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At least 73 records · Page 4

The HERO Program: High-Energy Replicated Optics for a Hard-X-Ray Balloon Payload

We are developing high-energy replicated optics for a balloon-borne hard-x-ray telescope. When completed, the telescope will have around 150 square cm of effective collecting area up to 65 keV, and an angular resolution of around 30 arc seconds, half power diameter. When used in conjunction with an array of focal plane imaging detectors, for which Gas Scintillation Proportional Counters are under development, the payload will provide unprecedented sensitivity for pointed observations in the hard-x-ray band. We will present an overview of the High Energy Replicated Optics (HERO) program together with test data from the first mirror units. The overall sensitivity of the full payload, when flown on long- and ultra-long-duration balloon flights, will be compared with past and planned satellite-borne hard-x-ray missions.

Ramsey, B. D.

New Alloys for Electroformed Replicated X-Ray Optics

The process of electroforming x-ray mirror shells off a superpolished mandrel has been widely used. The recently launched XMM mission is a good example of this, containing 174 such mirror shells of diameters ranging from 0.3-0.7 m and thicknesses of 0.47-1.07 mm. To continue to utilize this technique for the next generation of x-ray observatories, where ever-larger collecting areas will be required within the constraints of tight weight budgets, demands that new alloys be developed that can withstand the large stresses imposed on very thin shells by the replication and handling processes. Towards this end, we began a development program in late 1997 to produce a high-strength alloy suitable for electroforming very thin high-resolution x-ray optics. The requirements for this task are quite severe; not only must the electroformed deposit be very strong, it must also have extremely low residual stresses to prevent serious figure distortions in large thin-walled shells. Further, the electroforming must be performed at near room temperature, as large temperature changes will modify the figure of the mandrel, in an environment that is not corrosive for the mandrel. The figure of merit for the strength of the electroformed deposit is its Precision Elastic Limit (PEL). This is a measure of permanent strain, at the few parts per million level, under applied stress. Pure nickel is very ductile and will permanently deform, at the parts-per-million level under loads of a few x 10(exp 7) Pa. These stresses are easily exceeded when thin-walled shells (150 micron thick) are replicated. Our goal was to develop an alloy an order of magnitude stronger than this. We will present the results of our development program, showing the evolution of our plating baths through to our present 'glassy' nickel alloy that satisfies the goals above. For each we will show the electroforming characteristics of the bath and the PEL measurements for the resulting alloys. We estimate the ultimate limit on shell thickness and mass for x-ray mirrors produced in these baths.

Engelhaupt, D.

Replication of Low Density Electroformed Normal Incidence Optics

Replicated electroformed light-weight nickel alloy mirrors can have high strength, low areal density (<3kg/m2), smooth finish, and controllable alloy composition. Progress at NASA MSFC SOMTC in developing normal incidence replicated Nickel mirrors will be reported.

Ritter, Joseph M.

Experimental Replication of an Aeroengine Combustion Instability

Combustion instabilities in gas turbine engines are most frequently encountered during the late phases of engine development, at which point they are difficult and expensive to fix. The ability to replicate an engine-traceable combustion instability in a laboratory-scale experiment offers the opportunity to economically diagnose the problem (to determine the root cause), and to investigate solutions to the problem, such as active control. The development and validation of active combustion instability control requires that the causal dynamic processes be reproduced in experimental test facilities which can be used as a test bed for control system evaluation. This paper discusses the process through which a laboratory-scale experiment was designed to replicate an instability observed in a developmental engine. The scaling process used physically-based analyses to preserve the relevant geometric, acoustic and thermo-fluid features. The process increases the probability that results achieved in the single-nozzle experiment will be scalable to the engine.

Cohen, J. M.

Replication of Low Density Electroformed Normal Incidence Optics

Replicated electroformed light-weight nickel alloy mirrors can have high strength, low areal density (less than 3kg/m2), smooth finish, and controllable alloy composition. Progress at NASA MSFC SOMTC in developing normal incidence replicated Nickel mirrors will be reported.

Ritter, Joseph M.

Insulin-like growth factor-I extends in vitro replicative life span of skeletal muscle satellite cells by enhancing G1/S cell cycle progression via the activation of phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase/Akt signaling pathway

Interest is growing in methods to extend replicative life span of non-immortalized stem cells. Using the insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) transgenic mouse in which the IGF-I transgene is expressed during skeletal muscle development and maturation prior to isolation and during culture of satellite cells (the myogenic stem cells of mature skeletal muscle fibers) as a model system, we elucidated the underlying molecular mechanisms of IGF-I-mediated enhancement of proliferative potential of these cells. Satellite cells from IGF-I transgenic muscles achieved at least five additional population doublings above the maximum that was attained by wild type satellite cells. This IGF-I-induced increase in proliferative potential was mediated via activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase/Akt pathway, independent of mitogen-activated protein kinase activity, facilitating G(1)/S cell cycle progression via a down-regulation of p27(Kip1). Adenovirally mediated ectopic overexpression of p27(Kip1) in exponentially growing IGF-I transgenic satellite cells reversed the increase in cyclin E-cdk2 kinase activity, pRb phosphorylation, and cyclin A protein abundance, thereby implicating an important role for p27(Kip1) in promoting satellite cell senescence. These observations provide a more complete dissection of molecular events by which increased local expression of a growth factor in mature skeletal muscle fibers extends replicative life span of primary stem cells than previously known.

NASA Discipline Musculoskeletal

Nanobacteria: Fact or Fiction? Characteristics, Detection and Medical Importance of Novel Self-Replicating, Calcifying Nanoparticles

There is some debate in microbiology as to whether Nanobacteria (NB) are alive. This paper reviews some aspects of NB. In summary, Nanobacteria is a perfect model for studying biogenic mineralization/calcification because NB a) are self-replicating particles and have less complicated metabolic pathways b) accumulate calcium and phosphate under physiological conditions, c)produce a calcium phosphate mineral similar to bone, d) exist in physical conditions (pH, gravity, temperature, etc) that are easy to manipulate, and which can be replicated for the physiological model.

Ciftcioglu, Neva

Rotating Arc Jet Test Model: Time-Accurate Trajectory Heat Flux Replication in a Ground Test Environment

Though arc jet testing has been the proven method employed for development testing and certification of TPS and TPS instrumentation, the operational aspects of arc jets limit testing to selected, but constant, conditions. Flight, on the other hand, produces timevarying entry conditions in which the heat flux increases, peaks, and recedes as a vehicle descends through an atmosphere. As a result, we are unable to "test as we fly." Attempts to replicate the time-dependent aerothermal environment of atmospheric entry by varying the arc jet facility operating conditions during a test have proven to be difficult, expensive, and only partially successful. A promising alternative is to rotate the test model exposed to a constant-condition arc jet flow to yield a time-varying test condition at a point on a test article (Fig. 1). The model shape and rotation rate can be engineered so that the heat flux at a point on the model replicates the predicted profile for a particular point on a flight vehicle. This simple concept will enable, for example, calibration of the TPS sensors on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) aeroshell for anticipated flight environments.

Laub, Bernard

High Energy Replicated Optics to Explore the Sun: Hard X-Ray Balloon-Borne Telescope

Set to fly in the Fall of 2013 from Ft. Sumner, NM, the High Energy Replicated Optics to Explore the Sun (HEROES) mission is a collaborative effort between the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center and the Goddard Space Flight Center to upgrade an existing payload, the High Energy Replicated Optics (HERO) balloon-borne telescope, to make unique scientific measurements of the Sun and astrophysical targets during the same flight. The HEROES science payload consists of 8 mirror modules, housing a total of 109 grazing-incidence optics. These modules are mounted on a carbon-fiber - and Aluminum optical bench 6 m from a matching array of high pressure xenon gas scintillation proportional counters, which serve as the focal-plane detectors. The HERO gondola utilizes a differential GPS system (backed by a magnetometer) for coarse pointing in the azimuth and a shaft angle encoder plus inclinometer provides the coarse elevation. The HEROES payload will incorporate a new solar aspect system to supplement the existing star camera, for fine pointing during both the day and night. A mechanical shutter will be added to the star camera to protect it during solar observations. HEROES will also implement two novel alignment monitoring system that will measure the alignment between the optical bench and the star camera and between the optics and detectors for improved pointing and post-flight data reconstruction. The overall payload will also be discussed. This mission is funded by the NASA HOPE (Hands On Project Experience) Training Opportunity awarded by the NASA Academy of Program/Project and Engineering Leadership, in partnership with NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Office of the Chief Engineer and Office of the Chief Technologist

Gaskin, Jessica

High Energy Replicated Optics to Explore the Sun Balloon-Borne Telescope: Astrophysical Pointing

On September 21, 2013, the High Energy Replicated Optics to Explore the Sun, or HEROES, balloon-borne x-ray telescope launched from the Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility's site in Ft. Summer, NM. The flight lasted for approximately 27 hours and the observational targets included the Sun and astrophysical sources GRS 1915+105 and the Crab Nebula. Over the past year, the HEROES team upgraded the existing High Energy Replicated Optics (HERO) balloon-borne telescope to make unique scientific measurements of the Sun and astrophysical targets during the same flight. The HEROES Project is a multi-NASA Center effort with team members at both Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), and is led by Co-PIs (one at each Center). The HEROES payload consists of the hard X-ray telescope HERO, developed at MSFC, combined with several new systems. To allow the HEROES telescope to make observations of the Sun, a new solar aspect system was added to supplement the existing star camera for fine pointing during both the day and night. A mechanical shutter was added to the star camera to protect it during solar observations and two alignment monitoring systems were added for improved pointing and post-flight data reconstruction. This mission was funded by the NASA HOPE (Hands-On Project Experience) Training Opportunity awarded by the NASA Academy of Program/Project and Engineering Leadership, in partnership with NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Office of the Chief Engineer and Office of the Chief Technologist.

Gaskin, Jessica

An Analysis of Database Replication Technologies with Regard to Deep Space Network Application Requirements

The Deep Space Network (DSN) has three communication facilities which handle telemetry, commands, and other data relating to spacecraft missions. The network requires these three sites to share data with each other and with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for processing and distribution. Many database management systems have replication capabilities built in, which means that data updates made at one location will be automatically propagated to other locations. This project examines multiple replication solutions, looking for stability, automation, flexibility, performance, and cost. After comparing these features, Oracle Streams is chosen for closer analysis. Two Streams environments are configured - one with a Master/Slave architecture, in which a single server is the source for all data updates, and the second with a Multi-Master architecture, in which updates originating from any of the servers will be propagated to all of the others. These environments are tested for data type support, conflict resolution, performance, changes to the data structure, and behavior during and after network or server outages. Through this experimentation, it is determined which requirements of the DSN can be met by Oracle Streams and which cannot.

Oracle Database File System

Evaluating the Trustworthiness of Deep Neural Networks in Deployment – A Comparative Study (Replicability Study)

As deep neural networks (DNNs) are increasingly used in safety critical applications, there is a growing concern for their trustworthiness. Even highly trained, high-performant networks are not 100% accurate. However, it is very difficult to predict their behaviour during deployment without ground truth. In this paper, we provide a comparative and replicability study on recent approaches that have been proposed to evaluate the trustworthiness of DNNs. We find that it is very difficult to run and reproduce the results for these approaches on their replication packages, and it is even more difficult to run the tools on artifacts other than their own. Further, it is difficult to compare the effectiveness of the tools, due to lack of clearly defined evaluation metrics. Our results indicate that more effort is needed in our research community to obtain sound techniques for evaluating the trustworthiness of neural networks in safety-critical domains. To this end, we contribute an evaluation framework that incorporates the considered approaches and enables evaluation on common benchmarks, using common metrics. Using this framework, we run a comparative study of the three approaches.

Trustworthy AI

SuperHERO (Super - High Energy Replicated Optics) Balloon Mission Concept

The SuperHERO hard-x-ray telescope is a proposed high-angular resolution successor to Marshall Space Flight Center’s (MSFC) successful High Energy Replicated Optic (HERO) and the HERO to Explore the Sun (HEROES) balloon missions. By utilizing recent advancements in MSFC’s replicated full shell, NiCo x-ray optic technology, SuperHERO will achieve its technical goal of demonstrating better than 10 arcseconds (arcsecs) angular resolution in half-power diameter (HPD) on a balloon platform. This represents a 6-fold improvement to the current state-of-the-art resolution for hard-x-ray, astrophysical telescopes and will allow for the observation of the high-energy-universe in unprecedented spatial detail. The SuperHERO balloon observatory will consist of seven coaligned, identical telescopes with a total focal length of 12-meters. Each telescope will pair a Mirror Module Assembly (MMA) comprised of NiCo shell optics matched to a CdTe Double-sided Strip Detector (CdTe-DSD) plane provided by iMAGINE-X Inc. and Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (Kavli-IPMU). Iridium coating applied directly to each shell will boost reflectivity into the hard-x-ray regime. Employing additional high-heritage technology, SuperHERO will have an open-truss carbon-composite gondola similarly used on the XL-Calibur balloon mission and will use the Wallops Arc-Second Pointer (WASP) system for attitude control

NickThomas

Replication-deficient adenovirus vector transfer of gfp reporter gene into supraoptic nucleus and subfornical organ neurons

The present studies used defined cells of the subfornical organ (SFO) and supraoptic nuclei (SON) as model systems to demonstrate the efficacy of replication-deficient adenovirus (Ad) encoding green fluorescent protein (GFP) for gene transfer. The studies investigated the effects of both direct transfection of the SON and indirect transfection (i.e., via retrograde transport) of SFO neurons. The SON of rats were injected with Ad (2 x 10(6) pfu) and sacrificed 1-7 days later for cell culture of the SON and of the SFO. In the SON, GFP fluorescence was visualized in both neuronal and nonneuronal cells while only neurons in the SFO expressed GFP. Successful in vitro transfection of cultured cells from the SON and SFO was also achieved with Ad (2 x 10(6) to 2 x 10(8) pfu). The expression of GFP in in vitro transfected cells was higher in nonneuronal (approximately 28% in SON and SFO) than neuronal (approximately 4% in SON and 10% in SFO) cells. The expression of GFP was time and viral concentration related. No apparent alterations in cellular morphology of transfected cells were detected and electrophysiological characterization of transfected cells was similar between GFP-expressing and nonexpressing neurons. We conclude that (1) GFP is an effective marker for gene transfer in living SON and SFO cells, (2) Ad infects both neuronal and nonneuronal cells, (3) Ad is taken up by axonal projections from the SON and retrogradely transported to the SFO where it is expressed at detectable levels, and (4) Ad does not adversely affect neuronal viability. These results demonstrate the feasibility of using adenoviral vectors to deliver genes to the SFO-SON axis. Copyright 1998 Academic Press.

NASA Discipline Regulatory Physiology