THE PENETRATING POWER OF PARTICULATE MATTER IN AN EXPONENTIAL ATMOSPHERE
Abstract
The light emitted from missile trails represents an exceedingly complex phenomenon. A large variety of physical theories have been offered to explain this luminosity. Since particulate matter is generally found to some degree in missile exhausts an understanding of the interaction of particulate matter with the atmosphere may provide a key to the disentanglement of the particulate matter contribution. To provide a means for checking the particulate matter hypothesis, this study has been made. It attempts to systematically obtain the mathematical formulae for the velocity and distance behavior of particles of different mass and initial velocity ejected at various heights in an exponential atmosphere. If particulate matter is released in the upper atmosphere, at a point, with a common initial speed in all directions, the drag resistance of the atmosphere will slow down the particles in such a manner that the space loci of the advancing particles, with a common varying speed, will describe successively expanding aspherical surfaces. That is to say, the surfaces of constant speed will be strongly dependent upon the varying density, of the upper atmosphere, which is essentially exponential.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 1962
- Accession Number
- AD0273972
Entities
People
- F.f. Marmo
- H.k. Brown
- J. Pressman