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Lytle, D. M.

Publications and source records attributed to Lytle, D. M..

Interactive Spectral Analysis and Computation (ISAAC)

Isaac is a task in the NSO external package for IRAF. A descendant of a FORTRAN program written to analyze data from a Fourier transform spectrometer, the current implementation has been generalized sufficiently to make it useful for general spectral analysis and other one dimensional data analysis tasks. The user interface for Isaac is implemented as an interpreted mini-language containing a powerful, programmable vector calculator. Built-in commands provide much of the functionality needed to produce accurate line lists from input spectra. These built-in functions include automated spectral line finding, least squares fitting of Voigt profiles to spectral lines including equality constraints, various filters including an optimal filter construction tool, continuum fitting, and various I/O functions.

Lytle, D. M.

The NSO FTS database program and archive (FTSDBM)

Data from the NSO Fourier transform spectrometer is being re-archived from half inch tape onto write-once compact disk. In the process, information about each spectrum and a low resolution copy of each spectrum is being saved into an on-line database. FTSDBM is a simple database management program in the NSO external package for IRAF. A command language allows the FTSDBM user to add entries to the database, delete entries, select subsets from the database based on keyword values including ranges of values, create new database files based on these subsets, make keyword lists, examine low resolution spectra graphically, and make disk number/file number lists. Once the archive is complete, FTSDBM will allow the database to be efficiently searched for data of interest to the user and the compact disk format will allow random access to that data.

Lytle, D. M.

A search for long-lived velocity fields at the solar poles

A search has been made in the polar regions of the sun for large-scale (50-200 Mm) velocity fields with lifetimes of the order of the solar rotation period (approximately equal to or greater than 30 days). The observations show that any such large-scale, long-lived velocity patterns in the polar regions must have an amplitude less than 5 m/s. Marginally significant detections (at the 2-3 sigma level) were made of two kinds of structures with amplitudes of order 3 m/s. One has a rotation period approximately 38 days (close to the polar rotation period at the sun's surface), and a scale approximately 150 Mm; the other has a period approximately 24 days and a scale approximately 100 Mm. Tentatively, the first structure is interpreted as being of supergranular origin. The second structure is interpreted as the overshooting of the dominant convective mode of the lower solar convection zone - the giant granulation.

Durney, B. R.

On the rotation rate of polar features in the sun

The rotation rate of solar features in the vicinity of the poles is evaluated with the help of a correlation procedure. The average rotation rates for both poles are systematically smaller than those predicted by Howard and Harvey's (1970) formula, but not in serious disagreement with their results.

Durney, B. R.