The stunning assertion that new spacecraft data show the equatorial latitudes of Mars were once a land of lakes is just the sort of ``discovery'' NASA and its international partners had hoped for as they set out upon a concerted, continuous program of exploring the most Earth-like of our planetary neighbors. The obvious, dramatic implication of the compelling imagery of what seems to be sedimentary rock formations is that these are precisely the sort of areas where one might search for fossils.
Sonobond Ultasonics' equipment for welding rigid plastic has been expanded to allow customers to choose the most effective machine for a particular job. The basic line of Sureweld 20-, 35- and 70-KHz. bench models and hand-held units includes machine builder's modules and additional wattage choices for the power supplies and a space-saving integrated welder with the power supply built into the welding head. Available in 20- and 3-KHz. sizes, the modules take up less space and are less expensive than more cumbersome ultrasonic actuators.
Sabena suspended weekly flights to Bujumbura, Burundi, after a Sabena A330-200 was raked by gunfire Dec. 4 as the aircraft approached Bujumbura airport at about 300 ft. A passenger and a flight attendant suffered minor injuries from shrapnel caused by 11 bullet hits, one in an engine. The aircraft carrying 158 passengers landed safely. Sabena accommodated 82 Nairobi-bound passengers in a hotel before transferring them to their final destination.
The SV Series of solenoid valves is a new line from Circle Seal Controls for use with liquids or gases. The valves provide positive shutoff and fast response regardless of flow direction or pressure. They assure bubble-tight sealing from vacuum to 6,000 psig (414 bar) and can be used to control flow in remote locations. The balanced poppet design renders them insensitive to pressure fluctuations and assures a rapid operation response time of less than 0.1 sec. for a full position shift, according to the company. Standard AC models are explosion proof to Mil-Std 810B.
U.S. labor's contention that defense offsets violate free trade doctrine is indisputable, but few countries adhere to pure market orthodoxy in their push to expand their aerospace sectors, outside experts say.
The armada of craft that European and U.S. space agencies plan to launch to Mars presages a flood of information about the red planet over the next decade. There's just one problem: unless something changes, that ocean of data will have to trickle back to Earth.
Last week's revelation from Mars Global Surveyor data--that sedimentary rocks suggest past bodies of water on the red planet--is just the latest discovery by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory spacecraft.
Boeing Satellite Services reports it will end 2000 with a record 15 satellite deliveries and a backlog of more than 34 spacecraft valued at about $6 billion. Orders this year include seven commercial spacecraft. Societe Europeene des Satellites in Luxembourg is the latest commercial customer. Last week it ordered its 10th satellite in 10 years, Astra 3A, which is scheduled for launch in 2002.
Four Russian airlines have formed an alliance to coordinate activities in order to counter Aeroflot's expansion plans on the domestic market. The as-yet-unnamed alliance consists of Moscow-based Domodedovo Airlines and Aviaexpresscruise; KrasAir, based in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk; and Urals-based Chelyabinsk Air Enterprise. The airlines have a combined fleet of 97 aircraft, serve 33 cities and carried 1.8 million passengers last year.
The Eddytherm microprocessor-controlled induction heater for bearings allows precise setting of time or temperature to prevent premature bearing failures due to overheating. The temperature probe continuously measures and displays actual temperature. The ``stand by'' feature permits holding temperature at preset levels. It automatically demagnetizes bearings after heating. Light and buzzer signal termination of heating demagnetizing cycle. Shrink-fitting bearing, sleeves, sprockets, couplings, impellers, crane wheels and gears of up to 880 lb.
SAS has settled a dispute with the Norwegian Cabin Crew Union, which threatened to expand strike action regarding pay and overtime issues. The recent settlement came after striking cabin crews forced SAS to ground 159 domestic Norwegian flights on Nov. 27. Separately, Joergen Lindgaard has been named to take over from Jan Stenberg as president and CEO of SAS in June 2001. Lindegaard, whose background is in engineering, heads the Danish telecommunications company, GN Store Nord.
Robert B. Dial (see photo) has been promoted to vice president-maintenance and quality control from chief inspector/director of quality control of BFGoodrich Aerospace Aviation Services, Everett, Wash.
Bob M. Duff (see photos) has been named vice president of the Applied Physics Div. and R. Curtis Heinen vice president of the Training Systems and Simulators Div. of the Southwest Research Institute of San Antonio. Duff was executive director of the Instrumentation and Space Research Div., while Heinen was a director in the Aerospace Electronics and Training Systems Div. Scott D. Royse was promoted to director from assistant director of the Simulation and Systems Engineering Dept.
Michael A. Coviello has become vice president-asset management of BACK Aviation Solutions, Manassas, Va. He was director of aircraft programs for the Republic Financial Corp.
Russian managers are considering redocking the Russian Progress M1-4 unmanned transport with the ISS to use the Progress as both a garbage scow and also to verify fixes to software they believe caused the failure of its initial auto-docking.
The Navy's acquisition executive, Lee Buchanan, has approved low-rate initial production for the ALQ-214 radio frequency countermeasures (RFCM) portion of the Integrated Defensive Electronic Countermeasures (IDECM) system. It was developed for the F/A-18E/F by Lockheed Martin/Sanders--which was recently acquired by BAE Systems North America--and by ITT Avionics. The ALQ-214 includes the Sanders developed ALE-55 fiber-optic towed decoy.
The wing and fuselage of the first production prototype Bell/Agusta BA609 civil tiltrotor have been mated at Bell's facilities in Fort Worth. Plans call for the aircraft to fly in August 2001 followed by FAA certification in 2003. Bell is building four prototypes for the flight test program. Production fuselages for all BA609s will be built by Fuji Heavy Industries. Aircraft will undergo final assembly at Bell's facility in Amarillo, Tex., alongside the military Bell Boeing V-22. Officials of Bell/Agusta Aerospace Co. report 83 orders for the BA609.
International Aero Engines has been named reference engine supplier for the Airbus Industrie Corporate Jetliner, under an agreement signed last month. The twinjet will be powered by 27,000-lb.-thrust V2527M-A5 turbofans.
Monogram Aerospace Fasteners, a division of Masco Tech, has developed an aerospace blind bolt designed for use in primary structures. The OSI Bolt is a unique fastening system which directly replaces conventional two-piece solid shank shear pins and collars. The one-sided installation bolt is installed from one side of the structure, which requires less labor than two-piece fasteners. Its many features include interference fit capability, high preload capability, vibration resistant to NAS1675 testing and minimal FOD cleanup.
Of all the innovative science and technology engineered into Europe's Mars Express mission, perhaps none is so bold as the lander. Christened Beagle 2, after Charles Darwin's legendary vessel, the lander will be pioneering in more ways than one. If successful, it will mark the first time countries other than the U.S. or the Soviet Union have landed a spacecraft on another planet. And assuming NASA's two Athena probes touch down safely, it will be the first time three landers have reached such a body at the same time.
The Czech air force plans to start networking its flight simulators so joint combat exercises can be conducted from separate facilities (AW&ST Nov. 27, p. 58). They plan to use the Distributed Interactive Simulation (DIS) protocol for the network, which is used by the U.S. military, but USAF is working to adopt the High Level Architecture (HLA) protocol for future aircraft simulations.
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has signed a letter of intent with D. Logistics of Germany for the sale of cargo ground handling operator Cargo Service Center Holding.
The IPM 240 servo drive offers increased control, reduced system building time and lower cost. Because of advanced digital control algorithms, precise control of position, speed or torque of DC and brushless motors can be achieved over a wide range of conditions. The IPM240 also offers a range of integrated functions that eliminate the need for additional peripheral equipment, making it ideal for industrial application.
