Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “temperature polarization”

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 91 records · Page 5
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2008

Temperature Trends in the Polar Mesosphere between 2002-2007 using TIMED/SABER Data

The TIMED Satellite was launched on December 7, 2001 to study the dynamics and energy of the mesosphere and lower thermosphere. The TIMED/SABER instrument is a limb scanning infrared radiometer designed to measure a large number of minor constituents as well as the temperature of the region. In this study, we have concentrated on the polar mesosphere, to investigate the temperature characteristics as a function of spatial and temporal considerations. We used the recently revised SABER dataset (1.07) that contains improved temperature retrievals in the Earth polar summer regions. Weekly averages are used to make comparisons between the winter and summer, as well as to study the variability in different quadrants of each hemisphere. For each year studied, the duration of polar summer based on temperature measurements compares favorably with the PMSE (Polar Mesospheric Summer Echoes) season measured by radar at the ALOMAR Observatory in Norway (69 N). The PMSE period should also define the summer period suitable for the occurrence of polar mesospheric clouds. The unusual short and relatively warm polar summer in the northern hemisphere

Goldberg, Richard A.↗
NASA NTRS2003

WMAP Detection of Early Reionization

The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) has mapped the full sky in Stokes I, Q, and U parameters at frequencies 23, 33, 41, 61, and 94 GHz. We detect correlations between the temperature and polarization maps significant at more than 10 standard deviations. The correlations are inconsistent with instrument noise and are significantly larger than the upper limits established for potential systenatic errors. The correlations are present in all WMAP frequency bands with similar amplitude from 23 to 94 GHz, and are consistent with a superposition of a CMB signal with a weak foreground. The fitted CMB component is robust against different data combinations and fitting techniques. On small angular scales the WMAP data show the temperature-polarization correlation expected from adiabatic density perturbations. The data for $\ell > 20$ agree well with the signal predicted solely from the temperature power spectra, with no additional free parameters. The existence of correlations on super-horizon scales provides significant support for inflationary cosmologies. We detect excess power on large angular scales compared to predictions based on the temperature power spectra alone. The excess power is well described by reionization at redshift $11 < z < 30$ at 95\% confidence. A model-independent fit to reionization optical depth yields results consistent with the best-fit $\Lambda$CDM model, with best fit value $\tau = 0.17 \pm 0.04$ at 68\% confidence, including systematic and foreground uncertainties. This value is larger than expected given the detection of a Gunn-Peterson trough in the absorption spectra of distant quasars, and implies that the universe has a complex ionization history. I will discuss the WMAP data and its implications for reionization in the early universe.

Kogut, A.↗
NASA NTRS2003

WMAP Detection of Early Reionization

The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) has mapped the full sky in Stokes I, Q, and U parameters at frequencies 23, 33, 41, 61, and 94 GHz. We detect correlations between the temperature and polarization maps significant at more than 10 standard deviations. The correlations are inconsistent with instrument noise and are significantly larger than the upper limits established for potential systematic errors. The correlations are present in all WMAP frequency bands with similar amplitude from 23 to 94 GHz, and are consistent with a superposition of a CMB signal with a weak foreground. The fitted CMB component is robust against different data combinations and fitting techniques. On small angular scales the WMAP data show the temperature-polarization correlation expected from adiabatic density perturbations. The data for $\ell > 20$ agree well with the signal predicted solely from the temperature power spectra, with no additional free parameters. The existence of correlations on super-horizon scales provides significant support for inflationary cosmologies. We detect excess power on large angular scales compared to predictions based on the temperature power spectra alone. The excess power is well described by reionization at redshift $11 < z < 30$ at 95\% confidence. A model-independent fit to reionization optical depth yields results consistent with the best-fit $\Lambda$CDM model, with best fit value $\tau = 0.17 \pm 0.04$ at 68\% confidence, including systematic and foreground uncertainties. This trough in the absorption spectra of distant quasars, and implies that the universe has a complex ionization history. I will discuss the WMAP data and its implications for reionization in the early universe.

Kogut, A.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Airborne Brightness Temperature Measurements of the Polar Winter Troposphere as Part of the Airborne Arctic Stratosphere Experiment 2 and the Effect of Brightness Temperature Variations on the Diabatic Heating in the Lower Stratosphere

In this paper we report radiometric measurements of tropospheric brightness temperatures obtained during the AASE 2 experiment. These measurements represent the first attempt to characterize effective radiative temperatures as seen from above the troposphere during the Arctic winter. The reported measurements include brightness temperatures at 6.7 and 10.5 micrometers as seen from the NASA DC-8 aircraft flying at about 11 km altitude. We also present radiative transfer calculations to estimate the effect of tropospheric brightness temperature on the lower stratospheric heating rates. Because of the recent massive eruption of the Pinatubo volcano, we also discuss the effects of a volcanic aerosol layer. It is concluded that small particles like the volcanic aerosol or PSCs type 1 do not affect stratospheric heating rates by much; on the other hand, larger particles, PSCs types 2 and 3, may have significant effects on heating rates and consequently on dynamics of the lower stratosphere. The dynamical effects of local stratospheric temperature variations are briefly discussed.

Valero, Francisoco P. J.↗
NASA NTRS1973

General atmospheric circulation driven by polar and diurnal surface temperature variations.

Described is a global circulation model for the Venus atmosphere that includes the effects of both polar cooling and diurnal temperature variation. It is based on a linearized Boussinesq approximation and boundary conditions derived from theoretical and empirical considerations. The time-dependent, three-dimensional flow field is deduced without any a priori assumptions about its configuration. Results show that the mean atmospheric motions are essentially zonal in a narrow belt near the equator and change to become meridional over most of the globe. The circulation pattern is not symmetrical and rotates about the polar axis of the planet with the period of the solar day.

Bohachevsky, I. O.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Freezing temperatures of H2SO4/HNO3/H2O mixtures: Implications for polar stratospheric clouds

The freezing temperatures of H2SO4/HNO3/H2O mixtures were systematically documented. Nitric acid was found to affect freezing significantly. Measurements show that nitric acid can cause substantial supercooling over a broad composition range. However, some ternary compositions, like to those in polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs), have high freezing temperatures. The freezing of PSC particles could be controlled by the temperature and vapor pressure of both nitric acid and water in a non-linear way. Formation of polar stratospheric clouds may be forecasted on the basic of conditions of temperature and vapor contents of water and nitric acid.

Song, Naihui↗
NASA NTRS1979

Mars south polar spring and summer temperatures - A residual CO2 frost

Viking infrared thermal mapper (IRTM) energy measurements over the Mars south polar cap throughout the Martian spring and summer revealed complex spatial, spectral, and temporal variations. High albedos did not directly correspond with low temperatures, and as the cap shrank to its residual position, it maintained large differences in brightness temperature between the four IRTM surface-sensing bands at 7, 9, 11, and 20 microns. The late summer infrared spectral pattern can be matched by a surface consisting of CO2 frost with 20 micron emissivity of 0.8 and about 6% dark, warm soil under a dusty atmosphere of moderate infrared opacity and spectral properties similar to those measured for the Martian global dust storms. Low temperature, the absence of appreciable water vapor in the south polar atmosphere, and the absence of surface warming expected if H2O were to become exposed, all imply that the residual south polar cap was covered by solid CO2.

Kieffer, H. H.↗
NASA NTRS1973

The meteorological effects on microwave apparent temperatures looking downward over a smooth sea

The effects of clouds and rain on microwave apparent temperatures for a flat sea surface are examined. The presence of clouds and rain can be expressed as a change of absorption coefficient and the total absorption is computed as the sum of individual effects. Various cloud and rain models proposed by meteorologists are employed to compute the microwave apparent temperature when viewing downward through these model atmospheres. It is shown that stratus, cumulus, overcast, and rain all contribute significantly to the observed temperature. Larger sensitivities to clouds and rain are observed for horizontally polarized apparent temperature at large nadir angles than for vertically polarized apparent temperature.

Wu, S.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Nitric acid in polar stratospheric clouds - Similar temperature of nitric acid condensation and cloud formation

As shown independently by two different techniques, nitric acid aerosols and polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) both form below similar threshold temperatures. This supports the idea that the PSC particles involved in chlorine activation and ozone depletion in the winter polar stratosphere are composed of nitric acid. One technique used to show this is the inertial impaction of nitric acid aerosols using an Er-2 aircraft; the other method is remote sensing of PSCs by the Stratospheric Aerosol Measurement (SAM II) satellite borne optical sensor. Both procedures were in operation during the Arctic Airborne Stratospheric Expedition in 1989, and the Airborne Antarctic Ozone Experiment in 1987. Analysis of Arctic particles gathered in situ indicates the presence of nitric acid below a 'first appearance' temperature Tfa = 202 K. This is the same highest temperature at which PSCs are seen by the SAM II satellite. In comparison, a 'first appearance' temperature Tfa = 198 K as found for the Antarctic samples.

Pueschel, Rudolf F.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Results from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe

The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) mapped the distribution of temperature and polarization over the entire sky in five microwave frequency bands. These full-sky maps were used to obtain measurements of temperature and polarization anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background with the unprecedented accuracy and precision. The analysis of two-point correlation functions of temperature and polarization data gives determinations of the fundamental cosmological parameters such as the age and composition of the universe, as well as the key parameters describing the physics of inflation, which is further constrained by three-point correlation functions. WMAP observations alone reduced the flat Λ cold dark matter (Lambda Cold Dark Matter) cosmological model (six) parameter volume by a factor of > 68, 000 compared with pre-WMAP measurements. The WMAP observations (sometimes in combination with other astrophysical probes) convincingly show the existence of non-baryonic dark matter, the cosmic neutrino background, flatness of spatial geometry of the universe, a deviation from a scale-invariant spectrum of initial scalar fluctuations, and that the current universe is undergoing an accelerated expansion. The WMAP observations provide the strongest ever support for inflation; namely, the structures we see in the universe originate from quantum fluctuations generated during inflation.

The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP)↗
NASA NTRS1981

Electron temperature anisotropy in the polar wind

The steady state flow of a fully ionized H(+)-O(+)-electron plasma along geomagnetic field lines in the high-latitude topside ionosphere is investigated theoretically, with emphasis on the electron temperature anisotropy and heat flow in the polar wind. The 13-moment system of transport equations developed by Schunk (1975, 1977), which contains a continuity, momentum, internal energy, stress tensor and heat flow equation for each species, is employed to represent the electrons, with a simplified set of transport equations used for the ions, and the transport equations are solved at altitudes from 1500 to 12,000 km for both subsonic and supersonic H(+) outflows. For subsonic H(+) outflows, the electron gas is found to remain collision dominated to high altitudes. For supersonic H(+) outflows, the electron gas is also found to be collision dominated at altitudes below 2500 km, with an anisotropy in electron temperature distribution developing such that the temperature of the perpendicular electrons is greater than that of the parallel electrons at higher altitudes. In addition, the magnitude of downward electron heat flux at 1500 km is shown to have a dramatic effect on the individual parallel and perpendicular electron temperatures.

Schunk, R. W.↗
NASA NTRS1994

'Downward control' of the mean meridional circulation and temperature distribution of the polar winter stratosphere

According to the 'downward control' principle, the extratropical mean vertical velocity on a given pressure level is approximately proportional to the meridional gradient of the vertically integrated zonal force per unit mass exerted by waves above that level. In this paper, a simple numerical model that includes parameterizations of both planetary and gravity wave breaking is used to explore the influence of gravity wave breaking in the mesosphere on the mean meridional circulation and temperature distribution at lower levels in the polar winter stratosphere. The results of these calculations suggest that gravity wave drag in the mesosphere can affect the state of the polar winter stratosphere down to altitudes below 30 km. The effect is most important when planetary wave driving is relatively weak: that is, during southern winter and in early northern winter. In southern winter, downwelling weakens by a factor of 2 near the stratospause and by 20% at 30 km when gravity wave drag is not included in the calculations. As a consequence, temperatures decrease considerably throughout the polar winter stratosphere (over 20 K above 40 km and as much as 8 K at 30 km, where the effect is enhanced by the long radiative relaxation timescale). The polar winter states obtained when gravity wave drag is omitted in this simple model resemble the results of simulations with some general circulation models and suggest that some of the shortcomings of the latter may be due to a deficit in mesospheric momentum deposition by small-scale gravity waves.

Garcia, Rolando R.↗
NASA NTRS1980

The utilization of spaceborne microwave radiometers for monitoring snowpack properties

Snow accumulation and depletion at specific locations can be monitored from space by observing related variations in microwave brightness temperatures. Using vertically and horizontally polarized brightness temperatures from the Nimbus 6 electrically scanning microwave radiometer, a discriminant function can be used to separate snow from no snow areas and map snowcovered area on a continental basis. For dry snow conditions on the Canadian high plains, significant relationships between snow depth or water equivalent and microwave brightness temperature were developed which could permit remote determination of these snow properties after acquisition of a wider range of data. The presence of melt water in the snowpack causes a marked increase in brightness temperature which can be used to predict snowpack priming and timing of runoff. As the resolutions of satellite microwave sensors improve the application of these results to snow hydrology problems should increase.

Rango, A.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Observations and theories related to Antarctic ozone changes

In 1985, there was a report of a large, sudden, and unanticipated decrease in the abundance of springtime Antarctic ozone over the last decade. By 1987, ozone decreases of more than 50 percent in the total column, and 95 percent locally between 15 and 20 km, had been observed. The scientific community quickly rose to the challenge of explaining this remarkable discovery; theoreticians soon developed a series of chemical and dynamical hypotheses to explain the ozone loss. Three basic theories were proposed to explain the springtime ozone hole. (1) The ozone hole is caused by the increasing atmospheric loadings of manmade chemicals containing chlorine (chlorofluorocarbons (CFC's) and bromine (halons)). These chemicals efficiently destroy ozone in the lower stratosphere in the Antarctic because of the special geophysical conditions, of an isolated air mass (polar vortex) with very cold temperatures, that exist there. (2) The circulation of the atmosphere in spring has changed from being predominantly downward over Antarctica to upward. This would mean that ozone poor air from the troposphere, instead of ozone rich air from the upper stratosphere, would be transported into the lower Antarctic stratosphere. (3) The abundance of the oxides of nitrogen in the lower Antarctic stratosphere is periodically enhanced by solar activity. Nitrogen oxides are produced in the upper mesosphere and thermosphere and then transported downward into the lower stratosphere in Antarctica, resulting in the chemical destruction of ozone. The climatology and trends of ozone, temperature, and polar stratospheric clouds are discussed. Also, the transport and chemical theories for the Antarctic ozone hole are presented.

Hartmann, D.↗
NASA NTRS2019

Measuring Electron Temperature Using a Linear Polarizer Versus a Polarization Camera

Polarized K-coronal brightness (pB) of the solar corona can be measured by taking four successive coronal brightness images through a linear polarizer, by turning it through four successive angles in intervals of 45∘ and using a standard formula to measure pB from the total coronal brightness (TB) that contains both the polarized K- and the unpolarized F-coronal brightness. The question is: will the time-dependent, highly dynamic corona illuminate each pixel with the same brightness during the time it takes to take the four successive images? To mitigate this problem we now have the polarization camera, in which, each super-pixel is made up of four sub-pixels, and built in to these four sub-pixels is a polarization mask that contains four linear polarizers orientated at four angles 45∘ apart. This allows the measurement of pB to be made in a single exposure. Here, the question is: will the variations of the coronal brightness in the four adjacent sub-pixels in a super-pixel be sufficiently negligible to assume that they observe the same part of the corona? This article looks for answers to these two questions by conducting two synthetic experiments to measure the electron temperature in the plane of the sky on a spherically asymmetric model (SAM) corona by first using a linear polarizer, and then replacing it with a polarization camera and use statistical analyses to determine how well the measured temperature matched the true temperature for the two cases.

Reginald, Nelson↗
NASA NTRS2006

The Sensitivity of Arctic Ozone Loss to Polar Stratospheric Cloud Volume and Chlorine and Bromine Loading in a Chemistry and Transport Model

The sensitivity of Arctic ozone loss to polar stratospheric cloud volume (V(sub PSC)) and chlorine and bromine loading is explored using chemistry and transport models (CTMs). A simulation using multi-decadal output from a general circulation model (GCM) in the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) CTM complements one recycling a single year s GCM output in the Global Modeling Initiative (GMI) CTM. Winter polar ozone loss in the GSFC CTM depends on equivalent effective stratospheric chlorine (EESC) and polar vortex characteristics (temperatures, descent, isolation, polar stratospheric cloud amount). Polar ozone loss in the GMI CTM depends only on changes in EESC as the dynamics repeat annually. The GSFC CTM simulation reproduces a linear relationship between ozone loss and Vpsc derived from observations for 1992 - 2003 which holds for EESC within approx.85% of its maximum (approx.1990 - 2020). The GMI simulation shows that ozone loss varies linearly with EESC for constant, high V(sub PSC).

Douglass, A. R.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Proton temperature anisotropy in the polar wind

The steady state flow of a fully ionized H(+)-O(+) electron plasma along geomagnetic field lines in the high-latitude topside ionosphere is studied. The theoretical formulation is based on a 13-moment system of transport equations, and allows for different species temperatures parallel and perpendicular to the geomagnetic field and nonclassical heat flows. For subsonic and supersonic flows, an appreciable H(+) temperature anisotropy occurs at all altitudes above 1500 km, and tends to be regulated at high altitudes. The direction of the temperature anisotropy is related to the direction of the H(+) heat flow to some extent; for supersonic flow an upward flow of heat from the lower ionosphere is required, while for subsonic flow solutions can be obtained with a downward H(+) heat flow. For subsonic flow, H(+)-H(+) collisions have an important effect on the H(+) stress and heat flow balance at all altitudes between 1500 and 12,000 km.

Schunk, R. W.↗