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

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At least 91 records · Page 5
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1986

Oceanic rain retrievals from satellite passive 37 GHz scattering measurements

A technique for estimating the effect of scattering on the average brightness temperature, T(B), is examined. This scattering method is based on the relation observed over land between the SMMR T(B) and radar-derived rain rate. The scattering algorithm was evaluated and a comparison of radar and SMMR images reveals a correlation between radar-reflectivity-derived rates and the SMMR rain rates. The limitations of the scattering technique are discussed. Graphs and images displaying the application of the scattering algorithm are presented.

Spencer, Roy W.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Regional Multi-Fluid-Based Geophysical Excitation of Polar Motion

By analyzing geophysical fluids geographic distribution, we can isolate the regional provenance for some of the important signals in polar motion. An understanding of such will enable us to determine whether certain climate signals can have an impact on polar motion. Here we have compared regional patterns of three surficial fluids: the atmosphere, ocean and land-based hydrosphere. The oceanic excitation function of polar motion was estimated with the ECCO/JPL data - assimilating model, and the atmospheric excitation function was determined from NCEP/NCAR reanalyses. The excitation function due to land hydrology was estimated from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) data by an indirect approach that determines water thickness. Our attention focuses on the regional distribution of atmospheric and oceanic excitation of the annual and Chandler wobbles during 1993-2010, and on hydrologic excitation of these wobbles during 2002.9-2011.5. It is found that the regions of maximum fractional covariance (those exceeding a value of 3 .10 -3) for the annual band are over south Asia, southeast Asia and south central Indian ocean, for hydrology, atmosphere and ocean respectively; and for the Chandler period, areas over North America, Asia, and South America; and scattered across the southern oceans for the atmosphere and oceans respectively

oceanic angular momentum↗
NASA NTRS1993

Influence of drift flow turbulence on surface gravity wave propagation

The theory of surface gravity waves scattering at vortex flows in the ocean is developed in this paper. A scattering amplitude is found in the Born approximation as a function of Vorticity that appears very convenient for investigation of scattering at simple localized flows.

drift flow turbulence↗
NASA NTRS2019

Going Beyond Standard Ocean Color Observations: Lidar and Polarimetry

Passive ocean color images have provided a sustained synoptic view of the distribution of ocean optical properties and color and biogeochemical parameters for the past 20-plus years. These images have revolutionized our view of the ocean. Remote sensing of ocean color has relied on measurements of the radiance emerging at the top of the atmosphere, thus neglecting the polarization and the vertical components. Ocean color remote sensing utilizes the intensity and spectral variation of visible light scattered upward from beneath the ocean surface to derive concentrations of biogeochemical constituents and inherent optical properties within the ocean surface layer. However, these measurements have some limitations. Specifically, the measured property is a weighted-integrated value over a relatively shallow depth, it provides no information during the night and retrievals are compromised by clouds, absorbing aerosols, and low Sun zenithal angles. In addition, ocean color data provide limited information on the morphology and size distribution of marine particles. Major advances in our understanding of global ocean ecosystems will require measurements from new technologies, specifically lidar and polarimetry. These new techniques have been widely used for atmospheric applications but have not had as much as interest from the ocean color community. This is due to many factors including limited access to in-situ instruments and/or space-borne sensors and lack of attention in university courses and ocean science summer schools curricula. However, lidar and polarimetry technology will complement standard ocean color products by providing depth-resolved values of attenuation and scattering parameters and additional information about particle morphology and chemical composition. This review aims at presenting the basics of these techniques, examples of applications and at advocating for the development of in-situ and space-borne sensors. Recommendations are provided on actions that would foster the embrace of lidar and polarimetry as powerful remote sensing tools by the ocean science community.

Jamet, Cedric↗
NASA NTRS1984

Recent progress in the measurement of temperature and salinity by optical scattering

Recent progress is described in the use of Brillouin and Raman scattering for the measurement of temperature and salinity in the ocean. The use of Brillouin scattering is described for the measurement of the sound velocity, and the use of Raman scattering is described for the independent measurement of the temperature and salinity. Coupling these techniques permits the assessment of both temperature and salinity. The experimental techniques are described together with the results of recent experiments and an assessment of the errors to be expected.

Collins, D. J.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Combined High-Resolution Active and Passive Imaging of Ocean Surface Winds from Aircraft

A unique complement of passive and active microwave imaging and sensing instruments for observing ocean surface emission and scattering signatures were integrated onto the NASA Wallops Flight Facility's Orion P-3B aircraft (N426NA) for the purpose of studying the signature of ocean surface winds. The complement included: (1) a, four-band (X, K, Ka, and W) tri-polarimetric scanning radiometer (PSR), (2) a C-band ocean surface scatterometer (CSCAT), (3) a Ka-band conical-scanning polarimetric radiometer (KASPR), (4) a nadir-viewing Ka-band polarimetric radiometer, (KAPOL), (5) a 21- and 31-GHz zenith-viewing cloud and water vapor radiometer (CWVR), and (6) a radar ocean wave spectrometer (ROWS). The above Ocean Winds Imaging (OWI) complement was flown during January-March, 1997 over the Labrador Sea. Conically-scanned brightness temperature and backscatter imagery were observed over open ocean for a variety of wind speeds and cloud conditions. Presented herein are the results of a preliminary intercomparison of data from several of the OWI instruments.

Gasiewski, A. J.↗
NASA NTRS2022

A Radiative Transfer Simulator for PACE: Theory and Applications

A radiative transfer simulator was developed to compute the synthetic data of all three instruments onboard NASA’s Plankton Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) observatory, at the top of the atmosphere (TOA). The instrument suite includes the ocean color instrument (OCI), the HyperAngular Rainbow Polarimeter 2 (HARP2), and the Spectro-Polarimeter for Planetary Exploration 1 (SPEXone). The PACE simulator is wrapped around a monochromatic radiative transfer model based on the successive order of scattering (RTSOS), which accounts for atmosphere and ocean coupling, polarization, and gas absorption. Inelastic scattering, including Raman scattering from pure ocean water, fluorescence due to chlorophyll, and colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM), is also simulated. This PACE simulator can be used to explore the sensitivity of the hyperspectral and polarized reflectance of the Earth system with tunable atmosphere and ocean parameters, which include aerosol and cloud number concentration, refractive indices, and size distribution, ocean particle microphysical parameters, and solar and sensor-viewing geometry. The PACE simulator is used to study two important case studies. One is the impact of the significant uncertainty in pure ocean water absorption coefficient to the radiance field in the ultraviolet (UV) spectral region, which can be as much as 6%. The other is the influence of different amounts of brown carbon aerosols and CDOM on the polarized radiance field at TOA. The percentage variation of the radiance field due to CDOM is mostly for wavelengths smaller than 600 nm, while brown aerosols affect the whole spectrum from 350 to 890 nm, primarily due to covaried soot aerosols. Both case studies are important for aerosol and ocean color remote sensing and have not been previously reported in the literature.

PACE↗
NASA NTRS2000

Tidal Energy Dissipation from Topex/Poseidon

In a recent paper ({\it Nature, 405,} 775, 2000) we concluded that 25 to 30\% of the ocean's tidal energy dissipation, or about 1 terawatt, occurs in the deep ocean, with the remaining 2.6 TW in shallow seas. The physical mechanism for deep-ocean dissipation is apparently scattering of the surface tide into internal modes; Munk and Wunsch have suggested that this mechanism may provide half the power needed for mixing the deep-ocean. This paper builds further evidence for $1\pm 0.2$ TW of deep-ocean dissipation. The evidence is extracted from tidal elevations deduced from seven years of Topex/Poseidon satellite altimeter data. The dissipation rate Is formed as a balance between the rate of working by tidal forces and the energy flux divergence. While dynamical assumptions are required to compute fluxes, area integrals of the energy balance are, owing to the tight satellite constraints, remarkably insensitive to these assumptions. A large suite of tidal solutions based on a wide range of dynamical assumptions, on perturbations to bathymetric models, and on simulated elevation data are used to assess this sensitivity. These and Monte Carlo error fields from a generalized inverse model are used to establish error uncertainties.

Ray, Richard D.↗
NASA NTRS1967

Radar scattering from the sea

Stereo ocean profiles of height versus distance for rough sea conditions and energy spectrum for high frequencies

OCEANOGRAPHY↗
NASA NTRS2012

Sensitivity of Multiangle, Multispectral Polarimetric Remote Sensing Over Open Oceans to Water-Leaving Radiance: Analyses of RSP Data Acquired During the MILAGRO Campaign

For remote sensing of aerosol over the ocean, there is a contribution from light scattered underwater. The brightness and spectrum of this light depends on the biomass content of the ocean, such that variations in the color of the ocean can be observed even from space. Rayleigh scattering by pure sea water, and Rayleigh-Gans type scattering by plankton, causes this light to be polarized with a distinctive angular distribution. To study the contribution of this underwater light polarization to multiangle, multispectral observations of polarized reflectance over ocean, we previously developed a hydrosol model for use in underwater light scattering computations that produces realistic variations of the ocean color and the underwater light polarization signature of pure sea water. In this work we review this hydrosol model, include a correction for the spectrum of the particulate scattering coefficient and backscattering efficiency, and discuss its sensitivity to variations in colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) and in the scattering function of marine particulates. We then apply this model to measurements of total and polarized reflectance that were acquired over open ocean during the MILAGRO field campaign by the airborne Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP). Analyses show that our hydrosol model faithfully reproduces the water-leaving contributions to RSP reflectance, and that the sensitivity of these contributions to Chlorophyll a concentration [Chl] in the ocean varies with the azimuth, height, and wavelength of observations. We also show that the impact of variations in CDOM on the polarized reflectance observed by the RSP at low altitude is comparable to or much less than the standard error of this reflectance whereas their effects in total reflectance may be substantial (i.e. up to >30%). Finally, we extend our study of polarized reflectance variations with [Chl] and CDOM to include results for simulated spaceborne observations.

Chowdhary, Jacek↗
NASA NTRS1993

Satellite observations of a polar low over the Norwegian Sea by Special Sensor Microwave Imager, Geosat, and TIROS-N Operational Vertical Sounder

Many polar lows are generated at the boundary between sea ice and the ocean, in regions of large temperature gradients, where in situ observations are rare or nonexistent. Since satellite observations are frequent in high-latitude regions, they can be used to detect polar lows and track their propagation and evolution. The Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) providing estimates of surface wind speed, integrated cloud liquid water content, water vapor content, and precipitation size ice-scattering signal over the ocean; the Geosat radar altimeter measuring surface wind speed and significant wave height; and the TIROS-N Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) allowing the determination of temperature and humidity profiles in the atmosphere have been used in synergy for a specific case which occurred in the Norwegian Sea on January, 23-24 1988. All three instruments show sharp atmospheric gradients associated with the propagation of this low across the ocean, which permit the detection of the polar low at a very early stage and tracking it during its development, propagation, and decay. The wind speed gradients are measured with good qualitative agreement between the altimeter and SSM/I. TOVS retrieved fields prior to the formation of the low confirm the presence of an upper level trough, while during the mature phase baroclinicity can be observed in the 1000-500 hPa geopotential thicknesses.

Claud, Chantal↗
NASA NTRS1974

A simulation of synthetic aperture radar imaging of ocean waves

A simulation of radar imaging of ocean waves with synthetic aperture techniques is presented. The modelling is simplistic from the oceanographic and electromagnetic viewpoint in order to minimize the computational problems, yet reveal some of the physical problems associated with the imaging of moving ocean waves. The model assumes: (1) The radar illuminates a one-dimensional, one harmonic ocean wave. (2) The scattering is assumed to be governed by geometrical optics. (3) The radar is assumed to be down-looking, with Doppler processing (range processing is suppressed due to the one-dimensional nature of the problem). (4) The beamwidth of the antenna (or integration time) is assumed to be sufficiently narrow to restrict the specular points of the peaks and troughs of the wave. The results show that conventional processing of the image gives familiar results if the ocean waves are stationary. When the ocean wave dispersion relationship is satisfied, the image is smeared due to the motion of the specular points over the integration time. In effect, the image of the ocean is transferred to the near field of the synthetic aperture.

Swift, C. T.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Atmospheric correction of AVIRIS data in ocean waters

Hyperspectral data offers unique capabilities for characterizing the ocean environment. The spectral characterization of the composition of ocean waters can be organized into biological and terrigenous components. Biological photosynthetic pigments in ocean waters have unique spectral ocean color signatures which can be associated with different biological species. Additionally, suspended sediment has different scattering coefficients which result in ocean color signatures. Measuring the spatial distributions of these components in the maritime environments provides important tools for understanding and monitoring the ocean environment. These tools have significant applications in pollution, carbon cycle, current and water mass detection, location of fronts and eddies, sewage discharge and fate etc. Ocean color was used from satellite for describing the spatial variability of chlorophyll, water clarity (K(sub 490)), suspended sediment concentration, currents etc. Additionally, with improved atmospheric correction methods, ocean color results produced global products of spectral water leaving radiance (L(sub W)). Ocean color results clearly indicated strong applications for characterizing the spatial and temporal variability of bio-optical oceanography. These studies were largely the results of advanced atmospheric correction techniques applied to multispectral imagery. The atmosphere contributes approximately 80 percent - 90 percent of the satellite received radiance in the blue-green portion of the spectrum. In deep ocean waters, maximum transmission of visible radiance is achieved at 490nm. Conversely, nearly all of the light is absorbed by the water at wavelengths greater than about 650nm and thus appears black. These spectral ocean properties are exploited by algorithms developed for the atmospheric correction used in satellite ocean color processing. The objective was to apply atmospheric correction techniques that were used for procesing satellite Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) data to AVIRIS data. Quantitative measures of L(sub W) from AVIRIS are compared with ship ground truth data and input into bio-optical models.

Terrie, Gregory↗
NASA NTRS2012

Validation of Aquarius Measurements Using Radiative Transfer Models at L-Band

Aquarius/SAC-D was launched in June 2011 by NASA and CONAE (Argentine space agency). Aquarius includes three L-band (1.4 GHz) radiometers dedicated to measuring sea surface salinity. We report detailed comparisons of Aquarius measurements with radiative transfer model predictions. These comparisons were used as part ofthe initial assessment of Aquarius data. In particular, they were used successfully to estimate the radiometer calibration bias and stability. Further comparisons are being performed to assess the performance of models in the retrieval algorithm for correcting the effect of sources of geophysical "noise" (e.g. the galactic background, atmospheric attenuation and reflected signal from the Sun). Such corrections are critical in bringing the error in retrieved salinity down to the required 0.2 practical salinity unit (psu) on monthly global maps at 150 km by 150 km resolution. The forward models making up the Aquarius simulator have been very useful for preparatory studies in the years leading to Aquarius' launch. The simulator includes various components to compute effects ofthe following processes on the measured signal: 1) emission from Earth surfaces (ocean, land, ice), 2) atmospheric emission and absorption, 3) emission from the Sun, Moon and celestial Sky (directly through the antenna sidelobes or after reflection/scattering at the Earth surface), 4) Faraday rotation, and 5) convolution of the scene by the antenna gain patterns. Since the Aquarius radiometers tum-on in late July 2011, the simulator has been used to perform a first order validation of the data. This included checking the order of magnitude ofthe signal over ocean, land and ice surfaces, checking the relative amplitude of signal at different polarizations, and checking the variation with incidence angle. The comparisons were also used to assess calibration bias and monitor instruments calibration drift. The simulator is also being used in the salinity retrieval. For example, initial assessments of the salinity retrieved from Aquarius data showed degradation in accuracy at locations where glint from the galactic sky background was important. This was traced to an inaccurate correction for the Sky glint. We present comparisons of the simulator prediction to the Aquarius data in order to assess the performances of the models of various physical processes impacting the measurements, such as the effect of sea surface roughness, the impact of the celestial Sky and the Sun emission scattered at the rough ocean surface. We discuss what components of the simulator appear reliable and which ones need improvements. Improved knowledge on the radiative transfer models at L-band will not only lead to better salinity retrieved from Aquarius data, it will also allow be beneficial for SMOS or the upcoming SMAP mission.

Dinnat, E.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Studies of coastal mesoscale winds using SIR-B

The variability of the mesoscale wind fields near coastlines which can be caused by mountains that shadow offshore wind and by valleys that enhance them. These wind, provide relatively fixed patterns that must be considered in the development of algorithms for future spaceborne scatterometer systems; mesoscale variability over the offshore regions is random and must be averaged out for forecasting yet nearshore fixed patterns are treated differently. Before the patterns of interest can be defined quantitatively, the scattering response of the ocean to winds at the L-band frequency and SIR-B angles of incidence must be developed from the SIR-B data. Patterns can be analyzed on the images both in regions selected for high probability of the occurrence of suitable patterns, and in other regions where the patterns are observed. The patterns are analyzed for topographic effects and the distance to sea over which these effects cause variations in the oceanic wind patterns. The results are interpreted in terms of quantitative description of the processes involved and in for need of modifications of future scatterometer algorithms.

Moore, R. K.↗
NASA NTRS1991

The advanced microwave precipitation radiometer: A new aircraft radiometer for passive precipitation remote sensing

Past studies of passive microwave measurements of precipitating systems have yielded broad empirical relationships between hydrometeors and microwave transmission. In general, these relationships fall into two categories of passive microwave precipitation retrievals rely upon the observed effect of liquid precipitation to increase the brightness temperature of a radiometrically cold background such as an ocean surface. A scattering-based method is based upon the effect that frozen hydrometeors tend to decrease the brightness temperature of a radiometrically warm background such as land. One step toward developing quantitative brightness temperature-rain rate relationships is the recent construction of a new aircraft instrument sponsored by National Aeronautics and Space Administration/Marshall Space Flight Center (NASA/MSFC). This instrument is the Advanced Microwave Precipitation Radiometer (AMPR) designed and built by Georgia Tech Research Institute to fly aboard high altitude research aircraft such as the NASA ER-2. The AMPR and its accompanying data acquisition system are mounted in the Q-bay compartment of the NASA ER-2.

Hood, Robbie E.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Spaceborne radar sensing of precipitation above an ocean surface - Polarization contrast study

The potential benefits of polarization adjustment for spaceborne radar sensing of precipitation are explored, with emphasis on the role of the wave polarization in separating or 'distinguishing' ocean surface return from the hydrometeor echoes of a 'chirped' signal. Experimental as well as computational data for the polarization scattering matrices of hydrometeors and ocean surfaces are obtained and used to calculate ocean and precipitation 'response' to the transmitted pulse for various rain rates and incidence angles. Polarization, which provides the best contrast between rain and ocean returns, is found to vary from almost circular near nadir to elliptical at large off-nadir look angles of incidence. Calculations show an order of magnitude improvement in the ratio of the returns when compared with the traditional choice of horizontal transmit and receive polarization.

Kostinski, Alexander B.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Dust Optical Properties derived from Sun/Sky Measurements and Satellite Data

We derive the optical properties of dust originating from the Sahara and nearby regions using a combination of ground based and satellite measurements. The AErosol ROBotic NETwork (AERONET) sun/sky radiances from Cap Verde and Sede Boker are used together with Landsat TM data over Senegal and the Atlantic Ocean. The data introduce a cascade of increasing complexity of dust optical properties: The sky aureole radiance is sensitive mainly to the dust size distribution; the TM data over the ocean at 150 deg scattering angle are also sensitive to the spectral refractive index from 470 to 2,210 nm. The TM data over the land measure the balance between the dust scattering and absorption of light reflected by the bright surface, thus very sensitive to dust spectral absorption. Sky radiance at scattering angle of 120 deg, add sensitivity to the dust nonsphericity. Preliminary results, indicative of the ambient dust in the entire atmospheric column, show that dust is less absorbing and with smaller nonspherical properties than anticipated from in situ measurements. Dust is dominated by particles with effective radius of 2 to 2.5 micron, refractive index for wavelengths less then 1 micron of 1.53-0.001i and nonsphericity that increases the phase function at 120 deg above that of spheres by 1.8 and 1.7 at 673 nm down to 1.2 and 1.3 for 1020 nm for Cap Verde and Sede Boker respectively. No significant nonsphericity effect is noticed for scattering angle of 150 deg. This agrees with a mixture of 30% and 45% respectively of Mishchenko et al (JGR, 102, 1997: plate 5 on page 16,841) "polydisperse equiprobable shape mixture of prolate and oblate spheroids with aspect ratios ranging from 1.4 to 2.21, with the rest being spherical particles.

Kaufman, Yoram J.↗