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At least 613 records · Page 34

Locating Damaged Truss Members From Responses To Vibrations

Method of on-orbit assessment for location of damage based on use of capabilities of vibration-control system to measure vibrations in structure. Experiment involved use of laboratory scale-model truss structure exhibiting expected characteristics of truss structures proposed for large spacecraft. Vibrations excited in truss, and measurements of responses of structure used in series of two identification algorithms to produce mathematical model of structure in current condition, possibly containing damage. Similar methods considered for examining buildings for damage by earthquakes.

Smith, S. W.↗

Locating Electron Traps In A CCD

"Pocket pumping" is technique for mapping sizes of electron-trapping defects and picture elements within which traps located in charge-coupled device (CCD). Two kinds of traps: forward and reverse. Pocket pumping relies on fact that in terms of charges measurable by external circuitry, forward traps affect only forward, while reverse traps affect only reverse, transfer of charge along row or column of picture elements. Charges in picture elements shifted back and forth many times to amplify trapping effect by repetition. Traps smaller than 1 electron detected by this method.

Janesick, James↗

The choice of the location of the lunar base

The development of modern methods of remote sensing of the lunar surface and data from lunar studies by space vehicles make it possible to assess scientifically the expediency of the location of the lunar base in a definite region on the Moon. The preliminary choice of the site is important for tackling a range of problems associated with ensuring the activity of a manned lunar base and with fulfilling the research program. Based on astronomical data, we suggest the Moon's western hemisphere, specifically the western part of Oceanus Procellarum, where natural, scientifically interesting objects have been identified, as have surface rocks with enhanced contents of ilmenite, a possible source of oxygen. A comprehensive evaluation of the region shows that, as far as natural features are concerned, it is a key one for solving the main problems of the Moon's origin and evolution.

Schevchenko, V. V.↗

The effect of clock, media, and station location errors on Doppler measurement accuracy

Doppler tracking by the Deep Space Network (DSN) is the primary radio metric data type used by navigation to determine the orbit of a spacecraft. The accuracy normally attributed to orbits determined exclusively with Doppler data is about 0.5 microradians in geocentric angle. Recently, the Doppler measurement system has evolved to a high degree of precision primarily because of tracking at X-band frequencies (7.2 to 8.5 GHz). However, the orbit determination system has not been able to fully utilize this improved measurement accuracy because of calibration errors associated with transmission media, the location of tracking stations on the Earth's surface, the orientation of the Earth as an observing platform, and timekeeping. With the introduction of Global Positioning System (GPS) data, it may be possible to remove a significant error associated with the troposphere. In this article, the effect of various calibration errors associated with transmission media, Earth platform parameters, and clocks are examined. With the introduction of GPS calibrations, it is predicted that a Doppler tracking accuracy of 0.05 microradians is achievable.

Miller, J. K.↗

Light-heavy ion measurements in CR-39 located on the Earth side of LDEF

The azimuthal angle distribution and the charge and energy spectra of selected light-heavy (5 less than or equal to Z less than or equal to 8) stopping particles were measured in a single layer of CR-39 plastic nuclear track detector (PNTD) from the stack of the A0015 experiment located on the Earth-end of the LDEF satellite. The directional incidence of the trapped protons is studied by comparing the azimuthal angle distribution of selected recoils, obtained in the LDEF detectors, to that obtained through calibrations of PNTD's with exposures performed with 200 MeV proton beams from different directions.

Csige, I.↗

Measured effect of step axial location on labyrinth seal leakage

An advanced, finite volume code has been extensively used in a parametric design study of simple stepped seals, in order to ascertain a leakage-minimizing optimal design and test it, in conjunction with the baseline case of the wear-ring seal of a high pressure pump. It is found that a significant leakage effect arises from this shifting of the rotor and stator sealing surfaces; at extremely low rpm, a significant shaft speed effect occurs for the optimized design in some shaft locations.

Morrison, G. L.↗

Momentum, water vapor, and carbon dioxide exchange at a centrally located prairie site during FIFE

Eddy correlation measurements were taken of momentum, water vapor, sensible heat, and CO2 at a centrally located plateau site in the FIFE study area from May to October 1987. Approximately 82 percent of the vegetation at the site was composed of several C4 grass species, with the remainder being C3 grasses, forbs, wedges, and woody plants. Precipitation was about normal during the study period, except for a three week dry period in late July to early August that caused moisture stress conditions.

Verma, Shashi B.↗

Vision-based recursive estimation of rotorcraft obstacle locations

The authors address vision-based passive ranging during nap-of-the-earth (NOE) rotorcraft flight. They consider the problem of estimating the relative location of identifiable features on nearby obstacles, assuming a sequence of noisy camera images and imperfect measurements of the camera's translation and rotation. An iterated extended Kalman filter is used to provide recursive range estimation. The correspondence problem is simplified by predicting and tracking each feature's image within the Kalman filter framework. Simulation results are presented which show convergent estimates and generally successful feature point tracking. Estimation performance degrades for features near the optical axis and for accelerating motions. Image tracking is also sensitive to angular rate.

Leblanc, D. J.↗

Shear and compression buckling analysis for anisotropic panels with centrally located elliptical cutouts

An approximate analysis for buckling of biaxial- and shear-loaded anisotropic panels with centrally located elliptical cutouts is presented in the present paper. The analysis is composed of two parts, a prebuckling analysis and a buckling analysis. The prebuckling solution is determined using Lekhnitskii's complex variable equations of plane elastostatics combined with a Laurent series approximation and a boundary collocation method. The buckling solution is obtained using the principle of minimum potential energy. A by-product of the minimum potential energy equation is an integral equation which is solved using Gaussian quadrature. Comparisons with documented experimental results and finite element analyses indicate that the approximate analysis accurately predicts the buckling loads of square biaxial- and shear-loaded panels having elliptical cutouts with major axes up to sixty percent of the panel width. Results of a parametric study are presented for shear- and compression-loaded rectangular anisotropic panels with elliptical cutouts. The effects of panel aspect ratio, cutout shape, cutout size, cutout orientation, laminate anisotropy, and combined loading on the buckling load are examined.

Britt, V. O.↗

Preliminary burst location calibration results for the BATSE instrument on CGRO

Preliminary results pertaining to burst location using BATSE Large Area Detector measurements of solar flares are presented. These solar flare measurements are currently being used to fine tune the calibration of our data analysis software. The current status of techniques for identifying and eliminating systematic errors from the data analysis tools is discussed. Data revealing the effects of the atmospheric scattering algorithm that will be implemented in the data analysis software are presented.

Pendleton, G. N.↗

Accurate GPS measurement of the location and orientation of a floating platform

This article describes the design and initial tests of the GPS portion of a system for making seafloor geodesy measurements. In the planned system, GPS antennas on a floating platform will be used to measure the location of an acoustic transducer, attached below the platform, which interrogates an array of transponders on the seafloor. Since the GPS antennas are necessarily some distance above the transducer, a short-baseline GPS interferometer consisting of three antennas is used to measure the platform's orientation. A preliminary test of several crucial elements of the system was performed. The test involved a fixed antenna on the pier and a second antenna floating on a buoy about 80 m away. GPS measurements of the vertical component of this baseline, analyzed independently by two groups using different software, agree with each other and with an independent measurement within a centimeter. The first test of an integrated GPS/acoustic system took place in the Santa Cruz Basin off the coast of southern California in May 1990. In this test a much larger buoy, designed and built at SIO, was equipped with three GPS antennas and an acoustic transducer that interrogated a transponder on the ocean floor. Preliminary analysis indicates that the horizontal position of the transponder can be determined with a precision of about a centimeter.

Purcell, G. H., Jr.↗

Sizes and locations of coronal mass ejections - SMM observations from 1980 and 1984-1989

A statistical description of the sizes and locations of 1209 mass ejections observed with the SMM coronagraph/polarimeter in 1980 and 1984-1989 is presented. The average width of the coronal mass ejections detected with this instrument was close to 40 deg in angle for the entire period of SMM observations. No evidence was found for a significant change in mass ejection widths as reported by Howard et al. (1986). There is clear evidence for changes in the latitude distribution of mass ejections over this epoch. Mass ejections occurred over a much wider range of latitudes at the times of high solar activity (1980 and 1989) than at times of low activity (1985-1986).

Hundhausen, A. J.↗

An Analysis of the Effects of Wing Aspect Ratio and Tail Location on Static Longitudinal Stability Below the Mach Number of Lift Divergence

An analysis is presented of the influence of wing aspect ratio and tail location on the effects of compressibility upon static longitudinal stability. The investigation showed that the use of reduced wing aspect ratios or short tail lengths leads to serious reductions in high-speed stability and the possibility of high-speed instability.

Axelson, John A.↗

Performance Characteristics of a Normal-shock Side Inlet Located Downstream of a Canard Control Surface at Mach Numbers of 1.5 and 1.8/

The performance characteristics of a downward canted normal-shock side (scoop) inlet located downstream of a triangular control surface are presented for free-stream Mach numbers of 1.5 and 1.8 in terms of total pressure recovery and mass flow ratio for various boundary-layer removal systems,angles of attack, control surface deflections and adverse yaw. An engine operating condition for a hypothetical turbojet engine is established, and the match point characteristics of the engine-inlet configuration are summarized. 520::It is shown that the diffuser performance increases with increased boundary-layer removal and decreases because of the presence of the wake from the forward control surface. At the higher angles of attack the wake passes over the inlet and does not affect the inlet performance. Adverse yaw reduces the total pressure recovery values below those for the unawed case. Magnitudes of the total pressure recovery were below the theoretical normal-shock recovery for the respective test Mach numbers.

INLETS, SIDE - DUCTED BODIES↗

Investigation of Full-Scale Split Trailing-Edge Wing Flaps with Various Chords and Hinge Locations

This report gives the results of an investigation conducted in the NACA full-scale wind tunnel on a small parasol monoplane equipped with three different split trailing-edge wing flaps. The object of the investigation was to determine and correlate data on the characteristics of the airplane and flaps as affected by variation in flap chord, flap deflection, and flap location along the wing chord. The results give the lift, the drag, and the pitching moment characteristics of the airplane, and the flap forces and moments, the pressure distribution over the flaps and wing at one section, and the downwash characteristics of the flap and wing combinations.

Wallace, Rudolf↗

Experimental Determination of the Effect of Horizontal-Tail Size, Tail Length, and Vertical Location on Low-Speed Static Longitudinal Stability and Damping Pitch of a Model Having 45 Degree Sweptback Wing and Tail Surfaces

Report presents the results of an investigation conducted in the Langley stability tunnel to determine the effects of horizontal tails of various sizes and at various tail lengths (when loaded on the fuselage center line) and also the effects of vertical location of the horizontal tail relative to the wing on the low-speed static longitudinal stability and on the steady-state rotary damping in pitch for a complete-model configuration. The wing and tail surfaces had the quarter-chord lines swept back 45 degrees and had aspect ratios of 4. The results of the investigation showed that, in agreement with analytical considerations, the contribution of the horizontal tail to static longitudinal stability was related directly to the tail size and length; whereas, its contribution to damping in pitch was related directly to tail size and the square of tail length.

Lichtenstein, Jacob H↗

Locating The Geocenter From GPS Measurements

Report presents analysis of Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements taken during 3-week geodetic experiment in early 1991. Involved constellation of 15 GPS satellites operational at that time, plus 21 GPS receiving stations at widely distributed sites, all but 4 of which in Northern Hemisphere. Analysis consisted principally of estimation of location of center of mass of Earth relative to GPS receiving stations. As part of analysis, GPS estimates of geocenter compared with estimates obtained by satellite laser ranging (SLR).

Vigue, Yvonne↗