Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “Comparison study”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 487 records · Page 27

A refractory glass chondrule in the Vigarano chondrite

Vigarano, a type 3 carbonaceous chondrite, contains a chondrule composed of highly refractory Ca- and Al-rich glass with minor spinel. The chondrule formed from material similar to the Ca-, Al-, Ti-rich aggregates that are common in Vigarano and other type 3 chondrites and formation of these refractory aggregates must predate formation of some Vigarano chondrules. Experiments with synthetic analogs and a comparison with studies in the system CaO-MgO-Al2O3-SiO2 indicate a temperature for formation of the chondrule at or above 1700 C followed by very rapid cooling.

Reid, A. M.↗

Mission analysis for the interplanetary monitoring platforms IMP-H and -J

IMP-H and -J were launched in September 1972 and October 1973, respectively, and placed into orbits of low eccentricity halfway distant to the moon. IMP-H was required to remain between 30 and 40 earth radii for three years, and IMP-J was to maintain a similar orbit while staying on the opposite side of the earth. In both cases no orbit-adjust capability was provided after firing of a solid-propellant apogee kick motor; so strategy during mission operations depended on advance studies of orbit evolution and sensitivity to pertinent error sources. This is presented in detail along with the launch window study, and comparisons are made between the target and achieved orbits.

Muhonen, D. P.↗

Organopolysiloxane-bonded graphite fluoride as a solid lubricant

A study was conducted on the lubricating properties of organopolysiloxane-bonded graphite fluoride (CF sub 1.1) sub n films. The effects of temperature, atmosphere, composition of organopolysiloxane, and burnishing additional (CF sub 1.1) sub n powder onto the film surface were studied. For comparison, similar experiments were conducted on organopolysiloxane-bonded MoS2 films. The results are equivalent for both films, except that in a moist air environment the wear lives of the films formulated with (CF sub 1.1) sub n are up to 10 times longer than the wear lives of the MoS2-formulated films. Comparison to other (CF sub 1.1) sub n films showed organopolysiloxane films to give better lubrication results than hand-burnished (CF sub 1.1) sub n films but not as good as polyimide-bonded (CF sub 1.1) sub n films.

Fusaro, R. L.↗

Plasma clouds and auroral arcs

Correlation techniques for magnetospheric observations of various types by instrumented spacecraft in synchronous orbit are discussed. Emphasis is placed on ideas for possible use in studies with GEOS satellite during the International Magnetospheric Study, and comparison of auroral and magnetospheric plasma features are considered. Correlation between ATS-5 particle detector measurements with ground based measurement and other spacecraft such as Explorer 45 is described. Observations from ATS-6 instrument are briefly mentioned.

Deforest, S.↗

Mariner 4 - A study of the cumulative flux of dust particles over a heliocentric range of 1-1.56 AU 1964-1967

Between December 1964 and December 1967, the Mariner 4 dust particle experiment obtained data concerning the distribution of minute zodiacal dust cloud particles over a heliocentric range of 1-1.56 AU. The first measurement was over the complete heliocentric range, while the two additional measurements were made between 1.1 and 1.25 AU in 1966, and between 1.2 and 1.5 AU in 1967. The initial results of these measurements presented the mean cumulative flux for the respective data periods. The results of a detailed study and comparison of the three measurements are presented, with particular emphasis on the variation of the flux as a function of heliocentric range. A small, but statistically significant, increase in the flux is observed between 1.15 and 1.4 AU. The initial reports showed a lower cumulative flux for the latter two measurements. However, a detailed analysis containing corrections for spacecraft attitude indicate that all three measurements yield similar results, and that the particles detected were in low inclination orbits.

Alexander, W. M.↗

Ignition of partially shattered liquid fuel drops in a reflected shock wave environment

An experimental investigation of the ignition of individual fuel drops after their interaction with an incident and a reflected shock wave near the end wall of a shock tube has been carried out. The influence of the aerodynamic shattering of the fuel drop by the convective flow on the ignition characteristics has been examined by varying the drop-end wall separation distance. Data are presented which show the ignition delay times to be a function of the various experimental conditions encountered in this study. A comparison is made with previous investigations concerning the ignition of a liquid fuel drop due only to the interaction with an incident shock wave.

Wierzba, A. S.↗

Wake-related sound generation from isolated airfoils

A model for the prediction of wake-related sound generation by a single airfoil is presented which assumes that the net force fluctuation on an airfoil can be expressed in terms of the net momentum fluctuation in the near wake of the airfoil. The model predicts a forcing function for sound generation which is related to the spectra of the two-point velocity correlations in the turbulent region near the airfoil trailing edge. Cross spectra were obtained from correlations of the longitudinal and transverse components of turbulence in the wake of a 36-in. chord airfoil in a wind tunnel using x-probe hot-wire sensors. Additional data were obtained from a 10-in. chord airfoil in a free-jet facility. Based on results from these tests, a scaling model was developed using the turbulent boundary-layer thickness as the primary length measure. The model was used to predict the sound radiated from a 2-in. chord airfoil for which acoustical data was available; good agreement was obtained both in level and spectral shape. The single-airfoil result is extended to a rotor geometry, and comparisons are studied for various aerodynamic parameters.

Clark, L. T.↗

Mossbauer effect studies in iron containing nonmagnetic impurities

Mossbauer parameters of dilute quaternary (Fe-XYZ) alloys where X, Y, Z, are Al, Ge, and La, respectively were studied. A comparison between the computed and the observed values indicates that changes in effective hyperfine field, outer peak widths and the isomer shift predicted on the basis of binary alloys of the individual impurities are equal, within experimental errors, to those obtained in quaternary (Fe-XYZ) alloys. The effects of simultaneously present dilute impurities are shown to be additive, independent of their respective electronic configurations.

Singh, J. J.↗

Experiments for improved positioning by means of integrated Doppler satellite observations and the NNSS broadcast ephemeris

An effort to improve station position recovery using broadcast ephemeris in Doppler data reduction was studied. A comparison of precise and broadcast ephemerides, treating the former as the standard, yielded information about the state disturbance that can be associated with the broadcast ephemeris. Statistical information about the state disturbance was used with current observational data for improved position recovery. The rank deficiency problem encountered in the short arc geodetic adjustment procedure was analysed and it was deduced that the fundamental rank deficiency is six, scale information being derivable from the wavelength of transmission. Coordinate differences between stations coobserving a pass are estimable. The uncertainty of the broadcast ephemeris, now in the WGS72 system, was assessed. It was conservatively estimated that its positional uncertainty may vary between 19 to 26 m in-track, 15 to 20 m cross-track and 9 to 10 m in radial directions depending on the incidence of the epoch of observations in the interinjection period.

Arur, M. G.↗

Analysis and geological interpretation of gravity data from GEOS-3 altimeter

A number of detailed gravimetric geoids of portions of the world's oceans from marine gravity measurements were constructed. The geoids were constructed by computing 1 x 1 deg or 10 x 10 deg averages of free-air anomaly data and subtracting these values from currently used satellite derived Earth models. The resulting difference gravity anomalies are then integrated over a sphere using a simplified form of Stoke's equation to obtain a difference geoid. This difference geoid is added to the satellite derived model to obtain a 1 x 1 deg or 10 x 10 deg total gravimetric geoid. The geoid undulations are studied by comparison of the altimeter measurements with the morphology of the ocean floor. Utilizing a combination of altimetry data, gravity and seismic reflection data, geophysical models of the earth can be constructed.

Talwani, M.↗

Status of knowledge of the extraterrestrial solar 'constant' and spectral distribution

Current knowledge of the total solar flux (the solar constant) and its spectral distribution at the top of the earth's atmosphere is reviewed. The development of pyrheliometers and radiation scales is traced, noting that active cavity pyrheliometers have been developed to reduce measurement uncertainty to within 0.1/%. The weighted mean solar constant from ground-based, aircraft, balloon, spacecraft and sounding rocket observations has been calculated to be 1369 W/sq m. Future observations are planned in order to reduce uncertainty to the 0.1% level required for climatological studies. A comparison of the measurement and models of solar spectral irradiance obtained by Thekaekara (1969, 1974), Arvesen (1969) and Labs and Neckel (1968, 1975) shows that the spectrum of Labs and Neckel is most accurate in the 0.4 to 1.25 micron range, that of Arvesen is best in the 0.3 to 0.4 abd 1.25 to 2.5 micron ranges and the model of Labs and Neckel is best at wavelengths greater than 2.5 microns.

Willson, R. C.↗

Effects of relaxed static longitudinal stability on a single-stage-to-orbit vehicle design

The effects of relaxing longitudinal stability requirements on single stage to orbit space vehicles is studied. A comparison of the mass and performance characteristics of two vehicles, one designed for positive levels of longitudinal stability and the other designed with relaxed stability requirements in a computer aided design process is presented. Both vehicles, required to meet the same mission characteristics are described. Wind tunnel tests, conducted over a Mach number range from 0.3 to 4.63 to verify estimated aerodynamic characteristics, are discussed.

Freeman, D. C., Jr.↗

Analytical investigation of aerodynamic characteristics of highly swept wings with separated flow

Many modern aircraft designed for supersonic speeds employ highly swept-back and low-aspect-ratio wings with sharp or thin edges. Flow separation occurs near the leading and tip edges of such wings at moderate to high angles of attack. Attempts have been made over the years to develop analytical methods for predicting the aerodynamic characteristics of such aircraft. Before any method can really be useful, it must be tested against a standard set of data to determine its capabilities and limitations. The present work undertakes such an investigation. Three methods are considered: the free-vortex-sheet method (Weber et al., 1975), the vortex-lattice method with suction analogy (Lamar and Gloss, 1975), and the quasi-vortex lattice method of Mehrotra (1977). Both flat and cambered wings of different configurations, for which experimental data are available, are studied and comparisons made.

Reddy, C. S.↗

Dynamics of collisionless systems

The three dimensional dynamics of rotating stellar systems were studied. A comparison of various mathematical models of flat galaxies is presented. The effects of self-gravity upon a flat galaxy undergoing a tidal encounter with another galaxy were investigated.

Zang, T. A.↗

Lagrangian least-squares prediction of solar activity

Statistical prediction methods for short-term (months) and long-term (years) forecasting of solar activity were studied. The comparisons indicate that better predictions, in a chi square sense, are possible by lining up the maximum (or minimums, or both) by cycle number. Evidence is also presented to support the existence of an aperiodic variation in the periods as well as the amplitudes.

Holland, R. L.↗

GOASEX observations of Seasat SAR cross-section modulation from surface winds

L-band data from the Seasat SAR and scatterometer are compared with three SAR data sets from the Gulf of Alaska Seasat Experiment to determine the effectiveness of the L-band for determining surface wind speeds. The SAR scans a 100 km swath several hundred km long. Cross sections from the SAR data were measured at the center, and were found to rise and fall with the observed sea level wind speeds. The L-band backscatter was found to be proportional to the square root of the surface winds, with upwind/crosswind differences as large as 10%. Concerted use of the SAR imagery and the scatterometer data are concluded to offer a capability of accurately describing windspeeds in a 25 x 25 km cell down to a 25 x 25 sq m cell. Implementation is noted to depend on further studies for comparisons of upper and lower air wind data.

Thompson, T. W.↗