Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site ssc-vax.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxj!houxm!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!ssc-vax!eder From: eder@ssc-vax.UUCP (Dani Eder) Newsgroups: net.movies,net.sf-lovers Subject: Re: 2010 review review Message-ID: <262@ssc-vax.UUCP> Date: Tue, 11-Dec-84 20:19:48 EST Article-I.D.: ssc-vax.262 Posted: Tue Dec 11 20:19:48 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 13-Dec-84 00:55:16 EST References: <263@umd5.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: Boeing Aerospace Co., Seattle, WA Lines: 52 Xref: watmath net.movies:5188 net.sf-lovers:5366 > Much of the science of "2010" is questionable in the face of what we > knew, know and are learning. A new star appears in the solar system and > the earth escapes without a tremor. The Leonov embarks without enough > fuel to either return or slow down. They do "air braking" (without air) > to slow Leonov as she whips around the planet and into a new orbit. > How's that for science friction. > > missed. The Leonov doesn't depart without enough fuel. The early departure > from Jupiter is makes the kludge with Discovery necessary. And "air braking" > is not science fiction made up for the movie, it was even featured on the > cover of Popular Science a year or so ago. > First of all, the term is 'aerobraking'. Yes it is possible (we are studying it here at Boeing. In fact, Dr. Dana Andrews, who does aero- propulsion design, has a patent on the concept and was a technical consultant for 2010.) No, it was not accurately portrayed in the film. A one-half orbit around Jupiter at cloud top level takes 88.6 minutes. In the film it is portrayed as taking 1-2 minutes. The aerobrake trail would be too small to see on the scale of Jupiter as a whole. Credit goes to the filmmakers for getting a reasonable design for the aerobrake, a multiple-ballute type. They got the color right, it would be dark so as to radiate the absorbed heat flux. You would probably jettison them as in the film. While on the subject of technical mistakes, the Discovery is found rotating endwise. Initially, the carousel stopping would leave it spinning around its' long axis. This is unstable and would decay into the end-for-end rotation. But, when you spin up the carousel again, it wouldn't stop rotating end-for-end, it would be a combination motion. The spinning Discovery would also be pulling about 5 g's at the command center. The apparent motion of the clouds on Jupiter works out to more than escape velocity (good stiff breeze). Your hair floats in zero- gravity (see any shuttle tapes). They probably knew about this one but passed because of cost. They did know that stars are not visible in space when the sun or a planet is out, but felt the audience would accept it better with stars. When they are escaping from Jupiter, it implodes just as they burn out the Leonov's engines. Surface escape from Jupiter is 67 kilometers/second (151,000 mph) in the few minutes since they started to escape, their distance would have changed insignificantly. If Jupiter is as bright at Europa as the Sun is at Earth, then Jupiter as seen from the Earth would be as bright as a first-quarter moon. In the daytime you would have a hard time finding it. Dani Eder / Boeing Aerospace Company / ssc-vax!eder / (206)773-4545 p.s. The aerobrake flight demonstration is scheduled (Congress willing) for 1988. It won't be 'untried'.