In the twenty-first century, the debate about life on other worlds is quickly changing from the realm of speculation to the domain of hard science. Within a few years, as a consequence of the rapid discovery by astronomers of planets around other stars, astronomers very likely will have discovered clear evidence of life beyond the Earth. Such a discovery of extraterrestrial life will change everything.

The Earth has limited material and energy resources. Further development of the humanity will require going beyond our planet for mining and use of extraterrestrial mineral resources and search of power sources. The exploitation of the natural resources of the Moon is a first natural step on this direction. Lunar materials may contribute to the betterment of conditions of people on Earth but they also may be used to establish permanent settlements on the Moon. This will allow developing new technologies, systems and flight operation techniques to continue space exploration.

This book systematically investigates the Mars entry problem from the perspectives of deterministic optimization, uncertainty optimization, and guidance. Began with a detailed review of the robotic missions and human-scaled exploration plans to Mars, theories or concepts of optimal control, uncertainty quantification, robust optimization, model predictive control, sequential convex programming, and computational guidance are subsequently introduced. Correspondingly, this book presents a series of trajectory planning and guidance algorithms to improve the robustness, reliability, and safety of the Mars missions. Because the Mars entry problem is studied using advanced mathematics, including probability theory, optimization theory, and cybernetics, thus the book is primarily designed as a textbook for graduate students in aerospace engineering, aeronautics, and astronautics departments. Engineers and researchers may also use this book as a reference or tutorial to help with the modeling and simulation of the Mars entry problem due to its thorough simulations and analyses.

Ceramic-matrix composites (CMCs) possess high specific strength and modulus at elevated temperature, and have already been applied in hot-section components in aero-engines. To ensure the operation reliability and safety of CMCs components, it is necessary to understand the micro damage mechanisms and internal damage state in the composites. This book focuses on the micromechanics of CMCs at elevated temperatures, including, the stress-strain behavior, proportional limit stress, residual strength, mechanical hysteresis, interface damage, strain response, and lifetime of CMCs at elevated temperatures. This book can help the material scientists and engineering designers to better understand and master the micromechanics of CMCs at elevated temperatures.

xxii CONTENTS In 1957 I was invited to work on special problems in Magnetic Laboratory of the Academy of Sciences of USSR as a Head of Department of Magnetic Hydrodynamics. In few years this Laboratory was transfered into the I. V. Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy, and I continued to work in this Institute up to 1965. In parallel I also worked at Moscow State University as Professor in the CR and Space Research Team. I also gave lectures in Irkutsk, Alma-Ata, Nalchik, Tbilisi, Erevan, Samarkand, and others places. Over about 40 years of teaching under my supervision more than hundred graduate students and scientists in USSR and some other countries gained their Ph. D. and several tenths became Doctors of Science. As my hobby I continued to work in CR research, and as Vice-President of All-Union Section of Cosmic Rays and Radiation Belts, took an active part in preparing the Soviet net of CR stations to the IGY (International Geophysical Year, 1957-1958): we equipped all soviet stations in USSR and in Antarctica with standard cubic and semi-cubic muon telescopes and with neutron monitors of IGY (or Simpson’s) type. In connection with preparing for the IQSY (the International Quiet Sun Year, 1964-1965), the soviet net of CR stations was extended about two fold and they were equipped with neutron super-monitors of IQSY type (with an effective surface about 10 times bigger than the previous monitor of IGY type).

During the 30 years of space exploration, important discoveries in the near-earth environment such as the Van Allen belts, the plasmapause, the magnetotail and the bow shock, to name a few, have been made. Coupling between the solar wind and the magnetosphere and energy transfer processes between them are being identified. Space physics is clearly approaching a new era, where the emphasis is being shifted from discoveries to understanding. One way of identifying the new direction may be found in the recent contribution of atmospheric science and oceanography to the development of fluid dynamics. Hydrodynamics is a branch of classical physics in which important discoveries have been made in the era of Rayleigh, Taylor, Kelvin and Helmholtz. However, recent progress in global measurements using man-made satellites and in large scale computer simulations carried out by scientists in the fields of atmospheric science and oceanography have created new activities in hydrodynamics and produced important new discoveries, such as chaos and strange attractors, localized nonlinear vortices and solitons. As space physics approaches the new era, there should be no reason why space scientists cannot contribute, in a similar manner, to fundamental discoveries in plasma physics in the course of understanding dynamical processes in space plasmas.

Even today flying into space is an undertaking at the borderline of what is curreiitly feasible. h veq complex assen~bly of sophist~icated machinery is needed in order to reach orbit and return from there to Eart,ll safely. A11 ast,ronaut knows that only if t,he rocket engines, inertial navigat,ion platforms. hydraulic systems; generators of electrical power, att,itude control systems, life support sj stems, coinput~ers. data transmission equipment, heat shields and many other components work flawlessly can he or she accomplish a mission in good llealt,h. I11 other words there is risk, but the odds are better than even. How else could a man or a woman see the incredible beauty of our planet Earth from a clist,ance? Take t,he combination of it,s colours. white and blue. It is so breatht,akingly stunning, that most likely not even a poet could find words to adequately describe it. There is the curved line of the horizon with an incredibly black slij above it. L4t first sight it is evident how elidless and empty the universe actually is. The Eart,h's horizon is fringed with a royal blue seam, our at,mosphere. Its beauty and fragility are thrilling, and seen from orbit it is instantly apparent that there is not much air around us.

For a quantitative understanding of the physics of the universe - from the solar system through the milky way to clusters of galaxies all the way to cosmology - these edited lecture notes are perhaps among the most concise and also among the most critical ones: Astrophysics has not yet stood the redundancy test of laboratory physics, hence should be aware of early interpretations. Special chapters are devoted to magnetic and radiation processes, supernovae, disks, black-hole candidacy, bipolar flows, cosmic rays, gamma-ray bursts, image distortions, and special sources. At the same time, planet earth is viewed as the arena for life, with plants and animals having evolved to homo sapiens during cosmic time. – This text is unique in covering the basic qualitative and quantitative tools, formulae as well as numbers, needed for the precise interpretation of frontline phenomena. The author compares mainstream interpretations with new and even controversial ones he wishes to emphasize.

Fundamental Astronomy gives a well-balanced and comprehensive introduction to the various fields of classical and modern astronomy. While emphasizing both the astronomical concepts and the underlying physical principles, the text provides a sound basis for more profound studies in the astronomical sciences.

Robert Zubrin, world-renowned space authority and founding president of the Mars Society, taps today's newest science and most dogged research to foretell in astounding detail the brave, new Martian civilization we will achieve when (not if!) humankind colonizes Mars

Robust and Adaptive Control (second edition) shows readers how to produce consistent and accurate controllers that operate in the presence of uncertainties and unforeseen events. Driven by aerospace applications, the focus of the book is primarily on continuous-time dynamical systems.

This book showcases Nigerian and South African experiences on space politics, policy and strategy vis-à-vis their development and security aspirations, while contributing to the broader African and the Global-South perspectives on the subject. Space policy in developing countries such as Nigeria and South Africa is motivated by utilitarian promises that space and the attendant technologies have the potential to advance development and security interests of the affected nations. However, several decades into the orbital journey of these countries, little is known of their space politics, policies, strategies, capacities and capabilities, and realisation of desired objectives. Beyond pure and applied sciences reductionism, this book offers social science perspectives on space studies in Africa, as it examines the intricate relationships of historical, geographical, social, demographic, economic, political, administrative, and strategic factors, nationally, regionally and globally that have shaped research and development of space science and technologies, and their benefits, in Nigeria and South Africa.

This book contains the original peer-reviewed research papers presented at the 6th China Aeronautical Science and Technology Conference held in Wuzhen, Zhejiang Province, China, in September 2023. Topics covered include but are not limited to Navigation/Guidance and Control Technology, Aircraft Design and Overall Optimisation of Key Technologies, Aviation Testing Technology, Airborne Systems/Electromechanical Technology, Structural Design, Aerodynamics and Flight Mechanics, Advanced Aviation Materials and Manufacturing Technology, Advanced Aviation Propulsion Technology, and Civil Aviation Transportation.