Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: brunix!sgiblab!spool.mu.edu!uunet!psinntp!psinntp!hns!mgilbert
From: mgilbert@hns.com (Michael Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Commonly Available Parts...
Sender: news@hns.com (USENET news system)
Message-ID: <1993Jul2.210940.15100@hns.com>
Date: Fri, 2 Jul 1993 21:09:40 GMT
Distribution: hns
References: <20ve1tINNl18@uwm.edu> <1993Jul2.000058.27828@osuunx.ucc.okstate.ed <211uvn$dsg@charm.magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu> <21227v$sj9@hp-col.col.hp.com>
Organization: Hughes Network Systems Inc.
Lines: 23

In article <21227v$sj9@hp-col.col.hp.com>, saksa@col.hp.com (Tom Saksa) writes:
|> Prabal K Dutta (pkdutta@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu) wrote:
|> :    Ever heard of RTG's? They're radioisotope thermal generators and they put 
|> : out a ton of power with a virtually negligible mass. I don't know where to 
|> : get them or how much they cost but I know some guys at JPL (Jet Propulsion 
|> : Laboratory) used one a device called the Rocker Bogie (or they claim to have 
|> : used one). Good luck and if anyone finds out, please post to the net.
|> ... delete the rest


When I was in the Navy I was stationed in Antactica as a weather observer. 
We had some remote weather stations powered by what we called "atomic powered
batteries".  Sounds like what you are describing is what we used.  They 
generated electric power to run the station as well as enough heat to keep
from freezing.  They had to be placed on rock, they would melt through ice.
Oh well... 

-- 

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| Michael S. Gilbert        (301)601-4082        Hughes Network Systems, Inc. |
| mgilbert@hns.com                               Germantown, Maryland         |
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