Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “approximate Newton”

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 73 records · Page 4

A fast, time-accurate unsteady full potential scheme

The unsteady form of the full potential equation is solved in conservation form by an implicit method based on approximate factorization. At each time level, internal Newton iterations are performed to achieve time accuracy and computational efficiency. A local time linearization procedure is introduced to provide a good initial guess for the Newton iteration. A novel flux-biasing technique is applied to generate proper forms of the artificial viscosity to treat hyperbolic regions with shocks and sonic lines present. The wake is properly modeled by accounting not only for jumps in phi, but also for jumps in higher derivatives of phi, obtained by imposing the density to be continuous across the wake. The far field is modeled using the Riemann invariants to simulate nonreflecting boundary conditions. The resulting unsteady method performs well which, even at low reduced frequency levels of 0.1 or less, requires fewer than 100 time steps per cycle at transonic Mach numbers. The code is fully vectorized for the CRAY-XMP and the VPS-32 computers.

Shankar, V.↗

Implicit solvers for unstructured meshes

Implicit methods for unstructured mesh computations are developed and tested. The approximate system which arises from the Newton-linearization of the nonlinear evolution operator is solved by using the preconditioned generalized minimum residual technique. These different preconditioners are investigated: the incomplete LU factorization (ILU), block diagonal factorization, and the symmetric successive over-relaxation (SSOR). The preconditioners have been optimized to have good vectorization properties. The various methods are compared over a wide range of problems. Ordering of the unknowns, which affects the convergence of these sparse matrix iterative methods, is also investigated. Results are presented for inviscid and turbulent viscous calculations on single and multielement airfoil configurations using globally and adaptively generated meshes.

Venkatakrishnan, V.↗

Accreting Binary Populations in the Earlier Universe

It is now understood that X-ray binaries dominate the hard X-ray emission from normal star-forming galaxies. Thanks to the deepest (2-4 Ms) Chandra surveys, such galaxies are now being studied in X-rays out to z approximates 4. Interesting X-ray stacking results (based on 30+ galaxies per redshift bin) suggest that the mean rest-frame 2-10 keV luminosity from z=3-4 Lyman break galaxies (LBGs), is comparable to the most powerful starburst galaxies in the local Universe. This result possibly indicates a similar production mechanism for accreting binaries over large cosmological timescales. To understand and constrain better the production of X-ray binaries in high-redshift LBGs, we have utilized XMM-Newton observations of a small sample of z approximates 0.1 GALEX-selected Ultraviolet-Luminous Galaxies (UVLGs); local analogs to high-redshift LBGs. Our observations enable us to study the X-ray emission from LBG-like galaxies on an individual basis, thus allowing us to constrain object-to-object variances in this population. We supplement these results with X-ray stacking constraints using the new 3.2 Ms Chandra Deep Field-South (completed spring 2010) and LBG candidates selected from HST, Swift UVOT, and ground-based data. These measurements provide new X-ray constraints that sample well the entire z=0-4 baseline

Hornschemeier, Ann↗

Multiple zeros of polynomials

For polynomials of higher degree, iterative numerical methods must be used. Four iterative methods are presented for approximating the zeros of a polynomial using a digital computer. Newton's method and Muller's method are two well known iterative methods which are presented. They extract the zeros of a polynomial by generating a sequence of approximations converging to each zero. However, both of these methods are very unstable when used on a polynomial which has multiple zeros. That is, either they fail to converge to some or all of the zeros, or they converge to very bad approximations of the polynomial's zeros. This material introduces two new methods, the greatest common divisor (G.C.D.) method and the repeated greatest common divisor (repeated G.C.D.) method, which are superior methods for numerically approximating the zeros of a polynomial having multiple zeros. These methods were programmed in FORTRAN 4 and comparisons in time and accuracy are given.

Wood, C. A.↗

Resolving the Large Scale Spectral Variability of the Luminous Seyfert 1 Galaxy 1H 0419-577

An XMM-Newton observation of the luminous Seyfert 1 galaxy 1H 0419-577 in September 2002, when the source was in an extreme low-flux state, found a very hard X-ray spectrum at 1-10 keV with a strong soft excess below approximately 1 keV. Comparison with an earlier XMM-Newton observation when 1H 0419-577 was X-ray bright indicated the dominant spectral variability was due to a steep power law or cool Comptonized thermal emission. Four further XMM-Newton observations, with 1H 0419-577 in intermediate flux states, now support that conclusion, while we also find the variable emission component in intermediate state difference spectra to be strongly modified by absorption in low ionisation matter. The variable soft excess is seen to be an artefact of absorption of the underlying continuum while the core soft emission is attributed to recombination in an extended region of more highly ionised gas. This new analysis underlines the importance of fully accounting for absorption in characterizing AGN X-ray spectra.

Pounds, K. A.↗

Flight Test of a 30-Foot Nominal Diameter Cross Parachute Deployed at a Mach Number of 1.57 and a Dynamic Pressure of 9.7 Pounds per Square Foot

A 30-foot (9.1-meter) nominal-diameter cross-type parachute with a cloth area (reference area) of 709 square feet (65.9 square meters) was flight tested in the rocket-launched portion of the NASA Planetary Entry Parachute Program (PEPP). The test parachute was ejected from an instrumented payload by means of a mortar when the system was at a Mach number of 1.57 and a dynamic pressure of 9.7 psf. The parachute deployed to suspension-line stretch in 0.44 second with a resulting snatch-force loading of 1100 pounds (4900 newtons), Canopy inflation began at 0.58 second and a first full inflation was achieved at approximately 0.77 second. The maximum opening load occurred at 0.81 second and was 4255 pounds (18,930 newtons). Thereafter, the test item exhibited a canopy-shape instability in that the four panel arms experienced fluctuations, a "scissoring" type of motion predominating throughout the test period. Calculated values of axial-force coefficient during the deceleration portion of the test varied between 0.35 and 1.05, with an average value of 0.69. During descent, canopy-shape variations had reduced to small amplitudes and resultant pitch-yaw angles of the payload with respect to the local vertical averaged less than 10 degrees. The effective drag coefficient, based on the vertical components of velocity and acceleration during system descent, was 0.78.

TESTS↗

An analysis and comparison of several trajectory optimization methods

The sensitivities of the convergence characteristics of the methods to initially assumed parameters and trial solution, convergence times, computer logic, and storage requirements are discussed. Numerical comparison of the convergence characteristics is made by considering a minimum time, low thrust, Earth-Mars transfer trajectory. A modified quasi-linearization method reduces convergence time by approximately 70% when compared with the generalized Newton-Raphson method and allows the terminal boundary to be specified by a general function of the problem variables. A uniquely specified and easily determined, time dependent weighting matrix for the gradient techniques accelerates the shaping of the optimal control program and improves the convergence characteristics during the terminal iterations. Convergence envelopes, indicating how sensitive the convergence characteristics are to initially assumed parameters, are plotted for the perturbation and quasi-linearization methods. Several iteration schemes are proposed which increase the size of the convergence envelopes and decrease the sensitivity of the method to initially assumed parameters.

Lewallen, J. M.↗

Forced stationary solutions in a barotropic channel: Multiple equilibria and theory of nonlinear resonance

A barotropic flow over sinusoidal topography in a beta channel in the presence of forcing and dissipation was studied. The work is divided into two parts: (1) computation of the stationary solutions of the model, by Newton's method together with a finite difference approximation, and comparison of solutions with the solutions of the linear theory; (2) development of a nonlinear theory that reproduce the numerical solutions.

Rambaldi, S.↗

Sinc-Galerkin estimation of diffusivity in parabolic problems

A fully Sinc-Galerkin method for the numerical recovery of spatially varying diffusion coefficients in linear partial differential equations is presented. Because the parameter recovery problems are inherently ill-posed, an output error criterion in conjunction with Tikhonov regularization is used to formulate them as infinite-dimensional minimization problems. The forward problems are discretized with a sinc basis in both the spatial and temporal domains thus yielding an approximate solution which displays an exponential convergence rate and is valid on the infinite time interval. The minimization problems are then solved via a quasi-Newton/trust region algorithm. The L-curve technique for determining an approximate value of the regularization parameter is briefly discussed, and numerical examples are given which show the applicability of the method both for problems with noise-free data as well as for those whose data contains white noise.

Smith, Ralph C.↗

A methodology for airplane parameter estimation and confidence interval determination in nonlinear estimation problems

An algorithm for maximum likelihood (ML) estimation is developed with an efficient method for approximating the sensitivities. The ML algorithm relies on a new optimization method referred to as a modified Newton-Raphson with estimated sensitivities (MNRES). MNRES determines sensitivities by using slope information from local surface approximations of each output variable in parameter space. With the fitted surface, sensitivity information can be updated at each iteration with less computational effort than that required by either a finite-difference method or integration of the analytically determined sensitivity equations. MNRES eliminates the need to derive sensitivity equations for each new model, and thus provides flexibility to use model equations in any convenient format. A random search technique for determining the confidence limits of ML parameter estimates is applied to nonlinear estimation problems for airplanes. The confidence intervals obtained by the search are compared with Cramer-Rao (CR) bounds at the same confidence level. The degree of nonlinearity in the estimation problem is an important factor in the relationship between CR bounds and the error bounds determined by the search technique. Beale's measure of nonlinearity is developed in this study for airplane identification problems; it is used to empirically correct confidence levels and to predict the degree of agreement between CR bounds and search estimates.

Murphy, P. C.↗

Newton like: Minimal residual methods applied to transonic flow calculations

A computational technique for the solution of the full potential equation is presented. The method consists of outer and inner iterations. The outer iterate is based on a Newton like algorithm, and a preconditioned Minimal Residual method is used to seek an approximate solution of the system of linear equations arising at each inner iterate. The present iterative scheme is formulated so that the uncertainties and difficulties associated with many iterative techniques, namely the requirements of acceleration parameters and the treatment of additional boundary conditions for the intermediate variables, are eliminated. Numerical experiments based on the new method for transonic potential flows around the NACA 0012 airfoil at different Mach numbers and different angles of attack are presented, and these results are compared with those obtained by the Approximate Factorization technique. Extention to three dimensional flow calculations and application in finite element methods for fluid dynamics problems by the present method are also discussed. The Inexact Newton like method produces a smoother reduction in the residual norm, and the number of supersonic points and circulations are rapidly established as the number of iterations is increased.

Wong, Y. S.↗

Newton-like minimal residual methods applied to transonic flow calculations

A computational technique for the solution of the full potential equation is presented. The method consists of outer and inner iterations. The outer iterate is based on a Newton like algorithm, and a preconditioned Minimal Residual method is used to seek an approximate solution of the system of linear equations arising at each inner iterate. The present iterative scheme is formulated so that the uncertainties and difficulties associated with many iterative techniques, namely the requirements of acceleration parameters and the treatment of additional boundary conditions for the intermediate variables, are eliminated. Numerical experiments based on the new method for transonic potential flows around the NACA 0012 airfoil at different Mach numbers and different angles of attack are presented, and these results are compared with those obtained by the Approximate Factorization technique. Extention to three dimensional flow calculations and application in finite element methods for fluid dynamics problems by the present method are also discussed. The Inexact Newton like method produces a smoother reduction in the residual norm, and the number of supersonic points and circulations are rapidly established as the number of iterations is increased.

Wong, Y. S.↗

An algorithm for maximum likelihood estimation using an efficient method for approximating sensitivities

An algorithm for maximum likelihood (ML) estimation is developed primarily for multivariable dynamic systems. The algorithm relies on a new optimization method referred to as a modified Newton-Raphson with estimated sensitivities (MNRES). The method determines sensitivities by using slope information from local surface approximations of each output variable in parameter space. The fitted surface allows sensitivity information to be updated at each iteration with a significant reduction in computational effort compared with integrating the analytically determined sensitivity equations or using a finite-difference method. Different surface-fitting methods are discussed and demonstrated. Aircraft estimation problems are solved by using both simulated and real-flight data to compare MNRES with commonly used methods; in these solutions MNRES is found to be equally accurate and substantially faster. MNRES eliminates the need to derive sensitivity equations, thus producing a more generally applicable algorithm.

Murphy, P. C.↗

Minimization versus homotopy algorithms

The relative merits and demerits of the minimization techniques are assessed using globally convergent quasi-Newton algorithms on the one hand and the homotopy algorithms on the other hand for the solution of problems of nonlinear structural analysis. Like the homotopy algorithms, the globally convergent quasi-Newton algorithms are equally suited for the solution of the nonlinear equations of structural analysis directly without having to pose the problem as an equivalent minimization problem. In the close neighborhood of the limit and bifurcation points quasi-Newton algorithms experience difficulties. Homotopy algorithms are robust for practically all types of nonlinear problems but are computationally not as cost effective since they provide an extremely accurate prediction of the response by calculating it as a large number of points. Globally convergent algorithms can perform well with very approximate Hessians, while homotopy algorithms require extremely accurate Hessians. While quasi-Newton algorithms can be very easily structured to exploit sparsity and symmetry, homotopy algorithms are not presently so structured and would require special modifications for exploitation of such features without sacrificing robustness and global convergence.

Kamat, M. P.↗

The NuSTAR Extragalactic Surveys: The Number Counts Of Active Galactic Nuclei And The Resolved Fraction Of The Cosmic X-ray Background

We present the 3-8 kiloelectronvolts and 8-24 kiloelectronvolts number counts of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) identified in the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) extragalactic surveys. NuSTAR has now resolved 33 percent -39 percent of the X-ray background in the 8-24 kiloelectronvolts band, directly identifying AGNs with obscuring columns up to approximately 10 (exp 25) per square centimeter. In the softer 3-8 kiloelectronvolts band the number counts are in general agreement with those measured by XMM-Newton and Chandra over the flux range 5 times 10 (exp -15) less than or approximately equal to S (3-8 kiloelectronvolts) divided by ergs per second per square centimeter less than or approximately equal to 10 (exp -12) probed by NuSTAR. In the hard 8-24 kiloelectronvolts band NuSTAR probes fluxes over the range 2 times 10 (exp -14) less than or approximately equal to S (8-24 kiloelectronvolts) divided by ergs per second per square centimeter less than or approximately equal to 10 (exp -12), a factor approximately 100 times fainter than previous measurements. The 8-24 kiloelectronvolts number counts match predictions from AGN population synthesis models, directly confirming the existence of a population of obscured and/or hard X-ray sources inferred from the shape of the integrated cosmic X-ray background. The measured NuSTAR counts lie significantly above simple extrapolation with a Euclidian slope to low flux of the Swift/BAT15-55 kiloelectronvolts number counts measured at higher fluxes (S (15-55 kiloelectronvolts) less than or approximately equal to 10 (exp -11) ergs per second per square centimeter), reflecting the evolution of the AGN population between the Swift/BAT local (redshift is less than 0.1) sample and NuSTAR's redshift approximately equal to 1 sample. CXB (Cosmic X-ray Background) synthesis models, which account for AGN evolution, lie above the Swift/BAT measurements, suggesting that they do not fully capture the evolution of obscured AGNs at low redshifts

nucle↗

Determination of stability derivatives from flight data using a Newton-Raphson minimization technique

A modified Newton-Raphson or quasilinearization minimization technique for determining stability derivatives from flight data was developed and compared with simple-equations, analog-matching, least-squares, and Shinbrot methods of analysis. For the data analyzed, the solutions computed by using the estimates obtained from the Newton-Raphson technique fit the data and determined coefficients adequately. A further modification to include a priori information was found to be useful. A model statistically similar to the flight data was analyzed using the same methods (excluding analog matching), and the Newton-Raphson technique was found to yield superior estimates. An approximate Cramer-Rao bound was compared with the error covariance matrix of the model and was found to provide information about the reliability of the individual estimates obtained. The technique was successfully applied to data obtained from a light airplane, a large supersonic airplane, and a lifting body vehicle. It was shown that the reliability of the estimates of a given coefficient obtained from these vehicles depends upon the data analyzed.

Iliff, K. W.↗

Some Experiences with Nonoverlapping Schur Complement Parallel Preconditioning for CFD Calculations

In this work we consider solving matrices which arise from the discretization of advection-diffusion field equations on arbitrary triangulated domains using stabilized numerical methods. The talk will discuss several candidate matrix preconditioning algorithms based on the 2 x 2 block factorization induced by an apriori partitioning of the triangulated domain. Application of the 2 x 2 block preconditioner requires the formation and inversion of the Schur complement submatrix. We consider several strategies for simplifying this task: incomplete Schur complement factorizations, drop tolerance element filling, Schur complement probing, and localized Schur complement inversion. Numerical results will be shown comparing performance and efficiency of these approximations. The matrix preconditioner has also been embedded into a Newton algorithm for solving the nonlinear Euler and Navier-Stokes equations governing compressible flow. The remainder of the talk will show numerous examples in CFD to demonstrate the efficiency and robustness of the techniques.

Barth, Timothy J.↗