The Complete Book of Spaceflight: From Apollo 1 to Zero Gravity

340 ranging
ranging
Techniques for determining the distance of a satellite or a
spacecraft from a ground-based tracking system.
Rauschenbach, Boris Viktovich (1915–2001)
A Russian rocket engineer and Academician who headed
the development of space vehicle control systems in the
Soviet Union during the first 10 years of the Space Age,
beginning with the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957. While a
student in St. Petersburg in the 1920s, he carried out
research at the famous Gas Dynamics Laboratory. In
1937, having graduated from the Institute of Aviation, he
joined the Moscow Scientific Rocket Research Institute,
where he began work with Sergei Korolev. During
his career, he knew and spoke with Hermann Oberth,
and in 1994, he published an important biography of the
German rocket pioneer. 240
RBM (Radiation Belt Mappers)
A mission that will result in a better understanding of the
origin and dynamics of Earth’s radiation belts, and
determine the temporal and spatial evolution of penetrating
radiation during magnetic storms. RBM is a
future mission in NASA’s Living with a Star initiative.
reactant
Material used to provide energy from its reaction and
also, in the case of a chemical rocket, a source of propulsion
directly from its reaction products.
reaction control system (RCS)
A type of attitude control system that uses small, lowthrust
vernier engines to provide three-axis control of a
spacecraft in the absence of aerodynamic forces. Most
RCS systems employ a cold gas such as nitrogen,
although some operate using hydrazine. Pointing accuracies
of 0.1° to 0.5° are typically achieved.
reaction engine
An engine such as a rocket or a jet that propels the vehicle
to which it is attached by expelling reaction mass.
reaction mass
Material expelled by a rocket to provide thrust.
reaction nozzle
The nozzle of an attitude control system.
Reaction Research Society (RRS)
The oldest continuously running amateur rocketry group
in the United States.
reaction wheel
An electrically powered wheel aboard a spacecraft. Typically,
three reaction wheels are mounted with their axes
pointing in mutually perpendicular directions. To rotate
the spacecraft in one direction, the appropriate reaction
wheel is spun in the opposite direction. To rotate the
vehicle back, the wheel is slowed down. The excess
momentum that builds up in the system due to external
torques must occasionally be removed via propulsive
maneuvers.
reactionless drive
A hypothetical means of propulsion that does not
depend on Newton’s third law (action and reaction are
always equal and opposite) and the expulsion of reaction
mass. Some types of reactionless drive have been proposed
as a means of achieving faster-than-light travel. In
science fiction, such a system is often referred to as a
“space drive” or “star drive.”
Reagan, Ronald (1911–)
American president (1981–1989), during whose first term
in office the maiden flight of the Space Shuttle took
place. In 1984, Reagan mandated the construction of an
orbital space station, known at the time as “Freedom” but
now called the International Space Station. He declared
that “America has always been greatest when we dared to
be great. We can reach for greatness again. We can follow
our dreams to distant stars, living and working in space
for peaceful, economic, and scientific gain. Tonight I am
directing NASA to develop a permanently manned space
station and to do it within a decade.” 57
recombination
The process by which a positive and a negative ion join
to form a neutral molecule or other neutral particle.
recovery
(1) The location and retrieval of the astronauts, scientific
samples, data, and spacecraft at the termination of the
mission. (2) The time and date when a spacecraft lands
and human, animal, and plant organisms are reintroduced
to Earth gravity; sometimes abbreviated to R+0, to
indicate zero days after recovery.
Redstone
The first operational U.S. ballistic missile, and a rocket
that played a key role in America’s nascent space program.
It was developed by Wernher von Braun and his German
rocket team, together with hundreds of General Electric
engineers, military personnel, and others, who staffed the
newly formed Ordnance Guided Missile Center (OGMC)
at the Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. Hardly
had the OGMC been set up than the Korean War broke
out, in June 1950. The Center was tasked with carrying
out a feasibility study for a ballistic surface-to-surface missile
with a range of 800 km (500 miles), a project that