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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 667 records · Page 37
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1979

Multistage variable probability forest volume inventory

The net board foot volume (Scribner log rule) of the standing Ponderosa pine timber on the Defiance Unit of the Navajo Nation's forested land was estimated using a multistage forest volume inventory scheme with variable sample selection probabilities. The inventory designed to accomplish this task required that both LANDSAT MSS digital data and aircraft acquired data be used to locate one acre ground splits, which were subsequently visited by ground teams conducting detailed tree measurements using an optical dendrometer. The dendrometer measurements were then punched on computer input cards and were entered in a computer program developed by the U.S. Forest Service. The resulting individual tree volume estimates were then expanded through the use of a statistically defined equation to produce the volume estimate for the entire area which includes 192,026 acres and is approximately a 44% the total forested area of the Navajo Nation.

Anderson, J. E.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Vegetation reflectance measurements as a function of solar zenith angle

An understanding of the behavior of vegetation canopy reflectance as a function of solar zenith angle is important to several remote sensing applications. Spectral hemispherical-conical reflectances of a nadir looking sensor were taken throughout the day of a lodgepole pine and two grass canopies. Mathematical simulations of both a spectral hemispherical-conical reflectance factor and a spectral bi-hemispherical reflectance were performed for two theoretical canopies of contrasting geometric structure. These results and results from literature studies showed a great amount of variability of vegetation canopy reflectances as a function of solar zenith angle. Explanations for this variability are discussed and recommendations for future measurements are proposed.

Kimes, D. S.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Thermal IR exitance model of a plant canopy

A thermal IR exitance model of a plant canopy based on a mathematical abstraction of three horizontal layers of vegetation was developed. Canopy geometry within each layer is quantitatively described by the foliage and branch orientation distributions and number density. Given this geometric information for each layer and the driving meteorological variables, a system of energy budget equations was determined and solved for average layer temperatures. These estimated layer temperatures, together with the angular distributions of radiating elements, were used to calculate the emitted thermal IR radiation as a function of view angle above the canopy. The model was applied to a lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) canopy over a diurnal cycle. Simulated vs measured radiometric average temperatures of the midcanopy layer corresponded with 2 C. Simulation results suggested that canopy geometry can significantly influence the effective radiant temperature recorded at varying sensor view angles.

Kimes, D. S.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Surface reflectance measurements in the ultraviolet from an airborne platform. II

The spectral and broadband reflectance of naturally occurring desert sand, black lava, gypsum sand, and snow cover is measured from a twin engine Cessna 402-series aircraft. The measurement system is computer controlled and electrically isolated from the aircraft. It consists of upward and downward looking hemispheric diffusers, filters, a rotating 90 degree mirror, a focusing lens, and a double monochromator/PMT or a UV enhanced photodiode. Measurements are made at several altitudes enabling the empirical determination of the backscatter and attenuation effects on the reflectance. These reflectance results along with those reported earlier for a pine forest, green farmland, the open ocean, and brown farmland are represented analytically.

Doda, D. D.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Estimating reforestation by means of remote sensing

LANDSAT imagery at the scale of 1:250.000 and obtained from bands 5 and 7 as well as computer compatible tapes were used to evaluate the effectiveness of remotely sensed orbital data in inventorying forests in a 462,100 area of Brazil emcompassing the cities of Ribeirao, Altinopolis Cravinhos, Serra Azul, Luis Antonio, Sao Simao, Santa Rita do Passa Quatro, and Santa Rosa do Viterbo. Visual interpretation of LANDSAT imagery shows that 37,766 hectares (1977) and 38,003.75 hectares (1979) were reforested areas of pine and eucalyptus species. An increment of 237.5 hectares was found during this two-year time lapse.

Dejesusparada, N.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Monitoring of reforested areas using LANDSAT data

Imagery obtained with channels 5 and 7 was visually interpreted in an effort to determine the spatial, spectral, and temporal characteristics of a 105,000 hectare area of Fazenda Mutum which was reforested with various species of pine and eucalyptus. It was possible to map a reforested area as small as 6 hectare in its initial implantation using contrast with the surrounding targets. Five classes were mapped: nondeforested areas, partially deforested areas, deforested areas, partially reforested areas, and fully reforested areas. In 1979, 12,000 hectare were deforested, 4,330.83 hectare were partially reforested, and 42,744.71 hectare were reforested.

Dejesusparada, N.↗
NASA NTRS1981

LANDSAT applications by the Adirondack Park Agency for land cover analyses and forest cover change

The New York State Adirondack Park Agency is using LANDSAT imagery to provide current, consistent parkwide data on forest cover, forest change and other land cover characteristics for the Adirondack Park, an area of 9,375 sq. miles (24,280 sq km). Boundaries of the study area were digitized and the data were enhanced and geographically rectified. A classification scheme was devised which emphasized the basic land cover types of the Park: hardwoods, spruce-fir, pine, wet conifer, brushland, grassland, agricultural areas, exposed earth, urban areas, and water bodies. Cover type classifications for disturbed forest land were also chosen: cut hardwoods, regenerating hardwoods, and cut spruce fir. Field verification of 1978 classification revealed an accurate differentiation of forest types within types and between nonforested/forested areas. The classification accurately detects forest land disturbances; however, it is not always descriptive of the level of disturbance.

Banta, J. S.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Land cover analysis of James City County, Virginia

The approach used to obtain reliable countywide forest resource data, including statistics and a forest cover distribution map from LANDSAT data is described. Comparison of results of the LANDSAT anlysis and U.S. Forestry Survey data is presented in a table. Pine, oak/pine, and oak/hickory accounted for 22.3%, 32.6% and 45.2% respectively of the total forest area in the LANDSAT analysis, compared to 22.8%, 30.1%. and 47.1% in the Forest Survey. The corresponding figures for each forest type differ at most 2.5% for the mixed forest. The total county area in forest land measured using LANDSAT was underestimated by 1,409 acres, a 2.2% error based on the Forest Survey statistics. However, the estimate of 61,242 acres fell well within the known 4% uncertainty of the estimate for the Forest Survey figures (62,651 acres + or - 2,544 acres).

Copony, J. A.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Utilization of LANDSAT multispectral data in geobotanical investigations: The location of ironstone gravel in the Sam Houston National Forest

Practical techniques were developed and evaluated for deriving geobotanical information from LANDSAT MSS data acquired for a test site in the Sam Houston National Forest near Cleveland, Texas where gravel deposits exist in sufficient quantity that economical extraction would be feasible. A correlation was shown between a single spectral class and the presence of ironstone gravel. Field data indicates that this class relates to upland pine which was probably under stress as the result of a prolonged drought which was in progress at the time of data acquisition. It is suggested that the subsurface gravel produces a soil which has less field capacity for water retention, causing early appearance of water stress in the surface vegetation over these soils. In all areas within the QMC formation where this class occurred, gravel was located when borings were made.

Cibula, W. G.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Spectral scales in the atmospheric boundary layer

Wind data taken from 10 levels between 18 and 305 m were examined to determine the properties of atmospheric turbulence within and above the atmospheric surface layer into the PBL. The samples were averaged over 40 min intervals, with all periods of rain, fog, and other disturbances being eliminated from the 16 days of monitoring. Turbulence spectra were calculated using a fast Fourier transformation. The tower was located in rolling terrain covered with pine forests, waist-high scrub, and cultivated fields. Results are presented for the wavelength and Eulerian length scales, considering the neutral, stable, and unstable PBL. Correlation coefficients were found between velocity fluctuations and wavelengths for the stability classes. Good agreements were found for measured and computed spectra in all but unstable conditions.

Weber, A. H.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Seasat synthetic aperture radar /SAR/ response to lowland vegetation types in eastern Maryland and Virginia

Examination of Seasat SAR images of eastern Maryland and Virginia reveals botanical distinctions between vegetated lowland areas and adjacent upland areas. Radar returns from the lowland areas can be either brighter or darker than returns from the upland forests. Scattering models and scatterometer measurements predict an increase of 6 dB in backscatter from vegetation over standing water. This agrees with the 30-digital number (DN) increase observed in the digital Seasat data. The brightest areas in the Chickahominy, Virginia, drainage, containing P. virginica about 0.4 m high, contrast with the brightest areas in the Blackwater, Maryland, marshes, which contain mature loblolly pine in standing water. The darkest vegetated area in the Chickahominy drainage contains a forest of Nyssa aquatica (water tupelo) about 18 m high, while the darkest vegetated area in the Blackwater marshes contains the marsh plant Spartina alterniflora, 0.3 m high. The density, morphology, and relative geometry of the lowland vegetation with respect to standing water can all affect the strength of the return L band signal.

Krohn, M. D.↗
NASA NTRS1983

A correlation analysis of percent canopy closure versus TMS spectral response for selected forest sites in the San Juan National Forest, Colorado

The correlation of canopy closure with the signal response of individual thematic mapper simulator (TMS) bands for selected forest sites in the San Juan National Forest, Colorado was investigated. Ground truth consisted of a photointerpreted determination of percent canopy closure of 0 to 100 percent for 32 sites. The sites selected were situated on plateaus at an elevation of approximately 3 km with slope or = 10 percent. The predominant tree species were ponderosa pine and aspen. The mean TMS response per band per site was calculated from data acquired by aircraft during mid-September, 1981. A correlation analysis of TMS response vs. canopy closure resulted in the following correlation coefficients for bands 1 through 7, respectively: -0.757, -0.663, -0.666, -0.088, -0.797, -0.763. Two model regressions were applied to the TMS data set to create a map of predicted percent forest canopy closure for the study area. Results indicated percent predictive accuracies of 71, 74, and 57 for percent canopy closure classes of 0-25, 25-75, and 75-100, respectively.

Butera, M. K.↗
NASA NTRS1984

The roles of callose, elicitors and ethylene in thigmomorphogenesis and gravitropism

A correlation (both temporal and through the inhibitor, 2-deoxy-D-glucose) of callose deposition and ethylene evolution in mechanically perturbed (MP) bean or pine stems or in gravitationally stimulated corn shoots was demonstrated. It was suggested that the callose, which is deposited on the inside of the cell wall, and adjacent to the plasma membrane causes, in some way, the ethylene production. A hypothesis explaining the mechanism is discussed which states that there is a chemical activation of the enzyme system by the callose which is being deposited in apposition with it. Experimental data supporting the hypothesis are presented.

Jaffe, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Mean excitation energies for stopping powers in various materials using local plasma oscillator strengths

The basic model of Lindhard and Scharff, known as the local plasma model, is used to study the effects on stopping power of the chemical and physical state of the medium. Unlike previous work with the local plasma model, in which individual electron shifts in the plasma frequency were estimated empirically, he Pines correction derived for a degenerate Fermi gas is shown herein to provide a reasonable estimate, even on the atomic scale. Thus, the model is moved to a complete theoretical base requiring no empirical adjustments, as characteristic of past applications. The principal remaining error is in the overestimation of the low-energy absorption properties that are characteristic of the plasma model in the region of the atomic discrete spectrum, although higher-energy phenomena are accurately represented, and even excitation-to-ionization ratios are given to fair accuracy. Mean excitation energies for covalent-bonded gases and solids, for ionic gases and crystals, and for metals are calculated using first-order models of the bonded states.

Wilson, J. W.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Forest inventory using multistage sampling with probability proportional to size

A multistage sampling technique, with probability proportional to size, for forest volume inventory using remote sensing data is developed and evaluated. The study area is located in the Southeastern Brazil. The LANDSAT 4 digital data of the study area are used in the first stage for automatic classification of reforested areas. Four classes of pine and eucalypt with different tree volumes are classified utilizing a maximum likelihood classification algorithm. Color infrared aerial photographs are utilized in the second stage of sampling. In the third state (ground level) the time volume of each class is determined. The total time volume of each class is expanded through a statistical procedure taking into account all the three stages of sampling. This procedure results in an accurate time volume estimate with a smaller number of aerial photographs and reduced time in field work.

Parada, N. D. J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Albedo of a forest modeled as a plane with dense protrusions

An analytical model for the absorption of solar radiation by surfaces such as a pine forest or a wheat field is presented. Objectives include understanding the parameters affecting the absorption of the solar irradiance in a complex structure, and determining the influence of the direction of illumination on light trapping. The surface is treated as a Lambertian reflectivity soil-plane; thin, vertical cylinders are regarded as Lambertian reflectors. Using a dimensionless protrusion parameter based on the height and diameter of the vertical plant elements, optical characteristics (e.g., the dependence of the albedo on the solar zenith angle) of a complex structure are well quantified.

Otterman, J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Mechanisms of nitrogen retention in forest ecosystems - A field experiment

Intensive forest management led to elevated losses of nitrogen from a recently harvested loblolly pine plantation in North Carolina. Measurements of nitrogen-15 retention in the field demonstrated that microbial uptake of nitrogen during the decomposition of residual organic material was the most important process retaining nitrogen. Management practices that remove this material cause increased losses of nitrogen to aquatic ecosystems and the atmosphere.

Vitousek, P. M.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Growth and development of plants flown on the STS-3 Space Shuttle mission

Pre-germinated pine seedlings and germinating oat and mung bean seeds were flown on the STS-3 Space Shuttle mission. Overall, the seedlings grew and developed well in space. Some oat and mung bean roots, however, grew upward. Lignin content was slightly lower in flight tissues and protein content was higher.

Cowles, J. R.↗