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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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NASA NTRS2017

Investigation of Deuterium Loaded Materials Subject to X-Ray Exposure

Results are presented from an exploratory study involving x-ray irradiation of select deuterated materials. Titanium deuteride plus deuterated polyethylene, deuterated polyethylene alone, and for control, hydrogen-based polyethylene samples and nondeuterated titanium samples were exposed to x-ray irradiation. These samples were exposed to various energy levels from 65 to 280 kV with prescribed electron flux from 500 to 9000 μA impinging on a tungsten braking target, with total exposure times ranging from 55 to 280 min. Gamma activity was measured using a high-purity germanium (HPGe) detector, and for all samples no gamma activity above background was detected. Alpha and beta activities were measured using a gas proportional counter, and for select samples beta activity was measured with a liquid scintillator spectrometer. The majority of the deuterated materials subjected to the microfocus x-ray irradiation exhibited postexposure beta activity above background and several showed short-lived alpha activity. The HPE and nondeuterated titanium control samples exposed to the x-ray irradiation showed no postexposure alpha or beta activities above background. Several of the samples (SL10A, SL16, SL17A) showed beta activity above background with a greater than 4σ confidence level, months after exposure. Portions of SL10A, SL16, and SL17A samples were also scanned using a beta scintillator and found to have beta activity in the tritium energy band, continuing without noticeable decay for over 12 months. Beta scintillation investigation of as-received materials (before x-ray exposure) showed no beta activity in the tritium energy band, indicating the beta emitters were not in the starting materials.

x-ray irradiation↗
NASA NTRS1992

GRIS observations of the galactic center and the gamma ray galactic diffuse continuum

On two flights in 1988, the Gamma-Ray Imaging Spectrometer (GRIS) discovered the galactic center in a high state (greater than 1 x 10(exp -3) ph/(sq cm sec)) of positron annihilation line emission (511 keV) after nearly a decade of failed attempts to confirm the exciting early results of balloon and satellite instruments. These two flights represented the first flights of a new generation of high resolution germanium spectrometers designed to achieve significantly greater sensitivity for astrophysical observations. During the fall flight, an observation of the galactic plane at 335 degrees longitude was also performed. This observation showed a very low level of 511 keV emission (2 +/- 1 x 10(exp -4) ph/(sq cm sec)), confirming the galactic center origin of the line, and a high level of hard x-ray and gamma-ray continuum emission (1 x 10(exp -4) ph/(sq cm sec keV) at 100 keV), which we attribute to galactic diffuse emission. Improved fits to the spectrum of the galactic center are presented with the proposed diffuse component subtracted. We conclude that our galactic center continuum spectrum is consistent with the sum of the 1E1740.7-2942 spectrum observed by SIGMA/GRANAT and our 1 = 335 degree galactic plane spectrum. The predicted diffuse flux should be easily measurable by the Oriented Scintillation Spectrometer Experiment (OSSE) experiment on the Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO).

Tueller, J.↗
NASA NTRS1967

Chemical Method of Urine Volume Measurement

A system has been developed and qualified as flight hardware for the measurement of micturition volumes voided by crewmen during Gemini missions. This Chemical Urine Volume Measurement System (CUVMS) is used for obtaining samples of each micturition for post-flight volume determination and laboratory analysis for chemical constituents of physiological interest. The system is versatile with respect to volumes measured, with a capacity beyond the largest micturition expected to be encountered, and with respect to mission duration of inherently indefinite length. The urine sample is used for the measurement of total micturition volume by a tracer dilution technique, in which a fixed, predetermined amount of tritiated water is introduced and mixed into the voided urine, and the resulting concentration of the tracer in the sample is determined with a liquid scintillation spectrometer. The tracer employed does not interfere with the analysis for the chemical constituents of the urine. The CUVMS hardware consists of a four-way selector valve in which an automatically operated tracer metering pump is incorporated, a collection/mixing bag, and tracer storage accumulators. The assembled system interfaces with a urine receiver at the selector valve inlet, sample bags which connect to the side of the selector valve, and a flexible hose which carries the excess urine to the overboard drain connection. Results of testing have demonstrated system volume measurement accuracy within the specification limits of +/-5%, and operating reliability suitable for system use aboard the GT-7 mission, in which it was first used.

QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS↗
NASA NTRS1972

Experimental determination of cosmic ray charged particle intensity profiles in the atmosphere

Absolute cosmic-ray free air ionization and charged particle fluxes and dose rates throughout the atmosphere were measured on a series of balloon flights that commenced in 1968. Argon-filled ionization chambers equipped with solid-state electrometers, with different gas pressures and steel wall thicknesses, and a pair of aluminum-wall Gm counters have provided the basic data. These data are supplemented by measurements with air-filled and tissue equivalent ionization chambers and a scintillation spectrometer. Laboratory experiments together with analyses of the theoretical aspects of the detector responses to cosmic radiation indicate that these profiles can be determined to an overall accuracy of + or - 5 percent.

Lowder, W. M.↗
NASA NTRS1971

Observation of Pulsed Gamma Rays with Energies Greater than 250 keV from the Crab Nebula Pulsar NP 0532

Data from a balloon flight experiment using an Na I scintillation spectrometer were analyzed for gamma ray pulsation. The payload was carried to a nominal atmospheric depth of 3.5 g/cm2. A superposed epoch analysis was performed on a 12,000 second portion of the data spanning a total time interval of 16,700 seconds at float altitude. A positive pulsed contribution was observed at the expected apparent frequency of NP 0532 having the typical double pulse structure. The results indicate a time-averaged pulse photon flux of 0.00144 + or - 0.00057 photons/sq cm/sec in the energy interval from 250 keV to 2.3 MeV. This represents a time-averaged pulsed power of 0.000649 + or - 0.000257 keV/sq cm/sec/keV. The ratio of interpulse to main pulse was found to be 2.4 + or - 1.9. The analysis indicates a positive photon flux from 250 keV to 725 keV of 0.00120 + or - 0.00052 photons/sq cm/sec.

Orwig, L. E.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Measured and calculated fast neutron spectra in a depleted uranium and lithium hydride shielded reactor

Measurements of MeV neutron were made at the surface of a lithium hydride and depleted uranium shielded reactor. Four shield configurations were considered: these were assembled progressively with cylindrical shells of 5-centimeter-thick depleted uranium, 13-centimeter-thick lithium hydride, 5-centimeter-thick depleted uranium, 13-centimeter-thick lithium hydride, 5-centimeter-thick depleted uranium, and 3-centimeter-thick depleted uranium. Measurements were made with a NE-218 scintillation spectrometer; proton pulse height distributions were differentiated to obtain neutron spectra. Calculations were made using the two-dimensional discrete ordinates code DOT and ENDF/B (version 3) cross sections. Good agreement between measured and calculated spectral shape was observed. Absolute measured and calculated fluxes were within 50 percent of one another; observed discrepancies in absolute flux may be due to cross section errors.

Lahti, G. P.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Ames collaborative study of cosmic ray neutrons

The results of a collaborative study to define both the neutron flux and the spectrum more precisely and to develop a dosimetry package that can be flown quickly to altitude for solar flare events are described. Instrumentation and analysis techniques were used which were developed to measure accelerator-produced radiation. The instruments were flown in the Ames Research Center high altitude aircraft. Neutron instrumentation consisted of Bonner spheres with both active and passive detector elements, threshold detectors of both prompt-counter and activation-element types, a liquid scintillation spectrometer based on pulse-shape discrimination, and a moderated BF3 counter neutron monitor. In addition, charged particles were measured with a Reuter-Stokes ionization chamber system and dose equivalent with another instrument. Preliminary results from the first series of flights at 12.5 km (41,000 ft) are presented, including estimates of total neutron flux intensity and spectral shape and of the variation of intensity with altitude and geomagnetic latitude.

Hewitt, J. E.↗
NASA NTRS1977

The high energy X-ray spectrum of the Crab Nebula observed from OSO 8

The X-ray spectrum of the Crab Nebula was measured with the scintillation spectrometer on board the OSO-8 satellite. The total emission of the X-ray source shows no long term variability. The spectrum itself can be described by a single power law out to energies of at least 500 keV.

Dolan, J. F.↗
NASA NTRS1978

High energy X-ray spectra of cygnus XR-1 observed from OSO-8

X-ray spectra of Cygnus XR-1 were measured with the scintillation spectrometer on board the OSO-8 satellite during a period of one and one-half to three weeks in each of the years from 1975 to 1977. Observations were made when the source was both in a high state and in a low state. Typical spectra of the source between 15 and 250 keV are presented. The observed pivoting effect is consistent with two temperature accretion disk models of the X-ray emitting region. No significant break in the spectrum occurred at energies up to 150 keV. The high state as defined in the 3 to 6 keV bandwidth was found to be the higher luminosity state of the X-ray source. One transition from a low to a high state occurred during observations. The time of occurrence of this and other transitions is consistent with the hypothesis that all intensity transitions occur near periastron of the binary system, and that such transitions are caused by changes in the mass transfer rate between the primary and the accretion disk around the secondary.

Dolan, J. F.↗
NASA NTRS1977

The high-energy X-ray spectrum of the Crab Nebula observed from OSO-8

Results are reported for a measurement of the X-ray spectrum of the Crab Nebula over the energy range from 20 to 500 keV with a scintillation spectrometer aboard the OSO-8 satellite. A time-averaged spectrum of the nebula is presented which includes the average intensity of the X-ray pulsar NP 0532. The photon spectrum is shown to be well-fitted by a power law with a constant of approximately 4.19, a weighted mean energy of 39.1 keV, and a spectral index of about 2.00. No evidence is found for day-to-day variations in the spectrum of the source. The spectrum obtained is taken as evidence for the single power-law character of the Crab Nebula spectrum out to at least 200 keV and probably to as high an energy as 500 keV.

Dolan, J. F.↗
NASA NTRS1978

The high-energy pulsed X-ray spectrum of HER X-1 as observed with OSO-8

Her X-1 was observed from 1977 August 30 to September 10 using the High-Energy X-Ray Scintillation Spectrometer on board the OSO-8 satellite. The observation, during which the source was monitored continually for nearly an entire ON-state, covered the energy range from 16 to 280 keV. Pulsed flux measurements as a function of binary orbit and binary phase are presented for energies between 16 and 98 keV. The pulsed flux between 16 and 33 keV exhibited a sharp decrease following the fourth binary orbit and was consistent with zero pulsed flux thereafter. The pulsed spectrum was fitted with a power law, a thermal spectrum without features, and a thermal spectrum with a superposed gaussian centered at 55 keV. The latter fit has the smallest value of chi - squared per degree of freedom, and the resulting integrated line intensity is 1.5 superscript + 4.1 subscript - 1.4 x .001 photons s superscript-1 cm superscript-2 for a width of 3.1 superscript + 9.1 subscript -2.6 keV. This result, while of low statistical significance, agrees with the value observed by Trumper (1978) during the same On-state.

Maurer, G. S.↗
NASA NTRS1979

X-ray observations of AM Herculis from OSO-8

The white dwarf binary system AM Herculis (2A1815+500) was observed in X-rays at both low energies (E less 10 keV) and higher energies. The exact shape of the spectrum, particularly at the higher energies, has yet to be determined. Results from the high energy scintillation spectrometer on OSO-8 are presented. These are combined with results published elsewhere obtained concurrently with the proportional counter on the same satellite, thereby giving for the first time coincident observations of AM Her over the range 2 to 250 keV.

Coe, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

High-energy X-ray spectra of Cygnus XR-1 observed from OSO 8

X-ray spectra of Cygnus XR-1 were measured with the scintillation spectrometer aboard the OSO 8 satellite during a period of one-and-one-half to three weeks in each of the years from 1975 to 1977. Typical spectra of the source between 15 and 250 keV are presented and the spectra are found to be well represented by a single power-law expression whose photon number spectral index is different for the two intensity states that were considered. The observed pivoting effect is consistent with two-temperature accretion disk models of the X-ray emitting region.

Dolan, J. F.↗
NASA NTRS1979

X-ray observations of AM Herculis from OSO 8

X-ray observations of the white dwarf binary system AM Herculis in the range 2 to 250 keV, taken by OSO 8, are presented and compared with balloon and Ariel 5 measurements. The composite spectrum of the 2 to 40 and 20 to 250 keV fluxes determined by the proportional counter and the high energy scintillation spectrometer, respectively, on board the satellite is shown averaged over the entire binary cycle. Variations in spectral shape and intensity between the OSO 8 results and balloon measurements taken 10 to 20 days apart are observed. Results indicate the presence of a spectral break at about 15 keV on some occasions, similar to that seen in Her X-1, however presumably caused by a different mechanism than in the neutron star. It is also considered unlikely that the gamma-ray tail observed by Ariel 5 existed during OSO 8 observations.

Coe, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

The high-energy pulsed X-ray spectrum of Hercules X-1 as observed with OSO 8

Hercules X-1 was observed from August 30 to September 10, 1977, by using the high-energy X-ray scintillation spectrometer on board the OSO 8 satellite. The observation, during which the source was monitored continually for nearly an entire ON-state, covered the energy range from 16 to 280 keV. Pulsed-flux measurements as a function of binary orbit and binary phase are presented for energies between 16 and 98 keV. The pulsed flux between 16 and 33 keV exhibited a sharp decrease following the fourth binary orbit and was consistent with zero pulsed flux thereafter. Only weak evidence was found for temporal variation in the pulsed flux between 33 and 98 keV. The pulsed spectrum has been fitted with a power law, a thermal spectrum without features, and a thermal spectrum with a superposed Gaussian centered at 55 keV. The latter fit has the smallest value of chi-square per degree of freedom, and the resulting integrated line intensity is approximately 0.0015 photon/sec per sq cm for a width of 3.1 (+9.1, -2.6) keV. This result, while of low statistical significance, agrees with the value observed by Truemper (1978) during the same ON-state.

Maurer, G. S.↗
NASA NTRS1980

The Pioneer Venus Orbiter Gamma Burst Detector

The Orbiter Gamma Burst Detector was designed to record the temporal and spectral characteristics of cosmic gamma-ray bursts. The primary mission of the experiment is the accurate determination of the directions to the sources of such bursts through a technique of triangulation as a member of a widely spaced array of similar instruments. The system consists of a pair of scintillation spectrometers sensitive in the range of energies between 100 and 2000 keV, together with logic and data storage to provide a capability for recording these events. Nineteen events which have been verified as cosmic gamma-ray bursts were recorded within the first year's operation.

Klebesadel, R. W.↗