SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “distributed inference”

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.

SourceResearch connectionFrom yearThrough year

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

At least 613 records · Page 34

All sources NASA NTRS DOE OSTI

NASA NTRS1997

The Galim LL/EH Polymict Breccia: Evidence for Impact-Induced Exchange Between Reduced and Oxidized Meteoritic Material

Galim is a polymict breccia consisting of a heavily shocked (shock stage S6) LL6 chondrite, Galim (a), and an impact-melted EH chondrite, Galim (b). Relict chondrules in Galim (b) served as nucleation sites for euhedral enstatite grains crystallizing from the impact melt. Many of the reduced phases typical of EH chondrites (e.g., Si-bearing metallic Fe-Ni; Ti-bearing troilite) are absent. Galim (b) was probably shock-melted while in contact with a more oxidized source, namely, Galim (a); during this event, Si was oxidized from the metal and Ti was oxidized from troilite. Galim (a) contains shock veins and recrystallized, unzoned olivine. The absence of evidence for reduction in Galim (a) may indicate that the amount of LL material greatly exceeded that of EH material; shock metamorphism may have taken place on the LL parent body. Shock-induced redox reactions such as those inferred for the Galim breccia appear to be restricted mainly to asteroids because the low-end tail of their relative-velocity distribution permits mixing of intact disparate materials (including accretion of projectiles of different oxidation states), whereas the peak of the distribution leads to high equilibration shock pressures (allowing impact-induced exchange between previously accreted, disequilibrated materials). Galim probably formed by a two-stage process: (I) accretion to the LL parent body of an intact EH projectile at low relative velocities, and (2) shock metamorphism of the assemblage by the subsequent impact of another projectile at significantly higher relative velocities.

Rubin, Alan E.↗

NASA NTRS2021

Salvaging Data Records with Missing Data: Data Imputation using the Multivariate t Distribution

When doing multivariate data analysis, one commonobstacle is the presence of incomplete observations, i.e., observationsfor which one or more key fields are blank. Missing datais often countered by deleting entire observations that containmissing data. The negative effects of deleting entire observationsare multiple: deleting observations reduces sample size andcan also result in biased inferences even if data is missing atrandom. In addition, knowledge contained within incompleteobservations is knowledge lost when they are deleted– and theeffort spent collecting that knowledge is effort wasted. Data imputationmethods, or methods of statistically “filling-in” missingdata, can help combat small sample sizes by using the existinginformation in partially complete observations with the end goalof producing less biased and higher confidence inferences. Whena sample from a multivariate normal population is only partiallycomplete, and the missing data meets appropriate assumptions(missing at random), robust data imputation of the missing datacan be implemented with monotone data augmentation (MDA)using the multivariate t distribution.Missing data imputation is applied to data from the NASA InstrumentCost Model (NICM) using the MDA algorithm underthe assumption of having a multivariate t distribution with fixeddegrees of freedom. A sensitivity analysis to the degrees offreedom parameter is presented to demonstrate robustness ofthe multivariate t distribution when dealing with small samplesas compared to the multivariate normal distribution.

DiNicola, Michael↗

NASA NTRS1996

Parallelization and Visual Analysis of Multidimensional Fields: Application to Ozone Production, Destruction, and Transport in Three Dimensions

The three-dimensional, spectral transport model used in the current project was first successfully integrated over climatological time scales by Dr. Guang Ping Lou for the simulation of atmospheric N2O using the United Kingdom Meteorological Office (UKMO) 4-dimensional, assimilated wind and temperature data set. A non-parallel, FORTRAN version of this integration using a fairly simple N2O chemistry package containing only photo-chemical reactions was used to verify our initial parallel model results. The integrations reproduced the gross features of the observed stratospheric climatological N2O distributions but also simulated the structure of the stratospheric Antarctic vortex and its evolution. Subsequently, Dr. Thomas Kindler, who produced much of the parallel version of our model, enlarged the N2O model chemistry package to include N2O reactions involving O(D-1) and also introduced assimilated wind data from NASA as well as UKMO. Initially, transport calculations without chemistry were run using Carbon-14 as a non-reactive tracer gas with the result that large differences in the transport properties of the two assimilated wind data sets were apparent from the resultant Carbon-14 distributions. Subsequent calculations for N2O, including its chemistry, with the two input winds data sets with verification from UARS satellite observations have refined the transport differences between the two such that the model's steering capabilities could be used to infer the correct climatological vertical velocity fields required to support the N2O observations. During this process, it was also discovered that both the NASA and the UKMO data contained spurious values in some of the higher frequency wave components, leading to incorrect local transport calculations and ultimately affecting the large scale properties of the model's N2O distributions, particularly at tropical latitudes. Subsequent model runs with wind data that had been filtered to remove some of the high frequency components produced much more realistic N2O distributions. During the past few months, the UKMO wind data base for a complete two-year period was processed into spectral form for model use. This new version of the input transport data base now includes complete temperature fields as well as the necessary wind data. This was done to facilitate advanced chemical calculations in the parallel model which often depend upon temperature. Additional UKMO data is being added as it becomes available.

Schwan, Karsten↗

NASA NTRS2011

Precipitation Characteristics of ISCCP Cloud Regimes for Improving Model Hydrological Budgets

The key in unraveling relationships between precipitation and atmospheric circulations is their common linkage to clouds. Clouds can be described in a variety of ways and several approaches can be adopted to examine their connections to precipitation. We claim that when cloud regimes (aka weather states) from the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) are used to conditionally sample/sort and average precipitation data, useful insight and GCM-appropriate diagnostics on the origins and distribution of precipitation can be obtained. The ISCCP cloud regimes are mesoscale (2.5 ) cloud mixtures determined by cluster analysis on joint histograms of cloud optical thickness and cloud top pressure inferred from geostationary and polar orbiter satellite passive retrievals. The ISCCP cloud regime data are combined with GPCP IDD merged surface precipitation data and/or higher temporal and spatial resolution TRMM Multi-Satellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) data. The analysis is performed separately for three geographical zones, tropics, and northern/southern midlatitudes (for GPCP; only the tropics can be examined with TMPA data). Our presentation aspires to provide answers to the following questions: (l) What is the mean and variability of surface precipitation produced by each cloud regime at the time of regime occurrence? (2) What is the relative contribution of each cloud regime to the total precipitation within its geographical zone? (3) What is the geographical distribution of precipitation corresponding to particular cloud regime? (4) To what extent are the cloud regimes distinct in terms of their precipitation characteristics and is the regime ordering in terms of convective strength consistent with the observed precipitation intensity?

Lee, D.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Inference of precipitation through thermal infrared measurements of soil moisture

The physics of microwave radiative transfer is well understood so that causal models can be assembled which relate the observed brightness temperatures to assumed distributions of hydrometeors (both liquid and ice), non-precipitating clouds, water vapor oxygen, and surface conditions. Present models assume a Marshall Palmer size distribution of liquid hydrometers from the surface to the freezing level (near the 0 C isotherm) and a variable thickness of frozen hydrometeors above that with various reasonable distribution of the other relevant constituents. The validity of such models is discussed. All uncertainties in the rain rate retrieval algorithms can be expressed in terms of specific model uncertainties which can be addressed through appropriate measurements. Those factors which must be known to achieve umambiguous results can be identified so that rainfall measuring algorithms can be developed and improved. The emissivity of the underlying surface significantly affects the contrast that may be measured between areas covered by rain and those which are dry. Sensing strategies for measuring rain over the ocean and rain over land are reviewed.

Wetzel, P. J.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Sea ice motions in the central arctic ice central arctic pack ice as inferred from AVHRR imagery

Synoptic observations of ice motion in the Arctic Basin are currently limited to those acquired by drifting buoys and, more recently, radar data from ERS-1. Buoys are not uniformly distributed throughout the Arctic, and SAR coverage is limited regionally and temporally due to the data volume, swath width, processing requirements, and power needs of the SAR. Additional ice-motion observations that can map ice responses simultaneously over large portions of the Arctic on daily to weekly time intervals are thus needed to augment the SAR and buoy data and to provide an intermediate-scale measure of ice drift suitable for climatological analyses and ice modeling. Merging the remotely-sensed ice motions with SAR, AVHRR, OLS, and SSM/I imagery permits studies of ice processes over a range of space and time scales. A medium-resolution passive microwave sensor might be ideal for this purpose, but no such satellite will be available in the near future. Combinations of existing data types are thus likely to be our best bet for generating motion fields with a coverage and resolution best suited to climate studies. Principal objectives of this project are to: (1) demonstrate whether sufficient ice features and ice motion existed within the consolidated ice pack to permit motion tracking using AVHRR imagery; (2) determine the limits imposed on AVHRR mapping by cloud cover; and (3) test the applicability of AVHRR-derived motions in studies of ice-atmosphere interactions.

Emery, William↗

NASA NTRS1995

Sea ice motions in the Central Arctic pack ice as inferred from AVHRR imagery

Synoptic observations of ice motion in the Arctic Basin are currently limited to those acquired by drifting buoys and, more recently, radar data from ERS-1. Buoys are not uniformly distributed throughout the Arctic, and SAR coverage is currently limited regionally and temporally due to the data volume, swath width, processing requirements, and power needs of the SAR. Additional ice-motion observations that can map ice responses simultaneously over large portions of the Arctic on daily to weekly time intervals are thus needed to augment the SAR and buoys data and to provide an intermediate-scale measure of ice drift suitable for climatological analyses and ice modeling. Principal objectives of this project were to: (1) demonstrate whether sufficient ice features and ice motion existed within the consolidated ice pack to permit motion tracking using AVHRR imagery; (2) determine the limits imposed on AVHRR mapping by cloud cover; and (3) test the applicability of AVHRR-derived motions in studies of ice-atmosphere interactions. Each of these main objectives was addressed. We conclude that AVHRR data, particularly when blended with other available observations, provide a valuable data set for studying sea ice processes. In a follow-on project, we are now extending this work to cover larger areas and to address science questions in more detail.

Emery, William↗

NASA NTRS1998

A Lagrangian View of Stratospheric Trace Gas Distributions

As a result of photochemistry, some relationship between the stratospheric age-of-air and the amount of tracer contained within an air sample is expected. The existence of such a relationship allows inferences about transport history to be made from observations of chemical tracers. This paper lays down the conceptual foundations for the relationship between age and tracer amount, developed within a Lagrangian framework. In general, the photochemical loss depends not only on the age of the parcel but also on its path. We show that under the "average path approximation" that the path variations are less important than parcel age. The average path approximation then allows us to develop a formal relationship between the age spectrum and the tracer spectrum. Using the relation between the tracer and age spectra, tracer-tracer correlations can be interpreted as resulting from mixing which connects parts of the single path photochemistry curve, which is formed purely from the action of photochemistry on an irreducible parcel. This geometric interpretation of mixing gives rise to constraints on trace gas correlations, and explains why some observations are do not fall on rapid mixing curves. This effect is seen in the ATMOS observations.

Schoeberl, M. R.↗

NASA NTRS1974

Preliminary results of fisheries investigation associated with Skylab-3

The author has identified the following significant results. This investigation is to establish the feasibility of utilizing remotely sensed data acquired from aircraft and satellite platforms to provide information concerning the distribution and abundance of oceanic gamefish. Data from the test area in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico has made possible the identification of fisheries significant environmental parameters for white marlin. Predictive models based on catch data and surface truth information have been developed and have demonstrated potential for reducing search significantly by identifying areas which have a high probability of being productive. Three of the parameters utilized by the model, chlorophyll-a, sea surface temperature, and turbidity have been inferred from aircraft sensor data. Cloud cover and delayed receipt have inhibited the use of Skylab data. The first step toward establishing the feasibility of utilizing remotely sensed data to assess amd monitor the distribution of ocean gamefish has been taken with the successful identification of fisheries significant oceanographic parameters and the demonstration of the capability of measuring most of these parameters remotely.

Savastano, K. J.↗

NASA NTRS1971

The earth and the moon /Harold Jeffreys Lecture/.

The internal structures of the earth and the moon are compared in the light of the latest extensive data on the earth structure, mobility of the earth outer layers, and the properties of lunar crust. The Monte Carlo method is applied to develop an earth model by a stepwise process beginning with a random distribution of two elastic velocities and the density as a function of de pth. Lunar seismic, magnetic, and rock analysis data are used to infer the properties of the moon. The marked planetological contrast between the earth and the moon is shown to consist in that the earth is highly differentiated and still undergoes a large-scale differentiation, while the moon has lost its volatiles in its early history and has a cold dynamically inactive shell which has been without basic changes for three billion years.

Press, F.↗

NASA NTRS1973

Latitudinal distribution of a debris mantle on the Martian surface.

Mariner 9 narrow angle pictures show that many areas on Mars are buried by debris mantles that later have been partially eroded. A survey of the present debris distributions shows that they are symmetrically disposed about the polar regions, extending poleward from the 30 N and 30 S latitudes. These blankets are inferred to represent eolian debris derived from circumpolar layered deposits; the process of equatorward redistribution of debris by wind action is probably still continuing.

Soderblom, L. A.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Petrologic comparisons of Cayley and Descartes on the basis of Apollo 16 soils from stations 4 and 11

Petrologic aspects of the Cayley and Descartes formations are reviewed in the light of new data on Apollo 16 soils. Specific comparison of the modal abundances of lithic fragments in drive tube sample 64001/2 from the slopes of Stone Mountain (station 4) and in soil 67941 from the North Ray Crater rim (station 11) shows that melt rocks, especially poikilitic rocks, are more abundant at station 4 than at station 11; the reverse is true for fragmental breccias. Such lithologic differences suggest that stations 4 and 11 do not belong to the same geologic formation. Metamorphosed breccias are pervasive in both the formations and may represent a local component that has been reworked and diluted as fresh materials were added. Lithologic compositions inferred from the study of soil samples are different from lithologic compositions inferred from the study of rake samples or breccia clasts. This difference may be related to a mixing of material of different grain size distributions. The petrology of soils at the Apollo 16 site may not accurately reflect original material associated with either the Descartes or the Cayley formation because of extensive mixing with local material.

Basu, A.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Analysis of lightning field changes produced by Florida thunderstorms

A new method is introduced for inferring the charges deposited in a lightning flash. Lightning-caused field changes (delta E's) are described by a more general volume charge distribution than is defined on a large cartesian grid system centered above the measuring networks. It is shown that a linear system of equations can be used to relate delta E's at the ground to the values of charge on this grid. It is possible to apply more general physical constraints to the charge solutions, and it is possible to access the information content of the delta E data. Computer-simulated delta E inversions show that the location and symmetry of the charge retrievals are usually consistent with the known test sources.

Koshak, William John↗

NASA NTRS1991

Millimeter and submillimeter observations of nearby radio galaxies

Radio galaxies are often observed to be strong long wavelength infrared sources. Twenty-six radio galaxies with strong compact cores were observed at wavelengths near 1 mm with the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The detections and upper limits establish the presence of excess infrared emission for almost all of the galaxies in the sample. The exceptions are the BL Lac objects, which have smooth continuous spectra from radio to infrared wavelengths. The spectral energy distributions of the infrared emission from the radio galaxies favor a thermal origin due to emission from cool interstellar dust. The amounts of dust inferred to be present approach those observed in large spirals.

Knapp, G. R.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Derivation of surface properties from Magellan altimetry data

The fit of the Hagfors model to the Magellan altimetry data provides a means to characterize the surface properties of Venus. However, the derived surface properties are only meaningful if the model provides a good representation of the data. The Hagfors model provides a good representation of the data. The Hagfors model is generally a realistic fit to surface scattering properties of a nadir-directed antenna such as the Magellan altimeter; however, some regions of the surface of Venus are poorly described by the existing model, according to the goodness of fit parameter provided on the ARCDR CD-ROMs. Poorly characterized regions need to be identified and fit to new models in order to derive more accurate surface properties for use in inferring the geological processes that affect the surface in those regions. We have compared the goodness of fit of the Hagfors model to the distribution of features across the planet, and preliminary results show a correlation between steep topographic slopes and poor fits to the standard model, as has been noticed by others. In this paper, we investigate possible relations between many classes of features and the ability of the Hagfors model to fit the observed echo profiles. In the regions that are not well characterized by existing models, we calculate new models that compensate for topographic relief in order to derive improved estimates of surface properties. Areas investigated to date span from longitude 315 through 45, at all latitudes covered by Magellan. A survey of those areas yields preliminary results that suggest that topographically high regions are well suited to the current implementation of the Hagfors model. Striking examples of such large-scale good fits are Alpha Regio, the northern edges of Lada Terra, and the southern edge of Ishtar Terra. Other features that are typically well fit are the rims of coronae such as Heng-O and the peaks of volcanos such as Gula Mons. Surprisingly, topographically low regions, such as the ubiquitous plains areas, are modeled poorly in comparison. However, this generalization has has exceptions: Lakshmi Planum is an elevated region that is not well fit compared to the rest of neighboring Ishtar, while the southern parts of topographically low Guinevere Planitia are characterized quite well by the Hagfors model. Features that are candidates for improved models are impact craters, coronae, ridges of significant scale, complex ridged terrains, moderate-sized mountains, and sharp terrain boundaries. These features are chosen because the goodness of fit is likely to be most affected either by departures from normal incidence angles or by sharp changes in terrain type within a single footprint. Most large features that are elevated with respect to their surroundings will suffer from steep slope effects, and smaller coronae and impact craters will probably suffer due to rapid changes in their appearance within a single footprint (10-20 km).

Lovell, Amy J.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Impact craters and Venus resurfacing history

The history of resurfacing by tectonism and volcanism on Venus is reconstructed by means of an analysis of Venusian impact crater size-frequency distributions, locations, and preservation states. An atmospheric transit model for meteoroids demonstrates that for craters larger than about 30 km, the size-frequency distribution is close to the atmosphere-free case. An age of cessation of rapid resurfacing of about 500 Ma is obtained. It is inferred that a range of surface ages are recorded by the impact crater population; e.g., the Aphrodite zone is relatively young. An end-member model is developed to quantify resurfacing scenarios. It is argued that Venus has been resurfacing at an average rate of about 1 sq km/yr. Numerical simulations of resurfacing showed that there are two solution branches that satisfy the completely spatially random location restraint for Venusian craters: a is less than 0.0003 (4 deg diameter circle) and a is greater than 0.1 (74 deg diameter circle).

Phillips, Roger J.↗

NASA NTRS1993

An evaluation of the National Meteorological Center weekly hindcast of upper-ocean temperature along the eastern Pacific equator in January 1992

The upper-ocean temperature distribution along the Pacific equator from 139 to 103 deg W was observed in January 1992 with temperature profiles recorded from a ship and inferred from an ocean general circulation model calculation involving data assimilation (i.e., hindcast). An El Nino episode was in progress. The l00-m-thick mixed layer depth, the mixed-layer temperature, and the depth-averaged temperature below the thermocline were similar in both data products. Considerable differences occurred in the representation of the 15-25 C thermocline, such as the depth-averaged temperatures above and below the 20 C isotherm, the east-west slope of the 20 C isotherm, and a 1000-km-wide depression. The longitudinal-averaged root-mean-square difference between the hindcast and observed depths of the center of the thermocline was 17 m. Most of the disparities could be attributed to a high wavenumber transient event that the model-based assimilation system was not intended to resolve.

Halpern, David↗

NASA NTRS1994

A Comparison of Metallographic Cooling Rate Methods Used in Meteorites

The primary objective of this study was to test the postulate that cooling rates acquired from metal grains in chondrites are consistent with those from iron meteorites. Both types of metal occur in some Group IAB meteorites, which are mixtures of massive metal with well-developed Widmanstatten structures and chondritic inclusions with dispersed metal grains. The grains have textures and compositions similar to chondritic metal, including negligible P. The meteorites studied show little or no sign of shock reheating and textural evidence indicates that silicates and metal were mixed before Widmanstatten patterns formed during cooling. Cooling rates were obtained by comparing measured to modeled taenite grain or lamellae dimensions and central Ni contents. Modeling entails solving diffusion equations using experimental diffusion coefficients, phase relations, and bulk or local Ni and P contents, taking into account geometry, undercooling, and impingement. There is one set of parameters for grains and another, quite different set for Widmanstatten lamellae, including a factor of 30 difference in diffusion coefficients. Yet cooling rates obtained from Widmanstatten structures and metal grains in chondritic inclusions of the same meteorite are consistent; uncertainties in the best data are +/- 10 K/Ma, equivalent to a factor of 1 +/- 0.25. This agreement implies that the data and models are correct or contain fortuitously offsetting errors, which is quite unlikely. Cooling rates range from 40 K/Ma to 70 K/Ma in IAB meteorites that contain both grains and Widmanstatten structures. Rates based on grains in Ni-poor and Ni-rich meteorites lacking Widmansatten patterns expand the range from 30 K/Ma to perhaps 200 K/Ma. Cooling rates correlate with Ni content; Ni-poor meteorites have slower rates than Ni-rich ones. Evidently, IAB meteorites were radially distributed over greater than 30km in a body with a radius less than 50km. A comparison of the available Ar ages with cooling times inferred from the cooling rates suggests that the parent body cooled more slowly after the metallographic cooling rates were established.

Herpfer, Marc A.↗