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DOE OSTI2026

OPEN ALPHADIFFRACT

Open-source release of the AlphaDiffract data generation and training system. Includes only the public Materials Project dataset retrievers.AlphaDiffract is a deep learning framework that achieves state-of-the-art performance in predicting the crystal system, space group, and lattice parameters directly from PXRD patterns. AlphaDiffract utilizes a 1D adaptation of the ConvNeXt architecture, a modern convolutional neural network that integrates key design principles from transformers, coupledwith dedicated prediction heads for each crystallographic property.

Prince, Michael [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)↗

DOE OSTI2020

Offshore CO2 Saline Storage Calculator

The Offshore CO2 Saline Storage Calculator is a data-driven tool that applies the adapted DOE CO2 Methodology to calculate all potential distributions of offshore storage efficiency and resource potential at multiple spatial scales for saline formations. The tailored methodology include accounting for changing CO2 density with the overlying water column and sediment differences in unlithified, porous, and permeable offshore saline formations. The latest release of the tool and a tutorial are available in the tools public GitHub repository. We recommend testing out this application using data from the Petrophysical Well Log Interpretation Dataset, which spans the northern Gulf of Mexico and is available on EDX here: https://edx.netl.doe.gov/dataset/petrophysical-well-log-interpretation-dataset

calculator↗

DOE OSTI2021

INTEGRATE - Inverse Network Transformations for Efficient Generation of Robust Airfoil and Turbine Enhancements

The INTEGRATE (Inverse Network Transformations for Efficient Generation of Robust Airfoil and Turbine Enhancements) project is developing a new inverse-design capability for the aerodynamic design of wind turbine rotors using invertible neural networks. This AI-based design technology can capture complex non-linear aerodynamic effects while being 100 times faster than design approaches based on computational fluid dynamics. This project enables innovation in wind turbine design by accelerating time to market through higher-accuracy early design iterations to reduce the levelized cost of energy. INVERTIBLE NEURAL NETWORKS Researchers are leveraging a specialized invertible neural network (INN) architecture along with the novel dimension-reduction methods and airfoil/blade shape representations developed by collaborators at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) learns complex relationships between airfoil or blade shapes and their associated aerodynamic and structural properties. This INN architecture will accelerate designs by providing a cost-effective alternative to current industrial aerodynamic design processes, including: - Blade element momentum (BEM) theory models: limited effectiveness for design of offshore rotors with large, flexible blades where nonlinear aerodynamic effects dominate - Direct design using computational fluid dynamics (CFD): cost-prohibitive - Inverse-design models based on deep neural networks (DNNs): attractive alternative to CFD for 2D design problems, but quickly overwhelmed by the increased number of design variables in 3D problems AUTOMATED COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS FOR TRAINING DATA GENERATION - MERCURY FRAMEWORK The INN is trained on data obtained using the University of Marylands (UMD) Mercury Framework, which has with robust automated mesh generation capabilities and advanced turbulence and transition models validated for wind energy applications. Mercury is a multi-mesh paradigm, heterogeneous CPU-GPU framework. The framework incorporates three flow solvers at UMD, 1) OverTURNS, a structured solver on CPUs, 2) HAMSTR, a line based unstructured solver on CPUs, and 3) GARFIELD, a structured solver on GPUs. The framework is based on Python, that is often used to wrap C or Fortran codes for interoperability with other solvers. Communication between multiple solvers is accomplished with a Topology Independent Overset Grid Assembler (TIOGA). NOVEL AIRFOIL SHAPE REPRESENTATIONS USING GRASSMAN SPACES We developed a novel representation of shapes which decouples affine-style deformations from a rich set of data-driven deformations over a submanifold of the Grassmannian. The Grassmannian representation as an analytic generative model, informed by a database of physically relevant airfoils, offers (i) a rich set of novel 2D airfoil deformations not previously captured in the data , (ii) improved low-dimensional parameter domain for inferential statistics informing design/manufacturing, and (iii) consistent 3D blade representation and perturbation over a sequence of nominal shapes. TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER DEMONSTRATION - COUPLING WITH NREL WISDEM Researchers have integrated the inverse-design tool for 2D airfoils (INN-Airfoil) into WISDEM (Wind Plant Integrated Systems Design and Engineering Model), a multidisciplinary design and optimization framework for assessing the cost of energy, as part of tech-transfer demonstration. The integration of INN-Airfoil into WISDEM allows for the design of airfoils along with the blades that meet the dynamic design constraints on cost of energy, annual energy production, and the capital costs. Through preliminary studies, researchers have shown that the coupled INN-Airfoil + WISDEM approach reduces the cost of energy by around 1% compared to the conventional design approach. This page will serve as a place to easily access all the publications from this work and the repositories for the software developed and released through this pr...

aerodynamics↗

NASA NTRS2007

SOHO-Ulysses Coordinated Studies During the Two Extended Quadratures and the Alignment of 2007-2008

During SOHO-Sun-Ulysses quadratures the geometry of the configuration makes it possible to sample "in situ" the plasma parcels that are remotely observed in the corona. Although the quadrature position occurs at a well defined instant in time, we typically take data while Ulysses is within +/- 5 degrees of the limb, with the understanding that plasma sampled by Ulysses over this time interval can all be traced to its source in the corona. The relative positions of SOHO and Ulysses in winter 2007 (19 Dec 2006-28 May 2007) are unusual: the SOHO-Sun-Ulysses included angle is always between 85 and 95 degrees - the quadrature lasts for 5 months! This provides an opportunity for extended observations of specific observing objectives. In addition, in summer 2007, Ulysses (at 1.34 AU) is in near-radial alignment with Earth/ACE/Wind and SOHO, allowing us to analyze radial gradients and propagation in the solar wind and inner heliosphere. Our own quadrature campaigns rely heavily on LASCO and UVCS coronal observations: LASCO giving the overall context above 2 solar radii while the UVCS spectrograph acquired data from - 1.5 to, typically, 4-5 solar radii. In the past, coronal parameters have been derived from data acquired by these two experiments and compared with "in situ" data of Ulysses' SWOOPS and SWICS. Data from other experiments like EIT, CDS, SUMER, Sac Peak Fe XIV maps, magnetic field maps from the Wilcox solar magnetograph, MLSO, from MDI, and from the Ulysses magnetograph experiment have been, and will be, used to complement LASCO/UVCS/SWOOPS and SWICS data. We anticipate that observations by ACE/WIND/STEREO/Hinode and other missions will be relevant as well. During the IHY campaigns, Ulysses will be 52-80 degrees south in winter 2007, near sunspot minimum. Hence, our own scientific objective will be to sample high speed wind or regions of transition between slow and fast wind. This might be a very interesting situation - not met in previous quadratures - allowing us to study the variation of element abundances across streamer borders in the corona and,correspondingly, "in situ". Also, observing plasma over prolonged time intervals and at different latitudes, we may examine the latitude variation of the fractionation effect (e.g. Yon Steiger, 2002) and its dependence on time (e.g. Woo, 2004). For instance, if the FIP bias is dictated by the duration of plasma confinement in solar loops, its value in streamers should depend on the streamer age. Analogous variations should be found in the abundances of "in situ" plasma released by the streamer. All Ulysses and SOHO data is in the public domain and accessible so different objectives could be addressed by others. The winter 2008 quadrature will be well into the next sunspot cycle and there might be significant high mid-latitude activity. Ulysses will be up to 80 degrees in the northern hemisphere at this time and able to detect the resulting ICMEs and ejecta, allowing us to study the physical parameters of the propagating CME bubble/core/front, and/or to study the coronal and "in situ" characteristics of the current sheet associated with the event (e.g. Bemporad et al. 2005), so far still vaguely defined.

Suess, S. T.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Using NASA Earth Observations to Identify Trends in Harmful Algal Blooms in Narragansett Bay

Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island is known for its quahog, or hard-shell clam, shellfisheries. However, increased levels in harmful algal blooms (HABs) have posed threats to quahog populations and raised public health concerns due to shellfishery closures resulting from contamination with neurotoxins released by phytoplankton. NASA DEVELOP partnered with the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory and Rhode Island’s Department of Environmental Management to use Earth observations and the partners’ in-situ data to visualize phytoplankton bloom events within the bay. The team used Sentinel-3 Ocean and Land Color Instrument (OLCI), Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI), and Landsat 9 OLI-2 to track proposed proxies for phytoplankton from June 2016 to October 2023. Multiple sensors and datasets were employed for more accurate results due to the small spatial extent of Narragansett Bay. Chlorophyll-a and total suspended solids were determined to be accurate parameters to monitor HAB events. Although complications could arise due to the relatively small size of the bay and small-scale of the bloom events, which may be difficult to visualize via remote sensing, Earth observations have proven to help strengthen HAB research, monitoring, and prediction and will complement the extensive in-situ data in Narragansett Bay.

Isabella Giordano↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Introduction to the JPSS-2 Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS) Government Calibration Data Book (GCDB)

The third Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS) is an instrument onboard the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS), JPSS-2 (renamed NOAA-21 in orbit) mission. This report is to introduce the JPSS-2 Government Calibration Data Book (J2 GCDB) for ATMS, SN 304. This J2 GCDB document contains key information generated during the calibration testing campaign that is driving parameters for radiometric performance. This document also contains supporting data that augments the calibration results. The values in this document are utilized by ATMS’s calibration packet which is, in turn, an integral component in the interpretation of science data. The calibration data in this report was collected from tests such as shelf-level testing, antenna testing, instrument thermal vacuum (TVAC) testing; satellite TVAC testing; and JPSS-2 post-launch tests. JPSS-2 was launched on November 10, 2022. In the subsequent years, the Government will release an ATMS GCDB for each JPSS mission. We expect that all public users can download these ATMS GCDBs from the NOAA operational Integrated Calibration and Validation System (ICVS) website, see more discussions below. The goal of this GCDB is to demonstrate how to characterize ATMS measurements using JPSS-2 ATMS on-orbit operational data and to provide relevant explanations. This document serves as a primary public domain reference for calibrating operational ATMS Raw Data Records (RDR) science data, as used in the current operational Interface Data Processing Segment (IDPS) system. This same RDR science data is distributed through direct broadcast (DB) to DB users for use in their ground processing systems. This J2 GCDB provides the results of the ATMS system radiometric calibration, the antenna flat reflector emissivity [1], the antenna pattern measurements, the antenna pattern corrected brightness temperature [2], the brightness temperature of the lunar disk [3], Lunar Intrusion (LI) correction algorithm [4], receiver spectral parameters, and mechanical alignment on-orbit pointing results, and the striping effect appeared significantly in S-NPP on-orbit radiance data when the data are compared to the Radiative Transfer Model (RTM) simulation in numerical weather prediction (NWP) system [5]. It also provides the parameters required for conversion of telemetry counts to engineering units, for radiometric calibration, and for antenna beam geo-location. Moreover, it provides JPSS-2 ATMS Spectral Response Functions data, some additional information related to ATMS on-orbit performance, on-orbit lunar intrusion correction parameters and Earth contamination bias, and on how to derive ATMS RDR, antenna Temperature Data Records (TDR), and Sensor Data Records (SDR). Furthermore, an introduction of NOAA operational Integrated Calibration and Validation System (ICVS) website and services is added in this J2 GCDB. This ICVS hosts a long-term monitoring system which allows to visualization and comparison of data from JPSS missions, NOAA legacy Polar Operational Environmental Satellites (POES), and Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES). From NOAA Comprehensive Large Array-data Stewardship System (CLASS), the public users can download all JPSS ATMS data products for all JPSS missions.

Microwave Sounder↗

DOE OSTI2025

Analysis of Radiological Release From Fueled Irradiation Experiments During Manual Handling (Slides)

Irradiation experiments are manually handled at the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) by qualified operators using long handled tools. Standard handling evolutions include insertion and removal from the reactor vessel, transfer to/from a storage location or cask in the ATR canal, and handling/reconfigurations at a canal working tray. Such routine handling has the potential to result in mechanical damage to the experiment boundary which is credited to retain fission products. Since damage can occur due to operator error, this is an anticipated occurrence. This work determines the radiological consequences to receptors inside the ATR facility, as well as public receptors. Given the wide variety of fuel types tested at the ATR, a generic approach to the analysis is taken. The radiological inventory is determined to bound a variety of fuel types (e.g., ceramic and molten fuel matrices) and fission powers on the U-235 enrichment spectrum. The source term analysis considers different release fractions to bound different fuel types and burnups. The postulated handling events occur underwater; thus, retention of the released isotopic content is considered within the canal water column. Retention of radionuclides in the water column is determined using a modified approach of United States (US) Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.183. Radiological dose to the facility receptor is determined using a compartment release model. Dose to the public receptor is determined using atmospheric dispersion models using site specific atmospheric conditions with the use of the Radiological Safety Analysis Computer (RSAC) program version 7.2.

21 - SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLAN↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

ICESat-2 Mission: Status, Outlook, and Contributions to Polar Science

The Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) mission carries the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS) lidar to measure the changing height of Earth surface. After more than 3 years of science data collection, ATLAS has emitted well over a trillion laser pulses and continues to operate nominally. The ICESat-2 data products were initially released in May 2019, and have been used in over 150 peer-reviewed publications to date. Recent community white papers have noted the importance of ice elevation measurements for the coming decades, and as CryoSat-2 has entered it’s second decade and future missions are uncertain, ICESat-2 will be a critical part of the Earth System Observatory for the 2020s. In the polar regions, ICESat-2 has enabled year-round sea ice freeboard measurements as well as ice sheet elevation changes on seasonal, annual, and decadal time scales when combined with other missions. These data enable measurement of change at fine spatial and temporal scales to help understand or characterize the processes driving these observations. As of this presentation, Release 005 is the current version of the along-track data products, including surface-specific products for sea ice, land ice, ground and canopy height, ocean, and inland water heights. In addition, first versions of gridded data products for land ice, sea ice, and ocean are all available. Data spans the start of the mission (14 October 2018) through early 2022. The ICESat-2 project has also begun to produce and distribute QuickLook products with a nominal 3-day latency (as opposed to the ~45-day latency of the final data products). Initial versions of these QuickLook products have elevation accuracy of ~3 meters, and geolocation accuracy of ~50 meters. All products are available through the National Snow and Ice Data Center (nsidc.org). This presentation will summarize the current state and health of the observatory, current state of the ICESat-2 data products, data product quality assessment, and outlook for the future.

ICESat-2↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

The Nasa SRA Process as It Relates to Open-Source Workflows Developed for GeneLab Data Processing

To release open, standards-compliant processed data sets in the Open Science Data Repository (OSDR), the GeneLab Data Processing team works with the scientific community through the OSDR Analysis Working Groups to design and build open-source data processing pipelines. Once baselined internally, these pipelines are wrapped into workflows and published on the NASA GeneLab Data Processing public GitHub repository along with detailed instructions for installation and use. Each workflow must be approved through NASA's Software Release Authorization (SRA) process prior to publishing. However, the SRA process lacks sufficient documentation and clarity regarding which forms are applicable for new open-source software that utilizes publicly available 3rd party tools, and the SRA process can take several months to complete, making sharing software outside of NASA cumbersome and in contradiction with the concept of Open Science. Furthermore, the SRA process was designed as a one-size fits all approach and thus many of the questions asked are not applicable to our open-source workflows. Here we describe the software provided on the NASA GeneLab Data Processing GitHub repository, summarize our experiences with the SRA process to release these software, and propose a more stream-lined approach for review of open-source projects.

Software Release Authorization↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

The NASA SRA Process as it Relates to Open-Source Workflows Developed for GeneLab Data Processing

Software Release Authorization↗

DOE OSTI2023

A decision support tool for e-waste recycling operations using the hen-and-chicks bio-inspired optimization metaheuristic

E-waste from end-of-life electrical and electronic devices is one of the fastest growing waste streams from households and businesses. E-waste recycling yields environmental sustainability and economic benefits. Due to continuous changes in e-waste types and compositions, recycling businesses face challenges to optimize their operational configuration to achieve better economic and environmental performance. To help e-waste recyclers mitigate this problem, we have developed a modular decision support tool called the Comprehensive Manufacturing Assessment Tool (CMAT) that can simulate both e-waste recycling operations and economics. This tool can give valuable insights regarding the profitability of the entire operation and different e-waste types. In addition, a new bio-inspired metaheuristic optimization algorithm, hen-and-chicks optimization (HACO), was developed to assign manpower to different workstations to maximize operational efficiencies. According to the results of our case study, laptops, desktops, and computer peripherals are the three electronic waste products that produce the most profit. Our examination of the sensitivity of material prices shows that the price of steel has the most significant influence on total profit, because it is the most widely used material in the majority of electronic devices. We have released the decision support tool as open-source software under a general public license. It could be customized for other recycling industries beyond e-waste to achieve business sustainability by making their operations more efficient.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2022

Constraining the charge-, time-, and rigidity-dependence of cosmic-ray solar modulation with AMS-02 observations during Solar Cycle 24

Our basic theoretical understanding of the sources of cosmic rays and their propagation through the interstellar medium is hindered by the Sun, that through the solar wind affects the observed cosmic-ray spectra. This effect is known as solar modulation. Recently released cosmic-ray observations from the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02) and publicly available measurements of the solar wind properties from the Advanced Composition Explorer and the Wilcox observatory allow us to test the analytical modeling of the time-, charge- and rigidity-dependence of solar modulation. We rely on associating measurements on the local heliospheric magnetic field and the heliospheric current sheet’s tilt angle, to model the time-dependence and amplitude of cosmic-ray solar modulation. We find evidence for the solar modulation’s charge- and rigidity-dependence during the era of solar cycle 24. Our analytic prescription to model solar modulation can explain well the large-scale time evolution of positively charged cosmic-ray fluxes in the range of rigidities from 1 GV to 10 GV. Here, we also find that cosmic-ray electron fluxes measured during the first years of cycle 24 are less trivial to explain, due to the complex and rapidly evolving structure of the heliosphere’s magnetic field that they experienced as they propagated inwards.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2024

PV Performance Modeling and Stakeholder Engagement (Final Technical Report)

This core capability project’s objective is to increase the value of photovoltaic (PV) performance models by improving their functionality, demonstrating, and quantifying their validity, and offering a wide range of stakeholder engagement opportunities. In FY22-24, we developed new and improved modeling algorithms and functions to represent PV performance more accurately in a variety of environments and conditions. The “Model parameter toolkit” was developed and includes functions to translate between different module temperature models, incidence angle modifier models, and single-diode models. A new modeling capability named “PV Atlas” was also developed leveraging Sandia’s High Performance Computing resources. This capability allows us to investigate several questions and provide climate-specific best practices and geographic data files; all these are hosted on an interactive website on Sandia’s GitHub and can be used for training, system optimization, or to provide best practices for uncertainty reduction. For model validation, we published high-quality PV performance, and weather data; these data are well documented, filtered, and processed for quality and include examples on how to run PV simulations. We also developed well documented, standardized methods for validating PV models and ran independent model validation and 2 blind modeling intercomparisons engaging with 49 organizations from 17 countries. We co-led and contributed to a growing, well documented and maintained suite of open-source functions for PV modeling (i.e., the pvlib-python) and we outreached to the PV modeling stakeholders via the PVPMC workshops and web resources. In addition, this project supported US representation and leadership for the International Energy Agency (IEA) PVPS Task 13; specifically, members of our team led and supported 3 subtasks on: 1) Best practices for the optimization of bifacial photovoltaic tracking, 2) Extreme weather events and their multiple impact on PV power plants: Risks, failure mechanisms and mitigation strategies, and 3) Best practice guidelines for the use of economic and technical Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). This project resulted in the publications of 14 peer reviewed journal papers, 37 conference presentations, 6 SAND reports, 5 public datasets and 6 new webpages on the PVPMC website. It supported the release of 13 pvlib-python versions where 28 enhancements were from this PV Performance Modeling project. We co-organized 5 PVPMC workshops in FY22-24 with the participation of 214 unique institutions and around 700 participants. The PVPMC website was redesigned, and its reliability was improved; it receives over 50,000 visitors/year from 202 unique countries.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2026

Hector V 3.5.0: Equations & Parameters

Originally introduced by Hartin et al. [2015], Hector is a community Reduced Complexity Model (RCM) designed to simulate changes in Earth’s energy balance and carbon cycle. It is maintained and developed by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Hector has continued to evolve with the advances in science, leading to different releases over the years. The latest version documented in a peer-reviewed publication is Hector V3.2.0, as described by Dorheim et al. [2024].

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

NASA NTRS1972

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Nuclear Science Symposium, 18th, and Nuclear Power Systems Symposium, 3rd, San Francisco, Calif., November 3-5, 1971, Proceedings.

Potential advantages of fusion power reactors are discussed together with the protection of the public from radioactivity produced in nuclear power reactors, and the significance of tritium releases to the environment. Other subjects considered are biomedical instrumentation, radiation damage problems, low level environmental radionuclide analysis systems, nuclear techniques in environmental research, nuclear instrumentation, and space and plasma instrumentation. Individual items are abstracted in this issue.

Source record↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Update On NASA ISRU Plans, Priorities, and Activities

Introduction: In 2022, The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States of America (US) Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) released the In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Envisioned Future Priorities (EFP), along with other discipline EFPs, to the public in April for comment. The ISRU EFP is a ‘strategic’ level document to provide guidance to NASA, industry, academia, and international space agencies on the long-term vision for ISRU, as well as the goals, objectives, state of the art, gaps, and near-term priorities to achieve the vision. Since the release, a significant number of comments have been received through a Request for Information, and interactions at meetings and conferences. Based on comments received, as well as changes to the NASA budget, the release of the NASA Moon to Mars (M2M) Objectives at the International Aeronautical Congress (IAC) in Paris, and evolving plans for the Artemis program, an updated version of the ISRU EFP was created and released in March, 2023.

ISRU↗

NASA NTRS2018

Toward a Common Earth Data Publication Framework

Data publication is an essential activity for all data archives. Each of NASA's twelve Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs) have established publication workflows which account for the heterogeneous suite of missions, instruments, data providers, and datasets managed within the Earth Observation System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) program. Some aspects of data publication vary across DAACs: workflows range from manual to automatic, terms used to describe publication elements differ, and systems used to publish and manage data vary. Despite these differences, the DAAC data publication processes are generally the same: obtain the data and related information from data providers, describe the data with metadata and documentation, and release the data for access by the user community. In order to improve consistency and reduce the time required to publish data, we have developed a cross-DAAC initiative called the Common Earthdata Publication Framework (Earthdata Pub). Earthdata Pub seeks to: standardize communications and interactions with data providers; identify and standardize common workflows and steps in the data publication process; and design/implement a front-end system with features that include a common web interface, email & status tracking, and common application programming interfaces (APIs) to communicate with various DAAC-specific software components (services and applications) on the back-end. We will present the latest updates on this effort's progress and future plans.

data publication↗

DOE OSTI2024

Decision support for United States—Canada energy integration is impaired by fragmentary environmental and electricity system modeling capacity

The renewable energy transition is leading to increased electricity trade between the United States and Canada, with Canadian hydropower providing firm lower-carbon power and buffering variability of wind and solar generation in the U.S. However, long-term power purchase agreements and transborder transmission projects are controversial, with two of four proposed transmission lines between Quebec, Canada and the northeast U.S. cancelled since 2018. Here, we argue that controversies are exacerbated by a lack of open-source data and tools to understand tradeoffs of new hydropower generation and transmission infrastructure in comparison to alternatives. This gap includes impacts that incremental transmission and generation projects have on the economics of the entire system, for example, how new transmission projects affect exports to existing markets or incentivize new generation. We identify priority areas for data synthesis and model development, such as integrating linked hydropower and hydrologic interactions in energy system models and openly releasing (by utilities) or back-calculating (by researchers) hydropower generation and operational parameters. Publicly available environmental (e.g. streamflow, precipitation) and techno-economic (e.g. costs, reservoir size,) data can be used to parameterize freely usable and extensible models. Existing models have been calibrated with operational data from Canadian utilities that are not publicly available, limiting the range of scientific and commercial questions these tools have been used to answer and the range of parties that have been involved. Studies conducted using highly resolved, national-scale public data exist in other countries, notably, the United States, and demonstrate how greater transparency and extensibility can drive industry action. Improved data availability in Canada could facilitate approaches that (1) increase participation in decarbonization planning by a broader range of actors; (2) allow independent characterizations of environmental, health, and economic outcomes of interest to the public; and (3) identify decarbonization pathways consistent with community values.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗