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NASA NTRS1989

Interstellar gas and large grains toward HD 38087

High-dispersion IUE spectra have been obtained of HD 38087, a star associated with reflection nebulosity where 2175 A scattering has previously been observed. The presence of 2175 A in emission implies unusually large grains, an attempt was made to see how these unusual grains may have affected the depletions of gas-phase elements onto dust in the line of sight. Even though the observed scattering region constitutes only a fraction of the total column density of dust, it is expected that the present line-of-sight analysis provides useful information on the gas and dust in the scattering nebulosity. Somewhat larger overall depletions than normal are found, and it is found that the depletions of certain elements (manganese and zinc) are enhanced relative to the normal pattern of element-to-element depletions, suggesting that grain growth has occurred with some elements sticking to grains preferentially. The molecular fraction in the line of sight is low, in accord with similar lines of sight having low far-ultraviolet extinction and large depletions.

Snow, Theodore P.↗

NASA NTRS2005

Multi-Scale Modeling of Cross-Linked Nanotube Materials

The effect of cross-linking single-walled carbon nanotubes on the Young's modulus of a nanotube-reinforced composite is modeled with a multi-scale method. The Young's modulus is predicted as a function of nanotube volume fraction and cross-link density. In this method, the constitutive properties of molecular representative volume elements are determined using molecular dynamics simulation and equivalent-continuum modeling. The Young's modulus is subsequently calculated for cross-linked nanotubes in a matrix which consists of the unreacted cross-linking agent. Two different cross-linking agents are used in this study, one that is short and rigid (Molecule A), and one that is long and flexible (Molecule B). Direct comparisons between the predicted elastic constants are made for the models in which the nanotubes are either covalently bonded or not chemically bonded to the cross-linking agent. At a nanotube volume fraction of 10%, the Young's modulus of Material A is not affected by nanotube crosslinking, while the Young's modulus of Material B is reduced by 64% when the nanotubes are cross-linked relative to the non-cross-linked material with the same matrix.

Frankland, S. J. V.↗

NASA NTRS2012

Forest Canopy Cover and Height from MISR in Topographically Complex Southwestern US Landscape Assessed with High Quality Reference Data

This study addresses the retrieval of spatially contiguous canopy cover and height estimates in southwestern USforests via inversion of a geometric-optical (GO) model against surface bidirectional reflectance factor (BRF) estimates from the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR). Model inversion can provide such maps if good estimates of the background bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) are available. The study area is in the Sierra National Forest in the Sierra Nevada of California. Tree number density, mean crown radius, and fractional cover reference estimates were obtained via analysis of QuickBird 0.6 m spatial resolution panchromatic imagery usingthe CANopy Analysis with Panchromatic Imagery (CANAPI) algorithm, while RH50, RH75 and RH100 (50, 75, and 100 energy return) height data were obtained from the NASA Laser Vegetation Imaging Sensor (LVIS), a full waveform light detection and ranging (lidar) instrument. These canopy parameters were used to drive a modified version of the simple GO model (SGM), accurately reproducing patterns ofMISR 672 nm band surface reflectance (mean RMSE 0.011, mean R2 0.82, N 1048). Cover and height maps were obtained through model inversion against MISR 672 nm reflectance estimates on a 250 m grid.The free parameters were tree number density and mean crown radius. RMSE values with respect to reference data for the cover and height retrievals were 0.05 and 6.65 m, respectively, with of 0.54 and 0.49. MISR can thus provide maps of forest cover and height in areas of topographic variation although refinements are required to improve retrieval precision.

Chopping, Mark↗

NASA NTRS1978

Implications of liquid-liquid distribution coefficients to mineral-liquid partitioning

In order to evaluate the influence of a silicate liquid structure on mineral-liquid partitioning, element partitioning data is obtained for coexisting anhydrous immiscible granitic and ferrobasaltic magmas. It is found that: (1) mineral-liquid distribution coefficients indicate the competition of crystal and liquid for cation incorporation, (2) increased polymerization of the residual liquid during crystal-liquid fractionation increases the mineral-liquid distribution coefficients for high-charge-density cations, (3) incompatible element ratios of low- and high-charge-density cations may vary during crystal-liquid fractionation because of changes in the melt composition and structure, (4) relative solubilities of REE's in melts do not vary with melt polymerization, (5) the changes of Sm/Eu ratios during crystal-liquid fractionation depend on the melt composition, and (6) minor components and volatiles can significantly influence the silicate melt structure and the mineral-liquid distribution coefficients.

Ryerson, F. J.↗

NASA NTRS2019

Closure Relations of Gamma-Ray Bursts in High Energy Emission

The synchrotron external shock model predicts the evolution of the spectral (β) and temporal (α) indices during the gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglow for different environmental density profiles, electron spectral indices, electron cooling regimes, and regions of the spectrum. We study the relationship between α and β, the so-called “closure relations” with GRBs detected by Fermi Large Area Telescope (Fermi-LAT) from 2008 August to 2018 August. The spectral and temporal indices for the >100 MeV emission from the Fermi-LAT as determined in the Second Fermi-LAT Gamma-Ray Burst Catalog (2FLGC) are used in this work. We select GRBs whose spectral and temporal indices are well constrained (58 long-duration GRBs and 1 short-duration GRBs) and classify each GRB into the best-matched relation. As a result, we found that a number of GRBs require a very small fraction of the total energy density contained in the magnetic field (òB <~10−7). The estimated mean and standard deviation of electron spectral index p are 2.40 and 0.44, respectively. The GRBs satisfying a closure relation of the slow cooling tend to have a softer p value compared to those of the fast cooling. Moreover, the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test of the two p distributions from the fast and slow coolings rejects a hypothesis that the two distributions are drawn from the single reference distribution with a significance of 3.2σ. Lastly, the uniform density medium is preferred over the medium that decreases like the inverse of distance squared for long-duration GRBs.

Gamma-ray bursts↗

NASA NTRS1972

High energy density primary batteries

By the use of fractional factorials, paths of steepest ascent and direct comparison experimentation, performance characteristics of the CuF2/LiAsF6-MF/Li electrochemical system were optimized under conditions of temperature environment, discharge rate, active stand, and use of anhydrous cathodes. Two hundred ampere-hours/lb of CuF2 and 600 watt-hours/lb of CuF2 were achieved in anhydrous cells at plus 40 C and at a discharge rate of 10 ma sq cm. Electrical performance is primarily altered by temperature and discharge rate; however, other factors such as cathode water content, cathode conductor content, separator thickness, and the use of SO2 gas also have significant effects.

Horning, R. J.↗

NASA NTRS1969

Studies on erythropoiesis. II.

Erythroblasts fractionating method based on size, density and resistance of immature erythroblasts which change during maturation

Borsook, H.↗

NASA NTRS1977

Estimates of Optimal Operating Conditions for Hydrogen-Oxygen Cesium-Seeded Magnetohydrodynamic Power Generator

The value of percent seed, oxygen to fuel ratio, combustion pressure, Mach number, and magnetic field strength which maximize either the electrical conductivity or power density at the entrance of an MHD power generator was obtained. The working fluid is the combustion product of H2 and O2 seeded with CsOH. The ideal theoretical segmented Faraday generator along with an empirical form found from correlating the data of many experimenters working with generators of different sizes, electrode configurations, and working fluids, are investigated. The conductivity and power densities optimize at a seed fraction of 3.5 mole percent and an oxygen to hydrogen weight ratio of 7.5. The optimum values of combustion pressure and Mach number depend on the operating magnetic field strength.

Smith, J. M.↗

NASA NTRS1979

A theory of local and global processes which affect solar wind electrons. 2: Experimental support

The microscopic characteristics of the Coulomb cross section show that there are three natural subpopulations for plasma electrons: the subthermals with local kinetic energy E kT sub c; the transthermals with kT sub c E 7 kT sub c and the extrathermals E 7 kT sub c. Data from three experimental groups on three different spacecraft in the interplanetary medium over a radial range are presented to support the five interrelations projected between solar wind electron properties and changes in the interplanetary medium: (1) subthermals respond primarily to local changes (compression and rarefactions) in stream dynamics; (2) the extrathermal fraction of the ambient electron density should be anti-correlated with the asymptotic bulk speed; (3) the extrathermal "temperature" should be anti-correlated with the local wind speed at 1 AU; (4) the heat flux carried by electrons should be anti-correlated with the local bulk speed; and (5) the extrathermal differential 'temperature' should be nearly independent of radius within 1 AU.

Scudder, J. D.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Size and DNA distributions of electrophoretically separated cultured human kidney cells

Electrophoretic purification of purifying cultured cells according to function presumes that the size of cycle phase of a cell is not an overriding determinant of its electrophoretic velocity in an electrophoretic separator. The size distributions and DNA distributions of fractions of cells purified by density gradient electrophoresis were determined. No systematic dependence of electrophoretic migration upward in a density gradient column upon either size or DNA content were found. It was found that human leukemia cell populations, which are more uniform function and found in all phases of the cell cycle during exponential growth, separated on a vertical sensity gradient electrophoresis column according to their size, which is shown to be strictly cell cycle dependent.

Kunze, M. E.↗

NASA NTRS1985

The role of cell size in density gradient electrophoretic separation of mouse leukemia cells according to position in the cell cycle

Cultured mouse leukemia cells line L5178Y were subjected to upward electrophoresis in a density gradient and the slower migrating cell populations were enriched in G2 cells. It is indicated that this cell line does not change electrophoretic mobility through the cell cycle. The possibility that increased sedimentation downward on the part of the larger G2 cells caused this separation was explored. Two different cell populations were investigated. The log phase population was found to migrate upward faster than the G2 population, and a similar difference between their velocities and calculated on the basis of a 1 um diameter difference between the two cell populations. The G2 and G1 enriched populations were isolated by Ficoll density gradient sedimentation. The bottom fraction was enriched in G2 cells and the top fraction was enriched with G1 cells, especially when compared with starting materials. The electrophoretic mobilities of these two cell populations did not differ significantly from one another. Cell diameter dependent migration curves were calculated and were found to be different. Families of migration curves that differ when cell size is considered as a parameter are predicted.

Plank, L. D.↗

NASA NTRS1984

The nonstellar continuum of the Seyfert galaxy NGC 7213

The optical continuum of the nearby Seyfert galaxy NGC 7213 is decomposed into stellar and nonstellar components, and the spectrum at X-ray energies is derived from observations made with the Monitor Proportional Counter and the Imaging Proportional Counter aboard the Einstein Observatory. These results are used to obtain conclusions about the galaxy's column density and spectral index, covering fraction and visual extinction, and thermal emission. Ultraviolet, infrared, and radio observations published elsewhere are then combined with the new data to produce the overall continuum.

Halpern, J. P.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Primordial origin of nontopological solitons

The formation of nontopological solitons in a second-order phase transition in the early universe is discussed. Ratios of dimensionless coupling constants in the Lagrangian determine their abundance and mass. For a large range of parameters, nontopological solitons can be cosmologically significant, contributing a significant fraction of the present mass density of the universe.

Frieman, Joshua A.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Spectroscopic study of combustion diagnostics on hydroxyl radicals

Experimental observations of propane/air flames have been carried out. Measurements of hydroxyl (OH) radical concentration have been made using resonance line absorption techniques. A microwave-pumped low pressure discharge in argon and water vapor is employed to produce strong OH radical band radiation in the 308 nm region. This radiation is transmitted through the plume and absorption data is taken at various radial positions using an optical multichannel analyzer. This absorption data is used to compute OH number density using a model for the absorption band characteristics as a function of temperature based on an atlas of line strengths. A numerical computation of flow fields, temperature profile, OH number density and water vapor mass fraction profiles was carried out by using a technique of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The results of CFD computation are compared with experimental observation with a good agreement.

Eskridge, Richard↗

NASA NTRS1994

Absorption in X-ray spectra of high-redshift quasars

We present evidence that X-ray absorption is common in high-redshift quasars. We have studied six high-redshift (z approximately 3) quasars with the ROSAT Position Sensitive Proportional Counter (PSPC) of which four are in directions of low Galactic N(sub H). Three out of these four show excess absorption, while only three in approximately 50 z approximately less than 0.4 quasars do, indicating that such absorption must be common, but not ubiquitous, at high redshifts, and that the absorbers must lie at z greater than 0.4. The six quasars were: S5 0014+81, Q0420-388, PKS 0438-436, S4 0636+680. PKS 2000-330, PKS 2126-158, which have redshifts between 2.85 and 3.78. PKS 0438-436 and PKS 2126-158 show evidence for absorption above the local Galactic value at better than 99.999% confidence level. If the absorber is at the redshift of the quasar, then values of N(sub H) = (0.86(+0.49, -0.28)) x 10(exp 22) atoms/sq cm for PKS 0438-436, and N(sub H) = (1.45(+1.20, -0.64)) x 10(exp 22) atoms/ sq cm for PKS 2126-158, are implied, assuming solar abundances. The spectrum of S4 0636+680 also suggests the presence of a similarly large absorption column density at the 98% confidence level. This absorption reverses the trend for the most luminous active galactic nuclei (AGN) to have the least X-ray absorption, so a new mechanism is likely to be responsible. Intervening absorption due to damped Lyman(alpha) systems is a plausible cause. We also suggest, as an intrinsic model, that intracluster material, e.g., a cooling flow, around the quasar could account for both the X-ray spectrum and other properties of these quasars. All the quasars are radio-loud and three are gigahertz peaked (two of the three showing absorption). No excess absorption above the Galactic value is seen toward Q0420-388. This quasar has two damped Lyman(alpha) systems at z = 3.08. The limit on the X-ray column density implies a low ionization fraction, N(H I)/N(H) approximately greater than 4 x 10(exp -3) (3 (sigma)), for solar abundances, for these systems, and can set a weak limit on the size of the absorber. In the emitted frame these PSPC spectra cover the band approximately 0.5-10 keV, which has been well observed for low-redshift quasars and AGN. Comparison of high and low-redshift spectra in this emitted band shows no change of mean spectral index greater than Delta alpha(sub E) greater than 0.3 (99% confidence) with either redshift or luminosity, for radio-loud quasars.

Elvis, Martin↗

NASA NTRS1994

A Coulomb collision algorithm for weighted particle simulations

A binary Coulomb collision algorithm is developed for weighted particle simulations employing Monte Carlo techniques. Charged particles within a given spatial grid cell are pair-wise scattered, explicitly conserving momentum and implicitly conserving energy. A similar algorithm developed by Takizuka and Abe (1977) conserves momentum and energy provided the particles are unweighted (each particle representing equal fractions of the total particle density). If applied as is to simulations incorporating weighted particles, the plasma temperatures equilibrate to an incorrect temperature, as compared to theory. Using the appropriate pairing statistics, a Coulomb collision algorithm is developed for weighted particles. The algorithm conserves energy and momentum and produces the appropriate relaxation time scales as compared to theoretical predictions. Such an algorithm is necessary for future work studying self-consistent multi-species kinetic transport.

Miller, Ronald H.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Composition and physiological profiling of sprout-associated microbial communities

The native microfloras of various types of sprouts (alfalfa, clover, sunflower, mung bean, and broccoli sprouts) were examined to assess the relative effects of sprout type and inoculum factors (i.e., sprout-growing facility, seed lot, and inoculation with sprout-derived inocula) on the microbial community structure of sprouts. Sprouts were sonicated for 7 min or hand shaken with glass beads for 2 min to recover native microfloras from the surface, and the resulting suspensions were diluted and plated. The culturable fraction was characterized by the density (log CFU/g), richness (e.g., number of types of bacteria), and diversity (e.g., microbial richness and evenness) of colonies on tryptic soy agar plates incubated for 48 h at 30 degrees C. The relative similarity between sprout-associated microbial communities was assessed with the use of community-level physiological profiles (CLPPs) based on patterns of utilization of 95 separate carbon sources. Aerobic plate counts of 7.96 +/- 0.91 log CFU/g of sprout tissue (fresh weight) were observed, with no statistically significant differences in microbial cell density, richness, or diversity due to sprout type, sprout-growing facility, or seed lot. CLPP analyses revealed that the microbial communities associated with alfalfa and clover sprouts are more similar than those associated with the other sprout types tested. Variability among sprout types was more extensive than any differences between microbial communities associated with alfalfa and clover sprouts from different sprout-growing facilities and seed lots. These results indicate that the subsequent testing of biocontrol agents should focus on similar organisms for alfalfa and clover, but alternative types may be most suitable for the other sprout types tested. The inoculation of alfalfa sprouts with communities derived from various sprout types had a significant, source-independent effect on microbial community structure, indicating that the process of inoculation alters the dynamics of community development regardless of the types of organisms involved.

NASA Center KSC↗

NASA NTRS2013

Concurrent Supermassive Black Hole and Galazy Growth: Linking Environment and Nuclear Activity in Zeta Equals 2.23 H Alpha Emitters

We present results from an approximately equal 100 ks Chandra observation of the 2QZ Cluster 1004+00 structure at z = 2.23 (hereafter 2QZ Clus). 2QZ Clus was originally identified as an overdensity of four optically-selected QSOs at z = 2.23 within a 15 × 15 arcmin square region. Narrow-band imaging in the near-IR (within the K band) revealed that the structure contains an additional overdensity of 22 z = 2.23 H alpha-emitting galaxies (HAEs), resulting in 23 unique z = 2.23 HAEs/QSOs (22 within the Chandra field of view). Our Chandra observations reveal that three HAEs in addition to the four QSOs harbor powerfully accreting supermassive black holes (SMBHs), with 2-10 keV luminosities of approximately equal (8-60) × 10(exp 43) erg s(exp−1) and X-ray spectral slopes consistent with unobscured active galactic nucleus (AGN). Using a large comparison sample of 210 z = 2.23 HAEs in the Chandra-COSMOS field (C-COSMOS), we find suggestive evidence that the AGN fraction increases with local HAE galaxy density. The 2QZ Clus HAEs reside in a moderately overdense environment (a factor of approximately equal 2 times over the field), and after excluding optically-selected QSOs, we find that the AGN fraction is a factor of approximately equal 3.5(+3.8/ −2.2) times higher than C-COSMOS HAEs in similar environments. Using stacking analyses of the Chandra data and Herschel SPIRE observations at 250micrometers, we respectively estimate mean SMBH accretion rates ( M(BH)) and star formation rates (SFRs) for the 2QZ Clus and C-COSMOS samples. We find that the mean 2QZ Clus HAE stacked X-ray luminosity is QSO-like (L(2−10 keV) approximately equal [6-10] × 10(exp 43) erg s(exp −1)), and the implied M(BH)/SFR approximately equal (1.6-3.2) × 10(exp −3) is broadly consistent with the local M(BH)/Stellar Mass relation and z approximately equal 2 X-ray selected AGN. In contrast, the C-COSMOS HAEs are on average an order of magnitude less X-ray luminous and have M(BH)/SFR approximately equal (0.2-0.4) × 10(exp −3), somewhat lower than the local MBH/M relation, but comparable to that found for z approximately equal 1-2 star-forming galaxies with similar mean X-ray luminosities. We estimate that a periodic QSO phase with duty cycle approximately 2%-8% would be sufficient to bring star-forming galaxies onto the local M(BH)/Stellar Mass relation. This duty cycle is broadly consistent with the observed C-COSMOS HAE AGN fraction (Approximately equal 0.4%-2.3%) for powerful AGN with LX approximately greater than 10(exp 44) erg s(exp −1). Future observations of 2QZ Clus will be needed to identify key factors responsible for driving the mutual growth of the SMBHs and galaxies.

Lehmer, B. D.↗