Astronaut Scientific Debriefings, 1962-1963

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bef ore sunrise, and rising to plus 10°c just after sunr"i se.
DJ.ri ng the se cond
day, the temperatures were lower, reachi ng about -25°c during portions of the day.
From about 3h 3dn, CET, on the second period of sunlight,
the temperatures were
h i.gher, ·,.nd, bnly one partl cle is ment i oned .
If' the effect i.s indeed due to condensation of moisture, t hen t he
broad end oi' t he capsule is a more likely source than the narrow end, because
t he temperatures were 200c or more higher at the n;:i.rrow end.
The condensation probably took place ·Lnside the capsule, rather than
outside, because even at the lowest recorded sh i.ngle ·i..<::l.ilJ;)r.::-:.l·ture , around -50°c,
the vapor pressure o ver ice amounts to about 0.039 millibars.
Although this
pressure is very low, i. t greatly exceeds the ambtent pressure at the lowest
capsule altitudes.
Accordingly, it is not possible that snowf lakes should f orm
under these circumstances, even though it is true that the capsule must be
surrounded by an expanding atmosphere of water vapor.
If the water-vapor expands freely,
;_t is clear that the pressure at a
dist ance of 1 meter f rom a hole 1 cm in di ameter wi.11 be of the order oi'
1/10,000 of the pressure at the hole.
Hence it
i.s f airly clear t hat t he pressure
i nside the capsule will be far higher than the outside pressure, i n sp i.te of the
presence of 18 one-centimeter apertures.
Hence condensation within the capsule
ls more likely than condensation outside.
It is noteworthy that no f ormati on
of rime was noti ced either on the window or on the balloon stri ng.
It i s con­
s idered most likely that tne particles of the Glenn effect are snowflakes f ormed
-L n the capsule, between the cabin bulkhead and the heat shield by the steam
exhaust from the li.fe-support system.
It is suggested that they escape i nto
space through the porte, being driven outward. by the expanding vapor.
Note
t hat at 02 52 47, Carpenter noted a particle moving faster than he.
At 02 50 00,
he planned to observe sunrise and was facing forward.
This particle was thereby
probably seen east of him.
Most of the particles are seen behind him and f alli ng