Check out these ultrasonic machining pictures:
Apollo Lunar Modules
Image by jurvetson
A titanium deployment and downlock truss from the landing gear of the lunar module beckons in the corner…
But the autopilot brain-in-a-box is much more fascinating.
It is a core memory module from a Saturn LVDC (Launch Car Digital Pc). They are quite rare as scrap dealers recover -30K of gold and platinum from these cores. (far more photos from the spaceaholic source of this). The outer wrap consists of timing, drive, inhibit and sensing circuits.
Much more exciting nevertheless is the ghost in the machine. The magnetic cores inside nonetheless hold what ever program they had when powered down. Since there are no tapes or archives of the code, it is feasible that the only remaining copy of the Saturn V flight system is in cores like this. I have the load/create boards, and they appear really wonky. If you know of any living domain expert on this method, please point them my way.
This module holds 114k bits (14 planes with a 128 x 64 fabric of ferrite donuts)… encoding 13-bit instructions, with the 1st triple-redundant logic. Ultrasonic delay line cache. Destructive readouts. Failure is not an alternative.
M26B1 Light Encounter Rifle
Image by Do you want to know how I got these scares?
M26B1 LER
Thanks to Donar Wotanssohn for the scope, Shockwave for the flash hider, frank for the alphabet/numbers and Chris Karpos for the fire selector
This weapon is kind of an hybrid in between light machine gun and sniper: it can be fired in semi-auto mode and be utilized as a sniper but also switch to auto mode and because of its 30 rounds ready to be fired becomes a extended range support weapon.
It can also be fired in manual mode, if the gas system was to fail as the reloadig handle is straight placed on the bolt.
Sort: sniper rifle
Cartridge: 7,62×35 AAC Blackout
Price of fire:300 rpm.
Successful variety: about 500 meters
Maximum range: about 800 meters
Capacity: 30
Energy provided to bullet in percentage of enegy given by the powder: 95% (*1)
Initial speed: 800m/s
Weight: four,2kg
Operation: gas
Barrel lenght: 100mm + 75mm for the rails
(2*)ARET 2. devices utilized: metamaterials around the barrel and about the muzzle ( for audible, infrasonic and ultrasonic wave-lengths), plus Pelletier devices with heat exchanger about the barrel and MHD generator in the barrel.
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(*1) In fact, in modern firearms, only 32% of the possible power offered by the propellant is employed for the bullet motion. Most of the energy is wasted in hot gases/noises (34%), in barrel heat ( about 30%), in barrel friction (about two%) or is just not used (about 1% of the power is even not released because a tiny element of the powder didn’t go off).
(*two)So what can we do? A longer barrel means that hot gases are going to give a lot more energy to the bullet. We can also use metamaterials wich deflect waves (here shock waves) and give there power to the subsequent round fired. We can also use Pelletier systems to convert the heat in electricity and then give it to the next bullet fired. This can operate only if efficient power conductor are use. Wich indicates that the weapon will be heavier, will be costly, will have a low rate of fire but will be far more potent, acurate and have a longer range, thermal and noise reduction (except if there are no metamaterials about the muzzle or/and if the bullet is supersonic).
But in the ARET 2. weapon set, the barrel is replaced by a MHD generator wich converts the motion of the hot gases in electricity which is sent to a a bench of capacitors. These devices will then send an essential electric discharge to the rails wich will propell the bullet at higher speed. The ARET two. weapons are lighter, a lot more compact and even more effective than their ARET 1. equivalents.
This leads to the meanings of the weapon set name "ARET" which stands for Armes à Récupération de l’Energie des Tirs (shot’s power recovery weapons).