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At least 667 records · Page 37

GridCoPilot for Thermal Events: An LLM-Based Platform for Power Grid Reliability Analysis

Large Language Models show promise for translating natural language into database queries, but deploying such systems in safety-critical domains requires high reliability. We present an application of GridCoPilot to thermal event analysis (heatwaves and coldwaves) that affect power grid reliability. Our approach uses a LangChain SQL Agent to translate natural language queries into auditable SQL statements, with deterministic visualization routines that parse the structured query results. We introduce structural framing as a design principle, we integrate a NERC-region-level event library with county-level meteorology and decompose the combined data into three relational tables (event metadata, county-level event details, and a county-to-NERC subregion mapping), using prompt-guided joins to direct the model toward correct multi-table queries. For two core analytical patterns (identifying worst events by region and by region-year), the system achieved 100% SQL accuracy across all 16 NERC subregions and both event types (64 queries total). These results validate the approach for target use cases, though performance on diverse natural language formulations requires further investigation. We discuss design trade-offs, failure modes including JSON output truncation, and pathways for extending this approach to other hazard domains.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Epidemiology, Clinical Features, and Outcomes of Coccidioidomycosis, Utah, 2006–2015

On the basis of a 1957 geographic Coccidioides seropositivity survey, 3 counties in southwestern Utah, USA, were considered coccidioidomycosis-endemic, but there has been a paucity of information on the disease burden in Utah since. We report findings from a recent clinical and epidemiologic study of coccidioidomycosis in Utah. To describe clinical characteristics, we identified all coccidioidomycosis cases in an integrated health system in the state during 2006–2015. For epidemiologic analysis, we used cases reported to the Utah Department of Health during 2009–2015. Mean state incidence was 1.83 cases/100,000 population/year. Washington County, in southwestern Utah, had the highest incidence, 17.2 cases/100,000 population/year. In a generalized linear model with time as a fixed effect, mean annual temperature, population, and new construction were associated with regional variations in incidence. Using these variables in a spatiotemporal model, we estimated the adjusted regional variation by county to predict areas where Coccidioides infections might increase.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Viability of Reclaiming Municipal Wastewater for Potential Microalgae-Based Biofuel Production in the U.S.

Reclaimed municipal wastewater is a crucial component in biofuel production, especially in regions experiencing increasing freshwater scarcity. However, accurately estimating the potential for fuel production is challenging because of the uneven distribution of biofuel feedstock regions and wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). This study assesses the viability of using reclaimed municipal water for algal biomass production in pond systems co-located with WWTPs under scenarios driven by biomass production and based on water transport logistics. We performed state- and county-level analysis of reclaimed water resources throughout the United States based on WWTP facility data. We overlaid these data onto estimated algae facility sites and examined the temporal resource availability to address seasonal variations in cultivation demand. Our findings reveal that 2694 billion liters per year of reclaimed water could potentially be used to produce 42.2 million metric tons (ash-free dry weight) of algal biomass, equivalent to 29.2 billion liters of renewable diesel equivalent (RDe). The use of reclaimed water would double current national water reuse and expand such reuse significantly in 455 counties across the United States. However, when we limit the construction of algae facilities to counties that can fully meet their water demand in order to minimize water transport burdens, the available supply decreases by 80%, to 512 billion liters, resulting in annual production of 12.2 billion liters of RDe, which still doubles current biodiesel production. Our analysis highlights the degree to which the location and flow of WWTPs and water transport affect the deployment of algae biofuel facilities and tradeoffs. These findings underscore the importance of improving the current WWTP infrastructure for reclaimed water reuse, especially in southern states.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

Projections of Hourly Meteorology by Balancing Authority Based on the IM3/HyperFACETS Thermodynamic Global Warming (TGW) Simulations

This dataset contains 40 years (1980-2019) of historical hourly meteorology and 80 years (2020-2099) of projected hourly meteorology for 54 Balancing Authorities (BAs) in the conterminous United States. Details about the scenarios and variables included in this dataset are in the readme.pdf file. This dataset is derived from the IM3/HyperFACETS Thermodynamic Global Warming (TGW) simulations (https://doi.org/10.57931/1885756). More details on the TGW approach can be found at: https://tgw-data.msdlive.org/. If you use this dataset please also cite the raw TGW dataset (Jones, A. D., Rastogi, D., Vahmani, P., Stansfield, A., Reed, K., Thurber, T., Ullrich, P., & Rice, J. S. (2022). IM3/HyperFACETS Thermodynamic Global Warming (TGW) Simulation Datasets (v1.0.0) [Data set]. MSD-LIVE Data Repository. https://doi.org/10.57931/1885756). To go from the TGW data to these BA-level aggregated data we first averaged the raw gridded data by county in the United States. That intermediate data step is also stored in MSD-LIVE (https://doi.org/10.57931/1960548). We then population-weight the county-level hourly data in order to create population-weighted meteorology time series for each BA. Historical populations are from the United States Census Bureau and the evolving future populations are based on Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) 3 and 5. The four climate scenarios crossed with the two SSPs yield eight different future projections for each BA: rcp45cooler_ssp3, rcp45cooler_ssp5, rcp45hotter_ssp3, rcp45hotter_ssp5, rcp85cooler_ssp3, rcp85cooler_ssp5, rcp85hotterssp3, rcp85hotterssp5. For the historical period and each of the eight future scenarios the dataset has hourly estimates of the population-weighted average of five meteorological variables: Temperature, specific humidity, shortwave radiation, longwave radiation, and wind speed. All times are in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). The code to go from the raw TGW data to county-level and then BA-level projections is available at: https://github.com/IMMM-SFA/im3components/tree/main/im3components/wrf_to_tell.

Balancing Authority↗

Data for "Divergent urban land trajectories under alternative population projections within the shared socioeconomic pathways"

Datasets supporting findings and visualizations behind McManamay et al. (2024) Divergent urban land trajectories under alternative population projections within the shared socioeconomic pathways. Environmental Research Letters, DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/ad2eec Using a spatial modeling experiment at high resolution (1-km), this study compared how two alternative US population projections, varying in the spatially explicit nature of demographic patterns and migration, affect urban land dynamics simulated by the Spatially Explicit, Long-term, Empirical City development (SELECT) model for SSP2, SSP3, and SSP5. The numerical experiment, inputs and outputs are fully described in McManamay et al. (2024). The datasets summarize SELECT model simulations within urban areas and rural areas of the conterminous United States. For code to reproduce the results, please refer to https://github.com/IMMM-SFA/mcmanamay_etal_2024_erl Please refer to the README file provided in Files for more details. Descriptions of the datasets are provided below. Dataset(s) Descriptions: Urban_Land_delta_UA_County.csv: Urban land area for original (default) population, updated population, and urban land delta (difference between the two) according to Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) and year. Urban land is summarized for U.S. counties (FIPS code) and urban areas (GEOID) as unique areas within various counties. JO_Gao_pop_ufdelta.csv: Comparison of population differences and urban land differences between the origial (default) and updated population projections. City_Case_studies.csv: Differences in urban land areas arising from different population projections summarized for selected cities (Atlanta, Los Angeles, Houston, and New York) and their surrounding rural areas UA_county_FID.zip: Zipped folder of .tiff file depicting unique combination of urban areas and US counties used for summarizing urban land differences in urban and rural areas based on different population projections. ULD_clusters.zip: Zipped folder of .csv files depicting normalized changes in urban land delta (difference in urban land arising from population projections) and the respective Ward's hierarchical clusters, which group urban and rural areas based on similarities in temporal trends. Urban_Percent_change_2100.zip: Zipped folder of .csv files depicting percent changes in urban land area for year 2100 based on differences in the original (default) population and updated population. Each file is for SSPs and urban or rural areas.

Land↗

Urban Parameters Arizona Urban Corridor 100m

132 Urban parameters based on building physical dimensions and location were generated for the cities in six Arizona Counties at 100m resolution using the NATURF model. To use the binary file with WRF, the binary file and the index file must be placed in their own directory in WRF_GEOG and accessed in the same way NUDAPT44 would be accessed.

Dumas, Melissa [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000233190846)↗

Package Data for CERF-Data Centers

This dataset contains sample input 100m resolution raster files for running the CERF-DC python package (see https://github.com/IMMM-SFA/cerf_data_centers) at the state level across the CONUS. Due to data availability constraints, some of the items included in this dataset are proxies or assumptions for siting factors used in the model. These are individually noted in the item descriptions and can be exchanged with more detailed information upon availability. Data Descriptions The following raster files are included in the data download: state_siting_region.tif — State areas identified by state FIPS code composite_siting_suitability.tif — Value of 1 indicates suitable siting location, 0 otherwise. The following areas are excluded from siting: Areas within 300m of a federal airport runway Waterbodies Areas with slope >16% Areas susceptible to sinkholes High coastal or inland flood risk areas Local, state, and federal parks, leisure areas, and cemeteries Areas >2 km away from electric substations Areas >5 km away from a municipal water supplier service area Areas >2 km away from high-speed fiber provider service territory Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) areas Railroads, major roadways, and minor roadways Military areas and training grounds Developed lands Areas >0.8 km (0.5 miles) from developed lands land_value_dollar_per_sqft.tif — USD per square foot (sqft) derived from USDA $/acre land cost personal_property_tax_rate.tif — Personal property tax rate by state. Uses an assumed 0.0125 personal property tax rate for states with personal property tax, 0 for states without personal property tax. real_property_tax_rate.tif — Real property tax rate. Based on county level residential real estate property tax rates. sales_tax_rate.tif — Sales tax rate by state. mechanical_cooling_fraction.tif — Fraction of year (values between 0 and 1, inclusive) that the data center would be cooled through mechanical processes based on local water stress and humidity levels. water_cooling_fraction.tif — Fraction of year (values between 0 and 1, inclusive) that the data center would be cooled through evaporative (water cooled) processes based on local water stress and humidity levels. distance_to_substation.tif — Distance to nearest substation in hundreds of meters (i.e., value of 1 equals a distance of 100m). Offshore areas have a value of 0. industrial_electricity_rates_dollar_per_kwh.tif — USD/kWh industrial electricity rates. Represents the average industrial rate across all utilities that operate within a given county. Values are derived from the US Utility Rate Database. commercial_electricity_rates_dollar_per_kwh.tif — USD/kWh commercial electricity rates. Represents the average commercial rate across all utilities that operate within a given county. Values are derived from the US Utility Rate Database. data_center_market_locations.tif — Grid cells with positive values represent the centroid of existing data center market clusters. The value of non-zero grid cells represents the number of data centers in the market cluster. All other grid cells have a value of 0. Geospatial Metadata CRS: Albers Equal Area Conic (ESRI:102003) Extent: -2415585.0000000023283064,-1441981.2605773280374706 : 2384414.9999999976716936,1708018.7394226719625294 Dimensions: X: 48000 Y: 31500 Bands: 1 Origin: -2415585.0000000023283064,1708018.7394226719625294 Pixel Size: 100,-100 Acknowledgment IM3 is a multi-institutional effort led by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science as part of research in MultiSector Dynamics, Earth and Environmental Systems Modeling Program. License This data is made available under a CCBY4.0 License Disclaimer This material was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor the United States Department of Energy, nor the Contractor, nor any or their employees, nor any jurisdiction or organization that has cooperated in the development of these materials, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness or any information, apparatus, product, software, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof, or Battelle Memorial Institute. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. PACIFIC NORTHWEST NATIONAL LABORATORYoperated byBATTELLEfor theUNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF ENERGYunder Contract DE-AC05-76RL01830

Mongird, Kendall↗

Package Data for CERF-Data Centers

This dataset contains sample input 100m resolution raster files for running the CERF-DC python package (see https://github.com/IMMM-SFA/cerf_data_centers) at the state level across the CONUS. Due to data availability constraints, some of the items included in this dataset are proxies or assumptions for siting factors used in the model. These are individually noted in the item descriptions and can be exchanged with more detailed information upon availability. Data Descriptions The following raster files are included in the data download: state_siting_region.tif — State areas identified by state FIPS code composite_siting_suitability.tif — Value of 1 indicates suitable siting location, 0 otherwise. The following areas are excluded from siting: Areas within 300 m of a federal airport runway or within an airport area boundary Waterbodies Areas with slope >16% Areas susceptible to sinkholes High coastal or inland flood risk areas Local, state, and federal parks, leisure areas, and cemeteries Areas >2 km away from electric substations Areas >5 km away from a municipal water supplier service area Areas >2 km away from high-speed fiber provider service territory USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) GAP status 1, 2, or 3 areas US National Parks Wetlands USFWS critical habitats BIA land areas Railroads, major roadways, and minor roadways Military areas and training grounds NLCD developed lands Areas >0.8 km (0.5 miles) from NLCD developed lands land_value_dollar_per_sqft.tif — USD per square foot (sqft) derived from USDA $/acre land cost personal_property_tax_rate.tif — Personal property tax rate by state. Uses an assumed 0.0125 personal property tax rate for states with personal property tax, 0 for states without personal property tax. real_property_tax_rate.tif — Real property tax rate. Based on county level residential real estate property tax rates. sales_tax_rate.tif — Sales tax rate by state. mechanical_cooling_fraction.tif — Fraction of year (values between 0 and 1, inclusive) that the data center would be cooled through mechanical processes based on local water stress and humidity levels. water_cooling_fraction.tif — Fraction of year (values between 0 and 1, inclusive) that the data center would be cooled through evaporative (water cooled) processes based on local water stress and humidity levels. distance_to_substation.tif — Distance to nearest substation in hundreds of meters (i.e., value of 1 equals a distance of 100m). Offshore areas have a value of 0. industrial_electricity_rates_dollar_per_kwh.tif — USD/kWh industrial electricity rates. Represents the average industrial rate across all utilities that operate within a given county. Values are derived from the US Utility Rate Database. commercial_electricity_rates_dollar_per_kwh.tif — USD/kWh commercial electricity rates. Represents the average commercial rate across all utilities that operate within a given county. Values are derived from the US Utility Rate Database. data_center_market_locations.tif — Grid cells with positive values represent the centroid of existing data center market clusters. The value of non-zero grid cells represents the number of data centers in the market cluster. All other grid cells have a value of 0. Geospatial Metadata CRS: Albers Equal Area Conic (ESRI:102003) Extent: -2415585.0000000023283064,-1441981.2605773280374706 : 2384414.9999999976716936,1708018.7394226719625294 Dimensions: X: 48000 Y: 31500 Bands: 1 Origin: -2415585.0000000023283064,1708018.7394226719625294 Pixel Size: 100,-100 Acknowledgment IM3 is a multi-institutional effort led by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science as part of research in MultiSector Dynamics, Earth and Environmental Systems Modeling Program. License This data is made available under a CCBY4.0 License Disclaimer This material was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor the United States Department of Energy, nor the Contractor, nor any or their employees, nor any jurisdiction or organization that has cooperated in the development of these materials, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness or any information, apparatus, product, software, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof, or Battelle Memorial Institute. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. PACIFIC NORTHWEST NATIONAL LABORATORYoperated byBATTELLEfor theUNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF ENERGYunder Contract DE-AC05-76RL01830

Mongird, Kendall↗

Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. Environmental Impact Statement

This is an institutional environmental impact statement relating to the overall operation of the NASA, Flight Research Center. The Center is located in Kern County, California, approximately 100 miles northeast of Los Angeles. Flight activities relate primarily to areas in the vicinity of Los Angeles, Kern, Inyo and San Bernardino counties in Southern California; and to areas in Southern Nevada (principally Nye and Clark counties. Operations of the Flight Research Center have a very neglibible impact on the environment; and they are planned and controlled to eliminate or minimize effects on water, air and noise.

Source record↗

Automated thematic mapping and change detection of ERTS-1 images

The author has identified the following significant results. An ERTS-1 image was compared to aircraft photography and maps of an area near Brownsville, Texas. In the coastal region of Cameron County, natural and cultural detail were identified in the ERTS-1 image. In Hidalgo County, ground truth was located on the ERTS-1 image. Haze and 50% cloud cover over Hidalgo County reduced the usefulness of multispectral techniques for recognizing crops.

Gramenopoulos, N.↗

Comparative evaluation of ERTS-A imagery for resource inventory in land use planning

There are no author-identified significant results in this report. Evaluation has begun on ERTS-1 imagery of Crook County for use in landform interpretation and geologic mapping and interpretation. Outside of Crook County the geology team has been impressed by the display of fault patterns in southeastern Oregon and has begun preliminary analyses of these. Using the color combiner a complete timber type map of (1) all the forest land within Crook County, and (2) all the Ochoco National Forest has been completed. The timber types consist of five density classes which are correlated with different species compositions as the first step in the multistage forest inventory. Using the ERTS magnetic tape data the computer center has produced a 12 by 25 mile strip printout of bands 5, 6, and 7. The computer printouts are to be analyzed for different timber types and possible insect damage. Other results are: (1) limited number of clearcuts in eastern Oregon and in Cascades evident; (2) positive transparencies of band 5 appear to be too dark for maximum information of forested areas; and (3) much more information in the computer printouts of bands 6 and 7, than 5, when analyzing forest conditions.

Simonson, G. H.↗

Identification and interpretation of tectonic features from ERTS-A imagery

The author has identified the following significant results. When comparing the ERTS-1 imagery with the United States Air Force Operational Navigation Chart, mapping errors were found in Baja California and in the coastal islands off mainland Mexico. One dramatic error noted was the Isla Tortuga which is located 9 to 9.5 km to the west of its photo location. One ERTS-1 photo shows the size of the four islands, Isla San Juanito, Isla Maria Madre, Isla Maria Magdalena, and Isla Maria Cleofas, to be much smaller than the ONC map depicts them. A prominent zone of structural and physiographic lineaments extending approximately from San Fernando, Los Angeles County towards the Oxnard area in Ventura County in an east-north-east trend were observed. In Ventura County several previously unknown faults within this zone were identified and their traces plotted on large scale maps and 1:60,000 aerial photographs. This important fault zone is significant because it trends parallel to and partly coincides with a recent belt of seismicity related to the San Fernando 1971 earthquake.

Abdel-Gawad, M.↗

A study of the utilization of ERTS-1 data from the Wabash River Basin

The author has identified the following significant results. In soil association mapping, computerized analysis of ERTS-1 MSS data has yielded images which will prove useful in the ongoing Cooperative Soil Survey program, involving the Soil Conservation Service of USDA and other state and local agencies. In the present mode of operation, a soil survey for a county may take up to 5 years to be completed. Results indicate that a great deal of soils information can be extracted from ERTS-1 data by computer analysis. This information is expected to be very valuable in the premapping conference phase of a soil survey, resulting in more efficient field operations during the actual mapping. In the earth surface features mapping effort it was found that temporal data improved the classification accuracy of forest classification in Tippecanoe County, Indiana. In water resources study a severe scanner look angle effect was observed in the aircraft scanner data of a test lake which was not present in ERTS-1 data of the same site. This effect was greatly accentuated by surface roughness caused by strong winds. Quantitative evaluation of urban features classification in ERTS-1 data was obtained. An 87.1% test accuracy was obtained for eight categories in Marion County, Indiana.

Landgrebe, D. A.↗

NASA/Drexel program

The results are reported of the NASA/Drexel research effort which was conducted in two separate phases. The initial phase stressed exploration of the problem from the point of view of three primary research areas and the building of a multidisciplinary team. The final phase consisted of a clinical demonstration program in which the research associates consulted with the County Executive of New Castle County, Delaware, to aid in solving actual problems confronting the County Government. The three primary research areas of the initial phase are identified as technology, management science, and behavioral science. Five specific projects which made up the research effort are treated separately. A final section contains the conclusions drawn from total research effort as well as from the specific projects.

Source record↗

Reflectance of vegetation, soil, and water

The author has identified the following significant results. The majority of the rangelands of Hidalgo County, Texas are used in cow-calf operations. Continuous year-long grazing is practiced on about 60% of the acreage and some type of deferred system on the rest. Mechanical brush control is used more than chemical control. Ground surveys gave representative estimates for 15 vegetable crops produced in Hidalgo County. ERTS-1 data were used to estimate the acreage of citrus in the county. Combined Kubleka Munk and regression models, that included a term for shadow areas, gave a higher correlation of composite canopy reflectance with ground truth than either model alone.

Wiegand, C. L.↗

Determination of points of entry for potential contaminants into limestone aquifers using thermal infrared imagery

Lineations were identified involving the application of ERTS imagery to geologic and hydrologic problems. Interpretation of the southwest Madison County area is discussed. The tracing of the Beech Grove lineament to the northern boundary of Madison County, Alabama raises the question of its relationship to the trend of lineations in southwestern Madison County. The use of thermography as an indication of soil moisture is reviewed. The effect of soil moisture on surface temperature and the relationship between soil moisture and ground water are examined.

Doyle, F. L.↗

Photomorphic mapping for land-use planning

A comparison of different land types based on their physical and environmental characteristics is seen as a useful, if not vital, element of land-use planning decisions. The use of the photomorphic-mapping technique is described in order to delineate and compare the different land types in Boulder County, Colorado, according to their constraints and values for agricultural and urban uses. Employing high-altitude color infrared aerial photography of Boulder County at a scale of 1:100,000, photomorphic areas were delineated according to similarities in pattern, tone, and texture on the photographs. The boundaries of the areas were checked and adjusted using information from thematic maps and sampling data. Constraints on specific land uses in the county could then be described on a regional basis using the photomorphic areas as a framework.

Nichol, J. E.↗