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At least 613 records · Page 34

Lunar Surface Operations with Dual Rovers

Lunar Electric Rovers (LER) are currently being developed that are substantially more capable than the Apollo vehicle (LRN ,"). Unlike the LRV, the new LERs provide a pressurized cabin that serves as short-sleeve environment for the crew of two, including sleeping accommodations and other provisions that allow for long tern stays, possibly up to 60 days, on the hear surface, without the need to replenish consumables from some outside source, such as a lander or outpost. As a consequence, significantly larger regions may be explored in the future and traverse distances may be measured in a few hundred kilometers (1, 2). However, crew safety remains an overriding concern, and methods other than "walk back", the major operational constraint of all Apollo traverses, must be implemented to assure -at any time- the safe return of the crew to the lander or outpost. This then causes current Constellation plans to envision long-tern traverses to be conducted with 2 LERs exclusively, each carrying a crew of two: in case one rover fails, the other will rescue the stranded crew and return all 4 astronauts in a single LER to base camp. Recent Desert Research and Technology Studies (DRATS) analog field tests simulated a continuous 14 day traverse (3), covering some 135 km, and included a rescue operation that transferred the crew and diverse consumables from one LER to another these successful tests add substantial realism to the development of long-term, dual rover operations. The simultaneous utilization of 2 LERs is of course totally unlike Apollo and raises interesting issues regarding science productivity and mission operations, the thrust of this note.

Horz, Friedrich↗

Status Update for the Canister Deposition Field Demonstration

This report updates the high-level test plan for evaluating surface deposition on three commercial 32PTH2 spent nuclear fuel (SNF) canisters inside NUTECH Horizontal Modular Storage (NUHOMS) Advanced Horizontal Storage Modules (AHSM) from Orano (formerly Transnuclear Inc.) and provides a description of the surface characterization activities that have been conducted to date. The details contained in this report represent the best designs and approaches explored for testing as of this publication. Given the rapidly developing nature of this test program, some of these plans may change to accommodate new objectives or requirements. The goal of the testing is to collect highly defensible and detailed surface deposition measurements from the surface of dry storage canisters in a marine coastal environment to guide chloride-induced stress corrosion crack (CISCC) research. To facilitate surface sampling, the otherwise highly prototypic dry storage systems will not contain SNF but rather will be electrically heated to mimic the thermal-hydraulic-environment. Instrumentation throughout the canister, storage module, and environment will provide an extensive amount of information for the use of model validation. Manual sampling over a comprehensive portion of the canister surface at regular time intervals will offer a high-fidelity quantification of the conditions experienced in a harsh yet realistic environment.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Status Update for the Canister Deposition Field Demonstration

This report updates the high-level test plan for evaluating surface deposition on three commercial 32PTH2 spent nuclear fuel (SNF) canisters inside NUTECH Horizontal Modular Storage (NUHOMS) Advanced Horizontal Storage Modules (AHSMs) from Orano (formerly Transnuclear Inc.) and provides a description of the surface characterization activities that have been conducted to date. The details contained in this report represent the best designs and approaches explored for testing as of this publication. Given the rapidly developing nature of this test program, some of these plans may change to accommodate new objectives or requirements. The goal of the testing is to collect highly defensible and detailed dust deposition measurements from the surface of dry storage canisters in a marine coastal environment to guide chloride-induced stress corrosion crack (CISCC) research. To facilitate surface sampling, the otherwise highly prototypic dry storage systems will not contain SNF but rather will be electrically heated to mimic the decay heat and thermal hydraulic environment. Test and heater design is supported by detailed computational fluid dynamics modeling. Instrumentation throughout the canister, storage module, and environment will provide extensive information about thermal-hydraulic behavior. Manual sampling over a comprehensive portion of the canister surface at regular time intervals will offer a high-fidelity quantification of the conditions experienced in a harsh yet realistic environment. Functional testing of the finalized heater assemblies and test apparatus is set to begin in December 2022. The proposed delivery of the canisters to the host test site is June/July 2023, which is well ahead of when the AHSM installations would be completed.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Southern Rockies Western Slope Agriculture: Identifying Drivers of Rangeland Production for Drought Planning on the Western Slope of the Southern Rockies

Over the last decade, the southern Rocky Mountains of the United States experienced severe and variable drought. Local ranchers and landowners have reported strain on their operations, citing decreasing forage for their cattle and a need to adjust their business models. This study identified Major Land Resource Area-48 (MLRA-48) and northwestern Colorado as the key region for analysis. NASA DEVELOP partnered with the BLM Colorado River Field Office, Colorado State University Extension, USDA Forest Service, and the National Drought Mitigation Center to address concerns regarding the efficacy of remotely sensed rangeland production platforms and identify early warning climatic indicators of drought. The study identified two key platforms, The Rangeland Productivity Monitoring Service (RPMS) and Rangeland Analysis Platform (RAP), which use NASA Landsat 5 TM, Landsat 7 ETM+, Landsat 8 OLI, and Landsat 9 OLI-2 to estimate rangeland biomass. We regressed these with in situ biomass data to validate their efficacy and found that RAP was more effective than RPMS in estimating rangeland biomass, though it presents a tendency to overestimate. Our study performed a random forest analysis, comparing monthly RAP biomass estimates to a variety of climate variables, including mean precipitation, temperature, Palmer Drought Severity Index, snow water equivalent, snow persistence from Terra MODIS, wind speed and direction, and vapor pressure deficit. We determined that vapor pressure deficit and precipitation are key indicators in predicting forage production in MLRA-48. Our climate analysis provided our partners with greater understanding of the influence of various climate variables in determining rangeland production and allows them to assist land managers in drought mitigation.

remote sensing↗

Core-to-core X-ray emission spectra from Wannier based multiplet ligand field theory

Recent advances using Density Functional Theory (DFT) to augment Multiplet Ligand Field Theory (MLFT) have led to ab-initio calculations of many formerly empirical parameters. This development makes MLFT more predictive instead of interpretive, thus improving its value for studies of highly correlated 3 d , 4 d , and ƒ-electron systems. Synchrotron time is always at a premium, and tools that provide predictive capabilities have clear value when it comes to planning studies. Here, in this work, we develop a DFT + MLFT based approach for core-to-core Kα x-ray emission spectra (XES) and evaluate its performance for a range of transition metal systems. We find good agreement between theory and experiment, as well as the ability to capture key spectral trends related to spin and oxidation state. We also discuss limitations of the model in the context of the remaining free parameters and suggest directions forward.

Ab initio theoretical treatment↗

Decoding Ethiopian Abodes: Towards Classifying Buildings by Occupancy Type Using Footprint Morphology

Building occupancy classification plays a crucial role in urban planning, disaster management, and population modeling. Traditional methods often require extensive field surveys or detailed datasets, which can be time-consuming, expensive, and may yield incomplete or erroneous data. In this paper, we present a novel approach for classifying buildings as residential or non-residential using only building footprint data. By extracting geometric shape derivatives that characterize building morphology, we developed a high-accuracy classification model employing a combination of unsupervised and supervised learning methods. We utilized open-source data from Open Street Map, aggregating it to create binary labels for buildings based on their respective human use type. Our approach demonstrates the potential for scalability without the need for additional data sources other than building footprints and labels, offering a more efficient solution for building occupancy classification.

Adams, Daniel↗

SeaWiFS technical report series. Volume 17: Ocean color in the 21st century. A strategy for a 20-year time series

Beginning with the upcoming launch of the Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS), there should be almost continuous measurements of ocean color for nearly 20 years if all of the presently planned national and international missions are implemented. This data set will present a unique opportunity to understand the coupling of physical and biological processes in the world ocean. The presence of multiple ocean color sensors will allow the eventual development of an ocean color observing system that is both cost effective and scientifically based. This report discusses the issues involved and makes recommendations intended to ensure the maximum scientific return from this unique set of planned ocean color missions. An executive summary is included with this document which briefly discusses the primary issues and suggested actions to be considered.

Abbott, Mark R.↗

A low-cost transportable ground station for capture and processing of direct broadcast EOS satellite data

The Earth Observing System (EOS), part of a cohesive national effort to study global change, will deploy a constellation of remote sensing spacecraft over a 15 year period. Science data from the EOS spacecraft will be processed and made available to a large community of earth scientists via NASA institutional facilities. A number of these spacecraft are also providing an additional interface to broadcast data directly to users. Direct broadcast of real-time science data from overhead spacecraft has valuable applications including validation of field measurements, planning science campaigns, and science and engineering education. The success and usefulness of EOS direct broadcast depends largely on the end-user cost of receiving the data. To extend this capability to the largest possible user base, the cost of receiving ground stations must be as low as possible. To achieve this goal, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is developing a prototype low-cost transportable ground station for EOS direct broadcast data based on Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) components and pipelined, multiprocessing architectures. The targeted reproduction cost of this system is less than $200K. This paper describes a prototype ground station and its constituent components.

Davis, Don↗

Cost-Effective Telemetry and Command Ground Systems Automation Strategy for the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) Mission

Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) is an Earth-orbiting, remote-sensing NASA mission slated for launch in 2014. The ground data system (GDS) being developed for SMAP is composed of many heterogeneous subsystems, ranging from those that support planning and sequencing to those used for real-time operations, and even further to those that enable science data exchange. A full end-to-end automation of the GDS may result in cost savings during mission operations, but it would require a significant upfront investment to develop such a comprehensive automation. As demonstrated by the Jason-1 and Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) missions, a measure of "lights-out" automation for routine, orbital pass, ground operations can still reduce mission costs through smaller staffing of operators and limiting their working hours. The challenge, then, for the SMAP GDS engineering team, is to formulate an automated operations strategy--and corresponding system architecture -- to minimize operator intervention during routine operations, while balancing the development costs associated with the scope and complexity of automation. This paper discusses the automated operations approach being developed for the SMAP GDS. The focus is on automating the activities involved in routine passes, which limits the scope to real-time operations. A key subsystem of the SMAP GDS -- NASA's AMMOS Mission Data Processing and Control System (AMPCS) -- provides a set of capabilities that enable such automation. Also discussed are the lights-out pass automations of the Jason-1 and WISE missions and how they informed the automation strategy for SMAP. The paper aims to provide insights into what is necessary in automating the GDS operations for Earth satellite missions.

soil moisture↗

Positron Sources for Future High Energy Physics Colliders

An unprecedented positron average current is required to fit the luminosity demands of future $e^+e^-$ high energy physics colliders. In addition, in order to access precision-frontier physics, these machines require positron polarization to enable exploring the polarization dependence in many HEP processes cross sections, reducing backgrounds and extending the reach of chiral physics studies beyond the standard model. The ILC has a mature plan for the polarized positron source based on conversion in a thin target of circularly polarized gammas generated by passing the main high energy e-beam in a long superconducting helical undulator. Compact colliders (CLIC, C3 and advanced accelerator-based concepts) adopt a simplified approach and currently do not plan to use polarized positrons in their baseline design, but could greatly benefit from the development of compact alternative solutions to polarized positron production. Increasing the positron current, the polarization purity and simplifying the engineering design are all opportunities where advances in accelerator technology have the potential to make a significant impact. This white-paper describes the current status of the field and provides R&D short-term and long-term pathways for polarized positron sources.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Physiology of man and animals in the Tenth Five-Year Plan: Proceedings of the Thirteenth Congress of the I. P. Pavlov All-Union Physiological Society

Research in the field of animal and human physiology is reviewed. The following topics on problems of physiological science and related fields of knowledge are discussed: neurophysiology and higher nervous activity, physiology of sensory systems, physiology of visceral systems, evolutionary and ecological physiology, physiological cybernetics, computer application in physiology, information support of physiological research, history and theory of development of physiology. Also discussed were: artificial intelligence, physiological problems of reflex therapy, correlation of structure and function of the brain, adaptation and activity, microcirculation, and physiological studies in nerve and mental diseases.

Lange, K. A.↗

The Critical Need for Continued Data Collection and Development of Future Thermal Satellite Sensors

There is a rich and long history of thermal infrared (TIR) remote sensing data for multidisciplinary Earth science research. The continuity of TIR data collection, however, is now in jeopardy given there are no planned future Earth observing TIR remote sensing satellite systems with moderately high spatial resolutions to replace those currently in orbit on NASA's Terra suite of sensors. This session will convene researchers who have actively worked in the field of TIR remote sensing to present results that elucidate the importance of thermal remote sensing to the wider Earth science research community. Additionally, this session will also exist as a forum for presenting concepts and ideas for new thermal sensing systems with high spatial resolutions for future Earth science satellite missions, as opposed to planned systems such as the Visible/Infrared Imager/Radiometer (VIIRS) suite of sensors on the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) that will collect TIR data at very coarse spatial resolutions.

Quattrochi, Dale A.↗

Introduction to the Special Session on Thermal Remote Sensing Data for Earth Science Research: The Critical Need for Continued Data Collection and Development of Future Thermal Satellite Sensors

There is a rich and long history of thermal infrared (TIR) remote sensing data for multidisciplinary Earth science research. The continuity of TIR data collection, however, is now in jeopardy given there are no planned future Earth observing TIR remote sensing satellite systems with moderately high spatial resolutions to replace those currently in orbit on NASA's Terra suite of sensors. This session will convene researchers who have actively worked in the field of TIR remote sensing to present results that elucidate the importance of thermal remote sensing to the wider Earth science research community. Additionally, this session will also exist as a forum for presenting concepts and ideas for new thermal sensing systems with high spatial resolutions for future Earth science satellite missions, as opposed to planned systems such as the Visible/Infrared Imager/Radiometer (VIIRS) suite of sensors on the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) that will collect TIR data at very coarse ~~~iairesolutions.

Quattrochi, Dale a.↗

Landsat Derived Bathymetry of Lakes on the Arctic Coastal Plan of Northern Alaska

The Pleistocene sand sea on the Arctic Coastal Plain (ACP) of northern Alaska is underlain by anancient sand dune field, a geological feature that affects regional lake characteristics. Many of these lakes, whichcover approximately 20 % of the Pleistocene sand sea, are relatively deep (up to 25 m). In addition to the nat-ural importance of ACP sand sea lakes for water storage, energy balance, and ecological habitat, the need forwinter water for industrial development and exploration activities makes lakes in this region a valuable resource.However, ACP sand sea lakes have received little prior study. Here, we collect in situ bathymetric data to test12 model variants for predicting sand sea lake depth based on analysis of Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager(OLI) images. Lake depth gradients were measured at 17 lakes in midsummer 2017 using a Humminbird 798ciHD SI Combo automatic sonar system. The field-measured data points were compared to red–green–blue (RGB)bands of a Landsat-8 OLI image acquired on 8 August 2016 to select and calibrate the most accurate spectral-depth model for each study lake and map bathymetry. Exponential functions using a simple band ratio (withbands selected based on lake turbidity and bed substrate) yielded the most successful model variants. For eachlake, the most accurate model explained 81.8 % of the variation in depth, on average. Modeled lake bathymetrieswere integrated with remotely sensed lake surface area to quantify lake water storage volumes, which rangedfrom 1.056×10−3to 57.416×10−3km3. Due to variations in depth maxima, substrate, and turbidity betweenlakes, a regional model is currently infeasible, rendering necessary the acquisition of additional in situ datawith which to develop a regional model solution. Estimating lake water volumes using remote sensing will fa-cilitate better management of expanding development activities and serve as a baseline by which to evaluatefuture responses to ongoing and rapid climate change in the Arctic. All sonar depth data and modeled lakebathymetry rasters can be freely accessed at https://doi.org/10.18739/A2SN01440 (Simpson and Arp, 2018) andhttps://doi.org/10.18739/A2HT2GC6G (Simpson, 2019), respectively.

Claire E Simpson↗

NASA's Space Launch System Advanced Booster Development

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) Space Launch System (SLS) Program, managed at the Marshall Space Flight Center, is making progress toward delivering a new capability for human space flight and scientific missions beyond Earth orbit. NASA is executing this development within flat budgetary guidelines by using existing engines assets and heritage technology to ready an initial 70 metric ton (t) lift capability for launch in 2017, and then employing a block upgrade approach to evolve a 130-t capability after 2021. A key component of the SLS acquisition plan is a three-phased approach for the first-stage boosters. The first phase is to expedite the 70-t configuration by completing development of the Space Shuttle heritage 5-segment solid rocket boosters (SRBs) for the initial flights of SLS. Since no existing boosters can meet the performance requirements for the 130-t class SLS, the next phases of the strategy focus on the eventual development of advanced boosters with an expected thrust class potentially double the current 5-segment solid rocket booster capability of 3.88 million pounds of thrust each. The second phase in the booster acquisition plan is the Advanced Booster Engineering Demonstration and/or Risk Reduction (ABEDRR) effort, for which contracts were awarded beginning in 2012 after a full and open competition, with a stated intent to reduce risks leading to an affordable advanced booster. NASA has awarded ABEDRR contracts to four industry teams, which are looking into new options for liquid-fuel booster engines, solid-fuel-motor propellants, and composite booster structures. Demonstrations and/or risk reduction efforts were required to be related to a proposed booster concept directly applicable to fielding an advanced booster. This paper will discuss the status of this acquisition strategy and its results toward readying both the 70 t and 130 t configurations of SLS. The third and final phase will be a full and open competition for Design, Development, Test, and Evaluation (DDT&E) of the advanced boosters. These new boosters will enable the flexible path approach to deep space exploration, opening up vast opportunities for human missions to near-Earth asteroids and Mars. This evolved capability will offer large volume for science missions and payloads, will be modular and flexible, and will be right-sized for mission requirements.

Robinson, Kimberly F.↗

Cosmic Journeys. To the Edge of Gravity, Space and Time: Structure and Evolution of the Universe Roadmap: 2003-2023

The Roadmap for the Structure and Evolution of the Universe (SEU) Theme embraces three fundamental, scientific quests: (1) To explain structure in the Universe and forecast our cosmic destiny, (2) To explore the cycles of matter and energy in the evolving Universe, (3) To examine the ultimate limits of gravity and energy in the Universe. We develop these quests into six focused research campaigns: (1) Identify dark matter and learn how it shapes galaxies and systems of galaxies, (2) Explore where and when the chemical elements were made (3) Understand the cycles in which matter, energy, and magnetic field are exchanged between stars and the gas between stars, (4) Discover how gas flows in disks and how cosmic jets are formed, (5) Identify the sources of gamma-ray bursts and high-energy cosmic rays, (6) Measure how strong gravity operates near black holes and how it affects the early Universe. These campaigns lead to a portfolio of future major missions of great scientific interest and popular appeal, strongly endorsed by the scientific community. Many have undergone significant initial study. Some are in a state of readiness that make them ideal candidates for the present Office of Space Science Strategic Plan; others may well feature in the next Plan. Each provides a golden scientific opportunity to advance our understanding of the Universe. We have identified three top-priority near-term science objectives together with missions to accomplish these goals. The three problems span a diverse range of subdisciplines, of observational technique, of timescales, and of cost, and are thus complementary, forming a coherent core program for the SEU theme in the 2003-2007 timeframe.These are : (1) Obtain precise measures of the chemical composition and physical conditions in objects ranging from the closest stars to the most distant quasars, (2) Utilize gravitational radiation as a probe of supermassive blackholes throughout the universe, (3) determine the nature of the highest energy cosmic rays. We also describe a small number of exciting missions which are strong candidates for new start status in the midterm, 2008-2013, pending technology development. These missions tackle fundamental problems through the entire electromagnetic spectrum, from the radio through gamma rays, and in many cases develop fascinating technologies with applicability not only elsewhere in NASA but outside of space science as well. Finally, we describe a set of "vision missions," which stretch our scientific imagination and set technology challenges for our field.

Source record↗

SUMC reconfigurable micro-assembler

The development of a reconfigurable micro-assembler to provide the micro-programmer the capability to specify micro-instructions in concise, meaningful terms is discussed. The implementation plan for the development of the micro-assembler was predicted on the existing capabilities of the SUMC Reconfigurable Assembler. Utilizing the reconfigurable assembler as a base, new directives and existing directive modifications were implemented to provide the micro-assembly as a new capability of the reconfigurable assembler. The micro-assembler language allows the specification of all micro-instruction control field settings in one concise assembler source statement. The language appears very similar to a conventional machine instruction assembler language. The machine instruction assembler language has the characteristic of one operation specification per statement whereas, the micro-instruction assembler language allows multiple operations to be designated per statement.

Edwards, A. J.↗

Large Format Arrays for Far Infrared and Millimeter Astronomy

Some of the most compelling questions in modem astronomy are best addressed with submillimeter and millimeter observations. The question of the role of inflation in the early evolution of the universe is best addressed with large sensitive arrays of millimeter polarimeters. The study of the first generations of galaxies requires sensitive submillimeter imaging, which can help us to understand the history of energy release and nucleosynthesis in the universe. Our ability to address these questions is dramatically increasing, driven by dramatic steps in the sensitivity and size of available detector arrays. While the MIPS instrument on the SIRTF mission will revolutionize far infrared astronomy with its 1024 element array of photoconductors, thermal detectors remain the dominant technology for submillimeter and millimeter imaging and polarimetry. The last decade has seen the deployment of increasingly large arrays of bolometers, ranging from the 48 element arrays deployed on the KAO in the late 198Os, to the SHARC and SCUBA arrays in the 1990s. The past years have seen the deployment of a new generation of larger detector arrays in SHARC II (384 channels) and Bolocam (144 channels). These detectors are in operation and are beginning to make significant impacts on the field. Arrays of sensitive submillimeter bolometers on the SPIRE instrument on Herschel will allow the first large areas surveys of the sky, providing important insight into the evolution of galaxies. The next generation of detectors, led by SCUBA II, will increase the focal scale of these instruments by an order of magnitude. Two major missions are being planned by NASA for which further development of long wavelength detectors is essential, The SAFlR mission, a 10-m class telescope with large arrays of background limited detectors, will extend our reach into the epoch of initial galaxy formation. A major goal of modem cosmology is to test the inflationary paradigm in the early evolution of the universe. To this end, a mission is planned to detect the imprint of inflation on the CMB by precision measurement of its polarization. This work requires very large arrays of sensitive detectors which can provide unprecedented control of a wide range of systematic errors, given the small amplitude of the signal of interest. We will describe the current state of large format detector arrays, the performance requirements set by the new missions, and the different approaches being developed in the community to meet these requirements. We are confident that within a decade, these developments will lead to dramatic advances in our understanding of the evolution of the universe.

Moseley, Harvey↗