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Aviation History
1964
1964 - 0680.PDF
fUCHT International, 12 March 1964 403 TABLE I: RADIOISOTOPIC SNAP GENERATORS Designation Use Space applications: SNAP-3 Demonstration device Undesignated Navy navigational satellites Modified SNAP-3) Power (W) Weight (Ib) Isotope SNAP-9A SNAP-IISNAP-13 5NAP-I7SNAP-I* Undesignated UndesignatedSNAP-7A thru E SNAP-ISA & BSNAP-21 Department of Defense satellites Moon probe Thermionic demonstration device Communications satellite IMP, Nimbus Light-weight demonstration device Terrestrial applications: Axel Heiberg weather station Navigational buoys, lights and beacons, weather stations, etc. Nuclear weaponsOcean bottom 2.5 2.7 25 21-2512 2520 6-10 56.5-60 0.001 10 44.6 27 30 4 28 18 3 Polonium-210 Plutonium-238 Plutonium-238 Curium-242 Curium-242 Strontium-90 Plutonium-238 Plutonium-238 or Strontium-90 1,680 Strontium-90 1,900 to 6,000 Strontium-90 I Plutonium-238 — Strontium-90 Design Life Current status 90 days Programme completed 5 years Generators launched June and November 1961. First still in operation; second failed after 8 months 5 years Generators launched September and December, 1963. Both in operation 90-day mission Being tested 90-day mission Being fabricated 5 years Initiated in mid-1963 5 years Design study stage Greater than one Being tested year 2 years minimum Operating since August, 1961 10 years First unit in operation February, 1962; four now operating 4 years Under test 5 years Initiated in late 1963 TABLE 2: SPACE REACTOR SNAP GENERATORS Designation fleoctor Projects:SNAP-I0A SNAP-2 SNAP-S SNAP-50 Use Thermoelectric demonstration system Rankine cycle demonstration system Communications satellites or space station Electric propulsion and auxiliary power Power (Design) 0.5 3 35 300 kW (Potential) 10 1,200 Weight* (Ib) Design life 1,000 1,470 One year One year 6,000 (est) lO.OOOhr 6,000 (est) lO.OOOhr Current status Nearing completion Reoriented toward component improve- ment. Power test of experimental reactor now under way Development of components continuing. Construction of reactor experiment terminated * Includes weight of a radiation shield to reduce cumulative dose over a year's operation to levels that will not damage sensitive instrumentation. effort does not provide for flight testing. Increased work necessary for project-oriented systems would require additional support for the extensive systems engineering developments and flight testing needed to meet specific mission requirements. The present pro- gramme of advanced technology and its associated ground testing is proceeding at a relatively low but reasonable level consistent with long-term development. It must be recognized that full develop- ment of an advanced system to provide power in the range of hundreds to thousands of kWE will in itself probably cost over 11,000,000,000 during a period of 15 or more years. NEW MISSILE FOR US ARMY Details of the US Army's TOW (Tube-launched, Optically-tracked, Wire-command-link guided) missile were given by Hughes Aircraft Co on February 27 in an announcement which stated: "A new anti- tank missile called TOW, which will be electronically 'slaved' to speed along a gunner's line-of-sight as if there were an invisible gun barrel stretching all the way to the target, is now being developed for infantry troops, the US Army and Hughes Aircraft Company disclosed today in revealing first details of the new weapon. "John W. Black, Hughes vice-president in charge of the com- pany's aeronautical systems division, said that as the missile travels through the air it unreels two hair-thin wires like an umbilical cord through which it receives steering signals undetectable by the- enemy. Hughes, as prime contractor for the Army in the develop- ment study, has been awarded contracts totalling more than |23m to date, Black said. The new missile is expected to provide a major boost in firepower for infantry units because of its powerful explo- sive force combined with high accuracy at both close and long ranges. "In demonstration tests at the US Army's Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Md, the missile scored a hit within a foot of dead centre on a tank-sized target more than a mile away. In operation, a gunner aims a telescopic sight at a target, then launches the missile which automatically follows his line-of-sight. If the target is moving the gunner tracks it with his sight, thus generating electronic signals that correct the missile's course. "TOW stands for Tube-launched, Optically-tracked, Wire-com- mand-link guided missile. The system includes a tripod-mounted launch tube, an electronic 'box' and missile encased in shipping containers. The missile is inserted into the back end of the launch tube, container and all. The gun crew never sees the missile until it speeds out of the front of the tube on the way to its target. The system is so automated it can be used by regular field troops with- out special training as missile technicians. "The system is under advanced development for the Army as a heavy assault weapon and is for use against tanks, armoured vehicles and gun emplacements. It can be carried on various types of vehicles, such as jeeps and armoured personnel carriers, or on helicopters. The missile has stubby wings and tail control surfaces that remain folded while in the launcher but open in flight after leaving the breech tube. After launch, the missile follows a boost- coast trajectory with two separate boost periods. "Two separate motors are used to obtain the required missile velocity. One powers the missile while it is still in the launch tube. To ensure safety for the gunner, the missile coasts for a certain period after leaving the mouth of the tube before the second boost action occurs and speeds the missile in coasting flight to the target. An energy sensor produces signals proportional to the azimuth and elevation course deviations from the line-of-sight. Total weight of the launcher and electronic system, including a tripod for use on the ground, is less than 1601b . . ." Troops demonstrate a fullscale model of the TOW missile at the Hughes plant in Culver City, California
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