🚀 go-pugleaf

-From: gene@wucs1.wustl.edu (_Floor_)
-Subject: Re: Acceleration
-Date: 28 Dec 92 18:10:24 GMT

-In article <1hkr76INNji2@mirror.digex.com> prb@access.digex.com (Pat) writes:
-] A probe has high momentum hitting atmosphere.  it gets  a high acceleration,
-] on a small mass.  not a lot of force,  exerted through several miles of
-] atmosphere,  for a few minutes.

-Small force? I think they said the probe would feel an acceleration of 350 g's.
                                                        ------------
-It's receiving a force 350 times that of Earth's gravity at the surface of
-the Earth. That's quite a bit of force if you ask most people.
                                  -----
 
- Gene Van Buren, Kzoo Crew(Floor), Washington U. in St. Lou - #1 in Volleyball

Acceleration and force are not the same thing. In this case, acceleration
is force *per unit mass*. If you can keep the mass down on any given 
component, then the force isn't too great, even under high acceleration.
Just design the system so that each component can support at least 350 times
its own (Earth) weight[1]. Of course you need a safety factor and allowance
for buffeting, so you might want to design the probe to withstand 500 G or
more. This is still far below the requirements of the electronics in artillery 
shells.

[1] - Bearing in mind the expected direction of the force, and the influence
that the components have on one another.

John Roberts
roberts@cmr.ncsl.nist.gov