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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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NASA NTRS1980

Rapid variability, dying pulse trains and black holes

After reviewing the general model and arguments by which rapid temporal variability and quasi-periodicities are considered indicative of a compact source's possible black hole character, the paper presents a scenario for 'dying pulse trains'. These originate inside the inner edge of accretion disks encircling black holes from accreting flares or other self-luminous entities executing their final few revolutions before reaching the event horizon. Confirmed detection of such phenomena with time scales in the range 0.01 (M/solar mass) to 0.5 (M/solar mass)ms, where M is the mass of the compact source, would provide much better support for its black hole candidacy. Variability on time-scales larger than this by itself places few constraints on the nature of the compact object.

Stoeger, W. R.↗
NASA NTRS2007

A Catalog of Galaxy Clusters Observed by XMM-Newton

Images and the radial profiles of the temperature, abundance, and brightness for 70 clusters of galaxies observed by XMM-Newton are presented along with a detailed discussion of the data reduction and analysis methods, including background modeling, which were used in the processing. Proper consideration of the various background components is vital to extend the reliable determination of cluster parameters to the largest possible cluster radii. The various components of the background including the quiescent particle background, cosmic diffuse emission, soft proton contamination, and solar wind charge exchange emission are discussed along with suggested means of their identification, filtering, and/or their modeling and subtraction. Every component is spectrally variable, sometimes significantly so, and all components except the cosmic background are temporally variable as well. The distributions of the events over the FOV vary between the components, and some distributions vary with energy. The scientific results from observations of low surface brightness objects and the diffuse background itself can be strongly affected by these background components and therefore great care should be taken in their consideration.

Snowden, S. L.↗
NASA NTRS2016

In-Situ and Remotely-Sensed Observations of Biomass Burning Aerosols at Doi Ang Khang, Thailand During 7-SEAS BASELInE 2015

The spring 2015 deployment of a suite of instrumentation at Doi Ang Khang (DAK) in northwestern Thailand enabled the characterization of air masses containing smoke aerosols from burning predominantly in Myanmar. Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) Sun photometer data were used to validate Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Collection 6 "Deep Blue" aerosol optical depth (AOD) retrievals; MODIS Terra and Aqua provided results of similar quality, with correlation coefficients of 0.93-0.94 and similar agreement within expected uncertainties to global-average performance. Scattering and absorption measurements were used to compare surface and total column aerosol single scatter albedo (SSA); while the two were well-correlated, and showed consistent positive relationships with moisture (increasing SSA through the season as surface relative humidity and total columnar water vapor increased), in situ surface-level SSA was nevertheless significantly lower by 0.12-0.17. This could be related to vertical heterogeneity and/or instrumental issues. DAK is at approximately 1,500 meters above sea level in heterogeneous terrain, and the resulting strong diurnal variability in planetary boundary layer depth above the site leads to high temporal variability in both surface and column measurements, and acts as a controlling factor to the ratio between surface particulate matter (PM) levels and column AOD. In contrast, while some hygroscopic effects were observed relating to aerosol particle size and Angstrom exponent, relative humidity variations appear to be less important for this ratio here. As part of the Seven South-East Asian Studies (7-SEAS) project, the Biomass-burning Aerosols & Stratocumulus Environment: Lifecycles and Interactions Experiment (BASELInE) was intended to probe physicochemical processes, interactions, and feedbacks related to biomass burning aerosols and clouds during the spring burning season (February-April) in southeast Asia (SEA).

biomass burning↗
NASA NTRS2006

Tropospheric and stratospheric ozone from assimilation of Aura data

Ozone is an atmospheric trace gas with multiple impacts on the environment. Global ozone fields are needed for air quality predictions, estimation of the ultraviolet radiation reaching the surface, climate-radiation studies, and may also have an impact on longer-term weather predictions. We estimate global ozone fields in the stratosphere and troposphere by combining the data from EOS Aura satellite with an ozone model using data assimilation. Ozone exhibits a large temporal variability in the lower stratosphere. Our previous work showed that assimilation of satellite data from limb-sounding geometry helps constrain ozone profiles in that region. We assimilated ozone data from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) and the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) into the ozone system at NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO). Ozone is transported within a general circulation model (GCM) which includes parameterizations for stratospheric photochemistry, tropospheric chemistry, and a simple scheme for heterogeneous ozone loss. The focus of this study is on the representation of ozone in the lower stratosphere and tropospheric ozone columns. We plan to extend studies of tropospheric ozone distribution through assimilation of ozone data from the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES). Comparisons with ozone sondes and occultation data show that assimilation of Aura data reproduces ozone gradients and variability in the lower stratosphere well. We proceed by separating the contributions to temporal changes in the ozone field into those that are due to the model and those that are due to the assimilation of Aura data. The impacts of Aura data are illustrated and their role in the representation of ozone variability in the lower stratosphere and troposphere is shown.

Stajner, I.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Variability of the ocean-induced magnetic field predicted at sea surface and at satellite altitudes

Spatial and temporal variability of the magnetic field component induced by ocean circulation is investigated on the basis of a standard thin-shell approximation of electro- and magneto-static equations. Well-known difficulties of numerical solution of the governing equations are resolved by reducing the problem to an equation for the electric field potential,(ef) as opposed to a more conventional approach focused on the vertical jump, (psi), of the magnetic field potential across a combined ocean/ marine-sediment-layer spherical shell. The present formulation permits using more realistic input data on ocean currents and ultimately yields much greater (by at least an order of magnitude) values of the magnetic field at sea surface than predicted in earlier studies. Such large values are comparable to, and in some cases exceed, magnetic field variations caused by lithospheric and ionospheric sources on monthly to interannual timescales. At the 400-km altitude (of CHAMP satellite), the field attains 6 nT. The model predictions show favorable comparisons with some in situ measurements as well as with Challenging Minisatellite Payload (CHAMP) satellite magnetometer data.

ocean induced magnetic field↗
NASA NTRS1992

Ocean time-series near Bermuda: Hydrostation S and the US JGOFS Bermuda Atlantic time-series study

Bermuda is the site of two ocean time-series programs. At Hydrostation S, the ongoing biweekly profiles of temperature, salinity and oxygen now span 37 years. This is one of the longest open-ocean time-series data sets and provides a view of decadal scale variability in ocean processes. In 1988, the U.S. JGOFS Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study began a wide range of measurements at a frequency of 14-18 cruises each year to understand temporal variability in ocean biogeochemistry. On each cruise, the data range from chemical analyses of discrete water samples to data from electronic packages of hydrographic and optics sensors. In addition, a range of biological and geochemical rate measurements are conducted that integrate over time-periods of minutes to days. This sampling strategy yields a reasonable resolution of the major seasonal patterns and of decadal scale variability. The Sargasso Sea also has a variety of episodic production events on scales of days to weeks and these are only poorly resolved. In addition, there is a substantial amount of mesoscale variability in this region and some of the perceived temporal patterns are caused by the intersection of the biweekly sampling with the natural spatial variability. In the Bermuda time-series programs, we have added a series of additional cruises to begin to assess these other sources of variation and their impacts on the interpretation of the main time-series record. However, the adequate resolution of higher frequency temporal patterns will probably require the introduction of new sampling strategies and some emerging technologies such as biogeochemical moorings and autonomous underwater vehicles.

Michaels, Anthony F.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Observations of comets with the IUE

Comet Shoemaker-Levey was observed on several dates in June and July 1992. Comparison of the relative brightness of a given emission between IUE and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Faint Object Spectrograph apertures provides information about the spatial distribution of the emitting species from which the excitation mechanisms can be inferred. The comparison between the HST and IUE spectra was abetted by the fact that comet Shoemaker-Levy did not show any indication of short-term temporal variability. Comet Swift-Tuttle is a moderately bright periodic comet that shows relatively strong temporal variations on a scale of hours and days. IUE observations of this comet were made in November 1992 and the detected variability was reported on IAU circular 5663. Coordinated ground-based observations led to the first detection of the CI(lambda)9850 transition that complements CI(lambda)1931 observed by the IUE short wavelength spectrograph and provides a means of indirectly determining the CO abundance.

Feldman, Paul D.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Mars: Correcting surface albedo observations for effects of atmospheric dust loading

We have developed a radiative transfer model which allows the effects of atmospheric dust loading on surface albedo to be investigated. This model incorporates atmospheric dust opacity, the single scattering albedo and particle phase function of atmospheric dust, the bidirectional reflectance of the surface, and variable lighting and viewing geometry. The most recent dust particle properties are utilized. The spatial and temporal variability of atmospheric opacity (Tan) strongly influences the radiative transfer modelling results. We are currently using the approach described to determine Tan for IRTM mapping sequences of selected regions. This approach allows Tan to be determined at the highest spatial and temporal resolution supported by the IRTM data. Applying the radiative transfer modelling and determination of Tan described, IRTM visual brightness observations can be corrected for the effects of atmospheric dust loading a variety of locations and times. This approach allows maps of 'dust-corrected surface albedo' to be constructed for selected regions. Information on the variability of surface albedo and the amount of dust deposition/erosion related to such variability results. To date, this study indicates that atmospheric dust loading has a significant effect on observations of surface albedo, amounting to albedo corrections of as much as several tens of percent. This correction is not constant or linear, but depends upon surface albedo, viewing and lighting geometry, the dust and surface phase functions, and the atmospheric opacity. It is clear that the quantitative study of surface albedo, especially where small variations in observed albedo are important (such as photometric analyses), needs to account for the effects of the atmospheric dust loading. Maps of 'dust-corrected surface albedo' will be presented for a number of regions.

Lee, S. W.↗
NASA NTRS2019

How Do UTLS Jet and Tropopause Dynamics Influence Ozone Variability? Investigations Supporting the SPARC OCTAV-UTLS Activity

Understanding changes in UTLS ozone is exceptionally challenging because of large spatial and temporal variability and because of the difficulty of satellite measurements in the UTLS. It is also exceptionally important: for example, to understand climate impacts of radiatively active substances and to understand physical and biological effects of pollution transport and stratosphere-troposphere exchange (STE). Multi-decadal global observations of UTLS ozone are now available from numerous satellite platforms, as well as local and regional observations from aircraft, balloons, and lidar. The upper tropospheric (UT) jets and tropopauses are important drivers of composition variability in the UTLS, acting as transport barriers and controlling STE and long-range transport. We report here on investigations of relationships between extratropical UTLS ozone variability and dynamical diagnostics of mixing / transport barriers, Rossby Wave breaking, and stratosphere-troposphere exchange. We will view these relationships in the context of ozone mapped into dynamical coordinates with respect to the UTLS jets and / or the tropopause. This work will help provide direction for analyses within the Stratosphere-troposphere Processes And their Role in Climate (SPARC) Observed Composition Trends and Variability in the UTLS (OCTAV-UTLS) activity, which aims to use dynamical coordinate mapping to help detect and attribute observed UTLS composition trends, and to project future data needs to better quantify those trends. The work we report on here will focus on satellite ozone observations (primarily from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder, additionally from ACE-FTS and OSIRIS) and assimilated ozone and dynamical fields (from multiple reanalyses); we will also provide some examples of comparisons with aircraft and balloon observations.

Manney, Gloria L.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Early Results from the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE)

On 6 September, 2013, a near-perfect launch of the first Minotaur V rocket successfully carried NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) into a high-eccentricity geocentric orbit. After 30 days of phasing, LADEE arrived at the Moon on 6 October, 2013. LADEE's science objectives are twofold: (1) Determine the composition of the lunar atmosphere, investigate processes controlling its distribution and variability, including sources, sinks, and surface interactions; (2) Characterize the lunar exospheric dust environment, measure its spatial and temporal variability, and effects on the lunar atmosphere, if any. After a successful commissioning phase, the three science instruments have made systematic observations of the lunar dust and exospheric environment. These include initial observations of argon, neon and helium exospheres, and their diurnal variations; the lunar micrometeoroid impact ejecta cloud and its variations; spatial and temporal variations of the sodium exosphere; and the search for sunlight extinction caused by dust. LADEE also made observations of the effects of the Chang'e 3 landing on 14 December 2013.

lunar exospheric environment↗
NASA NTRS1981

On the effect of temporal sampling on the observation of mean rainfall

Rainfall characteristics using data from dense recording raingage networks is reviewed. Data from such networks have quantified temporal and spatial rainfall distributions, and have supplied specialized information about local and orographic effects. The natural variability, temporally and spatially, for annual, seasonal, monthly, and individual events is treated. Especially important are the spatial variations of precipitation as a function of synoptic type, precipitation type, amount, and duration. Results from dense raingage networks in Illinois, and some data from other climatic regions is also treated.

Laughlin, C. R.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Cloud radiative forcing variability during FIFE

The present study evaluates a set of radiative flux surface measurements, concomitant with other meteorological observations, so as to derive the cloud radiative forcing at the surface. The forcing is analyzed in terms of variability and relation to other meteorological parameters. Both SW and LW cloud forcings show a very large temporal variability due to the changing cloudiness and to measurements and computational uncertainties. No dominant correlation between either components of the cloud radiative forcing and cloudiness were found using sky camera data. This is explained by the fact that forcings are a function not only of cloudiness but also of cloud liquid water content and cloud base height. Surface cloud radiative forcing showed a rather large diurnal cycle with a minimum at local noon for the LW component and two pronounced minima at sunrise and sunset for the SW component.

Breon, Francois-Marie↗
NASA NTRS2015

The Impact of Meteoroid Streams on the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment During the LADEE Mission

The scientific objectives of the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) mission are: (1) determine the composition of the lunar atmosphere, investigate processes controlling distribution and variability - sources, sinks, and surface interactions; and (2) characterize the lunar exospheric dust environment, measure spatial and temporal variability, and influences on the lunar atmosphere. Impacts on the lunar surface from meteoroid streams encountered by the Earth-Moon system are anticipated to result in enhancements in the both the lunar atmosphere and dust environment. Here we describe the annual meteoroid streams expected to be incident at the Moon during the LADEE mission, and their anticipated effects on the lunar environment.

Dust Environment↗
NASA NTRS2018

TPSAS-NF1676L-29978-DND

Energy within an atmospheric column changes due to absorption of shortwave irradiance, emission of longwave irradiance, enthalpy released by precipitation, convergence of dry static and kinetic energy flux, and surface sensible heat flux. When satellite derived irradiance, precipitation, and surface sensible heat flux data products, as well as tendency and horizontal advection of dry static and kinetic energy fluxes from reanalysis are used to compute the atmospheric energy balance, energy fluxes does not balance exactly, resulting in an energy balance residual. A study by Kato et al. (2016) shows that large residuals exist over tropical oceans. In this study, we examine how the energy balance residual changes with time. If the energy balance residual for a given region is constant every year, this implies that annual anomalies of energy flux components balance over the region. If, however, the energy balance residual changes with time, an analysis of the dependence on atmospheric or cloud properties may provide information to understand the reason for the residual. A preliminary result indicates that significant interannual variabilities in energy balance residual exist when annual energy balance residuals over the entire ocean is examined. Temporal variability of regional energy budget residual and covariability of the energy budget residual with the multivariate ENSO index and the occurrence of specific cloud types will further be investigated.

Seiji Kato↗
NASA NTRS2022

Assessing Bare-Ice Albedo Simulated By MAR Over the Greenland Ice Sheet (2000–2021) and Implications for Meltwater Production Estimates

Surface mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) has accelerated over the past decades, mainly due to enhanced surface melting and liquid water runoff in response to atmospheric warming. A large portion of runoff from the GrIS originates from exposure of the darker bare ice in the ablation zone when the overlying snow melts, where surface albedo plays a critical role in modulating the energy available for melting. In this regard, it is imperative to understand the processes governing albedo variability to accurately project future mass loss from the GrIS. Bare-ice albedo is spatially and temporally variable and contingent on non-linear feedbacks and the presence of light-absorbing constituents. An assessment of models aiming at simulating albedo variability and associated impacts on meltwater production is crucial for improving our understanding of the processes governing these feedbacks and, in turn, surface mass loss from Greenland. Here, we report the results of a comparison of the bare-ice extent and albedo simulated by the regional climate model Modèle Atmosphérique Régional (MAR) with satellite imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) for the GrIS below 70∘ N. Our findings suggest that MAR overestimates bare-ice albedo by 22.8 % on average in this area during the 2000–2021 period with respect to the estimates obtained from MODIS. Using an energy balance model to parameterize meltwater production, we find this bare-ice albedo bias can lead to an underestimation of total meltwater production from the bare-ice zone below 70∘ N of 42.8 % during the summers of 2000–2021.

albedo↗
NASA NTRS2014

The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE): Initial Science Results

On September 6, 2013, a nearperfect launch of the first Minotaur V rocket successfully carried NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) into a higheccentricity geocentric orbit. The launch, from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, was visible from much of the eastern seaboard. Over the next 30 days, LADEE performed three phasing orbits, with near-perfect maneuvers that placed apogee at ever higher altitudes in preparation for rendezvous with the Moon. LADEE arrived at the Moon on October 6, 2013, during the government shutdown. LADEE's science objectives are twofold: (1) Determine the composition of the lunar atmosphere, investigate processes controlling its distribution and variability, including sources, sinks, and surface interactions; (2) Characterize the lunar exospheric dust environment, measure its spatial and temporal variability, and effects on the lunar atmosphere, if any.

LADEE↗
NASA NTRS1995

Seasonal variability of light availability and utilization in the Sargasso Sea

A 2 year time series of optical, biogeochemical, and physical parameters, taken near the island of Bermuda, is used to evaluate the sources of temporal variability in light avaliability and utilization in the Sargasso Sea. Integrated assessments of light availability are made by examining the depth of constant percent incident photosynthetically available radiation (% PAR) isolumes. To first order, changes in the depth %PAR isolumes were caused by physical processes: deep convection mixing in the winter which led to the spring bloom and concurrent shallowing of %PAR depths and the occurrence of anomalous thermohaline water masses during the summer and fall seasons. Spectral light availability variations are assessed using determinations of diffuse attenuation coefficient spectra which illustrates a significant seasonal cycle in colored detrital particulate and/or dissolved materials that is unrelated to changes in chlorophyll pigment concentrations. Temporal variations in the photosynthetic light utilization index Psi are used to assess vertically intergrated light utilization variations. Values of Psi are highly variable and show no apparent seasonal pattern which indicates that Psi is not simply a 'biogeochemical constant.' Determinations of in situ primary production rates and daily mean PAR fluxes are used to diagnose the relative role of light limitation in determining vertically integrated rates of primary production integral PP. The mean depth of the light-saturated zone (the vertical region where the daily mean PAR flux was greater than or equal to the saturation irradiance) is only approximately 40 m, although more than one half of interal PP occurred within this zone. Production model results illustrate that accurate predictions of integral PP are dependent upon rates of light-saturated production rather than upon indices of light limitation. It seems unlikely that significant improvements in simple primary production models will come from the partitioning of the Earth's seas into biogeochemical provinces.

Siegel, David A.↗