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At least 397 records · Page 22

A Coordinated X-Ray and Optical Campaign of the Nearest Massive Eclipsing Binary, Delta Orionis Aa. II. X-Ray Variability

We present time-resolved and phase-resolved variability studies of an extensive X-ray high-resolution spectral data set of the delta Ori Aa binary system. The four observations, obtained with Chandra ACIS (Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer) HETGS (High Energy Transmission Grating), have a total exposure time approximately equal to 479 kiloseconds and provide nearly complete binary phase coverage. Variability of the total X-ray flux in the range of 5-25 angstroms is confirmed, with a maximum amplitude of about plus or minus15 percent within a single approximately equal to125 kiloseconds observation. Periods of 4.76 and 2.04 days are found in the total X-ray flux, as well as an apparent overall increase in the flux level throughout the nine-day observational campaign. Using 40 kiloseconds contiguous spectra derived from the original observations, we investigate the variability of emission line parameters and ratios. Several emission lines are shown to be variable, including S (sub XV), Si (sub XIII), and Ne (sub IX). For the first time, variations of the X-ray emission line widths as a function of the binary phase are found in a binary system, with the smallest widths at phi = 0.0 when the secondary delta Ori Aa2 is at the inferior conjunction. Using 3D hydrodynamic modeling of the interacting winds, we relate the emission line width variability to the presence of a wind cavity created by a wind-wind collision, which is effectively void of embedded wind shocks and is carved out of the X-ray-producing primary wind, thus producing phase-locked X-ray variability.

X-ray flux↗

TomoEncoders: 3D Autoencoders for feature extraction in X-ray tomography

Real-time steering of time-resolved or in-situ X-ray tomography requires capturing changes in morphological descriptors in a sample (e.g., porosity, particle size, and crack width) during continuous data acquisition. Image segmentation (2D or3D) followed by quantitative measurement is the conventional method for tracking changes in these descriptors with respect to a previous time-step or a 3D search in a volume. However, image segmentation is expensive. As a faster and unsupervised alternative, a feature-extraction approach using a convolutional autoencoders was developed, where the latent space of the encoder responds to relative changes in morphology with-out prior knowledge of the morphological descriptors.

TEKAWADE, ANIKET↗

Flow structures of the cross-flow over a five-layer helically coiled steam generator geometry

The helically-coiled heat exchanger (HCSG) offers advantages over straight tubes such as compactness in geometry, increased heat transfer coefficients, and capability to absorb thermal expansion. In this study, the time-resolved velocity field data of shell-side crossflow over a five-layer helically coiled steam generator geometry was obtained using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) between adjacent rods in four regions with up to 5000 frames per second (5 kHz) at approximately Re u = 3600. The slant rod bundle created different flow patterns in different regions. Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) revealed high-energy-mode flow structures. Due to the confined flow channel geometry, the large flow structures were not advected resulting in no strong POD mode paring. Continuous Wavelet Transform (CWT) visualized the characteristics of flow fluctuation in time and frequency domain simultaneously, which ranged in Strouhal number, S u , between 0.03 and 1.17. In the wake regions of the rods, flows changed in both pattern and magnitude over time. Once a pattern formed, it continued for relatively shorter than straight tube arrays, before changing the pattern again. The histograms of the POD time coefficients presented this multimodal flow characteristics. The current study focuses more on whole flow field analyses in the selected regions rather than local point-wise analyses. Finally, this study revealed that various Strouhal numbers can exist in the helically coiled heat exchanger geometry, which was not observed in straight tube arrays. In particular, Strouhal numbers smaller than 0.1 do not seem to be caused by vortex shedding but seem to be the result of the combination of complex geometry and possible multimodal trends. Based on the current observation, further works would involve intensive instantaneous point-wise analyses on the interactions between important locations such as separation points, stagnation points, shear layers, etc.

42 ENGINEERING↗

On-Orbit Spatial Performance Characterization for Thermal Infrared Imagers of Landsat 7, 8, and 9, ECOSTRESS and CTI

In this analysis of the spatial resolving power of thermal imagery products we focus on four satellite instruments that are used in research and applications, for example to monitor land surface temperature and derive evapotranspiration. These are thermal imagers on Landsat 7, Landsat 8, and Landsat 9, as well as the ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS). We compiled sets of close-in-time, day-time images of bridges surrounded by open water bodies, captured by each of the satellite imagers during cloud-free moments. Where possible, we also included some images captured by the Compact Thermal Imager (CTI), a technology demonstrator that was co-located with ECOSTRESS on the International Space Station in 2019. Bridges were found to provide a sufficient thermal contrast with the water surface to quantify the line-spread function of satellite-based thermal products. The full-width-at-half-max of a gaussian beam model fitted to this transect quantifies the on-orbit spatial resolution of different imagers. The results show some loss of spatial resolving power in the final product delivered to end-users as compared to the at-sensor characterization of spatial resolution. For Landsat 7, 8 and 9, the spatial resolution of the thermal bands is 1.5 times the ground sampling distance of 60 m and 100 m respectively. For the ECOSTRESS the difference is up to twice the sampling distance of 78 by 69 m2. Since spatial resolution is a main driver for instrument design it is important to understand and communicate this discrepancy between pre-flight design parameters and the characteristics of the surface imagery delivered to the user community. The goal of this research is to facilitate an improved fusion of current and future satellite observations into harmonized products with superior temporal and spatial characteristics.

thermal infrared↗

Dynamics and Control of a Disordered System in Space

In this paper, we present some ideas regarding the modeling, dynamics and control aspects of granular spacecraft. Granular spacecraft are complex multibody systems composed of a spatially disordered distribution of a large number of elements, for instance a cloud of N grains in orbit, with N greater than 10(exp 3). These grains can be large (Cubesat-size) or small (mm-size), and can be active, i.e., a fully equipped vehicle capable sensing their own position and attitude, and enabled with propulsion means, or entirely passive. The ultimate objective would be to study the behavior of the single grains and of large ensembles of grains in orbit and to identify ways to guide and control the shape of a cloud composed of these grains so that it can perform a useful function in space, for instance, as an element of an optical imaging system for astrophysical applications. This concept, in which the aperture does not need to be continuous and monolithic, would increase the aperture size several times compared to large NASA observatories such as ATLAST, allowing for a true Terrestrial Planet Imager that would be able to resolve exo-planet details and do meaningful spectroscopy on distant world. In the paper, we address the modeling and autonomous operation of a distributed assembly (the cloud) of large numbers of highly miniaturized space-borne elements (the grains). A multi-scale, multi-physics model is proposed of the dynamics of the cloud in orbit, as well as a control law for cloud shape maintenance, and preliminary simulation studies yield an estimate of the computational effort, indicating a scale factor of approximately N(exp 1.4) as a function of the number of grains. A granular spacecraft can be defined as a collection of a large number of space-borne elements (in the 1000s) designed and controlled such that a desirable collective behavior emerges, either from the interactions among neighboring grains, and/or between the grains and the environment. In this paper, each grain is considered to be a highly miniaturized spacecraft which has limited size and mass, hence it has limited actuation, limited propulsive capability, limited power, limited sensing, limited communication, limited computational resources, limited range of motion, limited lifetime, and may be expendable. The modeling and dynamics of clouds of vehicles is more challenging than with conventional vehicles because we are faced with a probabilistic vehicle composed of a large number of physically disconnected vehicles. First, different scales of motion occur simultaneously in a cloud: translations and rotations of the cloud as a whole (macro-dynamics), relative rotation and translation of one cloud member with respect to another (meso-dynamics), and individual cloud member dynamics (micro-dynamics). Second, the control design needs to be tolerant of the system complexity, of the system architecture (centralized vs. decentralized large scale system control) as well as robust to un-modeled dynamics and noise sources. Figure 1, top left, shows the kinematic parameters of a 1000 element cloud in orbit. The motion of the system is described with respect to a local vertical-local horizontal (LV-LH) orbiting reference frame (x,y,z)=F(sub ORF) of origin O(sub ORF) which rotates with mean motion omega and orbital semi-major axis R(sub 0). The orbital geometry at the initial time is defined in terms of its six orbital elements, and the orbital dynamics equation for point O(sub ORF) is propagated forward in time under the influence of the gravitational field of the primary and other external perturbations, described below. The origin of this frame coincides with the initial position of the center of mass of the system, and the coordinate axes are z along the local vertical, x toward the flight direction, and y in the orbit normal direction. The assumptions we used to model the dynamics are as follows: 1) The inertial frame is fixed at Earth's center. 2) The orbiting Frame ORF follows Keplerian orbit. 3) the cloud system dynamics is referred to ORF. 4) the attitude of each grain uses the principal body frame as body fixed frame. 5) the atmosphere is assumed to be rigidly rotating with the Earth. Regarding the grains forming the cloud: 1) each grain is modeled as a rigid body; 2) a simple attitude estimator provides attitude estimates, 3) a simple guidance logic commands the position and attitude of each grain, 4) a simple local feedback controller based on PD control of local states is used to stabilize the attitude of the vehicle. Regarding the cloud: 1) the cloud as a whole is modeled as an equivalent rigid body in orbit, and 2) an associated graph establishes agent connectivity and enables coupling between modes of motion at the micro and macro scales; 3) a simple guidance and estimation logic is modeled to estimate and command the attitude of this equivalent rigid body; 4) a cloud shape maintenance controller is based on the dynamics of a stable virtual truss in the orbiting frame. Regarding the environmental perturbations acting on the cloud: 1) a non-spherical gravity field including JO (Earth's spherical field) zonal component, J2 (Earth's oblateness) and J3 zonal components is implemented; 2) atmospheric drag is modeled with an exponential model; 3) solar pressure is modeled assuming the Sun is inertially fixed; and 4) the Earth's magnetic field is model using an equivalent dipole model. The equations of motion are written in a referential system with respect to the origin of the orbiting frame and the state is propagated forward in time using an incremental predictor-corrector scheme. A representative cloud with varying number of grains is simulated to identify the limitations in computation time as the number of grains grows. We derive a control law to track a desired surface in the ORF (equivalently to maintain a reference cloud shape) by defining an error from a desired surface shape, and designing a control law that is exponentially stable and reduces the tracking error to zero. Figure 1 (top right) shows a comparison of various requirements for simulation of single spacecraft vs. granular spacecraft, indicating the high degree of complexity that needs to be taken into consideration. The ORF components of control force required by one of the grains is, for this particular case, in the micro-Newton range. However, no attempt has been made yet to reconfigure (or re-orient) the cloud configuration internally, for which forces in the milli-Newton level are expected, depending on the time required to do the reconfiguration. Figure 1, bottom, shows the computation time as a function of the number of grains, indicating an order N(exp 1.43) scaling on a 8 Gb, 1067 MHz RAM MacOSX computer with a 3.06 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. With this metric, the same simulation for a system of N=1000 grains would take 5.4 hours, and 146 hours (i.e., 6 days) for a system with N=10,000 grains. Therefore, efficient ways to simulate this complex system, where not only the time scales of natural system dynamics, but also the sampling times of the Guidance, Navigation, and Control are included, remain to be explored. Additional details on the cloud modeling, dynamics, and control will be described in the paper.

simulation↗

SuperCam Calibration Targets: Design and Development

Abstract SuperCam is a highly integrated remote-sensing instrumental suite for NASA’s Mars 2020 mission. It consists of a co-aligned combination of Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), Time-Resolved Raman and Luminescence (TRR/L), Visible and Infrared Spectroscopy (VISIR), together with sound recording (MIC) and high-magnification imaging techniques (RMI). They provide information on the mineralogy, geochemistry and mineral context around the Perseverance Rover. The calibration of this complex suite is a major challenge. Not only does each technique require its own standards or references, their combination also introduces new requirements to obtain optimal scientific output. Elemental composition, molecular vibrational features, fluorescence, morphology and texture provide a full picture of the sample with spectral information that needs to be co-aligned, correlated, and individually calibrated. The resulting hardware includes different kinds of targets, each one covering different needs of the instrument. Standards for imaging calibration, geological samples for mineral identification and chemometric calculations or spectral references to calibrate and evaluate the health of the instrument, are all included in the SuperCam Calibration Target (SCCT). The system also includes a specifically designed assembly in which the samples are mounted. This hardware allows the targets to survive the harsh environmental conditions of the launch, cruise, landing and operation on Mars during the whole mission. Here we summarize the design, development, integration, verification and functional testing of the SCCT. This work includes some key results obtained to verify the scientific outcome of the SuperCam system.

Manrique, J. A. (ORCID:0000000220532819)↗

Elucidating the Onset of Plasticity in Sliding Contacts Using Differential Computational Orientation Tomography

Abstract Depending on the mechanical and thermal energy introduced to a dry sliding interface, the near-surface regions of the mated bodies may undergo plastic deformation. In this work, we use large-scale molecular dynamics simulations to generate “differential computational orientation tomographs” (dCOT) and thus highlight changes to the microstructure near tribological FCC alloy surfaces, allowing us to detect subtle differences in lattice orientation and small distances in grain boundary migration. The analysis approach compares computationally generated orientation tomographs with their undeformed counterparts via a simple image analysis filter. We use our visualization method to discuss the acting microstructural mechanisms in a load- and time-resolved fashion, focusing on sliding conditions that lead to twinning, partial lattice rotation, and grain boundary-dominated processes. Extracting and laterally averaging the color saturation value of the generated tomographs allows us to produce quantitative time- and depth-resolved maps that give a good overview of the progress and severity of near-surface deformation. Corresponding maps of the lateral standard deviation in the color saturation show evidence of homogenization processes occurring in the tribologically loaded microstructure, frequently leading to the formation of a well-defined separation between deformed and undeformed regions. When integrated into a computational materials engineering framework, our approach could help optimize material design for tribological and other deformation problems. Graphic Abstract .

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Minority carrier lifetime and photoluminescence of mid-wave infrared InAsSbBi

Time-resolved photoluminescence measurements are reported for InAsSbBi alloys grown by molecular beam epitaxy with Bi mole fractions ranging from 0 to 0.8%, yielding minority carrier lifetimes on the order of hundreds of nanoseconds. The minority carrier lifetimes extracted from the time-resolved photoluminescence measurements are comparable to those of lattice-matched InAsSb grown at the same respective temperatures. Nomarski imaging shows that smooth, droplet-free surface morphologies are obtained in 1 μm thick InAsSbBi epilayers grown at temperatures between 360 and 380 °C. The alloy composition-dependent bandgap energies for the InAsSbBi samples are determined from temperature-dependent steady-state photoluminescence measurements and compared with the tetragonal distortion measured by x-ray diffraction to determine the Sb and Bi mole fractions of each sample. The minority carrier lifetime and the achievable extension of the InAsSb(Bi) cut-off wavelength are analyzed as functions of alloy composition and compared with the performance of InAsSb layers with similar growth parameters.

Petluru, Priyanka (ORCID:0000000257154284)↗

Experimental observations of shock-wave-induced bubble collapse and hot-spot formation in nitromethane liquid explosive

We studied the collapse of individual helium gas bubbles in the homogeneous explosive nitromethane (NM) to investigate effects of hot-spot formation on the detonation process. A bubble was injected into a NM sample, and a shock wave from an explosive detonator compressed the bubble, creating a localized hot spot. We measured shock and detonation wave speeds with optical velocimetry, and we used a high-speed camera to image the shock propagation and the pre- and post-bubble collapse processes. An infrared camera image showed the residual radiance temperature distribution after the bubble collapse, and an optical fiber pyrometer measured the time-resolved thermal radiance. We measured the optical spectra of light emitted from detonating NM without a bubble and from a collapsing bubble in shocked, undetonated NM. We estimated temperatures of the detonation fronts and of the hot spots formed by bubble collapse. To study the incipient detonation process, we performed all bubble collapse experiments at pressures below the threshold for creating a sustained detonation. Where the bubble collapsed, we observed an opaque, thermally emissive region believed to be chemical reaction products. Chemical reactions in NM can be produced with lower shock pressures (~1 GPa) when a helium bubble is present than without a bubble (~10 GPa). We used hydrodynamic modeling to predict shock wave propagation, extent of chemical reaction, and subsequent temperature rise from the collapsing bubble. Simulations using a temperature-dependent Arrhenius burn model gave much better results than reactive burn models that depend only on pressure and density.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Effect of insulator surface conditioning on the pinch dynamics and x-ray production of a Ne-filled dense plasma focus

The dense plasma focus (DPF) can be an intense source of x rays, wherein the insulator sleeve strongly dictates the electrical breakdown, which subsequently affects the formation of a plasma sheath and a collapse phase. Experiments on a 25 kJ DPF (operated at 4.4 kJ) are carried out to demonstrate the influence of insulator surface morphology on the pinch structure, dynamics, and x-ray yield using a Ne fill. Two borosilicate insulators are directly compared, one with a smooth finish and the other machined with four circumferential grooves traversing the perimeter of the exterior insulator surface. Comparisons are made through same-shot imaging diagnostics of the evolving plasma sheath during breakdown, rundown, and at the pinch in addition to the time-resolved measurements of emitted x rays via filtered photodiodes. The presence of structures on the insulator sleeve reduces x-ray production across all fill pressures by a factor of 2.8 ± 2.4 on average and reduces the highest x ray producing shots by a factor of 5. ± 1.8. Observations of sheath asymmetry and inhomogeneity at lift-off are observed and correlated with subsequent observations of off-axis radial collapse. Taken together, this suggests that local variations in the insulator surface decrease the spatial uniformity of the sheath, leading to an azimuthally asymmetric focus, reduced electron densities, and, ultimately, degraded x-ray production.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Streaked Sub-ps-resolution X-ray Line Shapes and Implications for Solid-density Plasma Dynamics

A high-resolution x-ray spectrometer was coupled with an ultrafast x-ray streak camera to produce time-resolved line shape spectra measured from hot, solid-density plasmas. A Bragg crystal was placed near a laser-produced plasma to maximize throughput; alignment tolerances were established by raytracing. The streak camera produced single-shot time-resolved spectra, heavily sloped due to photon time-of-flight differences, with sufficient reproducibility to accumulate photon statistics. The images are time-calibrated by the slope of streaked spectra and dewarped to generate spectra emitted at different times defined at the source. The streaked spectra demonstrate the evolution of spectral shoulders and other features on ps timescales, showing the feasibility of plasma parameter measurements on the rapid timescales necessary to study high-energy-density plasmas.

High-energy-density plasmas↗

Method of investigation of vibroacoustic characteristics of centrifugal pumps

A method for acoustical diagnostics of pumps is described which consists of taking sonograms of the pump, by means of an audio spectrograph. In distinction from usual analyzers, the spectrograph makes it possible to obtain a three-dimensional image of the signal being analyzed, in which its frequency-amplitude characteristics developed over time are depicted with a resolving power of 0.004 sec. As an example, a sonogram of an electrically driven pump, in the 40-4000 Hz frequency range, is presented. The amplitude ratios are determined on the sonogram by the contrast of individual contours, with an accuracy of 6 db.

Pokrovskiy, B. V.↗

The Track Imaging Cerenkov Experiment

We describe a dedicated cosmic-ray telescope that explores a new method for detecting Cerenkov radiation from high-energy primary cosmic rays and the large particle air shower they induce upon entering the atmosphere. Using a camera comprising 16 multi-anode photomultiplier tubes for a total of 256 pixels, the Track Imaging Cerenkov Experiment (TrICE) resolves substructures in particle air showers with 0.086deg resolution. Cerenkov radiation is imaged using a novel two-part optical system in which a Fresnel lens provides a wide-field optical trigger and a mirror system collects delayed light with four times the magnification. TrICE records well-resolved cosmic-ray air showers at rates ranging between 0.01-0.1 Hz.

Wissel, S. A.↗

Velocity Statistics and Spectra in Three-Stream Jets

Velocimetry measurements were obtained in three-stream jets at the NASA Glenn Research Center Nozzle Acoustics Test Rig using the time-resolved Doppler global velocimetry technique. These measurements afford exceptional frequency response, to 125 kHz bandwidth, in order to study the detailed dynamics of turbulence in developing shear flows. Mean stream-wise velocity is compared to measurements acquired using particle image velocimetry for validation. Detailed results for convective velocity distributions throughout an axisymmetric plume and the thick side of a plume with an offset third-stream duct are provided. The convective velocity results exhibit that, as expected, the eddy speeds are reduced on the thick side of the plume compared to the axisymmetric case. The results indicate that the time-resolved Doppler global velocimetry method holds promise for obtaining results valuable to the implementation and refinement of jet noise prediction methods being developed for three-stream jets.

Three-Stream Jets↗

Detecting cosmic strings with lensed fast radio bursts

Correlated red noise recently reported from pulsar timing observations may be an indication of stochastic gravitational waves emitted by cosmic strings that formed during a primordial phase transition near the grand unification energy scale. Unfortunately, known probes of cosmic strings, namely the cosmic microwave background anisotropies and string lensing of extragalactic galaxies, are not sensitive enough for low dimensionless string tensions of Gμc -2 = 10 -10 – 10 -7 (where the tension μ is the string energy per unit length) that are needed to explain this putative signal. We show that strong gravitational lensing of fast radio bursts (FRBs) by cosmic strings is a potentially unambiguous avenue to probe that range of string tension values. The image pair of string lensing are expected to have identical magnification factor and parity, and have a typical time delay of ~10 2 (Gμc -2 /10 -8 ) 2 s. Here, the unique spectral fingerprint of each FRB, as well as the possibility to detect correlations in the time series of the electric field of the radio waves, will enable verification of the string lensing interpretation. Very-long-baseline interferometry observations can spatially resolve the image pair and provide a lower bound on the string tension based on the image separation. We calculate the FRB lensing rate as a function of the FRB detection number for several different models of the FRB redshift distribution. We find that a survey detecting ~10 5 FRBs, in line with estimates for the detection rate of the forthcoming survey CHORD, can uncover a strong lensing event for a string tension of Gμc -2 ≃ 10 -7 . Larger FRB surveys, such as Phase 2 of the Square Kilometre Array, have the potential to significantly improve the sensitivity on the string tension to Gμc -2 ≃ 10 -9 .

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

The Track Imaging Cerenkov Experiment

We describe a. dedicated cosmic-ray telescope that explores a new method for detecting Cerenkov radiation from high-energy primary cosmic rays and the large particle air shower they induce upon entering the atmosphere. Using a camera comprising 16 multi-anode photomultiplier tubes for a total of 256 pixels, the Track Imaging Cerenkov Experiment (TrICE) resolves substructures in particle air showers with 0,086 deg resolution. Cerenkov radiation is imaged using a novel two-part optical system in which a Fresnel lens provides a wide-field optical trigger and a mirror system collects delayed light with four times the magnification. TrICE records well-resolved cosmic-ray air showers at rates ranging between 0.01-0.1 Hz.

Wissel, S. A.↗

Visualizing Charge Transport and Nanoscale Electrochemistry by Hyperspectral Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy

Charge-transport and electrochemical processes are heavily influenced by the local microstructure. Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) is a widely used technique to map electrochemical potentials at the nanometer scale; however, it offers little information on local charge dynamics. In this study, we implement a hyperspectral KPFM approach for spatially mapping bias-dependent charge dynamics in timescales ranging from the sub-millisecond to the second regime. As a proof of principle, we investigate the role mobile surface charges play in a three-unit-cell LaAlO 3 /SrTiO 3 oxide heterostructure. We explore machine learning approaches to assist with visualization, pattern recognition, and interpretation of the information-rich data sets. Linear unmixing methods reveal hidden bias-dependent interfacial processes, most likely water splitting, which are essentially unnoticed by functional fitting of the dynamic response alone. Hyperspectral KPFM will be beneficial for investigating nanoscale charge transport and local reactivity in systems involving a possible combination of electronic, ionic, and electrochemical phenomena.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗