Concepts used in the preparation of the document - Space and planetary environment criteria guidelines for use in space vehicle development 1982 revision

The NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center has developed a series of documents concerning space and planetary environments for use in the formulation of aerospace vehicle and spacecraft design criteria. For the earth above 90km altitude, and for the moon, planets, and other bodies in the Solar System; information is provided in disciplinary area of importance to the spacecraft designer such as planetary geology and morphology, atmospheric and ionospheric structures, radiation, particles, geomagnetic fields, astrodynamic constants, and meteoroids. This paper presents the philosophy used in the preparation of the current (1982) version of the document. Specific topics will be discussed in relation to their significance for aerospace vehicle and spacecraft development and mission analysis.