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Systems design for an initial atmospheric cloud physics laboratory to study microphysical processes in zero gravity is presented. Included are descriptions of the fluid, thermal, mechanical, control and data, and electrical distribution interfaces with Spacelab. Schedule and cost analysis are discussed.
Accomplishments and the outlook for graphite-polyimide composite structures are briefly outlined. Laminates, skin-stiffened and honeycomb sandwich panels, chopped fiber moldings, and structural components were fabricated with Celion/LARC-160 and Celion/PMR-15 composite materials. Interlaminar shear and flexure strength data obtained on as-fabricated specimens and specimens that were exposed for 125 hours at 589 K indicate that epoxy sized and polyimide sized Celion graphite fibers exhibit essentially the same behavior in a PMR-15 matrix composite. Analyses and tests of graphite-polyimide compression and shear panels indicate that utilization in moderately loaded applications offers the potential for achieving a 30 to 50 percent reduction in structural mass compared to conventional aluminum panels. Data on effects of moisture, temperature, thermal cycling, and shuttle fluids on mechanical properties indicate that both LARC-160 and PMR-15 are suitable matrix materials for a graphite-polyimide aft body flap. No technical road blocks to building a graphite-polyimide composite aft body flap are identified.
The mechanisms of fluid loss in the human body while sweating due to physical exercise are discussed. Trained and untrained persons were examined and compared. Since sweat is hypotonous, a disruption in the hydrosalinic balance occurs; the consequences of this finding, also pertaining to the fluid and electrolytic substitution, are presented. Further explanations on the problem of dehydration refer to reactions of individual organ systems, to alterations in bodily capabilities as well as to questions relating to sex and age.
A conceptual design was made for a solar thermal receiver capable of operation in the 1095 to 1650 C (2000 to 3000 F) temperature range. This receiver is designed for use with a two-axis paraboloidal concentrator in the 25 to 150 kW sub t power range, and is intended for industrial process heat, Brayton engines, or chemical/fuels reactions. Three concepts were analyzed parametrically. One was selected for conceptual design. Its key feature is a helical coiled tube of sintered silicon nitride which serves as the heat exchanger between the incident solar radiation and the working fluid. A mechanical design of this concept was prepared, and both thermal and stress analysis performed. The analysis showed good performance, low potential cost in mass production, and adaptability to both Brayton cycle engines and chemical/fuels production.
Correlation is defined in three different ways: comparisons of wind tunnel and/or theory with flight results; detailed studies of total vehicle drag from wind tunnel and flight tests; and attempts to understand the fundamental mechanisms of fluid flows associated with aircraft components in specific areas of the flight environment. The F-16E configuration is an outgrowth of studies conducted to produce a refined fighter wing design. Several iterations required to arrive at the combination of wing planform, camber, and twist which gives near optimum lift, drag, and high-angle-of-attack stability. Theoretical analyses were backed up by extensive experimental data to validate the design and are presented
The study of stellar atmospheres and the determination of specific physical mechanisms, geometries, and magnetic structures by which coronae are maintained is examined. Ultraviolet and soft X-ray components observed in the radiative output of cool stars and the Sun require counterentropic temperature gradients for their explanation. The existence of a hot corona is recognized as a result of mechanical or fluid dynamic effects and the importance of the magnetic field in the heating is accepted. Magnetohydrodynamic energy release associated with the emergence of magnetic flux through the chromosphere and its dynamic readjustment in the corona are major counterentropic phenomena which are considered as primary candidates for corona heating. Systematic plows in coronal flux tubes result from asymmetric heating and systematic flows can exist without substantial chromospheric pressure differences.
The decision to make the Centaur Vehicle a Space Transportation System (STS) payload meant that new ground support equipment provisions at Launch Pads Pads 39A and 39B were required. These new equipment provisions were needed to service the Centaur vehicle while it was installed in the Orbiter's payload bay prior to launch. This paper describes the design of a new rolling beam umbilical syste (RBUS) being added to the pad fixed service structure (FSS) in order to provide the primary functions of liquid hydrogen (LH2) fill, drain, and vent. The carrier plate itself is a Government-furnished equipment item and of necessity became a T-O disconnect. This permits quick offloading in the event of an abort prior to lift-off. In addition to the rolling beam structure, mechanisms, and fluid lines, it was necessary to design and build a carrier plate simulator to support early development testing of the mast at the Launch Equipment Test Facility at Kennedy Space Center. The RBUS is designed to be compatible with the rotating service structure (RSS) to the extent that the umbilical may be deployed with the RSS mated with the vehicle. It is also designed to clear the RSS as the RSS rotates back out of the way. Accessibility to the Orbiter aft compartment via the 50-1 door had to be maintained.
A computer simulation system has been developed for the Space Shuttle's advanced Centaur liquid fuel booster rocket, in order to conduct systems safety verification and flight operations training. This simulation utility is designed to analyze functional system behavior by integrating control avionics with mechanical and fluid elements, and is able to emulate any system operation, from simple relay logic to complex VLSI components, with wire-by-wire detail. A novel graphics data entry system offers a pseudo-wire wrap data base that can be easily updated. Visual subsystem operations can be selected and displayed in color on a six-monitor graphics processor. System timing and fault verification analyses are conducted by injecting component fault modes and min/max timing delays, and then observing system operation through a red line monitor.
A number of studies have been conducted with the aim to apply parallel computation to problems associated with solving finite element equations arising in structural mechanics and fluid dynamics. These studies have provided many important results. The present investigation is concerned with a set of experiments designed to test two ideas, including configurability and substructuring. The considered algorithms and tests are intended for implementation on the Configurable, Highly Parallel (CHiP) family of architecture described by Snyder (1982). The ChiP computer is composed of homogeneous processing elements (PEs) placed at regular intervals in a lattice of programmable switches. Two examples of the role of configurability and substructuring for simple iterative algorithms are considered, giving attention to conjugate gradient iterations, and tridiagonal systems of equations.
An in-vitro, steady flow investigation was conducted in a hollow, transparent vascular replica of the profunda femoris branch of man for a range of physiological flow conditions. The replica casting tested was obtained from a human cadaver and indicated some plague formation along the main lumen and branch. The flow visualization observations and measured pressure distributions indicated the highly three-dimensional flow characteristics with arterial curvature and branching, and the important role of centrifugal effects in fluid transport mechanisms.
The relationship between oceanic trench viscosity and oceanic plate velocity is studied using a Newtonian rheology by varying the viscosity at the trench. The plate velocity is a function of the trench viscosity for fixed Rayleigh number and plate/slab viscosity. Slab velocities for non-Newtonian rheology calculations are significantly different from slab velocities from Newtonian rheology calculations at the same effective Rayleigh number. Both models give reasonable strain rates for the slab when compared with estimates of seismic strain rate. Non-Newtonian rheology eliminates the need for imposed weak zones and provides a self-consistent fluid dynamical mechanism for subduction in numerical convection models.
A computational investigation has been conducted to determine the effectiveness of a passive control technique in suppressing the oscillations in an open cavity exposed to a supersonic flow. Time-accurate solutions of the unsteady, Reynolds-averaged, Navier-Stokes equations were obtained with an explicit predictor-corrector algorithm; the passive control was implemented through the use of a simple linear pressure-velocity law along the porous cavity floor. The computational code was validated by comparisons with experimental data for the cavity flow without control. The computational results with control demonstrate that the oscillations are suppressed; the fluid dynamic mechanism of the control is seen to be a stabilization of the free-shear layer. Spectral analysis of the unsteady data shows that the resonant frequencies are essentially unchanged by the control. Beneficial reductions in the cavity resonant drag are also observed.
A preliminary design for performing on orbit, autonomous research on microorganisms and cultured cells/tissues is presented. An understanding of gravity and its effects on cells is crucial for space exploration as well as for terrestrial applications. The payload is designed to be compatible with the Commercial Experiment Transporter (COMET) launch vehicle, an orbiter middeck locker interface, and with Space Station Freedom. Uplink/downlink capabilities and sample return through controlled reentry are available for all carriers. Autonomous testing activities are preprogrammed with in-flight reprogrammability. Sensors for monitoring temperature, pH, light, gravity levels, vibrations, and radiation are provided for environmental regulation and experimental data collection. Additional experimental data acquisition includes optical density measurement, microscopy, video, and film photography. On-board full data storage capabilities are provided. A fluid transfer mechanism is utilized for inoculation, sampling, and nutrient replenishment of experiment cultures. In addition to payload design, representative experiments were developed to ensure scientific objectives remained compatible with hardware capabilities. The project is defined to provide biological data pertinent to extended duration crewed space flight including crew health issues and development of a Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS). In addition, opportunities are opened for investigations leading to commercial applications of space, such as pharmaceutical development, modeling of terrestrial diseases, and material processing.
The spectral method provides an efficient algorithm for solving the 3D incompressible Navier-Stokes equations in periodic boundaries. Most people, so far, have used vectorized machines, such as the CRAY-2, to implement fast Fourier transformations and time integrations in the spectral calculations. In this paper, new results are presented using the spectral calculations on the Connection Machine-2 with a parallel algorithm. The large memory of the Connection Machine-2 and the parallel algorithm allows, of the first time, to implement a 512-cubed mesh resolution for high Reynolds number flows. The computational speed of the present code is about 30 percent faster than the fastest CRAY-2 simulations with four processors. Parallel machines, such as the Connection Machine-2, will possibly provide new computational power for understanding the intermittency and cascade mechanism in fluid turbulence.
A preliminary design for performing on-orbit, autonomous research on microorganisms and cultured cells/tissues is presented. An understanding of gravity and its effects on cells is crucial for space exploration as well as for terrestrial applications. The payload is designed to be compatible with the COMmercial Experiment Transported (COMET) launch vehicle, an orbiter middeck locker interface, and with Space Station Freedom. Uplink/downlink capabilities and sample return through controlled reentry are available for all carriers. Autonomous testing activities are preprogrammed with inflight reprogrammability. Sensors for monitoring temperature, pH, light, gravity levels, vibration, and radiation are provided for environmental regulation and experimental data collection. Additional experiment data acquisition includes optical density measurement, microscopy, video, and file photography. Onboard full data storage capabilities are provided. A fluid transfer mechanism is utilized for inoculation, sampling, and nutrient replenishment of experiment cultures. In addition to payload design, representative experiments were developed to ensure scientific objectives remained compatible with hardware capabilities. The project is defined to provide biological data pertinent to extended duration crewed space flight including crew health issues and development of a Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS). In addition, opportunities are opened for investigations leading to commercial applications of space, such as pharmaceutical development, modeling of terrestrial diseases, and material processing.
Aside from primordial gravitational instability of the cosmological fluid, various mechanisms have been proposed to generate large-scale structure at relatively late times, including, e.g., 'late-time' cosmological phase transitions. In these scenarios, it is envisioned that the universe is nearly homogeneous at the times of last scattering and that perturbations grow rapidly sometimes after the primordial plasma recombines. On this basis, it was suggested that large inhomogeneities could be generated while leaving relatively little imprint on the cosmic microwave background (MBR) anisotropy. In this paper, we calculate the minimal anisotropies possible in any 'late-time' scenario for structure formation, given the level of inhomogeneity observed at present. Since the growth of the inhomogeneity involves time-varying gravitational fields, these scenarios inevitably generate significant MBR anisotropy via the Sachs-Wolfe effect. Moreover, we show that the large-angle MBR anisotropy produced by the rapid post-recombination growth of inhomogeneity is generally greater than that produced by the same inhomogeneity growth via gravitational instability. In 'realistic' scenarios one can decrease the anisotropy compared to models with primordial adiabatic fluctuations, but only on very small angular scales. The value of any particular measure of the anisotropy can be made small in late-time models, but only by making the time-dependence of the gravitational field sufficiently 'pathological'.
While numerically solving a problem initially formulated on an unbounded domain, one typically truncates this domain, which necessitates setting the artificial boundary conditions (ABC's) at the newly formed external boundary. The issue of setting the ABC's appears to be most significant in many areas of scientific computing, for example, in problems originating from acoustics, electrodynamics, solid mechanics, and fluid dynamics. In particular, in computational fluid dynamics (where external problems present a wide class of practically important formulations) the proper treatment of external boundaries may have a profound impact on the overall quality and performance of numerical algorithms. Most of the currently used techniques for setting the ABC's can basically be classified into two groups. The methods from the first group (global ABC's) usually provide high accuracy and robustness of the numerical procedure but often appear to be fairly cumbersome and (computationally) expensive. The methods from the second group (local ABC's) are, as a rule, algorithmically simple, numerically cheap, and geometrically universal; however, they usually lack accuracy of computations. In this paper we first present a survey and provide a comparative assessment of different existing methods for constructing the ABC's. Then, we describe a relatively new ABC's technique of ours and review the corresponding results. This new technique, in our opinion, is currently one of the most promising in the field. It enables one to construct such ABC's that combine the advantages relevant to the two aforementioned classes of existing methods. Our approach is based on application of the difference potentials method attributable to V. S. Ryaben'kii. This approach allows us to obtain highly accurate ABC's in the form of certain (nonlocal) boundary operator equations. The operators involved are analogous to the pseudodifferential boundary projections first introduced by A. P. Calderon and then also studied by R. T. Seeley. The apparatus of the boundary pseudodifferential equations, which has formerly been used mostly in the qualitative theory of integral equations and PDE'S, is now effectively employed for developing numerical methods in the different fields of scientific computing.
Spurious behavior in underresolved grids and/or semi-implicit temporal discretizations for four computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are studied. The numerical simulations consist of (a) a 1-D chemically relaxed nonequilibrium model, (b) the direct numerical simulation (DNS) of 2-D incompressible flow over a backward facing step, (c) a loosely-coupled approach for a 2-D fluid-structure interaction, and (d) a 3-D compressible unsteady flow simulation of vortex breakdown in delta wings. Using knowledge from dynamical systems theory, various types of spurious behaviors that are numerical artifacts were systematically identified. These studies revealed the various possible dangers of misinterpreting numerical simulation of realistic complex flows that are constrained by the available computing power. In large scale computations underresolved grids, semi-implicit procedures, loosely-coupled implicit procedures, and insufficiently long time integration in DNS are most often unavoidable. Consequently, care must be taken in both computation and in interpretation of the numerical data. The results presented confirm the important role that dynamical systems theory can play in the understanding of the nonlinear behavior of numerical algorithms and in aiding the identification of the sources of numerical uncertainties in CFD.