Detector, Micrometeorite, Ranger Block I
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Object Details
- Summary
- Rangers 1 and 2 carried micrometeorite detectors (also called “cosmic dust detectors”) aboard their brief flights. Made of a stainless steel, aluminum, as well as gold plating, rubber, and plastic, the detector fit into the hexagonal base of the Ranger spacecraft. Designed by scientist W. M. Alexander of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, the device’s objective was to study the relationship of micrometeorite’s density as compared with their mass and velocity. However, the leaders of Project Ranger at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory rated the micrometeorite detector low on the Ranger’s priority-list of scientific experiments, and the experiment did not continue beyond Block I (of V) in the program.
- NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory transferred this detector to the Museum in 1976.
- Credit Line
- Transferred from NASA - Jet Propulsion Laboratory
- Inventory Number
- A19761260000
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Type
- SPACECRAFT-Uncrewed-Instruments & Payloads
- Materials
- Stainless Steel
- Aluminum
- Gold Plating
- Synthetic Rubber
- Plastic
- Ink
- Dimensions
- Overall: 19.1 x 26.3 x 19.1cm (7 1/2 x 10 3/8 x 7 1/2 in.)
- Country of Origin
- United States of America
- See more items in
- National Air and Space Museum Collection
- National Air and Space Museum
- Record ID
- nasm_A19761260000
- Metadata Usage (text)
- Not determined
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/nv999bacd85-e3bf-4dd5-84d8-1bea38344c58
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