illustrate the utility of satellite imagery as a data source for planning information, and has served as the areal focus of this investigation

A system of regional agricultural land use mapping tested against small scale Apollo 9 color infrared photography of the Imperial Valley (California)

System of regional agricultural land use mapping tested against Apollo 9 color infrared photography of Imperial Valley, Calif

Assessment of Southern California environment from ERTS-1

ERTS-1 imagery is a useful source of data for evaluation of earth resources in Southern California. The improving quality of ERTS-1 imagery, and our increasing ability to enhance the imagery has resulted in studies of a variety of phenomena in several Southern California environments. These investigations have produced several significant results of varying detail. They include the detection and identification of macro-scale tectonic and vegetational patterns, as well as detailed analysis of urban and agricultural processes. The sequential nature of ERTS-1 imagery has allowed these studies to monitor significant changes in the environment. In addiation, some preliminary work has begun directed toward assessing the impact of expanding recreation, agriculture and urbanization into the fragile desert environment. Refinement of enhancement and mapping techniques and more intensive analysis of ERTS-1 imagery should lead to a greater capability to extract detailed information for more precise evaluations and more accurate monitoring of earth resources in Southern California

Structural Assembly Demonstration Experiment (SADE)

The purpose of the Structural Assembly Demonstration Experiment (SADE) was to create a near-term Shuttle flight experiment focusing on the deployment and erection of structural truss elements. The activities of the MIT Space Systems Laboratory consist of three major areas: preparing and conducting neutral buoyancy simulation test series; producing a formal SADE Experiment plan; and studying the structural dynamics issues of the truss structure. Each of these areas is summarized

Quiet Clean Short-haul Experimental Engine (QCSEE). Composite fan frame subsystem test report

The element and subcomponent testing conducted to verify the composite fan frame design of two experimental high bypass geared turbofan engines and propulsion systems for short haul passenger aircraft is described. Emphasis is placed on the propulsion technology required for future externally blown flap aircraft with engines located both under the wing and over the wing, including technology in composite structures and digital engine controls. The element tests confirmed that the processes used in the frame design would produce the predicted mechanical properties. The subcomponent tests verified that the detail structural components of the frame had adequate structural integrity

Application of remote sensing to selected problems within the state of California

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

Application of remote sensing to selected problems within the state of California

There are no author-identified signficant results in this report

Frictional sliding without geometrical reflection symmetry

The dynamics of frictional interfaces play an important role in many physical systems spanning a broad range of scales. It is well-known that frictional interfaces separating two dissimilar materials couple interfacial slip and normal stress variations, a coupling that has major implications on their stability, failure mechanism and rupture directionality. In contrast, interfaces separating identical materials are traditionally assumed not to feature such a coupling due to symmetry considerations. We show, combining theory and experiments, that interfaces which separate bodies made of macroscopically identical materials, but lack geometrical reflection symmetry, generically feature such a coupling. We discuss two applications of this novel feature. First, we show that it accounts for a distinct, and previously unexplained, experimentally observed weakening effect in frictional cracks. Second, we demonstrate that it can destabilize frictional sliding which is otherwise stable. The emerging framework is expected to find applications in a broad range of systems.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures + Supplementary Material. Minor change in the title, extended analysis in the second par