Experimental Evaluation of Methods for Producing Dense Barium Ion Clouds

摘要

A flight test program has demonstrated a new release technique for creating large and dense barium vapor clouds in the upper atmosphere. Payload Canuto of Operation Barbizon used a new thermite formulation consisting of barium metal reacting with barium nitrate to produce a barium vapor cloud which was larger and more dense than a vapor cloud produced by the same amount of standard thermite and released at the same altitude. Peak electron density was 46 percent greater for the new formulation. For the new thermite, barium and barium nitrate are mixed in the ratio of 12 moles of barium metal per mole of barium nitrate. The barium metal chips and barium nitrate powder are pressed into a porous cohesive grain contained in a combustion canister. This reaction is characterized by very rapid combustion high combustion pressure, and reaction products containing only barium and barium oxide. (Author)