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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 145 records · Page 8
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NASA NTRS2001

A Co-Investigator Proposal for the Cornell University CAPER Rocket: Cleft Accelerated Plasma Experiment Rocket

The objectives are: 1) To support the Cornell wave instruments in a study of dayside ion outflow. 2) In conjunction with the U. of Alaska ground optical data, a prime objective was to measure the topside Cusp ion spectra responsible for dayside proton aurora. If such a correlative measurement could be made, then monitoring of this cusp precipitation from the ground could be routinely achieved. The nature of Cusp ions has and will continue to provide information about dayside magnetic reconnection. 3) A third objective was to study the dayside microburst electron precipitation from the BPS/CPS population. The Scifer rocket flight showed a bursty electron population at 1000 km altitude correlated closely with pulsation ground aurora on closed field lines. The frequency of this pulsating aurora is about 1 Hz. Ground pulsation measurements have recorded dayside bursts of Pc1 waves which could very well be the source of the electrons responsible for the pulsating aurora. In support of the Caper flight, UNH provided ground induction antennas to measure the equatorial Pc1 waves that might be dumping trapped electrons from the Central Plasma Sheet population. The Caper flight was launched on the last day of the window and all the Cornell and UNH instrumentation worked perfectly. Unfortunately the rocket trajectory flew very far to the west of the ground site at Longyearbyen missing conjugacy by several hundred kilometers. This meant the intended aurora was not crossed and all the ground experiments were far from being near the foot print of the rocket ruling out correlative science. The "miss" was primarily due to a decision during the countdown by the Andoya Rocket Range to move the azimuth of the rocket to the west to avoid Norwegian fishing boats at the splash point of the first two stages, and to make matters worse, the dispersion of the fourth stage of the rocket added entirely in this direction. Although no publications have resulted from the UNH data up to this point, a joint publication with the U. of Alaska group using both the Scifer and Caper data is in preparation. The data will continue to be worked on. There is interest in the Caper data as evidence by two recent papers presented at the "Low Latitude Boundary Layer Chapman Conference" held in New Orleans, Louisiana in April 2001.

Arnoldy, Roger L.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Stochastic Growth of Ion Cyclotron And Mirror Waves In Earth's Magnetosheath

Electromagnetic ion cyclotron and mirror waves in Earth's magnetosheath are bursty, have widely variable fields, and are unexpectedly persistent, properties difficult to reconcile with uniform secular growth. Here it is shown for specific periods that stochastic growth theory (SGT) quantitatively accounts for the functional form of the wave statistics and qualitatively explains the wave properties. The wave statistics are inconsistent with uniform secular growth or self-organized criticality, but nonlinear processes sometimes play a role at high fields. The results show SGT's relevance near marginal stability and suggest that it is widely relevant to space and astrophysical plasmas.

Cairns, Iver H.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Stochastic Growth Theory of Spatially-Averaged Distributions of Langmuir Fields in Earth's Foreshock

Langmuir-like waves in the foreshock of Earth are characteristically bursty and irregular, and are the subject of a number of recent studies. Averaged over the foreshock, it is observed that the probability distribution is power-law P(bar)(log E) in the wave field E with the bar denoting this averaging over position, In this paper it is shown that stochastic growth theory (SGT) can explain a power-law spatially-averaged distributions P(bar)(log E), when the observed power-law variations of the mean and standard deviation of log E with position are combined with the log normal statistics predicted by SGT at each location.

Boshuizen, Christopher R.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Plasma Waves Observed in the Cusp Turbulent Boundary Layer: An Analysis of High Time Resolution Wave and Particle Measurements from the Polar Spacecraft

The boundary layer located in the cusp and adjacent to the magnetopause is a region that is quite turbulent and abundant with waves. The Polar spacecraft's orbit and sophisticated instrumentation are ideal for studying this region of space. Our analysis of the waveform data obtained in this turbulent boundary layer shows broadband magnetic noise extending up to a few kilohertz (but less than the electron cyclotron frequency); sinusoidal bursts (a few tenths of a second) of whistler mode waves at around a few tens of hertz, a few hundreds of hertz, and just below the electron cyclotron frequency; and bipolar pulses, interpreted as electron phase-space holes. In addition, bursts of electron cyclotron harmonic waves are occasionally observed with magnetic components. We show evidence of broadband electrostatic bursts covering a range of approx. 3 to approx. 25 kHz (near but less than the plasma frequency) occurring in packets modulated at the frequency of some of the whistler mode waves. On the basis of high time resolution particle data from the Polar HYDRA instrument, we show that these bursts are consistent with generation by the resistive medium instability. The most likely source of the whistler mode waves is the magnetic reconnection site closest to the spacecraft, since the waves are observed propagating both toward and away from the Earth, are bursty, which is often the case with reconnection, and do not fit on the theoretical cold plasma dispersion relation curve.

Pickett, J. S.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Plasma Waves Observed During CUSP Energetic Particle Events and Their Correlation With Polar and Akebono Satellite and Ground Data

We present Polar plasma wave data during cusp energetic particle (CEP) events at 6-9 R(sub E). These data suggest the presence of coherent electrostatic structures that are highly localized and that have typical velocities on the order of hundreds to thousands of kilometers per second along the ambient magnetic field. Some of the wave signatures are solitary waves and some are wave packets. The Polar wave instrument also provides evidence that some of the bursts of electromagnetic waves (with frequencies of a few hundred Hz and just below the electron cyclotron frequency around 800 Hz to 1-2 kHz) that are observed are coher&nt and propagating both up and down the field lines. Electron cyclotron harmonic (ECH) waves are often detected but their duration is usually short (less than 1 second). Low Frequency (less than 1 kHz), broadband, bursty electromagnetic waves are also present. The Polar wave data results are used to obtain a better understanding of the macro/microphysics during a CEP event that takes place on September 11, 1996, by correlating various Polar (approximately 7.0 R(sub E)) and Akebono (approximately 1.4 R(sub E)) data while both spacecraft are in or near the cusp/cleft region and nearly on the same field line, and magnetometer data from the Canadian Intermagnet and Canopus ground stations, which lie near the base of the magnetic footprint passing through Polar. Solar wind and magnetic field data from the interplanetary medium and magnetosheath are provided by the Geotail and IMP-8 satellites, respectively. Some of the cusp waves may be indicators of the reconnection process taking place through the cusp, the result of mixing of magnetosheath with magnetospheric plasma, and the consequence of an anisotropic electron population in a depressed magnetic field. The low frequency electromagnetic waves are still under study to determine their role, if any, in the heating and acceleration of the MeV He ions during CEP events.

Pickett, J. S.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Automated Assessment of Visual Quality of Digital Video

The advent of widespread distribution of digital video creates a need for automated methods for evaluating visual quality of digital video. This is particularly so since most digital video is compressed using lossy methods, which involve the controlled introduction of potentially visible artifacts. Compounding the problem is the bursty nature of digital video, which requires adaptive bit allocation based on visual quality metrics. In previous work, we have developed visual quality metrics for evaluating, controlling, and optimizing the quality of compressed still images[1-4]. These metrics incorporate simplified models of human visual sensitivity to spatial and chromatic visual signals. The challenge of video quality metrics is to extend these simplified models to temporal signals as well. In this presentation I will discuss a number of the issues that must be resolved in the design of effective video quality metrics. Among these are spatial, temporal, and chromatic sensitivity and their interactions, visual masking, and implementation complexity. I will also touch on the question of how to evaluate the performance of these metrics.

Watson, Andrew B.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Towards a Visual Quality Metric for Digital Video

The advent of widespread distribution of digital video creates a need for automated methods for evaluating visual quality of digital video. This is particularly so since most digital video is compressed using lossy methods, which involve the controlled introduction of potentially visible artifacts. Compounding the problem is the bursty nature of digital video, which requires adaptive bit allocation based on visual quality metrics. In previous work, we have developed visual quality metrics for evaluating, controlling, and optimizing the quality of compressed still images. These metrics incorporate simplified models of human visual sensitivity to spatial and chromatic visual signals. The challenge of video quality metrics is to extend these simplified models to temporal signals as well. In this presentation I will discuss a number of the issues that must be resolved in the design of effective video quality metrics. Among these are spatial, temporal, and chromatic sensitivity and their interactions, visual masking, and implementation complexity. I will also touch on the question of how to evaluate the performance of these metrics.

Watson, Andrew B.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Self-Organized Criticality, Multifractals, and Intermittent Turbulence in Earth's Magnetotail

We have achieved all the goals stated in our grant proposal in collaboration with Dr. C.C. Wu of the University of California at Los Angeles. Specifically, these include: The understanding of the complexity induced nonlinear spatiotemporal structures and the coexisting propagating modes. The development of plasma resonances and coherent structures in space plasmas. The study of fluctuation-induced nonlinear instabilities and their role in the reconfiguration of magnetic topologies in the magnetotail. The development of "anisotropic three-dimensional complexity" in the plasma sheet due to localized merging and interactions of the magnetic coherent structures and associated topological phase transitions. The understanding of the intermittent turbulence and energization process of the observed Bursty Bulk Flows (BBF's) in the Earth s magnetotail. The acceleration of ions due to the intermittent turbulence of propagating arid nonpropagating fluctuations In the following, we include lists of our published papers, invited talks, and professional activities. A detailed description of our accomplished research results is given in Section IV.

Chang, Tom↗
NASA NTRS2005

A Mechanism for the Loading-Unloading Substorm Cycle Missing in MHD Global Magnetospheric Simulation Models

Loading and consequent unloading of magnetic flux is an essential element of the substorm cycle in Earth's magnetotail. We are unaware of an available global MHD magnetospheric simulation model that includes a loading- unloading cycle in its behavior. Given the central role that MHD models presently play in the development of our understanding of magnetospheric dynamics, and given the present plans for the central role that these models will play in ongoing space weather prediction programs, it is clear that this failure must be corrected. A 2-dimensional numerical driven current-sheet model has been developed that incorporates an idealized current- driven instability with a resistive MHD system. Under steady loading, the model exhibits a global loading- unloading cycle. The specific mechanism for producing the loading-unloading cycle will be discussed. It will be shown that scale-free avalanching of electromagnetic energy through the model, from loading to unloading, is carried by repetitive bursts of localized reconnection. Each burst leads, somewhat later, to a field configuration that is capable of exciting a reconnection burst again. This process repeats itself in an intermittent manner while the total field energy in the system falls. At the end of an unloading interval, the total field energy is reduced to well below that necessary to initiate the next unloading event and, thus, a loading-unloading cycle results. It will be shown that, in this model, it is the topology of bursty localized reconnection that is responsible for the appearance of the loading-unloading cycle.

Klimas, A. J.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Investigation of the Dynamics of Coherent Structure, BBF, and Intermittent Turbulence in Earth's Magnetotail: A Study of Complexity in Nonlinear Space Plasmas

We have achieved all the goals stated in our grant proposal. Specifically, these include: 1. The understanding of the complexity induced nonlinear spatiotemporal coherent structures and the coexisting propagating modes. 2. The understanding of the intermittent turbulence and energization process of the observed Bursty Bulk Flows (BBF's) in the Earth s magnetotail. 3. The development of "anisotropic three-dimensional complexity" in the plasma sheet due to localized merging and interactions of the magnetic coherent structures. 4. The study of fluctuation-induced nonlinear instabilities and their role in the reconfiguration of magnetic topologies in the magnetotail based on the concepts of the dynamic renormalization group. 5. The acceleration of ions due to the intermittent turbulence of propagating and nonpropagating fluctuations. In the following, we include lists of our published papers, invited talks, and professional activities. A detailed description of our accomplished research results is given..

Chang, Tom↗
NASA NTRS2005

Coronal Current Sheet Evolution in the Aftermath of a CME

We report on SOHO-UVCS observations of coronal restructuring following a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) on November 26, 2002, at the time of a SOHO-Ulysses quadrature campaign. Starting about 3 hours after the CME, which was directed towards Ulysses, UVCS began taking spectra at 1.7 solar radii, covering emission from both cool and hot plasma. Observations continued, with occasional gaps, for more than 2 days. Emission in the 974.8 Angstrom line of [Fe XVIII], indicating temperatures above 6x10(6) K, was observed throughout the campaign in a spatially limited location. Comparison with EIT images shows the [Fe XVIII] emission to overlie a growing post-flare loop system formed in the aftermath of the CME. The emission most likely originates in a current sheet overlying the arcade. Analysis of the [Fe XVIII] emission allows us to infer the evolution of physical parameters in the current sheet over the entire span of our observations: in particular, we give the temperature vs. time in the current sheet and estimate the density. Ulysses was directly above the location of the CME and intercepted the ejecta. High ionization state Fe was detected by SWICS throughout the magnetic cloud associated with the CME, although the rapid temporal variation suggests bursty, rather than smooth, reconnection in the coronal current sheet. Both the remote and in situ observations are compared with predictions of theoretical CME models.

Bemporad, A.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Cluster electric current density measurements within a magnetic flux rope in the plasma sheet

On August 22, 2001 all 4 Cluster spacecraft nearly simultaneously penetrated a magnetic flux rope in the tail. The flux rope encounter took place in the central plasma sheet, Beta(sub i) approx. 1-2, near the leading edge of a bursty bulk flow. The "time-of-flight" of the flux rope across the 4 spacecraft yielded V(sub x) approx. 700 km/s and a diameter of approx.1 R(sub e). The speed at which the flux rope moved over the spacecraft is in close agreement with the Cluster plasma measurements. The magnetic field profiles measured at each spacecraft were first modeled separately using the Lepping-Burlaga force-free flux rope model. The results indicated that the center of the flux rope passed northward (above) s/c 3, but southward (below) of s/c 1, 2 and 4. The peak electric currents along the central axis of the flux rope predicted by these single-s/c models were approx.15-19 nA/sq m. The 4-spacecraft Cluster magnetic field measurements provide a second means to determine the electric current density without any assumption regarding flux rope structure. The current profile determined using the curlometer technique was qualitatively similar to those determined by modeling the individual spacecraft magnetic field observations and yielded a peak current density of 17 nA/m2 near the central axis of the rope. However, the curlometer results also showed that the flux rope was not force-free with the component of the current density perpendicular to the magnetic field exceeding the parallel component over the forward half of the rope, perhaps due to the pressure gradients generated by the collision of the BBF with the inner magnetosphere. Hence, while the single-spacecraft models are very successful in fitting flux rope magnetic field and current variations, they do not provide a stringent test of the force-free condition.

Slavin, J. A.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Modeling the Self-organized Critical Behavior of the Plasma Sheet Reconnection Dynamics

Analyses of Polar UVI auroral image data reviewed in our other presentation at this meeting (V. Uritsky, A. Klimas) show that bright night-side high-latitude UV emissions exhibit so many of the key properties of systems in self-organized criticality (SOC) that an alternate interpretation has become virtually impossible. It is now necessary to find and model the source of this behavior. We note that the most common models of self-organized criticality are numerical sandpiles. These are, at root, models that govern the transport of some quantity from a region where it is loaded to another where it is unloaded. Transport is enabled by the excitation of a local threshold instability; it is intermittent and bursty, and it exhibits a number of scale-free statistical properties. Searching for a system in the magnetosphere that is analogous and that, in addition, is known to produce auroral signatures, we focus on the reconnection dynamics of the plasma sheet. In our previous work, a driven reconnection model has been constructed and has been under study. The transport of electromagnetic (primarily magnetic) energy carried by the Poynting flux into the reconnection region of the model has been examined. All of the analysis techniques, and more, that have been applied to the auroral image data have also been applied to this Poynting flux. Here, we report new results showing that this model also exhibits so many of the key properties of systems in self-organized criticality that an alternate interpretation is implausible. Further, we find a strong correlation between these key properties of the model and those of the auroral UV emissions. We suggest that, in general, the driven reconnection model is an important step toward a realistic plasma physical model of self-organized criticality and we conclude, more specifically, that it is also a step in the right direction toward modeling the multiscale reconnection dynamics of the magnetotail.

Klimas, Alex↗
NASA NTRS2006

Current Sheet Evolution In The Aftermath Of A CME Event

We report on SOHO UVCS observations of the coronal restructuring following a coronal mass ejection (CME) on 2002 November 26, at the time of a SOHO-Ulysses quadrature campaign. Starting about 1.5 hr after a CME in the northwest quadrant, UVCS began taking spectra at 1.7 R, covering emission from both cool and hot plasma. Observations continued, with occasional gaps, for more than 2 days. Emission in the 974.8 A line of [Fe XVIII], indicating temperatures above 6 x 10(exp 6) K, was observed throughout the campaign in a spatially limited location. Comparison with EIT images shows the [Fe XVIII] emission to overlie a growing post-flare loop system formed in the aftermath of the CME. The emission most likely originates in a current sheet overlying the arcade. Analysis of the [Fe XVIII] emission allows us to infer the evolution of physical parameters in the current sheet over the entire span of our observations: in particular, we give the temperature versus time in the current sheet and estimate its density. At the time of the quadrature, Ulysses was directly above the location of the CME and intercepted the ejecta. High ionization state Fe was detected by the Ulysses SWICS throughout the magnetic cloud associated with the CME, although its rapid temporal variation suggests bursty, rather than smooth, reconnection in the coronal current sheet. The SOHO-Ulysses data set provided us with the unique opportunity of analyzing a current sheet structure from its lowest coronal levels out to its in situ properties. Both the remote and in situ observations are compared with predictions of theoretical CME models.

Bemporad, A.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Modeling the Self-organized Critical Behavior of Earth's Plasma Sheet Reconnection Dynamics

Analyses of Polar UVI auroral image data show that bright night-side high-latitude W emissions exhibit so many of the key properties of systems in self-organized criticality that an alternate interpretation has become virtually impossible. These analyses will be reviewed. It is now necessary to find and model the source of this behavior. We note that the most common models of self-organized criticality are numerical sandpiles. These are, at root, models that govern the transport of some quantity from a region where it is loaded to another where it is unloaded. Transport is enabled by the excitation of a local threshold instability; it is intermittent and bursty, and it exhibits a number of scale-free statistical properties. Searching for a system in the magnetosphere that is analogous and that, in addition, is known to produce auroral signatures, we focus on the reconnection dynamics of the magnetotail plasma sheet. In our previous work, a driven reconnection model has been constructed and has been under study. The transport of electromagnetic (primarily magnetic) energy carried by the Poynting flux into the reconnection region of the model has been examined. All of the analysis techniques (and more) that have been applied to the auroral image data have also been applied to this Poynting flux. New results will be presented showing that this model also exhibits so many of the key properties of systems in self-organized criticality that an alternate interpretation is implausible. A strong correlation between these key properties of the model and those of the auroral UV emissions will be demonstrated. We suggest that, in general, the driven reconnection model is an important step toward a realistic plasma physical model of self-organized criticality and we conclude, more specifically, that it is also a step in the right direction toward modeling the multiscale reconnection dynamics of the magnetotail.

Klimas, Alexander J.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Relationship Between Alfvenic Fluctuations and Heavy Ion Heating in the Cusp at 1 Re

We look at the effect of heavy ion heating from their coupling with observed broadband (BB-ELF) emissions. These wave fluctuations are common to many regions of the ionosphere and magnetosphere and have been described as spatial turbulence of dispersive Alfven waves (DAW) with short perpendicular wavelengths. With Polar passing through the cusp at 1 Re in the Spring of 1996, we show the correlation of their wave power with mass-resolved O+ derived heating rates. This relationship lead to the study of the coupling of the thermal O+ ions and these bursty electric fields. We demonstrate the role of these measurements in the suggestion of DAW and stochastic ion heating and the observed density cavity characteristics.

Coffey, Victoria↗
NASA NTRS2010

Solar Wind Halo Formation by the Scattering of the Strahl via Direct Cluster/PEACE Observations of the 3D Velocity Distribution Function

It has been suggested by a number of authors that the solar wind electron halo can be formed by the scattering of the strahl. On frequent occasions we have observed in electron angular skymaps (Phi/Theta-plots) of the electron 3D velocity distribution functions) a bursty-filament of particles connecting the strahl to the solar wind core-halo. These are seen over a very limited energy range. When the magnetic field is well off the nominal solar wind flow direction such filaments are inconsistent with any local forces and are probably the result of strong scattering. Furthermore, observations indicates that the strahl component is frequently and significantly anisotropic (Tper/Tpal approx.2). This provides a possible free energy source for the excitation of whistler waves as a possible scattering mechanism. The empirical observational evidence between the halo and the strahl suggests that the strahl population may be, at least in part, the source of the halo component.

Figueroa-Vinas, Adolfo↗