Aerospace Engineering Flashcards

• Rocket engines are used on spacecraft, ballistic missiles, and some aircraft for high-speed flight.
• NDB

  Non-directional Beacon. An L/MF or UHF radio beacon transmitting non-directional signals whereby the pilot of an aircraft equipped with direction-finding equipment can determine their bearing to or from the radio beacon and "home" on or track to or from the station.
• NASA


  National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The United States government agency that is responsible for science and technology related to air and space.
• NACA

  National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. From March 3, 1915 until October 1, 1958, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) provided advice and carried out much of the cutting-edge research in aeronautics in the United States.
• MSL

  Mean Sea Level.
• Moon


  A natural satellite of a planet.
• Moment of Inertia


  A mathematical property of a cross section that is concerned with a surface area and how that area is distributed about a centroidal axis.
• Molniya Orbit


  Abbreviated as Moly. A highly inclined, highly elliptical orbit.
• Modulus of Elasticity


  The ratio of the increment of some specified form of stress to the increment of some specified form of strain, such as Young's modulus, the bulk modulus, or the shear modulus. Also known as coefficient of elasticity, elasticity modulus, elastic modulus.
• Maneuverability


  Characteristic of the aircraft that permits you to maneuver it easily and allows it to withstand the stress resulting from the maneuver.
• Magnetic Variation


  A compass "error" resulting from the fact that at most points on the Earth's surface the direction of the magnetic lines of force is not toward the geographic North Pole or South Pole.
• Magnetic Deviation


  Amount by which a ship's magnetic compass needle points to one side or the other of magnetic north.
• Magnetic Course


  Course of a vessel in relation to magnetic north.
• Machinability


  The way a material responds to specific machining techniques.
• Mach


  A decimal number representing the true airspeed relationship to the local speed of sound. Represented by M.
• Low Earth Orbit


  Abbreviated as LEO. Orbits which are relatively close to the Earth.
• LORAN

  Long Range Navigation. An electronic navigational system by which hyperbolic lines of position are determined by measuring the difference in the time of reception of synchronized pulse signals from two fixed transmitters.
• Longitudinal Axis


  A straight line parallel to the length of the fuselage but that runs through the aircraft's center of gravity.
• Longitude


  A coordinate that is used to specify positions on a sphere. The longitude of a place is the distance of the place to the prime meridian, measured in degrees along a circle at a fixed distance to the poles of the sphere.
• Light-year


  The distance that light travels in one year, about 6 trillion miles.
• Lift


  The force that created by the effect of airflow as it passes over and under the wing.
• Leading Edge


  The part of the airfoil that meets the airflow first.
• Latitude


  A coordinate that is used to specify positions on a sphere. The latitude of a place is the distance of the place to the equator, measured in degrees along a circle between the two poles.
• Lateral Axis


  The horizontal line that passes through the center of gravity of the aircraft, perpendicular to its flight path.
• Lapse Rate


  The rate at which temperature decreases with an increase in altitude.
• LAAS

  Local Area Augmentation System. Ground-based augmentation to GPS that focuses its service on the airport area (approximately 20-30 mile radius) for precision approach, departure procedures, and terminal area operations.
• L/MF


  Low or Medium Frequency. A frequency range between 190 and 535 kHz with the medium frequency above 300 kHz.
• Knots


  Measure of the speed of aircraft and boats measured as nautical mile per hour or 6076 feet per hour.
• Kessler Syndrome


  A prediction of a future cascading of collisions in orbit.
• Keel Effect


  The flat surfaces located behind the center of gravity tend to weathervane with the wind.
• Intake stroke


  The piston moves away from the piston head on the intake stroke.
• INS


  Inertial Navigation System. An RNAV system which is a form of self-contained navigation.
• Input


  Information fed into a data processing system or computer.
• Indicated Airspeed


  The speed shown on the aircraft airspeed indicator.
• Inclination


  The angle between the earth's equatorial plane and the plane of the orbit.
• ILS

  Instrument Landing System. A precision instrument approach system which normally consists of the following electronic components and visual aids: localizer, glideslope, outer marker, middle marker, and approach lights.
• IFR

  Instrument Flight Rules. Rules governing the procedures for conducting instrument flight.
• Hypoxia


  Occurs when the tissues in the body do not receive enough oxygen.
• Hypersonic


  Aircraft speeds between Mach 5 and 10.
• Horizontal Stabilizer


  A structure that creates up and down forces at the tail to keep the fuselage aligned in pitch with the relative wind. The structure itself is horizontal while the forces it creates are vertical.