Gravity-gradient stabilization (a.k.a. "tidal stabilization") is a method of stabilizing artificial satellites or space tethers in a fixed orientation using only the orbited body's mass distribution and gravitational field. The main advantage over using active stabilization with propellants, gyroscopes or reaction wheels is the low use of power and resources. It can also reduce or prevent the risk of propellant contamination of sensitive components.[1]
The idea is to use the Earth's gravitational field and tidal forces to keep the spacecraft aligned in the desired orientation. The gravity of the Earth decreases according to the inverse-square law, and by extending the long axis perpendicular to the orbit, the "lower" part of the orbiting structure will be more attracted to the Earth. The effect is that the satellite will tend to align its axis of minimum moment of inertia vertically.
The first experimental attempt to use the technique on a human spaceflight was performed on September 13, 1966, on the US Gemini 11 mission, by attaching the Gemini spacecraft to its Agena target vehicle by a 100-foot (30 m) tether. The attempt was a failure, as insufficient gradient was produced to keep the tether taut.[2]
The technique was first successfully used in a near-geosynchronous orbit on the Department of Defense Gravity Experiment (DODGE) satellite in July 1967.[3]
It was first used for low Earth orbit and tested unsuccessfully for geosynchronous orbit in the Applications Technology Satellites ATS-2, ATS-4 and ATS-5 from 1966 until 1969.[citation needed]
The lunar orbiter Explorer 49 launched in 1973 was gravity gradient oriented (Z axis parallel to local vertical).[4]
Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) used this method for 3-axis stabilization; yaw about the vertical axis was stabilized.[5]: 7
An example of gravity-gradient stabilization was attempted during NASA's TSS-1 mission in July 1992. The project failed because of tether deployment problems.[6] In 1996 another mission, TSS-1R, was attempted but failed when the tether broke. Just prior to tether separation, the tension on the tether was about 65 N (14.6 lbs).[7]
See also[edit]
In physics, Larmor precession (named after Joseph Larmor) is the precession of the magnetic moment of an object about an external magnetic field. Objects with a magnetic moment also have angular momentum and effective internal electric current proportional to their angular momentum; these include electrons, protons, other fermions, many atomic and nuclear systems, as well as classical macroscopic systems. The external magnetic field exerts a torque on the magnetic moment,
where is the torque, is the magnetic dipole moment, is the angular momentum vector, is the external magnetic field, symbolizes the cross product, and is the gyromagnetic ratio which gives the proportionality constant between the magnetic moment and the angular momentum. The phenomenon is similar to the precession of a tilted classical gyroscope in an external torque-exerting gravitational field. The angular momentum vector precesses about the external field axis with an angular frequency known as the Larmor frequency,
where is the angular frequency,[1] and is the magnitude of the applied magnetic field. is (for a particle of charge ) the gyromagnetic ratio,[2] equal to , where is the mass of the precessing system, while is the g-factor of the system. The g-factor is the unit-less proportionality factor relating the system's angular momentum to the intrinsic magnetic moment; in classical physics it is just 1.
In nuclear physics the g-factor of a given system includes the effect of the nucleon spins, their orbital angular momenta, and their couplings. Generally, the g-factors are very difficult to calculate for such many-body systems, but they have been measured to high precision for most nuclei. The Larmor frequency is important in NMR spectroscopy. The gyromagnetic ratios, which give the Larmor frequencies at a given magnetic field strength, have been measured and tabulated here.
Crucially, the Larmor frequency is independent of the polar angle between the applied magnetic field and the magnetic moment direction. This is what makes it a key concept in fields such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), since the precession rate does not depend on the spatial orientation of the spins.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larmor_precession#Larmor_frequency
A cold cathode[1] is a cathode that is not electrically heated by a filament.[note 1] A cathode may be considered "cold" if it emits more electrons than can be supplied by thermionic emission alone. It is used in gas-discharge lamps, such as neon lamps, discharge tubes, and some types of vacuum tube. The other type of cathode is a hot cathode, which is heated by electric current passing through a filament. A cold cathode does not necessarily operate at a low temperature: it is often heated to its operating temperature by other methods, such as the current passing from the cathode into the gas.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_cathode
The hollow cathode effect allows electrical conduction at a lower voltage or with more current in a cold-cathode gas-discharge lamp when the cathode is a conductive tube open at one end than a similar lamp with a flat cathode.[1] The hollow cathode effect was recognized by Friedrich Paschen in 1916.[2]
In a hollow cathode, the electron emitting surface is in the inside of the tube. Several processes contribute to enhanced performance of a hollow cathode:
- The pendulum effect, where an electron oscillates back and forth in the tube, creating secondary electrons along the way
- The photoionization effect, where photons emitted in the tube cause further ionization
- Stepwise ionization[1]
- Sputtering[3][4]
The hollow cathode effect is utilized in the electrodes for neon signs, in hollow-cathode lamps, and more.
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