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Nolt, I. G.

Publications and source records attributed to Nolt, I. G..

At least 37 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1984

Far infrared remote sounding of stratospheric temperature and trace gas distributions

An evaluation is made of the potential usefulness of far-IR thermal emission measurements for simultaneous retrieval of temperature and constituent distributions. Attention is given to the design and performance of a high resolution Michelson interferometer which is currently used in balloon-borne far-IR stratospheric studies. Numerical results based on synthetic limb radiance data for model atmospheres are presented. Formal inversion techniques, together with a radiative transfer model that is based on line-by-line transmittance calculations, are used. Numerical results based on synthetic limb radiance data are given in order to assess the retrieval accuracies of the temperature profiles and the vertical mixing ratio profiles of O3, HCl, and OH.

Abbas, M. M.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Millimeter and submillimeter observations of 3C 273

The first detection of 3C 273 (1226 + 023) at wavelengths of 107, 240, and 400 microns together with contemporary measurements at 800 microns, 1.1, 1.9, 3.3, and 8.9 mm, is reported. These observations show that the continuum spectrum of 3C 273 can be extrapolated smoothly from the submillimeter to the infrared with a constant spectral index. There is no evidence of thermal emission from dust. It is shown that the spectrum is consistent with optically thin synchrotron emission from a relativistic beam at a small angle to the line of sight.

Glaccum, W.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Latitudinal variations in Jovian stratospheric temperature

Ground-based observations of Jupiter show that the planet's stratospheric and tropospheric thermal emission are anticorrelated. The observations can possibly be explained by latitudinal variations in cloud altitude. These variations cause differential stratospheric heating by sunlight which is reflected off the clouds and then absorbed within the stratosphere by visible and near-infrared bands of methane.

Cess, R. D.↗
NASA NTRS1980

The 20-micron brightness temperature of the unilluminated side of Saturn's rings

Observations of the 20-micron brightness temperature of the unilluminated (north) side of Saturn's rings are presented and discussed in terms of models of B ring heating. Observations centered on the B ring ansae were made at 19.8 microns by the 3-m IR telescope facility on Mauna Kea during a period when the unilluminated side of the rings could be observed from earth. Flux measurements indicate a 20-micron brightness temperature of 56 + or - 1 K, in agreement with that measured at 45 microns by Pioneer 11. Under the assumptions that the emission of the Cassini division is negligible and that the ring brightness temperature is close to the actual temperature, it is shown that the brightness temperature can be accounted for by heating by the disk of Saturn, and is proportional to the sine of the Saturnicentric declination of the sun.

Tokunaga, A. T.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Evaluation of composite bolometers at 0.4 Kelvin

Composite bolometer structures have provided the most sensitive IR detectors for operation at helium-4 temperatures of 1.5K. Below 1.5K the electrical and thermal properties change significantly and the performance characteristics cannot be accurately extrapolated for composite bolometers at helium-3 temperatures of 0.4K. The paper deals with experimentally assessed performance of composite bolometers at 0.4K. It is found that sensitivity estimates derived from electrical or load curve properties can overestimate the responsivity to radiation by several orders of magnitude depending upon a particular material behavior. For many near-millimeter applications background power levels are several nanowatts and the associated photon noise plus Johnson and phonon noise components impose a fundamental detection limit of about 5 x 10 to the -15thW/Hz to the -1/2. We have successfully fabricated composite bolometers which at 0.4 K and millimeter wavelengths achieve a noise equivalent power of 7 x 10 to the -15thW/Hz to the -1/2 coupled with a large absorbing area (0.3 sq cm) and a fast response time (2 msec.).

El-Ataway, S.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Far-infrared measurements of trace gases

A better detector system was developed for far infrared spectroscopy by usng cryogenic technology to cool bolometric detectors to approximately 0.4K. Technical assistance was provided to two submillimeter infrared balloon experiment (SIBEX) flights which demonstrated the diagnostic capability of far IR emission spectroscopy. It is estimated that more than a hundred spectral emission features were detected which are not due to the main emitting gases O3, O2, and H2O. The trace species sources for many features still remain unidentified and the spectra obtained during the SIBEX flights present a new source of information on stratospheric composition.

Nolt, I. G.↗
NASA NTRS1980

IR brightness and eclipse cooling of Saturn's rings

Equatorial scans of Saturn at 20 microns wavelength, obtained with the Mayall 4-m telescope in 1978-79, show a continuing decrease in the specific brightness of the A and B rings as the ring plane projection approaches and edge-on apparition. The decreased brightness of the previously dominant B ring reveals more clearly a large difference in brightness between the east and west ansae portions of the C ring, in contrast to a barely discernible difference for the other ring ansae. The amount of eclipse cooling is compatible with a C ring particle size of about 1 cm. It is proposed here that the B ring brightness variation could partially result from a decrease of absorbed insolation by a modest amount of visible scattering.

Nolt, I. G.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Temporal characteristics of the Jovian atmosphere

Drift scans along the central meridian of Jupiter have been obtained at wavelengths of 7.9, 17.8, and 19.7 microns. These observations indicate a significant north-south temperature asymmetry within the Jovian stratosphere but not within its troposphere, results which agree with the recent Voyager 1 observations. Employing a time-dependent stratospheric model, it is found that the observed north-south asymmetry is consistent with seasonal stratospheric variability. In the model, the primary cause for this variability is the time-dependent absorption of sunlight by aerosols.

Caldwell, J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Spatially resolved infrared observations of Saturn. III - 10- and 20-micron disk scans at B prime = -11.8 deg

Disk scans of Saturn at 10 and 20 microns were obtained when the Saturnicentric solar declination B prime was -11.8 deg. The scans show little change from scans obtained when B prime was -16.3 deg. This could result from the long radiative time constant of the Saturnian atmosphere. The observations at 20 microns, in the H2 continuum, show positively that the temperature inversion at the south pole has a higher temperature than at any other point on the disk. In addition, the 12.1- and 20-micron scans indicate that the temperature of the inversion region is higher at the equator compared to the temperate zone. The data also suggest that enhanced 20-micron emission is correlated with the strength of the ultraviolet absorption.

Tokunaga, A. T.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Spatially resolved infrared observations of Saturn. I - Equatorial limb scans at 20 microns

Infrared drift scans of areas near the equator of Saturn are analyzed which were made through narrow-band filters with central wavelengths of 17.8, 19.7, and 22.7 microns. The results are compared with several different models of the atmosphere of Saturn based on the planet's thermal IR emission spectrum. It is found that the model of Tokunaga and Cess (1977) is the best of the published models as a representation of the equatorial atmosphere of Saturn and that a model developed by Gautier et al. (1977) is also quite acceptable in view of the experimental uncertainties.

Caldwell, J.↗
NASA NTRS1978

The 22.7 micron brightness of Saturn's rings versus declination of the sun

Equatorial scans of Saturn's rings were obtained with the KPNO 4 m telescope in 1977 March to provide ring-brightness data at 22.7 micrometers for B' = 16 deg.3. A comparison of these new results with an earlier measurement by Rieke shows that a specific intensity decrease of about 30% has occurred for the A and B rings since 1973, when B' was about 26 deg. Our results also confirm the existence of a bright infrared C ring component, which has increased in specific intensity by about 35% over the same period.

Nolt, I. G.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Portable He-3 detector cryostat for the far infrared

The design of a portable He-3 cryostat for far infrared detection applications is described, with a cutaway drawing of the cryostat, including bolometer and cooled optics, provided. Consideration is given to the selection and testing of various bolometer materials, including Ge:Ga and Ge:InSb; the resistance-temperature coefficients of the materials examined are presented. The absolute flux calibration of the detector system using a new temperature-modulated cold source method is described.

Radostitz, J. V.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Center to limb scans of the Saturnian equator at 20 microns

Spatially resolved area scans of the equator of Saturn through filters at 17.8, 19.7, and 22.9 microns are used to evaluate proposed model atmospheres from the literature. The present observations demonstrate that the equatorial thermal structure has not changed measurably in the last three years.

Caldwell, J.↗
NASA NTRS1977

The brightness temperatures of Saturn and its rings at 39 microns

The relative rings-to-disk brightness (specific intensity) of Saturn at 39 microns was resolved using a 224-cm telescope, and the total flux of Saturn relative to Jupiter in the same bandpass was measured from the NASA Learjet Observatory. These two measurements, which were made with Saturn's rings near maximum inclination, determine the disk and average ring (A and B) brightness in terms of an absolute flux calibration of Jupiter in the same bandpass. While present uncertainties in Jupiter's absolute calibration make it impossible to compare existing measurements unambiguously, it is nevertheless possible to conclude the following: (1) observations between 20 and 40 microns are all compatible (within 2 sigmas) with a disk brightness temperature of 94 K and do not agree with the radiative equilibrium models of Trafton (1967); (2) the rings at large tilt contribute a flux component comparable to that of the planet itself for wavelengths not exceeding about 40 microns; and (3) there is a decrease of approximately 22% in the relative ring:disk brightness between effective wavelengths of 33.5 and 39 microns.

Nolt, I. G.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Three-color photometry of HDE 226868 - The optical counterpart of Cygnus X-1

Results of UBV photoelectric observations of HDE 226868 (Cyg X-1) obtained on fifty nights during 1974 are presented. These observations show a light curve with the following characteristics: (1) two unequal light maxima and minima during the 5.6-day orbital period which exhibit a peak-to-peak magnitude change of about 0.07 mag in all colors; (2) a small phase-dependent color variation which results in a reddening in both color indices of about 0.003 mag at times of light minima; (3) erratic light variability on a general time scale of days with an amplitude of plus or minus 0.01 to 0.02 mag and no apparent color dependence.

Lester, D. F.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Linear polarization variations modulo 5.6 days in HDE 226868

Results are reported for observations of variations in the linear polarization in HDE 226868 (the optical counterpart of Cyg X-1) made with a photoelastic polarimeter and a U-filter. The UV linear-polarization variations, as folded on the 5.6-day orbital period, are found to have amplitudes of 0.25% and position-angle changes of 2.7 deg. These results are shown to be consistent with the geometry and phasing required by the model of the binary system.

Nolt, I. G.↗