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NASA NTRS2016

Ice-Accretion Test Results for Three Large-Scale Swept-Wing Models in the NASA Icing Research Tunnel

Icing simulation tools and computational fluid dynamics codes are reaching levels of maturity such that they are being proposed by manufacturers for use in certification of aircraft for flight in icing conditions with increasingly less reliance on natural-icing flight testing and icing-wind-tunnel testing. Sufficient high-quality data to evaluate the performance of these tools is not currently available. The objective of this work was to generate a database of ice-accretion geometry that can be used for development and validation of icing simulation tools as well as for aerodynamic testing. Three large-scale swept wing models were built and tested at the NASA Glenn Icing Research Tunnel (IRT). The models represented the Inboard (20 percent semispan), Midspan (64 percent semispan) and Outboard stations (83 percent semispan) of a wing based upon a 65 percent scale version of the Common Research Model (CRM). The IRT models utilized a hybrid design that maintained the full-scale leading-edge geometry with a truncated afterbody and flap. The models were instrumented with surface pressure taps in order to acquire sufficient aerodynamic data to verify the hybrid model design capability to simulate the full-scale wing section. A series of ice-accretion tests were conducted over a range of total temperatures from -23.8 to -1.4 C with all other conditions held constant. The results showed the changing ice-accretion morphology from rime ice at the colder temperatures to highly 3-D scallop ice in the range of -11.2 to -6.3 C. Warmer temperatures generated highly 3-D ice accretion with glaze ice characteristics. The results indicated that the general scallop ice morphology was similar for all three models. Icing results were documented for limited parametric variations in angle of attack, drop size and cloud liquid-water content (LWC). The effect of velocity on ice accretion was documented for the Midspan and Outboard models for a limited number of test cases. The data suggest that there are morphological characteristics of glaze and scallop ice accretion on these swept-wing models that are dependent upon the velocity. This work has resulted in a large database of ice-accretion geometry on large-scale, swept-wing models.

Wing Aerodynamics↗
NASA NTRS2011

NASA Tech Briefs, November 2011

The topics include: 1) Flight Test Results from the Rake Airflow Gage Experiment on the F-15B; 2) Telemetry and Science Data Software System; 3) CropEx Web-Based Agricultural Monitoring and Decision Support; 4) High-Performance Data Analysis Tools for Sun-Earth Connection Missions; 5) Experiment in Onboard Synthetic Aperture Radar Data Processing; 6) Microfabrication of a High-Throughput Nanochannel Delivery/Filtration System; 7) Improved Design and Fabrication of Hydrated-Salt Pills; 8) Monolithic Flexure Pre-Stressed Ultrasonic Horns; 9) Cryogenic Quenching Process for Electronic Part Screening; 10) Broadband Via-Less Microwave Crossover Using Microstrip-CPW Transitions; 11) Wheel-Based Ice Sensors for Road Vehicles; 12) G-DYN Multibody Dynamics Engine; 13) Multibody Simulation Software Testbed for Small-Body Exploration and Sampling; 14) Propulsive Reaction Control System Model; 15) Licklider Transmission Protocol Implementation; 16) Core Recursive Hierarchical Image Segmentation; 17) Two-Stage Centrifugal Fan; 18) Combined Structural and Trajectory Control of Variable-Geometry Planetary Entry Systems; 19) Pressure Regulator With Internal Ejector Circulation Pump, Flow and Pressure Measurement Porting, and Fuel Cell System Integration Options; 20) Temperature-Sensitive Coating Sensor Based on Hematite; 21) Standardization of a Volumetric Displacement Measurement for Two-Body Abrasion Scratch Test Data Analysis; 22) Detection of Carbon Monoxide Using Polymer-Carbon Composite Films; 23) Substituted Quaternary Ammonium Salts Improve Low-Temperature Performance of Double-Layer Capacitors; 24) Sustainably Sourced, Thermally Resistant, Radiation Hard Biopolymer; 25) Integrated Lens Antennas for Multi-Pixel Receivers; 26) 180-GHz Interferometric Imager; 27) Maturation of Structural Health Management Systems for Solid Rocket Motors; 28) Validating Phasing and Geometry of Large Focal Plane Arrays; 29) Transverse Pupil Shifts for Adaptive Optics Non-Common Path Calibration; 30) Qualification of Fiber Optic Cables for Martian Extreme Temperature Environments; 31) Solid-State Spectral Light Source System; 32) Multiple-Event, Single-Photon Counting Imaging Sensor; 33) Surface Modeling to Support Small-Body Spacecraft Exploration and Proximity Operations; and 34) Achieving Exact and Constant Turnaround Ratio in a DDS-Based Coherent Transponder.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2011

Dynamic Modeling and Soil Mechanics for Path Planning of the Mars Exploration Rovers

To help minimize risk of high sinkage and slippage during drives and to better understand soil properties and rover terramechanics from drive data, a multidisciplinary team was formed under the Mars Exploration Rover project to develop and utilize dynamic computer-based models for rover drives over realistic terrains. The resulting system, named ARTEMIS (Adams-based Rover Terramechanics and Mobility Interaction System), consists of the dynamic model, a library of terramechanics subroutines, and the high-resolution digital elevation maps of the Mars surface. A 200-element model of the rovers was developed and validated for drop tests before launch, using Adams dynamic modeling software. The external library was built in Fortran and called by Adams to model the wheel-soil interactions include the rut-formation effect of deformable soils, lateral and longitudinal forces, bull-dozing effects, and applied wheel torque. The paper presents the details and implementation of the system. To validate the developed system, one study case is presented from a realistic drive on Mars of the Opportunity rover. The simulation results match well from the measurement of on-board telemetry data. In its final form, ARTEMIS will be used in a predictive manner to assess terrain navigability and will become part of the overall effort in path planning and navigation for both Martian and lunar rovers.

rover↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Developing Concepts of Operations Using Multi-Step Tool Techniques With Large Language Models

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Air Mobility Pathfinders (AMP) project is developing and evaluating concepts of operations (ConOps) for safe, secure, and scalable Urban Air Mobility (UAM) operations. The AMP project’s Operational Concepts, Architecture, and Requirements Integration (OCARI) Team is using a Model Based System Engineering (MBSE) approach for integration, interoperability, and traceability of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) ecosystems centered around urban air taxi services. The team’s goal is to define structures and behaviors needed for system feasibility, readiness, and interoperability, establish a UAM knowledge base, and trace and validate assumptions and requirements relevant to AAM. NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) is spearheading an innovative digital engineering approach to integrate, communicate, and facilitate the research of multi-modal transportation systems. The Knowledge-based Digital Platform (KbDP) is a concept being developed that ties the workflows of Project Managers (PM), Principal Investigators (PI), and System Engineers together across organizational boundaries. It does so through the management of an information database defined by mathematical, data science, and system engineering principles. Machine Learning (ML) algorithms play a key role in this concept by extracting meaningful knowledge from relational and graph databases, document repositories, and system artifacts, which the human user leverages to greatly improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their research. Recent advancements in the field of Large Language Models (LLMs), specifically models trained for tool use, such as Command-R , now allow for the reliable implementation of single-step and multi-step tool-centric systems. These techniques provide the LLM with a set of tools, in our case Python functions, that can be called on to answer a much wider range of questions compared to LLMs implemented using a traditional single-source or Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) approach. Through this method, the LLM can pull information from multiple data sources, such as relational or graph databases, document repositories, application programming interfaces (APIs), and SysML artifacts depending on the user’s question. The LLM can also output the information in a variety of different formats, using output generation tools, such as CSV, UML, or SysML artifacts. Additionally, tools can be assigned roles and can work together to provide answers to queries in an “agent” like approach, similar to that implemented by Microsoft’s AutoGen framework where different agents can converse with each other to accomplish tasks. Previously, our team developed a chatbot system with “agent like” functionality in the form of different “modes” the user could select from a user interface (UI), this architecture can be seen on the left in figure 1. Three different modes were implemented, the first mode allowed the LLM to utilize the structures and algorithms within a graph database to trace UAM requirements. The second mode gave the LLM access to a vector search capable of providing relevant information from thousands of document pages related to UAM ConOps and requirements. The third mode served as a general assistant where users could enter open-ended questions and custom prompts to utilize the LLM for different use-cases. This system improved the process surrounding generating and analyzing information related to UAM requirements, however, the implementation provided a clunky user experience. Users were required to know what mode to select within the UI in advance before entering their question to the selected tool. Moreover, the different tools were isolated from each other, they lacked bidirectional links that would allow for tools to collaborate to generate better responses. Our team is working on a new architecture, seen on the right in the below figure, with the goal to address many of the UX shortcomings of our original system while improving the accuracy and depth of responses from the LLM. This new system will automatically select the appropriate tool to use based off the user’s question. Each tool will be capable of calling on any of the other tools available to the LLM, resulting in a collaborative pipeline where tools can pass data between other tools until enough data is received to generate an answer to the user’s question. Using a locally deployed, open-source, LLM, the NASA OCARI team, in collaboration with Collins Aerospace, will implement a prototype application that will bridge knowledge across multiple sources to assist System Engineers (SEs) with requirements discovery and tracing, research question and use case identification, and assumption validation. Such a system will also allow SEs to more easily, and intuitively, explore the AAM ecosystem, ultimately improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the SE's research and decision-making processes surrounding ConOps development and validation. In this session, our team will provide a video demonstration of our new prototype architecture in action. We will also present an overview of our prototype system architecture and talk about its advantages over traditional LLM deployments along with how those advantages can provide additional value to the field of System Engineering.

systems engineering↗
NASA NTRS2010

Establishing Consensus Turbulence Statistics for Hot Subsonic Jets

Many tasks in fluids engineering require knowledge of the turbulence in jets. There is a strong, although fragmented, literature base for low order statistics, such as jet spread and other meanvelocity field characteristics. Some sources, particularly for low speed cold jets, also provide turbulence intensities that are required for validating Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) codes. There are far fewer sources for jet spectra and for space-time correlations of turbulent velocity required for aeroacoustics applications, although there have been many singular publications with various unique statistics, such as Proper Orthogonal Decomposition, designed to uncover an underlying low-order dynamical description of turbulent jet flow. As the complexity of the statistic increases, the number of flows for which the data has been categorized and assembled decreases, making it difficult to systematically validate prediction codes that require high-level statistics over a broad range of jet flow conditions. For several years, researchers at NASA have worked on developing and validating jet noise prediction codes. One such class of codes, loosely called CFD-based or statistical methods, uses RANS CFD to predict jet mean and turbulent intensities in velocity and temperature. These flow quantities serve as the input to the acoustic source models and flow-sound interaction calculations that yield predictions of far-field jet noise. To develop this capability, a catalog of turbulent jet flows has been created with statistics ranging from mean velocity to space-time correlations of Reynolds stresses. The present document aims to document this catalog and to assess the accuracies of the data, e.g. establish uncertainties for the data. This paper covers the following five tasks: Document acquisition and processing procedures used to create the particle image velocimetry (PIV) datasets. Compare PIV data with hotwire and laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV) data published in the open literature. Compare different datasets acquired at roughly the same flow conditions to establish uncertainties. Create a consensus dataset for a range of hot jet flows, including uncertainty bands. Analyze this consensus dataset for self-consistency and compare jet characteristics to those of the open literature. One final objective fulfilled by this work was the demonstration of a universal scaling for the jet flow fields, at least within the region of interest to aeroacoustics. The potential core length and the spread rate of the half-velocity radius were used to collapse of the mean and turbulent velocity fields over the first 20 jet diameters in a highly satisfying manner.

Bridges, James↗
NASA NTRS2003

Synthesis of Multispectral Bands from Hyperspectral Data: Validation Based on Images Acquired by AVIRIS, Hyperion, ALI, and ETM+

Spectral band synthesis is a key step in the process of creating a simulated multispectral image from hyperspectral data. In this step, narrow hyperspectral bands are combined into broader multispectral bands. Such an approach has been used quite often, but to the best of our knowledge accuracy of the band synthesis simulations has not been evaluated thus far. Therefore, the main goal of this paper is to provide validation of the spectral band synthesis algorithm used in the ART software. The next section contains a description of the algorithm and an example of its application. Using spectral responses of AVIRIS, Hyperion, ALI, and ETM+, the following section shows how the synthesized spectral bands compare with actual bands, and it presents an evaluation of the simulation accuracy based on results of MODTRAN modeling. In the final sections of the paper, simulated images are compared with data acquired by actual satellite sensors. First, a Landsat 7 ETM+ image is simulated using an AVIRIS hyperspectral data cube. Then, two datasets collected with the Hyperion instrument from the EO-1 satellite are used to simulate multispectral images from the ALI and ETM+ sensors.

Blonski, Slawomir↗
NASA NTRS2021

Australian tidal currents – assessment of a barotropic model (COMPAS v1.3.0 rev6631) with an unstructured grid

While the variations of tidal range are large and fairly well known across Australia (less than 1 m near Perth but more than 14 m in King Sound), the properties of the tidal currents are not. We describe a new regional model of Australian tides and assess it against a validation dataset comprising tidal height and velocity constituents at 615 tide gauge sites and 95 current meter sites. The model is a barotropic implementation of COMPAS, an unstructured-grid primitive-equation model that is forced at the open boundaries by TPXO9v1. The mean absolute error (MAE) of the modelled M2 height amplitude is 8.8 cm, or 12 % of the 73 cm mean observed amplitude. The MAE of phase (10°), however, is significant, so the M2 mean magnitude of vector error (MMVE, 18.2 cm) is significantly greater. The root sum square over the eight major constituents is 26 % of the observed amplitude. We conclude that while the model has skill at height in all regions, there is definitely room for improvement (especially at some specific locations). For the M2 major axis velocity amplitude, the MAE across the 95 current meter sites, where the observed amplitude ranges from 0.1 to 156 cm s −1 , is 6.9 cm s −1 , or 22 % of the 31.7 cm s −1 observed mean. This nationwide average result is encouraging, but it conceals a very large regional variation. Relative errors of the tidal current amplitudes on the narrow shelves of New South Wales (NSW) and Western Australia exceed 100 %, but tidal currents are weak and negligible there compared to non-tidal currents, so the tidal errors are of little practical significance. Looking nationwide, we show that the model has predictive value for much of the 79 % of Australia's shelf seas where tides are a major component of the total velocity variability. In descending order this includes the Bass Strait, the Kimberley to Arnhem Land, and southern Great Barrier Reef regions. There is limited observational evidence to confirm that the model is also valuable for currents in other regions across northern Australia. We plan to commence publishing “unofficial” tidal current predictions for chosen regions in the near future based on both our COMPAS model and the validation dataset we have assembled.

Tidal currents↗
NASA NTRS1997

Shape Optimization by Bayesian-Validated Computer-Simulation Surrogates

A nonparametric-validated, surrogate approach to optimization has been applied to the computational optimization of eddy-promoter heat exchangers and to the experimental optimization of a multielement airfoil. In addition to the baseline surrogate framework, a surrogate-Pareto framework has been applied to the two-criteria, eddy-promoter design problem. The Pareto analysis improves the predictability of the surrogate results, preserves generality, and provides a means to rapidly determine design trade-offs. Significant contributions have been made in the geometric description used for the eddy-promoter inclusions as well as to the surrogate framework itself. A level-set based, geometric description has been developed to define the shape of the eddy-promoter inclusions. The level-set technique allows for topology changes (from single-body,eddy-promoter configurations to two-body configurations) without requiring any additional logic. The continuity of the output responses for input variations that cross the boundary between topologies has been demonstrated. Input-output continuity is required for the straightforward application of surrogate techniques in which simplified, interpolative models are fitted through a construction set of data. The surrogate framework developed previously has been extended in a number of ways. First, the formulation for a general, two-output, two-performance metric problem is presented. Surrogates are constructed and validated for the outputs. The performance metrics can be functions of both outputs, as well as explicitly of the inputs, and serve to characterize the design preferences. By segregating the outputs and the performance metrics, an additional level of flexibility is provided to the designer. The validated outputs can be used in future design studies and the error estimates provided by the output validation step still apply, and require no additional appeals to the expensive analysis. Second, a candidate-based a posteriori error analysis capability has been developed which provides probabilistic error estimates on the true performance for a design randomly selected near the surrogate-predicted optimal design.

Patera, Anthony T.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Calibration of Predictor Models Using Multiple Validation Experiments

This paper presents a framework for calibrating computational models using data from several and possibly dissimilar validation experiments. The offset between model predictions and observations, which might be caused by measurement noise, model-form uncertainty, and numerical error, drives the process by which uncertainty in the models parameters is characterized. The resulting description of uncertainty along with the computational model constitute a predictor model. Two types of predictor models are studied: Interval Predictor Models (IPMs) and Random Predictor Models (RPMs). IPMs use sets to characterize uncertainty, whereas RPMs use random vectors. The propagation of a set through a model makes the response an interval valued function of the state, whereas the propagation of a random vector yields a random process. Optimization-based strategies for calculating both types of predictor models are proposed. Whereas the formulations used to calculate IPMs target solutions leading to the interval value function of minimal spread containing all observations, those for RPMs seek to maximize the models' ability to reproduce the distribution of observations. Regarding RPMs, we choose a structure for the random vector (i.e., the assignment of probability to points in the parameter space) solely dependent on the prediction error. As such, the probabilistic description of uncertainty is not a subjective assignment of belief, nor is it expected to asymptotically converge to a fixed value, but instead it casts the model's ability to reproduce the experimental data. This framework enables evaluating the spread and distribution of the predicted response of target applications depending on the same parameters beyond the validation domain.

Crespo, Luis G.↗
NASA NTRS2014

A New Hybrid Spatio-temporal Model for Estimating Daily Multi-year PM2.5 Concentrations Across Northeastern USA Using High Resolution Aerosol Optical Depth Data

The use of satellite-based aerosol optical depth (AOD) to estimate fine particulate matter PM(sub 2.5) for epidemiology studies has increased substantially over the past few years. These recent studies often report moderate predictive power, which can generate downward bias in effect estimates. In addition, AOD measurements have only moderate spatial resolution, and have substantial missing data. We make use of recent advances in MODIS satellite data processing algorithms (Multi-Angle Implementation of Atmospheric Correction (MAIAC), which allow us to use 1 km (versus currently available 10 km) resolution AOD data.We developed and cross validated models to predict daily PM(sub 2.5) at a 1X 1 km resolution across the northeastern USA (New England, New York and New Jersey) for the years 2003-2011, allowing us to better differentiate daily and long term exposure between urban, suburban, and rural areas. Additionally, we developed an approach that allows us to generate daily high-resolution 200 m localized predictions representing deviations from the area 1 X 1 km grid predictions. We used mixed models regressing PM(sub 2.5) measurements against day-specific random intercepts, and fixed and random AOD and temperature slopes. We then use generalized additive mixed models with spatial smoothing to generate grid cell predictions when AOD was missing. Finally, to get 200 m localized predictions, we regressed the residuals from the final model for each monitor against the local spatial and temporal variables at each monitoring site. Our model performance was excellent (mean out-of-sample R(sup 2) = 0.88). The spatial and temporal components of the out-of-sample results also presented very good fits to the withheld data (R(sup 2) = 0.87, R(sup)2 = 0.87). In addition, our results revealed very little bias in the predicted concentrations (Slope of predictions versus withheld observations = 0.99). Our daily model results show high predictive accuracy at high spatial resolutions and will be useful in reconstructing exposure histories for epidemiological studies across this region.

Air pollution↗
NASA NTRS1990

Thermomechanical deformation testing and modeling in the presence of metallurgical instabilities

A number of viscoplastic constitutive models were developed to describe deformation behavior under complex combinations of thermal and mechanical loading. Questions remain, however, regarding the validity of procedures used to characterize these models for specific structural alloys. One area of concern is that the majority of experimental data available for this purpose are determined under isothermal conditions. This experimental study is aimed at determining whether viscoplastic constitutive theories characterized using an isothermal data base can adequately model material response under the complex thermomechanical loading conditions typical of power generation service. The approach adopted was to conduct a series of carefully controlled thermomechanical experiments on a nickel-based superalloy, Hastelloy Alloy X. Previous investigations had shown that this material experiences metallurgical instabilities leading to complex hardening behavior, termed dynamic strain aging. Investigating this phenomenon under full thermomechanical conditions leads to a number of challenging experimental difficulties which up to the present work were unresolved. To correct this situation, a number of advances were made in thermomechanical testing techniques. Advanced methods for dynamic temperature gradient control, phasing control and thermal strain compensation were developed and incorporated into real time test control software. These advances allowed the thermomechanical data to be analyzed with minimal experimental uncertainty. The thermomechanical results were evaluated on both a phenomenological and microstructural basis. Phenomenological results revealed that the thermomechanical hardening trends were not bounded by those displayed under isothermal conditions. For the case of Hastelloy Alloy X (and similar dynamic strain aging materials), this strongly suggests that some form of thermomechanical testing is necessary when characterizing a thermoviscoplastic deformation model. Transmission electron microscopy was used to study the microstructural physics, and analyze the unique phenomenological behavior.

Castelli, Michael G.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Comparison of analysis and experiment for gearbox noise

Low contact ratio spur gears were tested in the NASA gear-noise rig to study the noise radiated from the top of the gearbox. Experimental results were compared with a NASA acoustics code to validate the code for predicting transmission noise. The analytical code is based on the boundary element method (BEM) which models the gearbox top as a plate in an infinite baffle. Narrow band vibration spectra measured at 63 nodes on the gearbox top were used to produce input data for the BEM model. The BEM code predicted the total sound power based on the measured vibration. The measured sound power was obtained from an acoustic intensity scan taken near the surface of the gearbox at the same 63 nodes used for vibration measurement. Analytical and experimental results were compared at four different speeds for sound power at each of the narrow band frequencies over the range of 400 to 3200 Hz. Results are also compared for the sound power level at meshing frequency plus three sideband pairs and at selected gearbox resonant frequencies. The difference between predicted and measure sound power is typically less than 3 dB with the predicted value generally less than the measured value.

Oswald, Fred B.↗
NASA NTRS1993

A method for the modelling of porous and solid wind tunnel walls in computational fluid dynamics codes

Porous wall wind tunnels have been used for several decades and have proven effective in reducing wall interference effects in both low speed and transonic testing. They allow for testing through Mach 1, reduce blockage effects and reduce shock wave reflections in the test section. Their usefulness in developing computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes has been limited, however, by the difficulties associated with modelling the effect of a porous wall in CFD codes. Previous approaches to modelling porous wall effects have depended either upon a simplified linear boundary condition, which has proven inadequate, or upon detailed measurements of the normal velocity near the wall, which require extensive wind tunnel time. The current work was initiated in an effort to find a simple, accurate method of modelling a porous wall boundary condition in CFD codes. The development of such a method would allow data from porous wall wind tunnels to be used more readily in validating CFD codes. This would be beneficial when transonic validations are desired, or when large models are used to achieve high Reynolds numbers in testing. A computational and experimental study was undertaken to investigate a new method of modelling solid and porous wall boundary conditions in CFD codes. The method utilized experimental measurements at the walls to develop a flow field solution based on the method of singularities. This flow field solution was then imposed as a pressure boundary condition in a CFD simulation of the internal flow field. The effectiveness of this method in describing the effect of porosity changes on the wall was investigated. Also, the effectiveness of this method when only sparse experimental measurements were available has been investigated. The current work demonstrated this approach for low speed flows and compared the results with experimental data obtained from a heavily instrumented variable porosity test section. The approach developed was simple, computationally inexpensive, and did not require extensive or intrusive measurements of the boundary conditions during the wind tunnel test. It may be applied to both solid and porous wall wind tunnel tests.

Beutner, Thomas John↗
NASA NTRS1994

Directional and polarimetric effects in the optical domain

Papers focused on land surface, atmospheric, and ocean properties are reported. Specific comments pertaining to polarization, models and inversion, and measurements, are given. Recommendations are: continued research into the application potential of the BRDF (Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function) and polarization properties of ground surface and atmospheric targets; three dimensional models, which account for the statistical behavior of remotely sensed data, should be extended and inverted in order to support analysis of data potentially covering rolling terrain such that pixels represent heterogeneous mixtures of surface cover types and project ground footprints with sizes between 10 to 6 km, the ground pixel sizes of planned future sensors; available reflectance models should be further validated by means of multi dimensional (directional, spectral, temporal) field data and existing models should be intercompared in more depth to evaluate their performance and limitations; existing methods for model inversion should be validated in more depth in order to quantify the practical limitations and the expected accuracy of the parameters retrieved and new approaches should be developed based upon apriori knowledge of plant canopy development and spectral BRDF properties; there is a need to establish a protocol of validation and intercomparison of the indices and compositing techniques which have been proposed during these last years.

Vanderbilt, V. C.↗
NASA NTRS2001

A New "Cloud Mode" for the AERONET

A key to predicting climate change is to observe an understand the global distribution of clouds and their physical properties such as optical thickness and droplet size. Since clouds change rapidly over short time and space intervals, they are difficult to simulate in computer models. But it is essential that global climate models predict realistic spatial and temporal distribution of cloud optical depth. The best way to verify these distributions is to infer optical depth from global coverage satellite data. However, satellite methods have many sources of uncertainty; thus, independent and reliable ground-based estimates are essential for validation. For aerosol, there is the AERONET - a ground based monitoring network that consists of identical multi-channel radiometers for assessing aerosol optical properties and validating their satellite retrievals. In addition to AEROSOL, we want the network monitoring CLOUD optical properties. It will use AERONET "time" (inappropriate for aerosol studies) to make basic new measurements related to cloud physics. In the presentation we will report on a new technique that retrieves cloud optical thickness for even broken clouds above green vegetation from surface measurements of zenith radiance in the visible (VIS) and near-IR (NIR) spectral regions. The idea of the method is simple: since green vegetation reflects 40-50% of incoming radiation in the NIR and only 5-10% in the VIS region, ground measurements under thin clouds have little spectral contrast between VIS and NIR, while thick clouds reflect much more of the surface-reflected radiation in the NIR than in VIS. Based on this idea, we use a combination of measurements (spectral indices) in VIS and NIR to estimate cloud optical thickness. By analogy with NDVI, the simplest index that can be defined is the Normalized Difference Cloud Index (NDCI) which is a ratio between the difference and the sum of two radiances measured for two narrow spectral bands in VIS and NIR.

Marshak, Alexander↗
NASA NTRS2011

Design and Analysis of a Stiffened Composite Structure Repair Concept

A design and analysis of a repair concept applicable to a stiffened thin-skin composite panel based on the Pultruded Rod Stitched Efficient Unitized Structure is presented. Since the repair concept is a bolted repair using metal components, it can easily be applied in the operational environment. Initial analyses are aimed at validating the finite element modeling approach by comparing with available test data. Once confidence in the analysis approach is established several repair configurations are explored and the most efficient one presented. Repairs involving damage to the top of the stiffener alone are considered in addition to repairs involving a damaged stiffener, flange and underlying skin. High fidelity finite element modeling techniques such as mesh-independent definition of compliant fasteners, elastic-plastic metallic material properties and geometrically nonlinear analysis are utilized in the effort. The results of the analysis are presented and factors influencing the design are assessed and discussed.

Przekop, Adam↗
NASA NTRS2015

Evidence Report: Risk of Acute and Late Central Nervous System Effects from Radiation Exposure

Possible acute and late risks to the central nervous system (CNS) from galactic cosmic rays (GCR) and solar particle events (SPE) are a documented concern for human exploration of space. Acute CNS risks include: altered cognitive function, reduced motor function, and behavioral changes, all of which may affect performance and human health. Late CNS risks include neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), dementia and premature aging. Although detrimental CNS changes are observed in humans treated with high-dose radiation (e.g., gamma rays and protons) for cancer and are supported by experimental evidence showing neurocognitive and behavioral effects in animal models, the significance of these results on the morbidity to astronauts has not been elucidated. There is a lack of human epidemiology data on which to base CNS risk estimates; therefore, risk projection based on scaling to human data, as done for cancer risk, is not possible for CNS risks. Research specific to the spaceflight environment using animal and cell models must be compiled to quantify the magnitude of CNS changes in order to estimate this risk and to establish validity of the current permissible exposure limits (PELs). In addition, the impact of radiation exposure in combination with individual sensitivity or other space flight factors, as well as assessment of the need for biological/pharmaceutical countermeasures, will be considered after further definition of CNS risk occurs.

Nelson, Gregory A.↗
NASA NTRS2016

Evidence Report: Risk of Acute and Late Central Nervous System Effects from Radiation Exposure

Possible acute and late risks to the central nervous system (CNS) from galactic cosmic rays (GCR) and solar particle events (SPE) are concerns for human exploration of space. Acute CNS risks may include: altered cognitive function, reduced motor function, and behavioral changes, all of which may affect performance and human health. Late CNS risks may include neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), dementia and premature aging. Although detrimental CNS changes are observed in humans treated with high-dose radiation (e.g., gamma rays and 9 protons) for cancer and are supported by experimental evidence showing neurocognitive and behavioral effects in animal models, the significance of these results on the morbidity to astronauts has not been elucidated. There is a lack of human epidemiology data on which to base CNS risk estimates; therefore, risk projection based on scaling to human data, as done for cancer risk, is not possible for CNS risks. Research specific to the spaceflight environment using animal and cell models must be compiled to quantify the magnitude of CNS changes in order to estimate this risk and to establish validity of the current permissible exposure limits (PELs). In addition, the impact of radiation exposure in combination with individual sensitivity or other space flight factors, as well as assessment of the need for biological/pharmaceutical countermeasures, will be considered after further definition of CNS risk occurs.

Nelson, Gregory A.↗