NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

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Experiment/Payload Overview

Brief Summary

Ram Burn Observations - 2 (RAMBO-2) is an experiment in which the Department of Defense uses a satellite to observe space shuttle orbital maneuvering system engine burns. Its purpose is to improve plume models, which predict the direction the plume, or rising column of exhaust, will move as the shuttle maneuvers on orbit. Understanding the direction in which the spacecraft engine plume, or exhaust flows could be significant to the safe arrival and departure of spacecraft on current and future exploration missions.

Principal Investigator

William L. Dimpfl, Ph.D., Aerospace Corporation, Los Angeles, CA, United States

Co-Investigator(s)/Collaborator(s)

Information Pending

Payload Developer

Johnson Space Center, United States Department of Defense Space Test Program, Houston, TX, United States

Sponsoring Space Agency

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Sponsoring Organization:

National Laboratory Office - Department of Defense (NLO - DoD)

ISS Expedition Duration:

September 2010 - September 2011

Expeditions Assigned

25/26, 27/28

Previous ISS Missions

RAMBO, the predecessor to RAMBO-2 has been performed on several Space Shuttle missions.

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Experiment/Payload Description

Research Summary

• Department of Defense (DoD) optical sensors, located on a DoD satellite, make observations of timing and spectral pattern of radiance produced by the plumes from normal Space Shuttle engine firings as well as from dedicated burns of the Space Shuttle Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) engines.

Description

Information Pending

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Applications

Space Applications

Information Pending

Earth Applications

While interactions at hyperthermal energies are relatively rare on the surface of the earth there are potential applications relevant to the cutting edge of technology, including the understanding of high temperature plasmas and the production and derivation of energy from controlled fusion power sources.

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Operations

Operational Requirements

Information Pending

Operational Protocols

Information Pending

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Results/More Information

Information Pending

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Related Web Sites

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Publications

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Ground Based Results Publications

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ISS Patent Publications

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Related Publications

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Images

NASA Image: STS007-18-0778 - This image shows the Glow experiment documentation of OMS/RCS pods and vertical stabilizer from STS-007.

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