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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 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2011

American Samoa Initial Technical Assessment Report

This document is an initial energy assessment for American Samoa, the first of many steps in developing a comprehensive energy strategy. On March 1, 2010, Assistant Secretary of the Interior Tony Babauta invited governors and their staff from the Interior Insular Areas to meet with senior principals at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Meeting discussions focused on ways to improve energy efficiency and increase the deployment of renewable energy technologies in the U.S. Pacific Territories. In attendance were Governors Felix Camacho (Guam), Benigno Fitial (Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands), and Togiola Tulafono, (American Samoa). This meeting brought together major stakeholders to learn and understand the importance of developing a comprehensive strategic plan for implementing energy efficiency measures and renewable energy technologies. For several decades, dependence on fossil fuels and the burden of high oil prices have been a major concern but never more at the forefront as today. With unstable oil prices, the volatility of fuel supply and the economic instability in American Samoa, energy issues are a high priority. In short, energy security is critical to American Samoa's future economic development and sustainability. Under an interagency agreement, funded by the Department of Interior's Office of Insular Affairs, NREL was tasked to deliver technical assistance to the islands of American Samoa. Technical assistance included conducting an initial technical assessment to define energy consumption and production data, establish an energy consumption baseline, and assist with the development of a strategic plan. The assessment and strategic plan will be used to assist with the transition to a cleaner energy economy. NREL provided an interdisciplinary team to cover each relevant technical area for the initial energy assessments. Experts in the following disciplines traveled to American Samoa for on-island site assessments: (1) Energy Efficiency and Building Technologies; (2) Integrated Wind-Diesel Generation; (3) Transmission and Distribution; (4) Solar Technologies; and (5) Biomass and Waste-to-Energy. In addition to these core disciplines, team capabilities also included expertise in program analysis, project financing, energy policy and energy planning. The intent of the technical assessment was to provide American Samoa with a baseline energy assessment. From the baseline, various scenarios and approaches for deploying cost effective energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies could be created to meet American Samoa's objectives. The information provided in this energy assessment will be used as input in the development of a draft strategic plan and the development of scenarios and strategies for deploying cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable products.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2024

American Samoa: Unlocking Renewable Energy Potential

Located approximately between Hawaii and New Zealand, American Samoa is the only U.S. territory in the southern hemisphere. American Samoa faces similar climate and energy resilience challenges as other Pacific islands: geographic remoteness, dependence on imported fossil fuels, and increased vulnerability to natural hazards like earthquakes, cyclones, and tsunamis. In 2022, the average electricity price for residential customers in American Samoa was approximately 45 cents/kilowatt-hour (kWh) - almost three times the U.S. average of 15 cents/kWh. Renewable energy represents a small but growing power system contribution, although American Samoa relies almost entirely on imported fossil fuels. The territory possesses substantial solar resources and wind and biomass resource potential. Planned renewable power projects include utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind generation with battery storage systems.

American Samoa↗
DOE OSTI2020

Energy Snapshot - American Samoa

This profile provides a snapshot of the energy landscape of American Samoa, the southernmost territory of the United States. American Samoa's residential electricity rates are approximately $0.33 U.S. dollars (USD) per kilowatt-hour (kWh), more than twice the average U.S. residential rate of $0.13 USD/kWh.

44 EE - Strategic Programs, Energy Transition Init↗
DOE OSTI2024

2023-2024 Energy Baseline Report: American Samoa

This document is part of a series of 2023-2024 energy baseline reports produced for the U.S. Department of the Interior's Office of Insular Affairs. The energy baseline reports cover the U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. American Samoa's 2023-2024 report provides a high-level overview of American Samoa's energy sector, the current climate and energy policy landscape in the territory, and the climate- and energy-specific challenges facing American Samoa.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2013

American Samoa Energy Action Plan

Describes the five near-term strategies selected by the American Samoa Renewable Energy Committee (ASREC) during action planning workshops conducted in May 2013, and outlines the actions being taken to implement those strategies. Each option is tied to a priority identified in the earlier draft American Samoa Strategic Energy Plan as being an essential component of reducing American Samoa'spetroleum energy consumption. The actions described for each strategy provide a roadmap to facilitate the implementation of each strategy. This document is intended to evolve along with the advancement of the projects, and will be updated to reflect progress.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Wave climate and energy resources in American Samoa from a 42-year high-resolution hindcast

Here, this paper presents an analysis of the wave climate and a characterization of the wave energy resources in American Samoa, a U.S. territory covering seven south central Pacific islands and atolls. A numerical wave model based on WAVEWATCH III® and unstructured SWAN was developed, validated, and executed for 1979–2020 to generate a hindcast dataset suitable for resource characterization. Model-data comparisons were performed with measurements collected in situ and from satellite-based altimeters. The model was found to perform well with a bias in significant wave height of -0.14 m and -0.06 m against buoy and altimeters, respectively. The multimodal sea state of American Samoa is investigated by identifying the sources of energy reaching the islands and partitioning the wave spectrum accordingly. The wave resources characterization follows the International Electrotechnical Commission Technical Specifications to be compatible with studies performed for other U.S. regions. The average omnidirectional wave power at 2 km from shore around Tutuila, the main island of American Samoa, is 14 kW/m. Locations east and west of the islands have a more consistent resource throughout the year because the northwest and southwest swells that are dominant during different seasons complement each other.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗
DOE OSTI2016

American Samoa: Energy Action Plan

This document outlines actions being taken to reduce American Samoa's petroleum consumption. It describes the four near-term strategies selected by the American Samoa Renewable Energy Committee during action-planning workshops conducted in May 2016, and describes the steps that will need to be taken to implement those strategies.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2015

Energy Transition Initiative: Island Energy Snapshot - American Samoa; U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

This profile provides a snapshot of the energy landscape of American Samoa, the southernmost territory of the United States. American Samoa’s residential electricity rates are approximately $0.29 U.S. dollars (USD) per kilowatt-hour (kWh), more than twice the average U.S. residential rate of $0.13 USD/kWh.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2020

American Samoa Energy Snapshot 2020

This fact sheet is an update of Energy Transitions Initiative Islands series energy profile for American Samoa.

ETI, Energy Transitions Initiative, Islands, Ameri↗
NASA NTRS1994

Non-sea-salt sulfate and methanesulfonate at American Samoa

High-volume bulk aerosol samples have been collected at American Samoa (14.25 deg S, 170.58 deg W) on a semicontinuous basis since the system was erected as part of the Sea/Air Exchange Program (SEAREX) in March 1983. In this report we consider those samples collected through May 6, 1992. For most of this period the sample filters were changed once a week. However, during November 1989 and from May 10 to June 10, 1990, in conjunction with the aircraft missions of the NASA Global Backscatter Experiment (GLOBE), the filters were changed daily. All of the samples were analyzed for nonsea-salt (nss) SO4(2-) and NO3(-). Analyses for methanesulfonate (MSA) include all of the 53 daily samples, 22 weekly samples from March 19, 1983, through April 12, 1984, and 96 weekly samples from January 3, 1990, through May 6, 1992. The mean concentrations (in micrograms per cubic meter) were 0.37 for nss SO4(2-), 0.0229 for MSA, 0.114 for NO3(-), and 5.1 for Na(+). Nss SO4(2-) and MSA are strongly linearly correlated in these 171 samples (r(exp 2) = 0.66) and the regression intercept does not differ significantly from zero. The geometric mean (GM) nss SO4(2-)/MSA ratio, 18.1 +/- 0.9 (where +/- indicates the 95% confidence interval of the GM) is about 7% higher than had previously been reported for this station. The ratio exhibits no significant seasonal variation. Although the ratio appeared to be significantly lower in the May - June 1990 daily samples (GM = 15.3 +/- 1.2), a further examination of the results indicated that the variance of the measured ratios from 18.1 (the GM for the whole data set) was attributable almost exclusively to the typical random errors in the analyses as determined from the 1 sigma analytical uncertainties of 5% for MSA and SO4(2-) and 2% for Na(+).

Savoie, Dennis L.↗
DOE OSTI2015

Energy Snapshot: American Samoa

This fact sheet provides a snapshot of the energy landscape of American Samoa, the southernmost territory of the United States.

Samoa, eti, islands, snapshot↗
DOE OSTI2017

Source partitioning of anthropogenic groundwater nitrogen in a mixed-use landscape, Tutuila, American Samoa

This study presents a modeling framework for quantifying human impacts and for partitioning the sources of contamination related to water quality in the mixed-use landscape of a small tropical volcanic island. On Tutuila, the main island of American Samoa, production wells in the most populated region (the Tafuna-Leone Plain) produce most of the island’s drinking water. However, much of this water has been deemed unsafe to drink since 2009. Tutuila has three predominant anthropogenic non-point-groundwater-pollution sources of concern: on-site disposal systems (OSDS), agricultural chemicals, and pig manure. These sources are broadly distributed throughout the landscape and are located near many drinking-water wells. Water quality analyses show a link between elevated levels of total dissolved groundwater nitrogen (TN) and areas with high non-point-source pollution density, suggesting that TN can be used as a tracer of groundwater contamination from these sources. The modeling framework used in this study integrates land-use information, hydrological data, and water quality analyses with nitrogen loading and transport models. The approach utilizes a numerical groundwater flow model, a nitrogen-loading model, and a multi-species contaminant transport model. Nitrogen from each source is modeled as an independent component in order to trace the impact from individual land-use activities. Model results are calibrated and validated with dissolved groundwater TN concentrations and inorganic δ{sup 15}N values, respectively. Results indicate that OSDS contribute significantly more TN to Tutuila’s aquifers than other sources, and thus should be prioritized in future water-quality management efforts.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2022

Tracking Coastal Change in American Samoa By Mapping Local Vertical Land Motion with PS-InSAR

Characterizingdiverse contributionsto coastal land change is a key step to mitigating the effects ofrising sea levels that threaten coastal communities. This taskis particularly critical for small island communities in tectonically active regions, which are highlyvulnerableto the effects of sea level rise. We highlight here a case study to extract regional estimates of vertical land motion (VLM) over American Samoa, which in recent years has observedincreased nuisance flooding.Weusedpersistent scatterer Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PS-InSAR)to derive high-resolutionestimates of crustaldeformationinpopulated regions overTutuila Island from 2015 to 2021. While the area is small and highly vegetatedand poses challenges for InSAR, we wereable to construct a regional map of the estimated deformation ratein these areasandvalidate the time-series with alocal GPS station. Our preliminary results suggest that PS-InSAR has the ability to capture the local and regional deformation patterns, although further workis needed to compensate formore complexatmospheric effects, estimate error margins,and integrate ourresults intomodels of sea-level change that can be used local stakeholders

Stacey A Huang↗
NASA NTRS2019

Sea Level Rise in the Samoan Islands Escalated by Viscoelastic Relaxation After the 2009 Samoa-Tonga Earthquake

The Samoan islands are an archipelago hosting a quarter million people mostly residing inthree major islands, Savai'i and Upolu (Samoa), and Tutuila (American Samoa). The islands haveexperienced sea level rise by 2-3 mm/year during the last half century. The rate, however, has dramaticallyincreased following the Mw 8.1 SamoaTonga earthquake doublet (megathrust + normal faulting) inSeptember 2009. Since the earthquake, we found largescale gravity increase (0.5 Gal/year) around theislands and ongoing subsidence (8-16 mm/year) of the islands from our analysis of Gravity Recovery AndClimate Experiment gravity and GPS displacement data. The postseismic horizontal displacement is faster inSamoa, while the postseismic subsidence rate is considerably larger in American Samoa. The analysis oflocal tide gauge records and satellite altimeter data also identified that the relative sea level rise becomesfaster by 7-9 mm/year in American Samoa than Samoa. A simple viscoelastic model with a Maxwellviscosity of 2–3×10(exp 18) Pa s for the asthenosphere explained postseismic deformation at nearby GPS sites aswell as Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment gravity change. It is found that the constructiveinterference of viscoelastic relaxation from both megathrust and normal faulting has intensified thepostseismic subsidence at American Samoa, causing ~5 times faster sea level rise than the global average.Our model indicates that this trend is likely to continue for decades and result in sea level rise of 30-40 cm,which is independent of and in addition to anticipated climaterelated sea level rise. It will worsen coastalflooding on the islands leading to regular nuisance flooding.

Han, Shin-Chan↗
DOE OSTI2024

Age-specific case data reveal varying dengue transmission intensity in US states and territories

Dengue viruses (DENV) are endemic in the US territories of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the US Virgin Islands, with focal outbreaks also reported in the states of Florida and Hawaii. However, little is known about the intensity of dengue virus transmission over time and how dengue viruses have shaped the level of immunity in these populations, despite the importance of understanding how and why levels of immunity against dengue may change over time. These changes need to be considered when responding to future outbreaks and enacting dengue management strategies, such as guiding vaccine deployment. We used catalytic models fitted to case surveillance data stratified by age from the ArboNET national arboviral surveillance system to reconstruct the history of recent dengue virus transmission in Puerto Rico, American Samoa, US Virgin Islands, Florida, Hawaii, and Guam. We estimated average annual transmission intensity (i.e., force of infection) of DENV between 2010 and 2019 and the level of seroprevalence by age group in each population. We compared models and found that assuming all reported cases are secondary infections generally fit the surveillance data better than assuming all cases are primary infections. Using the secondary case model, we found that force of infection was highly heterogeneous between jurisdictions and over time within jurisdictions, ranging from 0.00008 (95% CrI: 0.00002–0.0004) in Florida to 0.08 (95% CrI: 0.044–0.14) in American Samoa during the 2010–2019 period. For early 2020, we estimated that seropositivity in 10 year-olds ranged from 0.09% (0.02%–0.54%) in Florida to 56.3% (43.7%–69.3%) in American Samoa. In the absence of serological data, age-specific case notification data collected through routine surveillance combined with mathematical modeling are powerful tools to monitor arbovirus circulation, estimate the level of population immunity, and design dengue management strategies.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1995

Aerosol measurements over the Pacific Ocean in support of the IR aerosol backscatter program

The major efforts under NASA contract NAG8-841 included: (1) final analyses of the samples collected during the first GLOBE survey flight that occurred in November 1989 and collections and analysis of aerosol samples during the second GLOBE survey flight in May and June 1990. During the first GLOBE survey flight, daily samples were collected at four stations (Midway, Rarotonga, American Samoa, and Norfolk Island) throughout the month of November 1989. Weekly samples were collected at Shemya, Alaska, and at Karamea, New Zealand. During the second GLOBE survey flight, daily samples were collected at Midway, Oahu, American Samoa, Rarotonga, and Norfolk Island; weekly samples were collected at Shemya. These samples were all analyzed for sodium (sea-salt), chloride, nitrate, sulfate, and methanesulfonate at the University of Miami and for aluminum at the University of Rhode Island (under a subcontract). (2) Samples continued to be collected on a weekly basis at all stations during the periods between and after the survey flights. These weekly samples were also analyzed at the University of Miami for the suite of water-soluble species. (3) In August 1990, the results obtained from the above studies were submitted to the appropriate personnel at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center to become part of the GLOBE data base for comparison with data from instruments used aboard the aircraft. In addition, the data will be compared with data previously obtained at these stations as part of the Sea-Air Exchange (SEAREX) Program. This comparison will provide valuable information on the representativeness of the periods in terms of the longer term aerosol climatology over the Pacific Ocean. (4) Several publications have been written using data from this grant. The data will continue to be used in the future as part of a continuing investigation of the long-term trends and interannual variations in aerosol species concentrations over the Pacific Ocean.

Prospero, Joseph M.↗