Re: Giant Inflatable Antennas in Space
Alan Anderson (aranders@kosepc01.delcoelect.com)
Mon, 22 Jan 96 09:22:54 EST
djmullen@facstaff.wisc.edu (Dave Mullenix) writes:
>Does anybody know the inclination for this flight?
I believe the May SPARTAN flight will be near the minimum inclination
for a KSC launch, about 28 degrees. Not favorable for many of us. I
might just take a trip south that week!
>I've often wondered what would happen if you took two H-U-G-E sheets
>of mylar, aluminized one of them and then locked them both into a giant
>embroidery hoop and pumped a little air in between them. Does anybody
>know how to calculate whether it's possible to inflate the aluminized
>sheet into a parabola this way?
Yes, that's exactly what they're doing. For inflatable antennas like
this, the "embroidery hoop" you mention is usually designed as a very
skinny inflatable donut around the edge of the structure, pressurized
enough to hold its shape against the *slightly* pressurized lens shape
in the middle. The mylar sheets for this experiment were extremely
carefully fabricated to yield the desired shape when inflated.
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Alan Anderson Delco Electronics
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