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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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Method for obtaining approximate failure-versus-dose-rate curves derived from experiments on failures of SGS 4007 complementary metal oxide/semiconductor (CMOS) integrated circuits irradiated by Co60 and Cs137 radioactive sources.
Potential advantages of fusion power reactors are discussed together with the protection of the public from radioactivity produced in nuclear power reactors, and the significance of tritium releases to the environment. Other subjects considered are biomedical instrumentation, radiation damage problems, low level environmental radionuclide analysis systems, nuclear techniques in environmental research, nuclear instrumentation, and space and plasma instrumentation. Individual items are abstracted in this issue.
Analyses of noble gases in whole rock samples of the howardites Bholghati and Kapoeta and grain-size separates of Kapoeta yield evidence for excesses of the Xe isotopes Xe-129 , Xe-131, Xe-132, Xe-134, and Xe-136 in a low-temperture component, similar to lunar excess fission Xe. Such a component may be able to provide chronometric information if the relative abundances of radioactive progenitors (I-129, Pu-244, and U-238) can be determined, but the isotopic spectra obtained are not sufficiently precise to do so. Eucritic clast BH-5 in Bholghati contains Xe produced in situ by the decay of Pu-244. Calculated fission Xe retention ages are 30-70 Ma after the formation of the solar system, consistent with the apparent presence of Sm-146 decay products. Both the clast and the matrix of Bholghati have K-Ar ages of about 2 Ga, suggesting a common thermal event at least that recently.
Among the four mountain belts surrounding Lakshmi Planum, Maxwell Montes is the highest and stands up to 11 km above the mean planetary radius and 7 km above Lakshmi Planum. The bulk composition and radioactive heat production of the crust on Venus, where measured, are similar to those of terrestrial tholeiitic basalt. Because the thickness of the low-density crust may be limited by the gabbro-garnet granulite-eclogite phase transitions, the 7-11 km maximum elevation of Maxwell Montes is difficult to understand except in the unlikely situation that the crust contains a large volume of magma. A possible explanation is that the base of the crust is not in phase equilibrium. It has been suggested that under completely dry conditions, the gabbro-eclogite phase transition takes place by solid-state diffusion and may require a geologically significant time to run to completion. Solid-state diffusion is a strongly temperature-dependent process. In this paper we solve the thermal evolution of the mountain belt to attempt to constrain the depth of the gabbro-eclogite transition and thus to assess this hypothesis quantitatively. The one-dimensional heat equation is solved numerically by a finite difference approximation. The deformation of the horizontally shortening crustal and mantle portions of the thermal boundary layer is assumed to occur by pure shear, and therefore the vertical velocity is given by the product of the horizontal strain rate and depth.
Fiber optics permanent damages induced by ionizing radiation after a long exposure in space and after laboratory tests were examined. Irradiation tests performed with radioactive sources (Sr90 - Y90) were validataed, computer coses used for the fluence and dose profile were verified. The performance of fiber optics waveguides in a low altitude orbit, and the origin of transmission losses in the material were dtermined. High sensitivity to ionizing radiations, however, may be a restriction for optic fiber use on satellites. Irradiation tests on these components using neutrons, gamma rays, and X-rays are carried out. Radiation damage on opticao materials, however, is strongly linked to the test conditions.
One of the science instruments on the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF), planned for launch in 1998 into a highly elliptical (10,000 km x 140,000 km) orbit, is a microchannel plate High Resolution Camera (HRC). This detector is designed to provide imaging and spectroscopic observations of x-rays emitted by stellar sources in the 0.1 to 10 keV energy range. Described here are analyses made to determine the expected time-dependent detector background from prompt and delayed (activation) radiation initiated by galactic cosmic-ray (GCR) proton interactions in the spacecraft and payload. Numerical simulations were made using the coupled set of Monte Carlo radiation transport codes, analysis software, and data bases shown. The major codes are HETC for nucleon-meson transport, EGS for simulating electromagnetic cascades, and MORSE for low-energy (less than 15 MeV) neutron transport. The simulation follows the transport history of photons in the energy range from - 100 GeV down to approx. 0.1 keV due to gamma-ray sources from neutral pion decay, high-energy (spallation) collisions, and low-energy neutron inelastic scattering and capture reactions. Also included is radioisotope production and the tracking of gamma-rays, electrons, and positrons from induced radioactivity.
New information is used to demonstrate that better models for the thermal history of the moon are required. As a first step, account is taken of (1) a nonuniform initial composition in terms of fraction of low melting to high melting phase present, and for variation in the uranium, potassium, and thorium contents as a function of depth, (2) partitioning of the radioactive elements between the melt and the solid phases, and (3) a cutoff value of melt which must be exceeded before magma can move to the surface. The results of several attempts to determine whether reasonable conditions, composition, and thermal properties can be expected to give rise to two separate periods of volcanism are discussed. Two models with somewhat different distributions of radioactive heat sources and different conductivities are examined.
The ionizing radiation measurements flown on the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) were contained in 15 experiments which utilized passive detectors to pursue objectives in astrophysics and to measure the radiation environment and dosimetric quantities. The spacecraft structure became sufficiently radioactive to permit additional important studies. The induced activity allows extensive radiation mapping in the structure, and independent comparison with experiment dosimetric techniques, and significant studies of secondary effects. The long exposure time, attitude stability, and number and types of measurements produced a unique and critical set of data for low Earth orbit that will not be duplicated for more than a decade. The data allow an unprecedented test, and improvement if required, of models of the radiation environment and the radiation transport methods that are used to calculate the internal radiation and its effects in spacecraft. Results of measurements in the experiments, as well as from radioactivity in the structure, have clearly shown effects from the directional properties of the radiation environment, and progress was made in the dosimetric mapping of LDEF. These measurements have already influenced some Space Station Freedom design requirements. Preliminary results from experiments, reported at this symposium and in earlier papers, show that the 5.8 years exposure considerably enhanced the scientific return of the radiation measurements. The early results give confidence that the experiments will make significant advances in the knowledge of ultra heavy cosmic rays, anomalous cosmic rays, and heavy ions trapped in the radiation belts. Unexpected phenomena were observed, which require explanation. These include stopping iron group ions between the energy ranges anticipated for anomalous and galactic cosmic rays in the LDEF orbit. A surprising concentration of the Be-7 nuclide was discovered on the 'front' surface of LDEF, apparently transported up from the stratosphere with exceptional efficiency.
Radioactive decay energy conversion of beta particle emitting cerium 144 into high voltage electricity in coaxial cylinder cell
Portable x-ray instrument developed by NASA now being produced commercially as an industrial tool may soon find further utility as a medical system. The instrument is Lixiscope - Low Intensity X-Ray Imaging Scope -- a self-contained, battery-powered fluoroscope that produces an instant image through use of a small amount of radioactive isotope. Originally developed by Goddard Space Flight Center, Lixiscope is now being produced by Lixi, Inc. which has an exclusive NASA license for one version of the device.
The binding of radiolabeled monoclonal antifibrin antibody 59D8 (specific for fibrin but not fibrinogen) to a series of degraded fibrin clots showed that the availability of the B beta(15-21) epitope (against which 59D8 had been raised) was inversely proportional to the extent of clot lysis. Examination of digest supernatants revealed that the B beta(15-21) epitope was released from clots as a high molecular weight degradation product in the presence of calcium ions but that the generation of low molecular weight peptides occurred in the absence of calcium ions. To address the question of epitope accessibility, we compared levels of fibrin clot binding among four radioactively labeled antibodies: antifibrin monoclonal antibody 59D8, two antifibrinogen monoclonal antibodies that cross-reacted with fibrin, and an affinity-purified polyclonal antifibrinogen antibody. We expected that the antifibrinogen antibodies would show enhanced binding to clots in comparison with the antifibrin antibody. However, the epitope accessibility experiments showed that all four antibody preparations bound fibrin clots at comparable levels. Taken together, these studies demonstrated that one fibrin-specific epitope, B beta(15-21), remains available on clots as they undergo degradation by plasmin and, importantly, that the epitope is not solubilized at a rate faster than the rate at which the clot is itself solubilized. The availability of the B beta(15-21) epitope during the course of plasminolysis assures the potential utility of antifibrin antibodies such as 59D8 for detecting thrombi and targeting plasminogen activators.
Dark noise reduced substantially without degrading other properties. Glass suitable for use as active material for microchannel plates (MCP's) free of constituents including significant amounts of radioactive isotopes.
Radon gas is enclosed in quartz or glass ampules by subjecting the gas sealed at a low pressure in the ampules to an ionization process. This process is useful for preparing fixed radon sources for radiological treatment of malignancies, without the danger of releasing radioactive gases.
The enrichments of trace-element concentrations in lunar soils are attributed to the combined effects of comminution of local rocks and a preferential addition of the exotic component to finer grain sizes. The exotic component appears similar to Fra Mauro materials, and there is a strong correlation between the percentage of exotic component and distance from the Fra Mauro site. Based on trace-element characteristics, it is suggested that the exotic component is finely comminuted KREEP and is dispersed on the lunar surface from the Fra Mauro and other high gamma-ray active regions in the Imbrium-Procellarum regions. The major and trace-element chemistry of these materials is considered to be due to impact melting of trace-element-rich accessory phases followed by variable dilution with partial melts of the bulk solid phases of plagioclase, low-Ca pyroxene, and olivine. The generation of KREEP and the exotic component is an impact-produced local process and need not imply a global occurrence of radioactive crust on the moon.
The Fe-56 nuclei excited by the inelastic collision of protons with the energy of around 10 MeV emit gamma rays in the same nuclear gamma-ray lines as those from the radioactive decay of Co-56. Since a very young supernova remnant like SN 1987A is most likely to accelerate cosmic rays by the shock and a possible pulsar embedded in the ejecta, this process may account for the gamma-ray lines observed from SN 1987A. The conditions required to explain the observed flux of the gamma-ray lines were investigated. It was found that this jet having a large fraction of the total kinetic energy of the supernova explosion.
Bone mineral measurements before and after space missions have shown that weightlessness greatly accelerates bone demineralization. Bone mineral losses as high as 1 to 3 percent per month were reported. Highly precise instrumentation is required to monitor this loss and thereby test the efficacy of treatment. During the last year, a significant improvement was made in Dual-Photon Absorptiometry by replacing the radioactive source with an x ray tube. Advantages of this system include: better precision, lower patient dose, better spacial resolution, and shorter scan times. The high precision and low radiation dose of this technique will allow detection of bone mineral changes of less than 1 percent with measurements conducted directly at the sites of interest. This will allow the required bone mineral studies to be completed in a shorter time with greater confidence.
The role of BATSE/GRO in detecting gamma ray spectra from nearby novae is briefly addressed. Important new information in the early hydrodynamics of novae as well as the abundances of several radioactive isotopes will be obtained using these instruments.
Novel design keeps joints mechanically independent. Force-reflecting hand controller for remote manipulator offers two times work volume of any of its predecessors. Folded into volume half that of its immediate predecessor for storage. First six-degree-of-freedom, cable-driven controller designed with six revolute joints; contains no prismatic joints. Advantages of low friction, low inertia, and no backlash. Intended for use in telerobotic experiments during space flight, controller modified for such terrestrial applications as construction and handling of dangerous (e.g., hot, poisonous, radioactive, or infectious) materials.