Exam #2

Question 1

What is the surface temperature of the sun?

Answer 1

5778K

Question 2

What is the average distance of the earth from the sun?

Answer 2

150,000,000 km

Question 3

What is the most dense region of the lonosphere?

Answer 3

F-2

Question 4

What is the average solar flux at 1AU?

Answer 4

1350 W/m^2

Question 5

What is the average solar cycle

Answer 5

11 years

Question 6

What is the radius of Earth?

Answer 6

6378 km

Question 7

What are the Van Allen belts?

Answer 7

an area within the earths magnetosphere containing concentrations of trapped charged particles

Question 8

List three types of electrical power sources.

Answer 8

1. chemical
2. solar
3. nuclear

Question 9

What is the ideal rocket equation?

Answer 9

∆V = Ispgoln(initial mass/ final mass)

Question 10

What is solar wind?

Answer 10

a continuous outflow of charged particles emanating from the solar surface at 300-700 km/s

Question 11

What is a coronal mass ejection?

Answer 11

a discrete event in which large amounts of charged particles erupt from the solar surface

Question 12

Fill factor

Answer 12

% of max theoretical power achievable by the solar panel

Question 13

inherent degredation

Answer 13

exists when solar cells are first installed

combined assembly, fill factor and shadowing effects

Question 14

EIRP

Answer 14

term for PtGt (with no line losses included)

Question 15

Packing factor

Answer 15

% of total solar panel area that is useful for producing power

Question 16

Stefan-Boltzman law

Answer 16

can be used to determine the power / area gien off by an object

Question 17

Max earth central angle

Answer 17

angle determine by cos

Question 18

Earth angular radius

Answer 18

angle determined by sin

Question 19

Signal to noise ratio

Answer 19

a term for an equation, a very big complicated equation.

Question 20

Wein’s displacement law

Answer 20

can be sued to determine the peak radiation wavelength on an object

Question 21

Total dose effects

Answer 21

long term damage to the crystal structure of semiconductors cause by charged particles

Question 22

life degradation

Answer 22

solar cell performance decrease per year caused primarily by the space radiation environment

Question 23

Sputtering

Answer 23

similar to sand blasting but on the spacecraft by space particles