Engineering topics

Lane, A. L.

Publications and source records attributed to Lane, A. L..

At least 37 records · Page 2

NASA NTRS1992

Lunar Surface Rovers

Many questions of lunar science remain unanswered because of a lack of specific data. With the potential for returning humans to the Moon and establishing a long-term presence there, a new realm of exploration is possible. Numerous plans have been outlined for orbital and surface missions. The capabilities and objectives of a small class of rovers to be deployed on the lunar surface are described. The objective of these small rovers is to collect detailed in situ information about the composition and distribution of materials on the lunar surface. Those data, in turn, would be applied to a variety of lunar geoscience questions and form a basis for planning human activities on the lunar surface.

Plescia, J. B.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Triton's surface properties - A preliminary analysis from ground-based, Voyager photopolarimeter subsystem, and laboratory measurements

The surface properties of Triton were investigated using data from the ground-based and Voyager photopolarimeter subsystem (PPS) observations of Triton's phase curve. The results indicate that Triton has a high single-scattering albedo (0.96 +/-0.01 at 0.75 micron) and an unusually compacted surface, possibly similar to that of Europa. Results also suggest that Triton's single-particle phase function and the macroscopically rough character of its surface are similar to those of most other icy satellites.

Buratti, B. J.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Galileo ultraviolet spectrometer experiment - Initial Venus and interplanetary cruise results

The Galileo Extreme Ultraviolet Spectrometer obtained a spectrum of Venus atmospheric emissions in the 55.0- to 125.0-nm wavelength region. Emissions of helium (58.4 nm), ionized atomic oxygen (83.4 nm), and atomic hydrogen (121.6 nm), as well as a blended spectral feature of atomic hydrogen (Lyman-beta) and atomic oxygen (102.5 nm), were observed at 3.5-nm resolution. During the Galileo spacecraft cruise from Venus to earth, Lyman-alpha emission from solar system atomic hydrogen (121.6 nm) was measured. The dominant source of the Lyman-alpha emission is atomic hydrogen from the interstellar medium. A model of Galileo observations at solar maximum indicates a decrease in the solar Lyman-alpha flux near the solar poles. A strong day-to-day variation also occurs with the 27-day periodicity of the rotation of the sun.

Hord, C. W.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Voyager photopolarimeter observations of Uranian ring occultations

Occultation profiles have been derived from Voyager 2 photopolarimeter observations of the nine pre-Voyager Uranian rings as well as of 1986U1R. The epsilon ring, which is the broadest and most massive, is noted to possess a wealth of structure which appears to persist coherently around the ring. The photopolarimeter data do not show any features globally ascribable to all the rings observed. Results are presented from a statistical analysis of photopolarimeter data for previously undetected or partial ring arcs.

Colwell, Joshua E.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Physical properties of Uranian delta ring from a possible density wave

On the basis of wavelength and amplitude behavior, as well as observed feature morphology, that are indicative of a density wave, the presently studied Voyager PPS stellar occultation observations of the Uranus delta ring are held to indicate the presence of a moonlet interior to the delta ring. Lindblad resonances are calculated for all 65 discrete possible locations for this moonlet; the locations are labeled by azimuth number of the resonance associated with each location that would excite the observed density wave in the delta ring.

Horn, L. J.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Temperature and aerosol structure of the nightside Uranian stratosphere from Voyager 2 photopolarimeter stellar occultation measurements

Voyager 2 UV-photopolarimeter occultation observations toward Gamma Peg, obtained on the nightside of Uranus at planetocentric latitude 68.9 deg N on January 24, 1986, are used to probe the structure of the Uranian atmosphere. The data are presented graphically and compared with the predictions of model atmospheres. The temperature profile for an aerosol-free atmosphere ranges from 85 + or - 2.3 K at 2.7 mbar to 96 + or - 13 K at 370 microbar, and the 1-mbar radius is found to be 25,219 + or - 6.3 km. The extinction coefficient for an aerosol haze layer at 1 mbar or higher is shown to be less than or equal to about 0.0001/km, but it is suggested that a well-mixed haze layer consisting of meteor or ring dust and/or photochemical condensates may well be present below 3 mbar.

West, R. A.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Voyager 2 photopolarimeter experiment - Evidence for tenuous outer ring material at Saturn

Voyager 2 photopolarimeter data are employed to characterize two regions of optically thin material outside the Saturn F ring. The study consists of a statistical analysis of optical depth value fluctuations caused by occultations of starlight from Delta Sco as viewed through the material. One the optically thin regions surrounds the orbital semimajor axis of the outer F ring shepherd satellite Pandora and the other thin region lies 144,090 km farther outward. The first region, with an optical depth of 0.008-0.016, is about 200 km in radius and the second, with an optical depth of 0.005-0.013, is about 1000 km in radial width. The data had a resolution of 0.5 km.

Graps, A. L.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Photometry from Voyager 2 - Initial results from the Uranian atmosphere, satellites, and rings

The results of Voyager 2 photopolarimetry (PPS) surveys of Uranus, the ring system, occultation experiments and observations of the Uranian moons are reported. Dual-channel photometry and polarimetry data obtained of the atmosphere at various emission and phase angles are delineated and compared with characteristics of the Saturn and Jupiter atmospheres. The results of temperature, UV absorption and density profile calculations are also discussed. Extensive ring dimensional data, based on two occultation experiments, are provided in tabular form noting that the rings contain no dust. Finally, the geometric albedos of the five major moons and the phase curve of the moon Titania are presented. The latter data indicate that Titanian surface features are not the result of recent events such as volcanism or ice slurry outflows.

Lane, A. L.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Evidence for material between Saturn's A and F rings from the Voyager 2 photopolarimeter experiment

The region in the Saturn system between the F ring and the outer edge of the A ring is an area that appears, in images from the imaging experiment, to be virtually devoid of material except for three small satellites. Near the orbit of 1980S28, Atlas - the innermost satellite - the Voyager Photopolarimeter Stellar Occultation data show a discontinuity in count rate which marks a boundary between the tenuous material near the outer edge of the A ring and the orbit of Atlas. The data pertaining to this region have been examined with the aid of statistics and models generated from other similar ring structures. It is concluded that the discontinuity is real, implying the existence of tenuous material of normal optical depth of 0.01 to 0.006 in this region.

Graps, A. L.↗

NASA NTRS1984

The eccentric Saturnian ringlets at 1.29 R(s) and 1.45 R(s)

The shapes and kinematics of the Titan and Maxwell ringlets of Saturn's C ring are studied. The ringlets are narrow and eccentric, with mean widths of about 25 km for Titan and abut 64 km for Maxwell, and with eccentricities of order 10 to the -4th. They have sharp edges on a scale of about 1 km, normal optical depths of roughly 0.5-2.0, normal optical depth of the surrounding region, and positive linear width-radius relations. The Titan ringlet is the only feature whose dynamics appears to be completely determined by an external satellite; the kinematics of the Maxwell ringlet are determined solely by Saturn's nonspherical gravity field. The comparatively large measured optical depths and large inferred mass extinction coefficients for the ringlets suggest an environment and particle size distribution different from the remainder of the C ring and presumably caused by the mechanism responsible for ring confinement.

Porco, C.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Saturn's nonaxisymmetric ring edges at 1.95 R(s) and 2.27 R(s)

The outer edges of Saturn's A and B rings, at 2.27 R(s) and 1.95 R(s), have been examined using data acquired by four Voyager experiments. The shapes and kinematics of these features are influenced by their proximity to strong low-order Lindblad resonances. The data for the A-ring edge are consistent with a seven-lobed radial distortion of amplitude 6.7 + or - 1.5 km which rotates with the mass-weighted mean angular velocity of the coorbital satellite system. The B-ring edge has essentially a double-lobed figure of radial amplitude 74 + or - 9 km which rotates with the mean motion of Mimas, though there is an indication that it is not completely described with a simple Saturn-centered ellipse. An upper limit of 10 m has been placed on the vertical thickness in the unperturbed region of the B ring.

Porco, C.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Atlas of Saturn's rings

A preliminary summary is made from a compilation of Voyager Saturn ring data. The data base includes optical thickness radial profiles at 3.6 and 13.6 cm radio wavelength measurements, 1300 and 2640 A occultations of delta Sco, albedos in the 3000-6000 A range, time and azimuthal resolved albedo profiles, particle impacts in the G ring, and number densities of magnetospheric charged particles. Sample data tracks are provided for the A, C, and D rings and the Cassini division. Finally, the trajectory of the Voyager 2 pass through the ring system is plotted.

Collins, S. A.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Voyager photopolarimeter stellar occultation of Saturn's rings

On Aug. 25, 1981, the Voyager 2 photopolarimeter system observed a stellar occultation by Saturn's rings. A brief description of this experiment along with details of the data reduction are presented. The occultation results are given in tabular and graphical form at a resolution of 60 km. Histograms of the frequency of optical depth show dominantly unimodal distributions in each of the classical ring elements. The frequency distribution of the entire ring system shows three modes at tau values of about 0.08, 0.5, and more than 2.5.

Esposito, L. W.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Photometry and polarimetry of Saturn at 2640 and 7500 A

Voyager 2 photometric and polarimetric data are reduced and tabulated, with spatially resolved limb-to-terminator scans across Saturn's equatorial zone providing information on the altitude distribution of UV-absorbing hazes, together with the phase function and polarizing properties of stratospheric and tropospheric aerosols. It is found that the UV photometry and polarimetry are best fit by Rayleigh's phase matrix. A stratospheric haze of small particles is allowed as long as the optical depth is near unity or less, and the center of the haze layer is in the 30 to 70 mbar region. The altitudes presently derived for three latitudes agree with those obtained by ground-based methane band studies and analyses from Pioneer 11. A high altitude absorber is abundant in the polar regions.

West, R. A.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Voyager 2 photopolarimeter observations of Titan

Observations of Titan's whole-disk polarization at 2460 and 7500 A are presented and analyzed in terms of model scattering atmospheres. If the Titan aerosols are spherical or nearly spherical, no single combination of refractive index and size distribution is able to fit data at both wavelengths. However, a vertically inhomogeneous distribution suggested by Tomasko and Smith (1980), characterized by a size gradient with altitude, fits the data at 2640 A moderately well but must be modified at intermediate and large optical depths to fit the 7500-A data. Results for synthetic phase functions indicate that the single-scattering polarization must be 70 percent or larger in the UV and 78 percent or larger in the near-IR at 90-deg phase angle, depending on the phase function. If the correct phase function is similar to that for 0.5-micron-radius spheres, the UV single-scattered polarization must be 84 percent and the near-IR single-scattered polarization must be over 90 percent. Such large polarizations are impossible for 0.5-micron-radius spheres but may be possible for nonspherical particles with effective radii near 0.5 micron, although the existence of nonspherical particles with the scattering properties required by these and other observations has not been demonstrated.

West, R. A.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Eccentric ringlet in the Maxwell gap at 1.45 Saturn radii Multi-instrument Voyager observations

The results of Voyager experiments to characterize the eccentric ringlet at 1.45 Saturn radius are discussed. The Voyager I carried out microwave occultation trials with a dual-frequency transmitter, while Voyager 2 observed the occultation of delta Scorpii using an UV spectrometer and a photopolarimeter. The ringlet was associated with a basically empty region next to an edge of the C ring which decreased to a few hundred meters thickness. The width of the ringlet in the gap was estimated to vary from 38-88 km, and it maintains an elliptical shape. It precesses within the 265 km gap it occupies, and has a double-peaked core 15 km wide. The bulk of the ringlet is particles of less than 1 cm radius.

Esposito, L. W.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Voyager photopolarimeter observations of Saturn and Titan

The Voyager 2 photopolarimeter experiment observed the intensity and polarization of scattered sunlight from the atmospheres of Saturn and Titan in the near-UV at 2640 A and in the near-IR at 7500 A. Measurements of Saturn's limb brightening and polarization at several phase angles up to 70 deg indicate that a significant optical depth of UV absorbers are present in the top 100 mbar of Saturn's atmosphere in the equatorial zone and north polar region, and possibly at other latitudes as well. UV absorbers are prominent in polar regions, suggesting that charged particle precipitation from the magnetosphere may be important in their formation. The whole-body polarization of Titan is strongly positive in both the UV and near IR. If spherical particles are responsible for the polarization, no single size distribution or refractive index can account for the polarization at both wavelengths. The model atmosphere proposed by Tomasko and Smith (1982), characterized by a gradient in particle size with altitude, seems capable of explaining the Voyager observations.

West, R. A.↗

NASA NTRS1982

The source of Saturn electrostatic discharges

During both Voyager encounters with the saturnian system, the Planetary Radio Astronomy experiment detected strong discrete episodic bursts of radio emission, termed Saturn electrostatic discharges (SED). An examination of Voyager 2 photopolarimeter data now reveals a narrow feature (possibly a gap) in Saturn's B ring. A single, unique object appears to be responsible for both the SED and this feature.

Evans, D. R.↗