CIVIL AIR PATROL United States Air Force Auxiliary Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama

1. CIVIL AIR PATROL United States Air Force Auxiliary Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama

2. Disclaimer:This presentation is for the exclusive use of the Civil Air Patrol and is not to be used for sale or profit.

3. SPACE ENVIRONMENT Aerospace Dimensions MODULE 5 By Patrick B. Smith, Washington Wing, CAP

4. Chapter 1 - Space After completing of this chapter, you should be able to: • Describe microgravity • Identify characteristics of space • Describe what makes up the universe • Define constellation • Define galaxy • Describe nebulae • Describe a black hole • Describe the Van Allen belts • Define cislunar space

5. Important Terms - Space • black hole - a region in space where no radiation is emitted • cislunar space - the space between the Earth and the Moon • constellation - a grouping of stars, named after mythical figures and animals • galaxy - an enormous collection of stars arranged in a particular shape • interplanetary space - measured from the center of the Sun to the orbit of its outermost planet • interstellar space - the distance from one solar system to another • microgravity - small gravity levels or low gravity

6. Important Terms - Space • nebulae - giant cloud of dust and gas • pulsar - pulsating star that flashes electromagnetic emissions in a set pattern • space - region beyond the Earth’s atmosphere where there is very little molecular activity • star - a body of hot gases • universe - everything is part of the universe; stars, planets, galaxies, animals, plants and humans • Van Allen belts - radiation belts filled with charges

8. SPACE IS A PLACE • Space is part of the universe, just beyond the immediate influence of Earth and its atmosphere • Space is an area where the molecules and atoms are so far apart that they don’t interact. • Generally, space begins 80 to 90 miles from the Earth’s surface • No oxygen, low pressure and -273 ° C (absolute zero)

9. MICROGRAVITY • The prefix ‘micro’ really means one part per million • In order to go into space where the Earth’s gravitational pull is one-millionth of that at the surface, you would have to travel 17 times farther away than the moon • Imagine riding in an elevator to the top of a building. When you get to the top, the cable breaks causing the elevator and you to fall, what would happen?

11. CHARACTERISTICS OF SPACE • Space can be described as cislunar, the area between the Earth and the Moon. • The average distance between the Earth and its Moon is 237,087 miles. • Part of the Earth’s magnetosphere is found in cislunar space. • Cislunar space contains meteoroids, asteroids and comets.

13. CHARACTERISTICS OF SPACE • Interplanetary space is measured from the center of the Sun to the orbit of its outermost planet • This planet, Pluto, has an orbit that extends as far as 4,566,000,000 miles from the Sun. • This portion of space includes the nine known planets and their orbiting satellites

14. MORE ABOUT SPACE • The universe contains many galaxies • We live in just one of many billions of galaxies called the Milky Way • There are 200 billion suns in our galaxy • Scientists speculate that there could be several million other solar systems in our Milky Way Galaxy • Distance between galaxies is measured in light years

15. MORE ABOUT SPACE • A light year is the distance a photon can travel in one of Earth’s calendar years • This amounts to 5 trillion 878 billion statute miles (5,878,000,000,000) • When the number of light years gets very large, parsecs are used; one parsec is 3.26 light years, or 19.2 trillion miles • The universe contains many galaxies

17. Galaxies contain giant clouds called nubulae. Nubulae are made up of gas and dust and contain matter that has not yet formed into stars. Some nubulae are remnants of a supernova, or exploding star.

19. Quasars are extremely luminous interstellar bodies and emits up to 10,000 times the energy of the entire Milky Way galaxy. A pulsar flashes electromagnetic emissions in a set pattern. Who knows, someday we might use pulsars in the same way we use lighthouses as navigational beacons!

20. Stars are bodies of hot gasses. Most stars are composed of hydrogen and helium in their gaseous state. A supernova occurs when a star gives up great mass in one explosion of light and energy.

21. A constellation is a grouping of stars. Early astronomers divided stars into groups and made imaginary figures out of them. There are 88 constellations used by astronomers today.

22. A black hole probably began as a large star that once its nuclear fuel was exhausted, it simply collapsed inward upon itself. The resulting gravitational forced is so strong that light or radiation can’t even escape.

24. SPACE ENVIRONMENT AROUND THE EARTH • The ionosphere gets its name from the gas particles that are ionized or charged • Discovered early in the twentieth century when scientists learned that radio waves when transmitted into the atmosphere were reflected back • Created by powerful ultraviolet radiation from the Sun and the ultra high-frequency cosmic rays from the stars

25. SPACE ENVIRONMENT AROUND THE EARTH • The magnetosphere begins at about 215 miles above the Earth’s surface and extends into interplanetary space • Characterized by its magnetic field of force which surrounds the Earth • This field is strongest at the poles and weakest at the equator • Is effected by solar winds that strike the magnetosphere forming a bow shock wave

27. SPACE ENVIRONMENT AROUND THE EARTH • The Van Allen radiation belt are filled with charges particles • The belts dip toward the Earth’s magnetic poles as the charged particles follow the magnetic lines of force • Heavy concentrations of radiation are found within the belt • This radiation can be damaging to orbiting satellites and spacecraft

28. Dr. James A. Van Allen

29. Chapter 2 - Solar System After completing of this chapter, you should be able to: • Describe our solar system • Define a comet • Explain the differences between an asteroid, meteoroid and a meteor. • Recall the differences between solar flares, solar prominences and sunspots

30. Important Terms - Solar System • solar system - the sun and the bodies that orbit around it • comet - a small icy body orbiting the sun • asteroid - a small rocky body orbiting the sun; usually found in the asteroid belt • meteoroid - clump of dust or rock orbiting the sun • meteor - a small streak of light; when a meteoroid enters the Earth’s atmosphere it becomes a meteor • solar flares - short-lived high energy discharges • solar prominences - larger energy discharges that can be thousands of miles high and last for months • sunspots - darker, cooler areas of the sun

31. FACTS ABOUT OUR SUN • The sun is a star “sol” and provides us with all the energy to sustain life here on Earth • 93 million miles from Earth and is 300,000 times as massive • Composed of 90% hydrogen and 9% helium with temperatures ranging from 4200°C to 15 million°C • The Sun’s outer layer is called the photosphere and is the part that gives off light • Basically a giant thermonuclear reactor

32. Solar disturbances occur all the time sometimes lasting several years at a time. Sunspots are darker, cooler areas of the Sun; this is where solar flares and solar prominences occur.

33. Solar flares are short-lived, high-energy discharges that can harm satellites and even ground equipment here on earth. Solar prominences are larger and longer lasting high-energy discharges that can reach thousands of miles into space and last several months.

34. FACTS ABOUT OUR MOON • The moon’s diameter is 2155 miles (1/4 of Earth’s diameter) • An elliptical orbit which varies from 221,000 to 252,000 miles • The moon rotates on its axis in the same amount of time it takes to orbit the Earth (27 days) • Therefore, the same side of the moon always faces the Earth

35. The moon is a dry and barren place with no atmosphere or water. Temperatures range from 250 °F in the day to -250 °F at night. The moon has two types of terrain, the mountainous highlands and the crater-filled lowlands.

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37. MERCURY It is the closest plant to the sun, 36 million miles. It revolves around the sun in 88 days and its temperature ranges from 800°F to -300°F. It has a rocky, crusty surface with craters. There is no atmosphere except for small amounts of helium and hydrogen

38. VENUS The closest planet to Earth 67 million miles from the sun. It takes 225 days to orbit the sun and its temperature reaches 850°F. It is the only planet to rotate in a clockwise manner. It is covered with clouds of water vapor and sulfuric acid.

39. EARTH The Earth is covered with 67% water. Clouds absorb some of the sun’s radiation. It takes 365 days to orbit the sun and rotates on its axis in 24 hours.

40. MARS Know as the “Red Planet”, the surface is dry and rocky covered with red dust. One day on Mars lasts 24 hours 37 minutes with temperatures ranging from 65°F in the daytime to -130°F at night. A year on mars lasts about 687 Earth days.

41. JUPITER The largest planet in our solar system (about 11 times larger that Earth. Jupiter is a gas giant with an atmosphere composed of 90% hydrogen gas. The most prominent feature is the giant red spot that is 30,000 miles long and 10,000 miles wide.

42. SATURN Taking just 29 years to rotate around the sun, Saturn rotates every 10 hours thus creating strong winds that have reached 1,100 miles per hour! The rings of Saturn are 1 mile thick and extend 250,000 from the planet. Temperatures range from 130°F to -330°F

43. URANUS Only 1.7 billion miles from our sun, this planet has a rocky core surrounded by water, ammonia and methane in both ice and liquid form. Uranus is tilted 60°on its axis, daylight lasts 42 years followed by 42 years of night. and takes 84 years to revolve around the Sun. Temperature -340°F

44. NEPTUNE 3 billion miles from the sun taking 165 Earth years to complete an orbit. A day on this planet lasts 19 hours. Record winds of 1,500 MPH have been recorded. The Great Dark Spot is about the size of Earth. Methane gives this world a bluish color.

45. PLUTO The smallest of all the planets but also the furthest at 4 billion miles. It has one moon, Charon that is half the size of Pluto making it hard to detect. Its strange orbit actually takes it within Neptune’s orbit.

46. OTHER BODIES • Asteroids are chunks of rock that range in size from dust particles to a few hundred miles across • Comets are giant dirty snowballs composed of frozen gases and icy lumps • Meteoroids are tiny particles of dust and sand. Entering the Earth’s atmosphere, they are called meteors. It if actually hits the surface, it is called a meteorite

47. OTHER BODIES The asteroid “Gaspra”

48. OTHER BODIES

49. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS?