by Mark E. Connelly. / Bibliography: p. 21. / "April, 1981." / Air Force Office of Scientific Research Contract AFOSR 80-0229

Master of Science

On 4 October 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite, and the Space Age had arrived. While not an American achievement, Sputnik stands as a significant juncture in United States history. This thesis explores the resulting American political crisis, its development in the final three months of 1957, and the impact Sputnik had on American life. The thesis also examines the social and political context of the Sputnik crisis and will challenge some long-standing analysis of how America's reaction to the Soviet satellite developed. To accomplish this task, it was necessary to consult both primary and secondary sources. Important primary sources include government documents from both the Legislative and Executive Branches of the United States Government, attained from both printed volumes and online archives. The memoirs of key individuals also shed light on the mindset of prominent politicians and policymakers of the period. Newspapers and magazines from the era were examined to explore the media and public reaction to the Sputnik Crisis and related events. Secondary sources are used as both avenues of information and theory regarding the events, and also for the purposes of examining the consensus of others who have explored this topic. The topics covered in the thesis include the flow of events before, during, and after the Sputnik Crisis of 1957; analysis of contextual issues such as missile and satellite development and American culture of the period; and analysis of how the Sputnik Crisis unfolded and how this impacted American culture and national policy.

This report describes the study of a new approach to resolve pulse radar range bin ambiguity problem. The nature and the cause of the problem are discussed, and various methods presently used to solve this problem are presented. The report points out the disadvantages of these methods and, thus, introduces a new approach to resolve the radar range bin ambiguity problem by examining the reasonableness of the trajectory of the object being traced. Necessary algorithm and computer programs to support the study are given in Appendices I, II, and III.

No description available.

An investigation of the flow field during eject of a cruise missile from the launch tube was undertaken using a "cold" flow simulation. A facility was developed whereby various design changes in the missile ejection apparatus, denoted the vertical support assembly, could be quickly and easily assessed in terms of the relative effects on the flow field. Flow visualization techniques using fluorescent dye allowed for documentation of flow patterns in the baseline configuration, such as backflow, jetting, and recirculation regions, as well as for the location of several potential hot spots. The mixing of the fuel-rich gas generator effulent and the air in the launch tube was assessed by thermocouple measurements; warm water was used to simulate the exhaust while ambient water represented the air initially contained in the launch tube. The results have shown that air is inefficiently mixed in large portions of the vertical support assembly volume. However, strong flameholding zones are established in the region vacated by the accelerating missile, where it is believed that secondary combustion could occur. The flow field characterization has shown that considerable improvements to system performance should be possible through geometrical changes to promote more efficient mixing. / M.S.

Advances in strategic missile systems are needed to provide a capability to attack targets that are hardened and, perhaps defended. In this study a point-mass simulation employing an advanced guidance law is examined for its accuracy and evasive capabilities. A nonlinear programming (NLP} formulation is used to pose a problem of optimal evasive-maneuvering. The resulting NLP problem is solved numerically by an advanced gradient-projection algorithm. / M. S.

Currently, many missile fire control systems use a three degree of freedom (3-DOF) trajectory model. The three degrees of freedom represent the linear motion of the missile in three dimensions. A 6-DOF model adds roll, pitch, and yaw, or angular motion in three dimensions to the first three degrees of freedom. Because more of the missile’s attributes are modeled, a 6-DOF model is more accurate than a 3-DOF model. For the same reason, a 3-DOF model is easier to develop and executes faster. Also, because a 3-DOF model ignores the seemingly random angular motion, the step sizes used to integrate 3-DOF models are larger. The goal of this project is to develop a 6-DOF re-entry model with the accuracy of a 6-DOF model with conventional equations of motion and computational speed at least comparable to the 3-DOF model. This can be achieved by transforming the equations that compute the effects of angular motion so that they are better conditioned. Essentially, this is done by fitting a sine wave to the oscillating state variables representing the orientation and angular rates, namely the quaternions and the angular velocity. This thesis shows the results of transforming the oscillating variables of the state vector. / Master of Science

A reduced order model describing the energy and heading angle dynamics of a scramjet missile is developed using a singular perturbation technique. The cruise analysis is briefly reviewed to determine the conditions at which the missile will cruise most efficiently. The turn and climb performance of the missile over the conditions of interest is then examined and a family of extremal trajectories is constructed which asymptotically approach the cruise at an intermediate altitude. / Master of Science

A nonlinear programming technique is applied to the optimization of the thrust and lift control histories for missiles. The first problem considered is that of determining the thrust history which maximizes the range of a continuously-variable (non-pulsed) thrust rocket in horizontal lifting flight. The optimal control solution for this problem is developed. The problem is then approximated by a parameter optimization problem which is solved using a second-order, quasi-Newton method with constraint projection. The two solutions are found to compare well. This result allows confidence in the use of the nonlinear-programming technique to solve optimization problems in flight mechanics for which no analytical optimal-control solutions exist. Such a problem is to determine the thrust and lift histories which maximize the final velocity of a multiple-pulse missile. This problem is solved for both horizontal- and elevation-plane trajectories with and without final time constraints. The method is found to perform well in the solution of these optimization problems and to yield substantial improvements in performance over the nominal trajectories. / M.S.