METEOR COLLECTOR

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30286, 12 November 1963, Page 24

METEOR COLLECTOR

Meteoroid bombardment has long been recognised as one of the hazards of spaceflight and until now there has been a lack of reliable information as to the best way of designing spacecraft which adequately protect the crew. The Explorer 16 satellite launched last December has taken most of the guesswork out of the problem. During seven and a half months of excellent performance this satellite recorded the impact of more than 15,000 tiny meteoroids and. in the words of Dr. Raymond Bisplinghoff. director of N.A.S.A.’s Office of Advanced Research and Technology. “ ... it yielded the first statistically significant data on the penetration of meteoroids.” The penetration was measured by having a large number of thin, metal foils covering various types of impact detectors. It was found that only those metal foils less than five-thousandths of an inch were penetrated. This result suggests that the penetration hazard is less than everyone has expected and that the occupants of spacecraft and space stations have little to fear from meteoroid bombardment because the walls of these vehicles are hardlv likely to be less than ten-thousandths of an inch thick.

Of course there is always the chance of a hit by a large meteoroid. However, it is possible, by a simple calculation from data alreadyknown, to show that the chances of major damage are remotely small for anything but a gigantic space vehicle.