NASA Reinventing the Wheel?

06/17/2004 07:00AM

NASA Reinventing the Wheel?

NASA is working to increase the performance of the flywheel, a wheel that transfers energy to run a machine, so that this technology can replace chemical batteries on future spacecraft and potentially save millions of dollars.


Comments:

  • mdodd [Mike Dodd]
  • 06/17/2004 10:36AM
<img class='' src='http://new.astromart.com/astromart/javascripts/sceditor/emoticons/cwy.png' alt='cwy' title='cwy'/> The author of this piece really mushed-out the science!<br><br>* Kinetic energy is also known as potential energy?!<br>* Generators spin the flywheel to store energy?!<br>* 60,000 RPM is 2.5 times the speed of sound?!<br><br>Aargh!<br>
  • filmdos [Paul Walsh]
  • 06/17/2004 04:14PM
I hear ya, Mike. This piece is from NASA's "educational" area and is intended to target either school age students or complete newbies to science.<br><br>But we aim to serve the newbies, too, here at AstroMart and hope and yearn for patience among our more august, and astrophysically astute members 8) <br><br>-Paul S. Walsh<br>Editor, AstroMart/ATWB


I think that the author simply doesn't know s**t about physics. There is no reason to use physics terminology incorrectly just because of the audience. That would mean that the youngsters have to be retrained later. Either use simpler terms or if more complex thoughts can't be expressed in layman's terms then at least use them correctly.<br><br>This article was obviously not peer reviewed at NASA. Too bad, the topic is interesting but the narrative is full of boloney. :S