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Environmental failures

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Abstract

Space is a dangerous environment. In addition to the challenges of heat transfer by radiation, an object in space is bathed in strong ultraviolet light from the Sun, and by nuclear radiation. Further, as a result of the large relative velocities involved in orbital and interplanetary flight, even specks of dust in space can have the kinetic energy of a rifle bullet. While our understanding of this environment has improved over the years, it continues to take its toll, often unavoidably.

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© 2005 Praxis Publishing Ltd.

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(2005). Environmental failures. In: Space Systems Failures. Springer Praxis Books. Praxis. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-27961-9_13

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