This page aims to list all articles related to the specific discipline of aerospace engineering. For a broad overview of engineering, see List of engineering topics. For biographies, see List of engineers. Aerospace engineering is the branch of engineering that concerns aircraft, spacecraft and related topics. ... This page aims to list all topics related to the broad field of engineering. ... For a list of engineers see: List of aerospace engineers List of chemical engineers List of civil engineers List of electrical engineers List of industrial engineers List of materials engineers List of mechanical engineers List of inventors List of architects List of urban planners List of scientists List of heroic...

Contents: Top - 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A

Ablation cascade -- Ablative laser propulsion — Absolute value — Acceleration — Action — Advanced Space Vision System — Aeroacoustics — Aerobrake — Aerobraking — Aerocapture — Aerodynamics — Aeroelasticity — Aeronautical abbreviations — Aeronautics — Aerospace engineering — Aerospike engine — Aerostat — Aft-crossing trajectory -- Aileron — Air-augmented rocket — Aircraft — Aircraft flight control systems — Aircraft flight mechanics — Airlock — Airship — Alcubierre drive — Angle of attack — Angular momentum — Angular velocity — Antimatter rocket — Apsis — Arcjet rocket — Areal velocity — ARP4761 — Astrodynamics — Atmospheric reentry — Attitude control — Avionics — Ablation cascade is a term used for a possible catastrophic orbital event. ... Ablative Laser Propulsion or ALP is a form of beam-powered propulsion in which an external laser is used to burn off a plasma plume from a solid metal propellent, thus producing thrust. ... In mathematics, the absolute value (or modulus1) of a real number is its numerical value without regard to its sign. ... Acceleration is the time rate of change of velocity, and at any point on a v-t graph, it is given by the slope of the tangent to that point In physics or physical science, acceleration (symbol: a) is defined as the rate of change (or derivative with respect to... In physics, the action principle is an assertion about the nature of motion, from which the trajectory of an object subject to forces can be determined. ... The Advanced Space Vision System (also known as the Space Vision System or by its acronym SVS) is a laser based computer generated three dimensional vision system used to manipulate any object within or without the Space Shuttle bay using the Canadarm or assemble International Space Station (ISS) components and... Aeroacoustics is a branch of acoustics that deals with the study of aerodynamic sound. ... Aerobraking is an advanced interplanetary space navigation technique, whereby the velocity vector of a space vehicle is modified by interaction with a target bodys atmosphere. ... An artists conception of a spacecraft aerobraking Aerobraking is a technique used by spacecraft in which it uses drag within a planetary atmosphere to reduce its velocity relative to the planet. ... Aerocapture is a technique used to reduce velocity of a spacecraft, arriving at a celestial body with an hyperbolic trajectory, in order to bring it in an orbit with an eccentricity less or equal to 1. ... This article is about the branch of Physics. ... Aeroelasticity is the science which studies the interaction among inertial, elastic and aerodynamic forces. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Aerospace engineering is the branch of engineering that concerns aircraft, spacecraft and related topics. ... RS-2200 linear aerospike engine for the X-33 program being tested. ... Uncrewed aerostats can carry instruments and sensors for long durations that are impractical for humans and other aircraft. ... In 2005, a new trajectory that an air-launched rocket could take to put satellites into orbit was tested. ... Aileron location on a Piper PA-28. ... Air-augmented rockets (also known as rocket-ejector, integral rocket ramjet, ramrocket, ducted rocket or ejector ramjets) use air collected during flight to use as additional working mass, leading to greater effective thrust for any given amount of fuel. ... Airbus A380 An aircraft is any machine capable of atmospheric flight. ... A flight control system consists of the flight control surfaces, the respective cockpit controls, connecting linkage, and necessary operating mechanisms to control aircraft in flight. ... An Aeroplane (Airplane in US usage), is defined as: a power-driven heavier than air Aircraft, deriving its lift chiefly from aerodynamic reactions on surface which remain fixed under given conditions of flight. ... An airlock is a device which permits the passage of objects, people, and the like, between a pressure vessel and its surrounding space while minimizing the change of pressure—and loss of air—in the vessel. ... USS Akron (ZRS-4) in flight, November 2, 1931 An airship is a buoyant aircraft that can be steered and propelled through the air. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Alcubierre metric. ... In this diagram, the black arrow represents the direction of the wind. ... Gyroscope. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... An antimatter rocket is a proposed type of rocket that uses antimatter as its power source. ... A diagram of Keplerian orbital elements. ... Arcjets are a form of electric propulsion, whereby an electrical discharge (arc) is created in a flow of propellant (typically hydrazine or ammonia). ... Areal velocity is the rate at which area is swept by the position vector of a point which moves along a curve. ... ARP4761, Guidelines and Methods for Conducting the Safety Assessment Process on Civil Airborne Systems and Equipment is a standard from SAE. See also ARP4754 DO-254 DO-178B Safety engineering avionics Category: ... Astrodynamics is the study of the motion of rockets, missiles, and space vehicles, as determined from Sir Isaac Newtons laws of motion and his law of universal gravitation. ... Atmospheric reentry is the process by which vehicles that are outside the atmosphere of a planet can enter that atmosphere and reach the planetary surface intact. ... In the context of spacecraft, attitude control is control of the angular position and rotation of the spacecraft, either relative to the object that it is orbiting, or relative to the celestial sphere. ... The onboard electronics used for piloting an aircraft are called avionics (AVI-ation electr-ONICS). ...

B

Balloon — Ballute — Beam-powered propulsion — Bernoulli's equation — Bi-elliptic transfer — Big dumb booster — Bipropellant rocket — Booster rocket — Breakthrough Propulsion Physics Program — Buoyancy — Bussard ramjet — Balloons are a type of lighter than air aircraft that remain aloft due to their buoyancy. ... A ballute (a compound word combining balloon and parachute) is a device that has been proposed for use in spacecraft aerobraking. ... Beam-powered propulsion is a class of spacecraft propulsion mechanisms that use energy beamed to the spacecraft from a remote power plant. ... In fluid dynamics, Bernoullis equation, derived by Daniel Bernoulli, describes the behavior of a fluid moving along a streamline. ... In astronautics and aerospace engineering, the Bi-elliptic transfer is an orbital maneuver that moves a spacecraft from one orbit to another and may, in certain situations require less delta-v than a Hohmann transfer. ... Big Dumb Boosters (BDB) are a general class of launch vehicle built around the idea that it is cheaper to build and operate a large, strong, heavy rocket of simple design than it is to build a smaller, lighter, more cleverly-designed one. ... F-1 rocket engine (The kind used by the Saturn V.) A bipropellant rocket engine is a rocket engine that uses two fluid propellants stored in separate tanks that are injected into, and undergo a strong exothermic reaction, in a rockets combustion chamber. ... A booster in space-related applications is usually a solid rocket booster: a solid fuel rocket of which two or more are attached to the main rocket to provide the main thrust in the initial phase of the rockets flight. ... The Breakthrough Propulsion Physics Program (BPP) is a research program which was funded from 1996 through 2002 by NASA, in the hope of studying various proposals for revolutionary methods of spacecraft propulsion which would require breakthroughs in physics before they could be realized, hence the name. ... In physics, buoyancy is an upward force on an object immersed in a fluid (i. ... Bussard ramjet The Bussard ramjet method of spacecraft propulsion was proposed in 1960 by the physicist Robert W. Bussard and popularized by Carl Sagan in the television series and subsequent book Cosmos as a variant of a fusion rocket capable of fast interstellar spaceflight. ...

C

Canard — Centennial challenges — Center of gravity — Center of mass — Center of pressure — Collimated light — Compressibility — Computational fluid dynamics — Computing — Control engineering — Conservation of momentum — Crew Exploration Vehicle — Critical mach — In aeronautics, canard (French for duck) is a type of fixed-wing aircraft in which the tailplane is ahead of the main lifting surfaces, rather than behind them as in conventional aircraft. ... The Centennial Challenges are NASA inducement prize contests for non-government-funded technological achievements by American teams. ... This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Center of gravity. ... The Center of Pressure (or CoP) is the point on a body where the sum of the total pressure acts. ... Collimated light is light whose rays are parallel. ... Fluid Dynamics Compressibility (physics) is a measure of the relative volume change of fluid or solid as a response to a pressure (or mean stress) change: . For a gas the magnitude of the compressibility depends strongly on whether the process is adiabatic or isothermal, while this difference is small in... Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is the use of computers to analyze problems in fluid dynamics. ... Originally, the word computing was synonymous with counting and calculating, and a science that deals with the original sense of computing mathematical calculations. ... Control engineering is the engineering discipline that focuses on the mathematical modelling systems of a diverse nature, analysing their dynamic behaviour, and using control theory to make a controller that will cause the systems to behave in a desired manner. ... In physics, a conservation law states that a particular measurable property of an isolated physical system does not change as the system evolves. ... CEV with lunar lander CEV during a landing on earth CEV rocket, the Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV) (right) along side the heavy-lift Cargo Launch Vehicle (CaLV) rocket. ... Critical mach is a aeronautics term that refers to the speed at which some of the airflow on a wing becomes supersonic. ...

D

De Laval nozzle -- Deflection — Delta-v — Delta-v budget — Density — Derivative — Displacement (vector) — DO-178B — DO-254 — Drag (physics) — Drag coefficient — Drag equation — Dual mode propulsion rocket — Diagram of a de Laval nozzle, showing approximate flow velocity increasing from green to red A de Laval nozzle (or convergent-divergent nozzle, CD nozzle or con-di nozzle) is a tube that is pinched in the middle, making an hourglass-shape. ... [[ Deflection happens when an object hits a plane surface In physics In physics deflection is the event where an object collides and bounces against a plane surface. ... General In general physics delta-v is simply the change in velocity. ... Delta-v budget (or velocity change budget) is a term used in astrodynamics and aerospace industry for velocity change (or delta-v) requirements for the various propulsive tasks and orbital maneuvers over phases of the space mission. ... Density (symbol: ρ - Greek: rho) is a measure of mass per unit of volume. ... In mathematics, the derivative is defined as the instantaneous rate of change of a function. ... In Newtonian mechanics, displacement is one of two subtly different quantities measuring distance and direction. ... Avionics software is embedded software with legally-mandated safety and reliability concerns, that is used in avionics. ... // Outline of contents Introduction System Aspects of Hardware Design Assurance Hardware Design Life Cycle Planning Process Validation and Verification Processes CM Process Process (Quality) Assurance Certification Liaison Hardware Design Life Cycle Data Additional Considerations App A. Modulation of Data Based on Level App B. Design Assurance for Levels A and... An object falling through a gas or liquid experiences a force in direction opposite to its motion. ... The drag coefficient (Cd or Cx) is a number that describes a characteristic amount of aerodynamic drag caused by fluid flow, used in the drag equation. ... In physics, the drag equation gives the drag experienced by an object moving through a fluid. ... Dual mode propulsion systems combine the high efficiency of bipropellant rockets with the reliability and simplicity of monopropellant rockets. ...

E

Earth's atmosphere — Electrostatic ion thruster — Elliptic partial differential equation — Energy — Engineering — Enstrophy — Equation of motion — Euler angles — European Space Agency — Expander cycle (rocket) — Expanding nozzle — Expendable launch system — Layers of Atmosphere (NOAA) Air redirects here. ... The electrostatic ion thruster is a kind of design for ion thrusters (a kind of highly-efficient low-thrust spacecraft propulsion running on electrical power). ... In mathematics, an Elliptic operator is a major type of differential operator P defined on spaces of complex-valued functions, or some more general function-like objects, such that the coefficients of the highest-order derivatives satisfy a positivity condition. ... Engineering is the application of scientific and technical knowledge to solve human problems. ... In fluid dynamics, the enstrophy can be described as the integral of the square of the vorticity given a velocity field as, Here, since the curl gives a vector field in 2-dimensions (vortex) corresponding to the vector valued velocity component in the Navier-Stokes equations, we can integrate its... In physics, equations of motion are equations that describe the behavior of a system (e. ... Euler angles are the classical way of representing rotations in 3-dimensional Euclidean space, named after Leonhard Euler. ... The European Space Agency (ESA), established in 1975, is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 17 member states. ... Expander rocket engine (closed cycle). ... The expanding nozzle is a type of rocket nozzle that, unlike traditional designs, maintains its efficiency at a wide range of altitudes. ... An expendable launch system is a single-use launch vehicle usually used to launch a payload into space. ...

F

Field Emission Electric Propulsion — Fixed-wing aircraft — Flight controls — Flight dynamics — Fluid — Fluid dynamics — Fluid mechanics — Fluid statics — Force — Freefall — Field Emission Electric Propulsion (FEEP) is an advanced electrostatic propulsion concept, a form of ion thruster, that uses liquid metal (usually either caesium or indium) as a propellant. ... An Air France Boeing 777, a modern passenger jet. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Aircraft flight mechanics. ... Flight dynamics is the study of orientation of air and space vehicles and how to control the critical flight parameters, typically named pitch, roll and yaw. ... A subset of the phases of matter, fluids include liquids, gases, plasmas and, to some extent, plastic solids. ... Fluid dynamics is the subdiscipline of fluid mechanics that studies fluids (liquids and gases) in motion. ... The hydrogeology is study about of water-bearing formation. ... Fluid statics (also called hydrostatics) is the science of fluids at rest, and is a sub-field within fluid mechanics. ... In physics, a force is anything that causes a free body with mass to accelerate. ... Freefall or free fall in the strict sense is the condition of acceleration which is due only to gravity. ...

G

Gas-generator cycle (rocket) — Geostationary orbit — Geosynchronous orbit— Glide ratio — Gravitational constant — Gravitational slingshot — Gravity — Gas generator rocket cycle. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with geosynchronous orbit. ... A geosynchronous orbit is a geocentric orbit that has the same orbital period as the sidereal rotation period of the Earth. ... Glide ratio is an aviation term that refers to the distance an aircraft will move forward for any given amount of lost altitude (the cotangent of the downward angle). ... According to the law of universal gravitation, the attractive force between two bodies is proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. ... It has been suggested that sling effect be merged into this article or section. ... Gravity is a force of attraction that acts between bodies that have mass. ...

H

Hall effect thruster — Heat shield — Helicopter — Hohmann transfer orbit — Hybrid rocket — Hydrodynamics — Hydrostatics — Hyperbolic partial differential equation — Hypersonic — 2 kW Laboratory Hall Thruster in operation at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory A Hall effect thruster is a type of ion thruster in which the propellant is accelerated by an electric field in a plasma discharge with a radial magnetic field. ... In aeronautics, a heat shield is a protective layer on a spacecraft or ballistic missile that is designed to protect it from high temperatures, usually those that result from aerobraking during entry into a planets atmosphere. ... The Bell 206 of Canadian Helicopters Robinson Helicopter Company (USA) R44, a four seat development of the R22 A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors. ... In astronautics and aerospace engineering, the Hohmann transfer orbit is an orbital maneuver that moves a spacecraft from one orbit to another using the lowest possible delta-v for the specific transfer. ... A hybrid rocket propulsion system is a rocket engine composed of a solid propellant lining a combustion chamber into which a liquid or gaseous propellant is injected so as to undergo a strong exothermic reaction to produce hot gas that is emitted through a De Laval nozzle for propulsive purposes. ... Hydrodynamics is fluid dynamics applied to liquids, such as water, alcohol, oil, and blood. ... Hydrostatics, also known as fluid statics, is the study of fluids at rest. ... A hyperbolic partial differential equation is usually a second-order partial differential equation of the form with . ... In aerodynamics, hypersonic speeds are speeds that are highly supersonic. ...

I

Impulse — Integral — Internal combustion — Interplanetary Transport Network — Interplanetary travel — Interstellar travel — Ion thruster — In classical mechanics, the impulse of a force is the product of the force and the time during which it acts. ... In calculus, the integral of a function is a generalization of area, mass, volume and total. ... An internal combustion engine is an engine that is powered by the expansion of hot combustion products of fuel directly acting within an engine. ... Artists concept of the Interplanetary Transport Network. ... By definition, interplanetary travel is travel between bodies in a given star system. ... Interstellar space travel is unmanned or manned travel between stars, though the term usually denotes the latter. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

J

Jet engine — A Pratt and Whitney turbofan engine for the F-15 Eagle is tested at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, USA. The tunnel behind the engine muffles noise and allows exhaust to escape. ...

K

Kepler's laws of planetary motion — Kinetic energy — Kestrel rocket engine — Johannes Keplers primary contributions to astronomy/astrophysics were his three laws of planetary motion. ... Kinetic jkljfkdffmdklcjenergy (SI unit: the [[klof its motion. ... The Kestrel engine is an upper stage RP-1 kerosene/liquid oxygen pressure-fed rocket engine. ...

L

Landing - Landing gear - Lagrangian — Lagrangian point — Laser broom — Laser Camera System — Latus rectum — Launch window — Law of universal gravitation — Lift — Lift coefficient - Lightcraft — Lighter than air — Liquid air cycle engine — Liquid fuels — Liquid rocket propellants — Lithobraking — Loiter - Low Earth orbit — Lunar space elevator — Landing is the last part of a flight, where a flying animal or aircraft returns to the ground. ... Main and nosewheel undercarriage of a Qatar Airways Airbus A330 The undercarriage or landing gear is equipment which supports an aircraft when it is not flying. ... A Lagrangian of a dynamical system, named after Joseph Louis Lagrange, is a function of the dynamical variables and concisely describes the equations of motion of the system. ... A contour plot of the effective potential of a two-body system (the Sun and Earth here), showing the 5 Lagrange points. ... A laser broom is a proposed ground-based laser beam-powered propulsion system whose purpose is to sweep space debris out of the path of the International Space Station. ... The Neptec Laser Camera System The Laser Camera System (LCS) is an instrumentation device developed by Neptec, a Canadian firm, to image in 3D NASAs Space Shuttles while in orbit. ... In a conic section, the latus rectum is the chord parallel to the directrix through the focus. ... Launch window is a term used in aerospace to describe a time period in which a particular rocket must be launched. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Gravity. ... Lift consists of the sum of all the fluid dynamic forces on a body perpendicular to the direction of the external flow approaching that body. ... The lift coefficient (CL) is a number associated with a particular shape of an airfoil, and is incorporated in the lift equation to predict the lift force generated by a wing using this particular cross section. ... A lightcraft is a vehicle currently under development by NASA that uses an external source of laser or maser energy to provide power for producing thrust (beam-powered propulsion). ... The expression lighter than air refers to objects, usually aircraft, that are buoyant in air because they have an average density that is less than that of air (usually because they contain gases that have a density that is lower than that of air). ... A liquid air cycle engine (LACE) is a spacecraft propulsion engine that attempts to gain efficiency by gathering part of its oxidizer from the atmosphere. ... Liquid fuels are those combustible or energy-generating molecules which can be harnessed to create mechanical energy, usually producing kinetic energy, and which also must take the shape of their container. ... The highest specific impulse chemical rockets use liquid propellants. ... Lithobraking is the a technique of descent by an unmanned space vehicle to the surface of a terrestrial body by which the vehicle is slowed by the use of friction with the bodys surface. ... In aeronautics and aviation, Loiter is a phase of flight. ... A low Earth orbit (LEO) is an orbit in which objects such as satellites are below intermediate circular orbit (ICO) and far below geostationary orbit, but typically around 350 - 1400 km above the Earths surface. ... The lunar space elevator (also called a moonstalk) is an analog to the better known space elevator idea (a cable suspended above the Earth, with its center of gravity in geostationary orbit). ...

M

Mach number — Magnetic sail — Magnetoplasmadynamic thruster — Mass — Mass driver — Mechanics of fluids — Membrane mirror - Metre per second — Mini-magnetospheric plasma propulsion — Moment of inertia — Momentum — Momentum wheel — Monopropellant rocket — Motion — Multistage rocket — Mach number (Ma) (pronounced in British English with a Germanic ch, as mack or mark and as mock in American English) is defined as a ratio of the speed of an object or flow relative to the speed of sound in the medium through which it is travelling: Vo/Vs... A magnetic sail or magsail is a proposed method of spacecraft propulsion. ... Magneto-Plasmadynamic (MPD) thrusters are a form of electric Propulsion which use the Lorentz force (a force exerted on charged particles by magnetic and electrical fields in combination) to generate thrust. ... Mass is a property of a physical object that quantifies the amount of matter and energy it contains. ... A mass driver for lunar launch (artists conception) A mass driver or electromagnetic catapult is a method of spacecraft propulsion that would use a linear motor to accelerate payloads up to high speeds. ... This article or section should be merged with Fluid mechanics Fluid dynamics is the study of fluids (liquids and gases) in motion, and the effect of the fluid motion on fluid boundaries, such as solid containers or other fluids. ... Membrane mirrors are mirrors made of thin films of material, such as mylar. ... Metre per second (U.S. spelling: meter per second) is an SI derived unit of both speed (scalar) and velocity (vector), defined by distance in metres divided by time in seconds. ... Mini-magnetospheric plasma propulsion (M2P2) is a form of spacecraft propulsion, a way to make a magnetic sail. ... Moment of inertia (SI unit kilogram metre squared kg m2) quantifies the rotational inertia of an object, i. ... In classical mechanics, momentum (pl. ... A momentum wheel is a type of flywheel used primarily by spacecraft to change their angular momentum without using fuel for rockets or other reaction devices. ... A monopropellant rocket (or monoprop rocket) is a rocket that uses a single chemical as its power source and propellant. ... Motion involves change in position, such as this perspective of rapidly leaving Yongsan Station In physics, motion means a change in the position of a body relative to a reference point, as measured by a particular observer in a particular frame of reference. ... The second stage of a Minuteman III rocket A multistage (or multi-stage) rocket is, like any rocket, propelled by the recoil pressure of the burning gases it emits as it burns fuel. ...

N

Nanotechnology — NASA — Navier-Stokes equations — Newton — Newton's laws of motion — Nose cone design — Nanotechnology is the design, characterization, production and application of structures, devices and systems by controlling shape and size at the nanoscale. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Navier-Stokes equations, named after Claude-Louis Navier and George Gabriel Stokes, are a set of equations that describe the motion of fluid substances like liquids and gases. ... The newton (symbol: N) is the SI unit of force. ... Newtons First and Second laws, in Latin, from the original 1687 edition of the Principia Mathematica. ... Given the problem of the aerodynamic design of the nose cone section of any vehicle meant to travel through a compressible fluid medium (such as a rocket or aircraft), the main problem at hand is the determination of the nose cone geometrical shape. ...

O

Orbit — Orbit phasing — Orbital airship — Orbital Boom Sensor System — Orbital elements — Orbital inclination change — Orbital maneuver — Orbital node — Orbital period — Orbital stationkeeping — Osculating orbit — In physics, an orbit is the path that an object makes, around another object, whilst under the influence of a source of centripetal force, such as gravity. ... In astrodynamics orbital phasing is the adjustment of the time-position of spacecraft along its orbit, usually described as adjusting the orbiting spacecrafts true anomaly. ... The orbital airship, also called the space blimp, is a proposed space transportation system that carries payloads to and from low Earth orbit. ... The Orbital Boom Sensor System (OBSS) is a 50 foot boom terminating in an instrumentation package attached to the Remote Manipulator System of NASAs Space Shuttle spacecraft. ... The elements of an orbit are the parameters needed to specify that orbit uniquely, given a model of two ideal masses obeying the Newtonian laws of motion and the inverse-square law of gravitational attraction. ... Orbital inclination change is a orbital maneuver aimed at changing inclination of orbiting bodys orbit. ... An orbital maneuver is a change from one orbit to another, accomplished by applying thrust. ... An orbital node is one of the two points where an inclined orbit crosses a plane of reference (e. ... The orbital period is the time it takes a planet (or another object) to make one full orbit. ... In astrodynamics orbital stationkeeping is a term used to describe a particular set of orbital maneuvers used to keep a spacecraft in assigned orbit, either low earth orbit (LEO), or geostationary orbit (GEO). ... In Astronomy, and in particular in Astrodynamics, the osculating orbit of an object in space is the gravitational Keplerian orbit about a central body which best approximates the (more complex) motion of the object at a given instant in time. ...

P

Parallel axes rule — Perpendicular axes rule — Physics — Planetary orbit — Plasma (physics) — Plug nozzle — Pogo oscillation — Prandtl-Glauert singularity — Precession — Pressure — Pressure-fed cycle — Propeller — Proper orbital elements — Pulsed inductive thruster — Pulsed plasma thruster — The parallel axes rule can be used to determine the moment of inertia of a rigid object about any axis, given the moment of inertia of the object about the parallel axis through the objects center of mass and the perpendicular distance between the axes. ... The perpendicular axes rule can be used to determine the moment of inertia of a rigid object, which lies entirely within a plane, about an axis at right angles to the plane, given the moments of inertia of the object about two perpendicular axes lying within the plane. ... The first few hydrogen atom electron orbitals shown as cross-sections with color-coded probability density View of the Earth as seen by the Apollo 17 crew traveling toward the moon. ... Two bodies with a slight difference in mass orbiting around a common barycenter. ... A Plasma lamp, illustrating some of the more complex phenomena of a plasma, including filamentation A solar coronal mass ejection blasts plasma throughout the solar system. ... The plug nozzle is a type of rocket nozzle that, unlike traditional designs, maintains its efficiency at a wide range of altitudes. ... Pogo oscillation is the term for a potentially dangerous type of oscillation found in rocket engines. ... F/A-18 demonstrating singularity effect The Prandtl-Glauert singularity, at which point a sudden drop in air pressure occurs, is generally accepted as the cause of the visible condensation cloud that often surrounds an airplane traveling at transonic speeds, though there remains some debate. ... Precession refers to a change in the direction of the axis of a rotating object. ... Pressure (symbol: p) is the force per unit area applied on a surface in a direction perpendicular to that surface. ... Pressure-fed rocket cycle. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The proper orbital elements of an orbit are constants of motion of an object in space that remain practically unchanged over an astronomically long timescale. ... Pulsed inductive thrusters or PITs as they are commonly abbreviated are a form of spacecraft propulsion that uses perpendicular electric and magnetic fields to accelerate a propellant. ... Pulsed plasma thrusters use an arc of electric current adjacent to a solid propellant (almost always teflon), to produce a quick and repeatable burst of impulse. ...

Q

R

Railgun — Ram accelerator — Reaction control system — Redshift rocket — Reentry — Reflection — Relativistic rocket — Remote Manipulator System — Resistojet rocket — Reusable launch system — Reynolds number — RL-10 (rocket engine) — Rocket — Rocket engine nozzle -- Rocket fuel — Rocket launch — Rudder — A railgun is a form of gun that converts electrical energy—rather than the more conventional chemical energy from an explosive propellant—into projectile kinetic energy. ... A ram accelerator is a gun that utilizes ramjet compression to accelerate a projectile to extremely high speeds. ... A reaction control system (abbreviated RCS) is a subsystem of a spacecraft. ... The redshift rocket, envisioned by novelist Karl Schroeder, is a fictional method of spacecraft propulsion. ... Atmospheric reentry is the process by which vehicles that are outside the atmosphere of a planet can enter that atmosphere and reach the planetary surface intact. ... Spheres reflecting the floor and each other. ... A relativistic rocket is any spacecraft that is travelling at a velocity close enough to light speed for relativistic effects to become significant. ... View of the Canadarm during a Space Shuttle mission The Remote Manipulator System (RMS) on the Space Shuttle, also known as the Canadarm, is an electromechanical arm that maneuvers a payload from the payload bay of the space shuttle orbiter to its deployment position and then releases it. ... A resistojet is a way of propulsion that provides thrust by heating a (typically non-reactive) fluid. ... A reusable launch system (or RLV: reusable launch vehicle) is a launch vehicle which is capable of launching into space more than once. ... The Reynolds number is the ratio of inertial forces (vsρ) to viscous forces (μ/L) and is used for determining whether a flow will be laminar or turbulent. ... RL-10 Rocket Engine Specifications. ... A Redstone rocket, part of the Mercury program The traditional definition of a rocket is a vehicle, missile or aircraft which obtains thrust by the reaction to the ejection of fast moving exhaust gas from within a rocket engine. ... Figure 1: A de Laval nozzle, showing approximate flow velocity increasing from green to red in the direction of flow The main type of rocket engine nozzles used in modern rocket engines is the de Laval nozzle which is used to expand and accelerate the combustion gases, from burning propellants... Rocket fuel is a propellant that reacts with an oxidizing agent to produce thrust in a rocket. ... Rockets (including missiles) can be launched from the following: for a launch into an orbital spaceflight and beyond: a launch pad, including a floating platform (see San Marco platform, Sea Launch) for the launch into a suborbital flight also: a missile silo a mobile launcher vehicle a submarine air launch... The worlds oldest depiction of a rudder. ...

S

SABRE — Satellite — Saturn (rocket family) — Scalar — Schlieren — Schlieren photography — Scramjet — Second moment of area — Shock wave — SI — Single-stage to orbit — Skyhook (structure) — Stream function — Streamline — Solar panel — Solar sail — Solar thermal rocket — Solid of revolution — Solid rocket — Sound barrier — Space activity suit — Space elevator — Space fountain — Space Shuttle — Space Shuttle external tank — Space Shuttle main engine — Space station — Space suit — Space technology — Space transport — Spacecraft — Spacecraft design -- Spacecraft propulsion — Special relativity — Specific impulse — Speed of sound — Staged combustion cycle (rocket) — Subsonic — Supersonic — Surface of revolution — It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Szabla. ... A satellite is any object that orbits another object (which is known as its primary). ... The Saturn family of rockets were developed to launch heavy payloads to Earth orbit and beyond. ... The term scalar is used in mathematics, physics, and computing basically for quantities that are characterized by a single numeric value and/or do not involve the concept of direction. ... Schlieren are optical inhomogeneities in transparent material not visible to the human eye. ... Schlieren photography is a visual process that is used to photograph the flow of air (or other compressible fluids) around objects. ... A scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) is a variation of a ramjet where the flow of the air and combustion of the fuel air mixture through the engine happen at supersonic speeds. ... The second moment of area, also known as the second moment of inertia and the area moment of inertia, is a property of a shape that is used to predict its resistance to bending and deflection. ... Introduction The shock wave is one of several different ways in which a gas in a supersonic flow can be compressed. ... Cover of brochure The International System of Units. ... A single-stage to orbit (or SSTO) vehicle could reach orbital velocity without using multiple stages. ... For other uses, see Skyhook (disambiguation). ... In fluid dynamics, the stream function is defined for two-dimensional flows. ... In fluid dynamics, a streamline is a line which is everywhere tangent to the velocity of the flow. ... Solar Panel (photovoltaic array) A Solar panel is a flat collection of solar cells or solar thermal collectors used for converting solar energy into electricity or heat. ... Concept image of a solar sail spacecraft in the process of unfurling sails. ... Solar thermal propulsion is a form of spacecraft propulsion that makes use of solar power to directly heat reaction mass, and therefore does not require an electrical generator as most other forms of solar-powered propulsion do. ... In mathematics, engineering, and manufacturing, a solid of revolution is a solid figure obtained by rotating a plane figure around some straight line (the axis) that lies on the same plane. ... The Space Shuttle is initially launched with the help of solid-fuel boosters A Solid rocket or a solid fuel rocket is a rocket with a motor that uses solid propellants (fuel/oxidizer). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Supersonic. ... Space activity suit A space activity suit is a kind of spacesuit, which provides mechanical pressure by means of elastic garments as opposed to pressurizing the suit with the breathing gas, as is standard practice in regular suits. ... A space elevator would consist of a cable attached to the surface and reaching outwards into space. ... The space fountain concept is a proposed form of space elevator that does not require the structure to be in geosynchronous orbit, and does not rely on tensile strength for support. ... The Space Shuttle Columbia seconds after engine ignition, 1981 (NASA). ... The Space Shuttle External Tank (ET) on its way to the Vehicle Assembly Building. ... Space Shuttle Main Engine cluster Space shuttle main engine (SSMEs) refers to one of the three main engines on the Space Shuttle orbiter. ... The space station Mir A space station is an artificial structure designed for humans to live in outer space. ... Apollo 15 space suit A spacesuit is a complex system of garments, equipment, and environmental systems designed to keep a person alive and comfortable in the harsh environment of outer space. ... Satellite navigation Space technology is a term that is often treated as a category. ... Currently, the most common technology for space transport is rocket propulsion, which expels matter to provide a net forward thrust. ... A spacecraft is designed to leave Earths atmosphere and operate beyond the surface of the Earth in outer space. ... The design of spacecraft covers a broad area to include satellite design, planetary probe design, and manned spaceship design. ... A remote camera captures a close-up view of a Space Shuttle Main Engine during a test firing at the John C. Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, Mississippi Spacecraft propulsion is used to change the velocity of spacecraft and artificial satellites, or in short, to provide delta-v. ... For a non-technical introduction to the topic, please see Introduction to Special relativity. ... The specific impulse (commonly abbreviated Isp) of a propulsion system is the impulse (change in momentum) per unit of propellant. ... The speed of sound c (from Latin celeritas, velocity) varies depending on the medium through which the sound waves pass. ... Staged combustion rocket cycle. ... Subsonic has two possible meanings: A speed lower than the speed of sound is called subsonic. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Sound barrier. ... The parabola y=x2 rotated about the z-axis A surface of revolution is a surface created by rotating a curve lying on some plane (the generatrix) around a straight line (the axis of rotation) that lies on the same plane. ...

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Tait-Bryan angles — Temperature — Terminal velocity — Test target — Tether propulsion — Thrust — Thruster — Torricelli's equation — Trajectory — Trans Lunar Injection — Transonic — Transverse wave — Tripropellant rocket — Tsiolkovsky rocket equation — Turbomachinery -- Two stage to orbit — In geometry, Tait-Bryan angles are three angles used to describe a general rotation in three-dimensional Euclidean space by three successive rotations, once about the x-axis, once about the y-axis, and once about the z-axis. ... Temperature is also the name of a song by Sean Paul. ... The terminal velocity of an object falling towards the ground, in non-vacuum, is the speed at which the gravitational force pulling it downwards is equal and opposite to the atmospheric drag (also called air resistance) pushing it upwards. ... A test target is a common feature on interplanetary landing craft such as the Viking Lander and Mars Exploration Rovers. ... Artists conception of satellite with a tether Tether propulsion uses long, strong strings (known as tethers) to change the orbits of spacecraft. ... Thrust is a reaction force described quantitatively by Newtons Second and Third Law. ... A thruster is a small propulsive device used by spacecraft and watercraft for station keeping, attitude control, or long duration low thrust acceleration. ... This equation was created by Evangelista Torricelli to find the final velocity of a moving object without having a known time interval and was named after him. ... A trajectory is an imagined trace of positions followed by an object moving through space. ... Trans Lunar Injection (TLI) is a term describing the propulsion maneuver used to set a spacecraft on a trajectory which will intersect the Moon. ... Transonic is an aeronautics term referring to a range of velocities just below and above the speed of sound. ... A light wave is an example of a transverse wave. ... A Tripropellant rocket is a form of spacecraft propulsion that uses two fuels and one oxidizer. ... Tsiolkovskys rocket equation, named after Konstantin Tsiolkovsky who independently derived it, considers the principle of a rocket: a device that can apply an acceleration to itself (a thrust) by expelling part of its mass with high speed in the opposite direction, due to the conservation of momentum. ... In mechanical engineering, turbomachinery describes machines that transfer energy between a rotor and a fluid, including both turbines and compressors. ... A two stage to orbit (or TSTO) launch vehicle is a spacecraft in which two distinct stages provide propulsion consecutively in order to achieve orbital velocity. ...

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V-2 rocket -- Variable specific impulse magnetoplasma rocket — Velocity — Viscometer — Viscosity — The V-2 rocket or Vergeltungswaffe 2 (Reprisal weapon 2) was an early ballistic missile used by the German Army during the later stages of World War II against mostly British and Belgian targets. ... VASIMR test bed The Variable specific impulse magnetoplasma rocket (VASIMR) is a hypothetical form of spacecraft propulsion that uses radio waves and magnetic fields to accelerate a propellant. ... The velocity of an object is simply its speed in a particular direction. ... A viscometer (also called viscosimeter) is an instrument used to measure the viscosity and flow parameters of a fluid. ... The pitch drop experiment at the University of Queensland. ...

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Wave drag — Weight — Weight function — Wind tunnel — Wing — Wright Flyer — Wright Glider of 1902 — Wave drag is an aerodynamics term that refers to a sudden and very powerful form of drag that appears on aircraft flying at high-subsonic speeds. ... // Technical usage in physical sciences Established official technical definition : In the physical sciences, the weight of an object has a particular technical meaning. ... A weight function is a mathematical device used when performing a sum, integral, or average in order to give some elements more of a weight than others. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... A Laughing Gull on the beach in Atlantic City. ... The Wright Flyer (often retrospectively referred to as Flyer I and occasionally Kitty Hawk) was the first powered aircraft designed and built by the Wright Brothers. ... Of all humankind now taking flight, few could argue that Orville and Wilbur Wright were the inspired geniuses who truly showed us a way into the sky. ...

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