Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “Instruments & Instrumentation”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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

At least 685 records · Page 38
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2023

ICESat-2/ATLAS at 4 Years: Instrument Performance and Projected Life

NASA’s ICESat-2 mission launched in September 2018 carrying a single instrument, the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS). ATLAS uses a high-repetition-rate, low-pulse-energy laser with its output split into six beams and a photon-counting receiver to measure Earth surface elevation with centimeter-level precision, repeating its ground track every 91 days. During more than four years of on-orbit operation, ATLAS has met or exceeded its lifetime and performance requirements. We present performance measurements, trends and projections for several instrument parameter, including transmitted laser pulse energy, receiver sensitivity, the instrument’s impulse response, transmitter/receiver alignment, dead-time behavior, and elevation measurement performance. The laser energy setting was increased in September 2023, for the first time, to maintain ranging performance at its early mission level. The trends in instrument parameters indicate capability to continue on-orbit operation of ATLAS for many years into the future.

Anthony J. Martino↗
NASA NTRS2022

Real-Time Exposure Control and Instrument Operation With the NEID Spectrograph GUI

The NEID spectrograph on the WIYN 3.5-m telescope at Kitt Peak has completed its first full year of science operations and is reliably delivering sub-m/s precision radial velocity measurements. The NEID instrument control system uses the TIMS package (Bender et al. 2016), which is a client-server software system built around the twisted python software stack. During science observations, interaction with the NEID spectrograph is handled through a pair of graphical user interfaces (GUIs), written in PyQT, which wrap the underlying instrument control software and provide straightforward and reliable access to the instrument. Here, we detail the design of these interfaces and present an overview of their use for NEID operations. Observers can use the NEID GUIs to set the exposure time, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) threshold, and other relevant parameters for observations, configure the calibration bench and observing mode, track or edit observation metadata, and monitor the current state of the instrument. These GUIs facilitate automatic spectrograph configuration and target ingestion from the nightly observing queue, which improves operational efficiency and consistency across epochs. By interfacing with the NEID exposure meter, the GUIs also allow observers to monitor the progress of individual exposures and trigger the shutter on user-defined SNR thresholds. In addition, inset plots of the instantaneous and cumulative exposure meter counts as each observation progresses allow for rapid diagnosis of changing observing conditions as well as guiding failure and other emergent issues.

Arvind F Gupta↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Overview and Performance of the LOFTID Instrumentation Suite

NASA’s Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator (HIAD) is an enabling technology that facilitates atmospheric entry of heavy payloads to planets such as Earth and Mars using a deployable aeroshell. The deployable nature of the HIAD technology allows it to overcome the size constraints imposed on current rigid aeroshell entry systems. This enables use of larger aeroshells resulting in increased entry system performance (e.g. higher payload mass and/or volume, higher landing altitude at Mars). On November 10th, 2022 the Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator (LOFTID) was launched out of Vandenberg Air Force Base as a secondary payload on an Atlas V rocket. After the primary payload was delivered to its orbit, the LOFTID reentry vehicle was inflated, positioned, and then separated to reenter Earth’s atmosphere at a velocity of 8.1km/s, ultimately splashing down safely in the Pacific Ocean. The flight successfully demonstrated a 6m diameter, 70-deg sphere-cone HIAD on a high-energy orbital reentry. This demonstration has provided invaluable fight data essential to characterize the vehicle performance and support the ongoing effort to further scale the HIAD technology to vehicles of 10m in diameter or greater. Aeroshells of this scale are applicable to near-term commercial applications and future NASA robotic and human exploration missions. LOFTID incorporated an extensive instrumentation suite totaling over 150 science measurements. This included thermocouples, total heat flux sensors, and a radiometer to characterize the aeroheating environment and aeroshell thermal response. An Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), Global Positioning System (GPS), and flush air data system was included to allow post-flight reconstruction of the vehicle trajectory including a decoupling of the aerodynamics from the atmospheric density. Loadcells were used to measure HIAD structural response during entry, and cameras (both visual-spectrum and infrared) were mounted on the aft segment looking at the aeroshell to monitor structural deflection and surface temperature distribution. Finally, a single up-look camera was included which has provided a surprising amount of science potential from the spectacular footage. In addition to the primary instrumentation suite, a new Fiber Optic Sensing System (FOSS) was used to provide global temperature distributions as a technology demonstration. The system provided over 200 thermal measurements creating a thermal map for the backside of the nose Flexible Thermal Protection System. Another pair of FOSS cables were run along the rigid center structure and measured the temperature response to the vehicle wake environment. The LOFTID instrumentation suite leveraged Agency-wide expertise, with hardware development occurring at Ames Research Center, Langley Research Center, Marshall Space Flight Center, and Armstrong Flight Research Center. This paper will discuss the instrumentation selected for LOFTID, a summary of sensor in-flight performance, and will provide examples of data products from the post-flight analysis effort.

Greg Swanson↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Solar Flare Catalog for SPICE Instrument on the Solar Orbiter

Studying the solar corona, the outermost layer of solar atmosphere, is a pivotal part of understanding the dynamic relations between solar activity and the solar wind, which can disrupt the near-Earth environment. Solar flares emit electromagnetic radiation in the solar corona, capable of releasing large amounts of energy in a matter of minutes. Flares can also be associated with Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) and affect Earth’s ionosphere. One instrument that can be used to study flares is the Spectral Imaging of the Coronal Environment (SPICE) instrumentaboard the Solar Orbiter (SolO). SPICE is a high-resolution extreme ultraviolet stigmatic slit spectrometer that covers emission lines formed from the solar chromosphere to corona. Since SPICE is a stigmatic slit spectrometer, the instrument can only take in data from a small spatial area on the Sun at a time. Due to the fast and unpredictable nature of flare events, it can be difficult to determine if and when SPICE has observed a flare. For this reason, we have created a catalog of flares observed by SPICE. This catalog of observational data was assembledby cross referencing data between different solar missions, including data from SolO’s E xtreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) and Spectrometer Telescope for Imaging X-rays (STIX), Solar Dynamics Observatory’s Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (SDO/AIA) instrument, and the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-R). Supplemental analysis of the SPICE solar flare data includes Gaussian line fitting for flares of particular interest. The catalog can be utilized to locate and study coronal loop structures and flare ribbons. This SPICE solar flare catalog and additional supplemental analysis allows for the ease of identification of useful SPICE spectral data and multi-instrument analysis in order to study solar flare activity. It will be open for use by the Solar Orbiter and broader Heliophysics communities.

Anneliese L. Schmidt↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Advances in X-ray Instruments to Support Mars Sample Return

The Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is currently collecting drill cores of ancient igneous and sedimentary rock in and around Jezero crater for potential transport to Earth. These samples from the martian surface will enable detailed mineralogical, geochemical, and petrological measurements to characterize ancient depositional and diagenetic environments, quantitatively age-date the samples, and identify the building blocks for life or evidence for life itself. Furthermore, these drill cores are especially precious because they may represent the most pristine samples from the martian surface and our best chance at identifying martian life, as future sample return missions may be conducted by humans that can introduce biological contaminants to the samples. Because of the importance of these samples, we must take great care in their handling, curation, and preliminary analyses so that they are preserved for scientific measurements for decades to come. In-situ measurements by Perseverance have identified minerals that further warrant special treatment of the returned samples. Hydrated sulfate carbonate, swelling clay minerals, and oxychlorine salts are extremely sensitive to changes in temperature and relative humidity. The structures of hydrated sulfates and oxychlorine minerals, in particular, readily change when exposed to different conditions, meaning the mineral assemblage of the as-returned samples may be lost if the samples aren’t handled properly. Characterizing the as-returned mineral assemblage, particularly of the salts, is essential for reconstructing past aqueous conditions and habitability. To characterize the as-returned mineral assemblage, the samples must be analyzed rapidly before phase changes occur and/or under controlled conditions (e.g., within a glove box). Significant recent advances in X-ray instrumentation for robotic exploration of the solar system have resulted in high-resolution miniaturized instruments that would provide mineralogical, geochemical, and petrological information on the returned martian samples without degradation of the mineral assemblage. Here, we describe a combined X-ray diffractometer/X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (XRD/XRF), an X-ray computed tomographic (XCT) instrument, and a scanned beam XRF mapping instrument that could be used in a glove box so that the martian samples remain under controlled conditions.

E. B. Rampe↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

NASA Ames Flight Instrument Group - MARS Exploration Efforts Overview

The NASA Ames Flight Instrument Group (FIG) MARS development activities include Aeolus, an integrated multi-probe mission to observe surface and atmospheric forcing and general circulation of Mars; the Mars Sonic Anemometer (MSA), a sonic-based, in-situ wind measuring instrument and the Saltation Sensor to detect the critical wind stress threshold for sand motion, which is believed to be a key aspect of dust lifting at Mars. These efforts are readying the instruments to fly, and their measurements are regarded as data of high scientific priority for future flight missions. Each of these efforts focuses on addressing a measurement or capability considered critical within the Agency and traceable to the decadal survey and MEPAG Goals. As we elevate the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of these instruments to 6 through rigorous environmental testing, and participate in forming mission concepts, we make them viable for inclusion in flight mission proposals. Below, we outline FIG's highest priority advancements for Mars exploration.

Mars↗
NASA NTRS2024

The ARGOS Instrument for Stratospheric Aerosol Measurements

Atmospheric aerosols represent an important component of the Earth’s climate system because they can contribute both positive and negative forcing to the energy budget. We are developing the Aerosol Radiometer for Global Observations of the Stratosphere (ARGOS) instrument to provide improved measurements of stratospheric aerosols in a compact package. ARGOS makes limb scattering measurements from space in eight directions simultaneously, using two near-IR wavelengths for each viewing direction. The combination of forward and backward scattering views along the orbit track gives additional information to constrain the aerosol phase function and size distribution. Cross-track views provide expanded spatial coverage. ARGOS will have a demonstration flight through a hosted payload provider in the fall of 2024. The instrument has completed pre-launch environmental testing and radiometric characterization tests. The hosted payload approach offers advantages in size, weight, and power margins for instrument design compared to other approaches, with significant benefits in terms of reducing infrastructure requirements for the instrument team.

stratospheric aerosol↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Evaluation of Radiometric Performance of CERES Instruments Aboard Terra

The Terra satellite platform carries the first two flight models of the Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System, which make radiometric measurements of the Earth to examine the roles of cloud feedback and radiation balance in the Earth System. The Terra-borne instruments use three channels: the shortwave (0.2 - 5 µm), total (0.2 – 100 µm) and window (8 – 12 µm), which are calibrated using an onboard internal calibration module to track the long-term stability of each channel. Observed measurements are converted to top-of-atmosphere radiances by accounting for the instrument optics and detector sensitivity coefficients determined from prelaunch calibrations. Trends in the instrument’s radiometric performance determined through on-orbit calibrations and vicarious studies were applied, and these corrections have shown to produce a stable data record of radiative fluxes over the lifetime of the mission. Changes in instrument observations and new methods to account for them as a result of the discontinuation of station keeping for Terra will be discussed.

Alexander Jarnot↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Inter-Calibrating the CERES SW Instrument Fluxes Using Deep Convective Clouds(DCC) Within the Same Sun-Synchronous Orbit

The NASA CERES EBAF product provides the scientific community observed TOA fluxes to monitor the Earth’s energy imbalance and to validate climate models. To provide a seamless EBAF 24-year record, the CERES instrument calibration must be stable and consistent across satellite records. Once the Terra and Aqua spacecraft are decommissioned at the end of 2025, the CERES project will rely on CERES instrument observations on the SNPP and NOAA-20 1:30 PM sun-synchronous orbits. The SNPP and NOAA-20 satellite orbit placement will prevent any time matched observations for inter-calibration efforts. The future Libera instrument, which will continue the CERES record and scheduled for launch in 2028 onboard the NOAA-22 satellite, will also need to be inter-calibrated without the aid of time-matched observations. Deep convective clouds (DCC) are the most Lambertian, brightest, tropical Earth invariant targets located at the tropopause making them ideal to radiometrically scale the CERES SW observed radiance to a common reference. The SNPP, NOAA-20 and future NOAA-22 satellites are in the same 16-day repeatable orbits, allowing the DCC targets to be observed with the same angular configuration. The empirically derived SNPP CERES SW channel Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) can be easily be applied to the NOAA-20 CERES SW channel radiances since they observe the nearly the same DCC systems. The DCC BRDF corrected radiances are analyzed collectively into radiance probability distribution functions (PDF). By comparing the PDF statistics, the SNPP and NOAA-20 CERES SW channel can be inter-calibrated. The inter-calibration coefficients are validated with the CERES instrument calibration team coefficients to optimize the methodology.

David Doelling↗
DOE OSTI2021

Planned Steady State Irradiation of Characterized Instruments for Nuclear Thermal Rockets Using In-Pile Experiment Apparatus

The development of nuclear rocket technology is critical for the further exploration of extraterrestrial bodies. Nuclear rockets are capable of providing various advantages over current chemical rockets. However, the harsh environment provides a number of challenges regarding instrument performance. Temperature extremes, radiation (reactor and space), and the inability to conduct traditional maintenance activities can lead to a severe degradation in instrument performance. To better understand the effects of radiation on instrumentation, an irradiation campaign has been designed to test a set of instruments provided by a collaborator in the aerospace industry. Details concerning pre-irradiation performance are provided for a future comparison to the irradiated performance. Additionally, the design of the irradiation test is described in detail.

Floyd, Dan↗
DOE OSTI2022

Radiation hardened beam instrumentations for multi-Mega-Watt beam facilities

The radiation hardened beam instrumentations workshop was held on February 3rd and 4th, 2022 to identify the technological challenges on the beam instrumentation for multi-Mega-Watt (MW) beam facilities. We invited a speaker from a high energy neutrino beam facility (CERN, Fermilab and J-PARC), a collider detector group (CERN and Fermilab), a neutron spallation source facility (ESS, J-PARC and SNS), and a rare-isotope beam facility (FRIB). Although, the operational beam parameter for each institution is unique due to their different physics goals, we realize that there is a common issue on the beam instrumentation. Therefore, it will be tackled by a collaborative R&D effort among facilities. We summarize an output from the workshop in the paper, and propose a possible R&D for the future radiation hardened beam instrumentations with a global effort.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Using an onion like neutron scattering instrument model to quickly optimize design parameters

When designing a neutron scattering instrument, one of the major challenges is the many parameters, generally interdependent, within the optimization. In this work we describe an approach using McStas 1-3 to quickly get a good overview of how changes in instrument parameters will impact neutron scattering instrument performance.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2021

Instrument for in situ hard x-ray nanobeam characterization during epitaxial crystallization and materials transformations

Solid-phase epitaxy (SPE) and other three-dimensional epitaxial crystallization processes pose challenging structural and chemical characterization problems. The concentration of defects, the spatial distribution of elastic strain, and the chemical state of ions each vary with nanoscale characteristic length scales and depend sensitively on the gas environment and elastic boundary conditions during growth. The lateral or three-dimensional propagation of crystalline interfaces in SPE has nanoscale or submicrometer characteristic distances during typical crystallization times. Here, an in situ synchrotron hard x-ray instrument allows these features to be studied during deposition and crystallization using diffraction, resonant scattering, nanobeam and coherent diffraction imaging, and reflectivity. The instrument incorporates a compact deposition system allowing the use of short-working-distance x-ray focusing optics. Layers are deposited using radio-frequency magnetron sputtering and evaporation sources. The deposition system provides control of the gas atmosphere and sample temperature. The sample is positioned using a stable mechanical design to minimize vibration and drift and employs precise translation stages to enable nanobeam experiments. Results of in situ x-ray characterization of the amorphous thin film deposition process for a SrTiO 3 /BaTiO 3 multilayer illustrate implementation of this instrument.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2019

FY19 Report for Instrumentation Development for the Transient Testing Program

This report details the technical activities and accomplishment carried out under funding from the Department of Energy (DOE) Nuclear Technology Research and Development (NTRD) program for in-pile instrumentation supporting the transient testing program in FY19. These activities were performed in support of cross-cutting transient testing experiment objectives. The purpose of this report is to provide a summary of key technical work, of particular interest to nuclear irradiation test experimenters and in-pile instrumentation engineers. During FY19, development activities are focused on deployment of devices to perform online measurement of neutron flux, temperature, and mechanical behaviors in nuclear fuels experiments. Specifically, these R&D activities include in-pile investigations at the Transient Reactor Test (TREAT) facility throughout the year. Other in-pile instrumentation R&D activities are being carried out under other DOE programs, which may be recognized but not the focus of this document. A brief summary of activities and accomplishments is first provided for each major activity. More detailed summaries are presented in appendices.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Simultaneous Momentum and Position Measurement and the Instrumental Weyl-Heisenberg Group

The canonical commutation relation, [Q,P]=iℏ, stands at the foundation of quantum theory and the original Hilbert space. The interpretation of P and Q as observables has always relied on the analogies that exist between the unitary transformations of Hilbert space and the canonical (also known as contact) transformations of classical phase space. Now that the theory of quantum measurement is essentially complete (this took a while), it is possible to revisit the canonical commutation relation in a way that sets the foundation of quantum theory not on unitary transformations but on positive transformations. This paper shows how the concept of simultaneous measurement leads to a fundamental differential geometric problem whose solution shows us the following. The simultaneous P and Q measurement (SPQM) defines a universal measuring instrument, which takes the shape of a seven-dimensional manifold, a universal covering group we call the instrumental Weyl-Heisenberg (IWH) group. The group IWH connects the identity to classical phase space in unexpected ways that are significant enough that the positive-operator-valued measure (POVM) offers a complete alternative to energy quantization. Five of the dimensions define processes that can be easily recognized and understood. The other two dimensions, the normalization and phase in the center of the IWH group, are less familiar. The normalization, in particular, requires special handling in order to describe and understand the SPQM instrument.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
NASA NTRS2005

The Mars Exploration Rover Instrument Positioning System

During Mars Exploration Rover (MER) surface operations, the scientific data gathered by the in situ instrument suite has been invaluable with respect to the discovery of a significant water history at Meridiani Planum and the hint of water processes at work in Gusev Crater. Specifically, the ability to perform precision manipulation from a mobile platform (i.e., mobile manipulation) has been a critical part of the successful operation of Spirit and Opportunity rovers. As such, this paper describes the MER Instrument Positioning System that allows the in situ instruments to operate and collect their important science data using a robust, dexterous robotic arm combined with visual target selection and autonomous software functions.

in situ instruments↗
DOE OSTI2019

Self-Supplied Liquid Injection Field Desorption/Ionization Ion Source for an Orthogonal Time-of-Flight Instrument

A new implementation of a dedicated ion source for field ionization (FI), field desorption (FD), and liquid injection field desorption/ionization (LIFDI) for the JEOL AccuTOF GC series of orthogonal-acceleration time-of-flight instruments is presented. In contrast to existing implementations, this third-party LIFDI probe and source combination does not require the exchange of the entire ion source comprising ion source block and lens stack to switch from electron ionization (EI) to LIFDI. Rather, the methods may be swapped conveniently by only exchanging the ion source block for a mechanical probe guide and inserting the LIFDI probe in place of the standard direct insertion probe (DIP) via the vacuum lock. Further, this LIFDI setup does not require any changes of the electronics or software of the AccuTOF mass spectrometer because it is self-supplied in terms of power supply, observation optics, and computer control. The setup offers advanced FI/FD/LIFDI control features such as emission-controlled emitter heating current and emitter flash baking during elongated runs as required for gas chromatography-FI-mass spectrometry (MS). The LIFDI source and probe and its operation are reported in detail. FI spectra of the volatile analytes toluene, heptane, and pentafluoroiodobenzene are presented. LIFDI operation is demonstrated for the analysis of the saturated hydrocarbon dotriacontane and the low-mass hydrocarbon polymers polystyrene 484 and polystyrene 1050. Further, the air-sensitive 2nd-generation Hoveyda–Grubbs catalyst is analyzed by LIFDI-MS. For comparison with long-established LIFDI instrumentation, some of the spectra obtained with the new setup are also compared with those from a double-focusing magnetic sector instrument. .

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2020

Hedonic Price Estimates of Lake Water Quality: Valued Attribute, Instrumental Variables, and Ecological-Economic Benefits

We estimate the effect of lake water quality on residential housing prices using cross-sectional data on water clarity from 113 lakes across the United States. An instrumental-variables approach is developed to address potential endogeneity bias in the water-clarity variable. Three lake-based physical variables serve as instrumental variables: total nitrogen concentration in lake water, total phosphorus concentration in lake water, and water temperature near the lake surface. The econometric results include three methodological findings: the instruments are valid and strong; the ordinary-least-squares estimate of the coefficient on the water-clarity variable is unbiased; and water clarity is the attribute of water quality valued in the housing market. The estimated water-clarity effect shows that a one-tenth of a meter change in water clarity leads to a one-percent change in housing price, or an elasticity of 0.20 at mean clarity. Coupling this effect with estimates of an ecological production function, a lake-specific benefit index is developed that shows the effect on housing values of bringing lakes into compliance with the US Environmental Protection Agency's regional recommendations for phosphorous concentration in lake waters.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗