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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 325 records · Page 18
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2017

An Assessment of the Icing Blade and the SEA Multi-Element Sensor for Liquid Water Content Calibration of the NASA GRC Icing Research Tunnel

The Icing Research Tunnel at NASA Glenn has recently switched to from using the Icing Blade to using the SEA Multi-Element Sensor (also known as the multi-wire) for its calibration of cloud liquid water content. In order to perform this transition, tests were completed to compare the Multi-Element Sensor to the Icing Blade, particularly with respect to liquid water content, airspeed, and drop size. The two instruments were found to compare well for the majority of Appendix C conditions. However, it was discovered that the Icing Blade under-measures when the conditions approach the Ludlam Limit. This paper also describes data processing procedures for the Multi-Element Sensor in the IRT, including collection efficiency corrections, mounting underneath a splitter plate, and correcting for a jump in the compensation wire power. Further data is presented to describe the repeatability of the IRT with the Multi-Element sensor, health-monitoring checks for the instrument, and a sensing-element configuration comparison.

multi-element sensor↗
NASA NTRS1991

Optical variability and pigment biomass in the Sargasso Sea as determined using deep-sea optical mooring data

A 9-month time series of optical data, composed of three separate deployments, from the Biowatt 1987 deep-sea mooring located in the oligotrophic waters of the Sargasso Sea at 32 deg N, 70 deg W, is presented. These data were analyzed using several biooptical models for the purpose of providing a continuous estimate of the spectral diffuse attenuation coefficient and pigment biomass. Results of the first 70-day deployment demonstrate the utility of optical observations as proxy measures of biological parameters, and facilitate a preliminary analysis of the temporal variations and a comparison of the present biooptical observations with concurrent physical observations. Biooptical properties exhibit variation in response to physical forcings, such as diel variations of incident solar irradiance, episodic wind forcing, advective mesoscale eddy layer depth, and succession of phytoplankton. The mooring data are discussed in the context of contemporaneous shipboard observations as well as in terms of future ocean satellite observations.

Smith, R. C.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Sea-surface circulation, sediment transport, and marine mammal distribution, Alaska continental shelf

The author has identified the following significant results. Even though nonsynchronous, the ERTS-1 imagery of November 4, 1972, showed a striking similarity to the ground truth data obtained in late August and September, 1972. The comparison of the images with ground truth data revealed that the general water circulation pattern in Lower Cook Inlet is consistent through the Fall season and that ERTS-1 images in MSS bands 4 and 5 are capable of delineating water masses with a suspended load as low as 1 mg/liter. The ERTS-1 data and the ground truth data demonstrate clearly that the coriolis effect dominates circulation in Lower Cook Inlet. The configuration of plumes in Nushagak and Kuskokwim bays further indicates the influence of the coriolis effect on the movement of sea water at high latitudes. Comparison of MSS bands 4, 5, 6, and 7 suggest MSS-1 penetration of several meters into the water column. Sea ice analysis of available imagery was exceptionally rewarding. The imagery provided a rapid method to delineate and describe the ice types apparent in the photos. The ice types ranged from newly formed grease ice to heavy flows of disintegrating shore-fast ice. Sea ice maps showing the extent of different ice zones in the Chukchi Sea are being compiled.

Wright, F. F.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Development of the coastal zone color scanner for NIMBUS 7. Volume 1: Mission objectives and instrument description

An Earth scanning six channel (detector) radiometer using a classical Cassegrain telescope and a Wadsworth type grating spectrometer was launched aboard Nimbus 7 in order to determine the abundance or density of chlorophyll at or near the sea surface in coastal waters. The instrument also measures the sediment or gelbstroffe (yellow stuff) in coastal waters, detects surface vegetation, and measures sea surface temperature. Block diagrams and schematics are presented, design features are discussed and each subsystem of the instrument is described. A mission overview is included.

Source record↗
DOE OSTI2022

On the circulation, water mass distribution, and nutrient concentrations of the western Chukchi Sea

Substantial amounts of nutrients and carbon enter the Arctic Ocean from the Pacific Ocean through the Bering Strait, distributed over three main pathways. Water with low salinities and nutrient concentrations takes an eastern route along the Alaskan coast, as Alaskan Coastal Water. A central pathway exhibits intermediate salinity and nutrient concentrations, while the most nutrient-rich water enters the Bering Strait on its western side. Towards the Arctic Ocean, the flow of these water masses is subject to strong topographic steering within the Chukchi Sea with volume transport modulated by the wind field. In this contribution, we use data from several sections crossing Herald Canyon collected in 2008 and 2014 together with numerical modelling to investigate the circulation and transport in the western part of the Chukchi Sea. We find that a substantial fraction of water from the Chukchi Sea enters the East Siberian Sea south of Wrangel Island and circulates in an anticyclonic direction around the island. This water then contributes to the high-nutrient waters of Herald Canyon. The bottom of the canyon has the highest nutrient concentrations, likely as a result of addition from the degradation of organic matter at the sediment surface in the East Siberian Sea. The flux of nutrients (nitrate, phosphate, and silicate) and dissolved inorganic carbon in Bering Summer Water and Winter Water is computed by combining hydrographic and nutrient observations with geostrophic transport referenced to lowered acoustic Doppler current profiler (LADCP) and surface drift data. Even if there are some general similarities between the years, there are differences in both the temperature–salinity and nutrient characteristics. To assess these differences, and also to get a wider temporal and spatial view, numerical modelling results are applied. According to model results, high-frequency variability dominates the flow in Herald Canyon. This leads us to conclude that this region needs to be monitored over a longer time frame to deduce the temporal variability and potential trends.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2016

Coastal High-resolution Observations and Remote Sensing of Ecosystems (C-HORSE)

Coastal benthic marine ecosystems, such as coral reefs, seagrass beds, and kelp forests are highly productive as well as ecologically and commercially important resources. These systems are vulnerable to degraded water quality due to coastal development, terrestrial run-off, and harmful algal blooms. Measurements of these features are important for understanding linkages with land-based sources of pollution and impacts to coastal ecosystems. Challenges for accurate remote sensing of coastal benthic (shallow water) ecosystems and water quality are complicated by atmospheric scattering/absorption (approximately 80+% of the signal), sun glint from the sea surface, and water column scattering (e.g., turbidity). Further, sensor challenges related to signal to noise (SNR) over optically dark targets as well as insufficient radiometric calibration thwart the value of coastal remotely-sensed data. Atmospheric correction of satellite and airborne remotely-sensed radiance data is crucial for deriving accurate water-leaving radiance in coastal waters. C-HORSE seeks to optimize coastal remote sensing measurements by using a novel airborne instrument suite that will bridge calibration, validation, and research capabilities of bio-optical measurements from the sea to the high altitude remote sensing platform. The primary goal of C-HORSE is to facilitate enhanced optical observations of coastal ecosystems using state of the art portable microradiometers with 19 targeted spectral channels and flight planning to optimize measurements further supporting current and future remote sensing missions.

Coasts↗
NASA NTRS1984

Air-sea heat exchange, an element of the water cycle

The distribution and variation of water vapor, clouds and precipitation are examined. Principal driving forces for these distributions are energy exchange and evaporation at the air-sea interface, which are also important elements of air-sea interaction studies. The overall aim of air-sea interaction studies is to quantitatively determine mass, momentum and energy fluxes, with the goal of understanding the mechanisms controlling them. The results of general circulation simulations indicate that the atmosphere in mid-latitudes responds to changes in the oceanic surface conditions in the tropics. This correlation reflects the strong interaction between tropical and mid-latitude conditions caused by the transport of heat and momentum from the tropics. Studies of air-sea exchanges involve a large number of physica, chemical and dynamical processes including heat flux, radiation, sea-surface temperature, precipitation, winds and ocean currents. The fluxes of latent heat are studied and the potential use of satellite data in determining them evaluated. Alternative ways of inferring heat fluxes will be considered.

Chahine, M. T.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Stream discharge and water quality data for East Fork Poplar Creek beginning 2012

This data note describes 15-min discharge and in situ water quality data at two locations along East Fork Poplar Creek in east Tennessee, USA. Data records include temperature, gauge height, water surface elevation above mean sea level, and volumetric discharge. Water quality measurements include temperature, specific conductance, pH, dissolved oxygen (percent saturation and concentration), turbidity, and less extensive fDOM data at one site. The data records begin in 2012 at one site and 2015 at the second site; monitoring at both sites is ongoing (as of 2021). The goal of this data collection is to improve understanding of watershed functions, hydrologic dynamics, and material flux. The data will contribute to site conceptual and numerical models, exposure and risk evaluation, remediation selection and design, and performance monitoring. The data are publicly available and can be accessed via unique url or DOI.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2015

Enhanced Pacific Ocean Sea Surface Temperature and Its Relation to Typhoon Haiyan

Typhoon Haiyan, which devastated the Visayan Islands in the Philippines on November 8, 2013 was recorded as the strongest typhoon ever-observed using satellite data. Typhoons in the region usually originate from the mid-Pacific region that includes the Warm Pool, which is regarded as the warmest ocean surface region globally. Two study areas were considered: one in the Warm Pool Region and the other in the West Pacific Region near the Philippines. Among the most important factors that affect the strength of a typhoon are sea surface temperature (SST) and water vapor. It is remarkable that in November 2013 the average SST in the Warm Pool Region was the highest observed during the 1981 to 2014 period while that of the West Pacific Region was among the highest as well. Moreover, the increasing trend in SST was around 0.20C per decade in the warm pool region and even higher at 0.23C per decade in the West Pacific region. The yearly minimum SST has also been increasing suggesting that the temperature of the ocean mixed layer is also increasing. Further analysis indicated that water vapor, clouds, winds and sea level pressure for the same period did not reveal strong signals associated with the 2013 event. The SST is shown to be well-correlated with wind strength of historically strong typhoons in the country and the observed trends in SST suggest that extremely destructive typhoons like Haiyan are likely to occur in the future.

warm pool↗
NASA NTRS2004

Use of GOES, SSM/I, TRMM Satellite Measurements Estimating Water Budget Variations in Gulf of Mexico - Caribbean Sea Basins

This study presents results from a multi-satellite/multi-sensor retrieval system designed to obtain the atmospheric water budget over the open ocean. A combination of 3ourly-sampled monthly datasets derived from the GOES-8 5-channel Imager, the TRMM TMI radiometer, and the DMSP 7-channel passive microwave radiometers (SSM/I) have been acquired for the combined Gulf of Mexico-Caribbean Sea basin. Whereas the methodology has been tested over this basin, the retrieval system is designed for portability to any open-ocean region. Algorithm modules using the different datasets to retrieve individual geophysical parameters needed in the water budget equation are designed in a manner that takes advantage of the high temporal resolution of the GOES-8 measurements, as well as the physical relationships inherent to the TRMM and SSM/I passive microwave measurements in conjunction with water vapor, cloud liquid water, and rainfall. The methodology consists of retrieving the precipitation, surface evaporation, and vapor-cloud water storage terms in the atmospheric water balance equation from satellite techniques, with the water vapor advection term being obtained as the residue needed for balance. Thus, the intent is to develop a purely satellite-based method for obtaining the full set of terms in the atmospheric water budget equation without requiring in situ sounding information on the wind profile. The algorithm is validated by cross-checking all the algorithm components through multiple- algorithm retrieval intercomparisons. A further check on the validation is obtained by directly comparing water vapor transports into the targeted basin diagnosed from the satellite algorithms to those obtained observationally from a network of land-based upper air stations that nearly uniformly surround the basin, although it is fair to say that these checks are more effective m identifying problems in estimating vapor transports from a leaky operational radiosonde network than in verifying the transport estimates determined from the satellite algorithm system Total columnar atmospheric water budget results are presented for an extended annual cycle consisting of the months of October-97, January-98, April-98, July-98,October-98, and January 1999. These results are used to emphasize the changing relationship in E-P, as well as in the varying roles of storage and advection in balancing E-P both on daily and monthly time scales and on localized and basin space scales. Results from the algorithm-to-algorithm intercomparisons are also presented in the context of sensitivity testing to help understand the intrinsic uncertainties in evaluating the water budget terms by an all-satellite algorithm approach.

Smith, Eric A.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Review of North Atlantic Source Waters

North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) ventilates the deep World Ocean. It not only carries relatively well-oxygenated waters, but also other substances derived from recent sea-surface exchanges. There are five regional sources for NADW: (1) derivatives of the salty Mediterranean Sea outflow, (2) products of open-ocean convection in the Labrador Sea, (3) Iceland-Scotland Overflow Water from the Norwegian Sea - salty by virtue of mixing with saline water near the sills, (4) Denmark Strait Overflow Water from the Iceland and Greenland Seas - which retains a high-density, relatively low-salinity signal, and (5) remnants of deep water from the Antarctic circumpolar region - freshest of the bottom waters. Despite the differences of characteristics of the source waters, the NADW is relatively uniform. Because the formation of each of the five source waters may be viewed as a response to a complex series of events, it is difficult to examine the sensitivity of NADW to environmental fluctuations. It is known that the deep northern North Atlantic is relatively closely coupled to the sea surface in the Greenland and Iceland seas. The most recent studies indicate a minimum response time of only two years between the introduction of a passive signal north of Iceland and its appearance in the deep northwest Atlantic.

James H Swift↗
NASA NTRS2003

Chemical and Physical Properties of Bulk Aerosols within Four Sectors Observed during TRACE-P

Chemical and physical aerosol data collected on the DC-8 during TRACE-P were grouped into four sectors based on back trajectories. The four sectors represent long-range transport from the west (WSW), regional circulation over the western Pacific and Southeast Asia (SE Asia), polluted transport from Northern Asia with substantial sea salt at low altitudes (NNW) and a substantial amount of dust (Channel). WSW has generally low mixing ratios at both middle and high altitudes, with the bulk of the aerosol mass due to non-sea-salt water-soluble inorganic species. Low altitude SE Asia also has low mean mixing ratios in general, with the majority of the aerosol mass comprised of non-sea-salts, however, soot is also relatively important m this region. "w had the highest mean sea salt mixing ratios, with the aerosol mass at low altitudes (a km) evenly divided between sea salts, mm-sea-salts, and dust. The highest mean mixing ratios of water-soluble ions and soot were observed at the lowest altitudes (a km) in the Channel sector. The bulk of the aerosol mass exported from Asia emanates h m Channel at both low and midaltitudes, due to the prevalence of dust compared to other sectors. Number densities show enhanced fine particles for Channel and NNW, while their volume distributions are enhanced due to sea salt and dust Low-altitude Channel exhibits the highest condensation nuclei ((34) number densities along with enhanced scattering coefficients, compared to the other sectors. At midaltitudes (2-7 km), low mean CN number densities coupled with a high proportion of nonvolatile particles (265%) observed in polluted sectors (Channel and NNW) are attributed to wet scavenging which removes hygroscopic CN particles. Low single scatter albedo m SE Asia reflects enhanced soot

Jordan, C. E.↗
NASA NTRS2021

Landsat Derived Bathymetry of Lakes on the Arctic Coastal Plan of Northern Alaska

The Pleistocene sand sea on the Arctic Coastal Plain (ACP) of northern Alaska is underlain by anancient sand dune field, a geological feature that affects regional lake characteristics. Many of these lakes, whichcover approximately 20 % of the Pleistocene sand sea, are relatively deep (up to 25 m). In addition to the nat-ural importance of ACP sand sea lakes for water storage, energy balance, and ecological habitat, the need forwinter water for industrial development and exploration activities makes lakes in this region a valuable resource.However, ACP sand sea lakes have received little prior study. Here, we collect in situ bathymetric data to test12 model variants for predicting sand sea lake depth based on analysis of Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager(OLI) images. Lake depth gradients were measured at 17 lakes in midsummer 2017 using a Humminbird 798ciHD SI Combo automatic sonar system. The field-measured data points were compared to red–green–blue (RGB)bands of a Landsat-8 OLI image acquired on 8 August 2016 to select and calibrate the most accurate spectral-depth model for each study lake and map bathymetry. Exponential functions using a simple band ratio (withbands selected based on lake turbidity and bed substrate) yielded the most successful model variants. For eachlake, the most accurate model explained 81.8 % of the variation in depth, on average. Modeled lake bathymetrieswere integrated with remotely sensed lake surface area to quantify lake water storage volumes, which rangedfrom 1.056×10−3to 57.416×10−3km3. Due to variations in depth maxima, substrate, and turbidity betweenlakes, a regional model is currently infeasible, rendering necessary the acquisition of additional in situ datawith which to develop a regional model solution. Estimating lake water volumes using remote sensing will fa-cilitate better management of expanding development activities and serve as a baseline by which to evaluatefuture responses to ongoing and rapid climate change in the Arctic. All sonar depth data and modeled lakebathymetry rasters can be freely accessed at https://doi.org/10.18739/A2SN01440 (Simpson and Arp, 2018) andhttps://doi.org/10.18739/A2HT2GC6G (Simpson, 2019), respectively.

Claire E Simpson↗
NASA NTRS2001

The Aquarius Mission: Sea Surface Salinity from Space

Aquarius is a new satellite mission concept to study the impact of the global water cycle on the ocean, including the response of the ocean to buoyancy forcing and the subsequent feedback of the ocean on the climate. The measurement objective of Aquarius is sea surface salinity, which reflects the concentration of freshwater at the ocean surface. Salinity affects the dielectric constant of sea water and, consequently, the radiometric emission of the sea surface to space. Rudimentary space observations with an L-band radiometer were first made from Skylab in the mid-70s and numerous aircraft missions of increasing quality and improved technology have been conducted since then. Technology is now available to carry out a global mission, which includes both an accurate L band (1.413 Ghz) radiometer and radar system in space and a global array of in situ observations for calibration and validation, in order to address key NASA Earth Science Enterprise questions about the global cycling of water and the response of the ocean circulation to climate change. The key scientific objectives of Aquarius examine the cycling of water at the ocean's surface, the response of the ocean circulation to buoyancy forcing, and the impact of buoyancy forcing on the ocean's thermal feedback to the climate. Global surface salinity will also improve our ability to model the surface solubility chemistry needed to estimate the air-sea exchange of CO2. In order to meet these science objectives, the NASA Salinity Sea Ice Working Group over the past three years has concluded that the mission measurement goals should be better than 0.2 practical salinity units (psu) accuracy, 100 km resolution, and weekly to revisits. The Aquarius mission proposes to meet these measurement requirements through a real aperture dual-polarized L band radiometer and radar system. This system can achieve the less than 0.1 K radiometric temperature measurement accuracy that is required. A 3 m antenna at approx. 600km altitude in a sun-synchronous orbit and 300 km swath can provide the desired 100 km resolution global coverage every week. Within this decade, it may be possible to combine satellite sea surface salinity measurements with ongoing satellite observations of temperature, surface height, air-sea fluxes; vertical profiles of temperature and salinity from the Argo program; and modern ocean/atmosphere modeling and data assimilation tools, in order to finally address the complex influence of buoyancy on the ocean circulation and climate.

Koblinsky, Chester↗
NASA NTRS1980

Large Antenna Multifrequency Microwave Radiometer (LAMMR) system design

The large Antenna Multifrequency Microwave Radiometer (LAMMR) is a high resolution 4 meter aperture scanning radiometer system designed to determine sea surface temperature and wind speed, atmospheric water vapor and liquid water, precipitation, and various sea ice parameters by interpreting brightness temperature images from low Earth orbiting satellites. The LAMMR with dual linear horizontal and vertical polarization radiometer channels from 1.4 to 91 GHZ can provide multidiscipline data with resolutions from 105 to 7 km. The LAMMR baseline radiometer system uses total power radiometers to achieve delta T's in the 0.5 to 1.7 K range and system calibration accuracies in the 1 to 2 deg range. A cold sky horn/ambient load two point calibration technique is used in this baseline concept and the second detector output uses an integrated and dump circuit to sample the scanning cross-tract resolution cells.

King, J. L.↗
NASA NTRS2021

Limits on Runoff Episode Duration for Early Mars: Integrating Lake Hydrology and Climate Models

Fluvio-lacustrine features on the martian surface attest to a climate that was radically different in the past. Since climate models have difficulty sustaining a liquid hydrosphere at the surface, multiple cycles of runoff episodes may have characterized the ancient Mars climate. A fundamental question thus remains: what was the duration of these runoff-producing episodes? Here we use morphometric measurements from newly identified coupled lake systems, containing both an open- and a closed-basin lake (n=7). We combined hydrological balances with precipitation outputs from climate models, and found that breaching runoff episodes likely lasted 102−105yr; other episodes may have been shorter but could not be longer. Runoff episode durations are model-dependent and spatiallyvariable, and no27climate model scenario can satisfy a unique duration for all coupled systems. In the near future, these quantitative constraints on early Mars lake persistence may be tested through in situ observations from Perseverance rover. Plain Language Summary Ancient river and lake beds on the martian surface point to a climate that was radically different in the past, unlike the dry, cold desert that Mars is today. It experienced significant liquid water flowing across the surface (i.e., ‘runoff’) and hosted long-lived bodies of water (lakes and seas). However, scientists that generate models to simulate the ancient Mars climate have difficulty sustaining this proposed liquid water cycle at the surface. One possible hypothesis is that multiple cycles of individual liquid water episodes may have characterized the ancient martian climate (i.e. runoff episodes). A fundamental question thus remains: what was the duration of these individual runoff-producing episodes? Here we use an approach that takes advantage of unique martian lake system, ‘coupled’ lake systems, and their shapes. We combined these measurements with precipitation results from previous climate models, and found that runoff episodes likely lasted 100-10,000 years, requiring a global climate mechanism that generated repeated cycles of this duration. Ultimately, our results can be tested through observations made by NASA’s Perseverance rover, shedding light on the uninterrupted duration of surface water on Mars and its potential to host life in the past.

Gaia Stucky de Quay↗