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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 37 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1991

Single Doppler radar and lidar studies of the dynamics of mixed layers and overlying stable regions

Some examples of profiles of PBL quantities retrieved from Doppler radar and lidar observations are shown, and the extent to which the deduced quantities agree with the traditional eddy viscosity concept is examined. It is found in one case that the concept of 'top down bottom up' diffusion introduced by Wyngaard (1983) is more pertinent than that of the eddy viscosity. In another case it is found that, in stable layers with sufficiently large Richardson number, the momentum fluxes could be counter-gradient. In this latter case the use of a negative turbulence diffusion coefficient would result in an ill-posed differential equation, thus confusing the 'diffusion problem'.

Xu, Mei↗
NASA NTRS1993

Lidar and radar derived cirrus microphysical properties for the 26 November 1991 case study

The Wave Propagation Laboratory's CO2 lidar (lambda = 10.6 microns) and Ka-band radar (lambda = 8.66 mm) operate at widely separated wavelengths; the differences in how the transmitted waves interact with cloud targets can be exploited to provide information that neither sensor could provide alone. This can be as simple as overlapping the data sets to provide additional coverage on cloud geometry (see Uttal and Intrieri, 1993) or combining the measurements in a theoretical framework to provide cirrus cloud parameters of the size spectrum, i.e., characteristic particle size and number concentration. In this paper, the latter option is described and an example case study presented to illustrate the types of information available for cloud and radiation transfer models.

Intrieri, Janet M.↗
NASA NTRS2020

Regional Tropical Aboveground Biomass Mapping with L-Band Repeat-Pass Interferometric Radar, Sparse Lidar, and Multiscale Superpixels

We introduce a multiscale superpixel approach that leverages repeat-pass interferometric coherence and sparse AGB estimates from a simulated spaceborne lidar in order to extend the NISAR mission’s applicable range of aboveground biomass (AGB) in tropical forests. Airborne and spaceborne L-band radar and full-waveform airborne lidar data are used to simulate the NISAR and GEDI mission, respectively. In addition to UAVSAR data, we use spaceborneALOS-2/PALSAR-2 imagery with 14-day temporal baseline, which is comparable to NISAR’s 12-daybaseline. Our reference AGB maps are derived from the airborne LVIS data during the AfriSAR campaign for three sites (Mondah, Ogooue, and Lope). Each tropical site has mean AGB of at least 125 Mg/ha in addition to areas with AGB exceeding 700 Mg/ha. Spatially sampling from these LVIS-derived AGB reference maps, we approximate GEDI AGB estimates. To evaluate our methodology, we perform several different analyses. First, we partition each study site into low(≤100 Mg/ha) and high (>100 Mg/ha) AGB areas, in conformity with the NISAR mission requirement to provide AGB estimates for forests between 0 and 100 Mg/ha with a RMSE below 20 Mg/ha. In the low AGB areas, this RMSE requirement is satisfied in Lope and Mondah and it fell short of the requirement in Ogooue by less 3 Mg/ha with UAVSAR and 6 Mg/ha with PALSAR-2. We note that our maps have finer spatial resolution (50 m) than NISAR requires (1 hectare). In the high AGB areas, the normalized RMSE increases to 51% (i.e.,<90 Mg/ha), but with negligible bias for all three sites. Second, we train a single model to estimate AGB across both high and low AGB regimes simultaneously and obtain a normalized RMSE that is<60% (or<100 Mg/ha). Lastly, we show the use of both (a) multiscale superpixels and (b) interferometric coherence significantly improves the accuracy of the AGB estimates. The InSAR coherence improved the RMSE by approximately 8% at Mondah with both sensors, lowering the RMSE from 59 Mg/ha to 47.4 Mg/h with UAVSAR and from 57.1 Mg/ha to 46 Mg/ha. This work illustrates one of the numerous synergistic relationships between the spaceborne lidars, such as GEDI, with L-band SAR, such as PALSAR-2 and NISAR, in order to produce robust regional AGB in high biomass tropical regions.

NISAR↗
NASA NTRS2001

Remote Sensing of Wind Fields and Aerosol Distribution with Airborne Scanning Doppler Lidar

The coherent Doppler laser radar (lidar), when operated from an airborne platform, is a unique tool for the study of atmospheric and surface processes and features. This is especially true for scientific objectives requiring measurements in optically-clear air, where other remote sensing technologies such as Doppler radar are typically at a disadvantage. The atmospheric lidar remote sensing groups of several US institutions, led by Marshall Space Flight Center, have developed an airborne coherent Doppler lidar capable of mapping the wind field and aerosol structure in three dimensions. The instrument consists of an eye-safe approx. 1 Joule/pulse lidar transceiver, telescope, scanner, inertial measurement unit, and flight computer system to orchestrate all subsystem functions and tasks. The scanner is capable of directing the expanded lidar beam in a variety of ways, in order to extract vertically-resolved wind fields. Horizontal resolution is approx. 1 km; vertical resolution is even finer. Winds are obtained by measuring backscattered, Doppler-shifted laser radiation from naturally-occurring aerosol particles (of order 1 micron diameter). Measurement coverage depends on aerosol spatial distribution and composition. Velocity accuracy has been verified to be approx. 1 meter per second. A variety of applications have been demonstrated during the three flight campaigns conducted during 1995-1998. Examples will be shown during the presentation. In 1995, boundary layer winds over the ocean were mapped with unprecedented resolution. In 1996, unique measurements were made of. flow over the complex terrain of the Aleutian Islands; interaction of the marine boundary layer jet with the California coastal mountain range; a weak dry line in Texas - New Mexico; the angular dependence of sea surface scattering; and in-flight radiometric calibration using the surface of White Sands National Monument. In 1998, the first measurements of eyewall and boundary layer winds within a hurricane were made with the airborne Doppler lidar. Potential applications and plans for improvement will also be described.

Rothermel, Jeffry↗
NASA NTRS2014

Comparison of Marine Boundary Layer Cloud Properties from CERES-MODIS Edition 4 and DOE ARM AMF Measurements at the Azores

Marine boundary layer (MBL) cloud properties derived from the NASA Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) project using Terra and Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data are compared with observations taken at the Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Mobile Facility at the Azores (AMF-Azores) site from June 2009 through December 2010. Cloud properties derived from ARM ground-based observations were averaged over a 1 h interval centered at the satellite overpass time, while the CERES-MODIS (CM) results were averaged within a 30 km×30 km grid box centered over the Azores site. A total of 63 daytime and 92 nighttime single-layered overcast MBL cloud cases were selected from 19 months of ARM radar-lidar and satellite observations. The CM cloud top/base heights (Htop/Hbase) were determined from cloud top/base temperatures (Ttop/Tbase) using a regional boundary layer lapse rate method. For daytime comparisons, the CM-derived Htop (Hbase), on average, is 0.063 km (0.068 km) higher (lower) than its ARM radar-lidar-observed counterpart, and the CM-derived Ttop and Tbase are 0.9 K less and 2.5 K greater than the surface values with high correlations (R(sup 2) = 0.82 and 0.84, respectively). In general, the cloud top comparisons agree better than the cloud base comparisons, because the CM cloud base temperatures and heights are secondary products determined from cloud top temperatures and heights. No significant day-night difference was found in the analyses. The comparisons of MBL cloud microphysical properties reveal that when averaged over a 30 km× 30 km area, the CM-retrieved cloud droplet effective radius (re) at 3.7 micrometers is 1.3 micrometers larger than that from the ARM retrievals (12.8 micrometers), while the CM-retrieved cloud liquid water path (LWP) is 13.5 gm( exp -2) less than its ARM counterpart (114.2 gm( exp-2) due to its small optical depth (9.6 versus 13.7). The differences are reduced by 50% when the CM averages are computed only using the MODIS pixel nearest the AMF site. Using the effective radius retrieved using 2.1 micrometers channel to calculate LWP can reduce the difference between the CM and ARM microwave radiometer retrievals from 13.7 to 2.1 gm2. The 10% differences between the ARM and CERES-MODIS LWP and r(sub e) retrievals are within the uncertainties of the ARM LWP (approximately 20gm( exp -2)) and r(sub e) (approximately 10%) retrievals; however, the 30% difference in optical depth is significant. Possible reasons contributing to this discrepancy are increased sensitivities in optical depth from both surface retrievals when τ is approximately 10 and topography. The τ differences vary with wind direction and are consistent with the island orography.Much better agreement in τ is obtained when using only those data taken when the wind is from the northeast, where topographical effects on the sampled clouds are minimal.

Xi, Baike↗
NASA NTRS1987

Turbulence as observed by concurrent measurements made at NSSL using weather radar, Doppler radar, Doppler lidar and aircraft

As air traffic increases and aircraft capability increases in range and operating altitude, the exposure to weather hazards increases. Turbulence and wind shears are two of the most important of these hazards that must be taken into account if safe flight operations are to be accomplished. Beginning in the early 1960's, Project Rough Rider began thunderstorm investigations. Past and present efforts at the National Severe Storm Laboratory (NSSL) to measure these flight safety hazards and to describe the use of Doppler radar to detect and qualify these hazards are summarized. In particular, the evolution of the Doppler-measured radial velocity spectrum width and its applicability to the problem of safe flight is presented.

Lee, Jean T.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

TPSAS-NF1676L-11082-DND

Analysis of one decade of radar-lidar and Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) observations at the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program Southern Great Plains (SGP) site reveals that there is excellent agreement in the long-term mean cloud fractions (CF) derived from the surface and GOES data, and the CF is independent of temporal resolution and spatial scales for grid boxes of size 0.5o to 2.5°. When computed over a 0.5-hr (4-hr) period, cloud frequency of occurrence (FREQ) and amount when present (AWP) derived from the point surface data agree very well with the same quantities determined from GOES for a 0.5o (2.5o) region centered on the ARM SGP site. The values of FREQ (AWP) derived from the radar-lidar observations at a given altitude increase (decrease) as the averaging period increases from 5 min to 6 hours. Similarly, CF at a given altitude increases as the vertical resolution increases from 90 to 1000 m. The profiles of CF have distinct bimodal vertical distributions with a lower peak between 1 and 2 km and a higher one between 8 and 11 km. The 10-year mean total CF, 46.9%, varies seasonally from a summer minimum of 39.8% to a maximum of 54.6% during the winter. The annual mean CF is 1-2% less than that from previous studies, ~48-49%, because fewer clouds occurred during 2005 and 2006, especially during winter. The differences in single- and multi-layered CFs between this study and an earlier analysis can be explained by the different temporal resolutions used in the two studies where single-layered CFs decrease but multilayered CFs increase from a 5-min resolution to a 1-hr resolution. The vertical distribution of nighttime GOES high-cloud tops agrees well with surface observations, but during daytime, fewer high clouds are retrieved by the GOES analysis than seen from the surface observations. The frequencies of occurrence for both daytime and nighttime GOES low-cloud tops are significantly higher than surface observations, but the cloud fractions are in good agreement.

B Xi↗
NASA NTRS2003

Overview of Mount Washington Icing Sensors Project

NASA, the FAA, the Department of Defense, the National Center for Atmospheric Research and NOAA are developing techniques for retrieving cloud microphysical properties from a variety of remote sensing technologies. The intent is to predict aircraft icing conditions ahead of aircraft. The Mount Washington Icing Sensors Project MWISP), conducted in April, 1999 at Mt. Washington, NH, was organized to evaluate technologies for the prediction of icing conditions ahead of aircraft in a natural environment, and to characterize icing cloud and drizzle environments. April was selected for operations because the Summit is typically in cloud, generally has frequent freezing precipitation in spring, and the clouds have high liquid water contents. Remote sensing equipment, consisting of radars, radiometers and a lidar, was placed at the base of the mountain, and probes measuring cloud particles, and a radiometer, were operated from the Summit. NASA s Twin Otter research aircraft also conducted six missions over the site. Operations spanned the entire month of April, which was dominated by wrap-around moisture from a low pressure center stalled off the coast of Labrador providing persistent upslope clouds with relatively high liquid water contents and mixed phase conditions. Preliminary assessments indicate excellent results from the lidar, radar polarimetry, radiosondes and summit and aircraft measurements.

Ryerson, Charles C.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Adaptive optics in coherent lidar wind measurements: A feasibility study

Laser Doppler radar (lidar) is widely used for remote sensing of wind velocities. Usable wavelengths for the laser are limited by the effects of atmospheric turbulence. An adaptive optical system is proposed to compensate for turbulence effects on signal power. The feasibility of an adaptive system is considered in light of the effects of speckle from the aerosol target. It is concluded that adaptive optics is a promising technique for improving the performance of a 2 micron lidar wind measurement system. The chief technical challenges are a laser that will give the required output and pulse repetition rate, a combined Hartmann sensor and heterodyne detector, and a suitable reconstruction algorithm.

Leland, Robert P.↗
NASA NTRS2008

A Terminal Descent Sensor Trade Study Overview for the Orion Landing and Recovery System

This trade study was conducted as a part of the Orion Landing System Advanced Development Project to determine possible Terminal Descent Sensor (TDS) architectures that could be used for a rocket assisted landing system. Several technologies were considered for the Orion TDS including radar, lidar, GPS applications, mechanical sensors, and gamma ray altimetry.

lidar↗
NASA NTRS1985

In situ orbital debris experiment concepts

Implementation of the radar, lidar and passive optical remote sensing concepts for measuring space debris from an Earth orbiting platform was investigated. Each system was compared for their requirements on the host platform, their performance relative to the space debris measurement program and the estimated cost of developing each concept into a flight instrument. It is found that the radar and lidar systems offer the greatest versatility and accuracy since they control the direction, intensity and duration of the energy incident on the target object. The performance of the passive optical system is determined by the capability of the detector and by the baseline separation of the telescopes, which requires the use of an on-orbit deployment mechanism. The passive optical concept provides the largest total event rae, and includes significant detections of particle sizes greater than 10 cm to allow correlation with ground based observations of the larger particles. The event rate for the radar system is relatively constant with particle while the lidar system is slightly biased toward the smaller sizes. These event rate differences result from a combination of the debris flux size distribution and the variation of sensitive detection area with particle size for the three concepts.

Neste, S. L.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Solid-State, High Energy 2-Micron Laser Development for Space-Based Remote Sensing

Lidar (light detection and ranging) remote sensing enjoys the advantages of excellent vertical and horizontal resolution; pointing capability; a signal source independent from natural light; and control and knowledge of transmitted wavelength, pulse shape, and polarization and received polarization. Lidar in space is an emerging technology now being developing to fit applications where passive sensors cannot meet current measurement requirements. Technical requirements for space lidar are more demanding than for ground-based or airborne systems. Perhaps the most distinguishing characteristics of space lidars are the environmental requirements. Space lidar systems must be specially designed to survive the mechanical vibration loads of launch and operate in the vacuum of space where exposure to ionizing radiation limits the electronic components available. Finally, space lidars must be designed to be highly reliable because they must operate without the need for repair or adjustment. Lifetime requirements tend to be important drivers of the overall system design. The maturity of the required technologies is a key to the development of any space lidar system. NASA entered a new era in the 1990 s with the approval of several space-based remote sensing missions employing laser radar (lidar) techniques. Following the steps of passive remote sensing and then active radar remote sensing, lidar sensors were a logical next step, providing independence from natural light sources, and better spatial resolution and smaller sensor size than radar sensors. The shorter electromagnetic wavelengths of laser light also allowed signal reflectance from air molecules and aerosol particles. The smaller receiver apertures allowed the concept of scanning the sensor field of view. However, technical problems with several space-based lidar missions during that decade led to concern at NASA about the risk of lidar missions. An external panel was convened to make recommendations to NASA. Their report in 2000 strongly advocated that NASA maintain in-house laser and lidar capability, and that NASA should work to lower the technology risk for all future lidar missions. A multi-Center NASA team formulated an integrated NASA strategy to provide the technology and maturity of systems necessary to make Lidar/Laser systems viable for space-based study and monitoring of the Earth's atmosphere. In 2002 the NASA Earth Science Enterprise (ESE) and Office of Aerospace Technology (OAT) created the Laser Risk Reduction Program (LRRP) and directed NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) and Goddard Space Flight Center to carry out synergistic and complementary research towards solid-state lasers/lidars developments for space-based remote sensing applications.

Singh, Upendra N.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Remote versus in situ turbulence measurements

Comparisons of in situ wind and turbulence measurements made with the NASA B-57 instrumented aircraft and those remotely made with both radar and lidar systems are presented. Turbulence measurements with a lidar or radar system as compared with those from an aircraft are the principal themes. However, some discussion of mean wind speed and direction measurements is presented. First, the principle of measuring turbulence with Doppler lidar and radar is briefly and conceptually described. The comparisons with aircraft measurements are then discussed. Two studies in particular are addressed: one uses the JAWS Doppler radar data and the other uses data gathered both with the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center and the the NOAA Wave Propagation Lab. gound based lidars. Finally, some conclusions and recommendations are made.

Frost, Walter↗
NASA NTRS1983

Balloon borne LIDAR measurements of stratospheric hydroxyl radical

A balloon-borne laser radar (LIDAR) system for determining the stratospheric hydroxyl radical concentration constructed and flown by the Goddard Space Flight Center is discussed. The system measured hydroxyl in the altitude range of 34-37 km during an afternoon and early evening, producing the first post-sunset hydroxyl determination ever obtained. Daytime values (approximately 5 x 10 to the 6th/cu cm) are somewhat lower than previous measurements using in situ resonance fluorescence. Nighttime values (approximately 7 x 10 to the 5th/cu cm at 2100 CDT) are found to be higher than predicted by current one-dimensional models. Possible sources of these discrepancies, together with improvements possible in future systems, are outlined.

Heaps, W. S.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Accuracy of Lidar Measurements of the Atmosphere

Report reviews sources of systematic error in laser radar (lidar) measurements of particles in atmosphere. Report applies particularly to stationary pulsed carbon dioxide lidars of type used to measure backscatter from aerosols in troposphere. Provides information for calibrating such systems accurately and consistently and interpreting their data correctly. Also useful in calibrating mobile and airborne lidars, lidars operating at wavelengths other than those of carbon dioxide lasers, and continuouswave lidars.

Kavaya, M. J.↗