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NASA NTRS2012

On Shaft Data Acquisition System (OSDAS)

On Shaft Data Acquisition System (OSDAS) is a rugged, compact, multiple-channel data acquisition computer system that is designed to record data from instrumentation while operating under extreme rotational centrifugal or gravitational acceleration forces. This system, which was developed for the Heritage Fuel Air Turbine Test (HFATT) program, addresses the problem of recording multiple channels of high-sample-rate data on most any rotating test article by mounting the entire acquisition computer onboard with the turbine test article. With the limited availability of slip ring wires for power and communication, OSDAS utilizes its own resources to provide independent power and amplification for each instrument. Since OSDAS utilizes standard PC technology as well as shared code interfaces with the next-generation, real-time health monitoring system (SPARTAA Scalable Parallel Architecture for Real Time Analysis and Acquisition), this system could be expanded beyond its current capabilities, such as providing advanced health monitoring capabilities for the test article. High-conductor-count slip rings are expensive to purchase and maintain, yet only provide a limited number of conductors for routing instrumentation off the article and to a stationary data acquisition system. In addition to being limited to a small number of instruments, slip rings are prone to wear quickly, and introduce noise and other undesirable characteristics to the signal data. This led to the development of a system capable of recording high-density instrumentation, at high sample rates, on the test article itself, all while under extreme rotational stress. OSDAS is a fully functional PC-based system with 48 channels of 24-bit, high-sample-rate input channels, phase synchronized, with an onboard storage capacity of over 1/2-terabyte of solid-state storage. This recording system takes a novel approach to the problem of recording multiple channels of instrumentation, integrated with the test article itself, packaged in a compact/rugged form factor, consuming limited power, all while rotating at high turbine speeds.

Pedings, Marc↗

NASA NTRS2013

Advanced Curation of Current and Future Extraterrestrial Samples

Curation of extraterrestrial samples is the critical interface between sample return missions and the international research community. Curation includes documentation, preservation, preparation, and distribution of samples. The current collections of extraterrestrial samples include: Lunar rocks / soils collected by the Apollo astronauts Meteorites, including samples of asteroids, the Moon, and Mars "Cosmic dust" (asteroid and comet particles) collected by high-altitude aircraft Solar wind atoms collected by the Genesis spacecraft Comet particles collected by the Stardust spacecraft Interstellar dust collected by the Stardust spacecraft Asteroid particles collected by the Hayabusa spacecraft These samples were formed in environments strikingly different from that on Earth. Terrestrial contamination can destroy much of the scientific significance of many extraterrestrial materials. In order to preserve the research value of these precious samples, contamination must be minimized, understood, and documented. In addition the samples must be preserved - as far as possible - from physical and chemical alteration. In 2011 NASA selected the OSIRIS-REx mission, designed to return samples from the primitive asteroid 1999 RQ36 (Bennu). JAXA will sample C-class asteroid 1999 JU3 with the Hayabusa-2 mission. ESA is considering the near-Earth asteroid sample return mission Marco Polo-R. The Decadal Survey listed the first lander in a Mars sample return campaign as its highest priority flagship-class mission, with sample return from the South Pole-Aitken basin and the surface of a comet among additional top priorities. The latest NASA budget proposal includes a mission to capture a 5-10 m asteroid and return it to the vicinity of the Moon as a target for future sampling. Samples, tools, containers, and contamination witness materials from any of these missions carry unique requirements for acquisition and curation. Some of these requirements represent significant advances over methods currently used. New analytical and screening techniques will increase the value of current sample collections. Improved web-based tools will make information on all samples more accessible to researchers and the public. Advanced curation of current and future extraterrestrial samples includes: Contamination Control - inorganic / organic Temperature of preservation - subfreezing / cryogenic Non-destructive preliminary examination - X-ray tomography / XRF mapping / Raman mapping Microscopic samples - handling / sectioning / transport Special samples - unopened lunar cores Informatics - online catalogs / community-based characterization.

Allen, Carlton C.↗

NASA NTRS1975

An automated atmospheric sampling system operating on 747 airliners

An air sampling system that automatically measures the temporal and spatial distribution of selected particulate and gaseous constituents of the atmosphere has been installed on a number of commercial airliners and is collecting data on commercial air routes covering the world. Measurements of constituents related to aircraft engine emissions and other pollutants are made in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (6 to 12 km) in support of the Global Air Sampling Program (GASP). Aircraft operated by different airlines sample air at latitudes from the Arctic to Australia. This system includes specialized instrumentation for measuring carbon monoxide, ozone, water vapor, and particulates, a special air inlet probe for sampling outside air, a computerized automatic control, and a data acquisition system. Air constituents and related flight data are tape recorded in flight for later computer processing on the ground.

Perkins, P.↗

NASA NTRS1976

An automated atmospheric sampling system operating on 747 airliners

An air sampling system that automatically measures the temporal and spatial distribution of particulate and gaseous constituents of the atmosphere is collecting data on commercial air routes covering the world. Measurements are made in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (6 to 12 km) of constituents related to aircraft engine emissions and other pollutants. Aircraft operated by different airlines sample air at latitudes from the Arctic to Australia. This unique system includes specialized instrumentation, a special air inlet probe for sampling outside air, a computerized automatic control, and a data acquisition system. Air constituent and related flight data are tape recorded in flight for later computer processing on the ground.

Perkins, P. J.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Users manual for the US baseline corn and soybean segment classification procedure

A user's manual for the classification component of the FY-81 U.S. Corn and Soybean Pilot Experiment in the Foreign Commodity Production Forecasting Project of AgRISTARS is presented. This experiment is one of several major experiments in AgRISTARS designed to measure and advance the remote sensing technologies for cropland inventory. The classification procedure discussed is designed to produce segment proportion estimates for corn and soybeans in the U.S. Corn Belt (Iowa, Indiana, and Illinois) using LANDSAT data. The estimates are produced by an integrated Analyst/Machine procedure. The Analyst selects acquisitions, participates in stratification, and assigns crop labels to selected samples. In concert with the Analyst, the machine digitally preprocesses LANDSAT data to remove external effects, stratifies the data into field like units and into spectrally similar groups, statistically samples the data for Analyst labeling, and combines the labeled samples into a final estimate.

Horvath, R.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Rangeland biomass estimation demonstration

Because of their sensitivity to chlorophyll density, green leaf density, and leaf water density, two hand-held radiometers which have sensor bands coinciding with thematic mapper bands 3, 4, and 5 were used to calibrate green biomass to LANDSAT spectral ratios as a step towards using portable radiometers to speed up ground data acquisition. Two field reflectance panels monitored incoming radiation concurrently with sampling. Software routines were developed and used to extract data from uncorrected tapes of MSS data provided in NASA LANDSAT universal format. A LANDSAT biomass calibration curve estimated the range biomass over a four scene area and displayed this information spatially as a product in a format of use to ranchers. The regional biomass contour map is discussed.

Newton, R. W.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Fluctuating pressures measured beneath a high-temperature, turbulent boundary layer on a flat plate at Mach number of 5

Fluctuating pressures were measured beneath a Mach 5, turbulent boundary layer on a flat plate with an array of piezoresistive sensors. The data were obtained with a digital signal acquisition system during a test run of 4 seconds. Data sampling rate was such that frequency analysis up to 62.5 kHz could be performed. To assess in situ frequency response of the sensors, a specially designed waveguide calibration system was employed to measure transfer functions of all sensors and related instrumentation. Pressure time histories were approximated well by a Gaussian prohibiting distribution. Pressure spectra were very repeatable over the array span of 76 mm. Total rms pressures ranged from 0.0017 to 0.0046 of the freestream dynamic pressure. Streamwise, space-time correlations exhibited expected decaying behavior of a turbulence generated pressure field. Average convection speed was 0.87 of freestream velocity. The trendless behavior with sensor separation indicated possible systematic errors.

Parrott, Tony L.↗

NASA NTRS1999

Photon-Weighted Midpoint Exposure Meter for Keck/HIRES Extrasolar Planet Research

NASA Grant was received for research involving the construction of a photon-weighting midpoint exposure meter for the Keck HIRES spectrometer, and for support of our NASA/Keck-based planet research with this instrumentation. The research funds were also to be used to make our iodine cell calibration system and exposure meter available to the NASA Keck observing community. Progress this past year, the second of the 3-year granting period, involved work in 4 areas: 1) Further construction of the midpoint exposure meter. 2) Assisting observers with use of the Iodine system. 3) Acquisition of precision radial velocity data on our program star sample with continued monitoring to proceed in subsequent years as available telescope time permits. 4) Reduction and analysis of incoming precision radial velocity data to reject problematic and uninteresting program stars, and to identify promising planet candidates.

Source record↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Recovery Rate is an Improved Metric for Monitoring Bioburden in Cleanrooms

The Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office maintains seven cleanrooms for curating extraterrestrial samples from a variety of sample return missions. These cleanrooms are monitored for inorganic and particulate contamination and are maintained at ISO 7 to ISO 4 equivalent standards as dictated by collection requirements. As part of the advanced curation effort and to prepare for future sample collections from carbonaceous asteroids and eventually Mars we have begun monitoring the microbiology of these cleanrooms. Insights gained from monitoring these labs can be applied to improving planetary protection efforts.

Planetary Protection↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Limitations to Biomass Estimation for FAV Using NDVI Analysis of Satellite Acquisitions

The distribution and standing biomass (mass per unit area) of Floating Aquatic Vegetation (FAV)provide assessment metrics for productivity of vegetative communities. Remote sensing acquisition data has been used to estimate standing biomass in various ecosystems using vegetation indices, particularly the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), comparing the relative strength of radiation absorbance and reflectance of vegetation in specific wavebands. Obstacles to estimating vegetation biomass using NDVI reported are related to diversity of the vegetation community and high-density saturation. We evaluate the potential for using NDVI derived estimates for FAV biomass in the California Delta by focusing on patches of predominantly single species and compare biomass estimates for specific patches with measurement of total biomass and partitioning within the vegetation canopy. Using Landsat satellite acquisitions, biomass estimates are made for individual pixels and vegetation samples were collected from those same pixels. Focus on patches of predominantly single FAV species resulted in successful estimation of standing biomass beyond that previously reported in other ecosystems. A saturation response for the estimations was observed, however, with a much higher threshold high than previously reported for diverse population aquatic ecosystems. We discuss the likely cause for the saturation phenomenon and potential improvement utilizing altered spectral indices possible with higher spectral resolution from satellites carrying higher waveband multispectral and hyperspectral instruments.

Biomass↗

NASA NTRS1993

A functional description of the Buffered Telemetry Demodulator (BTD)

This article gives a functional description of the buffered telemetry demodulator (BTD), which operates on recorded digital samples to extract the symbols from the received signal. The key advantages of the BTD are as follows: (1) its ability to reprocess the signal to reduce acquisition time; (2) its ability to use future information about the signal and to perform smoothing on past samples; and (3) its minimum transmission bandwidth requirement as each sub carrier harmonic is processed individually. The first application of the BTD would be the Galileo S-band contingency mission, where the signal is so weak that reprocessing to reduce the acquisition time is crucial. Moreover, in the event of employing antenna arraying with full spectrum combining, only the sub carrier harmonics need to be transmitted between sites, resulting in significant reduction in data rate transmission requirements. Software implementation of the BTD is described for various general-purpose computers.

Tsou, H.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Soil crusts on Mars

Three distinct soillike materials sampled by the Viking landers (VL) on Mars are (in order of increasing strength): (1) drift; (2) crusty to cloddy; and (3) blocky. Relative strengths of these materials are manifested by footpad penetrations during landing (VL 1), depths of deep holes, motor currents during sampling, sampler backhoe penetrations, comminutor motor currents, impact pits, trench tailings, and successful acquisitions of the coarse fraction (only blocky material). Cementation by S Cl compounds probably contributes to the relative strengths. This is shown where the weight pct. of SO3 + Cl of each material is plotted against their relative strengths. A similar result is obtained using SO3 alone, but not with Cl which is deficient in VL 2 samples.

Moore, H. J.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Geography of cretaceous extinctions: Data base development

Data bases built from the source literature are plagued by problems of data quality. Unless the data acquisition is done by experts, working slowly, the data base may contain so much garbage that true signals and patterns cannot be detected. On the other hand, high quality data bases develop so slowly that satisfactory statistical analysis may never be possible due to the small sample sizes. Results of a test are presented of the opposite strategy: rapid data acquisition by non-experts with minimal control on data quality. A published list of 186 species and genera of fossil invertibrates of the latest Cretaceous Age (Maestrichtian) were located through a random search of the paleobiological and geological literature. The geographic location for each faunal list was then transformed electronically to Maestrichtian latitude and longitude and the lists were further digested to identify the genera occurring in each ten-degree, latitude-longitude block. The geographical lists were clustered using the Otsuka similarity coefficient and a standard unweight-pair-group method. The resulting clusters are remarkably consistent geographically, indicating that a strong biogeographic signal is visible despite low-quality data. A further test evaluated the geographic pattern of end-Cretaceaous extinctions. All genera in the data base were compared with Sepkoski's compendium of time ranges of genera to determine which of the reported genera survived the Cretaceous mass extinction. In turn, extinction rates for the ten-degree, latitude-longitude blocks were mapped. The resulting distribution is readily interpretable as a robust pattern of the geography of the mass extinction. The study demonstrates that a low-quality data base, built rapidly, can provide a basis for meaningful analysis of past biotic events.

Raup, D. M.↗

NASA NTRS2008

25th Space Simulation Conference. Environmental Testing: The Earth-Space Connection

Topics covered include: Methods of Helium Injection and Removal for Heat Transfer Augmentation; The ESA Large Space Simulator Mechanical Ground Support Equipment for Spacecraft Testing; Temperature Stability and Control Requirements for Thermal Vacuum/Thermal Balance Testing of the Aquarius Radiometer; The Liquid Nitrogen System for Chamber A: A Change from Original Forced Flow Design to a Natural Flow (Thermo Siphon) System; Return to Mercury: A Comparison of Solar Simulation and Flight Data for the MESSENGER Spacecraft; Floating Pressure Conversion and Equipment Upgrades of Two 3.5kw, 20k, Helium Refrigerators; Affect of Air Leakage into a Thermal-Vacuum Chamber on Helium Refrigeration Heat Load; Special ISO Class 6 Cleanroom for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Project; A State-of-the-Art Contamination Effects Research and Test Facility Martian Dust Simulator; Cleanroom Design Practices and Their Influence on Particle Counts; Extra Terrestrial Environmental Chamber Design; Contamination Sources Effects Analysis (CSEA) - A Tool to Balance Cost/Schedule While Managing Facility Availability; SES and Acoustics at GSFC; HST Super Lightweight Interchangeable Carrier (SLIC) Static Test; Virtual Shaker Testing: Simulation Technology Improves Vibration Test Performance; Estimating Shock Spectra: Extensions beyond GEVS; Structural Dynamic Analysis of a Spacecraft Multi-DOF Shaker Table; Direct Field Acoustic Testing; Manufacture of Cryoshroud Surfaces for Space Simulation Chambers; The New LOTIS Test Facility; Thermal Vacuum Control Systems Options for Test Facilities; Extremely High Vacuum Chamber for Low Outgassing Processing at NASA Goddard; Precision Cleaning - Path to Premier; The New Anechoic Shielded Chambers Designed for Space and Commercial Applications at LIT; Extraction of Thermal Performance Values from Samples in the Lunar Dust Adhesion Bell Jar; Thermal (Silicon Diode) Data Acquisition System; Aquarius's Instrument Science Data System (ISDS) Automated to Acquire, Process, Trend Data and Produce Radiometric System Assessment Reports; Exhaustive Thresholds and Resistance Checkpoints; Reconfigurable HIL Testing of Earth Satellites; FPGA Control System for the Automated Test of MicroShutters; Ongoing Capabilities and Developments of Re-Entry Plasma Ground Tests at EADS-ASTRIUM; Operationally Responsive Space Standard Bus Battery Thermal Balance Testing and Heat Dissipation Analysis; Galileo - The Serial-Production AIT Challenge; The Space Systems Environmental Test Facility Database (SSETFD), Website Development Status; Simulated Reentry Heating by Torching; Micro-Vibration Measurements on Thermally Loaded Multi-Layer Insulation Samples in Vacuum; High Temperature Life Testing of 80Ni-20Cr Wire in a Simulated Mars Atmosphere for the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) Instrument Suit Gas Processing System (GPS) Carbon Dioxide Scrubber; The Planning and Implementation of Test Facility Improvements; and Development of a Silicon Carbide Molecular Beam Nozzle for Simulation Planetary Flybys and Low-Earth Orbit.

Packard, Edward↗

NASA NTRS1979

Combining paleointensity methods - A dual-valued determination on lunar sample 10017,135

A single-heating procedure for the determination of two partially independent values of paleofield intensity for one sample is presented. The procedure combines data for Shaw-type and 'ARM-method' determinations furnishing the ratio thermoremanent magnetization (TRM) to ARM acquisition efficiency corrected for physicochemical alteration to the magnetic carriers. Applicability of the Shaw-method to Fe-bearing samples is demonstrated by simulated paleointensity determinations on synthetic samples containing multidomain grains. The combined Shaw-ARM procedure was applied to a linear basalt sample, but the Thellier-Thellier method could not provide a meaningful determination of the neighboring chip. These conflicting findings may be explained by multiple step-wise heatings causing more damage to carriers than a single heating procedure, and by the natural remanent magnetization in this lunar basalt not being a simple TRM.

Hoffman, K. A.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Portable High-Frequency Data-Acquisition System

Compact unit made of readily available solid-state components. Proposed system for acquisition of rapidly changing data self-contained and portable. Conceived for monitoring such aerodynamic effects as flutter, vibration, shock, sound, and pressure. Offers precise and fast acquisition of data and large data-storage capacity: has maximum sampling rate of 125 kHz, access time of 15 ns, and 1-million-bit memory. Measures time with "smart" (microprocessor-controlled) watch that maintains calendar time for more than 10 years without external power. Provides standby power from "smart" battery furnishing up to 1 ampere-hour of charge if power from main batteries lost.

Mustain, Roy W.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Dynamics of the outgoing turbulent boundary layer in a Mach 5 unswept compression ramp interaction

Wall pressure fluctuations have been measured under the unsteady separation shock and on the ramp face in an unswept Mach 5 compression ramp interaction. The freestream Reynolds number was 51.0 x 10 to the 6th/m, and the incoming turbulent boundary layer developed on the tunnel floor under approximately adiabatic wall temperature conditions. Standard data-acquisition methods, as well as real-time and posttest conditional sampling techniques were used. The results show that the mean and rms pressure levels are strong functions of separation shock position. At all stations on the ramp, from the corner to where the pressure reaches the theoretical inviscid value, the pressure signals have two dominant components: a low frequency component characteristic of the global unsteadiness, which correlates with the separation shock motion, and a higher frequency component associated with turbulence. The former is the major contributor to the overall signal variance.

Gramann, Richard A.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Gas-Grain Simulation Facility (GGSF)

The goal of the Gas-Grain Simulation Facility project is to provide a microgravity laboratory to facilitate research relevant to exobiology (the study of the origin and evolution of life in the universe). Such a facility will also be useful in other areas of study important to NASA including planetary science, biology, atmospheric science, astrophysics, chemistry, and physics. To achieve this goal, the project will develop and support the GGSF, a modular facility-class payload planned for inclusion on Space Station Freedom. The GGSF will consist of the following: an experiment chamber(s) supported by subsystems that provide chamber environment regulation and monitoring capabilities; sample generation, injection, positioning, and retrieval capabilities; and computer control, data acquisition, and housekeeping capabilities. The facility will also provide analytical tools such as light-scattering measurement systems, aerosol size-spectrum measurement devices, and optical imaging systems.

Greenwald, Ken↗