Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Polarimetry”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1996

SAR Polarimetry and Interferometry

The field of synthetic aperture radar changed dramatically over the past decade with the operational introduction of advanced radar techniques such as polarimetry and interferometry.

synthetic aperture radar polarimetry interferometr↗
NASA NTRS2010

Characteristics of Gamma-Ray Loud Blazars in the VLBA Imaging and Polarimetry Survey

The radio properties of blazars detected by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope have been observed as part of the VLBA Imaging and Polarimetry Survey. This large, flux-limited sample of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) provides insights into the mechanism that produces strong gamma-ray emission. At lower flux levels, radio flux density does not directly correlate with gamma-ray flux. We find that the LAT-detected BL Lac objects tend to be similar to the non-LAT BL Lac objects, but that the LAT-detected FSRQs are often significantly different from the non-LAT FSRQs. The differences between the gamma-ray loud and quiet FSRQS can be explained by Doppler boosting; these objects appear to require larger Doppler factors than those of the BL Lac objects. It is possible that the gamma-ray loud FSRQs are fundamentally different from the gamma-ray quiet FSRQs. Strong polarization at the base of the jet appears to be a signature for gamma-ray loud AGNs.

LAT(LARGE AREA TELESCOPE)↗
NASA NTRS2016

The Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE)

The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) is an exciting international collaboration for a scientific mission that dramatically brings together the unique talents of the partners to expand observation space by simultaneously adding polarization measurements to the array of source properties currently measured (energy, time, and location). IXPE uniquely brings to the table polarimetric imaging. IXPE will thus open new dimensions for understanding how X-ray emission is produced in astrophysical objects, especially systems under extreme physical conditions-such as neutron stars and black holes. Polarization singularly probes physical anisotropies-ordered magnetic fields, aspheric matter distributions, or general relativistic coupling to black-hole spin-that are not otherwise measurable. Hence, IXPE complements all other investigations in high-energy astrophysics by adding important and relatively unexplored information to the parameter space for studying cosmic X-ray sources and processes, as well as for using extreme astrophysical environments as laboratories for fundamental physics.

X-ray astronomy x-ray polarimetry↗
NASA NTRS2017

The Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE): Overview

Mission background: Imaging x-ray polarimetry in 2–8 kiloelectronvolt band; NASA Astrophysics Small Explorer (SMEX) selected in 2017 January. Orbit: Pegasus-XL (airborne) launch in 2021, from Kwajalein; Equatorial circular orbit at greater than or approximately equal to 540 kilometers (620 kilometers, goal) altitude. Flight system: Spacecraft, payload structure, and integration by Ball Aerospace - Deployable payload boom from Orbital-ATK, under contract to Ball; X-ray Mirror Module Assemblies by NASA/MSFC; X-ray (polarization-sensitive) Instruments by IAPS/INAF (Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali / Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica) and INFN (Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare). Ground system: ASI (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana) Malindi ground station, with Singapore backup; Mission Operations Center at LASP (Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado); Science Operations Center at NASA/MSFC; Data archive at HEASARC (High Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center), (NASA/GSFC), mirror at ASI Data Center. Science: Active galactic nuclei; Microquasars; Radio pulsars and pulsar wind nebulae; Supernova remnants; Magnetars; Accreting x-ray pulsars.

X-ray polarimetry space missio↗
NASA NTRS1997

Overview of SAR Polarimetry and Interferometry

This paper summarizes the recent work in the fields of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) polarimetry and Interferometry. These fields have seen very significant development during the last five years, and these fields are now well understood.

SAR↗
NASA NTRS2022

Determination of X-ray Pulsar Geometry with IXPE Polarimetry

Using observations of X-ray pulsar Hercules X-1 by the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer we report a highly significant (>17σ) detection of the polarization signal from an accreting neutron star. The observed degree of linear polarization of ~10% is far below theoretical expectations for this object, and stays low throughout the spin cycle of the pulsar. Both the degree and angle of polarization exhibit variability with the pulse phase, allowing us to measure the pulsar spin position angle 57(2) deg and the magnetic obliquity 12(4) deg, which is an essential step towards detailed modelling of the intrinsic emission of X-ray pulsars. Combining our results with the optical polarimetric data, we find that the spin axis of the neutron star and the angular momentum of the binary orbit are misaligned by at least ~20 deg, which is a strong argument in support of the models explaining the stability of the observed superorbital variability with the precession of the neutron star.

x-ray polarimetry↗
DOE OSTI2025

Frequency shifts in the electron paramagnetic resonance spectrum of 39 K due to spin-exchange collisions with polarized 3 He and precise 3 He polarimetry

The Zeeman splittings and electron paramagnetic resonance frequencies of alkali-metal atoms are shifted in the presence of a polarized noble gas. For a spherical geometry, the shift is enhanced over what is expected classically by a dimensionless atomic parameter 𝜅 0 that is unique to each alkali-metal-atom–noble-gas pair. Here, we present a precise measurement of 𝜅 0 for the 39 K − 3 He system with a relative accuracy of better than 1%. A critical component of achieving subpercent accuracy involved characterizing the shape of our samples using both MRI and CT medical-imaging techniques. The parameter 𝜅 0 plays an important role in establishing the absolute polarization of 3 He in a variety of contexts, including polarized targets for electron-scattering experiments and MRI of the gas space of the lungs. Our measurement more than doubles the accuracy possible when using 𝜅 0 for polarimetry purposes. Just as important, the work presented here represents a direct measurement of 𝜅 0 for the 39 K − 3 He system; previous values for 𝜅 0 in the 39 K − 3 He system relied on a chain of measurements that were benchmarked by previous measurements of 𝜅 0 in the Rb- 3 He system.

Zeeman effect↗
DOE OSTI2025

Warm-phase microphysical evolution in large-eddy simulations of tropical cumulus congestus: evaluating drop size distribution evolution using polarimetry retrievals, in situ measurements, and a thermal-based framework

Owing to uncertainties in convective microphysics processes, improving parameterizations in Earth system models (ESMs) can benefit from observationally constrained cases suitable for scaling between cloud-resolving models and ESMs. We propose a benchmark large-eddy simulation (LES) cumulus congestus case study from the NASA Cloud, Aerosol, and Monsoon Processes Philippines Experiment (CAMP 2 Ex) for evaluating and improving ESMs in single-column model (SCM) mode. We seek observational constraints using novel polarimetric retrievals and in situ cloud microphysics measurements. Simulations using bulk and bin microphysics initialized with observed aerosol profiles are compared to cloud-top retrievals of cloud droplet effective radius (R eff ), effective variance (ν eff ), and number concentration (N d ) from the airborne Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP). Both schemes reproduce characteristics of cloud-top N d and R eff that increase and decrease with altitude, respectively. Cloud-top N d is low-biased relative to RSP retrievals in both schemes, potentially due to limitations in both simulations and retrieval assumptions. Cloud-top R eff is low-biased in the bulk scheme but reasonably reproduced by the bin scheme. Profiles of N d and R eff are sensitive to the collision–coalescence process and the vertical variation in aerosol size distribution. Comparison of simulated and in situ droplet size distributions (DSDs) shows that, to first order, integrated moments are always sensitive to sizes < ~ 30 µm and can also be sensitive to larger sizes if the DSDs are sufficiently broad, with implications for the assumed maximum observed size retrieved by the RSP. The bin scheme captures the observed extended tail of the DSD, while the bulk scheme is unable to due to parametric constraints. Differences in expected relationships between in situ measurements of cloud cores and cloud-top retrievals by RSP demonstrate difficulty in constraining well the case presented herein. Finally, a thermal-tracking framework demonstrates that the dilution of N d throughout a thermal's lifetime is heavily determined by collision–coalescence and the height-varying aerosol distribution and that, in the absence of these, the impact of entrainment on diluting N d is largely offset by secondary activation. Implications for evaluating warm-phase convective microphysics schemes in ESMs and translating results for use on global, space-based polarimetry platforms are discussed.

Stanford, McKenna Wallace [Columbia Univ., New Yor↗