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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 649 records · Page 36
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NASA NTRS1993

Dynamics of adaptive structures: Design through simulations

The use of a helical bi-morph actuator/sensor concept by mimicking the change of helical waveform in bacterial flagella is perhaps the first application of bacterial motions (living species) to longitudinal deployment of space structures. However, no dynamical considerations were analyzed to explain the waveform change mechanisms. The objective is to review various deployment concepts from the dynamics point of view and introduce the dynamical considerations from the outset as part of design considerations. Specifically, the impact of the incorporation of the combined static mechanisms and dynamic design considerations on the deployment performance during the reconfiguration stage is studied in terms of improved controllability, maneuvering duration, and joint singularity index. It is shown that intermediate configurations during articulations play an important role for improved joint mechanisms design and overall structural deployability.

Park, K. C.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Streak camera based SLR receiver for two color atmospheric measurements

To realize accurate two-color differential measurements, an image digitizing system with variable spatial resolution was designed, built, and integrated to a photon-counting picosecond streak camera, yielding a temporal scan resolution better than 300 femtosecond/pixel. The streak camera is configured to operate with 3 spatial channels; two of these support green (532 nm) and uv (355 nm) while the third accommodates reference pulses (764 nm) for real-time calibration. Critical parameters affecting differential timing accuracy such as pulse width and shape, number of received photons, streak camera/imaging system nonlinearities, dynamic range, and noise characteristics were investigated to optimize the system for accurate differential delay measurements. The streak camera output image consists of three image fields, each field is 1024 pixels along the time axis and 16 pixels across the spatial axis. Each of the image fields may be independently positioned across the spatial axis. Two of the image fields are used for the two wavelengths used in the experiment; the third window measures the temporal separation of a pair of diode laser pulses which verify the streak camera sweep speed for each data frame. The sum of the 16 pixel intensities across each of the 1024 temporal positions for the three data windows is used to extract the three waveforms. The waveform data is processed using an iterative three-point running average filter (10 to 30 iterations are used) to remove high-frequency structure. The pulse pair separations are determined using the half-max and centroid type analysis. Rigorous experimental verification has demonstrated that this simplified process provides the best measurement accuracy. To calibrate the receiver system sweep, two laser pulses with precisely known temporal separation are scanned along the full length of the sweep axis. The experimental measurements are then modeled using polynomial regression to obtain a best fit to the data. Data aggregation using normal point approach has provided accurate data fitting techniques and is found to be much more convenient than using the full rate single shot data. The systematic errors from this model have been found to be less than 3 ps for normal points.

Varghese, Thomas K.↗
NASA NTRS1992

CCD data acquisition systems at Lick and Keck Observatories

This paper will describe and compare two distinct but related CCD data acquisition systems (DAS) currently under development at Lick and Keck Observatories. Although these two systems have a number of major architectural differences, they share a considerable amount of common hardware and software. Both of these new systems build on a large body of proven software that is the foundation of the existing CCD DAS currently in use at Lick Observatory. Both will provide support for reading up to four on-chip amplifiers per CCD and/or reading out mosaics of CCD chips. In addition, they will provide the capability for interactive, real-time adjustment of CCD waveforms for engineering purposes. Each of these two systems is composed of three major subsystems: (1) an instrument computer and its software; (2) a data capture computer and its software; and (3) a CCD/dewar controller and its software. The instrument computer is a Unix workstation, and the functions it provides include user interfaces, the interactive real-time display of CCD images, and the recording of image and FITS header data to disk and/or tape. The data capture computer is responsible for the packaging and high-speed transfer of the CCD pixel data stream into a bulk RAM, and the subsequent transfer of this data to the instrument computer. The CCD/dewar controller generates the waveforms for clocking the CCD, digitizes the pixel data, and transmits it via high-speed link to the data capture computer. It is also responsible for monitoring and controlling the dewar temperature and cryogen levels. Given the number of different types of processors and high-speed data links employed in both systems, a major emphasis of this paper will be on the various forms of interprocessor communications utilized for data transfer and distributed process synchronization.

Kibrick, R. I.↗
NASA NTRS1994

The propagation of spark-produced N waves through turbulence

A model experiment was designed and built to simulate the propagation of sonic booms through atmospheric turbulence. The setup of the model experiment is described briefly. Measurements of the N waves after they propagated across the turbulent velocity field reveal the same waveform distortion and change in rise time as for sonic booms. The data from the model experiment is used to test sonic boom models. Some models yield predictions for the waveform distortion, while others give estimates of the rise time of the sonic booms. A new theoretical model for the propagation of plane N waves through a turbulent medium is described.

Lipkens, Bart↗
NASA NTRS1993

PSIDD: A Post-Scan Interactive Data Display System for Ultrasonic Scans

An ultrasonic data display system was developed at NASA Lewis Research Center that allows the user to interactively examine digitized waveforms and processed information associated with any specific scan location of an ultrasonic contact scan. This information is displayed on a video display monitor and includes acquired time-domain waveforms, frequency-domain magnitude and phase spectra, and ultrasonic properties (pulse velocity, phase velocity, reflection coefficient, attenuation coefficient, attenuation coefficient error) as a function of frequency for a material. This report describes the system features and illustrates the system's usefulness for nondestructive materials characterization.

Roth, Don J.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Participation in the scientific activities of the Waves in Space Plasma (WISP) project

This is the Final Report for Contract NAG5-1925, that consisted of experiment design, for possible use by the space science mission called WISP (Waves in Space Plasma). This mission is under study by the Canadian Space Agency and by NASA. Two WISP configurations are contemplated, under the name of BICEPS: one is called BOLAS, and the other WISPRS. Both these configurations are meant to perform bistatic sounding of the ionosphere, at a height close to F(sub 2) H(sub max) (about 350 Km), with a pair of satellites, either tethered or in free flight. Investigation A (with Y.L. Alpert as P.I.) addresses the subject of parametric decay effects, expected to arise in a magnetoplasma under the influence of high-intensity HF fields. Criteria were formulated that could be used in searching for parametric instabilities and of electric fields in the ionosphere and magnetosphere, by in-situ satellites, such as the BICEPS Pair. Investigation B (with M.D.Grossi as P.I.) addressed the bistatic measurement, by the BICEPS pair,of ionospheric features, such as large-scale and small-scale disturbances, travelling ionospheric disturbances, electron density irregularities, spread-F phenomena, etc. These measurements by BICEPS could be correlated with the waveform distortion and degradation experienced by microwave links from geosynchronous height to ground, such as the ACTS satellite, expected to radiate pulses as short as 1 nanosecond in the band 20 to 30 GHz. These links are transionospheric and propagate e.m. waves in the volume of the ionosphere where BICEPS operates. It will be possible, therefore, to correlate the two classes of measurements, and learn the causative mechanisms that are responsible for the time-spread and frequency-spread nature of communications waveforms at microwave, in geosynchronous height to ground paths.

Alpert, Yakov L.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Ice sheet topography from retracked ERS-1 altimetry

An objective of the ERS-1 radar altimeter is to measure the surface topography of the polar ice sheets to a precision on the order of a meter. ERS-1 Waveform Altimeter Product (WAP) data was corrected for several processing errors. A range correction from the WAP waveforms, using the multiparameter retracking algorithm to account for range tracking limitations inherent to radar altimetry, was derived. From crossover analysis, the resulting precision is shown to be about 2.1 m in ocean mode and 2.2 m in ice mode. A topography map, produced with 23 days of corrected data, shows details of the western part of west Antarctic ice sheet and part of the Ross ice shelf including ice divides, ice stream boundaries, and ice shelf grounding lines.

Zwally, H. Jay↗
NASA NTRS1994

High-Speed Research: 1994 Sonic Boom Workshop: Atmospheric Propagation and Acceptability Studies

The workshop proceedings include papers on atmospheric propagation and acceptability studies. Papers discussing atmospheric effects on the sonic boom waveform addressed several issues. It has long been assumed that the effects of molecular relaxation are adequately accounted for by assuming that a steady state balance between absorption and nonlinear wave steepening exists. It was shown that the unsteadiness induced by the nonuniform atmosphere precludes attaining this steady state. Further, it was shown that the random atmosphere acts as a filter, effectively filtering out high frequency components of the distorted waveform. Several different propagation models were compared, and an analysis of the sonic boom at the edge of the primary carpet established that the levels there are bounded. Finally, a discussion of the levels of the sonic boom below the sea surface was presented.

Mccurdy, David A.↗
NASA NTRS1994

An evaluation of rise time characterization and prediction methods

One common method of extrapolating sonic boom waveforms from aircraft to ground is to calculate the nonlinear distortion, and then add a rise time to each shock by a simple empirical rule. One common rule is the '3 over P' rule which calculates the rise time in milliseconds as three divided by the shock amplitude in psf. This rule was compared with the results of ZEPHYRUS, a comprehensive algorithm which calculates sonic boom propagation and extrapolation with the combined effects of nonlinearity, attenuation, dispersion, geometric spreading, and refraction in a stratified atmosphere. It is shown there that the simple empirical rule considerably overestimates the rise time estimate. In addition, the empirical rule does not account for variations in the rise time due to humidity variation or propagation history. It is also demonstrated that the rise time is only an approximate indicator of perceived loudness. Three waveforms with identical characteristics (shock placement, amplitude, and rise time), but with different shock shapes, are shown to give different calculated loudness. This paper is based in part on work performed at the Applied Research Laboratories, the University of Texas at Austin, and supported by NASA Langley.

Robinson, Leick D.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Atmospheric effects on the risetime and waveshape of sonic booms

Accurate prediction of human response to sonic booms from proposed HSCT aircraft depends on a knowledge of the waveshape and risetime of the boom at the ground. In previous work, we have developed a numerical technique to predict the combined effects of molecular absorption and finite wave distortion on the sonic boom as it propagates from the aircraft to the top of the turbulent boundary layer. We have more recently developed a scattering center based model to calculate the effects of turbulence on the sonic boom waveform as it propagates through this boundary layer. Calculations have been performed using single scales of turbulence and compared to measurements at Edwards AFB in the late 1960's. A model of the atmosphere involving two scales each for convective and mechanical turbulence has been developed and fit to meteorological data collected during JAPE 2. Scattering calculations employing this model underpredict the number of unperturbed waveforms. In order to develop a more realistic model of the atmosphere, the JAPE 2 meteorological data has been fit to a von Karman spectrum. Results of scattering using this multi-scale model will be presented. The combination of finite wave effects with turbulent scattering predictions includes the principal effects of the atmosphere on the sonic boom from the HSCT.

Raspet, Richard↗
NASA NTRS1995

A seismic data compression system using subband coding

This article presents a study of seismic data compression techniques and a compression algorithm based on subband coding. The algorithm includes three stages: a decorrelation stage, a quantization stage that introduces a controlled amount of distortion to allow for high compression ratios, and a lossless entropy coding stage based on a simple but efficient arithmetic coding method. Subband coding methods are particularly suited to the decorrelation of nonstationary processes such as seismic events. Adaptivity to the nonstationary behavior of the waveform is achieved by dividing the data into separate blocks that are encoded separately with an adaptive arithmetic encoder. This is done with high efficiency due to the low overhead introduced by the arithmetic encoder in specifying its parameters. The technique could be used as a progressive transmission system, where successive refinements of the data can be requested by the user. This allows seismologists to first examine a coarse version of waveforms with minimal usage of the channel and then decide where refinements are required. Rate-distortion performance results are presented and comparisons are made with two block transform methods.

Kiely, A. B.↗
NASA NTRS1994

The onset of gravothermal oscillations in globular cluster evolution

We have carried out an extensive set of Fokker-Planck simulations of the evolution of globular clusters on very long timescales, up to 600 times the initial core collapse time t(sub cc). We consider an idealized equal mass star cluster, with a wide range of values for the total number of stars, 7000 less than N less than 2 x 10(exp 6). Our models include the heating effect of compact binaries formed in three-body encounters, which halts the initial core collapse and drives a core reexpansion. Postcollapse gravothermal oscillations of the cluster core are found to occur for all N approximately greater than or equal to 8000. For 8000 approximately less than or equal to N approximately less than or equal to 11,000, the oscillation has a simple, regular waveform with a single, well-defined period. For N approximately equals 12,000, the oscillations become nonlinear in a process resembling a period doubling. For N approximately greater than or equal to 14,000, the waveform of the oscillations becomes increasingly more irregular with increasing N, resembling chaotic behavior for N approximately greater than or equal to 15,000. During the oscillations, the core radius and core mass vary dramatically: by more than a factor of 10 for N greater than 15,000, by more than a factor of 100 for N greater than 5 x 10(exp 4), and by more than a factor of 1000 for N greater than 5 x 10(exp 5). However, even during the times of maximum expansion, the core contains only a small fraction of the cluster mass. For most N values, the maximum core mass at any time after core collapse is less than 1% of the cluster mass. The exceptions lie in the range 5 x 10(exp 4) approximately less than or equal to N approximately equal to or less than 2 x 10(exp 5), where the maximum post-collapse core mass reaches approximately 2% of the cluster mass. We discuss the observational implications of these predictions.

Breeden, Joseph L.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Software For Uniaxial Mechanical Testing Of Materials

Materials Testing Software system designed to simplify and automate both routine and not-so-routine materials-testing tasks encountered in laboratory. Supports plan/test/analyze cycle through collection of programs, each optimized to specific task. Gives precise control over nature of command waveforms and acquisition of data, including dynamically variable waveform types, sets of data-acquisition channels, and data rates. Differing command and data-acquisition rates required for exploring creep and fatigue material behavior easily accommodated. Written in Modula-2.

Mcgaw, M. A.↗
NASA NTRS1995

The Polar Plasma Wave Instrument

The Plasma Wave Instrument on the Polar spacecraft is designed to provide measurements of plasma waves in the Earth's polar regions over the frequency range from 0.1 Hz to 800 kHz. Three orthogonal electric dipole antennas are used to detect electric fields, two in the spin plane and one aligned along the spacecraft spin axis. A magnetic loop antenna and a triaxial magnetic search coil antenna are used to detect magnetic fields. Signals from these antennas are processed by five receiver systems: a wideband receiver, a high-frequency waveform receiver, a low-frequency waveform receiver, two multichannel analyzers; and a pair of sweep frequency receivers. Compared to previous plasma wave instruments, the Polar plasma wave instrument has several new capabilities. These include (1) an expanded frequency range to improve coverage of both low- and high-frequency wave phenomena, (2) the ability to simultaneously capture signals from six orthogonal electric and magnetic field sensors, and (3) a digital wideband receiver with up to 8-bit resolution and sample rates as high as 249k samples s(exp -1).

Gurnett, D. A.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Auditory Spatial Layout

All auditory sensory information is packaged in a pair of acoustical pressure waveforms, one at each ear. While there is obvious structure in these waveforms, that structure (temporal and spectral patterns) bears no simple relationship to the structure of the environmental objects that produced them. The properties of auditory objects and their layout in space must be derived completely from higher level processing of the peripheral input. This chapter begins with a discussion of the peculiarities of acoustical stimuli and how they are received by the human auditory system. A distinction is made between the ambient sound field and the effective stimulus to differentiate the perceptual distinctions among various simple classes of sound sources (ambient field) from the known perceptual consequences of the linear transformations of the sound wave from source to receiver (effective stimulus). Next, the definition of an auditory object is dealt with, specifically the question of how the various components of a sound stream become segregated into distinct auditory objects. The remainder of the chapter focuses on issues related to the spatial layout of auditory objects, both stationary and moving.

Wightman, Frederic L.↗
NASA NTRS1996

A Comparison of Computer Codes for the Propagation of Sonic Booms Through Realistic Atmospheres Utilizing Actual Acoustic Signatures

A numerical exercise to compare computer codes for the propagation of sonic booms through the atmosphere is reported. For the initial portion of the comparison, artificial, yet realistic, waveforms were numerically propagated through identical atmospheres. In addition to this comparison, one of these codes has been used to make preliminary predictions of the boom generated from a recent SR-71 flight. For the initial comparison, ground waveforms are calculated using four different codes or algorithms: (1) weak shock theory, an analytical prediction, (2) SHOCKN, a mixed time and frequency domain code developed at the University of Mississippi, (3) ZEPHYRUS, another mixed time and frequency code developed at the University of Texas, and (4) THOR, a pure time domain code recently developed at the University of Texas. The codes are described and their differences noted.

Chambers, James P.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Sonic Boom Propagation Codes Validated by Flight Test

The sonic boom propagation codes reviewed in this study, SHOCKN and ZEPHYRUS, implement current theory on air absorption using different computational concepts. Review of the codes with a realistic atmosphere model confirm the agreement of propagation results reported by others for idealized propagation conditions. ZEPHYRUS offers greater flexibility in propagation conditions and is thus preferred for practical aircraft analysis. The ZEPHYRUS code was used to propagate sonic boom waveforms measured approximately 1000 feet away from an SR-71 aircraft flying at Mach 1.25 to 5000 feet away. These extrapolated signatures were compared to measurements at 5000 feet. Pressure values of the significant shocks (bow, canopy, inlet and tail) in the waveforms are consistent between extrapolation and measurement. Of particular interest is that four (independent) measurements taken under the aircraft centerline converge to the same extrapolated result despite differences in measurement conditions. Agreement between extrapolated and measured signature duration is prevented by measured duration of the 5000 foot signatures either much longer or shorter than would be expected. The duration anomalies may be due to signature probing not sufficiently parallel to the aircraft flight direction.

Poling, Hugh W.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Characteristics and Preliminary Observations of the Influence of Electromyostimulation on the Size and Function of Human Skeletal Muscle During 30 Days of Simulated Microgravity

During 30 days (d) of bedrest, the practicality of using Elec- troMyoStimulation (EMS) as a deterrent to atrophy and strength loss of lower limb musculature was examined. An EMS system was developed that provided variable but quantifiable levels of EMS, and measured torque. The dominant log of three male subjects was stimulated twice daily in a 3-d on/1-d off cycle during bedrest. The non-dominant leg of each subject acted as a control. A stimulator, using a 0.3 ms monophasic 60 Hz pulse waveform, activated muscle tissue for 4 s. The output waveform from the stimulator was sequenced to the Knee Extensors (KE), Knee Flex- ors (KF), Ankle Extensors (AE), and Ankle Flexors (AF), and caused three isometric contractions of each muscle group per minute. Subject tolerance determined EMS Intensity. Each muscle group received four 5-min bouts of EMS each session with a 10 -min rest between bouts. EMS and torque levels for each muscle action were recorded directly an a computer. Overall average EMS Intensity was 197, 197, 195, and 188 mA for the KE, KF, AF, and AE, respectively. Overall average torque development for these muscle groups was 70, 16, 12, and 27 Nm, respectively. EMS intensity doubled during the study, and average torque increased 2.5 times. Average maximum torque throughout a session reached 54% of maximal voluntary for the KE and 29% for the KF. Reductions in leg volume, muscle compartment size, cross-sectional area of slow and fast-twitch fibers, strength, and aerobic enzyme activities, and increased log compliance were attenuated in the legs which received EMS during bedrest. These results indicate that similar EMS levels induce different torques among different muscle groups and that repeated exposure to EMS increases tolerance and torque development. Longer orien- tation periods, therefore, may enhance its effectiveness. Our preliminary data suggest that the efficacy of EMS as an effective countermeasure for muscle atrophy and strength loss during long duration space travel warrants further investigation.

Duvoisin, Marc R.↗