Near-field water vapor contamination observed on STS-39

D. A. Dean; E. Ray Huppi; J. R. Lowell; Donald R. Smith; Ramesh D. Sharma; Ned B. Wheeler; Richard M. Nadile; Rebecca J. Healey

doi:10.1117/12.140727

18 December 1992 Near-field water vapor contamination observed on STS-39

D. A. Dean, E. Ray Huppi, J. R. Lowell, Donald R. Smith, Ramesh D. Sharma, Ned B. Wheeler, Richard M. Nadile, Rebecca J. Healey

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 1754, Optical System Contamination: Effects, Measurement, Control III; (1992) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.140727
Event: San Diego '92, 1992, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

The analysis of CIRRIS 1A (Cryogenic InfraRed Radiance Instrumentation for Shuttle) interferometric and radiometric data obtained during the flight of STS-39 (28 Apr - 6 May 1991) reveals the presence of IR emission in the 400-900/cm (11-25 micron) region not attributable to atmospheric emission. In this paper, data are shown which identify the signal as nearfield water vapor present during all CIRRIS IA observations. Variability of the near-field water vapor emissions is characterized and compared to mass spectrometer data also obtained on STS-39 (QINMS). Further investigation indicates that the water is excited to extremely high effective temperatures, possibly in excess of 9000 K. The data presented support the theory that water outgassed from the shuttle tiles is highly excited by collisions with atmospheric O, classifying it as a type of shuttle-induced glow never before measured in the LWIR.

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D. A. Dean, E. Ray Huppi, J. R. Lowell, Donald R. Smith, Ramesh D. Sharma, Ned B. Wheeler, Richard M. Nadile, and Rebecca J. Healey "Near-field water vapor contamination observed on STS-39", Proc. SPIE 1754, Optical System Contamination: Effects, Measurement, Control III, (18 December 1992); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.140727

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