Books by NASA

Aerodynamic theory was not prepared to offer assistance in the early development of the airplane. The scientific community, most qualified for action at the forefront of human endeavor, often turns out in practice to be surprisingly conservative. It is recorded that Lord Rayleigh expressed "not the smallest molecule of faith in aerial navigation, except by balloon." It was not until experiments such as those of Lilienthal and Langley and the successful powered flights of the Wright brothers that correct theories for the aerodynamic action of wings were developed. Following the successful demonstrations of the Wright brothers, aerodynamic theory developed rapidly, primarily in European laboratories. These developments we associate with the names Joukowsky, Kutta, Prandtl and his students, Munk, Betz, and Von Karman. It should not be forgotten that the writings of F. W. Lanchester provide many of the physical insights that were elaborated in these mathematical theories. Throughout World War I, these developments in aerodynamic theory remained virtually unknown in the U.S. However, in the early 1920's, the U.S. National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics undertook to translate or otherwise make available important works on aerodynamic theory in the form of NACA Technical Reports, Notes, and Memoranda, and to encourage similar effort in its own laboratory. At the present time, many of these old NACA documents are no longer readily available and it seems worthwhile to collect the most important early works under the title "Classical Aerodynamics." In most cases, the theories are explained in the author's own words and often with a degree of clarity unequalled in later interpretations. R. T. Jones Senior Staff Scientist NASA-Ames Research Center June 18, 1979CONTENTSPrefaceApplications of Modern Hydrodynamics to Aeronautics L. PrandtlThe Mechanism of Fluid Resistance Th. v. Karman and H. RubachPressure Distribution on Joukowski Wings Otto BlumenthalGraphic Construction of Joukowski Wings E. TrefftzThe Minimum Induced Drag of Aerofoils Max M. Mun KThe Aerodynamic Forces on Airship Hulls Max M. MunkElements of the Wing Section Theory and of the Wing Theory Max M. MunkRemarks on the Pressure Distribution over the Surface of an Ellipsoid, Moving Translationally Through a Perfect Fluid Max M. MunkThe Inertia Coefficients of an Airship in a Frictionless Fluid H. BatemanFlow and Drag Formulas for Simple Quadrics A. F. ZahmFlow and Force Equations for a Body Revolving In a Fluid A. F. ZahmBehavior of Vortex Systems A. BetzGeneral Potential Theory of Arbitrary Wing Sections T. Theodorsen and I. E. GarrickGeneral Theory of Aerodynamic Instability and the Mechanism of Flutter Theodore Theodorsen

Notice: Be sure the version you are buying has the words Full Color Version in the title. Other versions are in grayscale.Hardcover in full-color - ISBN 9781680920895Paperback in full-color - ISBN 9781680920901In 1995, the NASA Systems Engineering Handbook (NASA/SP-6105) was initially published to bring the fundamental concepts and techniques of systems engineering to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) personnel in a way that recognized the nature of NASA systems and the NASA environment. Since its initial writing and its revision in 2007 (Rev 1), systems engineering as a discipline at NASA has undergone rapid and continued evolution. This revision (Rev 2) of the Handbook maintains that original philosophy while updating the Agency's systems engineering body of knowledge, providing guidance for insight into current best Agency practices, and maintaining the alignment of the Handbook with the Agency's systems engineering policy. The update of this Handbook continues the methodology of the previous revision: a top-down compatibility with higher-level Agency policy and a bottom-up infusion of guidance from the NASA practitioners in the field. This approach provides the opportunity to obtain best practices from across NASA and bridge the information to the established NASA systems engineering processes and to communicate principles of good practice as well as alternative approaches rather than specify a particular way to accomplish a task. The result embodied in this Handbook is a top-level implementation approach on the practice of systems engineering unique to NASA.

The Saturn System Through The Eyes Of Cassini is printed in full-color on 70-pound paper.The Cassini-Huygens mission has revolutionized our knowledge of the Saturn system and revealed surprising places in the solar system where life could potentially gain a foothold-bodies we call ocean worlds. Since its arrival in 2004, Cassini-Huygens has been nothing short of a discovery machine, captivating us with data and images never before obtained with such detail and clarity. Cassini taught us that Saturn is a far cry from a tranquil lone planet with delicate rings. Now, we know more about Saturn's chaotic, active, and powerful rings, and the storms that rage beneath. Images and data from Saturn's moons Titan and Enceladus hint at the possibility of life never before suspected. The rings of Saturn, its moons, and the planet itself offer irresistible and inexhaustible subjects for intense study. As the Cassini mission comes to a dramatic end with a fateful plunge into Saturn on Sept. 15, 2017, scientists are already dreaming of going back for further study.

Designed by Wernher von Braun and Arthur Rudolph at NASA''s Marshall Space Flight Center, the Saturn V rocket represents the pinnacle of 20th Century technological achievement. The only launch vehicle in history to transport astronauts beyond Low Earth Orbit, the Saturn V delivered 24 men to the moon. To this day it holds records as the tallest (363 feet), heaviest (nearly 7 million lbs.) and most powerful (over 7.6 million pounds-force of thrust) launch vehicle ever produced. It also remains one of the most reliable, achieving 12 successful launches with one partial failure - the unmanned Apollo 6 which suffered vibration damage on lift-off, resulting in a sub-standard orbit. The Saturn series of rockets resulted from Von Braun''s work on the German V-2 and Jupiter series rockets. The Saturn I, a 2-stage liquid-fueled rocket, flew ten times between 1961 and 1965. A uprated version the 1B carried the first crewed Apollo flight into orbit in 1968. The Saturn V, which first flew in 1967, was a three-stage rocket. The first stage, which burned RP-1 and LOX, consisted of five F-1 engines. The second stage used five J-2 engines which burned LOX and liquid hydrogen (LH2). The third stage, based on the second stage of the Saturn 1B, carried a single J-2. The Saturn V could carry up to 262,000 pounds to Low Earth Orbit and more critically, 100,000 pounds to the Moon. Created by NASA as a single-source reference as to the characteristics and functions of the Saturn V, this manual was standard issue to the astronauts of the Apollo and Skylab eras. It contains information about the Saturn V system, range safety and instrumentation, monitoring and control, prelaunch events, and pogo oscillations. It provides a fascinating overview of the rocket that made "one giant leap for mankind" possible.