Structural stability and the Stoermer problem
Charged particle trajectory under dipole magnetic field, deriving Stoermer orbit existence and uniqueness proof
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Charged particle trajectory under dipole magnetic field, deriving Stoermer orbit existence and uniqueness proof
The stability of a thin fluid layer between two rotating plates which are subjected to a horizontal temperature gradient is investigated. The solution for the stationary basic state is obtained in a closed form. It is pointed out that this solution identifies Ekman and thermal layers adjacent to the plates and interior temperature and velocity fields which are almost linear functions of height. The stability of that basic state with respect to infinitesimal zonal waves is then analyzed via the solution of the complete viscous linear equations for the perturbations. The character of the growth rates is found to be similar to those of the classical baroclinic waves. It is also found that the region of stability depends on the Prandtl number, the vertical stratification parameter, and both the meridional and zonal wavenumbers. The flow is generally unstable for small enough Ekman numbers and for Rossby numbers less than 10.
Helmet Mounted Displays (HMDs) present flight, navigation, and weapon information in the pilot's line of sight. The HMD was developed to allow the pilot to retain aircraft and weapon information while looking off boresight. This document reviews current state of the art in HMDs and presents a design guide for the HMD engineer in identifying several critical HMD issues: symbol stabilization, inadequate definitions, undefined symbol drive laws, helmet considerations, and Field Of View (FOV) vs. resolution tradeoff requirements. In particular, display latency is a key issue for HMDs. In addition to requiring further experimental studies, it impacts the definition and control law issues. Symbol stabilization is also critical. In the case of the Apache helicopter, the lack of compensation for pilot head motion creates excessive workload during hovering and Nap Of the Earth (NOE) flight. This translates into excessive training requirements. There is no agreed upon set of definitions or descriptions for how HMD symbols are driven to compensate for pilot head motion. A set of definitions is proposed to address this. There are several specific areas where simulation and flight experiments are needed: development of hover and NOE symbologies which compensate for pilot head movement; display latency and sampling, and the tradeoff between FOV, sensor resolution and symbology.
An approach to passive flutter control is aerodynamic detuning, defined as designed pasage-to-passage differences in the unsteady aerodynamic flow field of a rotor blade row. Thus, aerodynamic detuning directly affects the fundamental driving mechanism for flutter. A model to demonstrate the enhanced supersonic aeroelastic stability associated with aerodynamic detuning is developed. The stability of an aerodynamicaly detuned cascade operating in a supersonic inlet flow field with a subsonic leading edge locus analyzed, with the aerodynamic detuning accomplished by means of nonuniform circumferential spacing of adjacent rotor blades. The unsteady aerodynamic forces and moments on the blading are defined in terms of influence coefficients in a manner that permits the stability of both a conventional uniformally spaced rotor configuration as well as the detuned nonuniform circumferentialy spaced rotor to be determined. With Verdon's uniformly spaced Cascade B as a baseline, this analysis is then utilized to demonstrate the potential enhanced aeroelastic stability associated with this particular type of aerodynamic detuning.
An approach to passive flutter control is aerodynamic detuning, defined as designed passage-to-passage differences in the unsteady aerodynamic flow field of a rotor blade row. Thus, aerodynamic detuning directly affects the fundamental driving mechanism for flutter. A model to demonstrate the enhanced supersonic aeroelastic stability associated with aerodynamic detuning is developed. The stability of an aerodynamically detuned cascade operating in a supersonic inlet flow field with a subsonic leading edge locus is analyzed, with the aerodynamic detuning accomplished by means of nonuniform circumferential spacing of adjacent rotor blades. The unsteady aerodynamic forces and moments on the blading are defined in terms of influence coefficients in a manner that permits the stability of both a conventional uniformally spaced rotor configuration as well as the detuned nonuniform circumferentially spaced rotor to be determined. With Verdon's uniformly spaced Cascade B as a baseline, this analysis is then utilized to demonstrate the potential enhanced aeroelastic stability associated with this particular type of aerodynamic detuning.
A general stability analysis is given of the Kevin-Helmholtz instability, for the case of sheared MHD flow of finite thickness in a compressible plasma which allows for the arbitrary orientation of the magnetic field, velocity flow, and wave vector in the plane perpendicular to the velocity gradient. The stability problem is reduced to the solution of a single second-order differential equation including a gravitational term to represent the coupling between the Kelvin-Helmholtz mode and the interchange mode. Compressibility and a magnetic field component parallel to the flow are found to be stabilizing effects, with destabilization of only the fast magnetosonic mode in the transverse case, and the presence of both Alfven and slow magnetosonic components in the parallel case. Analysis results are used in a discussion of the stability of sheared plasma flow at the magnetopause boundary and in the solar wind.
We measured the horizontal winds in Jupiter's Great Red Spot (GRS) using data from the WFC3/UVIS instrument on board the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The data cover 11 epochs from 2009 to 2020. Long-term monotonic trends in size and shape previously noted from the visible cloud appearance are paralleled by changes in the high-speed ring around the vortex. The circularization of the GRS cannot be explained by changes in the horizontal wind shear of the surrounding environment. The velocity fields suggest no long-term trend in the static stability inside or outside the vortex. Instead, the changes are accompanied by a 4%–8% increase in the mean wind speeds of the high-speed ring from 2009 to 2020. Changes in the wind field coincided with the South Equatorial Belt Outbreak storms of 2016–2017, but not with 2019 "flaking" events involving detachment of red material from the main oval.
It is shown that the acoustic wave heating theory of stellar coronae explains neither Einstein Observatory coronae data nor previous UV and X-ray observations of the sun and other stars, on the evidence of data implying that magnetic fields, stellar rotation rates and convection zone parameters figure in the determination of coronal heating. Einstein Observatory results suggest that O-type star coronae are heated by the interaction of turbulent stellar winds with slowly-decaying primordial magnetic fields or by radiative instabilities in the flow. The apparent absence of coronae in Ap stars is due to the stability of atmospheres in which even weak convection is suppressed by the strong field. Dynamo action is implicated in some normal A-type stars and in F- and later-type dwarfs. Coronal characteristics of dMe and dM stars, close binaries, and K- and M-type giants are also considered.
Field emission has been observed from chemical vapor deposited diamond grown on Mo and Si substrates. Emission was observed at fields as low as 20 kV/cm. The samples were tested in the as-grown form, and after coating with thin films of Au, CsI, and Ni. The emission current was typically maximum at the onset of the applied field, but was unstable, and decreased rapidly with time from the as-grown films. Thin Au layers, approximately 15 nm thick, vacuum deposited onto the diamond samples significantly improved the stability of the emission current at values approximately equal to those from uncoated samples at the onset of the applied field. Thin layers of CsI, approximately 5 nm thick, were also observed to improve the stability of the emission current but at values less than those from the uncoated samples at the onset of the applied field. While Au and CsI improved the stability of the emission, Ni was observed to have no effect.
The GRACE mission monitors changes in the Earth's gravity field by measuring changes in the distance between spacecraft induced by that changing field. The distance variation is measured with a microwave ranging system with sub-micron accuracy. The ranging measurement accuracy is limited by the signal-to-noise ratio and by the frequency stability of the microwave signal referenced to an ultra-stable oscillator (USO). For GRACE-2 a laser ranging system is envisioned with accuracy better than the GRACE microwave ranging system. A laser ranging system easily provides an improved signal-to-noise ratio over the microwave system. Laser frequency stability better than the GRACE USO stability has been demonstrated in several laboratories using thermally stabilized optical cavities. We are developing a space-qualifiable optical cavity and associated optics and electronics for use on GRACE-2 to provide a stable frequency reference for the laser ranging system. Two breadboard units have been developed and tested for performance and ability to survive launch and orbit environments. A prototype unit is being designed using lessons learned from tests of the breadboard units.
Screw instability in linear Hall accelerator
Gas bearing Brayton cycle turboalternator rotor system stability and dynamic response to electromagnetic forces
Star field mapping technique for determining attitude of spin stabilized spacecraft
Broken superconductor method of short sample testing makes possible the prediction of the performance of well cooled, stabilized, superconducting cable coils. It yields a field-versus-current curve for a short sample of cable. Plots are given for the superconductor and copper currents at various magnetic field strengths.
Schwarzschild exterior metric stability against perturbations from asymptotic behavior of Einstein field equations solution in Kruskal coordinates
Evaporated tellurium thin films electric properties, discussing fabrication techniques, temperature dependence, field effect and Hall mobilities, threshold voltage and stability
The exploration of the interplanetary medium and the magnetospheres of the outer planets requires the implementation of magnetic field measuring instrumentation with wide dynamic range, high stability, and reliability. The fluxgate magnetometers developed for the Pioneer 11 and Mariner-Jupiter-Saturn missions are presented. These instruments cover the range of .01 nT to 2 million nT with optimum performance characteristics and low power consumption.
As a part of the Low Cost Solar Array Project an encapsulation task has been established to identify, develop, and evaluate new low-cost, long-life encapsulation systems capable of meeting the project cost and performance goals. Low-cost material system candidates have been identified and are being characterized in laboratory and field tests with detailed evaluation of their environmental stability when subjected to temperature cycling, humidity, ultraviolet radiation, dirt, and various other environmental hazards.