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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 343 records · Page 19
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Development of a Method for Shape Optimization for a Gas Turbine Fuel Injector Design Using Metal-Additive Manufacturing

Adjoint shape optimization has enabled physics-based optimal designs for aerodynamic surfaces. Additive manufacturing (AM) makes it possible to manufacture complex shapes. However, there has been a gap between optimal and manufacturable surfaces due to the inherent limitations of commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes to implement geometric constraints during adjoint computation. In such cases, the design sensitivities are exported and used to perform constrained shape modifications using parametric information stored in computer aided design (CAD) files to satisfy manufacturability constraints. However, modifying the design using adjoint methods in CFD solvers and performing constrained shape modification in CAD can lead to inconsistencies due to different shape parameterization schemes. This paper describes a method to enable the simultaneous optimization of the fluid domain and impose AM manufacturability constraints, resolving one of the key issues of geometry definition for isogeometric analysis. Similar to a grid convergence study, the proposed method verifies the consistencies between shape parameterization techniques present within commercial CAD and CFD software during mesh movement as a part of the adjoint shape optimization routine. By identifying the appropriate parameters essential to a shape optimization study, the error metric between the different parameterization techniques converges to demonstrate sufficient consistencies for justifiable exchange of data between CAD and CFD. For the identified shape optimization parameters, the error metric to measure the deviation between the two parameterization schemes lies within the AM laser-powder bed fusion (L-PBF) process tolerance. Additionally, comparison for subsequent objective function calculations between iterations of the optimization loop showed acceptable differences within 1% variation between the modified geometries obtained using the two parameterization schemes. This method provides justification for the use of multiphysics guided adjoint design sensitivities computed in CFD software to perform shape modifications in CAD to incorporate AM manufacturability constraints during the shape optimization loop such that optimal designs are also additively manufacturable.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
NASA NTRS2012

NASA's Carbon Monitoring System Flux-Pilot Project: A Multi-Component Analysis System for Carbon-Cycle Research and Monitoring

The importance of greenhouse gas increases for climate motivates NASA s observing strategy for CO2 from space, including the forthcoming Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO-2) mission. Carbon cycle monitoring, including attribution of atmospheric concentrations to regional emissions and uptake, requires a robust modeling and analysis infrastructure to optimally extract information from the observations. NASA's Carbon-Monitoring System Flux-Pilot Project (FPP) is a prototype for such analysis, combining a set of unique tools to facilitate analysis of atmospheric CO2 along with fluxes between the atmosphere and the terrestrial biosphere or ocean. NASA's analysis system is unique, in that it combines information and expertise from the land, oceanic, and atmospheric branches of the carbon cycle and includes some estimates of uncertainty. Numerous existing space-based missions provide information of relevance to the carbon cycle. This study describes the components of the FPP framework, assessing the realism of computed fluxes, thus providing the basis for research and monitoring applications. Fluxes are computed using data-constrained terrestrial biosphere models and physical ocean models, driven by atmospheric observations and assimilating ocean-color information. Use of two estimates provides a measure of uncertainty in the fluxes. Along with inventories of other emissions, these data-derived fluxes are used in transport models to assess their consistency with atmospheric CO2 observations. Closure is achieved by using a four-dimensional data assimilation (inverse) approach that adjusts the terrestrial biosphere fluxes to make them consistent with the atmospheric CO2 observations. Results will be shown, illustrating the year-to-year variations in land biospheric and oceanic fluxes computed in the FPP. The signals of these surface-flux variations on atmospheric CO2 will be isolated using forward modeling tools, which also incorporate estimates of transport error. The results will be discussed in the context of interannual variability of observed atmospheric CO2 distributions.

Pawson, S.↗
DOE OSTI2023

TRACER-Vertical Profile of Aerosol in Convective System (TRACER-VPACS) Field Campaign Report

We investigated physicochemical properties of aerosol at different altitudes during the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility Tracking Aerosol Convection Interactions Experiment (TRACER). We used ARM’s tethered balloon system (TBS) and multi-modal offline analysis techniques available at DOE’s Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL) at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and at the Advanced Light Source (ALS) at the Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory (LBNL). The main scientific aim of this project was to understand the influence of the vertical profile of aerosol composition on the properties of deep convective clouds. The effect of aerosol properties on convective activity is still poorly understood and debated. For example, previous studies suggested that higher concentration of hygroscopic aerosol may lead to lower collection efficiency and eventually delay in onset of precipitation and total amount of precipitation. However, some observations suggested that increased aerosol concentration may result in vigorous convection and a higher amount of precipitation. In addition, the radiative forcing of the ambient aerosol is strongly influenced by the vertical distribution of aerosols and their chemical composition, and not well constrained in climate models. The estimation of the indirect effect of aerosol also has a significant uncertainty due to the spatial variation of the aerosol, especially at the cloud base. Detailed size-resolved chemical composition studies of aerosol and their microphysical properties, along with in situ measurements from ARM’s mobile facilities, help to improve our understanding of the role of aerosol in deep convective cloud formation over a broad range of environmental thermodynamic and aerosol conditions.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2004

Challenges in Modeling the Sun-Earth System

The transfer of mass, energy and momentum through the coupled Sun-Earth system spans a wide range of scales in time and space. While profound advances have been made in modeling isolated regions of the Sun-Earth system, minimal progress has been achieved in modeling the end-to-end system. Currently, end-to-end modeling of the Sun-Earth system is a major goal of the National Space Weather and NASA Living With a Star (LWS) programs. The uncertainty in the underlying physics responsible for coupling contiguous regions of the Sun-Earth system is recognized as a significant barrier to progress. Our limited understanding of the underlying coupling physics is illustrated by the following example questions: how does the propagation of a typical CME/solar flare influence the measured properties of the solar wind at 1 AU? How does the solar wind compel the dynamic response of the Earth's magnetosphere? How is variability in the ionosphere-thermosphere system coupled to magnetospheric variations? Why do these and related important questions remain unanswered? What are the primary problems that need to be resolved to enable significant progress in comprehensive modeling of the Sun-Earth system? Which model/technique improvements are required and what new data coverage is required to enable full model advances? This poster opens the discussion for how these and other important questions can be addressed. A workshop scheduled for October 8-22, 2004 in Huntsville, Alabama, will be a forum for identifying ana exploring promising new directions and approaches for characterizing and understanding the system. To focus the discussion, the workshop will emphasize the genesis, evolution, propagation and interaction of high-speed solar wind streamers or CME/flares with geospace and the subsequent response of geospace from its outer reaches in the magnetosphere to the lower edge of the ionosphere-mesosphere-thermosphere. Particular emphasis will be placed on modeling the coupling aspects of these phenomena across boundaries between regions and on data analysis that guides and constrains model results. Specific topics to be addressed are: Corotating interaction regions, Coronal mass ejections, Energetic particles, System preconditioning, Extreme events and super storms, End-to-End modeling efforts.

Spann, James↗
DOE OSTI2021

Understanding Type Ia Supernova Distance Biases by Simulating Spectral Variations

In the next decade, transient searches from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will increase the sample of known Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) from ~10 3 to 10 5 . With this reduction of statistical uncertainties on cosmological measurements, new methods are needed to reduce systematic uncertainties. Here, characterizing the underlying spectroscopic evolution of SN Ia remains a major systematic uncertainty in current cosmological analyses, motivating a new simulation tool for the next era of SN Ia cosmology: Build Your Own Spectral Energy Distribution (byosed). byosed is used within the SNANA framework to simulate light curves by applying spectral variations to model SEDs, enabling flexible testing of possible systematic shifts in SN Ia distance measurements. We test the framework by comparing a nominal Roman SN Ia survey simulation using a baseline SED model to simulations using SEDs perturbed with byosed, and investigating the impact of ignoring specific SED features in the analysis. These features include semiempirical models of two possible, predicted relationships: between SN ejecta velocity and light-curve observables, and a redshift-dependent relationship between SN Hubble residuals and host-galaxy mass. We analyze each byosed simulation using the SALT2 and BEAMS with Bias Corrections framework, and estimate changes in the measured value of the dark-energy equation-of-state parameter, w. We find a difference of Δw = –0.023 for SN velocity and Δw = 0.021 for redshift-evolving host mass when compared to simulations without these features. By using byosed for SN Ia cosmology simulations, future analyses (e.g., the Rubin and Roman SN Ia samples) will have greater flexibility to constrain or reduce such SN Ia modeling uncertainties.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

THE DETAILED CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF M31 STAR CLUSTERS. I. Fe, ALPHA AND LIGHT ELEMENTS

We present ages, [Fe/H] and abundances of the α elements Ca I, Si I, Ti I, Ti II, and light elements Mg I, Na I, and Al I for 31 globular clusters (GCs) in M31, which were obtained from high-resolution, high signal-to-noise ratio >60 echelle spectra of their integrated light (IL). All abundances and ages are obtained using our original technique for high-resolution IL abundance analysis of GCs. This sample provides a never before seen picture of the chemical history of M31. The GCs are dispersed throughout the inner and outer halo, from 2.5 kpc < R {sub M31} < 117 kpc. We find a range of [Fe/H] within 20 kpc of the center of M31, and a constant [Fe/H] ∼ – 1.6 for the outer halo clusters. We find evidence for at least one massive GC in M31 with an age between 1 and 5 Gyr. The α-element ratios are generally similar to the Milky Way GC and field star ratios. We also find chemical evidence for a late-time accretion origin for at least one cluster, which has a different abundance pattern than other clusters at similar metallicity. We find evidence for star-to-star abundance variations in Mg, Na, and Al in the GCs in our sample, and find correlations of Ca, Mg, Na, and possibly Al abundance ratios with cluster luminosity and velocity dispersion, which can potentially be used to constrain GC self-enrichment scenarios. Data presented here were obtained with the HIRES echelle spectrograph on the Keck I telescope.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Quantitative Biostratigraphic Analysis and Age Estimates of Middle Cretaceous Sequences in The Baltimore Canyon Trough, Offshore Mid-Atlantic U.S. Margin

ABSTRACT We applied quantitative methods to previously published biostratigraphic data from the Baltimore Canyon Trough (offshore of the Mid-Atlantic U.S.A.) to provide an improved chronostratigraphic framework for Cretaceous sequences. Here, we successfully used graphic correlation of 228 planktonic foraminifera, nannofossil, and palynological events spanning 22 wells to define assemblage and interval zones as well as major paleoenvironmental changes in the Dawson Canyon, Logan Canyon (three sequences), and Missisauga Formations (two sequences, undifferentiated here). Ranking and scaling techniques were not successful because of the of the limited number of usable biostratigraphic markers. The ages of the sequences previously identified using well logs and seismic profiles were temporally constrained based on chronostratigraphically significant biostratigraphic markers that we identified: the late Cenomanian to Turonian DCx sequence (Rotalipora cushmani and Thalmanninella greenhornensis); the early Cenomanian LC1 sequence; the middle and late Albian LC2 sequence (Braarudosphaera africana, Planomalina buxtorfi, and Spinidinium vestitum); the late Aptian LC3 sequence (Cyclonephelium tabulatum); and the early Aptian to Barremian Missisauga sequences (Aptea anaphrissa, Pseudoceratium pelliferum, and Muderongia simplex). These five biostratigraphic associations are correlated with six prominent seismic reflectors and sequence boundaries that can be traced across the basin. Duration of hiatuses associated with these sequence boundaries are uncertain, though our Monte Carlo analysis allows extraction of age estimates from broad and sometimes contradictory ranges and suggests correlation of hiatuses with global sea-level falls. Together, these seismic and biostratigraphic interpretations can be applied (1) to evaluate reservoir continuity and the viability of offshore carbon storage reservoirs in the Baltimore Canyon Trough, (2) to better define the tectonostratigraphic evolution of the basin, and (3) to contribute to the understanding of regional and global variations in Cretaceous sea level.

Paleontology↗
DOE OSTI2025

Improved Guarantees for Optimal Nash Equilibrium Seeking and Bilevel Variational Inequalities

We consider a class of hierarchical variational inequality (VI) problems that subsumes VI-constrained optimization and several other problem classes, including the optimal solution selection problem and the optimal Nash equilibrium (NE) seeking problem. Our main contribution is threefold. (i) We consider bilevel VIs with monotone and Lipschitz continuous mappings and devise a single-timescale iteratively regularized extragradient method, named IR-EG 𝚖,𝚖 . We improve the existing iteration complexity results for addressing both bilevel VI and VI-constrained convex optimization problems. (ii) Under the strong monotonicity of the outer-level mapping, we develop a method named IR-EG 𝚜,𝚖 and derive faster guarantees than those in (i). We also study the iteration complexity of this method under a constant regularization parameter. These results appear to be new for both bilevel VIs and VI-constrained optimization. (iii) To our knowledge, complexity guarantees for computing the optimal NE in nonconvex settings do not exist. Motivated by this lacuna, we consider VI-constrained nonconvex optimization problems and devise an inexactly projected gradient method, named IPR-EG, where the projection onto the unknown set of equilibria is performed using IR-EG 𝚜,𝚖 with a prescribed termination criterion and an adaptive regularization parameter. We obtain new complexity guarantees in terms of a residual map and an infeasibility metric for computing a stationary point. Here, we validate the theoretical findings using preliminary numerical experiments for computing the best and the worst NEs.

bilevel optimization↗
DOE OSTI2020

Genomics of sorghum local adaptation to a parasitic plant

Host–parasite coevolution can maintain high levels of genetic diversity in traits involved in species interactions. In many systems, host traits exploited by parasites are constrained by use in other functions, leading to complex selective pressures across space and time. Here, we study genome-wide variation in the staple crop Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench and its association with the parasitic weed Striga hermonthica (Delile) Benth., a major constraint to food security in Africa. We hypothesize that geographic selection mosaics across gradients of parasite occurrence maintain genetic diversity in sorghum landrace resistance. Suggesting a role in local adaptation to parasite pressure, multiple independent loss-of-function alleles at sorghum LOW GERMINATION STIMULANT 1 (LGS1) are broadly distributed among African landraces and geographically associated with S. hermonthica occurrence. However, low frequency of these alleles within S. hermonthica-prone regions and their absence elsewhere implicate potential trade-offs restricting their fixation. LGS1 is thought to cause resistance by changing stereochemistry of strigolactones, hormones that control plant architecture and below-ground signaling to mycorrhizae and are required to stimulate parasite germination. Consistent with trade-offs, we find signatures of balancing selection surrounding LGS1 and other candidates from analysis of genome-wide associations with parasite distribution. Experiments with CRISPR–Cas9-edited sorghum further indicate that the benefit of LGS1-mediated resistance strongly depends on parasite genotype and abiotic environment and comes at the cost of reduced photosystem gene expression. Our study demonstrates long-term maintenance of diversity in host resistance genes across smallholder agroecosystems, providing a valuable comparison to both industrial farming systems and natural communities.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2016

WE-AB-202-04: Statistical Evaluation of Lung Function Using 4DCT Ventilation Imaging: Proton Therapy VS IMRT

Purpose: Variation in function of different lung regions has been ignored so far for conventional lung cancer treatment planning, which may lead to higher risk of radiation induced lung disease. 4DCT based lung ventilation imaging provides a novel yet convenient approach for lung functional imaging as 4DCT is taken as routine for lung cancer treatment. Our work aims to evaluate the impact of accounting for spatial heterogeneity in lung function using 4DCT based lung ventilation imaging for proton and IMRT plans. Methods: Six patients with advanced stage lung cancer of various tumor locations were retrospectively evaluated for the study. Proton and IMRT plans were designed following identical planning objective and constrains for each patient. Ventilation images were calculated from patients’ 4DCT using deformable image registration implemented by Velocity AI software based on Jacobian-metrics. Lung was delineated into two function level regions based on ventilation (low and high functional area). High functional region was defined as lung ventilation greater than 30%. Dose distribution and statistics in different lung function area was calculated for patients. Results: Variation in dosimetric statistics of different function lung region was observed between proton and IMRT plans. In all proton plans, high function lung regions receive lower maximum dose (100.2%–108.9%), compared with IMRT plans (106.4%–119.7%). Interestingly, three out of six proton plans gave higher mean dose by up to 2.2% than IMRT to high function lung region. Lower mean dose (lower by up to 14.1%) and maximum dose (lower by up to 9%) were observed in low function lung for proton plans. Conclusion: A systematic approach was developed to generate function lung ventilation imaging and use it to evaluate plans. This method hold great promise in function analysis of lung during planning. We are currently studying more subjects to evaluate this tool.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2014

High-Resolution Spectroscopy of the Lunar Sodium Exosphere

We have applied high-resolution Fabry-Perot spectroscopy to the study of the lunar sodium exosphere for the study of exospheric effective temperature and velocity variations. Observing from the National Solar Observatory McMath-Pierce Telescope, we used a dual-etalon Fabry-Perot spectrometer with a resolving power of 180,000 to measure line widths and Doppler shifts of the sodium D2 (5889.95 Å) emission line. Our field of view was 360 km, and measurements were made in equatorial and polar regions from 500 km to 3500 km off the limb. Data were obtained from full moon to 3 days following full moon (waning phase) in March 2009. Measured Doppler line widths within 1100 km of the sunlit east and south lunar limbs for observations between 5 and 40 deg lunar phase imply effective temperatures ranging between 3260 +/- 190 and 1000 +/- 135 K. Preliminary line center analysis indicates velocity displacements between different locations off the lunar limb ranging between 100 and 600 m/s from the lunar rest velocity with a precision of +/-20 to +/-50 m/s depending on brightness. Based on the success of these exploratory observations, an extensive program has been initiated that is expected to constrain lunar atmospheric and surface-process modeling and help quantify source and escape mechanisms.

Lunar↗
NASA NTRS2004

Analysis of Orientation-dependence of Martian Gullies

The recent discovery of small Martian gullies has stimulated debate about the role that water plays on the Martian surface under current or recent conditions. Of critical importance in evaluating various gully hypotheses is reliable morphometric and orientation data. The former centers on such questions as whether the water (or another fluid) emanated from a surface or sub-surface source and the duration of flow. The latter ties into whether solar insolation has an important effect on formation of the initial water source and subsequent mobilization. Initial studies of gullies indicated a poleward orientation dependence, an observation which has recently been challenged. Herein we investigate the orientation of Martian gullies and the dependence of various parameters on the orientation. Whereas previous studies have been global or through most of the southern hemisphere, we focus on several specific regions. This approach offers some advantages in that regional variations are factored out, such that of lithology, ground water table depth (if any), surface thermal properties, and other parameters are more or less the same in a given region. Differences in gully attributes as a function of orientation within a region can more easily be attributable to solar insolation effects than is the case for global statistics. We use the orientation to constrain several classes of gully formation hypotheses. 1) A favored orientation toward the pole across all regions could indicate a process dominated by melting of cold trapped ice, snow, or condensed volatiles from incident sunlight during summer under current conditions. 2) Variations among all regions would be more consistent with mechanisms less strongly tied to current solar insolation, such as geothermal heating of ice. 3) Favored orientations within specific regions, but differing among regions, could indicate a preference for poleward ices and melting, with orientation being a function of age and dependent on variations in obliquity and precision. We find that the gullies fall into either categories 2 or 3, but not 1, indicating the recent melting of cold trapped condensates is unlikely the sole formation mechanism.

Mohan, S.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Global Ocean Evaporation: How Well Can We Estimate Interannual to Decadal Variability?

Evaporation from the world's oceans constitutes the largest component of the global water balance. It is important not only as the ultimate source of moisture that is tied to the radiative processes determining Earth's energy balance but also to freshwater availability over land, governing habitability of the planet. Here we focus on variability of ocean evaporation on scales from interannual to decadal by appealing to three sources of data: the new MERRA-2 (Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications -2); climate models run with historical sea-surface temperatures, ice and atmospheric constituents (so-called AMIP experiments); and state-of-the-art satellite retrievals from the Seaflux and HOAPS (Hamburg Ocean-Atmosphere Parameters and Fluxes from Satellite) projects. Each of these sources has distinct advantages as well as drawbacks. MERRA-2, like other reanalyses, synthesizes evaporation estimates consistent with observationally constrained physical and dynamical models-but data stream discontinuities are a major problem for interpreting multi-decadal records. The climate models used in data assimilation can also be run with lesser constraints such as with SSTs and sea-ice (i.e. AMIPs) or with additional, minimal observations of surface pressure and marine observations that have longer and less fragmentary observational records. We use the new ERA-20C reanalysis produced by ECMWF embodying the latter methodology. Still, the model physics biases in climate models and the lack of a predicted surface energy balance are of concern. Satellite retrievals and comparisons to ship-based measurements offer the most observationally-based estimates, but sensor inter-calibration, algorithm retrieval assumptions, and short records are dominant issues. Our strategy depends on maximizing the advantages of these combined records. The primary diagnostic tool used here is an analysis of bulk aerodynamic computations produced by these sources and uses a first-order Taylor series analysis of wind speed, SST, near-surface stability and relative humidity variations around climatology to gauge the importance of these components. We find that the MERRA-2 evaporation record is strongly influenced by the availability of wind speed and humidity from passive microwave imagers beginning in the late 1980s as well as by the SST record. The trend over the period 1980 to present is nearly 10%. AMIP or the ERA-20C trends are much smaller. We find that ENSO-related signals involving both wind speed and thermodynamic variability remain the primary signal in the latter and are confirmed by satellite retrievals. We present uncertainty estimates based on the various data sources and discuss the implications for GEWEX water and energy budget science challenges.

Robertson, Franklin R.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Stacked reverberation mapping of high-redshift quasars in DESI. I. Feasibility analysis

The broad-line region of quasars has long been probed by reverberation mapping techniques that measure time lags between continuum and broad emission-line variations. Stacked reverberation mapping has been proposed as a less observationally expensive alternative to traditional methods. This ensemble approach also reduces biases from small-number statistics. The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) is conducting the most extensive spectroscopic survey of quasars to date. We create mock light curves emulating expected DESI quasar observations at redshifts $1.48\lt z\lt 5.2$ and luminosities $44.68 \le \log \lambda L_{1350 \mathring{\rm A}{}} / \mathrm{erg\, s^{-1}} \le 45.99$ to test stacked reverberation mapping feasibility using sparse spectroscopic data paired with well-sampled photometric data. The pipeline, using the lag estimation code JAVELIN (Just Another Vehicle for Estimating Lags In Nuclei), successfully recovers the simulated C IV lags within 1σ of the true values using spectroscopic light curves composed of only a few spectral epochs (2–10) with irregular cadences. We investigate how observational factors, including C IV flux error magnitude, number of stacked quasars, and spectral epoch count, affect performance. This work motivates a pathway for future stacked reverberation mapping projects with large-scale spectroscopic surveys of quasars having $\ge 2$ spectroscopic observations. Our results suggest an economical alternative for constraining and extending the radius–luminosity relation to higher redshifts and luminosities. Subsequently, this relation can be employed more reliably in single-epoch black hole mass measurements and quasar cosmology in these distant regimes.

quasars: general, quasars: supermassive black hole↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Surface Transportation of the Common Habitat from Lander to Habitation Zone

The Common Habitat Architecture is a feasibility study surrounding the use of an SLS core stage liquid oxygen tank as the pressure vessel for a long-duration habitat intended for use in multiple gravity environments. The Common Habitat is used within this study as the primary habitation element in both Moon and Mars surface base camps. The Common Habitat Architecture offloads the Common Habitat from its lander and transports it to a Habitation Zone instead of leaving the habitat integrated with the lander. In this study, the Landing Zone is assumed to be approximately 3.5 kilometers from the Habitation Zone. Given the physical size and estimated 90-ton mass of the Common Habitat, a four-week trade study encompassing Moon and Mars lander identification, offloading, surface transport, and emplacement was conducted in February 2021 to assess whether there are any credible options for landing the Common Habitat on the Moon or Mars and deliver it to its intended point of use. Constrained to use only public data, the study applied subject matter expert opinion to each component of the study. The surface transportation component of the trade study assumes the habitat has been successfully offloaded from its lander and is at a point of handover to the surface transportation system. It is assumed that there are no crew present, and all human operations are performed remotely by Mission Control personnel. Three core cargo handling elements from prior NASA studies were used as the basis from which to derive surface transportation options – the Chariot, the All-Terrain Hex-Limbed Extra-Terrestrial Explorer, and the Lightweight Surface Manipulator System. Variations and hybrid combinations of these elements were used to develop transportation options for the Moon and Mars, given different habitat masses. Ultimately, several potentially feasible solutions were identified, and a solution was recommended that is common to both the Moon and Mars, with the potential to use a dissimilar system as a backup during lunar Common Habitat delivery. Next steps for sizing and additional development and analysis of the recommended surface transportation system are included as forward work.

Surface Mobility↗
DOE OSTI2020

Atmospheric ice nuclei concentration measurements over a high altitude-station in the Western Ghats, India

Mixed-phase and ice clouds play a significant role in modulating the Indian summer monsoon rainfall, and modeling studies suggest that inaccurate representation of ice nucleating particles (INP) is one of the factors, which have resulted in a deficiency in the prediction of cloud properties and hydrological cycle. We do not understand the ice nucleation mechanisms to represent the ice formation in the model, and therefore more INP measurements at various supercooled temperatures are needed. This study reports for the first time real-time INP concentration at a high altitude station in the Western Ghats region of India, and these results will be used to constrain the ice nucleation parameterizations in the model. The variation of INP for any particular cloud condition can have strong microphysical responses of mixed-phase precipitation formation processes. Also, to improve the representation of heterogeneous ice nucleation, INP measurements of various types of aerosols commonly observed over the Indian region are needed. This study presents, the INP concentrations and daily concentration of non-refractory chemical composition (organics, sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, and chloride), cloud condensation nuclei (CCN), and aerosol size distribution. Spectrometer for Ice Nuclei (SPIN) was operated to measure INP concentration at the mountain site from August to December 2018. INP measurements were performed at three different temperatures (-25, -30, and - 34 °C) in the immersion freezing mode relevant for mixed-phase cloud conditions. The average INP concentrations approximately varied from 0.18 to 12.4 L-1, 0.39 to 24 L-1, 1.1 to 40.2 L-1 at -25, -30, and - 34 °C, respectively. These concentrations are within the concentrations reported in the literature from different regions across the globe. The air mass back trajectory analysis showed that continental air mass contains more INP compared to maritime air mass. The information on INP concentration and chemical characteristics of aerosol will help to improve heterogeneous ice nucleation parameterization in numerical models.

Kumar, Anil V.↗
DOE OSTI2016

Spectroscopic determination of masses (and implied ages) for red giants

The mass of a star is arguably its most fundamental parameter. For red giant stars, tracers luminous enough to be observed across the Galaxy, mass implies a stellar evolution age. It has proven to be extremely difficult to infer ages and masses directly from red giant spectra using existing methods. From the Kepler and apogee surveys, samples of several thousand stars exist with high-quality spectra and asteroseismic masses. Here we show that from these data we can build a data-driven spectral model using The Cannon, which can determine stellar masses to ∼0.07 dex from apogee dr12 spectra of red giants; these imply age estimates accurate to ∼0.2 dex (40%). We show that The Cannon constrains these ages foremost from spectral regions with CN absorption lines, elements whose surface abundances reflect mass-dependent dredge-up. We deliver an unprecedented catalog of 70,000 giants (including 20,000 red clump stars) with mass and age estimates, spanning the entire disk (from the Galactic center to R∼20 kpc). We show that the age information in the spectra is not simply a corollary of the birth-material abundances [Fe/H] and [α/Fe], and that, even within a monoabundance population of stars, there are age variations that vary sensibly with Galactic position. Such stellar age constraints across the Milky Way open up new avenues in Galactic archeology.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Disk-loss and disk-renewal phases in classical Be stars. II. Contrasting with stable and variable disks

Recent observational and theoretical studies of classical Be stars have established the utility of polarization color diagrams (PCDs) in helping to constrain the time-dependent mass decretion rates of these systems. We expand on our pilot observational study of this phenomenon, and report the detailed analysis of a long-term (1989-2004) spectropolarimetric survey of nine additional classical Be stars, including systems exhibiting evidence of partial disk-loss/disk-growth episodes as well as systems exhibiting long-term stable disks. After carefully characterizing and removing the interstellar polarization along the line of sight to each of these targets, we analyze their intrinsic polarization behavior. We find that many steady-state Be disks pause at the top of the PCD, as predicted by theory. We also observe sharp declines in the Balmer jump polarization for later spectral type, near edge-on steady-state disks, again as recently predicted by theory, likely caused when the base density of the disk is very high, and the outer region of the edge-on disk starts to self absorb a significant number of Balmer jump photons. The intrinsic V-band polarization and polarization position angle of γ Cas exhibits variations that seem to phase with the orbital period of a known one-armed density structure in this disk, similar to the theoretical predictions of Halonen and Jones. We also observe stochastic jumps in the intrinsic polarization across the Balmer jump of several known Be+sdO systems, and speculate that the thermal inflation of part of the outer region of these disks could be responsible for producing this observational phenomenon. Finally, we estimate the base densities of this sample of stars to be between ≈8 × 10{sup –11} and ≈4 × 10{sup –12} g cm{sup –3} during quasi steady state periods given there maximum observed polarization.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗