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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 235 records · Page 13

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NASA NTRS1973

Explicit determination of lateral-directional stability and control derivatives by simutaneous time vector analysis of two maneuvers

An extension of the time vector technique for determining stability and control derivatives from flight data is formulated. The technique provides for explicit determination of derivatives by means of simultaneous analysis of two maneuvers which differ by a dependent control input. The control derivatives for the dependent input are also explicitly determined. This extended technique is preferable to the application of the time vector method to single maneuvers in that no estimates of derivatives are required. An example illustrating the application of the technique is given.

Gilyard, G. B.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Temperature sensing by primary roots of maize

Zea mays L. seedlings, grown on agar plates at 26 degrees C, reoriented the original vertical direction of their primary root when exposed to a thermal gradient applied perpendicular to the gravity vector. The magnitude and direction of curvature can not be explained simply by either a temperature or a humidity effect on root elongation. It is concluded that primary roots of maize sense temperature gradients in addition to sensing the gravitational force.

NASA Program Space Biology↗

NASA NTRS1994

Radar aperture synthesis observations of asteroids

We report of Goldstone-VLA, radar aperture-synthesis observations of the mainbelt asteroids 324 Bamberga and 7 Iris and the near-Earth asteroids 1991 EE and 4179 Toutatis. Simultaneous resolution of echoes in both angle and Doppler frequency provide new constraints on the mainbelt asteroids' pole directions: Bamberga's spin vector is within 40 deg of the south ecliptic pole, and the twofold ambiguity in Iris' pole direction (P. Magnusson, 1989) is resolved in favor of the ecliptic coordinates lambda = 15 deg, beta = +25 deg. For Bamberga, monostatic and bistatic radar echoes and VLA thermal-emission measurements, also reported here, are consistent with radiometric estimates of Bamberga's size and with the hypothesis that the asteroid is overlain by a regolith having a porosity of approximately 50%. Our near-Earth asteroid measurements required the development of new on-line VLA software that allows imaging of objects that are in the telescope's `near field.' This software has been successfully tested on Toutatis at a distance of 0.06 AU and will be essential for VLA observations of Earth-approaching comets.

De Pater, Imke↗

NASA NTRS1980

Microstructure of the interplanetary magnetic field near 4 and 5 AU

Interplanetary magnetic field fluctuations near 4 and 5 AU are investigated on the basis of Pioneer 10 and 11 vector magnetic field measurements in order to identify extant wave modes and propagation directions as functions of frequency in the range 0.00004 to 0.009 Hz. Analysis of the approximately 500 spectral matrices as functions of frequency obtained from each spacecraft indicates the distributions of maximum variance directions to be peaked along the normal to the plane of the minimum variance direction and the mean magnetic field, as would be expected for a planar, small-amplitude Alfven wave with a minimum variance direction close to the wave vector. It is thus inferred that single small-amplitude Alfven waves are occasionally present in the temporal and frequency bands analyzed, however waves with wave vectors not well approximated by the minimum variance direction, Alfven wave ensembles, finite-amplitude waves and nonplanar fluctuations may also be present. Observations are also noted to suggest the predominance of the Alfven mode over the fast and slow modes, however do not support theoretical models of outward propagating plane Alfven waves of solar origin.

Parker, G. D.↗

DOE OSTI2024

Constituent model of light hybrid meson decays

A model of light hybrid mesons and their strong decays is developed. The model employs a gluonic quasiparticle to describe low energy gluodynamics and uses the QCD Hamiltonian in Coulomb gauge to guide the construction of states and decay amplitudes. We compute the partial widths of the twelve low lying isovector and vector hybrids. Implications of these results on hybrid searches are also made, with the chief conclusions being that direct observation of the vector states will be difficult, that a hybrid π ( 1800 ) has distinctive decay characteristics, a narrow η ( 1900 ) hybrid should exist, an η 1 ( 1750 ) should be sought, and that the exotic nature of J P C = 2 − + hybrid mesons should be discernible with sufficient data. We argue that the isovector π 2 hybrid has been discovered, giving a total of four possible hybrid mesons, π 1 ( 1600 ) , η 1 ( 1855 ) , π ( 1800 ) , and π 2 ( 2360 ) , which appear to be filling out the low lying hybrid supermultiplet in the expected fashion. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗

NASA NTRS1997

Predictive Features of a Cockpit Traffic Display: A Workload Assessment

Eighteen pilots flew a series of traffic avoidance maneuvers in an experiment designed to assess the support offered and workload imposed by different levels of traffic display information in a free flight simulation. Three display prototypes were compared which differed in traffic information provided. A BASELINE (BL) display provided current and (2nd order) predicted information regarding ownship and current information of an intruder aircraft, represented on lateral and vertical displays in a coplanar suite. An INTRUDER PREDICTOR (IP) display, augmented the baseline display by providing lateral and vertical prediction of the intruder aircraft. A THREAT VECTOR (TV) display added to the IP display a vector that indicates the direction from ownship to the intruder at the predicted point of closest contact (POCC). The length of the vector corresponds to the radius of the protected zone, and the distance of the intersection of the vector with ownship predictor, corresponds to the time available till POCC or loss of separation. Pilots time shared the traffic avoidance task with a secondary task requiring them to monitor the top of the display for faint targets. This task simulated the visual demands of out-of-cockpit scanning, and hence was used to estimate the head-down time required by the different display formats. The results revealed that both display augmentations improved performance (safety) as assessed by predicted and actual loss of separation (i.e., penetration of the protected zone). Both enhancements also reduced workload, as assessed by the NASA TLX scale. The intruder predictor display produced these benefits with no substantial impact on the qualitative nature of the avoidance maneuvers that were selected. The threat vector produced the safety benefits by inducing a greater degree of (effective) lateral maneuvering, thus partially offsetting the benefits of reduced workload. The three displays did not differ in terms of their effect on performance of the monitoring task, used to infer head-down time, nor in the extent of vertical or airspeed maneuvering. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for 19 cognitive engineering design features.

Wickens, Christopher D.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Digital image velocimetry

Digital image velocimetry is proposed for the measurement of the instantaneous velocity fields of time dependent flows. This technique improves the flow measurement by eliminating some of the restrictions on existing optical methods (i.e., laser speckle velocimetry and particle image velocimetry). Among these restrictions are the limited dynamic range of the velocity measurement, directional ambiguity of the velocity vector, and the difficulty of a real-time capability. The present technique greatly enhances the dynamic range of the velocity measurement and unequivocally determines the direction of the velocity vector.

Cho, Y.-C.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Lateral heterogeneity and azimuthal anistropy of the upper mantle: Love and Rayleigh waves 100-250 sec

The lateral heterogeneity and apparent anisotropy of the upper mantle are studied by measuring Rayleigh and Love wave phase velocities in the period range 100-250 sec. Spherical harmonic descriptions of the lateral heterogeneity are obtained for order and degree up to 1=m=10. Slow regions are evident at the East Pacific rise, northeast Africa, Tibet, Tasman sea, southwestern North America and triple junctions in the Northern Atlantic and Indian oceans. Fast regions occur in Australia, western Pacific and the eastern Atlantic. Details which are not evident in previous studies include two fast regions in the central Pacific and the subduction zone in the Scotia Arc region. Inversion for azimuthal dependence showed (1) little correlation between the fast phase velocity directions and the plate motion vector in plate interiors, but (2) correlation of the fast direction with the perpendicular direction to trenches and ridges. Phase velocity is high when waves propagate perpendicular to these structures. Severe tradeoffs exist between heterogeneity and azimuthal dependence because of the yet unsatisfactory path coverage.

Tanimoto, T.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Lateral heterogeneity and azimuthal anisotropy of the upper mantle - Love and Rayleigh waves 100-250 sec

Tanimoto, T.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Manufacturing in space: Fluid dynamics numerical analysis

Numerical computations were performed for natural convection in circular enclosures under various conditions of acceleration. It was found that subcritical acceleration vectors applied in the direction of the temperature gradient will lead to an eventual state of rest regardless of the initial state of motion. Supercritical acceleration vectors will lead to the same steady state condition of motion regardless of the initial state of motion. Convection velocities were computed for acceleration vectors at various angles of the initial temperature gradient. The results for Rayleigh numbers of 1000 or less were found to closely follow Weinbaum's first order theory. Higher Rayleigh number results were shown to depart significantly from the first order theory. Supercritical behavior was confirmed for Rayleigh numbers greater than the known supercritical value of 9216. Response times were determined to provide an indication of the time required to change states of motion for the various cases considered.

Robertson, S. J.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Dynamic Forms. Part 1: Functions

The formalism of dynamic forms is developed as a means for organizing and systematizing the design control systems. The formalism allows the designer to easily compute derivatives to various orders of large composite functions that occur in flight-control design. Such functions involve many function-of-a-function calls that may be nested to many levels. The component functions may be multiaxis, nonlinear, and they may include rotation transformations. A dynamic form is defined as a variable together with its time derivatives up to some fixed but arbitrary order. The variable may be a scalar, a vector, a matrix, a direction cosine matrix, Euler angles, or Euler parameters. Algorithms for standard elementary functions and operations of scalar dynamic forms are developed first. Then vector and matrix operations and transformations between parameterization of rotations are developed in the next level in the hierarchy. Commonly occurring algorithms in control-system design, including inversion of pure feedback systems, are developed in the third level. A large-angle, three-axis attitude servo and other examples are included to illustrate the effectiveness of the developed formalism. All algorithms were implemented in FORTRAN code. Practical experience shows that the proposed formalism may significantly improve the productivity of the design and coding process.

Meyer, George↗

NASA NTRS2002

Definition of Contravariant Velocity Components

This is an old issue in computational fluid dynamics (CFD). What is the so-called contravariant velocity or contravariant velocity component? In the article, we review the basics of tensor analysis and give the contravariant velocity component a rigorous explanation. For a given coordinate system, there exist two uniquely determined sets of base vector systems - one is the covariant and another is the contravariant base vector system. The two base vector systems are reciprocal. The so-called contravariant velocity component is really the contravariant component of a velocity vector for a time-independent coordinate system, or the contravariant component of a relative velocity between fluid and coordinates, for a time-dependent coordinate system. The contravariant velocity components are not physical quantities of the velocity vector. Their magnitudes, dimensions, and associated directions are controlled by their corresponding covariant base vectors. Several 2-D (two-dimensional) linear examples and 2-D mass-conservation equation are used to illustrate the details of expressing a vector with respect to the covariant and contravariant base vector systems, respectively.

Hung, Ching-Mao↗

DOE OSTI2023

A Study of the Properties and Dynamics of the Disk of Satellites in a Milky-Way-like Galaxy System

The dynamics of the satellite systems of Milky-Way-like galaxies offer a useful means by which to study the galaxy formation process in the cosmological context. It has been suggested that the currently observed anisotropic distribution of the satellites in such galaxy systems is inconsistent with the concordance ΛCDM cosmology model on the galactic scale if the observed satellites are random samples of the dark matter (DM) sub-halos that are nearly isotropically distributed around the central galaxy. In this study, we present original high-resolution zoom-in studies of central galaxies and satellite systems based upon initial conditions for the DM distribution from the Aquarius simulations but with substantial high-resolution baryon physics added. We find that the galaxy most like the Milky Way in this study does indeed contain a disk of satellites (DOS). Although one galaxy DOS system does not answer the question of how common such disks are, it does allow the opportunity to explore the properties and dynamics of the DOS system. Our investigation centers on the spatial arrangement (distances, angles, etc.) of satellites in this Milky-Way-like galaxy system with a specific emphasis on identifying and analyzing the disk-like structure along with its dynamical and morphological properties. Among the conclusions from this study, we find that the satellites and DM sub-halos in the galaxy simulations are anisotropically distributed. The dynamical properties of the satellites, however, indicate that the direction of the angular momentum vector of the whole satellite system is different from the normal direction of the fitted DOS and from the normal direction of the velocity dispersion of the system. Hence, the fitted DOS appears to be comprised of infalling sub-halos and is not a rotationally supported system.

Zhao, Xinghai↗

NASA NTRS1990

Thrust-Vector Deflectors For Spacecraft

Rotating shield steers thrust in desired direction. Report discusses use of thrust-vector deflectors (TVD's) to enhance controllability and reduce number of small rocket engines (thrustors) needed to control attitudes of artificial satellites. Developed in aircraft industry for use in jet engines. Principal advantages gained, lower cost and greater simplicity.

Soong, William C.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Effect of stance width on multidirectional postural responses

The effect of stance width on postural responses to 12 different directions of surface translations was examined. Postural responses were characterized by recording 11 lower limb and trunk muscles, body kinematics, and forces exerted under each foot of 7 healthy subjects while they were subjected to horizontal surface translations in 12 different, randomly presented directions. A quasi-static approach of force analysis was done, examining force integrals in three different epochs (background, passive, and active periods). The latency and amplitude of muscle responses were quantified for each direction, and muscle tuning curves were used to determine the spatial activation patterns for each muscle. The results demonstrate that the horizontal force constraint exerted at the ground was lessened in the wide, compared with narrow, stance for humans, a similar finding to that reported by Macpherson for cats. Despite more trunk displacement in narrow stance, there were no significant changes in body center of mass (CoM) displacement due to large changes in center of pressure (CoP), especially in response to lateral translations. Electromyographic (EMG) magnitude decreased for all directions in wide stance, particularly for the more proximal muscles, whereas latencies remained the same from narrow to wide stance. Equilibrium control in narrow stance was more of an active postural strategy that included regulating the loading/unloading of the limbs and the direction of horizontal force vectors. In wide stance, equilibrium control relied more on an increase in passive stiffness resulting from changes in limb geometry. The selective latency modulation of the proximal muscles with translation direction suggests that the trunk was being actively controlled in all directions. The similar EMG latencies for both narrow and wide stance, with modulation of only the muscle activation magnitude as stance width changed, suggest that the same postural synergy was only slightly modified for a change in stance width. Nevertheless, the magnitude of the trunk displacement, as well as of CoP displacement, was modified based on the degree of passive stiffness in the musculoskeletal system, which increased with stance width. The change from a more passive to an active horizontal force constraint, to larger EMG magnitudes especially in the trunk muscles and larger trunk and CoP excursions in narrow stance are consistent with a more effortful response for equilibrium control in narrow stance to perturbations in all directions.

Non-NASA Center↗

DOE OSTI2022

Spin and charge density waves in quasi-one-dimensional KMn 6 Bi 5

The recent observation that pressure could suppress antiferromagnetic (AFM) order in quasi-one-dimensional AMn 6 Bi 5 Mn-cluster chain materials (A=Na, K, Rb, and Cs) and lead to a superconducting dome offers an alternative Mn-based class of materials with which to study unconventional superconductivity. Using neutron diffraction, we elucidate the exact nature of the previously unknown AFM ground state of KMn 6 Bi 5 and report finding transverse incommensurate spin density waves (SDWs) for the Mn atoms with a propagating direction along the chains. The SDWs have distinct refined amplitudes of ~2.46μ B for the Mn atoms in the pentagons and ~0.29μ B with a large standard deviation for Mn atoms at the center between the pentagons. AFM coupling dominates both the nearest-neighbor Mn-Mn interactions within the pentagon and next-nearest-neighbor Mn-Mn interactions out of the pentagon (along the propagating wave). The SDWs exhibit both local and itinerant characteristics potentially due to cooperative interactions between local magnetic exchange and conduction electrons. Single crystal x-ray diffraction below the AFM transition revealed satellite peaks originating from charge density waves along the chain direction with a q vector twice as large as that of the SDW, pointing to a strong real space coupling between them. Additionally, we report a significant magnetoelastic effect during the AFM transition, especially along the chain direction, observed in temperature-dependent x-ray powder diffraction. Our work not only reveals fascinating intertwined spin, charge, and lattice orders in one-dimensional KMn 6 Bi 5 , but also provides an essential piece of information on its magnetic structure to understand the mechanism of superconductivity in this Mn-based family.

1-dimensional systems↗

NASA NTRS1998

Visualization and Measurement of Surface Shear Stress Vector Distributions Using Liquid Crystal Coatings

When a shear-sensitive liquid crystal coating is illuminated from the normal direction by white light and observed from an oblique above-plane view angle, its color-change response to shear depends on both shear stress vector magnitude and the direction of the applied shear vector relative to the observer's in-plane line of sight. At any point, the maximum color change is always seen or measured when the local shear vector is aligned with, and directed away from, the observer; the magnitude of the color change at this vector/observer aligned orientation scales directly with shear stress magnitude. Conversely, any point exposed to a shear vector with a component directed toward the observer exhibits a noncolor-change response, always characterized by a rusty red or brown color, independent of both shear magnitude and direction. Based on this knowledge, full-surface shear stress vector visualization and measurement methodologies were formulated and successfully demonstrated. The present paper reviews the observations and measurements that led to the development of these methodologies and applications of both are discussed.

Reda, Daniel C.↗

DOE OSTI2022

A broken translational symmetry state in an infinite-layer nickelate

A defining signature of strongly correlated electronic systems is a rich phase diagram, which consists of multiple broken symmetries, such as magnetism, superconductivity, and charge order. In the recently discovered nickelate superconductors a large antiferromagnetic exchange energy has been reported, which implies the existence of strong electronic correlations. However, signatures of a broken-symmetry state other than superconductivity have not yet been observed. Here, we observe charge ordering in infinite-layer nickelates La 1-x Sr x NiO 2 using resonant x-ray scattering. The parent compound orders along the Ni-O bond direction with an incommensurate wave vector, distinct from the stripe order observed in other nickelates that propagates along a direction 45º to the Ni-O bond. The resonance profile we measure indicates that ordering originates from the nickelate layers and induces a parasitic charge modulation of lanthanum electrons. After doping, the charge order diminishes and its wave vector shifts toward commensurate, indicating that strong electronic correlations are likely to be responsible for the ordered state. Our results suggest that the existence of charge order and its potential interplay with antiferromagnetic fluctuations and superconductivity are important themes in nickel-based superconductors.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗