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The Globus INK: a mechanical navigation computer for Soviet spaceflight (2023)
- baybal2 2y ago[dead]
- hshdhhshe7 2y ago[flagged]
- kens 2y agoAuthor here for your mechanical computer questions... P.S. there are two more parts to the series, going into more details on the Globus, explaining the circuitry and the "algorithms": https://www.righto.com/2023/03/reverse-engineering-electronics-in.html https://www.righto.com/2023/03/reverse-engineering-electroni... https://www.righto.com/2023/03/reverse-engineering-globus-ink-soviet.html https://www.righto.com/2023/03/reverse-engineering-globus-in...
- philistine 2y agoImagine going to space using gears moving a pin on a globe.
- varjag 2y agoImagine going to space by lighting up rocket engines with giant matches: https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/rockets/a19966/russia-actually-lights-it-rockets-with-a-giant-match/ https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/rockets/a19966/russia...
- haunter 2y agoCuriousMarc has a 3 part video about restoring one, worth a watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmHaCQ8Ul6E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmHaCQ8Ul6E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP5dfjxdkQ4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP5dfjxdkQ4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eG29HrU6Slw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eG29HrU6Slw
- 4gotunameagain 2y agoIt's actually the same one I think ! > Fortunately, CuriousMarc was able to get the globe back into position while ensuring that the gears had the right timing. (Putting the globe back arbitrarily would mess up the latitude and longitude.)
- hintymad 2y agoHa, the similar technology that Eridians used to launch Rocky's blip-A.
- rbanffy 2y agoNow we need one on the Apollo 8 ball.
- kens 2y agoAs soon as someone loans us an FDAI...
- harywilke 2y agoRead a very interesting book on the space race from the soviet side. One of the things that stood out was the lack of solid state transistor technology meant that they were using tube transistors in their space craft. This was one of the reasons they had problems doing spacewalks. They couldn't expose the interior of their capsules to space or the electronics would go pop. The Wrong Stuff How the Soviet Space Program Crashed and Burned by John strausbaugh https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/john-strausbaugh/the-wrong-stuff/9781541703346/?lens=publicaffairs https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/john-strausbaugh/th...
- izacus 2y agoThe title itself should tell you that the book is there to sensationalize and grind an axe, not to actually provide any historical accuracy. And yep, the author didn't even bother to use primary sources: https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4851/1 https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4851/1 It's like recommending a book about Apollo program written by Russians without reading any US documentation. If there has to be a western author, James Harford's Korolev biography is a better put together look into Soviet space program and actually has some proper academic reviews.
- kens 2y agoI read "Beyond: The Astonishing Story of the First Human to Leave Our Planet and Journey into Space" and found it very interesting. It is a detailed history of the early Soviet space program and Yuri Gagarin's flight.
- MrBuddyCasino 2y agoWhy would a vacuum tube „pop“ when exposed to vacuum?
- dmix 2y agoprobably because the vacuum of space is way more extreme than inside the tube which would cause pressure on the seals
- LetsGetTechnicl 2y agoWhether or not its technically inferior to American space technology at the time, you have to admire the ingenuity.
- somat 2y agoThey are used in different flight regimes, so not really comparable, but nonetheless, I found it interesting to compare it to the US version of the strange ball navigation thing. https://www.righto.com/2024/09/f4-attitude-indicator.html https://www.righto.com/2024/09/f4-attitude-indicator.html
- neuralRiot 2y agoI always found mechanical calculators fascinating, here’s an article with a video explanation about the MK1 navy fire control computer. https://hackaday.com/2014/10/28/retrotechtacular-fire-control-computers-in-navy-ships/ https://hackaday.com/2014/10/28/retrotechtacular-fire-contro...
- thrownawaysz 2y agoDumb question: How do you jam a device like this? Is it even possible? Example: you want them to land at an incorrect location or doing more orbits than planned
- Ugohcet 2y agoYou don't. This is basically a clock display with extra knobs and dials. It doesn't have any sensors or inputs except 1sec pulse.
- richrichie 2y agoMechanical computers are still used onboard Russian warships. These are meant to function under EMP attacks.
- dennis_jeeves2 2y agoInteresting, I never thought of that.
- 4gotunameagain 2y agoOne was sold last year for the bargain price of 40 thousand euros ! https://meshok.net/en/item/275902733_%D0%93%D0%9B%D0%9E%D0%91%D0%A3%D0%A1_%D0%9D%D0%90%D0%92%D0%98%D0%93%D0%90%D0%A6%D0%98%D0%9E%D0%9D%D0%9D%D0%AB%D0%99_%D0%9A%D0%9E%D0%A1%D0%9C%D0%98%D0%A7%D0%95%D0%A1%D0%9A%D0%98%D0%99_%D0%98%D0%9D%D0%9A2 https://meshok.net/en/item/275902733_%D0%93%D0%9B%D0%9E%D0%9...