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NASA NTRS2004

Global Change Data Center: Mission, Organization, Major Activities, and 2003 Highlights

Rapid, efficient access to Earth sciences data from satellites and ground validation stations is fundamental to the nation's efforts to understand the effects of global environmental changes and their implications for public policy. It becomes a bigger challenge in the future when data volumes increase from current levels to terabytes per day. Demands on data storage, data access, network throughput, processing power, and database and information management are increased by orders of magnitude, while budgets remain constant and even shrink.The Global Change Data Center's (GCDC) mission is to develop and operate data systems, generate science products, and provide archival and distribution services for Earth science data in support of the U.S. Global Change Program and NASA's Earth Sciences Enterprise. The ultimate product of the GCDC activities is access to data to support research, education, and public policy.

FROM↗
NASA NTRS2006

Low-cost Large Aperture Telescopes for Optical Communications

Low-cost, large-aperture optical receivers are required to form an affordable optical ground receiver network for laser communications. Among the ground receiver station's multiple subsystems, here, we only discuss the ongoing research activities aimed at reducing the cost of the large-size optics on the receiver. Experimental results of two different approaches for fabricating low-cost mirrors of wavefront quality on the order of 100-200X the diffraction limit are described. Laboratory-level effort are underway to improve the surface figure to better than 20X the diffraction limit.

telescope↗
NASA NTRS2007

Ikhana: A NASA UAS Supporting Long Duration Earth Science Missions

The NASA Ikhana unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a General Atomics Ae ronautical Systems Inc. (San Diego, California) MQ-9 Predator-B modif ied to support the conduct of Earth science missions for the NASA Sci ence Mission Directorate and, through partnerships, other government agencies and universities. It can carry over 2000 lb of experiment p ayloads in the avionics bay and external pods and is capable of missi on durations in excess of 24 hours at altitudes above 40,000 ft. The aircraft is remotely piloted from a mobile ground control station (GC S) that is designed to be deployable by air, land, or sea. On-board s upport capabilities include an instrumentation system and an Airborne Research Test System (ARTS). The Ikhana project will complete GCS d evelopment, science support systems integration, external pod integra tion and flight clearance, and operations crew training in early 2007 . A large-area remote sensing mission is currently scheduled for Summ er 2007.

Cobleigh, B.↗
NASA NTRS2007

A Web 2.0 and OGC Standards Enabled Sensor Web Architecture for Global Earth Observing System of Systems

This paper will describe the progress of a 3 year research award from the NASA Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) that began October 1, 2006, in response to a NASA Announcement of Research Opportunity on the topic of sensor webs. The key goal of this research is to prototype an interoperable sensor architecture that will enable interoperability between a heterogeneous set of space-based, Unmanned Aerial System (UAS)-based and ground based sensors. Among the key capabilities being pursued is the ability to automatically discover and task the sensors via the Internet and to automatically discover and assemble the necessary science processing algorithms into workflows in order to transform the sensor data into valuable science products. Our first set of sensor web demonstrations will prototype science products useful in managing wildfires and will use such assets as the Earth Observing 1 spacecraft, managed out of NASA/GSFC, a UASbased instrument, managed out of Ames and some automated ground weather stations, managed by the Forest Service. Also, we are collaborating with some of the other ESTO awardees to expand this demonstration and create synergy between our research efforts. Finally, we are making use of Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Sensor Web Enablement (SWE) suite of standards and some Web 2.0 capabilities to Beverage emerging technologies and standards. This research will demonstrate and validate a path for rapid, low cost sensor integration, which is not tied to a particular system, and thus be able to absorb new assets in an easily evolvable, coordinated manner. This in turn will help to facilitate the United States contribution to the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), as agreed by the U.S. and 60 other countries at the third Earth Observation Summit held in February of 2005.

Mandl, Daniel↗
NASA NTRS2006

Notional Airspace Operations Demonstration Plan

The airspace operations demonstration (AOD) is intended to show that the Access 5 Step 1 functional requirements can be met. The demonstration will occur in two phases. The initial on-range phase will be carried out in restricted airspace to demonstrate the cooperative collision avoidance (CCA) functional requirements and to provide risk-reduction for the AOD by allowing the test team to rehearse some elements of the demonstration mission. The CCA system to be used in these flights is based on Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) which is a commercially-available system by which airplanes constantly broadcast their current position and altitude to other aircraft and ground resources over a dedicated radio datalink. The final phase will occur in the national airspace (NAS) and will be the formal demonstration of the remainder of the proposed functional requirements. The general objectives of the AOD are as follows: (1) Demonstrate that the UAS can aviate in the NAS (2) Demonstrate that the UAS can navigate in the NAS (3) Demonstrate that the UAS can communicate with the NAS (4) Demonstrate that the UAS can perform selected collision avoidance functions in the NAS (5) Demonstrate that the UAS can evaluate and avoid weather conflicts in the NAS (6) Demonstrate that the UAS can provide adequate command and control in the NAS In addition to the stated objectives, there are a number of goals for the flight demonstration. The demo can be accomplished successfully without achieving these goals, but these goals are to be used as a guideline for preparing for the mission. The goals are: (1) Mission duration of at least 24 hours (2) Loiter over heavy traffic to evaluate the data block issue identified during the Access 5 Airspace Operations Simulations (3) Document the contingency management process and lessons learned (4) Document the coordination process for Ground Control Stations (GCS) handoff (5) Document lessons learned regarding the process of flying in the NAS Preliminary planning for a notional mission to achieve the objectives and goals has been prepared. The planning is intended to serve as a guide for detailed planning of the AOD.

Trongale, Nicholas A.↗
NASA NTRS2008

2007 Western States Fire Mission

A general overview of the Ikhana Uninhabited Air System (UAS) is presented. The contents include: 1) Ikhana UAS; 2) Ikhana UAS / Ground Control Station (GCS); 3) Ikhana UAS / Antennas; 4) Western States Fire Mission 2007 Partners; 5) FAA Certificate of Authorization (COA); 6) Western States Fire Missions (WSFM) 2007; 7) WSFM 1-4 2007; 8) California Wildfire Emergency Response 2007; 9) WSFM 5-8 Emergency Response 2007; 10) WSFM Achievements; and 11) WSFM Challenges.

Howell, Kathleen↗
NASA NTRS2007

Ikhana: A NASA UAS Supporting Long Duration Earth Science Missions

The NASA Ikhana unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (San Diego, California) MQ-9 Predator-B modified to support the conduct of Earth science missions for the NASA Science Mission Directorate and, through partnerships, other government agencies and universities. It can carry over 2000 lb of experiment payloads in the avionics bay and external pods and is capable of mission durations in excess of 24 hours at altitudes above 40,000 ft. The aircraft is remotely piloted from a mobile ground control station (GCS) that is designed to be deployable by air, land, or sea. On-board support capabilities include an instrumentation system and an Airborne Research Test System (ARTS). The Ikhana project will complete GCS development, science support systems integration, external pod integration and flight clearance, and operations crew training in early 2007. A large-area remote sensing mission is currently scheduled for Summer 2007.

Cobleigh, Brent R.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Ikhana: A NASA Unmanned Aerial System Supporting Long-Duration Earth Science Missions

This viewgraph presentation reviews Ikhana's project goals: (1) Develop an airborne platform to conduct Earth observation and atmospheric sampling science missions both nationally and internationally, (2) develop and demonstrate technologies that improve the capability of UAVs to conduct science collection missions, (3) develop technologies that improve manned and unmanned aircraft systems, and (4) support important national UAV development activities. The criteria that guided the selection of the aircraft are listed. The payload areas on Ikhana are shown and the network that connects the systems are also reviewed. The data recorder is shown. Also the diagram of the Airborne Research Test System (ARTS) is reviewed. The Mobile Ground Control Station and the Mobile Ku SatCom Antenna are also shown and described.

Cobleigh, Brent R.↗
NASA NTRS2009

X-48B Flight Test Progress Overview

The results of a series of 39 flight tests of the X-48B Low Speed Vehicle (LSV) performed at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center from July 2007 through December 2008 are reported here. The goal of these tests is to evaluate the aerodynamic and controls and dynamics performance of the subscale LSV aircraft, eventually leading to the development of a control system for a full-scale vehicle. The X-48B LSV is an 8.5%-scale aircraft of a potential, full-scale Blended Wing Body (BWB) type aircraft and is flown remotely from a ground control station using a computerized flight control system located onboard the aircraft. The flight tests were the first two phases of a planned three-phase research program aimed at ascertaining the flying characteristics of this type of aircraft. The two test phases reported here are: 1) envelope expansion, during which the basic flying characteristics of the airplane were examined, and 2) parameter identification, stalls, and engine-out testing, during which further information on the aircraft performance was obtained and the airplane was tested to the limits of controlled flight. The third phase, departure limiter assaults, has yet to be performed. Flight tests in two different wing leading edge configurations (slats extended and slats retracted) as well as three weight and three center of gravity positions were conducted during each phase. Data gathered in the test program included measured airplane performance parameters such as speed, acceleration, and control surface deflections along with qualitative flying evaluations obtained from pilot and crew observations. Flight tests performed to-date indicate the aircraft exhibits good handling qualities and performance, consistent with pre-flight simulations.

Risch, Timoth K.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Remotely Piloted Vehicles for Experimental Flight Control Testing

A successful flight test and training campaign of the NASA Flying Controls Testbed was conducted at Naval Outlying Field, Webster Field, MD during 2008. Both the prop and jet-powered versions of the subscale, remotely piloted testbeds were used to test representative experimental flight controllers. These testbeds were developed by the Subsonic Fixed Wing Project s emphasis on new flight test techniques. The Subsonic Fixed Wing Project is under the Fundamental Aeronautics Program of NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD). The purpose of these testbeds is to quickly and inexpensively evaluate advanced concepts and experimental flight controls, with applications to adaptive control, system identification, novel control effectors, correlation of subscale flight tests with wind tunnel results, and autonomous operations. Flight tests and operator training were conducted during four separate series of tests during April, May, June and August 2008. Experimental controllers were engaged and disengaged during fully autonomous flight in the designated test area. Flaps and landing gear were deployed by commands from the ground control station as unanticipated disturbances. The flight tests were performed NASA personnel with support from the Maritime Unmanned Development and Operations (MUDO) team of the Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division

Motter, Mark A.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Hydrogen Cyanide in the Upper Troposphere: GEM-AQ Simulation and Comparison with ACE-FTS Observations

We investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of hydrogen cyanide (HCN) in the upper troposphere through numerical simulations and comparison with observations from a space-based instrument. To perform the simulations, we used the Global Environmental Multiscale Air Quality model (GEM-AQ), which is based on the threedimensional Gobal multiscale model developed by the Meteorological Service of Canada for operational weather forecasting. The model was run for the period 2004-2006 on a 1.5deg x 1.5deg global grid with 28 hybrid vertical levels from the surface up to 10 hPa. Objective analysis data from the Canadian Meteorological Centre were used to update the meteorological fields every 24 h. Fire emission fluxes of gas species were generated by using year-specific inventories of carbon emissions with 8-day temporal resolution from the Global Fire Emission Database (GFED) version 2. The model output is compared with HCN profiles measured by the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS) instrument onboard the Canadian SCISAT-1 satellite. High values of up to a few ppbv are observed in the tropics in the Southern Hemisphere; the enhancement in HCN volume mixing ratios in the upper troposphere is most prominent in October. Low upper-tropospheric mixing ratios of less than 100 pptv are mostly recorded at middle and high latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere in May-July. Mixing ratios in Northern Hemisphere peak in the boreal summer. The amplitude of the seasonal variation is less pronounced than in the Southern Hemisphere. The comparison with the satellite data shows that in the upper troposphere GEM-AQ perform7s well globally for all seasons, except at northern hi gh and middle latitudes in surnmer, where the model has a large negative bias, and in the tropics in winter and spring, where it exhibits large positive bias. This may reflect inaccurate emissions or possible inaccuracies in the emission profile. The model is able to explain most of the observed variability in the upper troposphere HCN field, includin g the interannual variations in the observed mixing ratio. A complementary comparison with daily total columns of HCN from two middle latitude ground-based stations in Northern Japan for the same simulation period shows that the model captures the observed seasonal variation and also points to an underestimation of model emissions in the Northern Hemisphere in the summer. The estimated average global emission equals 1.3 Tg N/yr. The average atmospheric burden is 0.53 Tg N, and the corresponding lifetime is 4.9 months.

Lupu, A.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Flight Testing the X-48B at the Dryden Flight Research Center

Topics discussed include: a) UAV s at NASA Dryden, Past and Present; b) Why Do We Flight Test?; c) The Blended (or Hybrid) Wing-Body Advantage; d) Program Objectives; e) The X-48B Vehicle and Ground Control Station; and f) Flight Test Highlights & Video.

Cosenito, Gary B.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Estimation of Surface Air Temperature from MODIS 1km Resolution Land Surface Temperature Over Northern China

Surface air temperature is a critical variable to describe the energy and water cycle of the Earth-atmosphere system and is a key input element for hydrology and land surface models. It is a very important variable in agricultural applications and climate change studies. This is a preliminary study to examine statistical relationships between ground meteorological station measured surface daily maximum/minimum air temperature and satellite remotely sensed land surface temperature from MODIS over the dry and semiarid regions of northern China. Studies were conducted for both MODIS-Terra and MODIS-Aqua by using year 2009 data. Results indicate that the relationships between surface air temperature and remotely sensed land surface temperature are statistically significant. The relationships between the maximum air temperature and daytime land surface temperature depends significantly on land surface types and vegetation index, but the minimum air temperature and nighttime land surface temperature has little dependence on the surface conditions. Based on linear regression relationship between surface air temperature and MODIS land surface temperature, surface maximum and minimum air temperatures are estimated from 1km MODIS land surface temperature under clear sky conditions. The statistical errors (sigma) of the estimated daily maximum (minimum) air temperature is about 3.8 C(3.7 C).

Shen, Suhung↗
NASA NTRS2010

NASA Dryden Flight Research Center: Unmanned Aircraft Operations

This slide presentation reviews several topics related to operating unmanned aircraft in particular sharing aspects of unmanned aircraft from the perspective of a pilot. There is a section on the Global Hawk project which contains information about the first Global Hawk science mission, (i.e., Global Hawk Pacific (GloPac). Included in this information is GloPac science highlights, a listing of the GloPac Instruments. The second Global Hawk science mission was Genesis and Rapid Intensification Process (GRIP), for the NASA Hurricane Science Research Team. Information includes the instrumentation and the flights that were undertaken during the program. A section on Ikhana is next. This section includes views of the Ground Control Station (GCS), and a discussion of how the piloting of UAS is different from piloting in a manned aircraft. There is also discussion about displays and controls of aircraft. There is also discussion about what makes a pilot. The last section relates the use of Ikhana in the western states fire mission.

Pestana, Mark↗
NASA NTRS2012

NASA's UAS [Unmanned Aircraft Systems] Related Activities

NASA continues to operate all sizes of UAS in all classes of airspace both domestically and internationally. Missions range from highly complex operations in coordination with piloted aircraft, ground, and space systems in support of science objectives to single aircraft operations in support of aeronautics research. One such example is a scaled commercial transport aircraft being used to study recovery techniques due to large upsets. NASA's efforts to support routine UAS operations continued on several fronts last year. At the national level in the United States (U.S.), NASA continued its support of the UAS Executive Committee (ExCom) comprised of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Defense (DoD), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and NASA. The committee was formed in recognition of the need of UAS operated by these agencies to access to the National Airspace System (NAS) to support operational, training, development and research requirements. Recommendations were received on how to operate both manned and unmanned aircraft in class D airspace and plans are being developed to validate and implement those recommendations. In addition the UAS ExCom has begun developing recommendations for how to achieve routine operations in remote areas as well as for small UAS operations in class G airspace. As well as supporting the UAS ExCom, NASA is a participant in the recently formed Aviation Rule Making Committee for UAS. This committee, established by the FAA, is intended to propose regulatory guidance which would enable routine civil UAS operations. As that effort matures NASA stands ready to supply the necessary technical expertise to help that committee achieve its objectives. By supporting both the UAS ExCom and UAS ARC, NASA is positioned to provide its technical expertise across the full spectrum of UAS airspace access related topic areas. The UAS NAS Access Project got underway this past year under the leadership of NASA s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate. This project is focused on advancing the state of the art and providing research and analysis results in the areas of Separation Assurance, Communications (non-governmental spectrum allocation for UAS), Certification, and Human System Integration (ground control station design/pilot interfaces). The project is working in close coordination with the FAA and industry standards organizations (e.g. RTCA SC 203). More details on this project are provided in a separate article in this year's yearbook

Bauer, Jeffrey↗
NASA NTRS2012

UAS Integration Into the NAS: An Examination of Baseline Compliance in the Current Airspace System

As a result of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) are expected to be integrated into the National Airspace System (NAS) by 2015. Several human factors challenges need to be addressed before UAS can safely and routinely fly in the NAS with manned aircraft. Perhaps the most significant challenge is for the UAS to be non-disruptive to the air traffic management system. Another human factors challenge is how to provide UAS pilots with intuitive traffic information in order to support situation awareness (SA) of their airspace environment as well as a see-and-avoid capability comparable to manned aircraft so that a UAS pilot could safely maneuver the aircraft to maintain separation and collision avoidance if necessary. A simulation experiment was conducted to examine baseline compliance of UAS operations in the current airspace system. Researchers also examined the effects of introducing a Cockpit Situation Display (CSD) into a UAS Ground Control Station (GCS) on UAS pilot performance, workload and situation awareness while flying in a positively controlled sector. Pilots were tasked with conducting a highway patrol police mission with a Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) UAS in L.A. Center airspace with two mission objectives: 1) to reroute the UAS when issued new instructions from their commander, and 2) to communicate with Air Traffic Control (ATC) to negotiate flight plan changes and respond to vectoring and altitude change instructions. Objective aircraft separation data, workload ratings, SA data, and subjective ratings regarding UAS operations in the NAS were collected. Results indicate that UAS pilots were able to comply appropriately with ATC instructions. In addition, the introduction of the CSD improved pilot SA and reduced workload associated with UAS and ATC interactions.

Fern, Lisa↗
NASA NTRS2012

Global 3-D Ionospheric Electron Density Reanalysis Based on Multisource Data Assimilation

We report preliminary results of a global 3-D ionospheric electron density reanalysis demonstration study during 2002-2011 based on multisource data assimilation. The monthly global ionospheric electron density reanalysis has been done by assimilating the quiet days ionospheric data into a data assimilation model constructed using the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) 2007 model and a Kalman filter technique. These data include global navigation satellite system (GNSS) observations of ionospheric total electron content (TEC) from ground-based stations, ionospheric radio occultations by CHAMP, GRACE, COSMIC, SAC-C, Metop-A, and the TerraSAR-X satellites, and Jason-1 and 2 altimeter TEC measurements. The output of the reanalysis are 3-D gridded ionospheric electron densities with temporal and spatial resolutions of 1 h in universal time, 5deg in latitude, 10deg in longitude, and approx.30 km in altitude. The climatological features of the reanalysis results, such as solar activity dependence, seasonal variations, and the global morphology of the ionosphere, agree well with those in the empirical models and observations. The global electron content derived from the international GNSS service global ionospheric maps, the observed electron density profiles from the Poker Flat Incoherent Scatter Radar during 2007-2010, and foF2 observed by the global ionosonde network during 2002-2011 are used to validate the reanalysis method. All comparisons show that the reanalysis have smaller deviations and biases than the IRI-2007 predictions. Especially after April 2006 when the six COSMIC satellites were launched, the reanalysis shows significant improvement over the IRI predictions. The obvious overestimation of the low-latitude ionospheric F region densities by the IRI model during the 23/24 solar minimum is corrected well by the reanalysis. The potential application and improvements of the reanalysis are also discussed.

Xinan Yue↗
NASA NTRS2013

UAS in the NAS: Survey Responses by ATC, Manned Aircraft Pilots, and UAS Pilots

NASA currently is working with industry and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to establish future requirements for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) flying in the National Airspace System (NAS). To work these issues NASA has established a multi-center UAS Integration in the NAS project. In order to establish Ground Control Station requirements for UAS, the perspective of each of the major players in NAS operations was desired. Three on-line surveys were administered that focused on Air Traffic Controllers (ATC), pilots of manned aircraft, and pilots of UAS. Follow-up telephone interviews were conducted with some survey respondents. The survey questions addressed UAS control, navigation, and communications from the perspective of small and large unmanned aircraft. Questions also addressed issues of UAS equipage, especially with regard to sense and avoid capabilities. From the ATC and military ATC perspective, of particular interest is how mixed-operations (manned/UAS) have worked in the past and the role of aircraft equipage. Knowledge gained from this information is expected to assist the NASA UAS in the NAS project in directing research foci thus assisting the FAA in the development of rules, regulations, and policies related to UAS in the NAS.

Comstock, James R., Jr.↗

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