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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

The weak lensing signal and the clustering of BOSS galaxies. II. Astrophysical and cosmological constraints

We perform a joint analysis of the abundance, the clustering, and the galaxy–galaxy lensing signal of galaxies measured from Data Release 11 of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey in our companion paper, Miyatake et al. The lensing signal was obtained by using the shape catalog of background galaxies from the Canada France Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey, which was made publicly available by the CFHTLenS collaboration, with an area overlap of about 105 deg{sup 2}. We analyze the data in the framework of the halo model in order to fit halo occupation parameters and cosmological parameters (Ω{sub m} and σ{sub 8}) to these observables simultaneously, and thus break the degeneracy between galaxy bias and cosmology. Adopting a flat ΛCDM cosmology with priors on Ω{sub b}h{sup 2}, n{sub s}, and h from the analysis of WMAP 9 yr data, we obtain constraints on the stellar mass–halo mass relation of galaxies in our sample. Marginalizing over the halo occupation distribution parameters and a number of other nuisance parameters in our model, we obtain Ω{sub m}=0.310{sub −0.020}{sup +0.019} and σ{sub 8}=0.785{sub −0.044}{sup +0.044} (68% confidence). We demonstrate the robustness of our results with respect to sample selection and a variety of systematics such as the halo off-centering effect and possible incompleteness in our sample. Our constraints are consistent, complementary, and competitive with those obtained using other independent probes of these cosmological parameters. The cosmological analysis is the first of its kind to be performed at a redshift as high as 0.53.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1991

Global analysis of fermion mixing with exotics

The limits are analyzed on deviation of the lepton and quark weak-couplings from their standard model values in a general class of models where the known fermions are allowed to mix with new heavy particles with exotic SU(2) x U(1) quantum number assignments (left-handed singlets or right-handed doublets). These mixings appear in many extensions of the electroweak theory such as models with mirror fermions, E(sub 6) models, etc. The results update previous analyses and improve considerably the existing bounds.

Nardi, Enrico↗
DOE OSTI2013

Synthesis, magnetic and dielectric characterization of nanocrystalline solid solutions of In{sub 2−x}Ni{sub x}O{sub 3} (x = 0.05, 0.10 and 0.15)

Graphical abstract: Monophasic and crystalline In{sub 2−x}Ni{sub x}O{sub 3} nanoparticles of size 8–15 nm have been synthesized solvothermally and showed red shift in energy band gap which decreases on increasing Ni{sup 2+} concentration in In{sub 2}O{sub 3} host lattice. - Highlights: • Monophasic Ni-doped In{sub 2}O{sub 3} nanoparticles by solvothermal method for first time. • Plausible reaction mechanism using thermogravimetric analysis. • High surface area with small particle size obtained. • Solid solutions exhibit paramagnetism with very weak antiferromagnetic interactions. - Abstract: In{sub 2−x}Ni{sub x}O{sub 3} (x = 0.05, 0.10 and 0.15) nanoparticles were successfully synthesized by solvothermal method by the thermal decomposition of oxalate precursor at 450 °C for the first time. X-ray diffraction studies showed the formation of highly crystalline and monophasic cubic structure of In{sub 2}O{sub 3} which is attributed to the formation of solid solution. These nanoparticles show good optical transmittance in the visible region. Optical measurements showed an energy band gap which decreases with increasing Ni concentration. The grain size decreases from 15 nm to 8 nm and surface area increases from 90 to 254 m{sup 2} g{sup −1} on increasing the Ni concentration. High dielectric constant and dielectric loss has been obtained which indicates the conducting nature of these solid solutions. Magnetic measurements showed that the samples are strong paramagnetic in nature with very weak antiferromagnetic interactions. No evidence of ferromagnetism is observed for these solid solutions at room temperature.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2017

Development of harmonic balance capability for Charon

We report on the development of a frequency domain method of analysis in the Panzer foundation of Charon. We first present a harmonic balance approach for calculating the frequency-domain response (in its weak form) of a non-linear system of partial differential equations (PDEs). Our approach is anemable to adaptation of Charon's transient PDE models for frequency domain analysis. We make an observation that allows us to analyze either small-signal or large-signal responses with minimal specialization of the algorithm. We conclude by confirming our small- and large-signal analyses of a transient, linear Helmholtz equation by comparing its analytic solution to our results. We include figures from a sequence of non-linear perturbations of this system, showcasing the fact that, when the non-linearities are insignificant, the small- and large-signal analyses obtain similar solutions. On the other hand, we depict the inadequacy of a small-signal analysis to accurately capture the response in the presence of a large non-linearity, and underscore the requirement to employ a large-signal analysis for modelling highly non-linear systems.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2019

Data analysis for synchrotron microcrystal native-SAD phasing

De novo structural evaluation of native biomolecules from single-wavelength anomalous diffraction (SAD) is a challenge because of the weakness of the anomalous scattering. For microcrystals with sizes less than 10 μm, native-SAD phasing at synchrotron microdiffraction beamlines is even more challenging due to difficulties in sample manipulation, diffraction data collection and data analysis. Native-SAD analysis from microcrystals by using X-ray free electron lasers has been demonstrated but has required use of thousands of thousands of microcrystals to achieve the necessary accuracy. Here we show that by exploitation of anomalous microdiffraction signals at a synchrotron beamline, by the use of polyimide wellmounts, and by an iterative crystal and frame rejection method, optimized data may be acquired and assembled which allows microcrystal native-SAD phasing from as few as about 1200 crystals. Finally, beyond microcrystals, our data analysis strategy may work equally well for microdiffraction data from larger crystals.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2013

WEAK HARD X-RAY EMISSION FROM TWO BROAD ABSORPTION LINE QUASARS OBSERVED WITH NuSTAR: COMPTON-THICK ABSORPTION OR INTRINSIC X-RAY WEAKNESS?

We present Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) hard X-ray observations of two X-ray weak broad absorption line (BAL) quasars, PG 1004+130 (radio loud) and PG 1700+518 (radio quiet). Many BAL quasars appear X-ray weak, probably due to absorption by the shielding gas between the nucleus and the accretion-disk wind. The two targets are among the optically brightest BAL quasars, yet they are known to be significantly X-ray weak at rest-frame 2-10 keV (16-120 times fainter than typical quasars). We would expect to obtain Almost-Equal-To 400-600 hard X-ray ({approx}> 10 keV) photons with NuSTAR, provided that these photons are not significantly absorbed (N{sub H} {approx}< 10{sup 24} cm{sup -2}). However, both BAL quasars are only detected in the softer NuSTAR bands (e.g., 4-20 keV) but not in its harder bands (e.g., 20-30 keV), suggesting that either the shielding gas is highly Compton-thick or the two targets are intrinsically X-ray weak. We constrain the column densities for both to be N{sub H} Almost-Equal-To 7 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 24} cm{sup -2} if the weak hard X-ray emission is caused by obscuration from the shielding gas. We discuss a few possibilities for how PG 1004+130 could have Compton-thick shielding gas without strong Fe K{alpha} line emission; dilution from jet-linked X-ray emission is one likely explanation. We also discuss the intrinsic X-ray weakness scenario based on a coronal-quenching model relevant to the shielding gas and disk wind of BAL quasars. Motivated by our NuSTAR results, we perform a Chandra stacking analysis with the Large Bright Quasar Survey BAL quasar sample and place statistical constraints upon the fraction of intrinsically X-ray weak BAL quasars; this fraction is likely 17%-40%.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1995

Comparison of distributed acceleration and standard models of cosmic-ray transport

Recent cosmic-ray abundance measurements for elements in the range 3 less than or equal to Z less than or equal to 28 and energies 10 MeV/n less than or equal to E less than or equal to 1 TeV/n have been analyzed with computer transport modeling. About 500 elemental and isotopic measurements have been explored in this analysis. The transport code includes the effects of ionization losses, nuclear spallation reactions (including those of secondaries), all nuclear decay modes, stripping and attachment of electrons, escape from the Galaxy, weak reacceleration and solar modulation. Four models of reacceleration (with several submodels of various reacceleration strengths) were explored. A chi (exp 2) analysis show that the reacceleration models yield at least equally good fits to the data as the standard propagation model. However, with reacceleration, the ad hoc assumptions of the standard model regarding discontinuities in the energy dependence of the mean path length traversed by cosmic rays, and in the momentum spectrum of the cosmic-ray source spectrum are eliminated. Futhermore, the difficulty between rigidity dependent leakage and energy independent anisotropy below energies of 10(exp 14) eV is alleviated.

Letaw, J. R.↗
NASA NTRS2013

Weak Hard X-Ray Emission from Two Broad Absorption Line Quasars Observed with NuStar: Compton-Thick Absorption or Intrinsic X-Ray Weakness?

We present Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) hard X-ray observations of two X-ray weak broad absorption line (BAL) quasars, PG 1004+130 (radio loud) and PG 1700+518 (radio quiet). Many BAL quasars appear X-ray weak, probably due to absorption by the shielding gas between the nucleus and the accretion-disk wind. The two targets are among the optically brightest BAL quasars, yet they are known to be significantly X-ray weak at rest-frame 2-10 keV (16-120 times fainter than typical quasars). We would expect to obtain approx. or equal to 400-600 hard X-ray (is greater than or equal to 10 keV) photons with NuSTAR, provided that these photons are not significantly absorbed N(sub H) is less than or equal to 10(exp24) cm(exp-2). However, both BAL quasars are only detected in the softer NuSTAR bands (e.g., 4-20 keV) but not in its harder bands (e.g., 20-30 keV), suggesting that either the shielding gas is highly Compton-thick or the two targets are intrinsically X-ray weak. We constrain the column densities for both to be N(sub H) 7 × 10(exp 24) cm(exp-2) if the weak hard X-ray emission is caused by obscuration from the shielding gas. We discuss a few possibilities for how PG 1004+130 could have Compton-thick shielding gas without strong Fe Kα line emission; dilution from jet-linked X-ray emission is one likely explanation. We also discuss the intrinsic X-ray weakness scenario based on a coronal-quenching model relevant to the shielding gas and disk wind of BAL quasars. Motivated by our NuSTAR results, we perform a Chandra stacking analysis with the Large Bright Quasar Survey BAL quasar sample and place statistical constraints upon the fraction of intrinsically X-ray weak BAL quasars; this fraction is likely 17%-40%.

nuclei↗
DOE OSTI2018

Mesostructure and porosity effects on the thermal conductivity of additively manufactured interpenetrating phase composites

In this paper, we have investigated the relationship between structure and thermal conductivity in additively manufactured interpenetrating A356/316L composites. We used X-ray microcomputed tomography to characterize the pore structure in as-fabricated composites, finding microporosity in both constituents as well as a 50 μm thick layer of interfacial porosity separating the constituents. We measured the thermal conductivity of a 43 vol% 316L composite to be 53 Wm -1 K -1 , which is significantly less than that predicted by a simple rule-of-mixtures approximation, presumably because of the residual porosity. Motivated by these experimental results we used periodic homogenization theory to determine the combined effects of porosity and unit cell structure on the effective thermal conductivity. This analysis showed that in fully dense composites, the topology of the constituents has a weak effect on the thermal conductivity, whereas in composites with interfacial porosity, the size and structure of the unit cell strongly influence the thermal conductivity. Finally, we also found that an approximation formula of the strong contrast expansion method gives excellent estimates of the effective thermal conductivity of these composites, providing a powerful tool for designing functionally graded composites and for identifying mesostructures with optimal thermal conductivity values.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

NSAID use and clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients: a 38-center retrospective cohort study

Abstract Background Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are commonly used to reduce pain, fever, and inflammation but have been associated with complications in community-acquired pneumonia. Observations shortly after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 suggested that ibuprofen was associated with an increased risk of adverse events in COVID-19 patients, but subsequent observational studies failed to demonstrate increased risk and in one case showed reduced risk associated with NSAID use. Methods A 38-center retrospective cohort study was performed that leveraged the harmonized, high-granularity electronic health record data of the National COVID Cohort Collaborative. A propensity-matched cohort of 19,746 COVID-19 inpatients was constructed by matching cases (treated with NSAIDs at the time of admission) and 19,746 controls (not treated) from 857,061 patients with COVID-19 available for analysis. The primary outcome of interest was COVID-19 severity in hospitalized patients, which was classified as: moderate, severe, or mortality/hospice. Secondary outcomes were acute kidney injury (AKI), extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), invasive ventilation, and all-cause mortality at any time following COVID-19 diagnosis. Results Logistic regression showed that NSAID use was not associated with increased COVID-19 severity (OR: 0.57 95% CI: 0.53–0.61). Analysis of secondary outcomes using logistic regression showed that NSAID use was not associated with increased risk of all-cause mortality (OR 0.51 95% CI: 0.47–0.56), invasive ventilation (OR: 0.59 95% CI: 0.55–0.64), AKI (OR: 0.67 95% CI: 0.63–0.72), or ECMO (OR: 0.51 95% CI: 0.36–0.7). In contrast, the odds ratios indicate reduced risk of these outcomes, but our quantitative bias analysis showed E-values of between 1.9 and 3.3 for these associations, indicating that comparatively weak or moderate confounder associations could explain away the observed associations. Conclusions Study interpretation is limited by the observational design. Recording of NSAID use may have been incomplete. Our study demonstrates that NSAID use is not associated with increased COVID-19 severity, all-cause mortality, invasive ventilation, AKI, or ECMO in COVID-19 inpatients. A conservative interpretation in light of the quantitative bias analysis is that there is no evidence that NSAID use is associated with risk of increased severity or the other measured outcomes. Our results confirm and extend analogous findings in previous observational studies using a large cohort of patients drawn from 38 centers in a nationally representative multicenter database.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1999

Shock Wave Dynamics in Weakly Ionized Plasmas

An investigation of the dynamics of shock waves in weakly ionized argon plasmas has been performed using a pressure ruptured shock tube. The velocity of the shock is observed to increase when the shock traverses the plasma. The observed increases cannot be accounted for by thermal effects alone. Possible mechanisms that could explain the anomalous behavior include a vibrational/translational relaxation in the nonequilibrium plasma, electron diffusion across the shock front resulting from high electron mobility, and the propagation of ion-acoustic waves generated at the shock front. Using a turbulence model based on reduced kinetic theory, analysis of the observed results suggest a role for turbulence in anomalous shock dynamics in weakly ionized media and plasma-induced hypersonic drag reduction.

Johnson, Joseph A., III↗
NASA NTRS1995

Detecting Hidden Failure Modes in Critical, Embedded Software

This experience report describes a method that has been used successfully to detect hidden failure modes in critical, embedded spacecraft software. The method is an adaptation of an earlier, controversial approach called failure modes and effects analysis. The adapted method was found to be well-suited to identifying latent software design weaknesses involving complex system interactions and dependencies in the two applications described here. This experience may be useful for other high-integrity software systems in which the possibility of hidden failure modes is a major concern.

detecting software failure design analysis↗
DOE OSTI2020

Introductory guide to backgrounds in XPS spectra and their impact on determining peak intensities

Photoelectron and Auger peaks are central to most of the important uses of x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and thus, they receive the most attention in many types of analysis. Quantitative chemical analysis using XPS requires the assessment of the intensities of the photoemission peaks of the elements detected. Determination of peak intensities requires separation of the photoelectron peak signals from the background on which the peaks rest. For the determination of peak area intensities, the background is subtracted from overall signal intensity. The spectral background is also critical when peak fitting is used to determine intensities of overlapping peaks, and the model of background used in this process can impact the results. In addition to the impact on quantitative analysis, information about the depth distribution of elements in the near surface region can often be obtained by visual inspection of the background and quantified using appropriate modeling. Here, this introductory guide provides some basic information about backgrounds in the XPS analysis, describes the types of background models that are commonly used, suggests some of their strengths and weaknesses, and provides examples of their use and misuse. Although the fundamental nature of some components of the background signals in XPS is not understood, indicating that none of the models in use are fully correct and the area is subject to active research, appropriate good practices have been established for most routine analysis. The guide describes good practices, identifies errors that frequently appear in the literature, and uses examples to demonstrate the impacts of background selections on determinations of peak intensities.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2019

Three-dimensional explicit finite element formulation for shear localization with global tracking of embedded weak discontinuities

Shear localization is a damage mechanism characterized by the concentration of plastic deformation within thin bands of materials, often observed as a precursor to failure in metals. In this study, we present a three-dimensional explicit finite element formulation with embedded weak discontinuities for the treatment of shear localization under dynamic loading conditions. In this formulation, the onset of localization is detected via a material stability analysis suitable for rate-sensitive materials, and the continuity of propagating shear bands is ensured using a global tracking strategy involving a heat-conduction type boundary value problem, solved for a scalar level set function over the global domain of the problem. In addition, we propose a modified quadrature rule that is used to compute the contribution of an individual element to the global finite element arrays, taking into account the position of the embedded shear band within that element.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2019

Yields of weakly bound light nuclei as a probe of the statistical hadronization model

The statistical hadronization model successfully describes the yields of hadrons and light nuclei from central heavy-ion collisions over a wide range of energies. It is a simple and efficient phenomenological framework in which the relative yields for very high energy collisions are essentially determined by a single model parameter—the chemical freeze-out temperature. Recent measurements of yields of hadrons and light nuclei covering over nine orders of magnitudes from the ALICE collaboration at the Large Hadron Collider were described by the model with remarkable accuracy with a chemical freeze-out temperature of 156.5 ± 1.5 MeV. A key physical question is whether (at least to a good approximation) the freeze-out temperature can be understood, literally, as the temperature at which the various species of an equilibrated gas of hadrons (including resonances) and nuclei chemically freeze out, as the model assumes, or whether it successfully parametrizes the yield data for a different reason. This paper analyzes the yields of weakly bound light nuclei—the deuteron and the hypertriton—to probe this issue. Such nuclei are particularly sensitive to assumptions of the model because their binding energies are at a scale far below both typical hadronic scales and the freeze-out temperature. Here, the analysis depends only on outputs of the statistical hadronization model, known hadronic properties and standard assumptions of kinetic theory while making no additional dynamical assumptions about the dynamics of heavy-ion collisions. The analysis indicates that a key assumption underlying the model—that hadrons (and nuclei), just prior to chemical freeze-out temperature, are in thermal equilibrium and are sufficiently dilute as to have particle distributions accurately described statistically by a nearly ideal gas of hadrons and nuclei with masses given by their free space values—appears to be inconsistent with the chemical freeze-out temperature output by the model, at least for these weakly bound nuclei. Implications of this analysis for the interpretation of parameters extracted from the model are discussed.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Use of Stable Mercury Isotopes to Assess Mercury and Methylmercury Transformation and Transport across Critical Interfaces from the Molecular to the Watershed Scale (Final Report)

This project titled “Use of Stable Mercury Isotopes to Assess Mercury and Methylmercury Transformation and Transport across Critical Interfaces from the Molecular to the Watershed Scale” represents a collaborative effort between the University of Michigan (Jason Demers, PI) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (Scott Brooks, co-I). Much has been learned about mercury (Hg) cycling in stream ecosystems, and East Fork Poplar Creek (EFPC) in particular, through decades of previous research. Nevertheless, some of the most fundamental questions regarding the sources of bioavailable Hg and its transformation to toxic methylmercury (MeHg) have remained unanswered. These fundamental questions include: (1) what are the sources and biogeochemical processes that lead to the input of dissolved Hg to stream water across critical subsurface interfaces within stream ecosystems, and EFPC in particular? and (2) what are the sources and biogeochemical processes that control the production and fate of bioaccumulative MeHg within stream ecosystems, and in EFPC in particular? To address these fundamental questions, our project aimed to couple laboratory experiments and field observations, both utilizing natural abundance Hg stable isotope techniques, to identify the processes responsible for generating mobile, bioavailable dissolved Hg from recalcitrant legacy sources within critical subsurface zones (e.g., streambed hyporheic zone, riparian floodplain subsurface). We used the isotopic signature of this bioavailable dissolved Hg to track its mobilization across these critical interfaces in order to link diffuse subsurface sources of dissolved Hg with increases in surface water dissolved Hg flux measured at the watershed scale. Additionally, our research aimed to determine the isotopic composition of MeHg within these same critical subsurface zones. We directly assessed the isotopic composition of MeHg within biota in order to gain insight into which subsurface sources of inorganic Hg and toxic MeHg are available for bioaccumulation within the EFPC ecosystem. Net fluxes of dissolved Hg along the flow path of EFPC were shown to vary spatially and temporally. In the Upper EFPC, within the Y12 boundary, stream water flux of dissolved Hg consistently decreased between the outfall and the downstream boundary of Y12 (57% ± 29%, 1SD). Within the Upper EFPC, an assessment of Hg isotopic composition suggested that losses were strongly reaction-driven, although isotopic diagnostics did not conform to any known processes. Downstream of Y12, in the upper reach of the Lower EFPC, dissolved Hg fluxes tended to increase during the dormant season (net gain of 11-120%), and decrease during the growing season (net loss of 23% +/- 18%, 1SD). In the downstream-most reach of Lower EFPC, dissolved Hg fluxes increased by 12-108% in 9 out of 10 monthly assessments. Overall, diffuse fluxes from the non-Y12 watershed accounted for 34% (+/- 17%, 1SD) of all dissolved Hg exported during base flow. Within Lower EFPC, an assessment of Hg isotopic composition was consistent with the contribution of diffuse Hg inputs from high-concentration hotspots within riparian floodplains and streambed hyporheic pore water. To investigate remobilization of recalcitrant Hg from legacy sediment sources, we developed procedures that coupled isotopic analysis with sequential extractions of streambed sediment. We found that the proportion of weakly-bound Hg within EFPC streambed sediment was relatively small, but could still account for a large proportion of the annual flux of dissolved Hg from EFPC. These sequential extractions also showed that this weakly-bound Hg fraction could be replenished from the much larger fraction of recalcitrant Hg in sediment. The isotopic composition of these weakly-bound and remobilized recalcitrant Hg fractions within the sediment was consistent with high-concentration dissolved Hg hotspots within hyporheic pore water. Thus, this research provided novel evidence that legacy mercury sources within streambed sediment could provide an ongoing contribution of dissolved Hg to surface waters. Finally, we developed new methods for the direct determination of the MeHg isotopic composition of organisms, which allowed a more direct evaluation of inorganic Hg and MeHg sources accumulating in the food web. We found that fish and aquatic invertebrates in both EFPC and a regional background site obtained inorganic Hg and MeHg from multiple isotopically distinct sources, including sediment, suspended particulates, and periphyton. Photodemethylation was found to be an important reaction influencing MeHg dynamics at both sites. However, the balance of microbial methylation and demethylation processes differed between the two streams, with fractionation resulting from methylation and demethylation processes being relatively in balance within the regional background site, whereas microbial methylation appeared to be dominant over microbial demethylation within the EFPC ecosystem. Broadly, the application of Hg isotopic analysis in this study led to numerous novel insights regarding the biogeochemical cycling of Hg in stream ecosystems. This research project promoted the development of two new approaches, including the coupling of sequential extractions with Hg isotopic analysis to assess remobilization of recalcitrant Hg within sediments, and a new method for the isotopic analysis of MeHg isolated from environmental samples. Both of these efforts represent advances in capacity for the field of mercury isotopic analysis and environmental assessment. Overall, this study demonstrates that the application of Hg stable isotope techniques continues to provide new insights into the biogeochemical cycling of Hg in complex aquatic environments, both within the EFPC and beyond.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

CAUSES: Attribution of Surface Radiation Biases in NWP and Climate Models near the U.S. Southern Great Plains

Abstract Many Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) and climate models exhibit too warm lower tropospheres near the midlatitude continents. The warm bias has been shown to coincide with important surface radiation biases that likely play a critical role in the inception or the growth of the warm bias. This paper presents an attribution study on the net radiation biases in nine model simulations, performed in the framework of the CAUSES project (Clouds Above the United States and Errors at the Surface). Contributions from deficiencies in the surface properties, clouds, water vapor, and aerosols are quantified, using an array of radiation measurement stations near the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Southern Great Plains site. Furthermore, an in‐depth analysis is shown to attribute the radiation errors to specific cloud regimes. The net surface shortwave radiation is overestimated in all models throughout most of the simulation period. Cloud errors are shown to contribute most to this overestimation, although nonnegligible contributions from the surface albedo exist in most models. Missing deep cloud events and/or simulating deep clouds with too weak cloud radiative effects dominate in the cloud‐related radiation errors. Some models have compensating errors between excessive occurrence of deep cloud but largely underestimating their radiative effect, while other models miss deep cloud events altogether. Surprisingly, even the latter models tend to produce too much and too frequent afternoon surface precipitation. This suggests that rather than issues with the triggering of deep convection, cloud radiative deficiencies are related to too weak convective cloud detrainment and too large precipitation efficiencies.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2016

Bounded extremum seeking for angular velocity actuated control of nonholonomic unicycle

Here, we study control of the angular-velocity actuated nonholonomic unicycle, via a simple, bounded extremum seeking controller which is robust to external disturbances and measurement noise. The vehicle performs source seeking despite not having any position information about itself or the source, able only to sense a noise corrupted scalar value whose extremum coincides with the unknown source location. In order to control the angular velocity, rather than the angular heading directly, a controller is developed such that the closed loop system exhibits multiple time scales and requires an analysis approach expanding the previous work of Kurzweil, Jarnik, Sussmann, and Liu, utilizing weak limits. We provide analytic proof of stability and demonstrate how this simple scheme can be extended to include position-independent source seeking, tracking, and collision avoidance of groups on autonomous vehicles in GPS-denied environments, based only on a measure of distance to an obstacle, which is an especially important feature for an autonomous agent.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗