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At least 235 records · Page 13

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NASA NTRS1983

Effects of the Kelvin-Helmholtz surface instability on supersonic jets

An exact numerical calculation is provided for of linear growth and phase velocity of Kelvin-Helmholtz unstable wave modes on a supersonic jet of cylindrical cross section. An expression for the maximally unstable wavenumber of each wave mode is found. Provided a sharp velocity discontinuity exists all wave modes are unstable. A combination of rapid jet expansion and velocity shear across a jet can effectively stabilize all wave modes. The more likely case of slow jet expansion and of velocity shear at the jet surface allows wave modes with maximally unstable wavelength longer than or on the order of the jet radius to grow. The relative energy in different wave modes and effect on the jet is investigated. Energy input into a jet resulting from surface instability is discussed. Previously announced in STAR as N83-17379

Hardee, P. E.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Nonlinear theory of type I irregularities in the equatorial electrojet

By allowing for the effect of wave electric fields on electron orbits, a nonlinear dispersion relation for type I irregularities is obtained. This relation predicts (1) isotropy of the Doppler shift with elevation, (2) a limiting phase velocity equal to the ion acoustic speed, and (3) a saturation amplitude which is maximum for horizontally propagating waves and decreases with elevation. With the theory presented here, the in situ electric field measurements of Pfaff et al. (1980) in the electrojet environment could provide a quantitative check for the theory of orbit diffusion by stochastic electric fields.

Sudan, R. N.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Waveform inversion of mantle Love waves: The born seismogram approach

Normal mode theory, extended to the slightly laterally heterogeneous Earth by the first-order Born approximation, is applied to the waveform inversion of mantle Love waves (200-500 sec) for the Earth's lateral heterogeneity at l=2 and a spherically symmetric anelasticity (Q sub mu) structure. The data are from the Global Digital Seismograph Network (GDSN). The l=2 pattern is very similar to the results of other studies that used either different methods, such as phase velocity measurements and multiplet location measurements, or a different data set, such as mantle Rayleigh waves from different instruments. The results are carefully analyzed for variance reduction and are most naturally explained by heterogeneity in the upper 420 km. Because of the poor resolution of the data set for the deep interior, however, a fairly large heterogeneity in the transition zones, of the order of up to 3.5% in shear wave velocity, is allowed. It is noteworthy that Love waves of this period range can not constrain the structure below 420 km and thus any model presented by similar studies below this depth are likely to be constrained by Rayleigh waves (spheroidal modes) only.

Tanimoto, T.↗

NASA NTRS1984

The structure of evaporating and combusting sprays: Measurements and predictions

An apparatus developed, to allow observations of monodisperse sprays, consists of a methane-fueled turbulent jet diffusion flame with monodisperse methanol drops injected at the burner exit. Mean and fluctuating-phase velocities, drop sizes, drop-mass fluxes and mean-gas temperatures were measured. Initial drop diameters of 100 and 180 microns are being considered in order to vary drop penetration in the flow and effects of turbulent dispersion. Baseline tests of the burner flame with no drops present were also conducted. Calibration tests, needed to establish methods for predicting drop transport, involve drops supported in the post-flame region of a flat-flame burner operated at various mixture ratios. Spray models which are being evaluated include: (1) locally homogeneous flow (LFH) analysis, (2) deterministic separated flow (DSF) analysis and (3) stochastic separated flow (SSF) analysis.

Shuen, J. S.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Voyager 2 observations of Saturn's northern mid-latitude cloud features - Morphology, motions, and evolution

Voyager 2 images provide a basis for detailed study of the morphology and circulation of Saturn's northern midlatitudes. Both Saturn's large-scale cloud bands and the distribution of its local cloud features have a characteristic zonal organization. The region between 30 N and 45 N contains two oppositely directed jets in close proximity, with many bright, active features in the westward jet, and an unusual ribbonlike wave feature encircling the planet in the eastward jet. Several of the smaller features within the westward jet do not remain at fixed latitudes and interact with each other. One group of v-shaped features is found to have periods of high activity correlated with the passage of a cyclonic bright spot. The ribbon wave was Fourier analyzed to determine its spectral composition. The greatest power is near wave number 9, with significant additional peaks appearing at planetary wave numbers 19, 25-27, 35-38, and 47-51. The phase velocity increases with wave number but is not well described by a Rossby-Haurwitz dispersion relation. The curvature of the mean wind profile obtained from cloud tracking indicates that the westward jet exceeds the standard barotropic instability condition, while the eastward jet marginally exceeds the deep-circulation instability condition of Ingersoll and Pollard (1982). The rms eddy velocities on Saturn are less than half as large as those observed on Jupiter.

Sromovsky, L. A.↗

NASA NTRS1983

L band SAR ocean wave observations during Marsen

The five-sided flight pattern made it possible to view the same ocean surface patch from five different directions. The results obtained from analyzing radar and in situ measurements indicate that the focus dependence for optimum imaging is that for a surface moving with a speed that is approximately equal to the wave phase velocity. The finding also suggest that azimuthally traveling waves can be visible as range traveling waves when the necessary focus adjustments are made in the SAR processor and that the visibility of azimuthally travelling waves does not improve with decreasing integration time. What is more, the spectra and images of azimuthally traveling waves do not show observable distortions compared with those for range traveling waves.

Jain, A.↗

NASA NTRS1984

A nonlinear structural concept for drag-reducing compliant walls

Two mechanisms of drag reduction for flow over flat plates were investigated. The first mechanism employs Bushnell's hypothesis that compliant walls produce drag reduction by interfering with the formation of the turbulent spots in a turbulent boundary layer. It is shown that the amplitudes and frequencies of compliant wall motions for drag reduction might be achieved by using slightly curved walls and the resulting large amplitude motions of snap buckling. A simple structural model of an arch is used in the analysis, and an asymptotic method is developed. The required wall motions can be obtained by using materials like mylar. In addition, the delay of transition from laminar to turbulent flow by driven walls was studied for Poiseuille channel flow. The walls are driven by a periodic traveling wave. A significant increase in the transitional Reynolds number is obtained by appropriately prescribing the wavelength and phase velocity of the wall motion. Previously developed asymptotic methods are used in the analysis. Previously announced in STAR as N83-11061

Reiss, E. L.↗

NASA NTRS1983

A case study of gravity waves-convective storms interaction 9 May 1979

An analysis is presented of a series of severe storms which occurred in the north central United States on 9 May 1979 and whose spatial distribution and movement correlate well with observed gravity waves. Two gravity wave trains of 2.1-3 mb amplitude, 2.5-3.3 h period and 240-265 km horizontal wavelength were isolated through power spectra analysis and cross-correlation techniques applied to National Weather Service barograph traces. The wave trains propagated in the 200 deg direction, which coincided with the jet axis, with a phase velocity of 20-30 m/s and within a 300 km wide band. The storms were identified on enhanced infrared GOES satellite pictures with the help of radar summaries. These convective systems initially developed in Nebraska and propagated north-northeast at 25 m/s, revealing wave-like characteristics with a separation of 300-400 km. The convective systems were closely linked to the observed wave trains with cell intensity, height and associated rainfall maximized at the wave ridge. One of the two wave trains developed in regions of weak or no convection and appeared to initiate more intense convective clusters downstream from the point of origin. It is shown that the characteristics of the wave trains are consistent with those of gravity waves generated in a region of strong vertical shear associated with the jet. It is suggested that the wave trains continue to extract energy from the basic state all along their track through critical level interaction.

Stobie, J. G.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Evidence for equatorial Kelvin modes in Nimbus-7 LIMS

Equatorial Kelvin waves have emerged as an important source of westerly momentum for the tropical stratosphere. The present investigation is concerned with an analysis of remotely derived temperatures from Nimbus-7 LIMS (Limb Infrared Monitor of the Stratosphere). It is found that eastward propagating disturbances are present in two independent LIMS data sets. The disturbances manifest themselves consistently at several levels throughout the stratosphere and account for much of the tropical temperature variance out to latitudes where extratropical signals become large. Compelling evidence is found for several distinct phase velocities. Spectral analysis indicates isolated eastward variance at principally two frequencies for both wavenumbers.

Salby, M. L.↗

NASA NTRS1984

The p-wave upper mantle structure beneath an active spreading centre - The Gulf of California

Over 1400 seismograms of earthquakes in Mexico are analyzed and data sets for the travel time, apparent phase velocity, and relative amplitude information are utilized to produce a tightly constrained, detailed model for depths to 900 km beneath an active oceanic ridge region, the Gulf of California. The data are combined by first inverting the travel times, perturbing that model to fit the p-delta data, and then performing trial and error synthetic seismogram modelling to fit the short-period waveforms. The final model satisfies all three data sets. The ridge model is similar to existing upper mantle models for shield, tectonic-continental, and arc-trench regimes below 400 km, but differs significantly in the upper 350 km. Ridge model velocities are very low in this depth range; the model 'catches up' with the others with a very large velocity gradient from 225 to 390 km.

Walck, M. C.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Waveform inversion of mantle Love waves - The Born seismogram approach

Normal mode theory, extended to the slightly laterally heterogeneous earth by the first-order Born approximation, is applied to the waveform inversion of mantle Love waves (200-500 sec) for the earth's lateral heterogeneity at l = 2 and a spherically symmetric anelasticity (Q sub mu) structure. The data are from the Global Digital Seismograph Network (GDSN). The l = 2 pattern is very similar to the results of other studies that used either different methods, such as phase velocity measurements and multiplet location measurements, or a different data set, such as mantle Rayleigh waves from different instruments. The results are carefully analyzed for variance reduction and are most naturally explained by heterogeneity in the upper 420 km. Because of the poor resolution of the data set for the deep interior, however, a fairly large heterogeneity in the transition zones, of the order of up to 3.5 percent in shear wave velocity, is allowed. It is noteworthy that Love waves of this period range can not constrain the structure below 420 km and thus any model presented by similar studies below this depth are likely to be constrained by Rayleigh waves (spheroidal modes) only.

Tanimoto, T.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Method and apparatus for Delta Kappa synthetic aperture radar measurement of ocean current

A synthetic aperture radar (SAR) employed for delta k measurement of ocean current from a spacecraft without the need for a narrow beam and long observation times. The SAR signal is compressed to provide image data for different sections of the chirp band width, equivalent to frequencies and a common area for the separate image fields is selected. The image for the selected area at each frequency is deconvolved to obtain the image signals for the different frequencies and the same area. A product of pairs of signals is formed, Fourier transformed and squared. The spectrum thus obtained from different areas for the same pair of frequencies are added to provide an improved signal to noise ratio. The shift of the peak from the center of the spectrum is measured and compared to the expected shift due to the phase velocity of the Bragg scattering wave. Any difference is a measure of current velocity v sub o (delta k).

Jain, A.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Thermal fluctuations from an artificial ion beam injection into the ionosphere

Simulations of argon beam experiments flown on two sounding rocket flights (ARCS 1, 2) reveal two bands of electrostatic wave emissions, one at high frequencies around the upper hybrid mode, the other at low frequencies around the lower hybrid mode. The latter is significantly enhanced by the argon beam in the simulations, and the enhancement was clearly observed on ARCS 2. This enhancement at phase velocities greater than the beam velocity is suggested to be due to an increase in the thermal fluctuation level of the plasma when the argon beam is present. Inclusion of electron dynamics and oblique angles of wave propagation with respect to B allows investigation of electron heating. Electron tail heating is observed parallel to B for k-parallel/k-perpendicular proportional to the square root of m(e)/m(0), while background ions are heated perpendicular to B.

Hudson, M. K.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Electrostatic wave observation during a space simulation beam-plasma discharge

ELF waves which were observed during beam-plasma discharge in the large vacuum chamber at Johnson Space Center are studied. Phase delays as a function of radius (obtained from cross-correlation measurements of density fluctuations) along with measurements of frequency and plasma potential, density, and temperature have been compared to a zero-order slab model of nonlocal azimuthal drift wave propagation. The inferred wave phase velocity in the plasma frame after Doppler correction is found to be near one half the electron diamagnetic drift velocity. Although the measurements presented do not uniquely define a propagation mode, a model of azimuthal drift wave propagation is found to be consistent with observations.

Walker, D. N.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Helical twisting on an adiabatically expanding jet. I Propagation and temporal growth

The local linearized dispersion relation for perturbations to the surface of a constantly adiabatic jet, which is assumed to be in static pressure balance with an isothermal confining medium, is derived in an investigation of the effect of adiabatic expansion on the propagation and temporal growth of helical twisting in a supersonic jet. Cooling of the jet material along such a flow increases Mach number and relative density relative to the confining medium, as distance from the origin increases; this leads to a rather rapid decrease in the maximum rate of growth and an increase in the maximally unstable wavelength, relative to the jet's radius, as the distance along such a jet increases. Attention is given to the consequences of assuming that a change in the phase velocity of a propagating helical wave along a jet causes the wavelength of a helical wave to change.

Hardee, P. E.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Geometric effects of global lateral heterogeneity on long-period surface wave propagation

The present investigation has the objective to document examples of anomalous long-period surface wave amplitude behavior and to provide a preliminary appraisal of the effects of global lateral heterogeneity on surface wave propagation from a ray theory perspective. Attention is given to remarkable long-period surface wave anomalies described in literature, an equidistance azimuthal plot centered on the Iranian source region, Rayleigh wave and Love wave spectra for the 256-s period arrivals for the Tabas earthquake, constrained moment tensor and fault model inversion solutions ofr Iranian earthquakes, aspects of surface wave ray tracing, and a table of Rayleigh wave amplitude anomalies for Iranian earthquakes. Surface wave ray-tracing calculations for models of global phase velocity variations proposed by Nakanishi and Anderson (1984) are found to show that large-amplitude anomalies will be observed for Love and Rayleigh waves with periods of 100-250 s.

Lay, T.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Waveform synthesis of surface waves in a laterally heterogeneous earth by the Gaussian beam method

The present investigation is concerned with an application of the Gaussian beam method to surface waves in the laterally heterogeneous earth. The employed method has been developed for ray tracing and synthesizing seismograms of surface waves in cases involving the laterally heterogeneous earth. The procedure is based on formulations derived by Yomogida (1985). Vertical structure of the wave field is represented by the eigenfunctions of normal mode theory, while lateral variation is expressed by the parabolic equation as in two-dimensional acoustic waves or elastic body waves. It is demonstrated that a large-amplitude change can result from a slight perturbation in the phase velocity model.

Yomogida, K.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Analysis and interpretation of the shocklike electrostatic noise observed during the AMPTE solar wind lithium releases

During the AMPTE (Active Magnetospheric Particle Tracer Explorers) solar wind lithium release on September 11, and again on September 20, 1984, an intense burst of electrostatic noise was observed near the upstream edge of the ion cloud. Comparisons with measurements by the IMP-6 and ISEE-1 spacecraft show that the spectrum and overall features of this noise are very similar to electrostatic noise observed at the Earth's bow shock. A stability analysis using realistic parameters shows that the electrostatic noise can be accounted for by an ion beam-plasma instability caused by the solar wind proton beam streaming through the nearly stationary lithium cloud. The growth rate of this instability is largest when the ion density and solar wind proton density are similar, which explains why the noise only occurs near the outer edge of the ion cloud. The similarity to the noise in the Earth's bow shock suggest that a shock may exist in the solar wind plasma flow upstream of the ion cloud. If the noise is associated with a shock, then it must be an electrostatic shock, since the ion cyclotron radii are too small for the existence of a MHD shock. Since the electrostatic instability occurs at phase velocities near the lithium thermal velocity, the electrostatic turbulence may play a role in heating the lithium ions and transferring momentum from the solar wind to the ion cloud.

Gurnett, D. A.↗