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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
NASA NTRS2014

Alaska: Glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park and Katmai National Park and Preserve

There are hundreds of glaciers in Kenai Fjords National Park (KEFJ) and Katmai National Park and Preserve (KATM) covering over 2,276 sq km of park land (ca. 2000). There are two primary glacierized areas in KEFJ (the Harding Icefield and the Grewingk-Yalik Glacier Complex) and three primary glacierized areas in KATM (the Mt. Douglas area, the Kukak Volcano to Mt. Katmai area, and the Mt. Martin area). Most glaciers in these parks terminate on land, though a few terminate in lakes. Only KEFJ has tidewater glaciers, which terminate in the ocean. Glacier mapping and analysis of the change in glacier extent has been accomplished on a decadal scale using satellite imagery, primarily Landsat data from the 1970s, 1980s, and from2000. Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS),Thematic Mapper (TM), and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM) imagery was used to map glacier extent on a park-wide basis. Classification of glacier ice using image-processing software, along with extensive manual editing, was employed to create Geographic Information System (GIS)outlines of the glacier extent for each park. Many glaciers that originate in KEFJ but terminate outside the park boundaries were also mapped. Results of the analysis show that there has been a reduction in the amount of glacier ice cover in the two parks over the study period. Our measurements show a reduction of approximately 21 sq km, or 1.5(from 1986 to 2000), and 76 sq km, or 7.7 (from19861987 to 2000), in KEFJ and KATM, respectively. This work represents the first comprehensive study of glaciers of KATM. Issues that complicate the mapping of glacier extent include debris cover(moraine and volcanic ash), shadows, clouds, fresh snow, lingering snow from the previous season, and differences in spatial resolution between the MSS,TM, or ETM sensors. Similar glacier mapping efforts in western Canada estimate mapping errors of 34. Measurements were also collected from a suite of glaciers in KEFJ and KATM detailing terminus positions and rates of recession using datasets including 15 min USGS quadrangle maps(19501951), Landsat imagery (19861987, 2000,2006), and 2005 IKONOS imagery (KEFJ only).

Kenai Fjords↗
NASA NTRS2011

Alaska: Glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park and Katmai and Lake Clark National Parks and Preserve

There are hundreds of glaciers in Kenai Fjords National Park (KEFJ) and Katmai National Park and Preserve (KATM) covering over 2276 sq km of park land (circa 2000). There are two primary glacierized areas in KEFJ -- the Harding Icefield and the Grewingk-Yalik Glacier Complex, and three primary glacierized areas in KATM - the Mt. Douglas area, the Kukak Volcano to Mt. Katmai area and the Mt. Martin area. Most glaciers in these parks terminate on land, though a few terminate in lakes. Only KEFJ has tidewater glaciers, which terminate in the ocean. Glacier mapping and analysis of the change in glacier extent has been accomplished on a decadal scale using satellite imagery, primarily Landsat data from the 1970s, 1980s, and from 2000. Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS), Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) imagery was used to map glacier extent on a park-wide basis. Classification of glacier ice using image processing software, along with extensive manual editing, was employed to create Geographic Information System (GIS) outlines of the glacier extent for each park. Many glaciers that originate in KEFJ but terminate outside the park boundaries were also mapped. Results of the analysis show that there has been a reduction in the amount of glacier ice cover in the two parks over the study period. Our measurements show a reduction of approximately 21 sq km, or -1.5% (from 1986 to 2000), and 76 sq km, or -7.7% (from 1986/87 to 2000), in KEFJ and KATM, respectively. This work represents the first comprehensive study of glaciers of KATM. Issues that complicate the mapping of glacier extent include: debris-cover (moraine and volcanic ash), shadows, clouds, fresh snow, lingering snow from the previous season, and differences in spatial resolution between the MSS and TM or ETM+ sensors. Similar glacier mapping efforts in western Canada estimate mapping errors of 3-4%. Measurements were also collected from a suite of glaciers in KEFJ and KATM detailing terminus positions and rates of recession using datasets including the 15-minute USGS quadrangle maps (1950/1951), Landsat imagery (1986/1987, 2000, 2006) and 2005 Ikonos imagery (KEFJ only).

Giffen, bruce A.↗
NASA NTRS2024

Central Park Ecological Conservation: Assessing Tree Health Conditions in New York City’s Central Park with NASA Earth Observation Data

The Central Park Conservancy stewards New York City’s iconic Central Park with a mission to preserve the park for all. This mission is complicated by the spread of Dutch elm disease (DED) which has threatened the culturally and ecologically significant American elm tree (Ulmus americana). Central Park is home to one of the largest and last remaining urban concentrations of American elm and the Conservancy currently protects them through integrated pest management. This paper discusses an interdisciplinary feasibility study that assessed the application of NASA Earth observations from 2014 to 2023 to detect changes in forest phenology possibly related to DED. Landsat 8 and 9 imagery was used to calculate multiyear time series of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and quantify changes in land surface phenology for a given year. A pixel-based logistic regression analysis was performed using changes in NDVI, tree site locations, and recorded occurrences of trees infected with DED as inputs. The results of this analysis show that changes in NDVI derived from Landsat data are capable of detecting unhealthy tree canopies with 71% precision and healthy tree canopies with 41% precision. The study had uncertainties and limitations due to the spatial and temporal resolutions of Landsat, the natural variability in land surface phenology and NDVI, and the attempt to detect disease impacts while disease prevention and mitigation is occurring. As is, the findings of this study and its methods provide managers with an approach for integrating Earth observations to make more informed decisions in the application and timing of urban forest management activities.

Central Park↗
NASA NTRS2007

Alaska: Glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park and Katmai National Park and Preserve (Chapter 12)

Much recent research points to the shrinkage of the Earth's small glaciers, however, few studies have been performed to quantify the amount of change over time. We measured glacier-extent changes in two national parks in southeastern Alaska. There are hundreds of glaciers in Kenai Fjords National Park (KEFJ) and Katmai National Park and Preserve (KATM) covering over 2373 sq km of parkland. There are two primary areas of glaciation in KEFJ - the Harding Icefield and the Grewingk-Yalik Glacier Complex, and three primary areas of glaciation in KATM - the Mt. Douglas area, the Kukak Volcano to Mt. Katmai area and the Mt. Martin area. We performed glacier mapping using satellite imagery, from the 1970s, 1980s, and from 2000. Results of the analysis show that there has been a reduction in the amount of glacier ice cover in the two parks over the study period, of approximately 22 sq km of ice, approximately - 1.6% from 1986 to 2000 (for KEFJ), and of approximately 76 sq km of glacier ice, or about -7.7% from 1986187 to 2000 (for KATM). In the future, measurements of surface elevation changes of these ice masses should be acquired; together with our extent-change measurements, the volume change of the ice masses can then be determined to estimate their contribution to sea-level rise. The work is a continuation of work done in KEFJ, but in KATM, our measurements represent the first comprehensive study of the glaciers in this remote, little-studied area.

Giffen, Bruce A.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Prefeasibility Analysis of Behind-the-Meter Distributed Energy Resources in Highland Park, MI: Highland Park Pathways to Power [Slides]

Through the Communities LEAP (Local Energy Action Program) Pilot, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) engaged the Highland Park Stakeholder Coalition to scope four technical assistance work areas to address their energy needs and goals. This slide deck addresses the highlighted tasks under work area "B" related to policy analysis, due diligence, and case studies for removing barriers and providing best practices for local clean energy development. NREL used the REopt platform to evaluate the techno-economic potential of adding solar PV, electric storage, and/or diesel generators at several locations in Highland Park, Michigan: a typical residential and commercial building in Highland Park, the Earnest T. Ford Recreation Center, and the Parker Village Microgrid. The analysis goals focused on the ability of solar PV, electric storage, and/or diesel generators to reduce electricity costs and improve site resilience.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
NASA NTRS1981

Comets and the origin of life; Proceedings of the Fifth College Park Colloquium on Chemical Evolution, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, October 29-31, 1980

Papers are presented concerning the characteristics of comets and their possible role in the origin of life. Specific topics include the characteristics, origin and structure of the cometary nucleus, cometary chemical abundances, the nature of interplanetary dust and its entry into terrestrial planet atmospheres, and the mechanism of ray closure in comet tails. Attention is also given to chemically evolved interstellar dust as a source of prebiotic material, the relation of comets to paleoatmospheric photochemistry, comets as a vehicle for panspermia, limits to life posed by extreme environments, and the status of cometary space missions as of 1980.

Ponnamperuma, C.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Computer implemented land cover classification using LANDSAT MSS digital data: A cooperative research project between the National Park Service and NASA. 3: Vegetation and other land cover analysis of Shenandoah National Park

Four LANDSAT frames, each corresponding to one of the four seasons were spectrally classified and processed using NASA-developed computer programs. One data set was selected or two or more data sets were marged to improve surface cover classifications. Selected areas representing each spectral class were chosen and transferred to USGS 1:62,500 topographic maps for field use. Ground truth data were gathered to verify the accuracy of the classifications. Acreages were computed for each of the land cover types. The application of elevational data to seasonal LANDSAT frames resulted in the separation of high elevation meadows (both with and without recently emergent perennial vegetation) as well as areas in oak forests which have an evergreen understory as opposed to other areas which do not.

Cibula, W. G.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Parking Strategies and Outcomes for Shared Autonomous Vehicle Fleet Operations

Parking spots are a premium commodity, especially in dense downtown settings, so this study examines the service impacts of shared autonomous vehicles (SAVs) parking in legal on- or off-street locations when idle across Travis County in Austin, Texas. Here, using an agent-based activity-based travel demand model with dynamic traffic simulation, two restricted-parking strategies for SAVs were simulated. SAVs either found the nearest available parking spot or the lowest-cost spot (via a tradeoff of parking fees and distance-based costs). Two comparisons were conducted to analyze the impacts of these strategies. First, two restricted parking strategies were compared, where SAVs park without competition with private human-driven vehicles (HVs) for parking locations. Second, a more realistic analysis compared two SAV parking strategies with a scenario where SAVs remain idle in place. Private HVs in all scenarios and strategies of this comparison park at the closest designated location unless they opt for private parking. Using a supply of 8,400 aggregated parking locations in Austin, this study simulated fleet performance under different trip demands, with SAV fares of $\$0.62$ per kilometer ($\$1$ per mile) plus a $\$1$ fixed pickup fee with dynamic ridesharing permitted. Parking costs were negligible in both SAV parking search strategies applied to the Austin network because of the region’s provision of mostly free parking. Requiring SAVs to park on designated on- and off-street parking locations and parking lots (restricted parking) also increased parking costs for HV drivers by up to 22% since SAVs occupied some free parking spaces, especially in the least-cost parking search strategy.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Investigation of Radiological Contamination at Parks in the Gateway National Recreation Area - 20350

In 2005, the National Park Service was notified that elevated radiation levels were detected at Great Kills Park during a baseline radiological mapping effort conducted by the Counter Terrorism Bureau of the New York City Police Department and the United States Department of Energy. Great Kills Park is in the Staten Island Unit of the Gateway National Recreation Area. A records search determined that approximately 280 acres of the park was established over an area in which the New York City Department of Sanitation placed approximately 15.1 million cubic yards of waste fill from 1944 to 1948. Since 2005, a series of response actions and investigations were conducted on behalf of the National Park Service to mitigate risk to human health and the environment and to determine the nature of radiological contamination at Great Kills Park. The findings support that radiological contamination is related to certain components of waste fill, including incinerator residue from both on and offsite incinerators, coal ash from the historical use of coal-fired boilers for heating, and incidental radiological artifacts in the waste fill due to their historical use and subsequent disposal. A majority of the radiological artifacts were determined to contain radium-226 and included radioluminescent markers, radium impregnated switch board buttons, radium paint containers, and brachytherapy devices. The National Park Service has several other Parks in the Gateway National Recreation Area that were established in areas with a similar history to Great Kills Park, and overlie waste fill historically placed during landfilling operations, including Spring Creek Park and Dead Horse Bay. Over the last year, the National Park Service has performed additional radiological investigations at Great Kills Park as part of the ongoing Remedial Investigation under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. In addition, preliminary radiological investigations were performed at Spring Creek Park and Dead Horse Bay Park in the Jamaica Bay Unit of Gateway National Recreation Area. These investigation activities identified gamma radiation levels above the ambient level, several of which were attributable to radiological artifacts similar in nature to those recovered at Great Kills Park. Ongoing investigations at Parks in the Gateway National Recreation Area support an association between radiological contamination and historical landfilling practices that were common prior to the regulation and control of radioactive materials. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2022

Providing curb availability information to delivery drivers reduces cruising for parking

Abstract Delivery vehicle drivers are experiencing increasing challenges in finding available curb space to park in urban areas, which increases instances of cruising for parking and parking in unauthorized spaces. Policies traditionally used to reduce cruising for parking for passenger vehicles, such as parking fees and congestion pricing, are not effective at changing delivery drivers’ travel and parking behaviors. Intelligent parking systems that use real-time curb availability information to better route and park vehicles can reduce cruising for parking, but they have never been tested for delivery vehicle drivers. The current study tested whether providing real-time curb availability information to delivery drivers reduces the travel time and distance spent cruising for parking. A curb parking information system deployed in a study area in Seattle, Wash., displayed real-time curb availabilities on a mobile app called OpenPark. A controlled experiment assigned drivers’ deliveries in the study area with and without access to OpenPark. The data collected showed that when curb availability information was provided to drivers, their cruising for parking time significantly decreased by 27.9 percent, and their cruising distance decreased by 12.4 percent. These results demonstrate the potential for implementing intelligent parking systems to improve the efficiency of urban logistics systems.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
NASA NTRS2007

Evaluation of Integrating the Invasive Species Forecasting System to Support National Park Service Decisions on Fire Management Activities and Invasive Plant Species Control

The USGS and NASA, in conjunction with Colorado State University, George Mason University and other partners, have developed the Invasive Species Forecasting System (ISFS), a flexible tool that capitalizes on NASA's remote sensing resource to produce dynamic habitat maps of invasive terrestrial plant species across the United States. In 2006 ISFS was adopted to generate predictive invasive habitat maps to benefit noxious plant and fire management teams in three major National Park systems: The Greater Yellowstone Area (Yellowstone / Grand Tetons National Parks), Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park, and interior Alaskan (between Denali, Gates of The Arctic and Yukon-Charley). One of the objectives of this study is to explore how the ISFS enhances decision support apparatus in use by National Park management teams. The first step with each park system was to work closely with park managers to select top-priority invasive species. Specific species were chosen for each study area based on management priorities, availability of observational data, and their potential for invasion after fire disturbances. Once focal species were selected, sources of presence/absence data were collected from previous surveys for each species in and around the Parks. Using logistic regression to couple presence/absence points with environmental data layers, the first round of ISFS habitat suitability maps were generated for each National Park system and presented during park visits over the summer of 2006. This first engagement provided a demonstration of what the park service can expect from ISFS and initiated the ongoing dialog on how the parks can best utilized the system to enhance their decisions related to invasive species control. During the park visits it was discovered that separate "expert opinion" maps would provide a valuable baseline to compare against the ISFS model output. Opinion maps are a means of spatially representing qualitative knowledge into a quantitative two-dimensional map. Furthermore, our approach combines the qualitative expert opinion habitat maps -- with the quantitative ISFS habitat maps in a difference map that shows where the two maps agree and disagree. The objective of the difference map is to help focus future field sampling and improve model results. This paper presents a demonstration of the habitat, expert opinion, and difference map for Yellowstone National Park.

Ma, Peter↗
DOE OSTI2025

Revenue-Maximizing Shared Parking and Electric Vehicle Charging Management in Multi-Unit Dwellings

In urban areas, searching for parking and electric vehicle (EV) charging can result in cruising, congestion, and environmental externalities. Recognizing the business opportunity of offering private parking and charging infrastructure access within multi-unit dwellings (MUDs) during daytime, we model a shared parking and EV charging management system. We maximize the revenue of MUD charging hubs in mixed land use, catering to public demand. Our approach accounts for the objectives of the two stakeholders involved: a demand model is fitted on the choices of EV charging users, and the supply model optimizes the allocation of parking and charging requests in an MUD parking lot. A binary integer linear programming model for the allocation of parking and charging spaces with a rolling horizon is integrated with matching rules that handle both parking and charging requests. In our numerical experiments in a neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, we estimate the performance of the MUD parking and charging system with metrics that include revenue, number of matchings, and utilization rates. At any given time, MUDs with lower prices attract more charging requests, particularly those of longer duration, resulting in higher revenue and greater charging utilization. Dynamic pricing facilitates a more equitable distribution of requests; as MUD parking lots reach capacity and their fees increase, other MUDs become more competitive, attracting additional requests. Comparing our method against first-come-first-served and optimal-solution benchmarks, we demonstrate our model’s effectiveness in dynamically managing mixed parking and charging demand in MUD charging hubs.

electric vehicle, multi-unit dwelling, charging in↗
DOE OSTI2021

Human Mobility to Parks Under the COVID-19 Pandemic and Wildfire Seasons in the Western and Central United States

In 2020, people's health suffered a great crisis under the dual effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the extensive, severe wildfires in the western and central United States. Parks, including city, national, and cultural parks, offer a unique opportunity for people to maintain their recreation behaviors following the social distancing protocols during the pandemic. However, massive forest wildfires in western and central US, producing harmful toxic gases and smoke, pose significant threats to human health and affect their recreation behaviors and mobility to parks. In this study, we employed the geographically and temporally weighted regression (GTWR) Models to investigate how COVID-19 and wildfires jointly shaped human mobility to parks, regarding the number of visits per capita, dwell time, and travel distance to parks, during June - September 2020. We detected strong correlations between visitations and COVID-19 incidence in southern Montana, western Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah before August. However, the pattern was weakened over time, indicating the decreasing trend of the degree of concern regarding the pandemic. Moreover, more park visits and lower dwell time were found in parks further away from wildfires and less air pollution in Washington, Oregon, California, Colorado, and New Mexico, during the wildfire season, suggesting the potential avoidance of wildfires when visiting parks. This study provides important insights on people's responses in recreation and social behaviors when facing multiple severe crises that impact their health and wellbeing, which could support the preparation and mitigation of the health impacts from future pandemics and natural hazards.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2024

Big Bend Ecological Forecasting: Integrating Earth Observations Into Invasive Species Management Decisions in Big Bend National Park in Texas

Located in Brewster County Texas, U.S., along the Texas-Mexico border, Big Bend National Park is 3,243 square kilometers of desert, mountains, and rivers. NASA’s MSFC Spring 2024 DEVELOP Team partnered with the National Park Service (NPS), to address the environmental concern of perineal invasive grasses in Big Bend National Park. Buffelgrass (Cenchrus ciliaris), introduced to the park in the 1940’s, poses an ongoing threat, and causes habitat destruction for many of the park’s native ecosystems. Buffelgrass amplifies fire risk in the park, aids in the destruction of historic structures, and alters stream channels. To address the rising concern of Buffelgrass presence, unique advanced spatial technique applications were necessary to construct a habitat suitability model and perform a comprehensive fire risk assessment. A habitat suitability model was developed considering climate, vegetation, and phenological variables, in addition to physical and topographical variables. Subsequently, a fire risk model was developed, taking into account fire history data, accessibility factors, climate trends and predictions, along with developed areas. Multi-Source Land Surface Phenology (LSP) Sentinel-2 and Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) imagery were used to predict Buffelgrass hotspot locations throughout the park. These analyses allowed the identification of optimal Buffelgrass habitat and hotspot locations, as well as park zones that reflect the greatest risk for future Buffelgrass invasion and fire risk. The collective results of the habitat suitability model, fire risk assessment, and Buffelgrass hot spot identification will allow the NPS to facilitate efficient mitigation measures and management strategies, and improved resource allocation where it’s most needed.

remote sensing↗