Aerospace Engineering on the Back of an Envelope

Engineers need to acquire "Back-of-the-Envelope" survival skills to obtain rough quantitative answers to real-world problems, particularly when working on projects with enormous complexity and very limited resources. In the case studies treated in this book, we show step-by-step examples of the physical arguments and the resulting calculations obtained using the quick-fire method. We also demonstrate the estimation improvements that can be obtained through the use of more detailed physics-based Back-of-the-Envelope engineering models. These different methods are used to obtain the solutions to a number of design and performance estimation problems arising from two of the most complex real-world engineering projects: the Space Shuttle and the Hubble Space Telescope satellite.

List of contents

Space Shuttle Performance Estimates.- Columbia Shuttle Accident Analysis.- Reentry and Landing of the Orbiter.- Hubble Space Telescope Design.- Solenoid Robot Kicker Design using BotE Techniques.

Summary

Engineers need to acquire “Back-of-the-Envelope” survival skills to obtain rough quantitative answers to real-world problems, particularly when working on projects with enormous complexity and very limited resources. In the case studies treated in this book, we show step-by-step examples of the physical arguments and the resulting calculations obtained using the quick-fire method. We also demonstrate the estimation improvements that can be obtained through the use of more detailed physics-based Back-of-the-Envelope engineering models. These different methods are used to obtain the solutions to a number of design and performance estimation problems arising from two of the most complex real-world engineering projects: the Space Shuttle and the Hubble Space Telescope satellite.

Product details

• Authors: Irwin E Alber, Irwin E. Alber
• Publisher: Springer, Berlin
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 03.04.2014
• EAN: 9783642438714
• ISBN: 978-3-642-43871-4
• No. of pages: 326
• Dimensions: 173 mm x 20 mm x 241 mm
• Weight: 606 g
• Illustrations: XXII, 326 p.
• Series: Springer Praxis Books; Springer Praxis Books
• Subjects: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Technology > Aviation and space engineering; B, Sonnensystem: Sonne und Planeten, Konstruktion, Entwurf, Angewandte Physik, astronautics, Earth and Environmental Science, Engineering Design, Technical design, Aerospace engineering, Aerospace Technology and Astronautics, Space Physics, Space sciences, Solar system: the Sun and planets