Correlation effects in semi-infinite plasmas
Pair correlations effect in equilibrium and nonequilibrium theory, taking Coulomb collisions into account for ionized plasmas confined to half space by reflecting boundary
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Pair correlations effect in equilibrium and nonequilibrium theory, taking Coulomb collisions into account for ionized plasmas confined to half space by reflecting boundary
Results of measurements of both temperature and velocity fields within a reverse flow combustor are presented. Flow within the combustor is acted upon by perpendicularly injected cooling jets introduced at three different locations along the inner and outer walls of the combustor. Each experiment is typified by a group of parameters: density ratio, momentum ratio, spacing ratio, and confinement parameter. Measurements of both temperature and velocity are presented in terms of normalized profiles at azimuthal positions through the turn section of the combustion chamber. Jet trajectories defined by minimum temperature and maximum velocity give a qualitative indication of the location of the jet within the cross flow. Results of a model from a previous temperature study are presented in some of the plots of data from this work.
The problem of electromagnetic field quantization is usually considered in textbooks under the assumption that the field occupies some empty box. The case when a nonuniform time-dependent dielectric medium is confined in some space region with time-dependent boundaries is studied. The basis of the subsequent consideration is the system of Maxwell's equations in linear passive time-dependent dielectric and magnetic medium without sources.
The presentation will focus on finding the spectrum of dexterity performance while performing microsurgery in various specialties. It will be noted that individuals vary markedly in their performance in the position, velocity, stability, and force domains. There are surgeons who have a tremor who otherwise move very slowly and carefully while there are other surgeons who apply excessive force, but never have a tremor or move excessively fast. There are yet other surgeons who move excessively fast, yet they do not have a tremor. Dexterity enhancement includes position down scaling, tremor filtering, fatigue elimination, and other second-order issues such as confining the work space, velocities, accelerations, or forces. It will be described that the hand's position performance is degraded when it is asked to actuate the tools and that remote actuation alone increases the positioning capabilities. It will be noted that rotary and telescopic functions are far more difficult than writing or engraving-like motions. The safety issues concerning velocities and forces will be discussed and the need for impedance control pointed out. Simplistically, the devices should be made with variable compliance so that they can function rigidly as a robot would or compliantly as a human would, depending on the setting of this parameter. Tool interfaces will be discussed with an emphasis on the overall performance of the position, end effector, and tool as a unit. Space constraints, force, and velocity requirements will be discussed in this section as well. Referencing the coordinate system to pre- or inter-operative imaging systems will be discussed as well as an emphasis on the system architecture.
The bibliography contains citations concerning techniques for the efficient production, long-term storage and effective utilization of antimatter for space propulsion. Inertial confinement fusion (ICF), magnetic mirror fusion, and liquid-propellant thermal antimatter fusion propulsion are some of the technologies discussed. Radiation shields, cryogenic confinement of plasma and single-stage-to-orbit vehicles are also cited. (Contains 50-250 citations and includes a subject term index and title list.)
Copper is the most widely used electrical conductor. Like most metals, though, it has several drawbacks: it is heavy, expensive, and can break. Fibers that conduct electricity could be the solutions to these problems, and they are of great interest to NASA. Conductive fibers provide lightweight alternatives to heavy copper wiring in a variety of settings, including aerospace, where weight is always a chief concern. This is an area where NASA is always seeking improved materials. The fibers are also more cost-effective than metals. Expenditure is another area where NASA is always looking to make improvements. In the case of electronics that are confined to small spaces and subject to severe stress, copper is prone to breaking and losing connection over time. Flexible conductive fibers eliminate that problem. They are more supple and stronger than brittle copper and, thus, find good use in these and similar situations. While clearly a much-needed material, electrically conductive fibers are not readily available. The cost of new technology development, with all the pitfalls of troubleshooting production and the years of testing, and without the guarantee of an immediate market, is often too much of a financial hazard for companies to risk. NASA, however, saw the need for electrical fibers in its many projects and sought out a high-tech textile company that was already experimenting in this field, Syscom Technology, Inc., of Columbus, Ohio. Syscom was founded in 1993 to provide computer software engineering services and basic materials research in the areas of high-performance polymer fibers and films. In 1999, Syscom decided to focus its business and technical efforts on development of high-strength, high-performance, and electrically conductive polymer fibers. The company developed AmberStrand, an electrically conductive, low-weight, strong-yet-flexible hybrid metal-polymer YARN.
Organizational problems in permanent organizations in outer space were analyzed. The environment of space provides substantial opportunities for organizational research. Questions about how to organize professional workers in a technologically complex setting with novel dangers and uncertainties present in the immediate environment are examined. It is suggested that knowledge from organization theory/behavior is an underutilized resource in the U.S. space program. A U.S. space station will be operable by the mid-1990's. Organizational issues will take on increasing importance, because a space station requires the long term organization of human and robotic work in the isolated and confined environment of outer space. When an organizational analysis of the space station is undertaken, there are research implications at multiple levels of analysis: for the individual, small group, organizational, and environmental levels of analysis. The research relevant to organization theory and behavior is reviewed.
The Vertical Horizons experiment represents an initial investigation into the transportation of fine arts materials aboard a space shuttle. Within the confines of a GAS canister, artist quality fine arts materials were packaged and exposed to the rigors of space flight in an attempt to identify adverse effects.
G-jitter convection, caused by time-varying accelerations imparted on a heated container of fluid in low gravity, is investigated analytically. The mathematical model used is constructed from the Navier-Stokes equations which are solved with a finite-difference method on a digital computer. Results are presented for typical space processing configurations and anticipated g-jitter levels, with emphasis on sounding rocket applications. The calculations indicate that g-jitter can cause significant temperature oscillations, increase or decrease local heat transfer and produce oscillatory convective flow patterns. These factors can have significant effects on important processes such as crystal growth (banding, for example) and separation techniques.
Abstract Injection of cold fluids through/into deep formations may cause significant cooling, thermal stress, and possible thermal fracturing. In this study, the thermal fracturing of low‐permeability formations under one‐dimensional heat conduction was investigated using a plane strain model. Dimensionless governing equations, with dimensionless fracture length , aperture , spacing , time , and effective confining stress , were derived. Solution of single thermal fracture was derived analytically, while solution of multiple fractures with constant (or dynamic) spacing were obtained using the displacement discontinuity method (and stability analysis). For single fracture, increases nonlinearly with and then transitions to scaling law , indicating that late‐time fracture length increases linearly with the square root of cooling time. For constantly spaced fractures, deviates from the single‐fracture solution at a later for a larger , showing slower propagation under inter‐fracture stress interaction . For dynamically spaced fractures, fracture arrest induced by stress interaction was determined by the stability analysis; the fully transient solution provides evolution of dimensionless fracture length, spacing, aperture, and pattern; a similar scaling law, with , obtained shows the effect of both stress interaction and fracture arrest. The solution and scaling law provide fast predictions for all reservoir and cooling conditions using (single) model parameter . Application to a geothermal site with demonstrates that thermal fractures reach 0.67, 6.25, and 78.00 m in length, 0.49, 2.30, and 13.00 m in spacing, and 0.43, 2.09, and 12.19 mm in aperture at 1, 100, and 10,000 days.
Increased public awareness of carbon footprints, crowding in urban areas, and rising housing costs have spawned a 'small house movement' in the housing industry. Members of this movement desire small, yet highly functional residences which are both affordable and sensitive to consumer comfort standards. In order to create comfortable, minimum-volume interiors, recent advances have been made in furniture design and approaches to interior layout that improve both space utilization and encourage multi-functional design for small homes, apartments, naval, and recreational vehicles. Design efforts in this evolving niche of terrestrial architecture can provide useful insights leading to innovation and efficiency in the design of space habitats for future human space exploration missions. This paper highlights many of the cross-cutting architectural solutions used in small space design which are applicable to the spacecraft interior design problem. Specific solutions discussed include reconfigurable, multi-purpose spaces; collapsible or transformable furniture; multi-purpose accommodations; efficient, space saving appliances; stowable and mobile workstations; and the miniaturization of electronics and computing hardware. For each of these design features, descriptions of how they save interior volume or mitigate other small space issues such as confinement stress or crowding are discussed. Finally, recommendations are provided to provide guidance for future designs and identify potential collaborations with the small spaces design community.
With the advent of space travel, it is of immediate interest and importance to study the effects of exposure to various aspects of the altered environment of space, including microgravity, on Earth-based life forms. Initial studies of space travel have focused primarily on the short-term effects of radiation and microgravity on adult organisms. However, with the potential for increased lengths of time in space, it is critical to now address the effects of space on all phases of an organism's life cycle, from embryogenesis to post-natal development to reproduction. It is already possible for certain species to undergo multiple generations within the confines of the Mir Space Station. The possibility now exists for scientists to consider the consequences of even potentially subtle defects in development through multiple phases of an organism's life cycle, or even through multiple generations. In this discussion, we highlight a few of the salient observations on the effects of the space environment on vertebrate development and reproductive function. We discuss some of the many unanswered questions, in particular, in the context of the choice of appropriate models in which to address these questions, as well as an assessment of the availability of hardware already existing or under development which would be useful in addressing these questions.
Issues governing the selection of power systems for long-term manned Space Stations intended solely for earth orbital missions are covered briefly, drawing on trade study results from both in-house and contracted studies that have been conducted over nearly two decades. An involvement, from the Program Development Office at MSFC, with current Space Station concepts began in late 1982 with the NASA-wide Systems Definition Working Group and continued throughout 1984 in support of various planning activities. The premise for this discussion is that, within the confines of the current Space Station concept, there is good reason to consider photovoltaic power systems to be a venerable technology option for both the initial 75 kW and 300 kW (or much greater) growth stations. The issue of large physical size required by photovoltaic power systems is presented considering mass, atmospheric drag, launch packaging and power transmission voltage as being possible practicality limitations. The validity of searching for a cross-over point necessitating the introduction of solar thermal or nuclear power system options as enabling technologies is considered with reference to programs ranging from the 4.8 kW Skylab to the 9.5 gW Space Power Satellite.
Studies of meson spectroscopy have often employed a nonrelativistic Coulomb plus Linear Confining potential in position space. However, because the quarks in mesons move at an appreciable fraction of the speed of light, it is necessary to use a relativistic treatment of the bound state problem. Such a treatment is most easily carried out in momentum space. However, the position space Linear and Coulomb potentials lead to singular kernels in momentum space. Using a subtraction procedure we show how to remove these singularities exactly and thereby solve the Schroedinger equation in momentum space for all partial waves. Furthermore, we generalize the Linear and Coulomb potentials to relativistic kernels in four dimensional momentum space. Again we use a subtraction procedure to remove the relativistic singularities exactly for all partial waves. This enables us to solve three dimensional reductions of the Bethe-Salpeter equation. We solve six such equations for Coulomb plus Confining interactions for all partial waves.
Protein crystals are so fragile that they often can not be handled by tweezers. Indeed, measurements of the Young modulus, E, of lysozyme crystals resulted in E approx. equals 0.1 - 1 GPa, the lower figures, 0.1 - 0.5 GPa, being obtained from triple point bending of as-grown and not cross-linked crystals sitting in solution. The bending strength was found to be approx.10(exp -2) E. On the other hand, ultrasound speed and Mandelstam-Raman-Brilloin light scattering experiments led to much higher figures, E approx. equals 2.7 GPa. The lower figures for E were found from static or low frequency crystal deformations measurements, while the higher moduli are based on high frequency lattice vibrations, 10(exp 7) - 10(exp 10) 1/s. The physical reason for the about an order of magnitude discrepancy is in different behavior of water filling space between protein molecules. At slow lattice deformation, the not-bound intermolecular water has enough time to flow from the compressed to expanded regions of the deformed crystal. At high deformation frequencies in the ultra- and hypersound waves, the water is confined in the intermolecular space and, on that scale, behaves like a solid, thus contributing to the elastic crystal moduli. In this case, the reciprocal crystal modulus is expected to be an average of the water protein and water compressibilities (reciprocal compressibilities): the bulk modulus for lysozyme is 26 GPa, for water it is 7 GPa. Anisotropy of the crystal moduli comes from intermolecular contacts within the lattice while the high frequency hardness comes from the bulk of protein molecules and water bulk moduli. These conclusions are based on the analysis of liquid flow in porous medium to be presented.
As astronauts venture farther from Earth, and stay for longer periods, the space food system will increase in importance. Crop production can supplement a pre-packaged space diet to provide nutrition and dietary variety for space crews. In future missions, bioregenerative approaches may be used to generate a larger percentage of the diet, as well as help to reduce life support system burdens and resupply from Earth. Plants may also provide behavioral health benefits to crew members living in the isolated, confined environment of a space habitat. A number of unique challenges exist for growth of plants in microgravity and on other reduced gravity surfaces like the moon and Mars. Testing plant growth inside the Veggie and Advanced Plant Habitat (APH) chambers on the International Space Station is allowing us to understand the impacts of gravity and spaceflight on crop growth, nutritional content, acceptability, and the importance of plants to astronauts living and working away from Earth. We are also gaining a better understanding of food safety concerns and the behavior of space plant microbiomes and plant pathogens, but major gaps in knowledge remain. As we move from research towards operational space crop production to enable exploration, there are numerous gaps in technology, knowledge, and practice related to space crop growth that must be addressed. Research and development in key focus areas such as effective water and nutrient delivery at variable gravity levels, autonomous plant health monitoring, growth system cleaning and disinfection, and selection of ideal space crops are needed to fill these gaps. Breeding or engineering custom space crops may impact areas including plant growth and development, plant physiology, produce nutrition, organoleptic acceptability, and post-harvest characteristics, and these may further enable space crop production scenarios. Space crop challenges are multifaceted and require diverse interdisciplinary teams working together to develop effective solutions. Solving these requires an array of skill sets from across the biological and physical sciences, engineering, and human social sciences. Solutions to help ensure food security off-Earth may also translate to more sustainable terrestrial crop production approaches, and regular dialog between industry, academia, and government organizations working in related fields benefit all. Additional help can come from engagement with student researchers at various levels through courses, participatory science projects, and open science activities which can provide useful data. Global coordination and integration between space agencies and partners will be essential.
As astronauts venture farther from Earth, and stay for longer periods, the space food system will increase in importance. Crop production can supplement a pre-packaged space diet to provide nutrition and dietary variety for space crews. In future missions, bioregenerative approaches may be used to generate a larger percentage of the diet, as well as help to reduce life support system burdens and resupply from Earth. Plants may also provide behavioral health benefits to crew members living in the isolated, confined environment of a space habitat. A number of unique challenges exist for growth of plants in microgravity and on other reduced gravity surfaces like the moon and Mars. Testing plant growth inside the Veggie and Advanced Plant Habitat (APH) chambers on the International Space Station is allowing us to understand the impacts of gravity and spaceflight on crop growth, nutritional content, acceptability, and the importance of plants to astronauts living and working away from Earth. We are also gaining a better understanding of food safety concerns and the behavior of space plant microbiomes and plant pathogens, but major gaps in knowledge remain. As we move from research towards operational space crop production to enable exploration, there are numerous gaps in technology, knowledge, and practice related to space crop growth that must be addressed. Research and development in key focus areas such as effective water and nutrient delivery at variable gravity levels, autonomous plant health monitoring, growth system cleaning and disinfection, and selection of ideal space crops are needed to fill these gaps. Breeding or engineering custom space crops may impact areas including plant growth and development, plant physiology, produce nutrition, organoleptic acceptability, and post-harvest characteristics, and these may further enable space crop production scenarios. Space crop challenges are multifaceted and require diverse interdisciplinary teams working together to develop effective solutions. Solving these requires an array of skill sets from across the biological and physical sciences, engineering, and human social sciences. Solutions to help ensure food security off-Earth may also translate to more sustainable terrestrial crop production approaches, and regular dialog between industry, academia, and government organizations working in related fields benefit all. Additional help can come from engagement with student researchers at various levels through courses, participatory science projects, and open science activities which can provide useful data. Global coordination and integration between space agencies and partners will be essential.