Advances in Space Science and Technology, Volume 11 provides information pertinent to the developments in space science and technology. This book presents the advances in both solar and cosmic X-ray astronomy, all made possible by instruments carried in high altitude balloons, in rockets, and in orbiting satellites. Organized into eight chapters, this volume begins with an overview of solar X-ray phenomena. This text then examines the aspect of manned space flight, with focus on nutrition for astronaut flight crews. Other chapters consider how oxygen may be secured as a result of electrolyzing lunar rocks. This book discusses as well the significance of the Skylab experiments in the context of their disciplines and the part they play in the continuing evolution of space operations. The final chapter deals with the educational satellite, which is one of the most challenging of all practical applications of space technology. This book is a valuable resource for readers who are interested in space science and technology.

Advances in Space Science, Volume 1 brings together research and developments in the astronautical sciences. This volume is composed of six chapters that also cover the field of bioastronautics, which involves the human aspects of space travel. The opening chapter deals with the orbits and interplanetary trajectories and a critical evaluation of interplanetary communications. The next chapters consider the problem of supplying power on board orbital and space vehicles, power being needed for many tasks in space, including the operation of communication systems. The remaining three chapters treat manned space cabin systems, the effects of radiation on man in space, and the nutritional aspects of space flight. This book will be of great value to space scientists, engineers, and researchers.

This volume, The Sun to the Earth-and Beyond: Panel Reports, is a compilation of the reports from five National Research Council (NRC) panels convened as part of a survey in solar and space physics for the period 2003-2013. The NRC's Space Studies Board and its Committee on Solar and Space Physics organized the study. Overall direction for the survey was provided by the Solar and Space Physics Survey Committee, whose report, The Sun to the Earth-and Beyond: A Decadal Research Strategy in Solar and Space Physics, was delivered to the study sponsors in prepublication format in August 2002. The final version of that report was published in June 2003. The panel reports provide both a detailed rationale for the survey committee's recommendations and an expansive view of the numerous opportunities that exist for a robust program of exploration in solar and space physics.

A comprehensive resource on the past, present, and future of space technology Researchers in optics, materials processing, and telecommunications require a reference that can provide a quick study of a number of basic topics in space science. The two-volume Encyclopedia of Space Science and Technology represents an ambitious collection of the underlying physical principles of rockets, satellites, and space stations; what is known by astronomers about the sun, planets, galaxy, and universe; and the effect of the space environment on human and other biological systems. The Encyclopedia covers a variety of fundamental topics, including: A state-of-the-art summary of the engineering involved in launching a rocket or satellite The control systems involved on the ground, in orbit, or in deep space Manufacturing in space from planetary and other resources Physicists, astronomers, engineers, and materials and computer scientists, as well as professionals in the aircraft, telecommunication, satellite, optical, and computer industries and the government agencies, will find the Encyclopedia to be an indispensable resource.

More than four decades have passed since a human first set foot on the Moon. Great strides have been made in our understanding of what is required to support an enduring human presence in space, as evidenced by progressively more advanced orbiting human outposts, culminating in the current International Space Station (ISS). However, of the more than 500 humans who have so far ventured into space, most have gone only as far as near-Earth orbit, and none have traveled beyond the orbit of the Moon. Achieving humans' further progress into the solar system had proved far more difficult than imagined in the heady days of the Apollo missions, but the potential rewards remain substantial. During its more than 50-year history, NASA's success in human space exploration has depended on the agency's ability to effectively address a wide range of biomedical, engineering, physical science, and related obstacles-an achievement made possible by NASA's strong and productive commitments to life and physical sciences research for human space exploration, and by its use of human space exploration infrastructures for scientific discovery. The Committee for the Decadal Survey of Biological and Physical Sciences acknowledges the many achievements of NASA, which are all the more remarkable given budgetary challenges and changing directions within the agency. In the past decade, however, a consequence of those challenges has been a life and physical sciences research program that was dramatically reduced in both scale and scope, with the result that the agency is poorly positioned to take full advantage of the scientific opportunities offered by the now fully equipped and staffed ISS laboratory, or to effectively pursue the scientific research needed to support the development of advanced human exploration capabilities. Although its review has left it deeply concerned about the current state of NASA's life and physical sciences research, the Committee for the Decadal Survey on Biological and Physical Sciences in Space is nevertheless convinced that a focused science and engineering program can achieve successes that will bring the space community, the U.S. public, and policymakers to an understanding that we are ready for the next significant phase of human space exploration. The goal of this report is to lay out steps and develop a forward-looking portfolio of research that will provide the basis for recapturing the excitement and value of human spaceflight-thereby enabling the U.S. space program to deliver on new exploration initiatives that serve the nation, excite the public, and place the United States again at the forefront of space exploration for the global good.

In 2003, NASA began an R&D effort to develop nuclear power and propulsion systems for solar system exploration. This activity, renamed Project Prometheus in 2004, was initiated because of the inherent limitations in photovoltaic and chemical propulsion systems in reaching many solar system objectives. To help determine appropriate missions for a nuclear power and propulsion capability, NASA asked the NRC for an independent assessment of potentially highly meritorious missions that may be enabled if space nuclear systems became operational. This report provides a series of space science objectives and missions that could be so enabled in the period beyond 2015 in the areas of astronomy and astrophysics, solar system exploration, and solar and space physics. It is based on but does not reprioritize the findings of previous NRC decadal surveys in those three areas.