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At least 145 records · Page 8

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NASA NTRS1976

LANDSAT observations of ocean dump plume movement and dispersion

The author has identified the following significant results. Eighteen LANDSAT images were analyzed to study the dispersion and movement of ocean dump plumes thirty-eight miles southeast of Cape Henlopen, Delaware, at the disposal site for waste discharged from a plant producing titanium dioxide. Long visual persistence was explained by the formation of a suspended ferric floc. Spectrometric measurements indicate that upon combining with sea water the acid waste develops a strong reflectance peak in the band 0.55 to 0.60 micron region, resulting in a stronger contrast in the MSS band 4 than the other bands. Predominant direction of movement of the waste plumes was to the southeast. Average drift velocity for surface drogues and the waste plumes was about 0.5 knots. The water at the test site was highly stratified and stable in the summer and nearly homogenous in the winter.

Klemas, V.↗

NASA NTRS1976

Geothermal flux through palagonitized tephra, Surtsey, Iceland - The Surtsey temperature-data-relay experiment via Landsat-1

The net geothermal flux through palagonitized basaltic tephra rims of the Surtur I and Surtur II craters at Surtsey, Iceland, in 1972, is estimated at 780 plus or minus 325 microcal/sq cm/s, indicating a decline since 1969 when a flux of 1500 microcal/sq cm/s was estimated. Heat flux in this range characterizes the postvolcanic environment on Surtsey in which the subaerial polagonitization of basaltic tephra is associated with mass transfer of hydrothermal vapor, either of meteoric or sea-water origin, only a few years after cessation of eruptive activity. The flux estimation is the result of the Surtsey data-relay experiment via Landsat-1 which was carried out in several phases. Temperature data were transmitted for a 38-day period in November and December 1972. A near-surface vertical gradient of 69.4 C/m was obtained, suggesting a mixed mechanism of heat transfer, partitioned between conduction and convection.

Friedman, J. D.↗

NASA NTRS1978

Classification and generation of terrestrial rare gases

A Kr-84/Xe-130 versus Ne-20/Ar-36 diagram is a very useful format with which to study the elemental ratios of rare gases from terrestrial materials. It can separate not only the three types of rare gases which Ozima and Alexander (1976) classified but also the 'planetary' type rare gases from the other three types of rare gases. When all the available terrestrial rare gas data are plotted in a Kr-84/Xe-130 versus Ne-20/Ar-36 diagram, several observations can be made. First, most of the analyses of rare gases from shales yield Kr-84/Xe-130 ratios between the 'planetary' and atmospheric values. If, however, the atmosphere's high Kr-84/Xe-130 ratio was produced by the selective adsorption of xenon onto shales from an initially 'planetary' atmosphere, as is widely accepted, then the Kr-84/Xe-130 ratio in shales should be even lower than the 'planetary' value. Second, the rare gas pattern in the quenched rims of submarine basalts may be explained as fractionated samples of the rare gases in sea water.

Saito, K.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Submicrosecond risetimes in lightning radiation fields

Measurements of lightning electric fields, E, and dE/dt signatures were made near Tampa Bay, Florida, under conditions where the field propagation from the source to the detector was entirely over sea water. The fast transitions found on the initial portion of return stroke E waveforms have 10 to 90 percent risetimes ranging from 40 to 200 nsec, with a mean of 90 nsec. The maximum dE/dt values during these transitions range from 5 to 80 (V/m)microsec, with a mean of about 30 (V/m)microsec when normalized to a distance of 100 km. The initial risetimes of stepped-leader impulses that occur just prior to the first return stroke in cloud-to-ground flashes are very similar to the fast transitions in return strokes. The dE/dt values during leader steps range from 10 to 40 (V/m)/microsec with a mean of 20 (V/m)/microsec when normalized to 100 km. The fast impulses superimposed on large-amplitude intracloud waveforms have E risetimes and dE/dt values similar to those of the leader steps.

Weidman, C. D.↗

NASA NTRS1980

The origin and evolution of sulfur in an Archean volcano-sedimentary basin, Deer Lake area, Minnesota

Rocks of the Deer Lake area, northcentral Minnesota, consist of Archean (age greater than 2.6 billion years) metasediments and metavolcanics intruded by mafic layered sills. Geologic and sulfur isotopic data suggest that sulfides in the sediments are bacteriogenic, having formed in response to the activity of sulfate reducing bacteria during diagenesis. Deposition of the sediments appears to have occurred in a deep marine basin with restricted circulation of sea water. The bulk of the sulfur in the igneous rocks is of deep seated origin, but basal contacts of the sills show evidence of assimilation of biogenic sulfur from the intruded sediments. This assimilation of biogenic sulfur is the primary geochemical control of local Cu-Ni sulfide mineralization.

Nicol, D. L.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Nitrous oxide measurements in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean

The paper considers nitrous oxide measurements in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. The concentration of N2O in the marine air showed a direct relationship to the N2O in the surface sea water, with the highest N2O mixing ratios over highly supersaturated regions; water samples were also collected down to depths of 300 m at seven hydrocast stations. The stations showed two distribution patterns for N2O concentration vs depth for the region between the surface and 300 m; two stations in the oxygen deficient region off the coast of Peru showed considerable N2O super-saturation at all depths, and results indicate that the role of N2O in the nitrogen cycle of the ocean may be more complex than previously suggested.

Pierotti, D.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Acid rain at Kennedy Space Center, Florida - Recent observations

During the period July, 1977 to September, 1979, rainfall was collected in the vicinity of the Kennedy Space Center and subjected to appropriate chemical analysis for purposes of characterization of general composition and acidity. Results obtained form the basis for future comparisons, should significant alteration of the chemical composition of rain occur during the space shuttle era. Acidity extremes calculated on a monthly basis from event samples collected from five sites within a 200 sq km area varied from pH 5.1 in November, 1977, and April, 1978 to pH 4.3 in July, 1978 and July, 1979. Weighted average pH for the entire period was 4.55. Acidity was due to the presence of sulfuric and nitric acids. The mole ratio of excess SO4(-2):NO3(-) was typically greater than one. Monthly weighted average Cl(-) concentrations ranged from 20-240 micromoles/liter. The Cl(-):Na(+) ratio was slightly lower than that present in sea water.

Madsen, B. C.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Current studies of CH3D: Ye olde line drive

The CH3D molecule is an intermediate methane which has immediate importance in the study of the chemical composition of the outer planets. The deuterium present in the atmospheres of the giant planets is thought to be representative of the protosolar composition, a quantity of high interest to cosmogonists and to cosmologists. The values of D/H range from about .0002 in the interstellar medium to .00016 in sea water here on Earth. The CH3D molecule was examined as a probe of the D/H ratio.

Lutz, B. L.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Mathematical and physical modelling of materials processing

Mathematical and physical modeling of turbulence phenomena in metals processing, electromagnetically driven flows in materials processing, gas-solid reactions, rapid solidification processes, the electroslag casting process, the role of cathodic depolarizers in the corrosion of aluminum in sea water, and predicting viscoelastic flows are described.

Source record↗

NASA NTRS1982

Total nitrogen content of deep sea basalts

An estimate of the total nitrogen content of the earth's mantle, aimed at furnishing a further constraint for earth atmosphere origin and evolution models, was attempted through thermal neutron activation analysis via N-14(n,p)C-14 for the case of deep sea basalt glasses from the East Pacific Rise, the Mid-Atlantic Rift, and the Juan de Fuca Ridge. The increased nitrogen abundance of matrix material from the same samples as the glasses may be due to the incorporation of chemically-bound nitrogen from sea water, rather than dissolved molecular nitrogen. A discussion is presented of factors affecting observed basalt nitrogen content and its interpretation in terms of mantle nitrogen abundance. A 2 ppm N lower limit is estimated for the mantle.

Norris, T. L.↗

NASA NTRS1982

The mechanisms of fine particle generation and electrification during Mount St. Helens volcanic eruption

Microscopical investigation of volcanic ash collected from ground stations during Mount St. Helens eruptions reveal a distinctive bimodel size distribution with high concentrations of particle ranges at (1) 200-100 microns and (2) 20-0.1 microns. Close examination of individual particles shows that most larger ones are solidified magma particles of porous pumice with numerous gas bubbles in the interior and the smaller ones are all glassy fragments without any detectable gas bubbles. Elemental analysis demonstrates that the fine fragments all have a composition similar to that of the larger pumice particles. Laboratory experiments suggest that the formation of the fine fragments is by bursting of glassy bubbles from a partially solidified surface of a crystallizing molten magma particle. The production of gas bubbles is due to the release of absorbed gases in molten magma particles when solubility decreases during phase transition. Diffusion cloud chamber experiments strongly indicate that sub-micron volcanic fragments are highly hygroscopic and extremely active as cloud condensation nuclei. Ice crystals also are evidently formed on those fragments in a supercooled (-20 C) cloud chamber. It has been reported that charge generation from ocean volcanic eruptions is due to contact of molten lava with sea water. This seems to be insufficient to explain the observed rapid and intense lightning activities over Mount St. Helens eruptions. Therefore, a hypothesis is presented here that highly electrically charged fine solid fragments are ejected by bursting of gas bubbles from the surface of a crystallizing molten magma particles.

Cheng, R. J.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Importance of the Lu-Hf isotopic system in studies of planetary chronology and chemical evolution

The Lu-176-Hf-176 isotope method and its applications in earth sciences are discussed with regard to planetary-evolution studies. From new data on basalts from oceanic islands, Hf-176/Hf-177 and Nd-143/Nd-144 are found to display a single linear isotopic variation in the suboceanic mantle, whereas considerable divergences occur in Hf-176/Hf-177-Sr-87/Sr-86 and Nd-143/Nd-144-Sr87/Sr-86 diagrams. With the acquisition of further Hf-Sr-Nd isotopic data, these discordant Sr-87/Sr-86 relationships may allow a distinction between processes such as mantle metasomatism, influence of sea-water altered material in the magma source, or recycling of sediments into the mantle. The best quality Hf isotope data are obtained from granitoid or zircons, and are most suitable for studying ancient terrestrial Hf isotopic variations. Lu-Hf is shown to be a viable method for dating ancient terrestrial and extraterrestrial samples, but is unlikely to find wide application in pure chronological studies because it offers little advantage over existing methods.

Patchett, P. J.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Some examples of detection of oceanic mesoscale eddies by the Seasat synthetic-aperture radar

This note presents images of three dynamically different regions in the ocean to demonstrate the variety of mesoscale variabilities detected by the Seasat synthetic-aperture radar (SAR). South of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, a cold eddy is observed to form as the result of the southward intrusion of Labrador Sea water, perhaps having led to the birth of a Gulf Stream extension ring. Off the northern coast of California, features resulting from the offshore intrusions of cold upwelling water are observed. Two topographically generated eddies are detected near Misteriosa Bank on the Cayman Ridge in the northwestern Caribbean. Comparisons are made with concurrent NOAA-5 infrared images whenever the eddies have thermal signatures.

Fu, L.-L.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Airborne dual laser excitation and mapping of phytoplankton photopigments in a Gulf Stream Warm Core Ring

Utilization of a two-color airborne lidar system in the systematic study of a major oceanographic feature is reported here for the first time. An excimer pumped dye laser was optically and electronically integrated into the NASA Airborne Oceanographic Lidar for simultaneous use with a frequency doubled Nd:YAG laser. The output beams exit the laser system along parallel paths after being produced on an alternating pulse basis at a combined rate of 12.5 pps. Results are presented for missions flown over a Gulf Stream Warm Core Ring (WCR) as well as over shelf, slope, Gulf Stream, and Sargasso Sea waters. From the airborne data a high coherence is shown between the two-color chlorophyll a data and between the Nd:YAG chlorophyll a and phycoerythrin responses within each of these water masses. However, distinct differences in the response patterns of these photopigments are shown to exist between the differing water masses. At certain of the boundaries separating the water masses a sharp transition is seen to occur, while at others a wider transition zone was observed in which the correlation between the photopigments appears to degrade.

Hoge, F. E.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Prochloron expedition

Prochloron requires a source of N. It can obtain this from its didemnid symbiont as NH (sub4) or amino acids or both. It may obtain it from sea water as do free-living algae (FAA), but this is not likely to be the major source due to diomass consideration.

Stephens, G. C.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Solar neutrinos, solar flares, solar activity cycle and the proton decay

It is shown that there may be a correlation between the galactic cosmic rays and the solar neutrino data, but it appears that the neutrino flux which may be generated during the large solar cosmic ray events cannot in any way effect the solar neutrino data in Davis experiment. Only initial stage of mixing between the solar core and solar outer layers after the sunspot maximum in the solar activity cycle can explain the higher (run number 27 and 71) of solar neutrino data in Davis experiment. But solar flare induced atmospheric neutrino flux may have effect in the nucleon decay detector on the underground. The neutrino flux from solar cosmic rays may be a useful guide to understand the background of nucleon decay, magnetic monopole search, and the detection of neutrino flux in sea water experiment.

Raychaudhuri, P.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Underwater measurements of muon intensity

Experimental measurements of cosmic ray muon intensity deep underwater aimed at determining a muon absorption curve are of considerable interest, as they allow to reproduce independently the muon energy spectrum at sea level. The comparison of the muon absorption curve in sea water with that in rock makes it possible to determine muon energy losses caused by nuclear interactions. The data available on muon absorption in water and that in rock are not equivalent. Underground measurements are numerous and have been carried out down to the depth of approx. 15km w.e., whereas underwater muon intensity have been measured twice and only down to approx. 3km deep.

V.M. Fedorov↗

NASA NTRS1986

The C23A system, an exmaple of quantitative control of plant growth associated with a data base

The architecture of the C23A (Chambers de Culture Automatique en Atmosphere Artificielles) system for the controlled study of plant physiology is described. A modular plant growth chambers and associated instruments (I.R. CO2 analyser, Mass spectrometer and Chemical analyser); network of frontal processors controlling this apparatus; a central computer for the periodic control and the multiplex work of processors; and a network of terminal computers able to ask the data base for data processing and modeling are discussed. Examples of present results are given. A growth curve analysis study of CO2 and O2 gas exchanges of shoots and roots, and daily evolution of algal photosynthesis and of the pools of dissolved CO2 in sea water are discussed.

Andre, M.↗