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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 NTRS1980

On the polar moment of inertia of a compressible body

The rotational dynamics of a body are governed by the values of its principle moments of inertia. These quantities are not directly observable, but they are related to the harmonic coefficients of the external gravity field and to the density distribution within the body, both of which can be inferred from appropriate observations. It is shown that, for the particular case of a spherical planet whose density varies as a power of the radial distance, the principal moment of inertia has an elegantly simple form. Application of this simplified case to the Jovian planets suggests that the density profiles outside the central core are approximately linear, with the apparent exception of Neptune.

Mulholland, J. D.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Test results of flight guidance for fuel conservative descents in a time-based metered air traffic environment

The NASA developed, implemented, and flight tested a flight management algorithm designed to improve the accuracy of delivering an airplane in a fuel-conservative manner to a metering fix at a time designated by air traffic control. This algorithm provides a 3D path with time control (4D) for the TCV B-737 airplane to make an idle-thrust, clean configured (landing gear up, flaps zero, and speed brakes retracted) descent to arrive at the metering fix at a predetermined time, altitude, and airspeed. The descent path is calculated for a constant Mach/airspeed schedule from linear approximations of airplane performance with considerations given for gross weight, wind, and nonstandard pressure and temperature effects. The flight management descent algorithms are described and flight test results are presented.

Knox, C. E.↗

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 NTRS1981

Measurements of energy exchange between acoustic fields and non-uniform steady flow fields

Data were obtained for a resonance tube having a vent at the center in the lateral boundary, an average flow being introduced at the ends. Experiments were done for both circular and slot vents, over ranges of both frequency and Mach number. It was demonstrated that a subsonic exhaust vent in the lateral boundary of a cold flow resonance tube provides a gain of acoustic energy for the fundamental mode within the resonance tube. The gain of acoustic energy increases approximately linearly with the Mach number, as predicted by the one-dimensional analysis. The one-dimensional result gives the values for the slope representing the variation of the attenuation coefficient of the exhaust vent with respect to the average Mach number of the flow within roughly 30% of those measured. It has been verified that the subsonic vent produces a gain proportional to the average Mach number, proportional to the frequency, and independent of the shape. The results may be applicable to the study of vibration phenomena in solid propellant rocket engines.

Magiawala, K. R.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Theory and application of the polarization-albedo rules

The paper reports results of a computer calculation of the scattering of light from porous particulate surfaces such as those of the moon, asteroids, and airless planets. The scattered-light intensity and polarization are computed as a function of phase angle, and plots are constructed corresponding to the observed empirical rules for deducing albedo from the slope, maximum, and minimum of polarization curves. The approximate linearity of these rules on a log-log plot is confirmed for most solar system objects. The theory shows that the albedo vs. polarization plots correspond directly to a plot in two dimensions of the real vs. imaginary index of refraction of these soils, using curved axes.

Wolff, M.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Development of simplified airborne computations for fuel conservative descents in a time-based metered air traffic environment

The NASA has developed and flight-tested a simple flight management descent algorithm designed to improve the accuracy of delivering an airplane in a fuel-conservative manner to a metering fix at a time designated by air traffic control. This algorithm provides a three-dimensional path with terminal area time constraints (four-dimensional) for an airplane to make an idle-thrust, clean-configured (landing gear up, flaps zero, and speed brakes retracted) descent to arrive at the metering fix at a predetermined time, altitude, and airspeed. The descent path is calculated for a constant Mach/airspeed schedule from linear approximations of airplane performance with considerations given for gross weight, wind, and nonstandard pressure and temperature effects. Applications of the four-dimensional and descent planning capabilities of the algorithm to conventional airplanes is being investigated. This report describes the flight management descent algorithm and presents the results of the flight tests flown with the Terminal Configured Vehicle airplane.

Knox, C. E.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Simultaneous observations of energetic protons close to the bow shock and far upstream

Four upstream energetic proton events (30 keV-75 keV), which were simultaneously observed by the ISEE-1 and ISEE-3 satellites, are investigated. A comparison was made between the absolute flux values about 200 earth radii from the bow shock and the flux values several earth radii in front of the bow shock at two different energies. Close to the bow shock the particle distribution is more or less isotropic and indicates relatively strong scattering of these particles in the upstream wave field. At ISEE-3 between 100 and 200 earth radii upstream from the earth's bow shock, the particles move essentially scatter-free from the general bow shock direction. The proton differential intensity at ISEE-3 is a factor of about 4-15 less than at ISEE-1 at 30 keV. The spectra at ISEE-1 are steeper than the spectra at ISEE-3. Flux ratios and spectra are discussed in terms of a first order Fermi acceleration model with a diffusion coefficient increasing approximately linearly with energy and a free escape boundary at some distance upstream.

Scholer, M.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Numerical simulation of plasma insulator interactions in space. Part 1: The self consistent calculation

A computer program is being developed to simulate the interaction of a plasma with a conducting disk partially covered by an insulator. Initial runs consider only charge sticking to the dielectric. Results indicate that the current density drawn by the hole in the dielectric increases approximately linearly with voltage for conductor voltages between 5 volts and 250 volts.

Nonnast, J. H.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Planning fuel-conservative descents with or without time constraints using a small programmable calculator: Algorithm development and flight test results

A simplified flight-management descent algorithm, programmed on a small programmable calculator, was developed and flight tested. It was designed to aid the pilot in planning and executing a fuel-conservative descent to arrive at a metering fix at a time designated by the air traffic control system. The algorithm may also be used for planning fuel-conservative descents when time is not a consideration. The descent path was calculated for a constant Mach/airspeed schedule from linear approximations of airplane performance with considerations given for gross weight, wind, and nonstandard temperature effects. The flight-management descent algorithm is described. The results of flight tests flown with a T-39A (Sabreliner) airplane are presented.

Knox, C. E.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Rapid X-ray variability from the Seyfert 1 Galaxy NGC 4051

Strong variable X-ray emission from the nearby low luminosity Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4051 was discovered during observations with the imaging proportional counter of the Einstein Observatory. During one 2304 second observation, the X-ray flux more than doubled in an approximately linear fashion, and a 70% increase for 150 seconds was seen during another 968 second observation. Evidence is presented which demonstrates that the X-ray spectrum of NGC 4051 is unusually soft compared to Seyfert 1 galaxies or QSOs. The emission mechanism is probably not synchrotron or synchrotron self-Compton, but the emission can be plausibly explained by various black hole accretion models.

Marshall, F. E.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Description of the computations and pilot procedures for planning fuel-conservative descents with a small programmable calculator

A simplified flight management descent algorithm was developed and programmed on a small programmable calculator. It was designed to aid the pilot in planning and executing a fuel conservative descent to arrive at a metering fix at a time designated by the air traffic control system. The algorithm may also be used for planning fuel conservative descents when time is not a consideration. The descent path was calculated for a constant Mach/airspeed schedule from linear approximations of airplane performance with considerations given for gross weight, wind, and nonstandard temperature effects. The flight management descent algorithm and the vertical performance modeling required for the DC-10 airplane is described.

Vicroy, D. D.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Optical bursts from 4U/MXB 1636-53

The results of observations of 15 and 26 optical bursts detected during June and July 1979 and June and July 1980, respectively, from the X-ray burst source 4U/MXB 1636-53 in a 'white light' passband are presented. The maximum burst fluxes above the persistent optical flux and integrated burst fluxes are correlated, and it appears that the maximum optical and X-ray burst fluxes are related according to a power law, consistent with optical emission from blackbody reprocessing of X-rays. The approximately linear relationship between the integrated optical and X-ray burst fluxes argues against this simple picture. The correlation of burst fluxes with waiting time since the previous burst suggests that large optical bursts come after a long waiting time. Short burst intervals observed both for optical and X-radiation suggest that not all available nuclear fuel is consumed in the thermonuclear flash which gives rise to the X-ray burst.

Pedersen, H.↗

NASA NTRS1983

The peculiar velocity field in flattened superclusters

The linear growth rate of small transverse perturbations in a self-gravitating, collisionless gas that is undergoing a one-dimensional collapse is strongly influenced by the nonlinear flow of the background. In the collapse plane, smaller Hubble flow deviations and infall velocities are obtained than in the simple linear theory. Application of this theory to the kinematics of galaxies in a flat supercluster shows that the usual linear approximation may seriously underestimate Omega, the density parameter of the universe, if there is a strong deviation from spherical symmetry. Furthermore, dissipative separation of baryonic matter from collisionless dark material (such as hypothesized massive neutrinos) enhances this effect, leading to apparent Omega values of 0.2-0.3 for a wide range of separation parameters in an Einstein-de Sitter (Omega = 1) model.

Szalay, A. S.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Radiative equilibrium model of Titan's atmosphere

The present global radiative equilibrium model for the Saturn satellite Titan is restricted to the two-stream approximation, is vertically homogeneous in its scattering properties, and is spectrally divided into one thermal and two solar channels. Between 13 and 33% of the total incident solar radiation is absorbed at the planetary surface, and the 30-60 ratio of violet to thermal IR absorption cross sections in the stratosphere leads to the large temperature inversion observed there. The spectrally integrated mass absorption coefficient at thermal wavelengths is approximately constant throughout the stratosphere, and approximately linear with pressure in the troposphere, implying the presence of a uniformly mixed aerosol in the stratosphere. There also appear to be two regions of enhanced opacity near 30 and 500 mbar.

Samuelson, R. E.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Rapid X-ray variability from the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4051

Strong variable X-ray emission from the nearby low luminosity Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4051 was discovered during observations with the imaging proportional counter of the Einstein Observatory. During one 2304 second observation, the X-ray flux more than doubled in an approximately linear fashion, and a 70 percent increase for 150 seconds was seen during another 968 second observation. Evidence is presented which demonstrates that the X-ray spectrum of NGC 4051 is unusually soft compared to Seyfert 1 galaxies or QSOs. The emission mechanism is probably not synchrotron or synchrotron self-Compton, but the emission can be plausibly explained by various black hole accretion models. Previously announced in STAR as N83-23265

Marshall, F. E.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Test of the principle of equivalence by a null gravitational red-shift experiment

A test of the Einstein equivalence principle (EEP) was performed by carrying out a 'null' gravitational red-shift experiment. The experiment compared the rates of a pair of hydrogen maser clocks with those of a set of three superconducting-cavity stabilized oscillator clocks as a function of the solar gravitational potential. If EEP were not valid, the relative rates could vary with potential. During the experiment, the solar potential in the laboratory varied approximately linearly at 3 parts in 10 to the 12th per day because of the earth's orbital motion, and diurnally with an amplitude of 3 parts in 10 to the 13th because of the earth's rotation. An upper limit on the relative frequency variation of 1.7 parts in 100 of the external potential was set. The accuracy was limited by the frequency stability of the clocks and by unmodeled environmental effects. The result is consistent with the EEP at the 2 percent level. The experiment can also be viewed as setting a limit on a possible spatial variation of the fine-structure constant.

Turneaure, J. P.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Nonlinear transformat

A technique for designing automatic flight controllers for aircraft which utilizes the transformation theory of nonlinear systems to linear systems is presently being developed at NASA Ames Research Center. A method is considered in which a given nonlinear is transformed to a controllable linear system in Brunovsky canonical form. A linear approximation is introduced to the nonlinear system called the modified tangent model. This model is easily computed. Constructing the transformation for this model enables the designer to find an approximate transformation for the nonlinear system.

Ford, H.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Steady viscous flow past a circular cylinder

Viscous flow past a circular cylinder becomes unstable around Reynolds number Re = 40. With a numerical technique based on Newton's method and made possible by the use of a supercomputer, steady (but unstable) solutions have been calculated up to Re = 400. It is found that the wake continues to grow in length approximately linearly with Re. However, in conflict with available asymptotic predictions, the width starts to increase very rapidly around Re = 300. All numerical calculations have been performed on the CDC CYBER 205 at the CDC Service Center in Arden Hills, Minnesota.

Fornberg, B.↗