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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 379 records · Page 21
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2010

Multi-Axis Accelerometer Calibration System

A low-cost, portable, and simplified system has been developed that is suitable for in-situ calibration and/or evaluation of multi-axis inertial measurement instruments. This system overcomes facility restrictions and maintains or improves the calibration quality for users of accelerometer-based instruments with applications in avionics, experimental wind tunnel research, and force balance calibration applications. The apparatus quickly and easily positions a multi-axis accelerometer system into a precisely known orientation suitable for in-situ quality checks and calibration. In addition, the system incorporates powerful and sophisticated statistical methods, known as response surface methodology and statistical quality control. These methods improve calibration quality, reduce calibration time, and allow for increased calibration frequency, which enables the monitoring of instrument stability over time.

Finley, Tom↗
NASA NTRS2004

A Review of Hydrazine Sensors: The State of the Art

Several types of sensors have been developed over the past few years that quantify the vapor concentrations of the hydrazines. These sensor s are able to detect concentrations as low as 10 parts per billion (ppb) up to several parts per million (ppm). The scope of this review wi ll be focused on those sensors that are most current in the marketpla ce as either leak detectors or personnel monitors. Some technical information on the theory of operations of each hydrazine detector will a lso be included. The review will highlight current operations that utilize hydrazine sensors including the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), the United States Air Force (USAF) at Cape Canaveral Air Station (CCAS), USAF F-16 facilities. The orientation of the review will be towards giving users usable practical information on hydrazine sensors.

Meneghelli, B. J.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Space Telescope Systems Description Handbook

The objective of the Space Telescope Project is to orbit a high quality optical 2.4-meter telescope system by the Space Shuttle for use by the astronomical community in conjunction with NASA. The scientific objectives of the Space Telescope are to determine the constitution, physical characteristics, and dynamics of celestial bodies; the nature of processes which occur in the extreme physical conditions existing in stellar objects; the history and evolution of the universe; and whether the laws of nature are universal in the space-time continuum. Like ground-based telescopes, the Space Telescope was designed as a general-purpose instrument, capable of utilizing a wide variety of scientific instruments at its focal plane. This multi-purpose characteristic will allow the Space Telescope to be effectively used as a national facility, capable of supporting the astronomical needs for an international user community and hence making contributions to man's needs. By using the Space Shuttle to provide scientific instrument upgrading and subsystems maintenance, the useful and effective operational lifetime of the Space Telescope will be extended to a decade or more.

Carter, R. E.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Preliminary Steps in Developing Rapid Aero Modeling Technology

The Rapid Aero Modeling (RAM) approach is a method to efficiently and automatically obtain aerodynamic models during testing, significantly saving time and resources. Motivation for this technology results from demand for experimental efficiency and model fidelity that has increased with growing aircraft complexity and aerodynamic nonlinearities. These issues are typical in the responses presented by a class of vehicles categorized as Urban Air Mobility aircraft where many features from both airplane and rotorcraft are present. For UAM configurations, with typically many more factors than conventional aircraft, traditional test methods can lead to increased costs and missed interactions. RAM guides the test to obtain high-fidelity, statistically rigorous aircraft models, and the approach is applicable to computational, ground, or flight-test experiments. It combines concepts from Design of Experiment theory and Aircraft System Identification theory that allow the user the freedom to choose, in advance of the test, a specific level of fidelity typically, in terms of prediction error. RAM only collects data required to meet the user-specified fidelity and fidelity is only limited by the facility and test article capabilities. An initial wind tunnel test to support development of RAM was conducted to assess potential metrics, algorithms, and procedures. This paper presents results from initial tests for the development of RAM technology and highlights some of the unique features of RAM applied toa conventional configuration during a ground-based, static, wind-tunnel test.

Patrick C Murphy↗
NASA NTRS1988

Telescience, an operational approach to science investigation

The NASA Science and Applications Information System, which is based on telescience and must provide remote interaction between information system services in space and on the ground, is discussed. An infrastructure of networked facilities and institutionally provided support services is being developed. The technologies involved with providing telescience capability are examined, including automated data management services, new data acquisition systems, user support environment for system access, and the capability to access heterogeneous data bases and computational facilities from remote locations.

Weiss, James R.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Attitude and articulation control system testing for Project Galileo

A type of facility required to integrate and test a complex autonomous spacecraft subsystem is presented, using the attitude and articulation control subsystem (AACS) of Project Galileo as an example. The equipment created for testing the AACS at both the subsystem and spacecraft system levels is described, including a description of the support equipment (SE) architecture in its two main configurations, closed loop simulation techniques, the user interface to the SE, and plans for the use of the facility beyond the test period. This system is capable of providing a flight-like functional environment through the use of accurate real-time models and carefully chosen points of interaction, and flexible control capability and high visibility to the test operator.

Rasmussen, R. D.↗
NASA NTRS2021

HILIGT, Upper Limit Servers II - Implementing the Data Servers

The High-Energy Light curve Generator(HILIGT) is a new web-based tool which allows the user to generate long-term light curves of X-ray sources. It provides historical data and calculates upper limits from image data in real-time. HILIGT utilizes data from twelve satellites, both modern missions such as XMM-Newton and Swift, and earlier facilities such as ROSAT, EXOSAT, Einstein or Ariel V. Together, this enables the user to query 50 years of X-ray data and, for instance, study outburst behavior of transient sources. In this paper we focus on the individual back-end servers for each satellite, detailing the software layout, database design, catalog calls, and image footprints. We compile all relevant calibration information of these missions and provide an in-depth summary of the details of X-ray astronomical instrumentation and data.

Ole Konig↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

The NASA Facility for Astromaterials Research at the Johnson Space Center – A National Laboratory for Planetary Research

The Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) Division at the NASA Johnson Space Center has established the NASA Facility for Astromaterials Research (NFAR) through the NASA Planetary Science Enabling Facilities program. NFAR is designed to provide access to our unique combination of laboratories, instruments, infrastructure, and technical expertise for conducting broad-based world-class planetary research. NFAR enables direct access to both research and curation expertise, to facilitate specialized sample handling and analysis of astromaterials and planetary analog materials. NFAR users from institutions that historically have limited access to or lack in-house analytical or experimental facilities are particularly encouraged to apply. We award NFAR research projects to users in a competitive peer-reviewed proposal process. Proposals to use NFAR labs are limited to <5 pages and focus on the scientific purpose of the investigation and its relevance to NASA Planetary Science Division (PSD) objectives, the labs to be accessed, and the time needed for the investigation. There is no deadline for proposals, and proposals will be reviewed on a rolling basis. NASA-funded research in active PSD R&A proposals is prioritized along with requests from early-career/next-generation scientists, under-represented minorities, and to Principal Investigators from minority-serving institutions. More information on the NFAR labs and preparing and submitting a proposal can be found at: https://ares.jsc.nasa.gov/research/nasa-facility-astromaterials-research/.

E. Rampe↗
NASA NTRS1994

Batch Scheduling a Fresh Approach

The Network Queueing System (NQS) was designed to schedule jobs based on limits within queues. As systems obtain more memory, the number of queues increased to take advantage of the added memory resource. The problem now becomes too many queues. Having a large number of queues provides users with the capability to gain an unfair advantage over other users by tailoring their job to fit in an empty queue. Additionally, the large number of queues becomes confusing to the user community. The High Speed Processors group at the Numerical Aerodynamics Simulation (NAS) Facility at NASA Ames Research Center developed a new approach to batch job scheduling. This new method reduces the number of queues required by eliminating the need for queues based on resource limits. The scheduler examines each request for necessary resources before initiating the job. Also additional user limits at the complex level were added to provide a fairness to all users. Additional tools which include user job reordering are under development to work with the new scheduler. This paper discusses the objectives, design and implementation results of this new scheduler

Cardo, Nicholas P.↗
NASA NTRS2018

The InSAR Scientific Computing Environment 3.0: A Flexible Framework for NISAR Operational and User-Led Science Processing

The InSAR Scientific Computing Environment (ISCE) was first developed under the NASA Advanced Information Systems Technology as a flexible, extensible object-oriented framework for Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) processing. The ISCE framework uses Python 3 at the workflow level, controlling modules of compiled code for functional processing, and managing inputs, outputs, and other flow control services. The currently released version, called ISCE 2.1, is distributed to the research community through the Western North America InSAR Consortium under a research license. The ISCE team is working on the next generation of the code in order to prepare for the NASAISRO SAR (NISAR) mission operational processing. Innovations in this code include augmentation or conversion of the custom Python framework elements in ISCE with the Pyre framework, new workflows for interferometric and polarimetric stack processing, a more intuitive and graphically based user interface, and flow control for hybrid computing environments including CPU/GPU clusters, logging and error tracking facilities, and new more efficient computational modules that exploit graphical processor units (GPUs) when available. The ISCE 3.0 framework is designed to work in an operational environment as well as on a single user’s laptop or compute cluster, with services to discover capabilities and scale computations accordingly.

Buckley, Sean M.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Space Station utilization

The essential requirement of the Space Station that the customer be continually involved in all aspects of the program is considered. Potential users of the Space Station need both formal and informal channels into the program at an early stage of the definition process to secure their influence and participation in the development process. Only with this participation can users' needs and requirements be integrated into the design phase to produce 'user friendliness' in the Space Station. A Space Station that is easy and economical to use will generate more users that can take advantage of the available resources. The Space Station must be: a research facility; a satellite servicing and assembly facility; an observatory for terrestrial, solar, and astronomical viewing; and a transportation node for orbit transfer vehicles. NASA intends to see that the Space Station is developed and operated so as to serve its users.

Raney, W. P.↗
NASA NTRS1975

The automated multi-stage substructuring system for NASTRAN

The substructuring capability developed for eventual installation in Level 16 is now operational in a test version of NASTRAN. Its features are summarized. These include the user-oriented, Case Control type control language, the automated multi-stage matrix processing, the independent direct access data storage facilities, and the static and normal modes solution capabilities. A complete problem analysis sequence is presented with card-by-card description of the user input.

Field, E. I.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Users Guide for NASA Lewis Research Center DC-9 Reduced-Gravity Aircraft Program

The document provides guidelines and information for users of the DC-9 Reduced-Gravity Aircraft Program. It describes the facilities, requirements for test personnel, equipment design and installation, mission preparation, and in-flight procedures. Those who have used the KC-135 reduced-gravity aircraft will recognize that many of the procedures and guidelines are the same.

DC-9↗
NASA NTRS1977

Survey: National Environmental Satellite Service

The national Environmental Satellite Service (NESS) receives data at periodic intervals from satellites of the Synchronous Meteorological Satellite/Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite series and from the Improved TIROS (Television Infrared Observational Satellite) Operational Satellite. Within the conterminous United States, direct readout and processed products are distributed to users over facsimile networks from a central processing and data distribution facility. In addition, the NESS Satellite Field Stations analyze, interpret, and distribute processed geostationary satellite products to regional weather service activities.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1990

Water recovery and management test support modeling for Space Station Freedom

The water-recovery and management (WRM) subsystem proposed for the Space Station Freedom program is outlined, and its computerized modeling and simulation based on a Computer Aided System Engineering and Analysis (CASE/A) program are discussed. A WRM test model consisting of a pretreated urine processing (TIMES), hygiene water processing (RO), RO brine processing using TIMES, and hygiene water storage is presented. Attention is drawn to such end-user equipment characteristics as the shower, dishwasher, clotheswasher, urine-collection facility, and handwash. The transient behavior of pretreated-urine, RO waste-hygiene, and RO brine tanks is assessed, as well as the total input/output to or from the system. The model is considered to be beneficial for pretest analytical predictions as a program cost-saving feature.

Mohamadinejad, Habib↗
NASA NTRS1994

Payload operations management of a planned European SL-Mission employing establishments of ESA and national agencies

Spacelab (SL)-missions with Payload Operations (P/L OPS) from Europe involve numerous space agencies, various ground infrastructure systems and national user organizations. An effective management structure must bring together different entities, facilities and people, but at the same time keep interfaces, costs and schedule under strict control. This paper outlines the management concept for P/L OPS of a planned European SL-mission. The proposal draws on the relevant experience in Europe, which was acquired via the ESA/NASA mission SL-1, by the execution of two German SL-missions and by the involvement in, or the support of, several NASA-missions.

Joensson, Rolf↗
NASA NTRS1994

DTS: Building custom, intelligent schedulers

DTS is a decision-theoretic scheduler, built on top of a flexible toolkit -- this paper focuses on how the toolkit might be reused in future NASA mission schedulers. The toolkit includes a user-customizable scheduling interface, and a 'Just-For-You' optimization engine. The customizable interface is built on two metaphors: objects and dynamic graphs. Objects help to structure problem specifications and related data, while dynamic graphs simplify the specification of graphical schedule editors (such as Gantt charts). The interface can be used with any 'back-end' scheduler, through dynamically-loaded code, interprocess communication, or a shared database. The 'Just-For-You' optimization engine includes user-specific utility functions, automatically compiled heuristic evaluations, and a postprocessing facility for enforcing scheduling policies. The optimization engine is based on BPS, the Bayesian Problem-Solver (1,2), which introduced a similar approach to solving single-agent and adversarial graph search problems.

Hansson, Othar↗
NASA NTRS1996

Basic Requirements for Systems Software Research and Development

Our success over the past ten years evaluating and developing advanced computing technologies has been due to a simple research and development (R/D) model. Our model has three phases: (a) evaluating the state-of-the-art, (b) identifying problems and creating innovations, and (c) developing solutions, improving the state- of-the-art. This cycle has four basic requirements: a large production testbed with real users, a diverse collection of state-of-the-art hardware, facilities for evalua- tion of emerging technologies and development of innovations, and control over system management on these testbeds. Future research will be irrelevant and future products will not work if any of these requirements is eliminated. In order to retain our effectiveness, the numerical aerospace simulator (NAS) must replace out-of-date production testbeds in as timely a fashion as possible, and cannot afford to ignore innovative designs such as new distributed shared memory machines, clustered commodity-based computers, and multi-threaded architectures.

Kuszmaul, Chris↗