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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

The Generation and Application of Paylaod Thermal Environments for a Lunar Lander Mission

In today’s space industry many organizations develop payloads or other components that will fly on a vehicle or lander developed by a different organization. This creates a challenge for the payload developers of knowing the thermal environment, including effects from the spacecraft, of their instrument because the payload engineers will not have continuous access to an up-to-date thermal model of the spacecraft. To circumvent the vehicle developer having to provide a thermal model of the spacecraft to payload developers for detailed thermal analysis, the vehicle developer can provide environmental data to the payload engineers to apply to their payload model, instead. This data must include the boundary temperatures where the payload is mounted, sink temperatures, and both incident solar and infrared thermal flux. This paper will describe the method used to generate thermal environments for payloads on the Astrobotic Lunar Lander and how those environments were applied to an example payload, the Neutron Measurement at the Lunar Surface (NMLS) instrument. This work is unique because a standard method for generating and delivering payload environments does not exist. Benefits and drawbacks of using this method will also be discussed.

Thermal Environments↗
NASA NTRS2021

The Impacts of Climate and Wildfire on Ecosystem Gross Primary Productivity in Alaska

The increase in wildfire occurrence and severity seen over the past decades in the boreal and Arctic biomes is expected to continue in the future in response to rapid climate change in this region. Recent studies documented positive trends in gross primary productivity (GPP) for Arctic boreal biomes driven by warming, but it is unclear how GPP trends are affected by wildfires. Here, we used satellite vegetation observations and environmental data with a diagnostic GPP model to analyze recovery from large fires in Alaska over the period 2000‐2019. We confirmed earlier findings that warmer‐than‐average years provide favorable climate conditions for vegetation growth, leading to a GPP increase of 1 Tg C/yr, contributed mainly from enhanced productivity in the early growing season. However, higher temperatures increase the risk of wildfire occurrence leading to direct carbon loss over a period of 1‐3 years. While mortality related to severe wildfires reduce ecosystem productivity, post‐fire productivity in moderately burned areas shows a significant positive trend. The rapid GPP recovery following fires reported here might be favorable for maintaining the region’s net carbon sink, but wildfires can indirectly promote the release of long‐term stored carbon in the permafrost. With the projected increase in severity and frequency of wildfires in the future, we expect a reduction of GPP and therefore amplification of climate warming in this region.

Nima Madani↗
NASA NTRS2020

Comparison of the MODIS and VIIRS Thermal Emissive Band Radiometric Calibration

Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) are major instruments for Earth science observations.Nearly 40 MODIS scientific products and a wide range of VIIRS environmental data records are produced using their global observations. The consistency of the MODIS and VIIRS calibrated data is important for the study of Earth science. This article assesses the calibration consistency of the Aqua MODIS and VIIRS thermal emissive band (TEB) data. To remove the impact of the mismatched relative spectral response (RSR) on the comparisons, the simultaneous nadir observation data from the cross-track infrared sounder (CrIS) and the infrared atmospheric sounding interferometer (IASI) are used as references in two different methods to independently verify the consistency. The comparisons of the MODIS and VIIRS TEB calibrated data show that the brightness temperature (BT) differences for comparable bands between MODIS and VIIRS are in general within 0.2 K for BT larger than 230 K. The differences of all comparable MODIS and VIIRS TEBs are consistent over time. MODIS measurements agree better with N20 VIIRS than with Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP) VIIRS. The S-NPP VIIRS measurements are higher than N20 VIIRS, within 0.1 Kfor long-wave infrared (LWIR) bands and 0.3 K for band M13.

Calibration↗
NASA NTRS2019

NOAA-20 VIIRS polarization effect and its correction

The follow-on Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) housed in the NOAA-20 satellite was launched on 18 November 2017. It has 22 spectral bands, among which 14 are reflective solar bands (RSBs) covering the wavelength range from 411 to 2258 nm. Prelaunch polarization sensitivity measurements have revealed that NOAA-20 VIIRS RSBs are much more sensitive to polarization of the incident light than its predecessor, the VIIRS on the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership. For the short wavelength bands, i.e., M1–M4, the polarization sensitivities are out of specifications, especially for band M1, for which the polarization factors can be as large as ∼6%. The polarization effect induces striping in imagery along the track and radiometric bias both along the scan and along the track, resulting in much larger uncertainties in the environmental data records (EDR). In this paper, the polarization effect correction algorithms are described and applied to the NOAA-20 VIIRS RSBs for ocean scenes where the top-of-atmosphere radiance can be separated into the ocean normalized water-leaving radiance, the basis of the ocean color EDR, and the sunlight reflected by the atmosphere, which can be mostly described by the Rayleigh scattering radiance. The errors of the sensor data records (SDR or Level-1B radiance) due to the polarization effect can be as large as ∼1% for bands M1 and M2, and those in the ocean normalized water-leaving radiances are about 13% and 10% for wavelengths at 411 nm (band M1) and 445 nm (band M2), respectively. The polarization effect also induces strong striping in both NOAA-20 VIIRS RSB SDR and normalized water-leaving radiances. It is demonstrated that with the polarization correction applied, the aforementioned errors and artifacts are successfully removed.

NOAA-20↗
NASA NTRS2020

Validation of Carbon Trace Gas Profile Retrievals from the NOAA-Unique Combined Atmospheric Processing System for the Cross-Track Infrared Sounder

This paper provides an overview of the validation of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) operational retrievals of atmospheric carbon trace gas profiles, specifically carbon monoxide (CO), methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2), from the NOAA-Unique Combined Atmospheric Processing System (NUCAPS), a NOAA enterprise algorithm that retrieves atmospheric profile environmental data records (EDRs) under global non-precipitating (clear to partly cloudy) conditions. Vertical information about atmospheric trace gases is obtained from the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS), an infrared Fourier transform spectrometer that measures high resolution Earth radiance spectra from NOAA operational low earth orbit (LEO) satellites, including the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (SNPP) and follow-on Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) series beginning with NOAA-20. The NUCAPS CO, CH4, and CO2 profile EDRs are rigorously validated in this paper using well-established independent truth datasets, namely total column data from ground-based Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON) sites, and in situ vertical profile data obtained from aircraft and balloon platforms via the NASA Atmospheric Tomography (ATom) mission and NOAA AirCore sampler, respectively. Statistical analyses using these datasets demonstrate that the NUCAPS carbon gas profile EDRs generally meet JPSS Level 1 global performance requirements, with the absolute accuracy and precision of CO 5% and 15%, respectively, in layers where CrIS has vertical sensitivity; CH4 and CO2 product accuracies are both found to be within ±1%, with precisions of ≈1.5% and ⪅0.5%, respectively, throughout the tropospheric column.

satellite cal/val; error analysis; greenhouse gase↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

RadBREAD: Radiation Biology Research at an Elevated Altitude through Dosimetry – A student-designed payload

NASA uses extreme environment platforms (ground testing facilities, high-altitude balloons and aircraft, and CubeSats) to provide greater understanding of the conditions and limitations of extra-terrestrial environments. As part of a two-week flight planned for summer 2021, RadBREAD (Radiation Biology Research at an Elevated Altitude through Dosimetry) will fly as a secondary payload consisting of a M-42C (German Aerospace Center, DLR) ionizing radiation dosimeter, UV micro-logger, and multiple desiccated yeast samples. The platform is a novel high-altitude solar-powered aircraft: the Swift Engineering High-Altitude samples. The platform is a novel high-altitude solar-powered aircraft: the Swift Engineering High-Altitude Long-Endurance Unmanned Aircraft System (HALE UAS), which offers significantly longer flight durations than other high-altitude platforms. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae will provide meaningful biological correlation for the sensor readings, due to its resistance to extremely low temperature and pressure when desiccated, ease of genetic manipulation, and homology to human genes. The RadBREAD team comprises the 2020 cohort of NASA’s Space Life Sciences Training Program (SLSTP) research associates as well as NASA scientists, engineers and radiation experts from NASA and the DLR. Yeast survival, metabolic, and transcriptomic changes will be correlated with environmental data collected during long-term exposure to the upper atmosphere. Additionally, the team will evaluate the upper atmospheric environment (radiation, pressure, and temperature) provided by the HALE UAS platform as a Mars surface analog for biological payloads. We hypothesize that exposure to upper atmospheric conditions during the HALE UAS flight will alter the survival, metabolism, and transcriptome of desiccated wild-type S. cerevisiae upon rehydration compared to sensitive and tolerant yeast strains exposed to the same conditions, and between the flight samples compared to asynchronous ground controls.

radiation exposure↗
NASA NTRS2022

Adaptations of Endolithic Communities to Abrupt Environmental Changes in A Hyper-Arid Desert

The adaptation mechanisms of microbial communities to natural perturbations remain relatively unexplored, particularly in extreme environments. The extremophilic communities of halite (NaCl) nodules from the hyper-arid core of the Atacama Desert are self-sustained and represent a unique opportunity to study functional adaptations and community dynamics with changing environmental conditions. We transplanted halite nodules to different sites in the desert and investigated how their taxonomic, cellular, and biochemical changes correlated with water availability, using environmental data modeling and metagenomic analyses. Salt-in strategists, mainly represented by haloarchaea, significantly increased in relative abundance at sites characterized by extreme dryness, multiple wet/dry cycles, and colder conditions. The functional analysis of metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) revealed site-specific enrichments in archaeal MAGs encoding for the uptake of various compatible solutes and for glycerol utilization. These findings suggest that opportunistic salt-in strategists took over the halite communities at the driest sites. They most likely benefited from metabolites newly released in the environment by the death of microorganisms least adapted to the new conditions. The observed changes were consistent with the need to maximize cellular bioenergetics when confronted with lower water availability and higher salinity, providing valuable information on microbial community adaptations and resilience to climate change.

Atacama↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Lower Mekong Hydrological Decision Support system

The Lower Mekong Hydrological Decision Support system (LMHDSs) is a environmental data analysis tool developed at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center with funding from the SERVIR Applied Sciences Team and technical support from SERVIR Science Coordination Office (SCO). The web application allows stakeholders and decision-makers to view and download the inputs and outputs to the Soil and Water Assessment Tool(SWAT) model temporally and spatially. The front end is developed using JavaScript libraries like OpenLayers and Stock charts and the backend uses Django, a Python-based web framework. The web app provides several features, including visualizing map products, time-series plots, land-use/land-cover and associated soil information, and a data cart for downloading data. In addition, LMHDSs incorporates the NASAaccess software package, which provides seamless access to various climate and weather data products from NASA’s Earth observations portfolio. The application is region agnostic (any valid SWAT model can be used), modular (different components of the applications can be customized), and open (anyone can download and run it on their end). The web app is currently in use by the Mekong River Commission (MRC), a treaty-based regional intergovernmental organization that is made up of Mekong countries, as part of its hydrological decision support.

Hydrology↗
NASA NTRS2022

Calibration Inter-Comparison of MODIS and VIIRS Reflective Solar Bands Using Lunar Observations

Multispectral band observations from Terra and Aqua MODIS, launched in December 1999 and May 2002, respectively, and from SNPP and NOAA-20 VIIRS, launched in November 2011 and October 2017, respectively, have continuously enabled a broad range of applications and studies of the Earth system and its changes via a set of geophysical and environmental parameters. The quality of MODIS and VIIRS science and environmental data products relies strongly on the calibration accuracy and stability of individual sensors, as well as their calibration consistency, especially for the data products generated using observations from sensors across different platforms. Both MODIS and VIIRS instruments carry a similar set of on-board calibrators for their on-orbit calibration. Besides, lunar observations are regularly scheduled and implemented in support of their reflective solar bands (RSB) calibration, especially their long-term stability monitoring. In this paper, we provide an overview of MODIS and VIIRS solar and lunar calibration methodologies applied for the RSB on-orbit calibration, and describe the approach developed for their calibration inter-comparisons using lunar observations, including corrections for the effects caused by differences in the relative spectral response and adopted solar spectra between individual sensors. The MODIS and VIIRS calibration inter-comparison results derived from their regularly scheduled lunar observations are presented and discussed, including associated uncertainties and a comparison with those derived using the Earth-view targets. Also discussed are remaining challenges in lunar calibration and inter-comparison for the Earth-observing sensors, as well as on-going efforts for future improvements.

Multispectral band↗
NASA NTRS2023

Great Salt Lake Health and Air Quality: Monitoring Lakebed Exposure and its Impact on Air Quality and Environmental Hazards in the Great Salt Lake Watershed

Water flow into the Great Salt Lake has declined rapidly over the last forty years due to human withdrawals and climate change. As a result of declining lake levels, over 50% of the lakebed is now exposed. Dust storms may grow in frequency and intensity across Northern Utah as lakebed dust becomes airborne under specific meteorological conditions. In our research project, we utilized satellite imagery from Terra and Aqua, Sentinel-5P, CALIPSO, Landsat 5 TM, Landsat 7 ETM+, Landsat 8 OLI-2, Suomi NPP, ground sensor environmental data, and demographic data to understand the relationship between lake desiccation and dust, and the impact of pollution upon the communities surrounding the Great Salt Lake. By plotting changes in Lake Surface Area against Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) over our study period (2010-2022), we found an inverse relationship (R2=0.3423) between lake surface area and dust levels within our study area. We conducted a Vertical Feature Mask (VFM) and Extinction Coefficient Plot, from which we identified that during dust events, the aerosol type is mainly polluted dust and the aerosol height is 200 meters from the surface. Lastly, we created bivariate choropleth maps, which demonstrate which census tracts within our study area are most vulnerable to AOD (a proxy for PM2.5 from dust), NO2 and HCHO (precursors to ozone). In summary, our findings revealed that declining lake levels are associated with an increase in intensity of dust events, and these dust events will particularly impact residents of Tooele County and the west side of Salt Lake City. Project resources support partner needs by informing targeted air monitoring efforts, lakebed management practices, and advocacy efforts for GSL stewardship.

Terminal Saline Lake↗
NASA NTRS2023

CESO 22-1: Lunar Uncrewed Explorer Tool (LUNEXT)

Develop a software tool for planning uncrewed lunar surface operations that simulates illumination conditions on the surface and displays environmental data, such as temperature and induced plume effects, into an integrated lunar operational environment simulation that does not require high-end computing hardware. This prototype tool is a capability that fills a gap, and it does not compete with existing KSC/agency simulation/visualization tools.

Mark Lewis↗
NASA NTRS2023

JPSS-3 VIIRS Version 2 at-Launch Relative Spectral Response Characterization

The JPSS-3 VIIRS sensor has completed its pre-launch test program including measurements for characterizing the VIIRS relative spectral response (RSR) in support of the Sensor and Environmental Data Records (SDR and EDR, resp.) that will be generated from VIIRS on-orbit observations. Government team subject matter experts of the VIIRS DAWG have analyzed the VIIRS spectral measurements and produced the VIIRS spectral characterization, in the form of band-average and supporting detector level RSR for each VIIRS band. The characterization is based upon the analysis of independent SpMA dual monochromator (all bands) and GSFC GLAMR laser system (reflectance bands only) spectral measurements. The SpMA and GLAMR measurements for reflectance bands (DNB LGS and MGS, I1-I3, M1-M11) were combined to produce a “fused” RSR. For emissive bands (I4, I5, M12-M16), the SpMA measurements provide the characterization. The effort has led to the VIIRS Version 2 RSR release, the official at-launch RSR characterization for the JPSS-3 VIIRS mission. The JPSS-3 RSR are a close match to those of JPSS-2. An assessment on compliance with spectral performance metrics finds that VIIRS band-average RSR are compliant on nearly all metrics, with only a single minor exception. The Version 2 RSR release is available under EAR99 restrictions to the science community on the restricted access NASA Sharepoint.

Chris Moeller↗
NASA NTRS2023

Interactions Between Thresholds and Spatial Discretizations of Snow: Insights From Estimates of Wolverine Denning Habitat in the Colorado Rocky Mountains

Thresholds can be used to interpret environmental data in a way that is easily communicated and useful for decision making purposes. However, thresholds are often developed for specific data products and time periods, changing findings when the same threshold is applied to datasets or periods with different characteristics. Here, we test the impact of different spatial discretizations of snow on annual estimates of wolverine denning opportunities in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, defined using a snow water equivalent (SWE) threshold (0.20 m) and threshold date (15 May) from previous habitat assessments. Annual potential wolverine denning area (PWDA) was thresholded from a 36-year (1985 – 2020) snow reanalysis model with three different spatial discretizations: 1) 480 m grid cells (D480), 2) 90 m grid cells (D90), and 3) 480 m grid cells with implicit representations of subgrid snow spatial heterogeneity (S480). Relative to the D480 and S480 discretizations, D90 resolved shallower snow deposits on slopes between 3050 and 3350 m elevation, decreasing PWDA by 10%, on average. In years with warmer and/or drier winters, S480 discretizations with subgrid representations of snow heterogeneity increased PWDA, even within grid cells where mean 15 May SWE was less than the SWE threshold. These simulations increased PWDA by upwards of 30% in low snow years, as compared to the D480 and D90 simulations without subgrid snow heterogeneity. Despite PWDA sensitivity to different snow spatial discretizations, PWDA was controlled more by annual variations in winter precipitation and temperature. However, small changes to the SWE threshold (± 0.07 m) and threshold date (± 2 weeks) also affected PWDA by as much as 82%. Across these threshold ranges, PWDA was approximately 18% more sensitive to the SWE threshold than the threshold date. However, the sensitivity to the threshold date was larger in years with late spring snowfall, when PWDA depended on whether modeled SWE was thresholded before, during, or after spring snow accumulation. Our results demonstrate that snow thresholds are useful but may not always provide a complete picture of the annual variability in snow-adapted wildlife denning opportunities. Studies thresholding spatiotemporal datasets could be improved by including 1) information about the fidelity of thresholds across multiple spatial discretizations, and 2) uncertainties related to ranges of realistic thresholds.

Justin M. Pflug↗
DOE OSTI2020

Comfort units and systems, methods, and devices for use thereof

Despite otherwise uncomfortable conditions in a surrounding environment, a customizable microenvironment can be created around a user to maintain a comfortable temperature and/or humidity level using a comfort unit. For example, the environment may be an office building where conditions are out of the comfortable range to save on energy or for other reasons, a factory/shop environment that is poorly conditioned, or an outdoor location with little to no conditioning. A sensing unit can monitor biometric and environmental data and can determine a comfort level of the user. The comfort unit can then dynamically respond to the determined comfort level and adjust the microenvironment to improve the user's comfort level. The comfort unit can follow the user as the user moves within the macro-environment, or can otherwise move within the macro-environment to achieve certain functions, such as recharging or spatial shifting of thermal load within the overall macro-environment.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2021

The environmental footprint of data centers in the United States

Much of the world's data are stored, managed, and distributed by data centers. Data centers require a tremendous amount of energy to operate, accounting for around 1.8% of electricity use in the United States. Large amounts of water are also required to operate data centers, both directly for liquid cooling and indirectly to produce electricity. For the first time, we calculate spatially-detailed carbon and water footprints of data centers operating within the United States, which is home to around one-quarter of all data center servers globally. Our bottom-up approach reveals one-fifth of data center servers direct water footprint comes from moderately to highly water stressed watersheds, while nearly half of servers are fully or partially powered by power plants located within water stressed regions. Approximately 0.5% of total US greenhouse gas emissions are attributed to data centers. We investigate tradeoffs and synergies between data center's water and energy utilization by strategically locating data centers in areas of the country that will minimize one or more environmental footprints. Our study quantifies the environmental implications behind our data creation and storage and shows a path to decrease the environmental footprint of our increasing digital footprint.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1991

SEPAC data analysis in support of the environmental interaction program

Data analyses of the Space Experiments with Particle Accelerators (SEPAC) data and computer modeling were conducted to investigate spacecraft environmental effects associated with injection of electron beams, plasma clouds, and neutral gas clouds from the Shuttle orbiter. The data analysis indicates that Extremely Low Frequency oscillations from 150 to 200 Hz were seen in the Langmuir probe current when the beam was fired in a continuous mode. The strongest oscillations occurred when the ambient pressure was augmented by neutral gas releases from the SEPAC plasma accelerator magnetoplasma-dynamic (MPD) arcjet. To understand the dependence of spacecraft charging potential on beam density and other plasma parameters, a two-dimensional electrostatic particle code was used to simulate the injection of electron beams from an infinite conductor into a plasma. The simulations show that the conductor charging potential depends critically on the reflection coefficient of the conductor surface, which is defined as the percentage of incident particles reflected by the conductor. The ionization effects on spacecraft charging were examined by including interactions of electrons with neutral gas. The simulations show that the conductor charging potential decreases with increasing neutral background density due to the production of secondary electrons near the conductor surface. The simulations also indicate that the beam radius is generally proportional to the beam electron gyroradius when the conductor is charged to a large potential. It appears that the charge buildup at the beam stagnation point causes the beam radial expansion. A survey of the simulation results suggests that the ratio of the beam radius to the beam electron gyroradius increases with the square root of beam density and decreases inversely with beam injection velocity. These results are useful for explaining the spacecraft charging phenomena observed during SEPAC experiments from Spacelab 1.

Lin, Chin S.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Using NASA Remotely Sensed Data to Help Characterize Environmental Risk Factors for National Public Health Applications

This project has dual goals in decision ]making activities .. Providing information to decision makers about associations between environmental exposures and health conditions in a large national cohort study. Enriching the CDC Wide ]ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (WONDER) system by integrating environmental exposure data. .. Develop daily high ]quality spatial data sets of environmental variables for the conterminous U.S. for the years 2003-2008 utilizing NASA data (Objective 1). Fine Particulates (PM2.5) (NASA MODIS and EPA AQS). Land Surface Temperature (NASA MODIS). Solar Insolation and Heat ]related Products (Reanalysis Data). Link these environmental variables with public health data from a national cohort study and examine environmental health relationships (Objective 2). Cognitive Function. Hypertension. Make the environmental datasets available to public health professionals, researchers and the general public via the CDC WONDER system (Objective 3).

Al-Hamdan, Mohammad↗