BAE Systems RAD750 Microprocessor To Help NASA Study Comet

TECH SPACE

This Jan. 13 photograph was taken by Mt Palomar's 200-inch telescope as the Deep Impact spacecraft was at a distance of about 260,000 kilometers from Earth and moving at a speed of about 16,000 kilometers per hour. The high speed of the spacecraft causes it to appear as a long streak across the sky in the constellation Virgo during the 10-minute exposure time of the image. The spacecraft will travel to comet Tempel 1 and release an impactor, creating a crater on the surface of the comet. Scientists believe the exposed materials may give clues to the formation of our solar system.

Manassas VA (SPX) Jan 19, 2005
BAE Systems' radiation-hardened microprocessors have begun a six-month, 83-million mile journey on NASA's Deep Impact mission to study the nucleus of comet Tempel 1. The mission was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral on Jan. 12.

Deep Impact will be the first space mission to make contact with a comet's surface. In July 2005, the spacecraft will launch an 820 lb. probe into the nucleus of comet Tempel 1 to reveal what is underneath its icy surface.

BAE Systems RAD750 microprocessors, manufactured at its Manassas, Va., facility, will process and help return the data of the probe's collision to scientists on Earth. The three RAD750 computers will also help navigate the satellite to the comet and maintain precise position while the advanced telescopes on-board record the event.

"This mission will increase scientists understanding of comets," said Cesare Caprio, space technology manager for BAE Systems at Manassas. "Our RAD750 computers are critical to provide this data back to Earth and provide scientists the first-ever look at the nucleus of a comet."

BAE Systems has a 20-year history of providing radiation-hardened solutions for U.S. space programs. Its RAD6000 computers were installed on each of the still-broadcasting Mars Rovers - the only control and data computers aboard the two Rovers - to execute flight, landing and exploration operations on Mars. The RAD750 represents the next-generation of space microprocessors.

BAE Systems is an international company engaged in the development, delivery and support of advanced defense and aerospace systems in the air, on land, at sea and in space. BAE Systems' Information & Electronic Systems Integration Sector (IESI) is a leader in situational awareness, electronic attack and defensive systems solutions for the U.S. battle space market.

SPACE MEDICINE

Blinding Flashes Leave Astronaut's Eyes Damaged

Huntsville AL (SPX) Oct 25, 2004
Gazing out of their space capsules, Apollo astronauts witnessed sights that humans had never before seen. They saw the breathtaking view of the Earth's bright blue disc against the inky black of space. They saw the far side of the Moon. They also saw strange flashes of light inside their eyeballs!

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