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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

Irregular structure of thermal ion plasma near the plasmapause observed from Ogo 3 and Pc 1 measurements.

Independent measurements of the plasmapause and associated thermal plasma structure from Ogo 3 are compared with ground-based Pc 1 observations from the period 1966-67. Substantial agreement between the plasmapause crossing identified on the satellite and the Pc 1 occurrence positions observed on the ground at midlatitudes during the nighttime (including dawn and dusk) indicates that these nighttime Pc 1 events are closely associated with the plasmapause. A correlation of selected closely spaced events obtained in the nighttime under quiet to moderate activity provides good agreement in the proton concentrations near the plasmapause boundary. Preliminary results indicate Pc 1 excitation is associated with plasma irregularities near the plasmapause and is particularly favorable in the region of 'post-storm recovery' and in the region of diurnal 'plasma bulge' in the afternoon-dusk sector.

Kikuchi, H.↗

A survey by HEAO 1 of clusters of galaxies. III - The complete Abell catalog

A catalog of 128 X-ray emitting clusters, including the Virgo Cluster, is presented. Ninety-one of these are new identifications. The catalog was obtained by searching the HEAO 1 survey observations for coincidences of X-ray sources with Abell clusters. The distribution of these sources in the sky has been examined in search of associations with other Abell clusters, with a null result. The X-ray luminosity has been correlated with cluster richness, but no association with Bautz-Morgan class has been found. The cluster luminosity function has been evaluated, and using this function the contribution of clusters to the diffuse X-ray background radiation has been estimated. It amounts to less than 15% at 2 keV and 3% at 6 keV.

Johnson, M. W.↗

The evolution of interplanetary shocks

Unambiguous identification of the solar events associated with 48 interplanetary (IP) shocks has been facilitated by the observation of radio emission generated by the shocks. This identification makes possible an investigation of the way in which these shocks evolve and of the relationship between solar event 'strength' and shock velocity. All but two of the 48 solar events associated with IP type II radio emission included long-duration soft X-ray events (LDE's). In addition, it is shown that all intense LDE's are associated with IP shocks. A weak correlation between the integral flux of soft X-rays and the average velocity of the associated shock is suggested. However, for two events all of the usual flare signatures were absent, and the events are associated with the disappearance of solar filaments. It is shown that the shocks propagate isotropically over about 50 deg from the source site. Beyond 50 deg the shocks weaken particularly on their eastern flanks. As a consequence, shocks originating on the west limb cannot reach the earth. IP type II radio emission is dependent on shock velocity with faster shocks producing more intense emission. The study shows that radio intensities provide information about the evolution of IP shocks.

Cane, H. V.↗

A new correlation among high-velocity clouds in the galaxy

Search for correlations among the various parameters associated with the hydrogen gas in high-velocity clouds in the galaxy. The results obtained indicate that there may be some general trends, but in most cases it is difficult to assess the significance of the correlation because of the large amount of scatter. In one case, however, there appears to be a significant relationship that leads to an estimate of the distance to the high-velocity gas of about 600 pc.

Silk, J.↗

Remote Sensing of Multiple Cloud Layer Heights Using Multi-Angular Measurements

Cloud top height (CTH) affects the radiative properties of clouds. Improved CTH observations will allow for improved parameterizations in large-scale models and accurate information on CTH is also important when studying variations in freezing point and cloud microphysics. NASAs airborne Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP) is able to measure cloud top height using a novel multi-angular contrast approach. For the determination of CTH, a set of consecutive nadir reflectances is selected and the cross-correlations between this set and co-located sets at other viewing angles are calculated for a range of assumed cloud top heights, yielding a correlation profile. Under the assumption that cloud reflectances are isotropic, local peaks in the correlation profile indicate cloud layers. This technique can be applied to every RSP footprint and we demonstrate that detection of multiple peaks in the correlation profile allow retrieval of heights of multiple cloud layers within single RSP footprints. This paper provides an in-depth description of the architecture and performance of the RSPs CTH retrieval technique using data obtained during the Studies of Emissions and Atmospheric Composition, Clouds and Climate Coupling by Regional Surveys (SEAC(exp. 4)RS) campaign. RSP retrieved cloud heights are evaluated using collocated data from the Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL). The method's accuracy associated with the magnitude of correlation, optical thickness, cloud thickness and cloud height are explored. The technique is applied to measurements at a wavelength of 670 nm and 1880 nm and their combination. The 1880-nm band is virtually insensitive to the lower troposphere due to strong water vapor absorption.

Sinclair, Kenneth↗

CDGPS-Based Relative Navigation for Multiple Spacecraft

This thesis investigates the use of Carrier-phase Differential GPS (CDGPS) in relative navigation filters for formation flying spacecraft. This work analyzes the relationship between the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) design parameters and the resulting estimation accuracies, and in particular, the effect of the process and measurement noises on the semimajor axis error. This analysis clearly demonstrates that CDGPS-based relative navigation Kalman filters yield good estimation performance without satisfying the strong correlation property that previous work had associated with "good" navigation filters. Several examples are presented to show that the Kalman filter can be forced to create solutions with stronger correlations, but these always result in larger semimajor axis errors. These linear and nonlinear simulations also demonstrated the crucial role of the process noise in determining the semimajor axis knowledge. More sophisticated nonlinear models were included to reduce the propagation error in the estimator, but for long time steps and large separations, the EKF, which only uses a linearized covariance propagation, yielded very poor performance. In contrast, the CDGPS-based Unscented Kalman relative navigation Filter (UKF) handled the dynamic and measurement nonlinearities much better and yielded far superior performance than the EKF. The UKF produced good estimates for scenarios with long baselines and time steps for which the EKF would diverge rapidly. A hardware-in-the-loop testbed that is compatible with the Spirent Simulator at NASA GSFC was developed to provide a very flexible and robust capability for demonstrating CDGPS technologies in closed-loop. This extended previous work to implement the decentralized relative navigation algorithms in real time.

Mitchell, Megan Leigh↗

Fluid shear stress as a regulator of gene expression in vascular cells: possible correlations with diabetic abnormalities

Diabetes mellitus is associated with increased frequency, severity and more rapid progression of cardiovascular diseases. Metabolic perturbations from hyperglycemia result in disturbed endothelium-dependent relaxation, activation of coagulation pathways, depressed fibrinolysis, and other abnormalities in vascular homeostasis. Atherosclerosis is localized mainly at areas of geometric irregularity at which blood vessels branch, curve and change diameter, and where blood is subjected to sudden changes in velocity and/or direction of flow. Shear stress resulting from blood flow is a well known modulator of vascular cell function. This paper presents what is currently known regarding the molecular mechanisms responsible for signal transduction and gene regulation in vascular cells exposed to shear stress. Considering the importance of the hemodynamic environment of vascular cells might be vital to increasing our understanding of diabetes.

Review, Tutorial↗

Understanding Martian Alteration Processes by Comparing In-Situ Chemical Measurements from Multiple Landing Sites

Characterizing the history of aqueous activity at the martian surface has been an objective of the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) and the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). Although the geologic context of the three landing sites are different, comparisons across the datasets can provide greater insight than using data from one mission alone. The Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) is common to all three rovers (Spirit at Gusev crater, Opportunity at Meridiani Planum, and Curiosity at Gale crater) and provides a consistent basis for these comparisons. Soil and Dust: Fine grained basaltic soils and dust are remarkably uniform in chemical composition across multiple landing sites. These similarities in the concentrations of major, minor, and a few trace elements (Fig. 1) are indicative of planet-wide consistency in the composition of source materials for the soils. S and Cl vary by a factor of two in the soil and dust, but there is no clear association with any bulk cation (e.g., no correlation between S and total Ca, Mg, or Fe in soils). These volatile elements, however, are clearly associated with the nanophase-ferric iron component in the soil established by Mössbauer spectroscopy [1,2]. S and Cl likely originated as acidic species from volcanic out-gassing and subsequently coalesced on dust and sand grain surfaces, possibly with an affinity towards Fe3+ sites. Importantly, given the mobility of S and Cl in aqueous exposures, soil samples maintaining the typical molar S/Cl ratio of ~3.7:1 indicate minimal interactions with liquid water after the addition of S and Cl. In contrast to this well-established baseline, soil samples have been discovered at all three landing sites with atypical S/Cl ratios (e.g., subsurface soils), indicative of a more complex aqueous history.

Yen, A. S.↗

Correlated observations of a spatially resolved type III solar radio burst group and the associated hard X-ray emission

The first measurements of the spatial structure of a group of type III solar radio bursts associated with an impulsive hard X-ray burst are presented. At 169 MHz the radio source has been found to consist of two principal regions separated by about 300,000 km. The two regions together produced a total of four component bursts in good time correlation with spikes in the hard X-ray emission. The observations indicate that electron acceleration/injection occurs over a region which covers a wide range of magnetic field lines.

Kane, S. R.↗

Internal and ancestral controls of cell-generation times

Lateral and longitudinal correlations between related cells reveal associations between the generation times of cells for an intermediate period /three generations in bacteral cultures/. Generation times of progeny are influenced by nongenetic factors transmitted from their ancestors.

Kubitschek, H. E.↗

A BBGKY framework for fluid turbulence

A framework is presented for a systematic kinetic theory of turbulence originating from the Liouville equation for the Fourier coefficients of fluid variables. The real and imaginary parts of these Fourier coefficients play the role that particle coordinates (positions and momenta) play in the BBGKY theory. The basic relations of the problem are the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations in two dimensions with zero viscosity, with the probability distributions of Fourier coefficients rather than moments being the basic variables of the theory. A kinetic equation is derived and shown to possess a number of requirements that any reasonable kinetic equation must have: conservation laws, positive-definite spectral densities, and an H-theorem. The major lack in the theory is any reliable information on the relaxation predicted by the complicated linear operator H. Closure of the hierarchy is achieved by the hypothesis that the five-coefficient correlation function is negligible. Problems associated with inclusion of viscosity and external driving forces are discussed.

Montgomery, D.↗

An experimental study of transmission, reflection and scattering of sound in a free jet flight simulation facility and comparison with theory

When a free jet (or open jet) is used as a wind tunnel to simulate the effects of flight on model noise sources, it is necessary to calibrate out the effects of the free jet shear layer on the transmitted sound, since the shear layer is absent in the real flight case. In this paper, a theoretical calibration procedure for this purpose is first summarized; following this, the results of an experimental program, designed to test the validity of the various components of the calibration procedure, are described. The experiments are conducted by using a point sound source located at various axial positions within the free jet potential core. By using broadband excitation and cross-correlation methods, the angle changes associated with ray paths across the shear layer are first established. Measurements are then made simultaneously inside and outside the free jet along the proper ray paths to determine the amplitude changes across the shear layer. It is shown that both the angle and amplitude changes can be predicted accurately by theory. It is also found that internal reflection at the shear layer is significant only for large ray angles in the forward quadrant where total internal reflection occurs. Finally, the effects of sound absorption and scattering by the shear layer turbulence are also examined experimentally.

Ahuja, K. K.↗

Solar wind deceleration and MHD turbulence in the earth's foreshock region - ISEE 1 and 2 and IMP 8 observations

The interaction of the solar wind with ions backstreaming from the earth's bow shock is investigated using plasma and magnetic field measurements on ISEE 1 and 2 and IMP 8 at widely separated positions in the earth's foreshock. This technique separates temporal and spatial variations within the foreshock. It is found that the solar wind acceleration associated with backstreaming ions is correlated with the amplitude of the MHD turbulence, and that the largest decelerations are seen close to the bow shock. The density of the backstreaming ion beam is strongly correlated with distance from the shock, and decreases by about a factor of three in a distance of about 3R(e).

Bonifazi, C.↗

Flow in sigmoid diffusers of moderate curvature

Developing laminar and turbulent flows have been measured in two diffusers with S- and C-shaped center-lines, small divergence angle and moderate curvature. The square inlet cross-section expanded in the plane of curvature to a rectangle with an exit-to-inlet area ratio of 1.5. Laser-Doppler anemometry was used to measure three velocity components and, in turbulent flow, the associated fluctuations and cross-correlations. Wall static pressure measurements are also reported. Flow visualization did not reveal the presence of any recirculation regions. Pressure-driven secondary flows are present in both ducts, but are generally smaller than those measured in similar ducts of uniform cross-section area.

Rojas, J.↗

Supershells and propagating star formation

Correlated supernovae from an OB association can carve large cavities (greater than 100 pc) in the interstellar medium (ISM), and can punch holes completely through the disk of a spiral galaxy. Supernova remnant energy within such a cavity is thermalized before the shock reaches the supershell. Thus stellar wind theory may be used to model these superbubbles. We describe how the evolution of the superbubble depends on the density distribution of the galactic disk gas and the rate of supernovae in the OB association. At a radius of 100 to 300 pc, the supershell becomes gravitationally unstable, forming giant molecular clouds which are the sites for new star formation. This gravitational instability of the supershells provides a physical mechanism for propagating star formation and may account for the observation of bursts of star formation in galaxies.

Maclow, M. M.↗

Superbubbles in disk galaxies

Correlated supernovae from an OB association create a superbubble: a large, thin, shell of cold gas surrounding a hot pressurized interior. Because supernova blast waves usually become subsonic before reaching the walls of the shell or cooling radiatively, the energy input from supernovae may be reasonably approximated as a continuous luminosity. Using the Kompaneets (thin-shell) approximation, the growth of superbubbles in various stratified atmospheres is numerically modeled. A dimensionless quantity predicts whether a superbubble will blow out of the H I disk of a spiral galaxy (and begin to accelerate upward) or collapse. Superbubbles blow out of the H I layer when they have a radius in the plane between one and two scale heights. They blow out only one side of a disk galaxy if their centers are more than 50-60 p above the plane and the gas layer has density and scale height typical of the Milky Way. Fingers of warm interstellar gas intrude into the hot interior when the superbubble overtakes dense clouds.

Mac Low, Mordecai-Mark↗

Satellite radars for geologic mapping in tropical regions

This paper presents interpretations of the satellite radar images of cloud-covered portions of Indonesia and Amazonia obtained from NASA's Shuttle imaging radar experiments in 1981 (SIR-A) and 1984 (SIR-B). It was found that different terrain categories observed from distinctive image textures correlate well with major lithologic associations. The images show geologic structures at regional and local scales. The SIR-B images of East Kalimantan, Indonesia, reveal structural features and terrain distributions that had been overlooked or not perceived in previous surface mapping. Variability in radar response from the vegetation cover is interpretable only in coastal areas or alluvial areas that are relatively level.

Ford, J. P.↗