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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 109 records · Page 6
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NASA NTRS1978

Arecibo radar observations of Martian surface characteristics near the equator

Mars radar observations at 12.6-cm wavelength indicate that many of what were potential Viking landing sites along the planet's equator are rougher than interpretations of Mariner 9 images suggested. Root mean square surface slopes are typically 5 degrees in the region bounded by 160 and 200 degrees W, 0 and 12 degrees S. From Tharsis Montes west to 160 degrees W, radar-scattering characteristics suggest extreme roughness on small scales, perhaps exceeding 10 degrees in rms magnitude. East of Tharsis and north of Valles Marineris the surface is smooth, with values of rms slope as low as 1 degree; the elevation of this plateau was too high for a Viking landing. Study of spectral shapes indicates the Hagfors scattering law remains the best descriptor of quasi-specular surface scattering properties in an average sense; widespread variations in the surface argue against its indiscriminate use, however. Backscattering at moderate (25-40 degrees) incidence angles was studied qualitatively and was found to be significantly above the level predicted by a strictly quasi-specular (e.g., Hagfors) process; it also is variable over the surface.

Simpson, R. A.↗
NASA NTRS2019

Seasonal Variation in Martian Water Ice Cloud Particle Size

We employ the complete record of Mars limb-viewing observations by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer, totaling 922 successful retrievals, to chart the seasonal variation in water ice cloud particle size. Low-latitude clouds exhibit particle size sorting with altitude at all seasons, with particles ranging from >3.0 m in effective radius to 1.01.5 m. However, at a given altitude, the ice particle size often varies through the year. Ice particle sizes in the tropics follow a different seasonal cycle than ice mixing ratio. North polar clouds have a complex seasonal cycle, with a sloped size profile with altitude as the polar hood cloud forms in early fall trending to a roughly uniform 1.5 m profile by the end of winter. These data are an important metric to validate and improve general circulation model microphysical routines and to better understand how martian water ice clouds influence the atmospheric radiative budget.

Scott D. Guzewich↗
NASA NTRS2000

Determination of Martian Northern Polar Insolation Levels Using a Geodetic Elevation Model

Solar insolation levels at the Martian polar caps bear significantly on the seasonal and climatic cycling of volatiles on that planet. In the northern hemisphere, the Martian surface slopes downhill from the equator to the pole such that the north polar cap is situated in a 5-km-deep hemispheric-scale depression. This large-scale topographic setting plays an important role in the insolation of the northern polar cap. Elevations measured by the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) provide comprehensive, high-accuracy topographical information required to precisely determine polar insolation. In this study, we employ a geodetic elevation model to quantify the north polar insolation and consider implications for seasonal and climatic changes. Additional information is contained in original extended abstract.

Arrell, J. R.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Lidar Sensor Performance in Closed-Loop Flight Testing of the Morpheus Rocket-Propelled Lander to a Lunar-Like Hazard Field

For the first time, a suite of three lidar sensors have been used in flight to scan a lunar-like hazard field, identify a safe landing site, and, in concert with an experimental Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GN&C) system, guide the Morpheus autonomous, rocket-propelled, free-flying test bed to a safe landing on the hazard field. The lidar sensors and GN&C system are part of the Autonomous Precision Landing and Hazard Detection and Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) project which has been seeking to develop a system capable of enabling safe, precise crewed or robotic landings in challenging terrain on planetary bodies under any ambient lighting conditions. The 3-D imaging flash lidar is a second generation, compact, real-time, air-cooled instrument developed from a number of cutting-edge components from industry and NASA and is used as part of the ALHAT Hazard Detection System (HDS) to scan the hazard field and build a 3-D Digital Elevation Map (DEM) in near-real time for identifying safe sites. The flash lidar is capable of identifying a 30 cm hazard from a slant range of 1 km with its 8 cm range precision at 1 sigma. The flash lidar is also used in Hazard Relative Navigation (HRN) to provide position updates down to a 250m slant range to the ALHAT navigation filter as it guides Morpheus to the safe site. The Doppler Lidar system has been developed within NASA to provide velocity measurements with an accuracy of 0.2 cm/sec and range measurements with an accuracy of 17 cm both from a maximum range of 2,200 m to a minimum range of several meters above the ground. The Doppler Lidar's measurements are fed into the ALHAT navigation filter to provide lander guidance to the safe site. The Laser Altimeter, also developed within NASA, provides range measurements with an accuracy of 5 cm from a maximum operational range of 30 km down to 1 m and, being a separate sensor from the flash lidar, can provide range along a separate vector. The Laser Altimeter measurements are also fed into the ALHAT navigation filter to provide lander guidance to the safe site. The flight tests served as the culmination of the TRL 6 journey for the lidar suite and included launch from a pad situated at the NASA-Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) runway, a lunar-like descent trajectory from an altitude of 250m, and landing on a lunar-like hazard field of rocks, craters, hazardous slopes, and safe sites 400m down-range just off the North end of the runway. The tests both confirmed the expected performance and also revealed several challenges present in the flight-like environment which will feed into future TRL advancement of the sensors. The flash lidar identified hazards as small as 30 cm from the maximum slant range of 450 m which Morpheus could provide, however, it was occasionally susceptible to an increase in range noise due to heated air from the Morpheus rocket plume which entered its Field-of-View (FOV). The flash lidar was also susceptible to pre-triggering on dust during the HRN phase which was created during launch and transported by the wind. The Doppler Lidar provided velocity and range measurements to the expected accuracy levels yet it was also susceptible to signal degradation due to air heated by the rocket engine. The Laser Altimeter, operating with a degraded transmitter laser, also showed signal attenuation over a few seconds at a specific phase of the flight due to the heat plume generated by the rocket engine.

Roback, Vincent E.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Lidar Sensor Performance in Closed-Loop Flight Testing of the Morpheus Rocket-Propelled Lander to a Lunar-Like Hazard Field

For the first time, a suite of three lidar sensors have been used in flight to scan a lunar-like hazard field, identify a safe landing site, and, in concert with an experimental Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GN&C) system, help to guide the Morpheus autonomous, rocket-propelled, free-flying lander to that safe site on the hazard field. The lidar sensors and GN&C system are part of the Autonomous Precision Landing and Hazard Detection and Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) project which has been seeking to develop a system capable of enabling safe, precise crewed or robotic landings in challenging terrain on planetary bodies under any ambient lighting conditions. The 3-D imaging Flash Lidar is a second generation, compact, real-time, aircooled instrument developed from a number of components from industry and NASA and is used as part of the ALHAT Hazard Detection System (HDS) to scan the hazard field and build a 3-D Digital Elevation Map (DEM) in near-real time for identifying safe sites. The Flash Lidar is capable of identifying a 30 cm hazard from a slant range of 1 km with its 8 cm range precision (1-s). The Flash Lidar is also used in Hazard Relative Navigation (HRN) to provide position updates down to a 250m slant range to the ALHAT navigation filter as it guides Morpheus to the safe site. The Navigation Doppler Lidar (NDL) system has been developed within NASA to provide velocity measurements with an accuracy of 0.2 cm/sec and range measurements with an accuracy of 17 cm both from a maximum range of 2,200 m to a minimum range of several meters above the ground. The NDLâ€"TM"s measurements are fed into the ALHAT navigation filter to provide lander guidance to the safe site. The Laser Altimeter (LA), also developed within NASA, provides range measurements with an accuracy of 5 cm from a maximum operational range of 30 km down to 1 m and, being a separate sensor from the Flash Lidar, can provide range along a separate vector. The LA measurements are also fed into the ALHAT navigation filter to provide lander guidance to the safe site. The flight tests served as the culmination of the TRL 6 journey for the ALHAT system and included launch from a pad situated at the NASA-Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) runway, a lunar-like descent trajectory from an altitude of 250m, and landing on a lunar-like hazard field of rocks, craters, hazardous slopes, and safe sites 400m down-range just off the North end of the runway. The tests both confirmed the expected performance and also revealed several challenges present in the flight-like environment which will feed into future TRL advancement of the sensors. Guidance provided by the ALHAT system was impeded in portions of the trajectory and intermittent near the end of the trajectory due to optical effects arising from air heated by the rocket engine. The Flash Lidar identified hazards as small as 30 cm from the maximum slant range of 450 m which Morpheus could provide; however, it was occasionally susceptible to an increase in range noise due to scintillation arising from air heated by the Morpheus rocket engine which entered its Field-of-View (FOV). The Flash Lidar was also susceptible to pre-triggering, during the HRN phase, on a dust cloud created during launch and transported down-range by the wind. The NDL provided velocity and range measurements to the expected accuracy levels yet it was also susceptible to signal degradation due to air heated by the rocket engine. The LA, operating with a degraded transmitter laser, also showed signal attenuation over a few seconds at a specific phase of the flight due to the heat plume generated by the rocket engine.

Roback, V. Eric↗
NASA NTRS1994

Relationship of ozone and carbon monoxide over North America

Observations at sites in eastern North America show a strong correlation between O3 and CO concentrations in summer, with a consistent slope DeltaO3/DeltaCO approximately = 0.3. Observations in the aged Denver plume at Niwot Ridge, Colorado, also show a strong correlation but with DeltaO3/DeltaCO = 0.15. These data offer a sensitive test for evaluating the ability of photochemical models to simulate production of O3 over North America and its export to the global atmosphere. Application to the Harvard/Goddard Institute for Space Studies three-dimensional, continental-scale model shows that the model gives a good simulation of the observed O3-CO correlations and of the associated DeltaO3/DeltaCO. This successful simulation lends support to model estimates of 6 Gmol/d for the net O3 production in the U.S. boundary layer in summer (corresponding to a net O3 production efficiency of 5.5, which is the number of O3 molecules produced per molecule of NOx consumed) and 70% for the fraction of the net production that is exported to the global atmosphere. Export of U.S. pollution appears to make a significant contribution to total tropospheric O3 over the northern hemisphere in summer. Simple interpretation of observed DeltaO3/DeltaCO as an O3/CO anthropogenic enhancement ratio is shown to underestimate substantially anthropogenic O3 production, because O3 and CO concentrations are negatively correlated in the absence of photochemistry. It is also shown that concurrent observations of DeltaO3/DeltaCO and DeltaO3/Delta(NO(y)-NO(x)) ratios can be used to impose lower and upper limits on the net O3 production efficiency.

Chin, Mian↗
NASA NTRS1984

Petrologic comparisons of Cayley and Descartes on the basis of Apollo 16 soils from stations 4 and 11

Petrologic aspects of the Cayley and Descartes formations are reviewed in the light of new data on Apollo 16 soils. Specific comparison of the modal abundances of lithic fragments in drive tube sample 64001/2 from the slopes of Stone Mountain (station 4) and in soil 67941 from the North Ray Crater rim (station 11) shows that melt rocks, especially poikilitic rocks, are more abundant at station 4 than at station 11; the reverse is true for fragmental breccias. Such lithologic differences suggest that stations 4 and 11 do not belong to the same geologic formation. Metamorphosed breccias are pervasive in both the formations and may represent a local component that has been reworked and diluted as fresh materials were added. Lithologic compositions inferred from the study of soil samples are different from lithologic compositions inferred from the study of rake samples or breccia clasts. This difference may be related to a mixing of material of different grain size distributions. The petrology of soils at the Apollo 16 site may not accurately reflect original material associated with either the Descartes or the Cayley formation because of extensive mixing with local material.

Basu, A.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Variability in Sea Surface Height: A Qualitative Measure for the Meridional Overturning in the North Atlantic

Sea surface height (SSH) from altimeter observations from 1992 on and from modeling results is investigated to determine the modes of variability and the linkages to the state of oceanic circulation in the North Atlantic. First the altimeter and model simulated SSH are analyzed using the empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis. They are found to share a similar leading mode where the center of action is along the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Current with opposite sign anomalies in the subpolar gyre and in the slope waters along the Eastern Seaboard. The time series of the leading EOF mode from the altimeter data shows that between winters of 1995 and 1996, SSH over the Gulf Stream decreased by about 12cm which change is reproduced by the model simulation. Based on the relationship from the model simulations between the time series of the SSH EOF1 and meridional heat transport, it is suggested that associated with this SSH change in 1995-96, the overturning has slowed down from its heights in the early 90's. Furthermore, it is shown that decadal variability in the leading SSH mode originates from the thermal forcing component. This adds confidence to the qualitative relationship between the state of overturning/meridional heat transport and SSH in the limited area described by the EOF1. SSH variability in the eastern side of the North Atlantic basin, outside the western boundary current region, is determined by local and remote (Rossby waves) wind stress curl forcing.

Hakkinen, Sirpa↗
NASA NTRS1980

Geoid height versus age for symmetric spreading ridges

Geoid height-age relations have been extracted from Geos 3 altimeter data for large areas in the North Atlantic, South Atlantic, southeast Indian, and southeast Pacific oceans. Except for the southeast Pacific area, geoid height decreases approximately linearly with the age of the ocean floor for ages less than about 80 m.y. in agreement with the prediction of an isostatically compensated thermal boundary layer model (Haxby and Turcotte, 1978). The geoid-age data for 0 to 80 m.y. are consistent with constant slopes of -0.094 + or - -0.131 + or - 0.041, and -0.149 + or - 0.028 m/m.y. for the South Atlantic, southeast Indian, and North Atlantic regions, respectively. For ages greater than 80 m.y. the geoid-age relation for the North Atlantic is nearly flat, indicating a reduction in the rate of boundary layer thickening with age. The uncertainties in the geoid slope-age estimates are positively correlated with spreading velocity.

Sandwell, D.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Stratigraphic relationships within Martian polar cap deposits

It is found that layered ice and dust deposits accumulate on the smooth and banded terrains of the north and south polar cap deposits of Mars, while erosion exposes these layers on the equator-facing slopes of layered terrain. The stripping of layers occurs in areas of strong and multidirectional wind, forming striped terrain. Also noted is the production of steep scarps with crescentic planform by local wind scour, in frequent association with dune fields positioned immediately downwind. Unconformities, which are common within layered deposits in areas of complex topography at the north pole, indicate that deposition episodes of 5-10 layers alternate with the slight erosion of pole-facing trough walls. It is suggested that poles may migrate poleward, replacing the relief increase by depositional infilling when they near the poles.

Howard, A. D.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Meridional fluxes of dissolved organic matter in the North Atlantic Ocean

Biooptical estimates of gelbstoff and a few platinum measurements of dissolved organic carbon (DOCpt) are used to construct a budget of the meridional flux of DOC and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) across 36 deg 25 min N in the North Atlantic from previous inverse models of water and element transport. Distinct southward subsurface fluxes of dissolved organic matter within subducted shelf water, cabelled slope water, and overturned basin water are inferred. Within two cases of a positive gradient of DOCpt between terrestrial/shelf and offshore stocks, the net equatorward exports of O2 and DOCpt from the northern North Atlantic yield molar ratios of 2.1 to 9.1, compared to the expected Redfield O2/C ratio of 1.3. It is concluded that some shelf export of DOC, with a positive gradient between coastal and oceanic stocks, as well as falling particles, are required to balance carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen budgets of the North Atlantic.

Walsh, John J.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Observations of wind-forced deep ocean currents in the North Pacific

The role of the quasi-steady Sverdrup balance in the midlatitude atmospheric response in the North Pacific was investigated by examining 200 instrument-years of moored current measurements in the deep ocean across the breadth of the midlatitude North Pacific. These data provide evidence of a seasonal modulation in the ocean eddy kinetic energy beneath the thermocline at several locations north of 35 deg N, which was often found to be in phase with the local atmospheric forcing function. Results of the measurements indicate that, throughout the midlatitude North Pacific, topography plays a crucial role in the wind forced response; the bottom slope tends to enhance the beta effect in this basin. Topography narrows the available bandwidth for forced barotropic Rossby waves, facilitating a quasi-steady topographic Sverdrup response over most of the basin. However, the enhanced beta effect reduces the magnitude of the ocean's response to wind forcing.

Koblinsky, C. J.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Polarization and wavelength diversities of Gulf Stream fronts imaged by AIRSAR

During the 1990 Gulf Stream Experiment, NASA/JPL AIRSAR imaged the north edge of the Gulf Stream near the coast of Virginia. Simultaneous in-situ measurements of currents, temperatures, salinities, etc. were made for several crossings of the north edge by the R/V Cape Henlopen. Measurements identified two fronts with shearing and converging flows. The polarimetric SAR images from the fronts showed two bright linear features. One of them corresponds to the temperature front, which separated the warm Gulf Stream water to the south from a cool, freshwater filament to the north. The other line, located about 8 km north of the temperature front, is believed to correspond to the velocity front between the filament and the slope water. At these fronts, wave-current interactions produced narrow bands of steep and breaking waves manifesting higher radar returns in polarimetric SAR images. In general, our AIRSAR imagery shows that the signal-to-clutter ratio of radar cross sections for the temperature front is higher than that of the velocity front. In this paper, we study the polarization and wavelength diversities of radar response of these two fronts using the P-, L-, and C-Band Polarimetric SAR data. The north-south flight path of the AIRSAR crossed the temperature front several times and provided valuable data for analysis. Three individual passes are investigated. We found that for the temperature front, the cross-pol (HV) responses are much higher than co-pol responses (VV and HH), and that P-Band HV has the highest signal to clutter ratio. For the velocity front, the ratio is the strongest in P-Band VV, and it is indistinguishable for all polarizations in C-Band. The radar cross sections for all three polarization (HH, HV, and VV) and for all three bands are modelled using an ocean wave model and a composite Bragg scattering model. In our initial investigations, the theoretical model agrees qualitatively with the AIRSAR observations.

Lee, J. S.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Global Assessment of Volcanic Debris Hazards from Space

Hazard (slope stability) assessment for different sectors of volcano edifices was successfully obtained from volcanoes in North and South America. The assessment entailed Hyperion images to locate portions of the volcano that were hydrothermally altered to clay rich rocks with zones that were also rich in alunite and other minerals. The identified altered rock zones were field checked and sampled. The rock strength of these zones was calculated from the field and laboratory measurements. Volcano modeling utilizing the distinct element method and limit equilibrium technique, with the calculated strength data was used to assess stability and deformation of the edifice. Modeling results give indications of possible failure volumes, velocities and direction. The models show the crucial role hydrothermally weak rock plays in reducing the strength o the volcano edifice and the rapid identification of weak rock through remote sensing techniques. Volcanoes were assessed in the Cascade Range (USA), Mexico, and Chile (ongoing).

Watters, Robert J.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Geomorphology and Geology of the Southwestern Margaritifer Sinus and Argyre Regions of Mars. Part 3: Valley Types and Distribution

Three major valley tapes were identified in the SW Margaritefer Sinus and Argyre regions. Two are restricted to specific geologic units while the third is independent of the geology. The first type (the small valley networks) are found within the channeled and subdued plains unit in the eastern half of the map, in the grooved and channeled plains unit north of Nirgal Vallis, and in scattered instances in the cratered plateau unit north of Argyre. The even smaller valleys just inside Argyre's rim and on the inner slopes of many large craters are not directly related to the processes which formed the small valleys but are a result, instead, of post-impact modification of the crater walls. The second type of valley network is represented by Nirgal Vallis and the similar, shorter continuation of it to the west. This type is found only in the smooth plains material west of Uzboi Vallis in the map area. The third type of valley network is that of the Uzbol-Holden-Ladon valles system. This system is related to catastrophic outflow from Argyre Basin and is topographically rather than geologically controlled.

Parker, T. J.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Measurements of Nitric Acid and Aerosol Species Aboard the NASA DC-8 Aircraft During the SASS Ozone and Nitrogen Oxide Experiment (SONEX)

The SASS Ozone and Nitrogen Oxides Experiment (SONEX) over the North Atlantic during October/November 1997 offered an excellent opportunity to examine the budget of total reactive nitrogen (NO(sub y)) in the upper troposphere (8 - 12 km altitude). The median measured NO(sub y) mixing ratio was 425 parts per trillion by volume (pptv). Two different methods were used to measure HNO3: (1) the mist chamber technique and, (2) chemical ionization mass spectrometry. Two merged data sets using these HNO3 measurements were used to calculate NO(sub y) by summing the reactive nitrogen species (a combination of measured plus modeled results) and comparing the resultant values to measured NO(sub y) (gold catalytic reduction method). Both comparisons showed good agreement in the two quantities (slope > 0.9 and r(exp 2) > 0.9). Thus, the total reactive nitrogen budget in the upper troposphere over the North Atlantic can be explained in a general manner as a simple mixture of NO(sub x). (NO + NO2), HNO3, and PAN. Median values of NO(sub x)/NO(sub y) were approximately equal to 0.25, HNO3/NO(sub y) were approximately equal to 0.35 and Peroxyacetyl Nitrate (PAN)/NO(sub y) were approximately equal to 0. 17. Particulate NO3 and alkyl nitrates together composed <10 % of NO(sub y), while model estimated HNO4 averaged 12%.

Talbot, Robert W.↗
NASA NTRS1996

New results from mapping Antarctica at high resolution from radar altimeter data

The limits of the altimeter data evaluation were analyzed using geostatistical methods. It is often argued that satellite radar altimeter data over ice can not be used to map ice surfaces with a slope exceeding 0.5 deg. The maps presented, obtained from the Geosat satellite geodetic mission, concern the Antarctica north of 72.1 deg South. The grids constructed from other satellite observations facilitate the analysis of the changes in the Antarctic ice stream/ice shelf systems. The evaluation was applied to the Lambert Glacier/Amery Ice Shelf system.

Matassa, Michael↗
NASA NTRS1972

Lunar volcanism: Mare ridges and sinuous rilles, part P

Additional evidence of the volcanic origin of mare ridges and sinuous rilles is provided by near-terminator photography of the Herigonius Rille area (12 deg S 37 deg W) northeast of Gassendi Crater. A possible genetic relationship between ridges and rilles is illustrated. From the figure, the following relationships are evident. (1) The most prominent rille crosses several ridges without distortion, which indicates that the mare ridges did not form after the sinuous rilles. (2) The rilles could not have formed by flow up and over the ridges. (3) The rilles extend from their widest ends toward distinctly lower elevations, and the largest one branches both north and south from the vent area. Elevations are evident in stereographic views that clearly indicate the local slopes. (4) The wider end of each rille is marked by an elongate vent (?) near the summit of the mare ridge from which the rille appears to issue. (5) The two most prominent rilles join south of the vent area and continue southward for more than 130 km.

Young, R. A.↗