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NASA NTRS1993

A renormalization group analysis of two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic turbulence

The renormalization group (RNG) method is used to study the physics of two-dimensional (2D) magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence. It is shown that, for a turbulent magnetofluid in two dimensions, no RNG transformation fixed point exists on account of the coexistence of energy transfer to small scales and mean-square magnetic flux transfer to large scales. The absence of a fixed point renders the RNG method incapable of describing the 2D MHD system. A similar conclusion is reached for 2D hydrodynamics, where enstrophy flows to small scales and energy to large scales. These analyses suggest that the applicability of the RNG method to turbulent systems is intrinsically limited, especially in the case of systems with dual-direction transfer.

Liang, Wenli Z.↗

NASA NTRS1993

The gradient of galactic cosmic rays at the solar-wind termination shock

We report on a study of the expected spatial variation of the galactic cosmic-ray intensity in the outer heliosphere, in the vicinity of the solar-wind termination shock. Model simulations which contain all of the transport effects, including drifts, predict that the radial gradients change abruptly at the shock, and that the nature of the effect varies significantly with particle energy. At low energies, the radial gradient changes abruptly from a lower value inside the shock to a higher value outside, whereas at high energies, the higher value of the gradient is inside the shock. This effect, which is a consequence of the matching conditions at the shock and is closely related to diffusive shock acceleration, is qualitatively the same for both helisopheric magnetic polarity states and remains much the same in one-dimensional, two-dimensional, and three-dimensional models. Hence drifts do not change the nature of this phenomenon, although they change it quantitatively. The effect is, of course, not present in the absence of a terminal shock and may prove to be an important diagnostic tool for the study of the termination of the solar wind.

Jokipii, J. R.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Direct time integration of Maxwell's equations in two-dimensional dielectric waveguides for propagation and scattering of femtosecond electromagnetic solitons

We present what are to our knowledge first-time calculations from vector nonlinear Maxwell's equations of femtosecond soliton propagation and scattering, including carrier waves, in two-dimensional dielectric waveguides. The time integration efficiently implements linear and nonlinear convolutions for the electric polarization, and the nonlinear convolution accounts for two quantum effects, the Kerr and Raman interactions. By retaining the optical carrier, the new method solves for fundamental quantities - optical electric and magnetic fields in space and time - rather than a nonphysical envelope function. It has the potential to provide an unprecedented two- and three-dimensional modeling capability for millimeter-scale integrated-optical circuits with submicrometer engineered inhomogeneities.

Joseph, Rose M.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Two dimensional PIC simulations of plasma heating by the dissipation of Alfven waves

Two dimensional plasma particle simulations of the evolution of large amplitude circularly polarized Alfven waves propagating parallel to the magnetic field show that the waves decay via both one- and two- dimensional parametric decay instabilities. For parameters studied, one-dimensional processes dominate the simulations, but two-dimensional decay processes, including the recently predicted filamentation instability are also observed. The daughter waves generated by the parametric decay are primarily damped by the ions, leading to ion heating. The parametric decay processes efficiently convert the ordered fluid ion motion in the Alfven wave into ion thermal energy. These processes may be important for the dissipation of Alfven waves in the solar wind, the corona and other space plasma environments. The computations were performed on the Intel Touchstone parallel supercomputer.

Liewer, P. C.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Cosmic-ray gradients in the outer heliosphere

We report on a study of the expected spatial variation of the galactic cosmic-ray intensity in the vicinity of the solar-wind termination shock. Model simulations predict that the radial gradients change abruptly at the shock, and that the nature of the effect varies significantly with particle energy. At low energies, the radial gradient changes abruptly from a lower value inside the shock to a higher value outside, whereas at high energies, the higher value of the gradient is inside the shock. This effect, which is a consequence of the matching conditions at the shock and is closely related to diffusive shock acceleration, is qualitatively the same for both heliospheric magnetic polarity states and remains much the same in one-dimensional, two-dimensional and three-dimensional models. Hence drifts do not change the nature of this phenomenon, although they change it quantitatively. The effect may prove to be an important diagnostic tool for the study of the termination of the solar wind.

Kota, J.↗

NASA NTRS1994

General analytic results for nonlinear waves and solitons in molecular clouds

We study nonlinear wave phenomena in self-gravitating fluid systems, with a particular emphasis on applications to molecular clouds. This paper presents analytical results for one spatial dimension. We show that a large class of physical systems can be described by theories with a 'charge density' q(rho); this quantity replaces the density on the right-hand side of the Poisson equation for the gravitational potential. We use this formulation to prove general results about nonlinear wave motions in self-gravitating systems. We show that in order for stationary waves to exist, the total charge (the integral of the charge density over the wave profile) must vanish. This 'no-charge' property for solitary waves is related to the capability of a system to be stable to gravitational perturbations for arbitrarily long wavelengths. We find necessary and sufficient conditions on the charge density for the existence of solitary waves and stationary waves. We study nonlinear wave motions for Jeans-type theories (where q(rho) = rho-rho(sub 0)) and find that nonlinear waves of large amplitude are confined to a rather narrow range of wavelengths. We also study wave motions for molecular clouds threaded by magnetic fields and show how the allowed range of wavelengths is affected by the field strength. Since the gravitational force in one spatial dimension does not fall off with distance, we consider two classes of models with more realistic gravity: Yukawa potentials and a pseudo two-dimensional treatment. We study the allowed types of wave behavior for these models. Finally, we discuss the implications of this work for molecular cloud structure. We argue that molecular clouds can support a wide variety of wave motions and suggest that stationary waves (such as those considered in this paper) may have already been observed.

Adams, Fred C.↗

NASA NTRS1994

On the hydrodynamic interaction of shock waves with interstellar clouds. 1: Nonradiative shocks in small clouds

The interstellar medium (ISM) is inhomogeneous, with clouds of various temperatures and densities embedded in a tenuous intercloud medium. Shocks propagating through the ISM can ablate or destroy the clouds, at the same time significantly altering the properties of the intercloud medium. This paper presents a comprehensive numerical study of the simplest case of the interaction between a shock wave and a spherical cloud, in which the shock far from the cloud is steady and planar, and in which radiative losses, thermal conduction, magnetic fields, and gravitational forces are all neglected. As a result, the problem is completely specified by two numbers: the Mach number of the shock, M, and the ratio of the density of the cloud to that of the intercloud medium, Chi. For strong shocks we show that the dependence on M scales out, so the primary independent parameter is Chi. Variations from this simple case are also considered: the potential effect of radiative losses is assessed by calculations in which the ratio of specific heats in the cloud is 1.1 instead of 5/3; the effect of the initial shape of the cloud is studied by using a cylindrical cloud instead of a spherical one; and the role of the initial shock is determined by considering the case of a cloud embedded in a wind. Local adaptive mesh refinement techniques with a second-order, two-fluid, two-dimensional Godunov hydrodynamic scheme are used to address these problems, allowing heretofore unobtainable numerical resolution. Convergence studies to be described in a subsequent paper demonstrate that about 100 zones per cloud radius are needed for accurate results; previous calculations have generally used about a third of this number. The results of the calculations are analyzed in terms of global quantities which provide an overall description of te shocked cloud: the size and shape of the cloud, the mean density, the mean pressure, the mean velocity, the velocity dispersion, and the total circulation.

Klein, Richard I.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Transition to turbulence in solar surges

Transition to turbulence in magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) tearing jets has been invoked as a mechanism underlying some of the complex behavior observed in solar surges, including deceleration of the upflowing plasma and temporal correlations with types I and III radio bursts. In this paper we investigate a possible mechanism for this transition: three-dimensional secondary instabilities on two-dimensional saturated states. We find through linear analysis that these MHD configurations -- in particular, the tearing jet -- are secondarily unstable, with the dominant energy transfer from the one-dimensional field into the 3-dimensional fields. Using nonlinear simulations, we also investigate the system evolution after the secondary modes attain finite amplitude. When the tearing jet transitions to turbulence, the total kinetic energy drops rapidly corresponding to the deceleration of the jet. The electric field grows rapidly as the primary mode saturates and the three-dimensional secondary mode develops, and then decays quickly as the tearing jet becomes turbulent, providing a possible explanation for the finite duration of the associated meter-wave bursts. The electric field decays as the magnetic and velocity fields both decay. The system is dominated at late times by spanwise modes, which strongly resemble the magnetic field-aligned filamentary flows characteristic of many surges.

Dahlburg, Russell B.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Linear and nonlinear properties of the ULF waves driven by ring-beam distribution functions

The problem of the exitation of obliquely propagating magnetosonic waves which can steepen up (also known as shocklets) is considered. Shocklets have been observed upstream of the Earth's bow shock and at comets Giacobini-Zinner and Grigg-Skjellerup. Linear theory as well as two-dimensional (2-D) hybrid (fluid electrons, particle ions) simulations are used to determine the properties of waves generated by ring-beam velocity distributions in great detail. The effects of both proton and oxygen ring-beams are considered. The study of instabilities excited by a proton ring-beam is relevant to the region upstream of the Earth's bow shock, whereas the oxygen ring-beam corresponds to cometary ions picked up by the solar wind. Linear theory has shown that for a ring-beam, four instabilities are found, one on the nonresonant mode, one on the Alfven mode, and two along the magnetosonic/whistler branch. The relative growth rate of these instabilities is a sensitive function of parameters. Although one of the magnetosonic instabilities has maximum growth along the magnetic field, the other has maximum growth in oblique directions. We have studied the competition of these instabilities in the nonlinear regime using 2-D simulations. As in the linear limit, the nonlinear results are a function of beam density and distribution function. By performing the simulations as both initial value and driven systems, we have found that the outcome of the simulations can vary, suggesting that the latter type simulations is needed to address the observations. A general conclusion of the simulation results is that field-aligned beams do not result in the formation of shocklets, whereas ring-beam distributions can.

Killen, K.↗

NASA NTRS1997

Study of Magnetic Motions in the Solar Photosphere and their Implications for Heating the Solar Atmosphere

We continued our program of CO observations with the McMath-Pierce facility at Kitt Peak National Solar Observatory. Uitenbroek has developed a two-and three dimensional radiative transfer code that now includes chemical equilibrium calculations. This code allows us to compute a CO spectrum from for instance a snapshot of a solar granulation simulation (e.g. Stein & Nordlund 1989, Apj 342, L95) and compare these theoretical spectra with our spatially resolved CO spectroscopy. Van Ballegooijen and Uitenbroek have started calculations of two-dimensional fluxtube models that account consistently for hydrogen ionization in the calculation of the electron density. To this end we solve radiative transfer for hydrogen (bound-bound and bound-free transitions) in the two-dimensional models, including the effect of partial frequency redistribution (PRD) in the Lyman (alpha) and (beta) lines. From our internally consistent models we will calculate emergent spectra and the way these vary with location of some well-known spectral diagnostics and compare our results with observed line profiles. We can readily compare theoretical CO profiles from out models with our spatially resolved CO observations. Also we can compare with spatially resolved Ca II (ground based) and Mg II (we have observations done with the UVSP/SMM instrument), and Lyman (alpha) observations that should be available from SUMER/SOHO.

Noyes, Robert W.↗

NASA NTRS1997

Nonguiding Center Motion and Substorm Effects in the Magnetotail

Thick and thin models of the middle magnetotail were developed using a consistent orbit tracing technique. It was found that currents carried near the equator by groups of ions with anisotropic distribution functions are not well approximated by the guiding center expressions. The guiding center equations fail primarily because the calculated pressure tensor is not magnetic field aligned. The pressure tensor becomes field aligned as one moves away from the equator, but here there is a small region in which the guiding center equations remain inadequate because the two perpendicular components of the pressure tensor are unequal. The significance of nonguiding center motion to substorm processes then was examined. One mechanism that may disrupt a thin cross-tail current sheet involves field changes that cause ions to begin following chaotic orbits. The lowest-altitude chaotic region, characterized by an adiabaticity parameter kappa approx. equal to 0.8, is especially important. The average cross-tail particle drift is slow, and we were unable to generate a thin current sheet using such ions. Therefore, any process that tends to create a thin current sheet in a region with kappa approaching 0.8 may cause the cross-tail current to get so low that it becomes insufficient to support the lobes. A different limit may be important in resonant orbit regions of a thin current sheet because particles reach a maximum cross-tail drift velocity. If the number of ions per unit length decreases as the tail is stretched, this part of the plasma sheet also may become unable to carry the cross-tail current needed to support the lobes. Thin sheets are needed for both resonant and chaotic orbit mechanisms because the distribution function must be highly structured. A description of current continuity is included to show how field aligned currents can evolve during the transition from a two-dimensional (2-D) to a 3-D configuration.

Kaufmann, Richard L.↗

NASA NTRS2003

Three-dimensional visual guidance improves the accuracy of calculating right ventricular volume with two-dimensional echocardiography

Three-dimensional guidance programs have been shown to increase the reproducibility of 2-dimensional (2D) left ventricular volume calculations, but these systems have not been tested in 2D measurements of the right ventricle. Using magnetic fields to identify the probe location, we developed a new 3-dimensional guidance system that displays the line of intersection, the plane of intersection, and the numeric angle of intersection between the current image plane and previously saved scout views. When used by both an experienced and an inexperienced sonographer, this guidance system increases the accuracy of the 2D right ventricular volume measurements using a monoplane pyramidal model. Furthermore, a reconstruction of the right ventricle, with a computed volume similar to the calculated 2D volume, can be displayed quickly by tracing a few anatomic structures on 2D scans.

Non-NASA Center↗

NASA NTRS2004

Discharge Chamber Primary Electron Modeling Activities in Three-Dimensions

Designing discharge chambers for ion thrusters involves many geometric configuration decisions. Various decisions will impact discharge chamber performance with respect to propellant utilization efficiency, ion production costs, and grid lifetime. These hardware design decisions can benefit from the assistance of computational modeling. Computational modeling for discharge chambers has been limited to two-dimensional codes that leveraged symmetry for interpretation into three-dimensional analysis. This paper presents model development activities towards a three-dimensional discharge chamber simulation to aid discharge chamber design decisions. Specifically, of the many geometric configuration decisions toward attainment of a worthy discharge chamber, this paper focuses on addressing magnetic circuit considerations with a three-dimensional discharge chamber simulation as a tool. With this tool, candidate discharge chamber magnetic circuit designs can be analyzed computationally to gain insight into factors that may influence discharge chamber performance such as: primary electron loss width in magnetic cusps, cathode tip position with respect to the low magnetic field volume, definition of a low magnetic field region, and maintenance of a low magnetic field region across the grid span. Corroborating experimental data will be obtained from mockup hardware tests. Initially, simulated candidate magnetic circuit designs will resemble previous successful thruster designs. To provide opportunity to improve beyond previous performance benchmarks, off-design modifications will be simulated and experimentally tested.

Steuber, Thomas J.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Secondary structure in solution of two anti-HIV-1 hammerhead ribozymes as investigated by two-dimensional 1H 500 MHz NMR spectroscopy in water

Two hammerhead chimeric RNA/DNA ribozymes (HRz) were synthesized in pure form. Both were 30 nucleotides long, and the sequences were such that they could be targeted to cleave the HIV-1 gag RNA. Named HRz-W and HRz-M, the former had its invariable core region conserved, the latter had a uridine in the invariable region replaced by a guanine. Their secodary structures were determined by 2D NOESY 1H 500 MHz NMR spectroscopy in 90% water and 10% D2(0), following the imino protons. The data show that both HRz-M and HRz-W form identical secondary structures with stem regions consisting of continuous stacks of AT and GT pairs. An energy minimized computer model of this stem region is provided. The results suggest that the loss of catalytic activity that is known to result when an invariant core residue is replaced is not related to the secondary structure of the ribozymes in the absence of substrate.

NASA Discipline Exobiology↗

NASA NTRS2005

A General Relativistic Magnetohydrodynamic Simulation of Jet Formation

We have performed a fully three-dimensional general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulation ofjet formation from a thin accretion disk around a Schwarzschild black hole with a free-falling corona. The initial simulation results show that a bipolar jet (velocity approx.0.3c) is created, as shown by previous two-dimensional axi- symmetric simulations with mirror symmetry at the equator. The three-dimensional simulation ran over 100 light crossing time units (T(sub s) = r(sub s)/c, where r(sub s = 2GM/c(sup 2), which is considerably longer than the previous simulations. We show that the jet is initially formed as predicted owing in part to magnetic pressure from the twisting of the initially uniform magnetic field and from gas pressure associated with shock formation in the region around r = 3r(sub s). At later times, the accretion disk becomes thick and the jet fades resulting in a wind that is ejected from the surface ofthe thickened (torus-like) disk. It should be noted that no streaming matter from a donor is included at the outer boundary in the simulation (an isolated black hole not binary black hole). The wind flows outward with a wider angle than the initial jet. The widening of the jet is consistent with the outward-moving torsional Alfven waves. This evolution of disk-jet coupling suggests that the jet fades with a thickened accretion disk because of the iack of streaming materiai from an accompanying star.

Nishikawa, K.-I.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Magnetohydrodynamic MACH Code Used to Simulate Magnetoplasmadynamic Thrusters

The On-Board Propulsion program at the NASA Glenn Research Center is utilizing a state of-the-art numerical simulation to model the performance of high-power electromagnetic plasma thrusters. Such thrusters are envisioned for use in lunar and Mars cargo transport, piloted interplanetary expeditions, and deep-space robotic exploration of the solar system. The experimental portion of this program is described in reference 1. This article describes the numerical modeling program used to guide the experimental research. The synergistic use of numerical simulations and experimental research has spurred the rapid advancement of high-power thruster technologies for a variety of bold new NASA missions. From its inception as a U.S. Department of Defense code in the mid-1980's, the Multiblock Arbitrary Coordinate Hydromagnetic (MACH) simulation tool has been used by the plasma physics community to model a diverse range of plasma problems--including plasma opening switches, inertial confinement fusion concepts, compact toroid formation and acceleration, z-pinch implosion physics, laser-target interactions, and a variety of plasma thrusters. The MACH2 code used at Glenn is a time-dependent, two-dimensional, axisymmetric, multimaterial code with a multiblock structure. MACH3, a more recent three-dimensional version of the code, is currently undergoing beta tests. The MACH computational mesh moves in an arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) fashion that allows the simulation of diffusive-dominated and dispersive-dominated problems, and the mesh can be refined via a variety of adaptive schemes to capture regions of varying characteristic scale. The mass continuity and momentum equations model a compressible viscous fluid, and three energy equations are used to simulate nonthermal equilibrium between electrons, ions, and the radiation field. Magnetic fields are modeled by an induction equation that includes resistive diffusion, the Hall effect, and a thermal source for magnetic fields. Various models of plasma resistivity are included, along with ablation models and multiport circuit solvers. The set of equations is closed using either an ideal gas or real equation of state.

Mikellides, Pavlos G.↗

NASA NTRS2006

Development of the 3-D Track Imager for Medium and High-Energy Gamma-Ray Telescopes

The Advanced Compton Telescope (ACT) and Advanced Pair Telescope (APT) are envisioned as the next medium (0.3 ^ 50 MeV) and high-energy (30 MeV - greater than 100 GeV) gamma-ray missions. These missions will address many research focus areas of the Structure and Evolution of the Universe Roadmap. These areas include: element formation, matter, energy, & magnetic field interactions in galaxies, AGN & GRB emission, and behavior of matter in extreme environments of black holes & pulsars. Achieving these science goals requires a substantial increases in telescope sensitivity and angular resolution. This talk will discuss how these goals can be met with the three-dimensional track imager (3-DTI), a large volume, low density, time projection chamber with two-dimensional micro-well detector readout and report on our development of a 10 cm x 10 cm x 30 prototype instrument.

Hunter, Stanley D.↗

NASA NTRS2005

NASA Tech Briefs, November 2005

Topics covered include: Laser System for Precise, Unambiguous Range Measurements; Flexible Cryogenic Temperature and Liquid-Level Probes; Precision Cryogenic Dilatometer; Stroboscopic Interferometer for Measuring Mirror Vibrations; Some Improvements in H-PDLCs; Multiple-Bit Differential Detection of OQPSK; Absolute Position Encoders With Vertical Image Binning; Flexible, Carbon-Based Ohmic Contacts for Organic Transistors; GaAs QWIP Array Containing More Than a Million Pixels; AutoChem; Virtual Machine Language; Two-Dimensional Ffowcs Williams/Hawkings Equation Solver; Full Multigrid Flow Solver; Doclet To Synthesize UML; Computing Thermal Effects of Cavitation in Cryogenic Liquids; GUI for Computational Simulation of a Propellant Mixer; Control Program for an Optical-Calibration Robot; SQL-RAMS; Distributing Data from Desktop to Hand-Held Computers; Best-Fit Conic Approximation of Spacecraft Trajectory; Improved Charge-Transfer Fluorescent Dyes; Stability-Augmentation Devices for Miniature Aircraft; Tool Measures Depths of Defects on a Case Tang Joint; Two Heat-Transfer Improvements for Gas Liquefiers; Controlling Force and Depth in Friction Stir Welding; Spill-Resistant Alkali-Metal-Vapor Dispenser; A Methodology for Quantifying Certain Design Requirements During the Design Phase; Measuring Two Key Parameters of H3 Color Centers in Diamond; Improved Compression of Wavelet-Transformed Images; NASA Interactive Forms Type Interface - NIFTI; Predicting Numbers of Problems in Development of Software; Hot-Electron Photon Counters for Detecting Terahertz Photons; Magnetic Variations Associated With Solar Flares; and Artificial Intelligence for Controlling Robotic Aircraft.

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