Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “OPTICAL MODELS”

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 613 records · Page 34
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2011

Measuring the Cryogenic Optical Alignment Between the Telescope Element and the Instruments Module of the James Webb Space Telescope

The alignment between the Aft Optical Subsystem (AOS) and the Integrated Science Instruments Module (ISIM) is non-adjustable in orbit, so the alignment must be carefully verified in a cryogenic vacuum environment prior to launch. Optical point source locations calibrated by optical metrology instruments are imaged through the AOS onto the Science Instruments to determine focal, lateral, and clock angle alignment. The pupil image of the AOS is overlaid onto the pupil image of the NIRCam to determine the tip and tilt alignment. In addition, an image from fiducial lights at the Primary Mirror checks the pupil alignment between the telescope entrance pupil, the telescope pupil mask, and the NIRCam aperture stop. The image positions are combined to determine the relative alignment between the Optical Telescope Element (OTE) and the ISIM in all six degrees of freedom with corresponding alignment uncertainties. Uncertainties in the position of focused images of the test sources and images from the pupils are derived from sensitivities of an optical model of the system and the Science Instrument sensing capability. Additional uncertainty in the pupil alignment measurement is due to uncertainty in the analytical removal of gravity effects that simulate the on-orbit alignment environment.

Whitman, Tony↗
NASA NTRS2011

Long-Term Changes in Light Scattering in Chesapeake Bay Inferred from Secchi Depth, Light Attenuation, and Remote Sensing Measurements

The relationship between the Secchi depth (Z(sub SD)) and the diffuse attenuation coefficient for photosynthetically active radiation (K(sub d)(PAR)), and in particular the product of the two, Z(sub SD) X K(sub d)(PAR), is governed primarily by the ratio of light scattering to absorption. We analyzed measurements of Z(sub SD) and K(sub d)(PAR) at main stem stations in Chesapeake Bay and found that the Z(sub SD) X K(sub d)(PAR) product has declined at rates varying from 0.020 to 0.033 /yr over the 17 to 25 years of measurement, implying that there has been a long -term increase in the scattering-to-absorption ratio. Remote sensing reflectance at the green wavelength most relevant to Z(sub SD) and K(sub d)(PAR) in these waters, R(sub rs)(555), did not exhibit an increasing trend over the 10 years of available measurements. To reconcile the observations we constructed a bio-optical model to calculate Z(sub SD), K(sub d)(PAR), Z(sub SD) X K(sub d)(PAR), and R(sub rs)(555) as a function of light attenuating substances and their mass-specific absorption and scattering coefficients. When simulations were based exclusively on changes in concentrations of light attenuating substances, a declining trend in Z(sub SD) E K(sub d) entailed an increasing trend in R(sub rs)(555), contrary to observations. To simulate both decreasing Z(sub SD) X K(sub d)(PAR) and stationary R(sub rs)(555), it was necessary to allow for a declining trend in the ratio of backscattering to total scattering. Within our simulations, this was accomplished by increasing the relative proportion of organic detritus with high mass-specific scattering and low backscattering ratio. An alternative explanation not explicitly modeled is an increasing tendency for the particulate matter to occur in large aggregates. Data to discriminate between these alternatives are not available.

Gallegos, Charles L.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Stray Light Artifacts in Imagery from the Landsat 8 Thermal Infrared Sensor

The Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) has been collecting imagery of the Earth since its launch aboard Landsat 8 in early 2013. In many respects, TIRS has been exceeding its performance requirements on orbit, particularly in terms of noise and stability. However, several artifacts have been observed in the TIRS data which include banding and absolute calibration discrepancies that violate requirements in some scenes. Banding is undesired structure that appears within and between the focal plane array assemblies. In addition, in situ measurements have shown an error in the TIRS absolute radiometric calibration that appears to vary with season and location within the image. The source of these artifacts has been determined to be out-of-field radiance that scatters onto the detectors thereby adding a non-uniform signal across the field-of-view. The magnitude of this extra signal can be approximately 8% or higher (band 11) and is generally twice as large in band 11 as it is in band 10. A series of lunar scans were obtained to gather information on the source of this out-of-field radiance. Analyses of these scans have produced a preliminary map of stray light, or ghost, source locations in the TIRS out-of-field area. This dataset has been used to produce a synthetic TIRS scene that closely reproduces the banding effects seen in actual TIRS imagery. Now that the cause of the banding has been determined, a stray light optics model is in development that will pin-point the cause of the stray light source. Several methods are also being explored to correct for the banding and the absolute calibration error in TIRS imagery

Stray light↗
NASA NTRS2000

Effect of Geometric Azimuthal Asymmetrics of PPM Stack on Electron Beam Characteristics

A three-dimensional (3D) beam optics model has been developed using the electromagnetic particle-in-cell (PIC) code MAFIA. The model includes an electron beam with initial transverse velocity distribution focused by a periodic permanent magnet (PPM) stack. All components of the model are simulated in three dimensions allowing several azimuthally asymmetric traveling wave tube (TWT) characteristics to be investigated for the first time. These include C-magnets, shunts and magnet misalignment and their effects on electron beam behavior. The development of the model is presented and 3D TWT electron beam characteristics are compared in the absence of and under the influence of the azimuthally asymmetric characteristics described.

Kory, Carol L.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Configurable Aperture Space Telescope

In December 2014, we were awarded Center Innovation Fund to evaluate an optical and mechanical concept for a novel implementation of a segmented telescope based on modular, interconnected small sats (satlets). The concept is called CAST, a Configurable Aperture Space Telescope. With a current TRL is 2 we will aim to reach TLR 3 in Sept 2015 by demonstrating a 2x2 mirror system to validate our optical model and error budget, provide straw man mechanical architecture and structural damping analyses, and derive future satlet-based observatory performance requirements. CAST provides an alternative access to visible and/or UV wavelength space telescope with 1-meter or larger aperture for NASA SMD Astrophysics and Planetary Science community after the retirement of HST

Small Satellites↗
NASA NTRS2015

Configurable Aperture Space Telescope

In December 2014, we were awarded Center Innovation Fund to evaluate an optical and mechanical concept for a novel implementation of a segmented telescope based on modular, interconnected small sats (satlets). The concept is called CAST, a Configurable Aperture Space Telescope. With a current TRL is 2 we will aim to reach TLR 3 in Sept 2015 by demonstrating a 2x2 mirror system to validate our optical model and error budget, provide strawman mechanical architecture and structural damping analyses, and derive future satlet-based observatory performance requirements. CAST provides an alternative access to visible andor UV wavelength space telescope with 1-meter or larger aperture for NASA SMD Astrophysics and Planetary Science community after the retirement of HST.

Technology↗
NASA NTRS2017

Water-Leaving Contribution to Polarized Radiation Field Over Ocean

The top-of-atmosphere (TOA) radiation field from a coupled atmosphere-ocean system (CAOS) includes contributions from the atmosphere, surface, and water body. Atmo-spheric correction of ocean color imagery is to retrieve water-leaving radiance from the TOA measurement, from which ocean bio-optical properties can be obtained. Knowledge of the ab-solute and relative magnitudes of water-leaving signal in the TOA radiation field is important for designing new atmospheric correction algorithms and developing retrieval algorithms for new ocean biogeochemical parameters. In this paper we present a systematic sensitivity study of water-leaving contribution to the TOA radiation field, from 340 nm to 865 nm, with polarization included. Ocean water inherent optical properties are derived from bio-optical models for two kinds of waters, one dominated by phytoplankton (PDW) and the other by non-algae particles (NDW). In addition to elastic scattering, Raman scattering and fluorescence from dissolved organic matter in ocean waters are included. Our sensitivity study shows that the polarized reflectance is minimized for both CAOS and ocean signals in the backscattering half plane, which leads to numerical instability when calculating water leaving relative contribution, the ratio between polarized water leaving and CAOS signals. If the backscattering plane is excluded, the water-leaving polarized signal contributes less than 9% to the TOA polarized reflectance for PDW in the whole spectra. For NDW, the polarized water leaving contribution can be as much as 20% in the wavelength range from 470 to 670 nm. For wavelengths shorter than 452 nm or longer than 865 nm, the water leaving contribution to the TOA polarized reflectance is in general smaller than 5% for NDW. For the TOA total reflectance, the water-leaving contribution has maximum values ranging from 7% to 16% at variable wavelengths from 400 nm to 550 nm from PDW. The water leaving contribution to the TOA total reflectance can be as large as 35%for NDW, which is in general peaked at 550 nm. Both the total and polarized reflectances from water-leaving contributions approach zero in the ultraviolet and near infrared bands. These facts can be used as constraints or guidelines when estimating the water leaving contribution to the TOA reflectance for new atmospheric correction algorithms for ocean color imagery.

inelastic scatterin↗
NASA NTRS2019

Updated MISR Over-Water Research Aerosol Retrieval Algorithm - Part 2: A Multi-Angle Aerosol Retrieval Algorithm for Shallow, Turbid, Oligotrophic, and Eutrophic Waters

Coastal waters serve as transport pathways to the ocean for all agricultural and other runoff from terrestrial sources, and many are the sites for upwelling of nutrient rich, deep water; they are also some of the most biologically productive on Earth. Estimating the impact coastal waters have on the global carbon budget requires relating satellite-based remote-sensing retrievals of biological productivity (e.g., chlorophyll alpha concentration) to in situ measurements taken in near-surface waters. The Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) can uniquely constrain the "atmospheric correction" needed to derive ocean color from remote-sensing imagers. Here, we retrieve aerosol amount and type from MISR over all types of water. The primary limitation is an upper bound on aerosol optical depth (AOD), as the algorithm must be able to distinguish the surface. This updated MISR research aerosol retrieval algorithm (RA) also assumes that light reflection by the underlying ocean surface is Lambertian. The RA computes the ocean surface reflectance (R (sub rs)) analytically for a given AOD, aerosol optical model, and wind speed. We provide retrieval examples over shallow, turbid, and eutrophic waters and introduce a productivity and turbidity index (PTI), calculated from retrieved spectral R (sub rs), that distinguished water types (similar to the the normalized difference vegetation index, NDVI, over land). We also validate the new algorithm by comparing spectral AOD and Angstrom exponent (ANG) results with 2419 collocated AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) observations. For AERONET 558 nanometer-interpolated AOD less than 1.0, the root-mean square error (RMSE) is 0.04 and linear correlation coefficient is 0.95. For the 502 cloud-free MISR and AERONET collocations with an AERONET AOD greater than 0.20, the ANG RMSE is 0.25 and r is 0.89. Although MISR RA AOD retrieval quality does not appear to be substantially impacted by the presence of turbid water, the MISR-RA-retrieved Angstrom exponent seems to suffer from increased uncertainty under such conditions. MISR supplements current ocean color sources in regions where sunglint precludes retrievals from single-view-angle instruments. MISR atmospheric correction should also be more robust than that derived from single-view instruments such as the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). This is especially true in regions of shallow, turbid, and eutrophic waters, locations where biological productivity can be high, and single-view-angle retrieval algorithms struggle to separate atmospheric from oceanic features.

Satellite Remote Sensing↗
NASA NTRS2018

Landsat 9 Thermal Infrared Sensor 2 Preliminary Stray Light Assessment

Although the Thermal Infrared Sensor 2 (TIRS-2) is a nearidentical copy of the Landsat 8/TIRS-1 instrument, an important design change to the optical system was designed to mitigate the stray light issue that plagued the TIRS-1 instrument [1, 2, 3]. This change involved the addition of several baffles strategically placed within the optical telescope to block the stray light paths that were present in the TIRS- 1 design. The specific optical changes were determined by first characterizing the TIRS-1 stray light paths on-orbit and then deriving a detailed optical model that was used to determine the locations and shapes of the mitigating baffles. The stray light design changes to the TIRS-2 instrument were confirmed through the initial thermal-vacuum characterization tests. Preliminary assessments of TIRS-2 indicate that the total stray light magnitude has been drastically reduced to a total magnitude of approximately 1% or less.

Montanar, Matthew↗
NASA NTRS2017

Sensitivity of WFIRST Coronagraph Broadband Contrast Performance to DM Actuator Errors

The WFIRST/AFTA 2.4 m space telescope currently under study includes a stellar coronagraph for the imaging and the spectral characterization of extrasolar planets. The coronagraph employs sequential deformable mirrors to compensate for phase and amplitude errors. Using the optical model of an Occulting Mask Coronagraph (OMC) testbed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), we have investigated the sensitivity of a Hybrid Lyot Coronagraph (HLC) broadband contrast performance to DM actuator errors and actuator limits. Considered case include drifts in actuator gains or actuator response curves, paired actuators, as well as the limits imposed by a neighboring-actuator rule. Actual data about the actuator drifts and the knowledge about the paired-actuators obtained in several DM characterization experiments conducted at JPL, as well as the neighboring-actuator rule implemented on the OMC testbed were used in simulations. We obtained good agreement between the model prediction and the testbed measurement in terms of static HLC contrast floor and contrast chromaticity.

Sidick, Erkin↗
NASA NTRS2017

Optimizing the Regularization in Broadband Wavefront Control Algorithm for WFIRST Coronagraph

The WFIRST/AFTA 2.4 m space telescope currently under study includes a stellar coronagraph for the imaging and the spectral characterization of extrasolar planets. The coronagraph employs sequential deformable mirrors to compensate for phase and amplitude errors. Using the optical model of an Occulting Mask Coronagraph (OMC) testbed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), we have investigated and compared through modeling and simulations the performance of several actuator regularization-schemes in broadband wavefront control algorithm used to generate dark holes in an OMC, such as a Hybrid Lyot Coronagraph (HLC). Using the concept of a Tikhonov filter constituting the G-matrix, we have explained what the different regularization schemes do to singular-modes during a wavefront control process called Electric Field Conjugation (EFC). In some cases we confirmed the numerical predictions with the testbed measured results. We present our findings in this paper.

Sidick, Erkin↗
NASA NTRS2020

Two-Year Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor (CLASS) Observations: 40GHz Telescope Pointing, Beam Profile, Window Function, and Polarization Performance

The Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor (CLASS) is a telescope array that observes the cosmic microwave background (CMB) over 75% of the sky from the Atacama Desert, Chile, at frequency bands centered near 40, 90, 150, and 220 GHz. CLASS measures the large angular scale (1°~< θ >=90°) CMB polarization to constrain the tensor-to-scalar ratio at the r ∼ 0.01 level and the optical depth to last scattering to the sample variance limit. This paper presents the optical characterization of the 40 GHz telescope during its first observation era, from 2016 September to 2018 February. High signal-to-noise observations of the Moon establish the pointing and beam calibration. The telescope boresight pointing variation is <0°. 023 (<1.6% of the beam’s full width at half maximum (FWHM)). We estimate beam parameters per detector and in aggregate, as in the CMB survey maps. The aggregate beam has an FWHM of 1°.579 ± 0°.001 and a solid angle of 838 ± 6 μsr, consistent with physical optics simulations. The corresponding beam window function has a sub-percent error per multipole at ℓ < 200. An extended 90° beam map reveals no significant far sidelobes. The observed Moon polarization shows that the instrument polarization angles are consistent with the optical model and that the temperature-to-polarization leakage fraction is <10(exp −4) (95% C.L.). We find that the Moon-based results are consistent with measurements of M42, RCW 38, and Tau A from CLASS’s CMB survey data. In particular, Tau A measurements establish degree- level precision for instrument polarization angles.

Xu, Zhilei↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

TPSAS-NF1676L-34796-DND

The recently completed 2015-2017 EVS-2 mission NAAMES (The North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystems Study) provides a unique set of airborne remote sensing and ship-based in situ measurements in a remote and under-sampled region of the Earth?s ocean. The NASA SABOR (Ship-Aircraft Bio-Optical Research) campaign was conducted during the summer of 2014, also in the Atlantic Ocean, out of the Chesapeake Bay and in the eastern coastal region of the United States. For both campaigns, the NASA GISS Research Scanning Polarimeter, a multi-angle, multi-spectral polarimeter measured the upwelling polarized radiances from aircraft. And for both campaigns, ship-based in situ measurements of the ocean were collected jointly with the aircraft measurements. We present results from the new RSP-MAPP (1) that is based on optimal estimation and that can retrieve simultaneous aerosol microphysical properties (including effective radius, single-scattering albedo, and real refractive index) and ocean color products using accurate radiative transfer, Mie calculations, and the DP (Detritus Plankton) series of accurate, numerically efficient ocean bio-optical models. The RSP-MAPP algorithm was applied to data collected during SABOR and NAAMES to retrieve aerosol microphysics and ocean products for all Aerosols-Above-Ocean (AAO) scenes. The RSP-MAPP products are compared against i) collocated aerosol extinction and backscatter profiles collected by the NASA LaRC airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL-1), including lidar depth profiles of the ocean diffuse attenuation coefficient and the hemispherical backscatter coefficient, and ii) collocated ship-based in situ measurements of the ocean.

Snorre Stamnes↗
NASA NTRS2016

WFIRST/AFTA coronograph contrast performance sensitivity studies: simulation versus experiment

The WFIRST/AFTA 2.4 m space telescope currently under study includes a stellar coronagraph for the imaging and the spectral characterization of extrasolar planets. The coronagraph employs sequential deformable mirrors to compensate for phase and amplitude errors. Using the optical model of an Occulting Mask Coronagraph (OMC) testbed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, we have investigated through modeling and simulations the sensitivity of dark hole contrast in a Hybrid Lyot Coronagraph (HLC) for several error cases, including lateral and longitudinal translation errors of two deformable mirrors, DM1 and DM2, lateral and/or longitudinal translation errors of an occulting mask and a Lyot-Stop, clocking errors of DM1 and DM2, and the mismatch errors between the testbed and the model sensitivity matrices. We also investigated the effects of a control parameter, namely the actuator regularization factor, on the control efficiency and on the final contrast floor. We found several error cases which yield contrast results comparable to that observed on the HLC testbed. We present our findings in this paper.

Nemati, Bijan↗
NASA NTRS2018

Picometer Differential Wavefront Metrology by Nonlinear Zernike Wavefront Sensing for LUVOIR

We propose the Nonlinear Zernike wavefront sensor (NLZWFS) for out-of-band differential wavefront sensing to augment primary mirror stability on LUVOIR and similar mission concepts during exoplanet coronagraphy. This new data analysis paradigm involving a full polychromatic scalar physical optics model for the phase-shifting Zernike wavefront sensor removes the linearity assumptions which would otherwise prevent accurate sensing. We show Monte-Carlo simulations of NLZWFS and focus-diverse phase retrieval to understand the exposure times necessary to achieve picometer-level stability in the telescope wavefront.

Redding, David C.↗