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At least 235 records · Page 13

Turbulent structures in wall-bounded shear flows observed via three-dimensional numerical simulators

Three recent simulations of tubulent shear flow bounded by a wall using the Illiac computer are reported. These are: (1) vibrating-ribbon experiments; (2) study of the evolution of a spot-like disturbance in a laminar boundary layer; and (3) investigation of turbulent channel flow. A number of persistent flow structures were observed, including streamwise and vertical vorticity distributions near the wall, low-speed and high-speed streaks, and local regions of intense vertical velocity. The role of these structures in, for example, the growth or maintenance of turbulence is discussed. The problem of representing the large range of turbulent scales in a computer simulation is also discussed.

Leonard, A.↗

Some influences of vision on susceptibility to motion sickness

Two experiments were performed to evaluate the influence of vision on susceptibility to motion sickness during exposure to constant patterns of vestibular stimulation. The motion profile involved accelerating subjects at 20 deg/sec per sec to 300 deg/sec, maintaining them at that constant velocity for 30 sec, and decelerating them to a rapid stop in about 1.5 sec. The number of stops tolerated by a subject before reaching the motion sickness endpoint served as his score. In Experiment 1, subjects were tested twice with their eyes open and twice with their eyes blindfolded. They tolerated fewer sudden stops when permitted sight of the experimental chamber. In Experiment 2, the effect of having the eyes open or closed at different stages of the motion profile was evaluated. Having the eyes open during any stage of the test was more stressful than having the eyes closed, but this was especially true during the sudden stops. The findings are discussed in terms of their general implications for understanding (1) situations in which vision alone elicits symptoms of motion sickness, and (2) situations involving vestibular stimulation where vision heightens susceptibility.

Lackner, J. R.↗

HEAO 1 spectra of X-ray emitting Seyfert 1 galaxies

The paper presents the 2-50-keV X-ray spectra and time variability information on seven Seyfert 1 galaxies NGC 3783, NGC 4151, NGC 5548, NGC 6814, MK 509, MCG 8-11-11, and ESO 141-G55, obtained with the A2(2) experiment on HEAO 1. It is concluded that the spectra of Seyfert 1 galaxies can be well represented by flat power laws of high-temperature thermal breamsstrahlung models with relatively low column densities.

Mushotzky, R. F.↗

Waves In Space Plasmas (WISP)

Topics included in the WISP science objectives are: (1) VLF wave injection experiments; (2) traveling ionospheric disturbances and atmospheric gravity waves; (3) ionospheric bubbles; and (4) plasma wave physics. Flow charts of the WISP investigation organization, the project life cycle and the instrumentation are given.

Fredericks, R. W.↗

Coordinated ionospheric and magnetospheric observations from the ISIS 2 satellite by the ISIS 2 experimenters. Volume 3: High-latitude charged particle, magnetic field and ionospheric plasma observations during northern summer

A list of ISIS 2 experiments and a description of the satellite are presented. Instrumentation of the satellite included an auroral scanning photometer, a red line photometer, a swept frequency sounder, an ion mass spectrometer, and triaxial fluxgate magnetometer. Data format descriptions are provided. Included with the geophysical data set is a list of all passes.

Source record↗

Visual fatigue - The need for an integrated model

Two experiments were conducted to examine possible decrements in performance over time on two visual tracking tasks. In Experiment 1, six subjects tracked a horizontal, sinusoidally moving target in the picture plane for 6.5 min. In Experiment 2, six subjects tracked a target sinusoidally changing focus in the depth plane between 0 and 4 D over 6.5 min. Results indicated a linearly decreasing amplitude of both pursuit eye movements (.29 deg of visual angle per minute) and accommodation (.11 D/min). These visual fatigue effects are discussed in the context of several competing explanations.

Malmstrom, F. V.↗

Analysis of testbed airborne multispectral scanner data from Superflux II

A test bed aircraft multispectral scanner (TBAMS) was flown during the James Shelf, Plume Scan, and Chesapeake Bay missions as part of the Superflux 2 experiment. Excellent correlations were obtained between water sample measurements of chlorophyll and sediment and TBAMS radiance data. The three-band algorithms used were insensitive to aircraft altitude and varying atmospheric conditions. This was particularly fortunate due to the hazy conditions during most of the experiments. A contour map of sediment, and also chlorophyll, was derived for the Chesapeake Bay plume along the southern Virginia-Carolina coastline. A sediment maximum occurs about 5 nautical miles off the Virginia Beach coast with a chlorophyll maximum slightly shoreward of this. During the James Shelf mission, a thermal anomaly (or front) was encountered about 50 miles from the coast. There was a minor variation in chlorophyll and sediment across the boundary. During the Chesapeake Bay mission, the Sun elevation increased from 50 degrees to over 70 degrees, interfering with the generation of data products.

Bowker, D. E.↗

The design, fabrication and installation of cable routing mockups in support of Spacelab 2

From flight and mockup drawings of Spacelab 2 (SL 2) experiments and hardware, shop ready mockup drawings were produced. Floor panels were the first items considered for fabrication. Cold plate and orthogrid mockups were designed and fabricated. Experiment and other hardware mockups were fabricated of aluminum or plywood, depending on size and configuration. Eighty-three cable routing bracket mockups were fabricated of aluminum and delivered for painting.

Source record↗

Structure and other properties of Jupiter's distant magnetotail

Analyses of data from Voyager 2 experiments provide evidence for, and characteristics of, a Jovian magnetotail extending at least to 9,000 Jovian radii from the planet. During approximately (25 day) periodic sightings of the tail, the magnetic field tended to point radially towards or away from Jupiter, indicating preservation to large distances of the bipolar, lobe like structure observed near the planet. This periodicity, along with various properties of the solar wind at this time, indicates that the tail is apparently influenced by recurrent solar wind features. Anomalous magnetic fields, not aligned with the nominal tail axis, also exist within the tail, especially in the low density, central (core) region, indicating some complexity of internal structure.

Lepping, R. P.↗

Structure and other properties of Jupiter's distant magnetotail

Analyses of data from Voyager 2 experiments provide evidence for, and characteristics of, a Jovian magnetotail extending at least to 9,000 Jovian radii from the planet. During approximately (25 day) periodic sightings of the tail, the magnetic field tended to point radially towards or away from Jupiter, indicating preservation to large distances of the bipolar, lobe like structure observed near the planet. This periodicity, along with various properties of the solar wind at this time, indicates that the tail is apparently influenced by recurrent solar wind features. Anomalous magnetic fields, not aligned with the nominal tail axis, also exist within the tail, especially in the low density, central (core) region, indicating some complexity of internal structure. Previously announced in STAR as N83-29153

Lepping, R. P.↗

Infrared measurements of spacecraft glow planned for Spacelab 2

A liquid helium cooled infrared telescope (IRT) was to be flown in July 1985 on Spacelab 2. The instrument is designed to measure both diffuse and discrete infrared astronomical sources, including the zodiacal light, galactic, and extragalactic components, as well as to evaluate the induced Orbiter environment. The focal plane contains ten photoconductive detectors covering six broad bands from 2 to 120 microns. Each detector has a 0.5 by 1.0 deg field of view optimized for detection of extended sources of IR radiation. Except for the 2 micron detector, the system noise is limited by the sky background noise. The measurements planned for the IRT use the 1 meter base of the Plasma Diagnostic Package (PDP), an already existing SL 2 experiment, as the glow generating surface. The measurements are repeated changing the position of the PDP, the attitude of the Orbiter, and the ram direction in an effort to remove both the thermal component of the PDP emission and the cosmic background radiation.

Fazio, G. G.↗

Spacecraft Dynamics and Control Program at AFRPL

A number of future DOD and NASA spacecraft such as the space based radar will be not only an order of magnitude larger in dimension than the current spacecraft, but will exhibit extreme structural flexibility with very low structural vibration frequencies. Another class of spacecraft (such as the space defense platforms) will combine large physical size with extremely precise pointing requirement. Such problems require a total departure from the traditional methods of modeling and control system design of spacecraft where structural flexibility is treated as a secondary effect. With these problems in mind, the Air Force Rocket Propulsion Laboratory (AFRPL) initiated research to develop dynamics and control technology so as to enable the future large space structures (LSS). AFRPL's effort in this area can be subdivided into the following three overlapping areas: (1) ground experiments, (2) spacecraft modeling and control, and (3) sensors and actuators. Both the in-house and contractual efforts of the AFRPL in LSS are summarized.

Das, A.↗

Intuitive reasoning about abstract and familiar physics problems

Previous research has demonstrated that many people have misconceptions about basic properties of motion. Two experiments examined whether people are more likely to produce dynamically correct predictions about basic motion problems involving situations with which they are familiar, and whether solving such problems enhances performance on a subsequent abstract problem. In experiment 1, college students were asked to predict the trajectories of objects exiting a curved tube. Subjects were more accurate on the familiar version of the problem, and there was no evidence of transfer to the abstract problem. In experiment 2, two familiar problems were provided in an attempt to enhance subjects' tendency to extract the general structure of the problems. Once again, they gave more correct responses to the familiar problems but failed to generalize to the abstract problem. Formal physics training was associated with correct predictions for the abstract problem but was unrelated to performance on the familiar problems.

Kaiser, Mary Kister↗

Internal fluid mechanics research on supercomputers for aerospace propulsion systems

The Internal Fluid Mechanics Division of the NASA Lewis Research Center is combining the key elements of computational fluid dynamics, aerothermodynamic experiments, and advanced computational technology to bring internal computational fluid mechanics (ICFM) to a state of practical application for aerospace propulsion systems. The strategies used to achieve this goal are to: (1) pursue an understanding of flow physics, surface heat transfer, and combustion via analysis and fundamental experiments, (2) incorporate improved understanding of these phenomena into verified 3-D CFD codes, and (3) utilize state-of-the-art computational technology to enhance experimental and CFD research. Presented is an overview of the ICFM program in high-speed propulsion, including work in inlets, turbomachinery, and chemical reacting flows. Ongoing efforts to integrate new computer technologies, such as parallel computing and artificial intelligence, into high-speed aeropropulsion research are described.

Miller, Brent A.↗

An operations manual for the digital data system

The Digital Data System (DDS) was designed to incorporate the analog-to-digital conversion process into the initial data acquisition stage and to store the data in a digital format. This conversion is done as part of the acquisition process. Consequently, the data are ready to be analyzed as soon as the test is completed. This capability permits the researcher to alter test parameters during the course of the experiment based on the information acquired in a prior portion of the test. The DDS is currently able to simultaneously acquire up to 10 channels of data. The purpose of this document is fourfold: (1) to describe the capabilities of the hardware in sufficient detail to allow the reader to determine whether the DDS is the optimum system for a particular experiment; (2) to present some of the more significant software developed to provide analyses within a short time of the completion of data acquisition; (3) to provide the reader with sample runs of major software routines to demonstrate their convenience and simple usage; and (4) a portion of the document is used to describe software which uses an FFT-box to provide a means of comparison against which the DDS can be checked.

Jones, Michael G.↗

Adapting to variable prismatic displacement

In each of two studies, subjects were exposed to a continuously changing prismatic displacement with a mean value of 19 prism diopters (variable displacement) and to a fixed 19-diopter displacement (fixed displacement). In Experiment 1, significant adaptation (post-pre shifts in hand-eye coordination) was found for fixed, but not for variable, displacement. Experiment 2 demonstrated that adaptation was obtained for variable displacement, but it was very fragile and is lost if the measures of adaptation are preceded by even a very brief exposure of the hand to normal or near-normal vision. Contrary to the results of some previous studies, an increase in within-S dispersion was not found of target pointing responses as a result of exposure to variable displacement.

Welch, Robert B.↗

Spacelab 2 electron beam wave stimulation - Studies of important parameters

Experimental results from Spacelab 2 experiments on the production of waves in ionospheric plasma by the injection of pulsed electron beams are reported. The wave environments which exist in the orbiter payload bay and at several hundred meters away are compared both during ambient conditions and during electron beam injections. The duty cycle of the beam is found to be one of the most important parameters affecting the amplitude and the harmonic structure of the waves. Maximum amplitudes are produced by 50 percent duty cycles and amplitudes are proportional to instantaneous, rather than average, beam current. The dependence of the harmonic structure on pulsing frequency shows good agreement with theory for whistler mode waves produced by the Cerenkov resonance.

Reeves, G. D.↗

LDEF mechanical systems

Following the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF), the Systems Special Investigation Group (SIG) was involved in a considerable amount of testing of mechanical hardware flown on the LDEF. The primary objectives were to determine the effects of the long term exposure on: (1) mechanisms employed both on the LDEF or as part of individual experiments; (2) structural components; and (3) fasteners. Results of testing the following LDEF hardware are presented: LDEF structure, fasteners, trunnions, end support beam, environment exposure control cannisters, motors, and lubricants. A limited discussion of PI test results is included. The lessons learned are discussed along with the future activities of the System SIG.

Spear, Steve↗