Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “variable order”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,711 records · Page 95

Mass and power modeling of communication satellites

Analytic estimating relationships for the mass and power requirements for major satellite subsystems are described. The model for each subsystem is keyed to the performance drivers and system requirements that influence their selection and use. Guidelines are also given for choosing among alternative technologies which accounts for other significant variables such as cost, risk, schedule, operations, heritage, and life requirements. These models are intended for application to first order systems analyses, where resources do not warrant detailed development of a communications system scenario. Given this ground rule, the models are simplified to 'smoothed' representation of reality. Therefore, the user is cautioned that cost, schedule, and risk may be significantly impacted where interpolations are sufficiently different from existing hardware as to warrant development of new devices.

Price, Kent M.↗

Diffuse 0.511 MeV line emission and the distribution of positron annihilation in the galaxy

We model the distribution in the Galaxy of 0.511 MeV line emission and the implied positron annihilation using plausible distributions based on observations at other photon energies. We use 0.511 MeV line observations from the Galactic center and from directions away from the Galactic center to normalize the two-dimensional 0.511 MeV sky maps. We find that in order to understand all of the available data it is necessary to invoke the presence of a time-variable component of 0.511 MeV line emission in addition to an underlying diffuse component. The large 0.511 MeV fluxes observed with broad field of view detectors, such as the SMM gamma-ray spectrometer, can be reconciled with the small fluxes seen with narrow field-of-view instruments (GRIS and OSSE) from directions away from the Galactic center if the diffuse emission follows the distribution of Galactic novae for which the recently detected 0.511 MeV line emission from the Galactic center with OSSE is predominantly of diffuse origin. For future GRIS and HEXAGONE observations from the direction of the Galactic center we predict a minimum 0.511 MeV line flux of (6.0 +/- 0.9) x 10 exp -4 photons/sq cm/s.

Skibo, J. G.↗

Integrated controls-structures design methodology development for a class of flexible spacecraft

Future utilization of space will require large space structures in low-Earth and geostationary orbits. Example missions include: Earth observation systems, personal communication systems, space science missions, space processing facilities, etc., requiring large antennas, platforms, and solar arrays. The dimensions of such structures will range from a few meters to possibly hundreds of meters. For reducing the cost of construction, launching, and operating (e.g., energy required for reboosting and control), it will be necessary to make the structure as light as possible. However, reducing structural mass tends to increase the flexibility which would make it more difficult to control with the specified precision in attitude and shape. Therefore, there is a need to develop a methodology for designing space structures which are optimal with respect to both structural design and control design. In the current spacecraft design practice, it is customary to first perform the structural design and then the controller design. However, the structural design and the control design problems are substantially coupled and must be considered concurrently in order to obtain a truly optimal spacecraft design. For example, let C denote the set of the 'control' design variables (e.g., controller gains), and L the set of the 'structural' design variables (e.g., member sizes). If a structural member thickness is changed, the dynamics would change which would then change the control law and the actuator mass. That would, in turn, change the structural model. Thus, the sets C and L depend on each other. Future space structures can be roughly divided into four mission classes. Class 1 missions include flexible spacecraft with no articulated appendages which require fine attitude pointing and vibration suppression (e.g., large space antennas). Class 2 missions consist of flexible spacecraft with articulated multiple payloads, where the requirement is to fine-point the spacecraft and each individual payload while suppressing the elastic motion. Class 3 missions include rapid slewing of spacecraft without appendages, while Class 4 missions include general nonlinear motion of a flexible spacecraft with articulated appendages and robot arms. Class 1 and 2 missions represent linear mathematical modeling and control system design problems (except for actuator and sensor nonlinearities), while Class 3 and 4 missions represent nonlinear problems. The development of an integrated controls/structures design approach for Class 1 missions is addressed. The performance for these missions is usually specified in terms of (1) root mean square (RMS) pointing errors at different locations on the structure, and (2) the rate of decay of the transient response. Both of these performance measures include the contributions of rigid as well as elastic motion.

Maghami, P. G.↗

FD-TD modeling of 2-D dielectric waveguides for propagation and scattering of femtosecond optical solitons

Experimentalists have produced all-optical switches capable of 100-fs responses. To adequately model such switches, nonlinear effects in optical materials (both instantaneous and dispersive) must be included. In principle, the behavior of electromagnetic fields in nonlinear dielectrics can be determined by solving Maxwell's equations subject to the assumption that the electric polarization has a nonlinear relation to the electric field. However, until our previous work, the resulting nonlinear Maxwell's equations have not been solved directly. Rather, approximations have been made that result in a class of generalized nonlinear Schrodinger equations (GNLSE) that solve only for the envelope of the optical pulses. In this paper, we present first-time calculations from the vector nonlinear Maxwell's equations of femtosecond soliton propagation and scattering, including carrier waves, in two-dimensional systems of dielectric waveguides exhibiting the Kerr and Raman quantum effects. We use the finite-difference time-domain (FD-TD) method in an extension of our 1-D work. There, in a fundamental innovation, we treated the linear and nonlinear convolutions for the electric polarization as new dependent variables. By differentiating these convolutions in the time domain, we derived an equivalent system of coupled, nonlinear second-order ODE's. These equations together with Maxwell's equations form the system that is solved to determine the electromagnetic fields in inhomogeneous nonlinear dispersive media. Backstorage in time is limited to only that needed by the time-integration algorithm for the ODE's, rather than that needed to store the time-history of the kernel functions of the convolutions (1000-10,000 time steps). Thus, a 2-D nonlinear optics model from Maxwell's equations is now feasible.

Joseph, Rose↗

Analyzing Martian winds and tracer concentrations using Mars Observer data

During the courses of a day, the Mars Observer spacecraft will acquire globally distributed profiles of the martian atmosphere. It is highly desirable that this data be assembled into synoptic weather maps (complete specifications of the atmospheric pressure, temperature, and winds at a given time), which can in turn be used as starting points in the study of many meteorological phenomena. Unfortunately, the special nature of the Mars Observer data presents several challenges above and beyond the usual difficult problem of data initialization. Mars Observer atmospheric data will consist almost exclusively of asynoptic vertical profiles of temperatures (or radiances) and pressures, whereas winds are generally in balance with horizontal gradients of these quantities (which will not be observed). It will therefore be necessary to resort to dynamical models to analyze the wind fields. As a rule, data assimilation into atmospheric models can result in the generation of spurious gravity waves, so special steps must be taken to suppress these. In addition, the asynoptic nature of the data will require a four-dimensional (space and time) data assimilation scheme. The problem is to find a full set of meteorological fields (winds and temperatures) such that, when marched forward in time in the model, they achieve a best fit (in the weighted least-squares sense) to the data. The proposed solution is to develop a model especially for the Mars Observer data assimilation problem. Gravity waves are filtered from the model by eliminating all divergence terms from the prognostic divergence equation. This leaves a diagnostic gradient wind relation between the rotational wind and the temperature field. The divergent wind is diagnosed as the wind required to maintain the gradient wind balance in the presence of the diabatic heating. The primitive equations of atmospheric dynamics (with three principal dependent variables) are thus reduced to a simpler system with a single prognostic equation for temperature - the variable that will be best observed. (This balance system was apparently first derived by Charney as a first-order Rossby number expansion of the equations of motion). Experience with a full primitive equation model of the martian atmosphere indicates that a further simplification is possible: at least for short-term integrations, the model can be linearized about the zonally symmetric basic state.

Houben, Howard C.↗

Measuring In-Plane Displacements with Variable Sensitivity Using Diffractive Optic Interferometry

This paper introduces a method called diffractive optic interferometry (DOI) which allows in-plane displacement components to be measured with variable sensitivity. DOI relies on binary optical elements fabricated as phase-type Dammann gratings which produce multiple diffraction orders of nearly equal intensity. Sensitivity is varied by combining the different wavefronts produced by a conjugate pair of these binary optical elements; a transmission element is used to produce several illumination beams while a reflective element, replicated on the surface of a specimen, provides the reference for the undeformed state. The steps taken to design and fabricate these binary optical elements are described. The specimen grating is characterized, and tested on a disk subjected to diametrical compression. Overall, the results are excellent, with experimental data agreeing to within a few percent of the theoretical predictions.

Shepherd, Robert L.↗

Very Large Scale Optimization

The purpose of this research under the NASA Small Business Innovative Research program was to develop algorithms and associated software to solve very large nonlinear, constrained optimization tasks. Key issues included efficiency, reliability, memory, and gradient calculation requirements. This report describes the general optimization problem, ten candidate methods, and detailed evaluations of four candidates. The algorithm chosen for final development is a modern recreation of a 1960s external penalty function method that uses very limited computer memory and computational time. Although of lower efficiency, the new method can solve problems orders of magnitude larger than current methods. The resulting BIGDOT software has been demonstrated on problems with 50,000 variables and about 50,000 active constraints. For unconstrained optimization, it has solved a problem in excess of 135,000 variables. The method includes a technique for solving discrete variable problems that finds a "good" design, although a theoretical optimum cannot be guaranteed. It is very scalable in that the number of function and gradient evaluations does not change significantly with increased problem size. Test cases are provided to demonstrate the efficiency and reliability of the methods and software.

Vanderplaats, Garrett↗

Evolution of Web Services in EOSDIS: Search and Order Metadata Registry (ECHO)

During 2005 through 2008, NASA defined and implemented a major evolutionary change in it Earth Observing system Data and Information System (EOSDIS) to modernize its capabilities. This implementation was based on a vision for 2015 developed during 2005. The EOSDIS 2015 Vision emphasizes increased end-to-end data system efficiency and operability; increased data usability; improved support for end users; and decreased operations costs. One key feature of the Evolution plan was achieving higher operational maturity (ingest, reconciliation, search and order, performance, error handling) for the NASA s Earth Observing System Clearinghouse (ECHO). The ECHO system is an operational metadata registry through which the scientific community can easily discover and exchange NASA's Earth science data and services. ECHO contains metadata for 2,726 data collections comprising over 87 million individual data granules and 34 million browse images, consisting of NASA s EOSDIS Data Centers and the United States Geological Survey's Landsat Project holdings. ECHO is a middleware component based on a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). The system is comprised of a set of infrastructure services that enable the fundamental SOA functions: publish, discover, and access Earth science resources. It also provides additional services such as user management, data access control, and order management. The ECHO system has a data registry and a services registry. The data registry enables organizations to publish EOS and other Earth-science related data holdings to a common metadata model. These holdings are described through metadata in terms of datasets (types of data) and granules (specific data items of those types). ECHO also supports browse images, which provide a visual representation of the data. The published metadata can be mapped to and from existing standards (e.g., FGDC, ISO 19115). With ECHO, users can find the metadata stored in the data registry and then access the data either directly online or through a brokered order to the data archive organization. ECHO stores metadata from a variety of science disciplines and domains, including Climate Variability and Change, Carbon Cycle and Ecosystems, Earth Surface and Interior, Atmospheric Composition, Weather, and Water and Energy Cycle. ECHO also has a services registry for community-developed search services and data services. ECHO provides a platform for the publication, discovery, understanding and access to NASA s Earth Observation resources (data, service and clients). In their native state, these data, service and client resources are not necessarily targeted for use beyond their original mission. However, with the proper interoperability mechanisms, users of these resources can expand their value, by accessing, combining and applying them in unforeseen ways.

Mitchell, Andrew↗

Influence of Satellite-Based Heterogeneous Vegetation Momentum Roughness on Mesoscale Model Dynamics During IHOP 2002

The sensitivity of mesoscale weather prediction model to a vegetation roughness initialization is investigated for the south central United States. Three different roughness databases are employed: i) a control or standard lookup table roughness that is a function only of land cover type, ii) a spatially heterogeneous roughness database previously derived using a physically based procedure and MODIS imagery, and iii) a MODIS climatologic roughness database that possesses the same spatial heterogeneity as (i) but with mean land class values from (ii). The model used is the Weather Research and Forecast Model (WRF) coupled to the Community Land Model within the Land Information System (LIS). For each simulation, a statistical comparison is made between modeled results and ground observations from meteorological stations within the Oklahoma mesonet and surrounding region during IHOP20O2. A sensitivity analysis on the impact the MODIS-based roughness fields is also made through a time-series intercomparison of temperature bias, probability of detection (POD), average wind speed, boundary layer height, and turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) the results that, for the current replacement of the standard land-cover type based roughness values with the satellite-derived fields statistically improves model performance for most of the observed variables. Further, the satellite-based roughness enhances the surface wind speed, PBL height and TKE production on the order of 3 to l0 percent, with a lesser effect over grassland and cropland domains, and the greater effect over mixed land cover domains

Jasinski, Michael↗

Aerodynamic Measurements of an Incidence Tolerant Blade in a Transonic Turbine Cascade

An overview of the recent facility modifications to NASA s Transonic Turbine Blade Cascade Facility and aerodynamic measurements on the VSPT incidence-tolerant blade are presented. This work supports the development of variable-speed power turbine (VSPT) speed-change technology for the NASA Large Civil Tilt Rotor (LCTR) vehicle. In order to maintain acceptable main rotor propulsive efficiency, the VSPT operates over a nearly 50% speed range from takeoff to altitude cruise. This results in 50 or more variations in VSPT blade incidence angles. The Transonic Turbine Blade Cascade Facility has the ability to operate over a wide range of Reynolds numbers and Mach numbers, but had to be modified in order to accommodate the negative incidence angle variation required by the LCTR VSPT operation. Details of the modifications are described. An incidence-tolerant blade was developed under an RTPAS study contract and tested in the cascade to look at the effects of large incidence angle and Reynolds number variations. Recent test results are presented which include midspan exit total pressure and flow angle measurements obtained at three inlet angles representing the cruise, take-off, and maximum incidence flight mission points. For each inlet angle, data were obtained at five flow conditions with exit Reynolds numbers varying from 2.12 106 to 2.12 105 and two isentropic exit Mach numbers of 0.72 and 0.35. Three-dimensional flowfield measurements were also acquired at the cruise and take-off points. The flowfield measurements were acquired using a five-hole and three-hole pneumatic probe located in a survey plane 8.6% axial chord downstream of the blade trailing edge plane and covering three blade passages. Blade and endwall static pressure distributions were also acquired for each flow condition.

McVetta, Ashlie B.↗

Aerodynamic Investigation of Incidence Angle Effects in a Large Scale Transonic Turbine Cascade

Aerodynamic measurements showing the effects of large incidence angle variations on an HPT turbine blade set are presented. Measurements were made in NASA's Transonic Turbine Blade Cascade Facility which has been used in previous studies to acquire detailed aerodynamic and heat transfer measurements for CFD code validation. The current study supports the development of variable-speed power turbine (VSPT) speed-change technology for the NASA Large Civil Tilt Rotor (LCTR) vehicle. In order to maintain acceptable main rotor propulsive efficiency, the VSPT operates over a nearly 50 percent speed range from takeoff to altitude cruise. This results in 50deg or more variations in VSPT blade incidence angles. The cascade facility has the ability to operate over a wide range of Reynolds numbers and Mach numbers, but had to be modified in order to accommodate the negative incidence angle variation required by the LCTR VSPT operation. Using existing blade geometry with previously acquired aerodynamic data, the tunnel was re-baselined and the new incidence angle range was exercised. Midspan exit total pressure and flow angle measurements were obtained at seven inlet flow angles. For each inlet angle, data were obtained at five flow conditions with inlet Reynolds numbers varying from 6.83×10(exp 5) to 0.85×10(exp 5) and two isentropic exit Mach numbers of 0.74 and 0.34. The midspan flowfield measurements were acquired using a three-hole pneumatic probe located in a survey plane 8.6 percent axial chord downstream of the blade trailing edge plane and covering three blade passages. Blade and endwall static pressure distributions were also acquired for each flow condition.

McVetta, Ashlie B.↗

Aerodynamic Investigation of Incidence Angle Effects in a Large Scale Transonic Turbine Cascade

Aerodynamic measurements showing the effects of large incidence angle variations on an HPT turbine blade set are presented. Measurements were made in NASA's Transonic Turbine Blade Cascade Facility which has been used in previous studies to acquire detailed aerodynamic and heat transfer measurements for CFD code validation. The current study supports the development of variable-speed power turbine (VSPT) speed-change technology for the NASA Large Civil Tilt Rotor (LCTR) vehicle. In order to maintain acceptable main rotor propulsive efficiency, the VSPT operates over a nearly 50 percent speed range from takeoff to altitude cruise. This results in 50 deg or more variations in VSPT blade incidence angles. The cascade facility has the ability to operate over a wide range of Reynolds numbers and Mach numbers, but had to be modified in order to accommodate the negative incidence angle variation required by the LCTR VSPT operation. Using existing blade geometry with previously acquired aerodynamic data, the tunnel was re-baselined and the new incidence angle range was exercised. Midspan exit total pressure and flow angle measurements were obtained at seven inlet flow angles. For each inlet angle, data were obtained at five flow conditions with inlet Reynolds numbers varying from 6.83×10 (exp 5) to 0.85×10(exp 5) and two isentropic exit Mach numbers of 0.74 and 0.34. The midspan flowfield measurements were acquired using a three-hole pneumatic probe located in a survey plane 8.6 percent axial chord downstream of the blade trailing edge plane and covering three blade passages. Blade and endwall static pressure distributions were also acquired for each flow condition.

McVetta, Ashlie B.↗

Aerodynamic Investigation of Incidence Angle Effects in a Large Scale Transonic Turbine Cascade

Aerodynamic measurements showing the effects of large incidence angle variations on an HPT turbine blade set are presented. Measurements were made in NASA's Transonic Turbine Blade Cascade Facility which has been used in previous studies to acquire detailed aerodynamic and heat transfer measurements for CFD code validation. The current study supports the development of variable-speed power turbine (VSPT) speed-change technology for the NASA Large Civil Tilt Rotor (LCTR) vehicle. In order to maintain acceptable main rotor propulsive efficiency, the VSPT operates over a nearly 50% speed range from takeoff to altitude cruise. This results in 50 degrees or more variations in VSPT blade incidence angles. The cascade facility has the ability to operate over a wide range of Reynolds numbers and Mach numbers, but had to be modified in order to accommodate the negative incidence angle variation required by the LCTR VSPT operation. Using existing blade geometry with previously acquired aerodynamic data, the tunnel was re-baselined and the new incidence angle range was exercised. Midspan exit total pressure and flow angle measurements were obtained at seven inlet flow angles. For each inlet angle, data were obtained at five flow conditions with inlet Reynolds numbers varying from 6.83 × 10(exp 5) to 0.85 ×10(exp 5) and two isentropic exit Mach numbers of 0.74 and 0.34. The midspan flowfield measurements were acquired using a three-hole pneumatic probe located in a survey plane 8.6% axial chord downstream of the blade trailing edge plane and covering three blade passages. Blade and endwall static pressure distributions were also acquired for each flow condition

McVetta, Ashlie B.↗

Improving Coverage of Test Cases Generated by Symbolic PathFinder for Programs with Loops

Symbolic execution is a program analysis technique that is used for many purposes, one of which is test-case generation. For loop-free programs, this generates a test-set that achieves path coverage. Program loops, however, imply exponential growth of the number of paths in the best case and non-termination in the worst case. In practice, the number of loop unwindings needs to be bounded for analysis. We consider symbolic execution in the context of the tool Symbolic Pathfinder. This tool extends the model-checker Java Pathfinder and relies on its bounded state-space exploration for termination. We present an implementation of k-bounded loop unwinding, which increases the amount of user-control over the symbolic execution of loops. Bounded unwinding can be viewed as a naive way to prune paths through loops. When using symbolic execution for test-case generation, naively pruning paths is likely at the cost of coverage. In order to improve coverage of branches within a loop body, we present a technique that semi-automatically concretizes variables used in a loop. The basic technique is limited and we therefore present annotations to manually steer symbolic execution towards certain branches, as well as ideas on how the technique can be extended to be more widely applicable.

Programs With Loops↗

Permanent Magnetic Synchronous Motor (PMSM) Model Development

The Advanced Air Transport Technology (AATT) Project seeks to enhance the capabilities of fixed-wing subsonic transport through improved energy efficiency and environmental compatibility. One element of this effort is the use of high efficiency PMSM systems. Understanding the behavior and limitations of the se motors allows the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to collaborate with and inform its partners worldwide. PMSM modeling is achieved using MATLAB®-Simulink® (The Math Works, Inc., Natick, Massachusetts). Through the analysis of an existing high-fidelity NASA Electrical Aircraft Testbed (NEAT) model, simplified models of varying fidelity can be developed with the goal of building a PMSM model capable of running in real-time for use in a piloted simulation environment. By utilizing system identification methods, it has been demonstrated that internal electrical components like the inverter can be represented by a simple variable gain thus greatly reducing the required simulation step size and subsequently decreasing model run-time by multiple orders of magnitude

motor controls↗

Maximizing MWh: A statistical analysis of the performance of utility-scale photovoltaic projects in the United States

Despite significant cost declines utility-scale solar projects have to perform well over their lifetime in order to return profits in a low-PPA environment of under $50/MWh. Using multivariate regression analysis this paper examines the 2014 Net Capacity Factors for 128 utility-scale projects that came online before the end of 2013 and explores the impact (in decreasing order of importance) of global horizontal irradiance, tracking technology, inverter loading ratios and project vintage plus three other interactive variables on performance. The model complies with the assumptions of OLS regressions and explains 93% of the observed NCF variation.

Bolinger, M↗

Experiments and numerical modeling of surrogate droplet combustion for a 93 octane gasoline calibration fuel

Gasoline is the world’s most prolific liquid transportation fuel for ground transportation vehicles. Yet, a fundamental understanding of its burning characteristics is still lacking. Complicating this matter is the highly multicomponent nature of gasoline (comprised of hundreds of chemical species) and the seasonable variability of its composition due to variations in the crude oil feedstocks used in refining. The need to bring order to this complex problem has led to development of calibration fuels (Tier II in presented study) which on average will provide repeatable metrics that replicate performance of refined gasoline for various engine designs. This study presents results of experiments using the configuration of an isolated droplet to study the combustion dynamics of calibration fuel and three different surrogates (S4, S5, S6) for the calibration fuel. Droplet burning is under microgravity conditions, where gas transport is determined entirely by fuel evaporation in order to promote spherical symmetry in the burning process. The initial droplet diameters ranged between 0.55 mm and 0.60 mm. The droplets were spark-ignited and their burning histories were recorded by digital video cameras to obtain quantitative data. For each fuel, the evolutions of droplet, flame, and soot-shell diameters were measured to calculate the burn rates, flame-droplet diameter ratios (FSR) and soot-droplet diameter ratios. Additionally, a detailed numerical modeling is presented. This simulation includes multicomponent phase equilibrium, unsteady gas and liquid transport, radiative heat transfer, internal liquid diffusion and detailed combustion chemistry of different fuels during their burning process. Experiment results show that the calibration fuel and surrogates have a close burn rates and FSR, and S5 presents a relatively similar results with calibration fuel. Predictions from the numerical simulation using the surrogate are compared with experiment measurements, which showed a good agreement with the experiment results, including the droplet burning rate and FSR.

Guo, Songtao↗

Quantifying Intrinsic Variability of Sagittarius A∗ Using Closure Phase Measurements of the Event Horizon Telescope

General relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulations of accretion disks and jets associated with supermassive black holes show variability on a wide range of timescales. On timescales comparable to or longer than the gravitational timescale t{sub G}=GM/c{sup 3}, variation may be dominated by orbital dynamics of the inhomogeneous accretion flow. Turbulent evolution within the accretion disk is expected on timescales comparable to the orbital period, typically an order of magnitude larger than t {sub G}. For Sgr A*, t {sub G} is much shorter than the typical duration of a VLBI experiment, enabling us to study this variability within a single observation. Closure phases, the sum of interferometric visibility phases on a triangle of baselines, are particularly useful for studying this variability. In addition to a changing source structure, variations in observed closure phase can also be due to interstellar scattering, thermal noise, and the changing geometry of projected baselines over time due to Earth rotation. We present a metric that is able to distinguish the latter two from intrinsic or scattering variability. This metric is validated using synthetic observations of GRMHD simulations of Sgr A*. When applied to existing multi-epoch EHT data of Sgr A*, this metric shows that the data are most consistent with source models containing intrinsic variability from source dynamics, interstellar scattering, or a combination of those. The effects of black hole inclination, orientation, spin, and morphology (disk or jet) on the expected closure phase variability are also discussed.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗