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At least 325 records · Page 18

Kinematic evidence for a relativistic Keplerian disk - Arp 102B

Line profiles were calculated for a Keplerian disk with allowance made for relativistic effects. Excellent agreement was found between the resulting double peaked asymmetric profiles and the H-alpha line of Arp 102B; this yielded an accurate determination of several disk parameters. It is believed that the line profile of Arp 102B shows the most convincing direct kinematic evidence for rotation in any AGN.

Chen, Kaiyou↗

The kinematics of Milky Way halo gas. I - Observations of low-ionization species

Ultraviolet interstellar line day observed with the IUE toward 70 halo stars and four extragalactic sight lines are analyzed in a study of the large-scale kinematic properties of the Milky Way halo gas. The motions of the low-ionization gas is focused on. Large systematic velocities are found, and a pronounced asymmetry in the absorption characteristics of halo gas toward the Galactic poles is indicated. In the north, substantial amounts of material are falling toward the disk at velocities up to about 120 km/s in the most extreme case. Toward the south, low-ionization material shows no extreme or systematic motions.

Danly, Laura↗

A framework for modelling kinematic measurements in gravity field applications

To assess the resolution of the local gravity field from kinematic measurements, a state model for motion in the gravity field of the earth is formulated. The resulting set of equations can accommodate gravity gradients, specific force, acceleration, velocity and position as input data and can take into account approximation errors as well as sensor errors.

Schwarz, K. P.↗

Kinematic functions for the 7 DOF robotics research arm

The Robotics Research Model K-1207 manipulator is a redundant 7R serial link arm with offsets at all joints. To uniquely determine joint angles for a given end-effector configuration, the redundancy is parameterized by a scalar variable which corresponds to the angle between the manipulator elbow plane and the vertical plane. The forward kinematic mappings from joint-space to end-effector configuration and elbow angle, and the augmented Jacobian matrix which gives end-effector and elbow angle rates as a function of joint rates, are also derived.

Kreutz, K.↗

Reflexive obstacle avoidance for kinematically-redundant manipulators

Dexterous telerobots incorporating 17 or more degrees of freedom operating under coordinated, sensor-driven computer control will play important roles in future space operations. They will also be used on Earth in assignments like fire fighting, construction and battlefield support. A real time, reflexive obstacle avoidance system, seen as a functional requirement for such massively redundant manipulators, was developed using arm-mounted proximity sensors to control manipulator pose. The project involved a review and analysis of alternative proximity sensor technologies for space applications, the development of a general-purpose algorithm for synthesizing sensor inputs, and the implementation of a prototypical system for demonstration and testing. A 7 degree of freedom Robotics Research K-2107HR manipulator was outfitted with ultrasonic proximity sensors as a testbed, and Robotics Research's standard redundant motion control algorithm was modified such that an object detected by sensor arrays located at the elbow effectively applies a force to the manipulator elbow, normal to the axis. The arm is repelled by objects detected by the sensors, causing the robot to steer around objects in the workspace automatically while continuing to move its tool along the commanded path without interruption. The mathematical approach formulated for synthesizing sensor inputs can be employed for redundant robots of any kinematic configuration.

Karlen, James P.↗

Dynamical modeling of serial manipulators with flexible links and joints using the method of kinematic influence

A method of formulating the dynamical equations of a flexible, serial manipulator is presented, using the Method of Kinematic Influence. The resulting equations account for rigid body motion, structural motion due to link and joint flexibilities, and the coupling between these two motions. Nonlinear inertial loads are included in the equations. A finite order mode summation method is used to model flexibilities. The structural data may be obtained from experimental, finite element, or analytical methods. Nonlinear flexibilities may be included in the model.

Graves, Philip L.↗

A kinematic model of ridge-transform geometry evolution

A simple kinematic model is used to study the effects of various parameters on the evolution of zero-offset transforms and very-long-offset transforms. Consideration is given to the effects of initial configuration, degree of asymmetry, and degree of bias in asymmetry on the generation of these ridge transform geometries and on the possible steady-state nature of the transform length spectra. Of the parameters tests, only lack of 'memory' of zero-offset transforms affects transform length distribution.

Stoddard, Paul R.↗

Emission-line variations and broad-line region kinematics of NGC 5548

Sixteen spectroscopic observations of the Seyfert galaxy NGC 5548 were made between March 1979 and June 1984 at Palomar and Steward Observatories. Broad-line flux variations correlated with nonstellar continuum changes were measured. H-beta, H-gamma, and He II 4686A all respond rapidly to continuum variations providing strong evidence for photoionization by a central continuum source. Additionally, H-beta profile variations have occurred during the 1900 day monitoring period. These profile variations also correlate with changes in the continuum, but lag behind by about 90 days or less. A kinematic model that incorporates radial outflow and an internal line opacity source is proposed to explain qualitatively the observed H-beta profile variations.

Rosenblatt, Edward I.↗

Some fundamentals regarding kinematics and generalized forces for multibody dynamics

In order to illustrate the various forms in which generalized forces can arise from diverse subsystem analyses in multibody dynamics, intrinsic dynamical equations for the rotational dynamics of a rigid body are derived from Hamilton's principle. Two types of generalized forces are derived: (1) those associated with the virtual rotation vector in some orthogonal basis, and (2) those associated with varying generalized coordinates. As one physical or kinematical result (such as a frequency or a specific direction cosine) cannot rely on this selection, a 'blind' coupling of two models in which generalized forces are calculated in different ways would be wrong. Both types should use the same rotational coordinates and should denote the virtual rotation on a similar basis according to method 1, or in terms of common rotational coordinates and their diversifications as in method 2. Alternatively, the generalized forces and coordinates of one model may be transformed to those of the other.

Hodges, Dewey H.↗

A study of the kinematic dynamo equation with time-dependent coefficients

During an active star formation epoch the interstellar medium of a galaxy is in a hyperactive state, and the average turbulent velocity is higher than in the long periods between star formation epochs. The galactic magnetic field generated by dynamo action depends strongly on the turbulent velocity, so that generation of magnetic field should vary with star formation activity. This paper is a preliminary study of the kinematic dynamo equation with time-dependent coefficients simulating the time dependence of the star formation activities. Ko and Parker argued in a simple model that the thickness of the dynamo region is the most sensitive dynamo parameter. The present work shows that the effect of inflating the galactic disk suddenly is to transform a stationary magnetic field into a growing field while keeping the profile more or less intact. Plane wave solutions for a dynamo with power-law time-dependent parameters show that the field may decay first and then grow, and vice versa, which is quite different from a constant parameter dynamo.

Ko, Chung-Ming↗

Rainfall and surface kinematic conditions over central amazonia during ABLE 2B

Rainfall, rainfall systems, and surface kinematics of the central Amazon basin wet season are investigated using meteorological and chemical data collected during the wet season Amazon Boundary Layer Experiment (ABLE) near Manaus, Brazil. Through analysis of (GOES-West) imagery, it is determined that, based on location of the initial development, there are three main types of convective systems which influence a mesoscale network near Manaus, namely the Coastal Occurring Systems (COS), the Basin Occurring Systems (BOS), and the Locally Occurring Systems (LOS). Chemical analysis of rainwater delivered by these systems shows significant differences in concentrations of formate, acetate, pyruvate, sulfate, and hydrogen ion, and measurements of aerosol concentrations near Manaus show large influxes of aerosols into central Amazonia after passage of BOS and COS. Results of satellite based classification of the rain-producing systems are discussed.

Greco, Steven↗

Stellar kinematics of elliptical galaxies in pairs

In both galaxy pairs Arp 166 and 3C 278 the authors find radially increasing velocity dispersions indicating a perturbed, non-equilibrium state of the galaxies after the tidal interaction. In all galaxies, the increase is most pronounced in the regions which correspond to the centers of the outer isophotes. The authors suggest a scenario in which the galaxies are strongly decelerated on their orbits during the encounter. The deceleration depends on the radial position in the perturbed galaxy and vanishes in the center of the perturbed galaxy (Spitzer, 1958). In addition, the crossing time of the stars near the center is very short, implying that the tidal perturbations can be averaged over several orbital periods (e.g., Binney and Tremaine, 1987). In consequence, the central parts are not affected by the tidal interaction while the outer parts are strongly decelerated. This leads to a displacement of the central parts of the galaxies with respect to their envelopes in an anti-symmetrical way for the two components of each galaxy pair. The motions of the central parts subsequently are opposed by dynamical friction with the surrounding envelopes. Due to dynamical friction, the density of the stars increases in the wakes of the moving central parts (Mulder, 1983). The overdensity of stars in the wakes of the moving central parts efficiently decelerates the motions of the central parts. The reaction of the stars in the overdensity regions leads to an increase of the velocity dispersion mainly along the orbits of the moving central parts. The presented observations, especially the asymmetrical luminosity profiles and the radially increasing velocity dispersions support consistently the above scenario of tidal interaction between galaxies. Further spectroscopic observations are necessary in order to investigate the degree of anisotropy in the kinematically perturbed regions.

Madejsky, Rainer↗

The kinematics and morphology of NGC 520: One, two, or three galaxies

The peculiar galaxy NGC 520 (Arp 157) is often interpreted as an interacting pair of galaxies. The identification of the two bulges and overall morphology of the two galaxies has long been a puzzle which the authors attempt to solve here. New longslit optical spectroscopy and near-infrared images of NGC 520 are presented. These data suggest that the northwest peak is the bulge of one of two galaxies in the system. The other larger bulge is clearly evident in the K band image in the middle of the dust lane. The stellar radial velocity profile in the central 10 seconds of the larger bulge is consistent with counterrotation seen in the molecular gas component. This kinematic subsystem could be the remains of a merged gas-rich irregular.

Stanford, S. A.↗

A two-dimensional kinematic dynamo model of the ionospheric magnetic field at Venus

The results of a high-resolution, two-dimensional, time dependent, kinematic dynamo model of the ionospheric magnetic field of Venus are presented. Various one-dimensional models are considered and the two-dimensional model is then detailed. In this model, the two-dimensional magnetic induction equation, the magnetic diffusion-convection equation, is numerically solved using specified plasma velocities. Origins of the vertical velocity profile and of the horizontal velocities are discussed. It is argued that the basic features of the vertical magnetic field profile remain unaltered by horizontal flow effects and also that horizontal plasma flow can strongly affect the magnetic field for altitudes above 300 km.

Cravens, T. E.↗

Studies of the local interstellar medium. VIII - Morphology and kinematics of the diffuse interstellar clouds toward Orion

Interstellar clouds in the direction of the Orion association show only positive velocities for target stars within 190 pc of the sun, and both positive and negative velocities for more distant target stars, confirming an earlier prediction by Cowie, Songaila, and York (1979). The nearby positive velocity cloud, designated here as Orion-Lepus 70 (OL 70), is a standard diffuse interstellar cloud: it is subject to the ambient galactic radiation field, with properties consistent with T about equal to 100 K and n about equal to 3/cu cm. Combined with a column density log N(H) = 19.8-20.0/sq cm, these values imply a cloud thickness of about 7 pc. The kinematics of OL 70 are consistent with either an origin as part of the expanding Loop I superbubble shell, or as part of Lindbald's expanding ring, or a synthesis of the two models. The negative velocity interstellar components seen in stars at d not less than 200 pc are caused by interstellar matter accelerated by the expanding Ori-Eri superbubble. Relatively dense interstellar gas at positive LSR velocities is also found within the Orion association, so that it is difficult to pick out OL 70 components in the spectra of the distant stars.

Frisch, P. C.↗

Obtaining consistent models of helicopter flight-data measurement errors using kinematic-compatibility and state-reconstruction methods

A new method was developed for application of Kalman Filter/Smoothers to post-flight processing of helicopter flight test dynamic measurements. This processing includes checking for kinematic compatibility among the measurements, identification of a measurement error model, and reconstruction of both measured and unmeasured time histories. Emphasis is placed on identification of a parametric measurement error model which is valid for a set of flight test data. This is facilitated through a new method of concatenating several maneuver time histories. The method also includes a model structure determination step which ensures that a physically realistic parameterization has been achieved. Application of the method to a set of BO-105 flight test data is illustrated. The resulting minimally parameterized error model is shown to characterize the measurement errors of the entire data set with very little variation in the parameter values. Reconstructed time histories are shown to have increased bandwidths and signal to noise ratios.

Fletcher, Jay W.↗

Present-day kinematics of the Rivera plate and implications for tectonics in southwestern Mexico

A model for the present-day motion of the Rivera plate relative to the North America, Cocos, and Pacific plates is derived using new data from the Pacific-Rivera rise and Rivera transform fault, together with new estimates of Pacific-Rivera motions. The results are combined with the closure-consistent NUVEL-1 global plate motion model of DeMets et al. (1990) to examine present-day deformation in southwestern Mexico. The analysis addresses several questions raised in previous studies of the Rivera plate. Namely, do plate motion data from the northern East Pacific rise require a distinct Rivera plate? Do plate kinematic data require the subduction of the Rivera plate along the seismically quiescent Acapulco trench? If so, what does the predicted subduction rate imply about the earthquake recurrence interval in the Jalisco region of southwestern Mexico?

Demets, Charles↗

Kinematics and ionization of extended gas in active galaxies. VI - The Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 1386

Results are presented of direct imaging with a CCD detector and long-slit medium- and low-dispersion spectroscopy of the spatially extended narrow-line-emitting gas in the nearby Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 1386. The distribution, kinematics, and ionization structure of the excited gas were examined in the regions surrounding the nucleus out to a distance of about 1.0. Results present evidence for a spiral structure in this galaxy and for the presence of H II regions in the disk (supporting the classification of NGC 1386 as a Sa galaxy).

Weaver, K. A.↗