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At least 271 records · Page 15

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NASA NTRS1991

The global distribution of Martian permafrost

Accurately determining the present global distribution of Martian ground ice will be an important step towards understanding the evolution of the Martian surface and atmosphere, and could greatly facilitate human and robotic exploration of the planet. The quantitative Mars permafrost studies demonstrated the potential importance of a number of factors determining the past and present distribution of subsurface ice on Mars, but have not considered the issue of regional variability. To consider the distribution of Mars permafrost in greater detail a new thermal model was developed that can calculate Martian surface and subsurface temperatures as a function of time-of-day and season. The results indicate that the distribution of Martian permafrost is highly sensitive to the bulk thermal properties of the overlying soil. Viking IRTM observations of diurnal surface temperature variations show that the bulk thermal properties of midlatitude surface materials exhibit a high degree of regional inhomogeneity. In general, the results show that the global distribution of permafrost is at least as sensitive to the thermal properties of the overlying surface material as it is to variations in surface isolation due to large scale variations in Mars' orbital and axial elements. In particular, they imply that subsurface ice may exist just a few centimeters below the surface in regions of low thermal inertia and high albedo, which are widespread at latitudes ranging from the equator to +60 degrees latitude.

Paige, David A.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Quantitative characterization of the spatial distribution of particles in materials: Application to materials processing

Inhomogeneities in the spatial distribution of second phase particles in engineering materials are known to affect certain mechanical properties. Progress in this area has been hampered by the lack of a convenient method for quantitative description of the spatial distribution of the second phase. This study intends to develop a broadly applicable method for the quantitative analysis and description of the spatial distribution of second phase particles. The method was designed to operate on a desktop computer. The Dirichlet tessellation technique (geometrical method for dividing an area containing an array of points into a set of polygons uniquely associated with the individual particles) was selected as the basis of an analysis technique implemented on a PC. This technique is being applied to the production of Al sheet by PM processing methods; vacuum hot pressing, forging, and rolling. The effect of varying hot working parameters on the spatial distribution of aluminum oxide particles in consolidated sheet is being studied. Changes in distributions of properties such as through-thickness near-neighbor distance correlate with hot-working reduction.

Parse, Joseph B.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Enhancement of wave growth for warm plasmas with a high-energy tail distribution

The classical linear theory of electromagnetic wave growth in a warm plasma is considered for waves propagating parallel to a uniform ambient magnetic field. Wave-growth rates are calculated for ion-driven right-hand mode waves for Kappa and Maxwellian particle distribution functions and for various values of the spectral index, the temperature anisotropy, and the ratio of plasma pressure to magnetic pressure appropriate to the solar wind. When the anisotropy is low the wave growth is limited to frequencies below the proton gyrofrequency and the growth rate increases dramatically as the spectral index is reduced. The growth rate for any Kappa distribution greatly exceeds that for a Maxwellian with the same bulk properties. For large thermal anisotropy the growth rate from either distribution is greatly enhanced. The growth rates from a Kappa distribution are generally larger than for a Maxwellian distribution, and significant wave growth occurs over a broader range of frequencies.

Thorne, Richard M.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Non-Maxwellian electron distributions in models of the solar atmosphere

In this paper, the solar models of Fontenla et al. (1990) are extended to coronal temperatures using optically thin radiative losses and a semicircular loop geometry. The effects of a non-Maxwellian high-energy tail of the electron distribution function is tested by performing a Fokker-Planck calculation of the tail. The results show that the downward conductive heat flux is very clsoe to that given by Braginskii (1965) for small departures from a Maxwellian distribution. The effects of the high-energy tail of the electron distribution on element ionization are computed and found to be negligible for all ionization states of O, Ne, and Si. It is concluded that, for quiet sun loop models in stationary energy balance, the ionization state of all elements is not significantly affected by the non-Maxwellian tail of the electron velocity distribution, and that the heat flux can be computed by considering only small first-order departures from the Maxwellian distribution.

Macneice, P.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Modelling the spatial distribution of QSO absorption lines

A formalism has been developed for testing specific models for the three-dimensional spatial distributions of Ly-alpha clouds against the line-of-sight observations. The formalism can be used to compute the redshift density of lines and the distribution of line-interval sizes along a line-of-sight for comparison with the observations. A few simple models are considered: a Poisson distribution of Ly-alpha clouds, clouds arising from density fluctuations with a white-noise power spectrum, clouds distributed only on shells of constant comoving radii, clouds restricted to shells that are expanding in a self-similar fashion, and a Poisson distribution of clouds in the 'walls' between small-scale voids.

Babul, Arif↗

NASA NTRS1991

A description of the correlated k distributed method for modeling nongray gaseous absorption, thermal emission, and multiple scattering in vertically inhomogeneous atmospheres

A radiative transfer method for treating nongray gaseous absorption and thermal emission in vertically inhomogeneous multiple scattering atmospheres is described. Probability density distributions of absorption coefficient strength are derived from line-by-line calculations to construct line-by-line and band model based k distributions. The monotonic ordering of absorption coefficient strengths in these k distributions implicitly preserves the monochromatic structure of the atmosphere at different pressure levels, thus simulating monochromatic spectral integration at a fraction of the line-by-line computing cost. The k distribution approach also permits accurate modeling of overlapping absorption by different atmospheric gases and accurate treatment of nongray absorption in multiple scattering media. It is shown that the correlated k distribution method is capable of achieving numerical accuracy to within 1 percent of cooling rates obtained with line-by-line calculations throughout the troposphere and most of the stratosphere.

Lacis, Andrew A.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Cosmic-ray distribution and the dynamic balance in the Large Magellanic Cloud

The cosmic-ray energy density distribution for the LMC is calculated quantitatively based on the concept of dynamic balance and a scale of coupling between the cosmic rays and matter in a range allowed by present observations. Based on the very slowly varying ratio of the cosmic-ray electron to nucleon energy density ratio with relevant local galactic conditions and the close similarities to the galaxy, the cosmic-ray nucleon density distribution in the LMC is also determined from cosmic-ray electron density distribution deduced from synchrotron radiation measurements in a manner consistent with dynamic balance. It is seen that within uncertainties there is quantitative agreement between the two for a cosmic-ray, matter coupling scale of about 2.5 kiloparsecs both in terms of magnitude and distribution, thus supporting both the concept of dynamic balance and the galactic origin of the bulk of cosmic rays. Future gamma-ray astronomy measurement above 100 MeV will be able to provide a test of this cosmic-ray density distribution for the LMC.

Fichtel, Carl E.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Ion distributions at the dayside magnetopause

Ion phase space distribution, from the AMPTE UKS ion instrument, for a crossing of the dayside magnetopause on October 2, 1984, during typical southward IMF conditions are presented. D-shaped field-aligned phase space distributions of magnetosheath plasma earthward of and hot magnetospheric ions sunward of the magnetopause current layer are observed. The existence of such D-shaped magnetosheath plasma distributions has been predicted as a signature of reconnection. In addition, the observed ion distributions are in stress balance across the magnetopause, and the de Hoffman-Teller frame velocity obtained from the stress balance calculation is in agreement with the observed distribution function cutoff speed. These new observations thus provide further evidence that, at least for southward IMF conditions, reconnection is an important mechanism by which solar wind plasma penetrates into the magnetosphere.

Smith, M. F.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Simulation of real-gas effects on pressure distributions for aeroassist flight experiment vehicle and comparison with prediction

Pressure distributions measured on a 60 degree half-angle elliptic cone, raked off at an angle of 73 degrees from the cone centerline and having an ellipsoid nose (ellipticity equal to 2.0 in the symmetry plane) are presented for angles of attack from -10 degrees to 10 degrees. The high normal shock density ratio aspect of a real gas was simulated by testing in Mach 6 air and CF sub 4 (density ratio equal to 5.25 and 12.0, respectively). The effects of Reynolds number, angle of attack, and normal shock density ratio on these measurements are examined, and comparisons with a three dimensional Euler code known as HALIS are made. A significant effect of density ratio on pressure distributions on the cone section of the configuration was observed; the magnitude of this effect decreased with increasing angle of attack. The effect of Reynolds number on pressure distributions was negligible for forebody pressure distributions, but a measurable effect was noted on base pressures. In general, the HALIS code accurately predicted the measured pressure distributions in air and CF sub 4.

Micol, John R.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Distributed and parallel Ada and the Ada 9X recommendations

Recently, the DoD has sponsored work towards a new version of Ada, intended to support the construction of distributed systems. The revised version, often called Ada 9X, will become the new standard sometimes in the 1990s. It is intended that Ada 9X should provide language features giving limited support for distributed system construction. The requirements for such features are given. Many of the most advanced computer applications involve embedded systems that are comprised of parallel processors or networks of distributed computers. If Ada is to become the widely adopted language envisioned by many, it is essential that suitable compilers and tools be available to facilitate the creation of distributed and parallel Ada programs for these applications. The major languages issues impacting distributed and parallel programming are reviewed, and some principles upon which distributed/parallel language systems should be built are suggested. Based upon these, alternative language concepts for distributed/parallel programming are analyzed.

Volz, Richard A.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Inclination distributions and size measurements of hemlock and red spruce needles

Needle inclination angle distributions were plotted for 5 and 10 deg intervals for two hemlock trees and one red spruce. The distributions for the hemlock and spruce were similar, with the peak normal angle occurring between 10 and 20 deg. These distributions are between two theoretical (planophile and spherical) leaf angle distributions. The results can be used as an input to radiative transfer models that require a distribution of the orientation of the scattering elements of the canopy.

Kimes, Daniel S.↗

NASA NTRS1992

The distribution of cD galaxy peculiar velocities

A modified version of a cluster evolution computer code first described in Richstone and Malumuth (1983) and Malumuth and Richstone (1984) to investigate the distributon of cD galaxy peculiar velocities and positions relative to the center, for a sample of cDs formed through mergers in a virialized cluster. This distribution is compared to an observed distribution of 19 cD galaxies to test whether cD galaxies with large peculiar velocities could have been formed in virialized clusters. At the time of their formation the cD galaxies have a distribution of peculiar velocities similar to that of the observed cD galaxies. By the end of the simulations the cD galaxies were dragged to the center of the cluster by dynamical friction, and the distribution of peculiar velocities is inconsistent with the observed distribution. The typical cD galaxy has nine mergers and is 5 solar luminosities. This is in comparison with the observed luminosity of Morgan poor clusters of 7 solar luminosities.

Malumuth, Eliot M.↗

NASA NTRS1992

The spatial distribution of gamma-ray bursts from Pioneer Venus Orbiter

The homogeneity of the burst source population in space with the log N(greater than P sub c)-log P sub c and log (dN/dP sub c)-log P sub c relations is studied on the basis of a sample of 225 observed gamma-ray bursts between September 1978 and July 1988 from the Pioneer Venus Orbiter. The relations N(greater than P sub c) is approximately equal to P sub c exp -1.5 and dN/dP sub c is approximately equal to P sub c exp -2.5 are expected if the gamma bursters are uniformly distributed in space. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistic gives a probability of 0.93 that the observed integral distribution N(greater than P sub c) is drawn from the expected uniform distribution P sub c exp -1.5. A least-squares 1 standard deviation fit to the observed differential distribution yields dN/dP sub c of about P sub c -2.42 +/- 0.07. Both are consistent with a uniform distribution in space of the parent population of burst sources.

Chuang, K. W.↗

NASA NTRS1992

O(+) and He(+) restricted and extended (bi-modal) ion conic distributions

An automated procedure using standard image processing techniques has been developed that finds and characterizes energetic ion conic events in the data acquired by the Energetic Ion Composition Spectrometer on DE-1 in the altitude range 8000 to 24000 km. The algorithm discriminates between the two types of ion conic distribution, those restricted to a narrow angular range and those extended in angle. Extended (bimodal) ion conic distributions also have a significant flux of field-aligned energetic ions. Extended ion conics constitute more than one third of the ion conics found. The two types of ion conic distribution have different altitude dependences. The average properties of energetic conic distributions suggest that conic formation by localized, explosive, transverse energization is not the dominant mechanism responsible for producing energetic conic distributions above 8000 km.

Peterson, W. K.↗

NASA NTRS1991

A distributed Petri Net controller for a dual arm testbed

This thesis describes the design and functionality of a Distributed Petri Net Controller (DPNC). The controller runs under X Windows to provide a graphical interface. The DPNC allows users to distribute a Petri Net across several host computers linked together via a TCP/IP interface. A sub-net executes on each host, interacting with the other sub-nets by passing a token vector from host to host. One host has a command window which monitors and controls the distributed controller. The input to the DPNC is a net definition file generated by Great SPN. Thus, a net may be designed, analyzed and verified using this package before implementation. The net is distributed to the hosts by tagging transitions that are host-critical with the appropriate host number. The controller will then distribute the remaining places and transitions to the hosts by generating the local nets, the local marking vectors and the global marking vector. Each transition can have one or more preconditions which must be fulfilled before the transition can fire, as well as one or more post-processes to be executed after the transition fires. These implement the actual input/output to the environment (machines, signals, etc.). The DPNC may also be used to simulate a Great SPN net since stochastic and deterministic firing rates are implemented in the controller for timed transitions.

Bjanes, Atle↗

NASA NTRS1993

High-speed data duplication/data distribution: An adjunct to the mass storage equation

The term 'mass storage' invokes the image of large on-site disk and tape farms which contain huge quantities of low- to medium-access data. Although the cost of such bulk storage is recognized, the cost of the bulk distribution of this data rarely is given much attention. Mass data distribution becomes an even more acute problem if the bulk data is part of a national or international system. If the bulk data distribution is to travel from one large data center to another large data center then fiber-optic cables or the use of satellite channels is feasible. However, if the distribution must be disseminated from a central site to a number of much smaller, and, perhaps varying sites, then cost prohibits the use of fiber-optic cable or satellite communication. Given these cost constraints much of the bulk distribution of data will continue to be disseminated via inexpensive magnetic tape using the various next day postal service options. For non-transmitted bulk data, our working hypotheses are that the desired duplication efficiency of the total bulk data should be established before selecting any particular data duplication system; and, that the data duplication algorithm should be determined before any bulk data duplication method is selected.

Howard, Kevin↗

NASA NTRS1924

Remarks on the Pressure Distribution over the Surface of an Ellipsoid, Moving Translationally Through a Perfect Fluid

This note, prepared for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, contains a discussion of the pressure distribution over ellipsoids when in translatory motion through a perfect fluid. An easy and convenient way to determine the magnitude of the velocity and of the pressure at each point of the surface of an ellipsoid of rotation is described. The knowledge of such pressure distribution is of great practical value for the airship designer. The pressure distribution over the nose of an airship hull is known to be in such good agreement with the theoretical distribution as to permit basing the computation of the nose stiffening structure on the theoretical distribution of pressure.

Munk, Max M↗

NASA NTRS1937

Span load distribution for tapered wings with partial-span flaps

Tables are given for determining the load distribution of tapered wings with partial-span flaps placed either at the center or at the wing tips. Seventy-two wing-flap combinations, including two aspect ratios, four taper ratios, and nine flap lengths, are included. The distributions for the flapped wing are divided into two parts, one a zero lift distribution due primarily to the flaps and the other an additional lift distribution due to an angle of attack of the wing as a whole. Comparison between theoretical and experimental results for wings indicate that the theory may be used to predict the load distribution with sufficient accuracy for structural purposes.

Pearson, H A↗