pierson@cimnet.enet.dec.com (LAY ON GROUND. LIGHT FUZE. 04-Oct-1990 1736) (10/05/90)
From: "LAY ON GROUND. LIGHT FUZE. 04-Oct-1990 1736" <pierson@cimnet.enet.dec.com> Steve LaSala wrote, in part, concerning WWII submarine torpedo targetting: >... all bearings were given relative to the earth, though whether >magnetic or geographic I don't know. Did they have gyro-compasses yet? The gyrocompass came into service around 1900. I would assume the WWII fleet boats had them. === Various folk have commented on the gyro stabilizers in the M1* tanks, fire_on_ the_move, etc. Shermans (M4*) had gyro stabilized guns in WWII. From the comment, the WWII version must not have worked very well. ==== Michael Lanham writes, in part, concerning the SR71 >The SR-71 has hydraulic fluid that is a solid at room temperature. It must >be heated and maintained at high temperatures during pre-flight checks and >preparation. Same thing appeared in an issue of "Hydraulic Engineering" (or some trade title close to that). Maybe not exactly "solid", but apparently fairly unliquid... Same article said the hydraulic system was largely welded solid, as no seals could handle the environment. >Also, the article did mention that the front portion of the cockpit reaches >up to 3000 F with extremely high temps elsewhere also. So the story goes, the crewmembers would heat astronaut style "toothpaste food" by holding the tubes against the windshield. >The most incredible thing to remember about the Blackbird is that is was >designed and built by Johnson at Lockheed's sSkunkwork back in the 1970s. >The plane's design is twenty years old, still state of the art, and still >the fastest plane made. Ummm, without getting into quibbles, i think that's late 50's/early 60's, which makes it more amazing still. >Here's to the SR-71 Blackbird, one of the most beautiful planes around... Yea, verily, and functional too. thanks dave pierson |the facts, as accurately as i can manage, Digital Equipment Corporation |the opinions, my own. 600 Nickerson Rd Marlboro, Mass 01752 pierson@cimnet.enet.dec.com "He has read everything, and, to his credit, written nothing." A J Raffles
military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker) (10/29/90)
From: p14.f7.n391.z8.fidonet.org!Dan.Daetwyler (Dan Daetwyler) LO> stabilizers in the M1* tanks, fire_on_ LO> the_move, etc. Shermans (M4*) had gyro LO> stabilized guns in WWII. From the LO> comment, the WWII version must not have worked very well. LO> ==== Have ridden too many miles in those cast iron coffins, I can easily attest to the fact that that stabilizer wasn't satisfactory. It helped damp the gun movement, but it was a far cry from holding it steady. This required the adoption of a "stop to shoot" technique which wasn't the brightest thing to do in a fire fight. Since the tanks life in a tank battle is typically about two rounds, the odds were heavily in favor of the defensive force. It was