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Results for “GRAVITATIONAL EFFECT”

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At least 253 records · Page 14

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NASA NTRS2005

The lung in space

The lung is exquisitely sensitive to gravity, which induces gradients in ventilation, blood flow, and gas exchange. Studies of lungs in microgravity provide a means of elucidating the effects of gravity. They suggest a mechanism by which gravity serves to match ventilation to perfusion, making for a more efficient lung than anticipated. Despite predictions, lungs do not become edematous, and there is no disruption to, gas exchange in microgravity. Sleep disturbances in microgravity are not a result of respiratory-related events; obstructive sleep apnea is caused principally by the gravitational effects on the upper airways. In microgravity, lungs may be at greater risk to the effects of inhaled aerosols.

Review↗

NASA NTRS1996

Animal models and their importance to human physiological responses in microgravity

Two prominent theories to explain the physiological effects of microgravity relate to the cascade of changes associated with the cephalic shifts of fluids and the absence of tissue deformation forces. One-g experiments for humans used bed rest and the head-down tilt (HDT) method, while animal experiments have been conducted using the tail-suspended, head-down, and hindlimbs non-weightbearing model. Because of the success of the HDT approach with rats to simulate the gravitational effects on the musculoskeletal system exhibited by humans, the same model has been used to study the effects of gravity on the cardiopulmonary systems of humans and other vertebrates. Results to date indicate the model is effective in producing comparable changes associated with blood volume, erythropoiesis, cardiac mass, baroreceptor responsiveness, carbohydrate metabolism, post-flight VO2max, and post-flight cardiac output during exercise. Inherent with these results is the potential of the model to be useful in investigating responsible mechanisms. The suspension model has promise in understanding the capillary blood PO2 changes in space as well as the arterial PO2 changes in subjects participating in a HDT experiment. However, whether the model can provide insights on the up-or-down regulation of adrenoreceptors remains to be determined, and many investigators believe the HDT approach should not be followed to study gravitational influences on pulmonary function in either humans or animals. It was concluded that the tail-suspended animal model had sufficient merit to study in-flight and post-flight human physiological responses and mechanisms.

NASA Discipline Cardiopulmonary↗

NASA NTRS1991

Accretion rates of protoplanets

The rate at which planetesimals in a uniform surface density disk collide with, and are (assumed to be) accreted by, a massive protoplanet is calculated. The collision cross-section of a protoplanet is enhanced relative to its geometric cross-section due to its gravitational focusing of planetesimal trajectories. The gravitation enhancement (eccentricities and inclinations) decrease. For large random velocity planetesimals, encounters are sufficiently rapid (less than or approximately = 5 percent of and orbital period) that F(sub g) is well approximated by the two-body particle in a box formula, which neglects the gravitational effect of the Sun. As planetesimal velocities decrease, F(sub g) increases to approximately twice the two-body value, and then rises less rapidly than the two-body value, eventually dropping below it and asymptotically approaching a constant for sufficiently small random velocities. A scaling argument is presented that generalizes the results to protoplanets of arbitrary mass, radius, and orbital semimajor axis. Gravitational scatterings by a protoplanet prevent random velocities of the planetesimals within its accretion zone from becoming to small. When gravitational stirring is included, the maximum plausible value of the gravitation enhancement factor for rock protoplanets 1 Au from the Sun is F(sub g) of approximately 1000. If one protoplanet dominates gravitational scatterings in a given region of a protoplanetary disk, then it was found that the planetesimal inclinations are excited much less rapidly than eccentricities, in contrast to the two-body approximation, in which energy is roughly equipartitioned between eccentric and inclined random motions. The resulting skewed velocity dispersion allows for a more rapid rate of protoplanet growth.

Greenzweig, Yuval↗

NASA NTRS1999

Analyses of On-orbit Determinations of the Clouds and the Earth Radiant Energy System (CERES) Thermistor Bolometer Sensor Zero-radiance Effects

The Clouds and Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) missions were designed to measure broadband earth-reflected shortwave solar (0.3 micrometers to less than 5.0 micrometers) and earth-emitted longwave (5.0 micrometers to greater than 100 micrometers) radiances as well as earth-emitted narrow-band radiances in the water vapor window region between 8 micrometers and 12 micrometers. However, the CERES scanning thermistor bolometer sensor zero-radiance offsets were found to vary as much as 1.0 Wm (exp -2) sr (exp -1) with the scan angle measurement geometry due to gravitational forces and systematic electronic noise. To minimize the gravitational effects, the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Spacecraft CERES sensors' offsets were derived on-orbit as functions of scan elevation and azimuth angles from the January 7-8, 1998 radiometric observations of deep cold space, representative of a 3 K blackbody. In this paper, the TRMM/CERES six orbit data base of on-orbit derived offsets is presented and analyzed to define the sampling requirements for the CERES sensors located on the Earth Science Enterprise (ESE) Terra Spacecraft and on the Earth Observing System (EOS) Afternoon (PM-1) Spacecraft, scheduled for launches in 1999 and 2000, respectively. Analyses of the TRMM/CERES shortwave sensor earth radiance measurements indicate that offsets can be determined on-orbit at the plus or minus 0.02 Wm (exp -2) sr (exp -1) precision level. Offset measuring techniques and sampling requirements are discussed for the TRMM and ESE missions. Ground, pre-launch Terra CERES cross-track scan offsets are presented and described which were measured as a function of scan angle.

Lee, Robert B., III↗

DOE OSTI2017

Shining Light on Quantum Gravity with Pulsar–Black hole Binaries

Pulsars are some of the most accurate clocks found in nature, while black holes offer a unique arena for the study of quantum gravity. As such, pulsar–black hole (PSR–BH) binaries provide ideal astrophysical systems for detecting the effects of quantum gravity. With the success of aLIGO and the advent of instruments like SKA and eLISA, the prospects for the discovery of such PSR–BH binaries are very promising. We argue that PSR–BH binaries can serve as ready-made testing grounds for proposed resolutions to the black hole information paradox. We propose using timing signals from a pulsar beam passing through the region near a black hole event horizon as a probe of quantum gravitational effects. In particular, we demonstrate that fluctuations of the geometry outside a black hole lead to an increase in the measured root mean square deviation of the arrival times of pulsar pulses traveling near the horizon. This allows for a clear observational test of the nonviolent nonlocality proposal for black hole information escape. For a series of pulses traversing the near-horizon region, this model predicts an rms in pulse arrival times of ∼30 μs for a 3M{sub ⊙} black hole, ∼0.3 ms for a 30M{sub ⊙} black hole, and ∼40 s for Sgr A*. The current precision of pulse time-of-arrival measurements is sufficient to discern these rms fluctuations. This work is intended to motivate observational searches for PSR–BH systems as a means of testing models of quantum gravity.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2013

Spherical collapse in Galileon gravity: fifth force solutions, halo mass function and halo bias

We study spherical collapse in the Quartic and Quintic Covariant Galileon gravity models within the framework of the excursion set formalism. We derive the nonlinear spherically symmetric equations in the quasi-static and weak-field limits, focusing on model parameters that fit current CMB, SNIa and BAO data. We demonstrate that the equations of the Quintic model do not admit physical solutions of the fifth force in high density regions, which prevents the study of structure formation in this model. For the Quartic model, we show that the effective gravitational strength deviates from the standard value at late times (z∼<1), becoming larger if the density is low, but smaller if the density is high. This shows that the Vainshtein mechanism at high densities is not enough to screen all of the modifications of gravity. This makes halos that collapse at z∼<1 feel an overall weaker gravity, which suppresses halo formation. However, the matter density in the Quartic model is higher than in standard ΛCDM, which boosts structure formation and dominates over the effect of the weaker gravity. In the Quartic model there is a significant overabundance of high-mass halos relative to ΛCDM. Dark matter halos are also less biased than in ΛCDM, with the difference increasing appreciably with halo mass. However, our results suggest that the bias may not be small enough to fully reconcile the predicted matter power spectrum with LRG clustering data.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2016

EXACT RELATIVISTIC NEWTONIAN REPRESENTATION OF GRAVITATIONAL STATIC SPACETIME GEOMETRIES

We construct a self-consistent relativistic Newtonian analogue corresponding to gravitational static spherical symmetric spacetime geometries, starting directly from a generalized scalar relativistic gravitational action in a Newtonian framework, which gives geodesic equations of motion identical to those of the parent metric. Consequently, the derived velocity-dependent relativistic scalar potential, which is a relativistic generalization of the Newtonian gravitational potential, exactly reproduces the relativistic gravitational features corresponding to any static spherical symmetric spacetime geometry in its entirety, including all the experimentally tested gravitational effects in the weak field up to the present. This relativistic analogous potential is expected to be quite useful in studying a wide range of astrophysical phenomena, especially in strong field gravity.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS1990

Pressure drop in the SHOOT superfluid helium acquisition system

Central to the upcoming Superfield Helium On-Orbit Transfer (SHOOT) demonstration is the fluid acquisition system. The main component of the system is a rectangular cross-section gallery area with one side fabricated from a fine mesh screen. He II enters through the screen and is delivered to a fountain effect pump. A model is proposed to predict the pressure drop as fluid flows through the screen and an expression is derived for the required gallery arm length as a function of flow rate demand. The model is compared with measurement of pressure drop in a full scale SHOOT gallery arm operated with flow rates of up to 850 cu dm/hr. The tests were conducted in the University of Wisconsin horizontal liquid helium flow facility to minimize gravitational effects.

Nissen, J. A.↗

DOE OSTI2016

No need for dark matter in galaxy clusters within Galileon theory

Modified gravity theories with a screening mechanism have acquired much interest recently in the quest for a viable alternative to General Relativity on cosmological scales, given their intrinsic property of being able to pass Solar System scale tests and, at the same time, to possibly drive universe acceleration on much larger scales. Here, we explore the possibility that the same screening mechanism, or its breaking at a certain astrophysical scale, might be responsible of those gravitational effects which, in the context of general relativity, are generally attributed to Dark Matter. We consider a recently proposed extension of covariant Galileon models in the so-called ''beyond Horndeski'' scenario, where a breaking of the Vainshtein mechanism is possible and, thus, some peculiar observational signatures should be detectable and make it distinguishable from general relativity. We apply this model to a sample of clusters of galaxies observed under the CLASH survey, using both new data from gravitational lensing events and archival data from X-ray intra-cluster hot gas observations. In particular, we use the latter to model the gas density, and then use it as the only ingredient in the matter clusters' budget to calculate the expected lensing convergence map. Results show that, in the context of this extended Galileon, the assumption of having only gas and no Dark Matter at all in the clusters is able to match observations. We also obtain narrow and very interesting bounds on the parameters which characterize this model. In particular, we find that, at least for one of them, the general relativity limit is excluded at 2σ confidence level, thus making this model clearly statistically different and competitive with respect to general relativity.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS1995

Regional volume changes in canine lungs suspended in air

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the absence of a pleural pressure gradient (simulating the presumed condition found in microgravity) upon regional expansion of the lung. We attempted to produce a uniform pressure over the surface of the lung by suspending excised lungs in air. Such studies should help determine whether or not the absence of a pleural pressure gradient leads to uniform ventilation. A preparation in which there is no pleural pressure gradient should also be useful in studying non-gravitational effects on ventilation distribution.

Abbrecht, Peter H.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Linear Temporal Stability Analysis of a Low-Density Round Gas Jet Injected into a High-Density Gas

It has been observed in previous experimental studies that round helium jets injected into air display a repetitive structure for a long distance, somewhat similar to the buoyancy-induced flickering observed in diffusion flames. In order to investigate the influence of gravity on the near-injector development of the flow, a linear temporal stability analysis of a round helium jet injected into air was performed. The flow was assumed to be isothermal and locally parallel; viscous and diffusive effects were ignored. The variables were represented as the sum of the mean value and a normal-mode small disturbance. An ordinary differential equation governing the amplitude of the pressure disturbance was derived. The velocity and density profiles in the shear layer, and the Froude number (signifying the effects of gravity) were the three important parameters in this equation. Together with the boundary conditions, an eigenvalue problem was formulated. Assuming that the velocity and density profiles in the shear layer to be represented by hyperbolic tangent functions, the eigenvalue problem was solved for various values of Froude number. The temporal growth rates and the phase velocity of the disturbances were obtained. The temporal growth rates of the disturbances increased as the Froude number was reduced (i.e. gravitational effects increased), indicating the destabilizing role played by gravity.

Lawson, Anthony L.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Pioneering in gravitational physiology

Gravity affects biology at almost all levels above that of the cell organelle. Attention is presently given to progress made in the understanding of gravitational effects through studies employing centrifuges, clinostats, inverted preparations, linear devices, water immersion, free fall, and short- and long-term spaceflight. The cardiovascular changes which cause malaise and illness during the first few days of extended space missions are the direct result of fluid translocation from the lower extremities. Upon reentry, there is hypovolumnia and a cardiovascular deconditioning that can include tachycardia, changes in arterial blood pressure, narrow pulse pressure, and syncope. Attention is also given to NASA's gravitational physiology reseach program.

Soffen, G. A.↗

NASA NTRS2018

Effects of Mars Atmosphere on Arc Welds: Phase 2

Gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) is a vital fusion welding process widely used throughout the aerospace industry. Its use may be critical for the repair or manufacture of systems, rockets, or facilities on the Martian surface. Aluminum alloy AA2219-T87 and titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V butt welds have been investigated for weldability and weld properties in a simulated Martian gas environment. The resulting simulated Martian welds were compared to welds made in a terrestrial atmosphere, all of which used argon shielding gas. It was found that GTAW is a process that may be used in a Martian gas environment, not accounting for pressure and gravitational effects, as long as adequate argon shielding gas is used to protect the weld metal. Simulated Martian welds exhibited higher hardness in all cases and higher tensile strength in the case of AA2219-T87. This has been attributed to the absorption of carbon into the fusion zone, causing carbide precipitates to form. These precipitates may act to pin dislocations upon tensile testing of AA2219-T87. Dissolved carbon may have also led to carburization, which may have caused the increase in hardness within the fusion zone of the welds. Based on the results of this experiment and other similar experiments, GTAW appears to be a promising process for welding in a Martian gas environment. Additional funding and experimentation is necessary to determine the effects of the low pressure and low gravity environment found on Mars on GTAW.

Courtright, Z. S.↗

DOE OSTI2016

Directional solidification of aqueous TiO 2 suspensions under reduced gravity

Porous materials exhibiting aligned, elongated pore structures can be created by directional solidification of aqueous suspensions—where particles are rejected from a propagating ice front and form interdendritic, particle-packed walls—followed by sublimation of the ice, and sintering of the particle walls. Theoretical models that predict dendritic lamellae spacing—and thus wall and pore width in the final materials—are currently limited due to an inability to account for gravity-driven convective effects during solidification. In this work, aqueous suspensions of 10–30 nm TiO 2 nanoparticles are solidified on parabolic flights under micro-, lunar (~0.17 g; g l = 1.62 m/s 2 ), and Martian (~0.38 g; g m = 3.71 m/s 2 ) gravity and compared to terrestrially-solidified samples. After ice sublimation and sintering, all resulting TiO 2 materials exhibit elongated lamellar pores replicating the ice dendrites. Furthermore, increasing the TiO 2 fraction in the suspensions leads to decreased lamellar spacing in all samples, regardless of gravitational acceleration. Consistent with previous studies of microgravity solidification of binary metallic alloys, lamellar spacing decreases with increasing gravitational acceleration. Furthermore, mean lamellar spacing for 20 wt% TiO 2 nanoparticles suspensions under micro-, lunar, Martian, and terrestrial gravity are, respectively: 50 ± 8, 34 ± 11, 30 ± 6, and 23 ± 9 μm, indicating that gravity-driven convection strongly affects lamellae spacing under terrestrial gravity conditions. Gravitational effects on lamellar spacing are highest at low TiO 2 fractions in the suspension; for 5 wt% TiO 2 suspensions, the microgravity lamellar spacing is more than twice that under terrestrial gravity (182 ± 21 vs. 81 ± 23 μm). Results of this study are in good agreement with previous studies of binary metallic alloy solidification where primary dendrite spacing increases under microgravity. Additionally, literature data from ice-templating systems are used to discuss a dependence on lamellae spacing of the density ratio of particles and fluid.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2021

Forced Crowding of Colloids by Thermophoresis and Convection in a Custom Liquid Clusius–Dickel Microdevice

Here, we report a study demonstrating that simultaneous induction of a steady-state convection current and temperature gradient in a confined geometry can be an effective way to force crowding of dissolved particulates. To investigate this thermogravitationally driven concentration of particles in-situ, we developed a micro-device capable of sustaining controlled transverse temperature gradients within a 5 cm long, 0.1 mm inner diameter capillary that allowed visualization of particle movement with standard optical microscopy. Experiments were conducted on two material systems representative of nano-scale small molecules and micro-scale particles. With the small molecules (aromatic dyes, 530-790 g/mol, 1-1.5 nm) thermophoretic and gravitational effects in the micro-device resulted in an asymmetrical 2x concentration change along the capillary height over 3 days. In contrast, the concentration change under similar conditions for 40-micron diameter latex colloids is 50-fold in 30 minutes. This dramatic difference in separation times is consistent with simulations and models of thermophoresis where the thermophoretic effect scales with particle size. Induced crowding of particulates leads to formation of accumulation and depletion zones in at the bottom and top of the capillary respectively. Both the concentration of dye molecules over time in the depletion zone and spatial distribution of colloids over the entire capillary length were found to be good fits to simple first-order exponential decay functions. Furthermore, these results suggest potential applications of thermogravitational separation in developing new functional materials via thermophoretic and convective effects.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

NASA NTRS1991

Transport of photons produced by lightning in clouds

The optical effects of the light produced by lightning are of interest to atmospheric scientists for a number of reasons. Two techniques are mentioned which are used to explain the nature of these effects: Monte Carlo simulation; and an equivalent medium approach. In the Monte Carlo approach, paths of individual photons are simulated; a photon is said to be scattered if it escapes the cloud, otherwise it is absorbed. In the equivalent medium approach, the cloud is replaced by a single obstacle whose properties are specified by bulk parameters obtained by methods due to Twersky. Herein, Boltzmann transport theory is used to obtain photon intensities. The photons are treated like a Lorentz gas. Only elastic scattering is considered and gravitational effects are neglected. Water droplets comprising a cuboidal cloud are assumed to be spherical and homogeneous. Furthermore, it is assumed that the distribution of droplets in the cloud is uniform and that scattering by air molecules is neglible. The time dependence and five dimensional nature of this problem make it particularly difficult; neither analytic nor numerical solutions are known.

Solakiewicz, Richard↗

DOE OSTI2017

Slow-roll approximation in loop quantum cosmology

The slow-roll approximation is an analytical approach to study dynamical properties of the inflationary universe. In this article, systematic construction of the slow-roll expansion for effective loop quantum cosmology is presented. The analysis is performed up to the fourth order in both slow-roll parameters and the parameter controlling the strength of deviation from the classical case. The expansion is performed for three types of the slow-roll parameters: Hubble slow-roll parameters, Hubble flow parameters and potential slow-roll parameters. An accuracy of the approximation is verified by comparison with the numerical phase space trajectories for the case with a massive potential term. The results obtained in this article may be helpful in the search for the subtle quantum gravitational effects with use of the cosmological data.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS1988

Dynamic compensation in the central Pacific Ocean

The intermediate-wavelength geoid (lambda similar to 2000 km) and sea-floor topography fields in the central Pacific Ocean were studied in terms of static and dynamic compensation models. Topographic features on the sea-floor with lambda less than 1000 km were found to be compensated both regionally, by the elastic strength of the lithosphere, and locally, by displacing mantle material to reach isostatic adjustment. The larger-scale sea-floor topography and the corresponding geoid anomalies with lambda similar to 2000 km cannot be explained by either local or regional compensation. The topography and the resulting geoid anomaly at this wavelength were modeled by considering the dynamic effects arising from viscous stresses in a layer of fluid with a highly temperature-dependent viscosity for the cases of: (1) surface cooling, and (2) basal heating. In this model, the mechanical properties of the elastic part of the lithosphere were taken into account by considering an activation energy of about 520 kJ/mol in the Arrhenius law for the viscosity. Numerical predictions of the topography, total geoid anomaly, and admittance were obtained, and the results show that the thermal perturbation in the layer, which accounts for the mass deficit, must be located close to the surface to compensate the gravitational effect of the surface deformation. For the case of basal heating, the temperature dependence of viscosity results in a separation of the upper, quasi-rigid lid from the lower mobile fluid, hence inhibiting the development of a compensating thermal perturbation at shallow depths. The results clearly rule out small-scale, upper-mantle convection as the source of these anomalies. Instead, the geophysical observables can be well explained by a shallow, transient thermal perturbation.

Hinojosa, Juan Homero↗