Several teachers from State College (Pennsylvania) Area School District became intrigued with helping their students better understand the science associated with a unit on air and aviation. In particular, they observed that students often encountered difficulty with abstract flight concepts, such as lift, thrust, and drag. Content issues became…

Develops a simple model of radio wave propagation and illustrates how basic physical concepts such as refractive index, refraction, reflection and dispersion can be applied to a situation normally not met in introductory physics courses. (Author/GA)

Presents programmable calculator solutions to selected problems, including area moments of inertia and principal values, the 2-D principal stress problem, C.G. and pitch inertia computations, 3-D eigenvalue problems, 3 DOF vibrations, and a complex flutter determinant. (SK)

"Space Handbook" is used as the text for the Fundamentals of Space Operations Course of the Air University Institute of Professional Development, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. The text familiarizes the student with basic physical laws and these aspects of aerospace science as indicated by chapter titles: The Space Environment; Orbital…

Presents a theory concerning the orbital spacing of patterns in the solar system. The orbital distributions of the planets and major satellite systems are fitted with a Bode-type form. Accordingly, the Saturnian system requires vacant orbitals if the best fit is to have an accuracy comparable to that of other systems. (Author/GA)

Explores in a non-mathematical treatment some of the hydrodynamical phenomena and forces that affect the operation of ships, especially at high speeds. Discusses the major components of ship resistance such as the different types of drags and ways to reduce them and how to apply those principles for the hovercraft. (GA)

A series of 12 reports on the Voyager Two experiments in the Uranian system. Reports are included on: (1) imaging science; (2) photometry; (3) infrared; (4) ultraviolet; (5) radio science; (6) magnetic fields; (7) plasma; (8) charged particles; (9) magnetosphere (hot plasma and radiation); (10) radion observations; and (11) plasma waves. An…

Discussed is the use of model rocketry to teach the principles of Newtonian mechanics. Included are forces involved; calculations for vertical launches; two-dimensional trajectories; and variations in mass, drag, and launch angle. (CW)

This booklet is the second in a series of nine that describe the Apollo-Soyuz mission and experiments. This set is designed as a curriculum supplement for high school and college teachers, supervisors, curriculum specialists, textbook writers, and the general public. These booklets provide sources of ideas, examples of the scientific method,…

In this article, the author gives basic information on constructing a wind tunnel that teachers can use for instructional activities with their students for many years to come. He illustrates and describes the procedure and materials that he developed in constructing his own wind tunnel. This information should be viewed as a guide. (Contains 1…

Describes a course using the prospect of living in space for motivating students to learn basic physics as well as differences between pure science and technology. Includes course content and a sample final examination. (Author/JN)