A NATO Advanced Study Institute (ASI) on the Behavior of Systems in the Space Environment was held at the Atholl Palace Hotel, Pitlochry, Perthshire, Scotland, from July 7 through July 19, 1991. This publication is the Proceedings of the Institute. The NATO Advanced Study Institute Program of the NATO Science Committee is a unique and valuable forum, under whose auspices almost one thousand international tutorial meetings have been held since the inception of the program in 1959. The ASI is intended to be primarily a high-level teaching activity at which a carefully defined subject is presented in a systematic and coherently structured program. The subject is treated in considerable depth by lecturers eminent; in their :(ield and of international standing. The subject is presented to other scientists who either will already have specialized in the field or possess an advanced general background. The ASI is aimed at approximately the post-doctoral level. This ASI emphasized the basic physics of the space environment and the engineering aspects of the environment's interactions with spacecraft.

Inhalt

Overview of the Space Environment.- Near Earth Space, A Historical Perspective.- Overview from a Systems Perspective.- to the Space Environment.- The Sun - Its Role in the Environment of the Near Earth Space.- The Upper Atmosphere and the Ionosphere.- The Near Earth Particulate Environment.- The Magnetosphere and Its Interaction with the Solar Wind and with the Ionosphere.- Cosmic Radiation.- The Interplanetary Environment.- Environmental Interactions with Materials and Components.- Atomic Oxygen and Its Effect on Materials.- Ultraviolet and Vacuum-Ultraviolet Radiation Effects on Spacecraft Thermal Control Materials.- Contaminant-Sensitive Systems in the Solar Radiation Environment.- Hypervelocity Impact Physics - Plasma Discharge Phenomena on Solar Generators.- Methodology for Impact Damage Assessment.- Protection and Shielding.- Physics of Energetic Particle Interactions.- Radiation Damage to Surface and Structure Materials.- Hazards to Electronics in Space.- Plasma Interactions at Low Altitudes.- Potential Threats to the Performance of Vacuum-Insulated High-Voltage Devices in a Space Environment.- Surface Charging of Spacecraft in Geosynchronous Orbit.- Space Environment and EMC/ESD Phenomena.- Internal Charging and Secondary Effects.- Environmental Interactions with Space Systems.- Tether Phenomena Observed in the Oedipus-A Experiment.- Results of Space Experiments: CRRES.- An Overview of the Long Duration Exposure Facility: Case Studies for the Effects of the Space Environment on Spacecraft Systems.- Space Power Experiments Aboard Rockets.- Current Collection by High-Voltage Spacecraft.- The Human System in Space.- The Arcing Rate for a High Voltage Solar Array: Theory and Experiments.- Advanced Space Photovoltaic Technology.- A Brief Overview of Electrodynamic Tethers.- Beyond Mars.- Appendices.- Appendix A: Poster Papers.- Appendix B: Organizing Committee.- Appendix C: Lecturers.- Appendix D: Attendees.