tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628325.post2754375472816909194..comments2024-03-15T05:59:53.929-07:00Comments on Ambivalent Engineer: ISS does not smell like old feetAmbivalent Engineerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16491915174390340818noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628325.post-43534906691564013142007-12-16T00:56:00.000-08:002007-12-16T00:56:00.000-08:00...and I'm full of crap. This reference gives the......and I'm full of crap. <A HREF="http://www.auf.asn.au/meteorology/section1b.html" REL="nofollow">This reference</A> gives the mean radiation temp of the earth at 15 C, well above freezing.Ambivalent Engineerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16491915174390340818noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628325.post-80709196457782525612007-12-15T15:39:00.000-08:002007-12-15T15:39:00.000-08:00Half the sky is filled with the relatively warm Ea...Half the sky is filled with the <I>relatively warm</I> Earth, which from orbit appears to be something like -30 C! I'm going to have to find out more about these heat pipes.<BR/><BR/>Nice to hear from you again, John!Ambivalent Engineerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16491915174390340818noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628325.post-20560610191531983692007-12-13T02:11:00.000-08:002007-12-13T02:11:00.000-08:00Given that the thing is cold soaked in sub-liquid-...<I>Given that the thing is cold soaked in sub-liquid-nitrogen temps 45 of every 90 minutes</I><BR/><BR/>Not to take away from the "that's cold" aspect, but orbital night is a lot shorter than orbital day. In fact, for parts of the year, the inclination of ISS and the tilt of the Earth combine to keep the ISS in near-total daylight. Also half the sky is filled by a relatively warm Earth.<BR/><BR/>From what I've read, Mir was not so smell free and I've seen pictures of gray blobs of aggregated water living behind panels. Icky.<BR/><BR/>But yeah, damn cold and ridiculous thermal gradients. I'm always amazed the thing doesn't tear itself apart just from thermal cycling.<BR/><BR/>-JohnGJohnGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05919100094970174985noreply@blogger.com