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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 451 records · Page 25

Particle size distributions in polar mesospheric clouds derived from solar mesosphere explorer measurements

Data from the visible and UV spectrometers on the Solar Mesosphere Explorer are used to derive the color ratios of the reflectance at 265, 296, and 393 nm of light scattered from polar mesospheric cloud particles. This analysis extends the spectral coverage into the visible region of the spectrum. The data reduction technique compared the cloud brightness to the brightness scattered from the background atmosphere at the same wavelength. The ratios determined in this way are independent of systematic errors in instrument radiometric calibration. The data are analyzed using theoretical determinations of the color ratios from the Mie theory of small particle scattering, assuming a lognormal distribution for the particle size dispersion. Here 'size' means the average radius of the sphere having the same ice volume. The present results confirm earlier findings that the effective sizes of polar mesospheric cloud particles are less than 70 nm. Still, there exists a small number of measurements which result in particle sizes of the order of 80 nm. Even for these large particle sizes the required vertical column content of water vapor does not exceed limits imposed by the available atmospheric water vapor concentrations.

Rusch, D. W.↗

Scientific Findings from Explorer VI

Scientific data acquired by Explorer satellite measurements - astronomy and celestial mechanics, ionospheric physics, and energetic particles in Van Allen belt and magnetic fields

VAN ALLEN BELT↗

Data Assimilation Technology Transfer from Planetary Exploration to Terrestrial Applications

Data assimilation can be a valuable tool for discovery and exploration. Planetary missions--principally polar orbiting spacecraft--are now capable of returning enough information to constrain global dynamical models. However, such missions operate under a number of severe constraints: there is no ground truth to calibrate and validate either the models or the data: and there are limited computational resources available, particularly onboard the spacecraft, for the near real-time processing that is required for aerobraking and other semi-autonomous maneuvers. A modified data assimilation approach, in which the prime analysis variable is the observed quantity (i.e., infrared radiances), has been found to be effective in deriving global meteorology from Mars Global Surveyor Thermal Emission Spectrometer data. It may also be useful in a number of terrestrial applications (e.g. aerosol assimilation).

Houben, Howard↗

Expansion-history preferences of DESI DR2 and external data

We explore the origin of the preference of Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) Data Release 2 (DR2) baryon acoustic oscillation measurements and external data from cosmic microwave background (CMB) and type Ia supernovae (SNIa) that dark energy behavior departs from that expected in the standard cosmological model with vacuum energy (Λ ⁢CDM). In our analysis, we allow a flexible scaling of the expansion rate with redshift that nevertheless allows reasonably tight constraints on the quantities of interest, and adopt and validate a simple yet accurate compression of the CMB data that allows us to constrain our phenomenological model of the expansion history. We find that data consistently show a preference for a 3%–4% increase in the expansion rate at 𝑧 ≃ 0.7 relative to that predicted by the standard Λ⁢ CDM model, in excellent agreement with results from the less flexible (𝑤 0 ,𝑤 𝑎 ) parametrization which was used in previous analyses. Even though our model allows a departure from the best-fit Λ⁢ CDM model at zero redshift, we find no evidence for such a signal. We also find no evidence (at greater than 1⁢𝜎 significance) for a departure of the expansion rate from the Λ ⁢CDM predictions at higher redshifts for any of the data combinations that we consider. Altogether, our results strengthen the robustness of the findings using the combination of DESI, CMB, and SNIa data to dark-energy modeling assumptions.

Cosmological parameters↗

Exploring and Analyzing Climate Variations Online by Using NASA MERRA-2 Data at GES DISC

NASA Giovanni (Goddard Interactive Online Visualization ANd aNalysis Infrastructure) (http:giovanni.sci.gsfc.nasa.govgiovanni) is a web-based data visualization and analysis system developed by the Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC). Current data analysis functions include Lat-Lon map, time series, scatter plot, correlation map, difference, cross-section, vertical profile, and animation etc. The system enables basic statistical analysis and comparisons of multiple variables. This web-based tool facilitates data discovery, exploration and analysis of large amount of global and regional remote sensing and model data sets from a number of NASA data centers. Long term global assimilated atmospheric, land, and ocean data have been integrated into the system that enables quick exploration and analysis of climate data without downloading, preprocessing, and learning data. Example data include climate reanalysis data from NASA Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications, Version 2 (MERRA-2) which provides data beginning in 1980 to present; land data from NASA Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS), which assimilates data from 1948 to 2012; as well as ocean biological data from NASA Ocean Biogeochemical Model (NOBM), which provides data from 1998 to 2012. This presentation, using surface air temperature, precipitation, ozone, and aerosol, etc. from MERRA-2, demonstrates climate variation analysis with Giovanni at selected regions.

knowledge base↗

Program of solar wind data analysis utilizing data from Pioneer 6, Mariner 5 and explorer 35

A combined data analysis and theoretical program aimed at interpreting and utilizing solar wind data obtained from Pioneer 6, Mariner 5, and Explorer 35 has been completed. A theoretical model of the radial dependence of large scale solar wind inhomogeneities was developed and used to map solar wind variations measured by Explorer 35 to various heliocentric distances and to the orbits of Mercury, Venus, and Mars. The model was also used to determine power spectra velocity, density and temperature variations of 20 R sub s from spectra obtained from the Mariner 5 data at an average heliocentric distance of 180 R sub s. Five stream-stream interaction events in the Pioneer 6 data were analyzed which confirmed the picture of a spiral compression ridge interfacing the two streams and the associated east-west deflections of the solar wind flow. Magnetopause crossings observed in Explorer 35 plasma data were used to develop statics on boundary motions at lunar distance. A study of the geomagnetic disturbance field asymmetry was performed and a model of disturbance field from a partial ring current was developed.

Siscoe, G. L.↗

A Parallel EM Algorithm for Model-Based Clustering Applied to the Exploration of Large Spatio-Temporal Data

We develop a parallel EM algorithm for multivariate Gaussian mixture models and use it to perform model-based clustering of a large climate data set. Three variants of the EM algorithm are reformulated in parallel and a new variant that is faster is presented. All are implemented using the single program, multiple data (SPMD) programming model, which is able to take advantage of the combined collective memory of large distributed computer architectures to process larger data sets. Displays of the estimated mixture model rather than the data allow us to explore multivariate relationships in a way that scales to arbitrary size data. We study the performance of our methodology on simulated data and apply our methodology to a high resolution climate dataset produced by the community atmosphere model (CAM5). This article has supplementary material online.

Chen, Wei-Chen↗

Ground Processing of Data From the Mars Exploration Rovers

A computer program implements the Earth side of the protocol that governs the transfer of data files generated by the Mars Exploration Rovers. It also provides tools for viewing data in these files and integrating data-product files into automated and manual processes. It reconstitutes files from telemetry data packets. Even if only one packet is received, metadata provide enough information to enable this program to identify and use partial data products. This software can generate commands to acknowledge received files and retransmit missed parts of files, or it can feed a manual process to make decisions about retransmission. The software uses an Extensible Markup Language (XML) data dictionary to provide a generic capability for displaying files of basic types, and uses external "plug-in" application programs to provide more sophisticated displays. This program makes data products available with very low latency, and can trigger automated actions when complete or partial products are received. The software is easy to install and use. The only system requirement for installing the software is a Java J2SE 1.4 platform. Several instances of the software can be executed simultaneously on the same machine.

Wright, Jesse↗

The use of radar and LANDSAT data for mineral and petroleum exploration in the Los Andes region, Venezuela

A geological study of a 27,500 sq km area in the Los Andes region of northwestern Venezuela was performed which employed both X-band radar mosaics and computer processed Landsat images. The 3.12 cm wavelength radar data were collected with horizontal-horizontal polarization and 10 meter spatial resolution by an Aeroservices SAR system at an altitude of 12,000 meters. The radar images increased the number of observable suspected fractures by 27 percent over what could be mapped by LANDSAT alone, owing mostly to the cloud cover penetration capabilities of radar. The approximate eight fold greater spatial resolution of the radar images made possible the identification of shorter, narrower fractures than could be detected with LANDSAT data alone, resulting in the discovery of a low relief anticline that could not be observed in LANDSAT data. Exploration targets for petroleum, copper, and uranium were identified for further geophysical work.

Vincent, R. K.↗

Exploring the Impact of Nuclear Data Uncertainties in Ultra-high Resolution Gamma Spectroscopy for Isotopic Analysis Using Approximate Bayesian Computation

High purity germanium (HPGe) currently provides the highest readily available resolution gamma detection for a broad range of radiation measurements, but microcalorimetry is a developing option that has considerably higher resolution even than HPGe. Superior microcalorimetry resolution offers the potential to better distinguish closely spaced X-rays and gamma-rays, a common challenge for the low energy spectral region near 100 keV from special nuclear materials, and the higher signal-to-background ratio also confers an advantage in detection limit. As microcalorimetry continues to develop, it is timely to assess the impact of uncertainties in detector and item response functions and in basic nuclear data, such as branching ratios and half-lives, used to interpret spectra in terms of the contributory radioactive isotopes. We illustrate that a new inference option known as approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) is effective and convenient both for isotopic inference and for uncertainty quantification for microcalorimetry. The ABC approach opens a pathway to new and more powerful implementations for practical applications than currently available.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Reconstruction of the interatomic forces from dynamic scanning transmission electron microscopy data

We explore the possibility for reconstruction of the generative physical models describing interactions between atomic units in solids from observational electron microscopy data. In this work, scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) is used to observe the dynamic motion of Si atoms at the edge of monolayer graphene under continuous electron beam illumination. The resulting time-lapsed STEM images represent the snapshots of observed chemical states of the system. We use two approaches: potential of mean force calculation using a radial distribution function and a direct fitting of the graphene–Si interatomic pairwise potentials with force matching, to reconstruct the force fields in the materials. These studies lay the foundation for quantitative analysis of materials energetics from STEM data through the sampling of the metastable states in the chemical space of the system.

42 ENGINEERING↗

In-situ microscale through-silicon via strain measurements by synchrotron x-ray microdiffraction exploring the physics behind data interpretation

In-situ microscale thermomechanical strain measurements have been performed in combination with synchrotron x-ray microdiffraction to understand the fundamental cause of failures in microelectronics devices with through-silicon vias. The physics behind the raster scan and data analysis of the measured strain distribution maps is explored utilizing the energies of indexed reflections from the measured data and applying them for beam intensity analysis and effective penetration depth determination. Moreover, a statistical analysis is performed for the beam intensity and strain distributions along the beam penetration path to account for the factors affecting peak search and strain refinement procedure.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

A geometry-based approach to determining time-temperature superposition shifts in aging experiments

A powerful way to expand the time and frequency range of material properties is through a method called time-temperature superposition (TTS). Traditionally, TTS has been applied to the dynamical mechanical and flow properties of thermo-rheologically simple materials, where a well-defined master curve can be objectively and accurately obtained by appropriate shifts of curves at different temperatures. However, TTS analysis can also be useful in many other situations where there is scatter in the data and where the principle holds only approximately. In such cases, shifting curves can become a subjective exercise and can often lead to significant errors in the long-term prediction. This mandates the need for an objective method of determining TTS shifts. Here, we adopt a method based on minimizing the “arc length” of the master curve, which is designed to work in situations where there is overlapping data at successive temperatures. We examine the accuracy of the method as a function of increasing noise in the data, and explore the effectiveness of data smoothing prior to TTS shifting. In conclusion, we validate the method using existing experimental data on the creep strain of an aramid fiber and the powder coarsening of an energetic material.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

THE WISE LIGHT CURVES OF POLARS

We have extracted the WISE (Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer) single-exposure data for a sample of 72 polars, which are highly magnetic cataclysmic variables (CVs). We combine these data with both published and unpublished optical and infrared data to explore the origins of the large amplitude variations seen in these systems. In nearly every case, we find evidence for cyclotron emission in the WISE bandpasses. We find that the derived magnetic field strengths for some polars are either too high, or cyclotron emission from lower field components, located spatially coincident to the main accreting poles, must be occurring. We have also estimated field strengths for a number of polars where no such values exist. In addition, contrary to expectations, we find that emission from the fundamental cyclotron harmonic (n = 1) appears to be nearly always present when the magnetic field is of the appropriate strength that it falls within a WISE bandpass. We find that the light curves for RBS 490, an ultrashort-period (46 minutes) CV, suggest that it is a polar. Modeling its spectrum indicates that its donor star is much hotter than expected. Nearly all of the detected polars show 11.5 μm (“W3 band”) excesses. The general lack of variability seen in the W3 bandpass light curves for higher-field polars demonstrates that these excesses are probably not due to cyclotron emission. There is circumstantial evidence that these excesses can be attributed to bremsstrahlung emission from their accretion streams. Reduction of the Spitzer 24 μm image of V1500 Cyg shows that it appears to be located at the center of a small nebula.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Performance Debugging and Tuning of Flash-X with Data Analysis Tools

State-of-the-art multiphysics simulations running on large scale leadership computing platforms have many variables contributing to their performance and scaling behavior. We recently encountered an interesting performance anomaly in Flash-X, a multiphysics multicomponent simulation software, when characterizing its performance behavior on several large-scale HPC platforms. The anomaly was tracked down to the interaction between the use of dynamic allocation of scratch data and data locality in the cache hierarchy. In this paper we present the details of unexpected performance variability of Flash-X, its extensive analysis using the performance measurement tool TAU to collect the data and Python data analysis libraries to explore the data, and our insights from this experience. In this process, we discovered and removed or mitigated two additional performance limiting bottlenecks for performance tuning.

Huck, Kevin↗