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At least 181 records · Page 10

The riddle of the redshifts

Somewhat more than 40 years ago Hubble and Humason conclusively established that the redshifts of the galaxies are proportional to their apparent brightnesses. With this discovery came the general conclusion that the redshifts were due to the Doppler effect and that the universe is expanding. The discovery of QSOs with large redshifts led to the conclusion that if the redshifts were measures of distance the objects were at immense distances and in general some 50 times brighter than most luminous galaxies. Arguments for and against the cosmological redshift hypothesis are evaluated, giving attention to QSO variability, questions of relativistic expansion, the redshift-apparent magnitude diagram, the redshift-angular diameter relation, the distribution of redshifts, multiple redshifts, and distance measurements in extragalactic astronomy.

Burbidge, G.↗

Laser applications to atmospheric sciences: A bibliography

A bibliography is given of 1460 references of the applications of lasers to atmospheric sciences. The subjects covered include: aerosols; clouds; the distribution and motion of atmospheric natural and man-made constituents; winds; temperature; turbulence; scintillation; elastic, Raman and resonance scattering; fluorescence; absorption and transmission; the application of the Doppler effect and visibility. Instrumentation, in particular lidar, is included, also data handling, and interpretation of the data for meteorological processes. Communications, geodesy and rangefinding are not included as distinct areas. The application to the atmosphere is covered, but not the ocean or its surface.

Harris, F. S., Jr.↗

Issues in gravitational wave detection with space missions

Two masses freely orbiting in the solar system, separated by several astronomical units, are proposed as antennas for the detection of monochromatic gravitational radiation emitted by double stars. If one of these masses was an artificial satellite, then relative acceleration could be measured by the Doppler effect on the satellite radio signal. A highly accurate clock would have to be invented and incorporated into the tracking network in order for this plan to be feasible.

Davies, R. W.↗

Review: Observations of recent comets, ion tails

Photographic plates of the moving structures in the cometary tail are examined. Several divergent explanations for the case of comet Kohoutek are presented. It is suggested that these hypotheses be tested by observing the motion of the material spectroscopically by means of the Doppler effect.

Brandt, J. C.↗

Apollo-Soyuz pamphlet no. 4: Gravitational field

Two Apollo Soyuz experiments designed to detect gravity anomalies from spacecraft motion are described. The geodynamics experiment (MA-128) measured large-scale gravity anomalies by detecting small accelerations of Apollo in the 222 km orbit, using Doppler tracking from the ATS-6 satellite. Experiment MA-089 measured 300 km anomalies on the earth's surface by detecting minute changes in the separation between Apollo and the docking module. Topics discussed in relation to these experiments include the Doppler effect, gravimeters, and the discovery of mascons on the moon.

Page, L. W.↗

The trapped mercury ion frequency standard

Singly ionized mercury atoms have a structure similar to neutral alkali atoms. They can be maintained as ions for very long times in an RF quadrupole ion trap. Thus, their ground state hyperfine structure can be used to make a frequency standard using optical pumping techniques similar to the well-known rubidium standard. The mass 199 isotope of mercury has an ionic hyperfine structure of 40.5 GHz. In a trap system a linewidth of 10 Hz has been measured. An expression is presented for the short-term stability of a proposed mercury standard as set by the achieved signal to noise ratio. There is prospect of further improvement. Long-term stability is affected by second order doppler effect, and by pressure, light, and Stark shifts. However, these appear either sufficiently small or sufficiently controlable that the proposed mercury ion standard would be competitive with existing standards.

Mcguire, M. D.↗

Doppler observations of solar rotation

Daily observations of the photospheric equatorial rotation rate using the Doppler effect mode at the Sanford Solar Observatory are presented. These observations show no variations in the rotation rate that exceed the observational error of about one percent. The average rotation rate is indistinguishable from that of sunspots and large scale magnetic field structures.

Scherrer, P. H.↗

The rotation of the Sun: Observations at Stanford

Daily observations of the photospheric rotation rate using the Doppler effect made at the Stanford Solar Observatory since May 1976 are analyzed. Results show that these observations show no daily or long period variations in the rotation rate that exceed the observational error of about one percent. The average rotation rate is the same as that of the sunspot and the large-scale magnetic field structures.

Scherrer, J. M.↗

Doppler observations of solar rotation

Daily observations of the photospheric equatorial rotation rate using the Doppler effect are made at the Stanford Solar Observatory. These observations show no variations in the rotation rate that exceed the observational error of about 1%. The average rotation rate is indistinguishable from that of sunspots and large-scale magnetic field structures.

Scherrer, P. H.↗

The rotation of the sun - Observations at Stanford

Daily observations of the photospheric rotation rate using the Doppler effect have been made at the Stanford Solar Observatory since May 1976. These observations show no daily or long-period variations in the rotation rate that exceed the observational error of about 1%. The average rotation rate is the same as that of the sunspots and the large-scale magnetic field structures.

Scherrer, P. H.↗

Acoustic near field and local flow properties associated with broadband shock noise

Shock noise associated with unheated supersonic jets were investigated using a near field microphone array and a single sensor wedge shaped hot-film probe. Both over and underexpanded cases were investigated using Mach 1.5 and 2.0 convergent-divergent nozzles. Correlation measurements through each shock cell of a single underexpanded case with the Mach 1.5 nozzle were obtained between the hot-film probe and microphone array. The results show for the Mach number cases selected that the probe's response is primarily sensitive to velocity. The results of the hot-film near field microphone correlations show general agreement with certain theoretical models as to the location for shock noise production, although they demonstrate the existence of some large perhaps turbulent structure that collectively interacts and phases the motion of the downstream shocks. The near field microphone correlations demonstrate that downstream shocks dominate shock noise production, and suggests the existence of a Doppler effect in near field of the sources. In addition broadband shock noise is found to also propagate at small angles to the jet axis.

Seiner, J. M.↗

The observation of ocean surface phenomena using imagery from the Seasat synthetic aperture radar - An assessment

The principles governing synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and its use on the Seasat spacecraft are reviewed. The way in which wind stress, surface currents, long gravity waves, and surface films modulate the scattering properties of resonant (approximately 30-cm-wavelength) waves is discussed, with particular emphasis placed on the mechanisms that could produce images of long gravity waves. Doppler effects by ocean motion are also described. Measurements of long (wavelength more than about 100 m) gravity waves made using Seasat SAR imagery are compared with surface measurements during several experiments. Combining these results, it is found that dominant wavelength and direction are measured by Seasat SAR within + or - 12% and + or - 15 deg, respectively. It is noted, however, that ocean waves are not always visible in SAR images, and detection criteria are discussed in terms of wave height, length, and direction.

Vesecky, J. F.↗

Parmeterization of spectra

Following reception and analog to digital conversion (A/D) conversion, atmospheric radar backscatter echoes need to be processed so as to obtain desired information about atmospheric processes and to eliminate or minimize contaminating contributions from other sources. Various signal processing techniques have been implemented at mesosphere-stratosphere-troposphere (MST) radar facilities to estimate parameters of interest from received spectra. Such estimation techniques need to be both accurate and sufficiently efficient to be within the capabilities of the particular data-processing system. The various techniques used to parameterize the spectra of received signals are reviewed herein. Noise estimation, electromagnetic interference, data smoothing, correlation, and the Doppler effect are among the specific points addressed.

Cornish, C. R.↗

Radiative Amplification of Acoustic Waves in Hot Stars

The discovery of broad P Cygni profiles in early type stars and the detection of X-rays emitted from the envelopes of these stars made it clear, that a considerable amount of mechanical energy has to be present in massive stars. An attack on the problem, which has proven successful when applied to late type stars is proposed. It is possible that acoustic waves form out of random fluctuations, amplify by absorbing momentum from stellar radiation field, steepen into shock waves and dissipate. A stellar atmosphere was constructed, and sinusoidal small amplitude perturbations of specified Mach number and period at the inner boundary was introduced. The partial differential equations of hydrodynamics and the equations of radiation transfer for grey matter were solved numerically. The equation of motion was augmented by a term which describes the absorption of momentum from the radiation field in the continuum and in lines, including the Doppler effect and allows for the treatment of a large number of lines in the radiative acceleration term.

Wolf, B. E.↗

Frequency and time standards based on stored ions

The method of ion storage provides a basis for excellent time and frequency standards. This is due to the ability to confine ions for long periods of time without the usual perturbations associated with confinement (e.g., wall shifts). In addition, Doppler effects can be greatly suppressed. The use of stored ions for microwave frequency standards and the future possibilities for an optical frequency standard based on stored ions are addressed.

Bollinger, J. J.↗

Determination of the Brunt-Vaisala frequency from vertical velocity spectra

Recent work on the spectra of vertical velocity oscillations due to gravity waves in the troposphere, stratosphere and the mesosphere has revealed a typical feature which we call the Brunt-Vaisala cutoff. Several observers noticed a spectral peak near the Brunt-Vaisala frequency. This peak often is characterized by a very steep slope at the high frequency part, but a fairly shallow slope towards lower frequencies. Some example spectra of stratosphere observations are given. This distinct spectral shape (most clear at the upper height 22.5 km) can be explained by the fact that the vertical velocity amplitudes of atmospheric gravity waves increase with frequency up to their natural cutoff at the Brunt-Vaisala frequency. The measurement of the frequency of the peak in a vertical velocity spectrum was found to yield most directly the Brunt-Vaisala-frequency profile. Knowing the Brunt-Vaisala frequency profile, one can deduce the potential temperature profile, if one has a calibration temperature at one height. However, even the uncalibrated profile will be quite useful, e.g., to determine fronts (defined by temperature inversions) and the tropopause height. This method fails for superadiabatic lapse rates when the Brunt-Viasala frequency is imaginary. The application of this method will also be difficult when the wind velocity is too high, causing the Doppler effect to smear out the total spectrum and blur the Brunt-Vaisala cutoff. A similar deficiency will also appear if the gravity-wave distribution has a maximum in wind direction.

Rottger, J.↗

Laser Doppler measurement techniques for spacecraft

Two techniques are proposed for using laser links to measure the relative radial velocity of two spacecraft. The first technique determines the relative radial velocity from a measurement of the two-way Doppler shift on a transponded radio-frequency subcarrier. The subcarrier intensity-modulates reciprocating laser beams. The second technique determines the relative radial velocity from a measurement of the two-way Doppler shift on an optical frequency carrier which is transponded between spacecraft using optical Costas loops. The first technique might be used in conjunction with noncoherent optical communications, while the second technique is compatible with coherent optical communications. The first technique simultaneously exploits the diffraction advantage of laser beams and the maturity of radio-frequency phase-locked loop technology. The second technique exploits both the diffraction advantage of laser beams and the large Doppler effect at optical frequencies. The second technique has the potential for greater accuracy; unfortunately, it is more difficult to implement since it involves optical Costas loops.

Kinman, Peter W.↗

Theoretical spectra of nonmagnetized low-mass X-ray binaries

Theoretical X-ray spectra of low-mass X-ray binaries with negligible magnetic fields are presented. The geometry of the X-ray emitting region, the energetic efficiency of the accretion in the disk and in the boundary layer which leads to a relation between the disk and the boundary layer luminosities, and the irradiation of the disk by the boundary layer are studied. The model of the radiation spectrum emerging from the neutron star and the innermost part of the disk is presented. The relativistic and Doppler effects and their influence on the spectrum as a function of inclination angle are discussed. A simple method for comparing the spectrum model with observations by studying the hardness ratio is given, and the results for three X-ray sources in globular clusters observed by the Einstein satellite are presented. The range of applicability of the spectrum models is also discussed.

Czerny, Bozena↗