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At least 685 records · Page 38
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1984

Topography of the shield volcano, Olympus Mons on Mars

Olympus Mons, one of the largest known shield volcanoes in the solar system, covers an area of more than 3.2 x 10 to the 5th sq km and has a diameter of more than 600 km, excluding its vast aureole deposits. The structure is five times larger than the largest shield volcano on the earth. It is situated on the north-west flank of the Tharsis volcanic region, a broad topographic rise on the Martian surface. The volcano has three physical subdivisions: the summit caldera, the terraced upper flanks, and the lower flanks, which terminate in a scarp 2-10 km high that nearly surrounds the structure. A large block of images of the Tharsis region, including Olympus Mons, was obtained by the Viking mission. A topographic map of Olympus Mons is presented here, which has been compiled using various combinations of stereo pairs of these images, together with stereoscopic perspective views generated by image processing techniques.

Wu, S. S. C.↗
NASA NTRS1984

SIR-B interferometric topography

An interferometric method of using the shuttle imaging radar-B (SIR-B) data for high resolution elevation measurements is to be developed. It is proposed that signals from separate SIR-B passes be combined to provide the equivalent of an interferometer. Data acquisition and handling are considered along with expected results.

Goldstein, R. M.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Effect of counterface material type and its topography on the tribological properties of polyimide composites

Graphite fiber reinforced polyimide composite pins were slid against seven different counterfaces to determine the effect of material type on the tribological properties of polymer composites. In addition, the effect of sliding a new pin on a pre-established transfer film was investigated. The results indicated that almost a five order of magnitude difference in composite wear rate can occur just by varying the counterface material. An attempt to make all surfaces as smooth as possible was made, but due to differences in material composition this was not possible and a range of surface roughnesses were obtained. The results indicate that the smoother the surface, the lower the composite wear rate; but that small protrusions (not discernible with arithmetic surface roughness measurements) can markedly increase wear rates. A pre-established transfer film improved both run in and steady state wear rates.

Fusaro, R. L.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Modeling crater topography and albedo from monoscopic Viking Orbiter images. I - Methodology

The methodology for a new photoclinometric technique for extracting topographic data from planetary images is described. The technique fully compensates for oblique viewing geometry prevalent in many spacecraft images. Brightness data are taken from a pair of profiles simultaneously, overcoming the problem of albedo variations in the application of photoclinometry to planetary surfaces. An additional procedure is described for eliminating the requirement of topographic symmetry along a pair of profiles. Test results show that both procedures have an accuracy of about two degrees for slopes of typical bowl-shaped craters, or about 5 percent for depths.

Davis, P. A.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Sound propagation over uneven ground and irregular topography

The acoustic impedance of the surface coverings used in the laboratory experiments on sound diffraction by topographical ridges was determined. The model, which was developed, takes into account full wave effects and the possibility of surface waves and predicts the sound pressure level at the receiver location relative to what would be expected if the flat surface were not present. The sound pressure level can be regarded as a function of frequency, sound speed in air, heights of source and receiver, and horizontal distance from source to receiver, as well as the real and imaginary parts of the surface impedance.

Berthelot, Yves H.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Subsidence of topography on Io

The underlying roots of Io's topographic features are softened and eroded by contact with the hot mantle, resulting in a subsidence which is analogous to the progress of a butter pat on a frying pan. This process would be offset by crustal thickening due to continuing volcanism if the rate for this phenomenon were more than the observed 1 cm/year or less. Because the crustal thinning would occur at about 50 cm/year if the material underneath were a pure magma ocean, Io cannot have a global magna ocean, and interior viscosities greater than about 10 to the 10th P are implied.

Webb, Erik K.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Streaking images that appear only in the plane of diffraction in undoped GaAs single crystals: Diffraction imaging (topography) by monochromatic synchrotron radiation

Streaking images restricted to the direction of the diffraction (scattering) vector have been observed on transmission through undoped GaAs. These disruption images (caused by the reduction of diffraction in the direction of observation) appear both in the forward and in Bragg diffracted directions in monochromatic synchrontron radiation diffraction imaging. This previously unobserved phenomenon can be explained in terms of planar defects (interfaces) or platelets which affects the absorption coefficient in anomalous transmission. Such regions of the crystal look perfect despite the presence of imperfections when the scattering vector is not perpendicular to the normal of the platelets. The observed crystallographic orientation of these interfaces strongly indicates that they are antiphase boundaries.

Kuriyama, Masao↗
NASA NTRS1988

Applications of synchrotron radiation to materials science: Diffraction imaging (topography) and microradiography

Synchrotron radiation sources are now available throughout the world. The use of hard X-ray radiation from these sources for materials science is described with emphasis on diffraction imaging for material characterization. With the availability of synchrotron radiation, real-time in situ measurements of dynamic microstructural phenomena have been started. This is a new area where traditional application of X-rays has been superseded. Examples are chosen from limited areas and are by no means exhaustive. The new emerging information will, no doubt, have great impact on materials science and engineering.

Kuriyama, Masao↗
NASA NTRS1987

Ring furrows - Inversion of topography in Martian highland terrains

Viking Orbiter images showing ring furrows (as defined by De Hon, 1984) and related structures on the Martian highlands are presented and analyzed. It is pointed out that ring furrows occur only on modified or dissected plains and plains within hilly or cratered terrain, that all ring furrows are breached in some way, and that they appear to arise at the same time as nearby valley systems (although they do not contain small valleys themselves). A number of features with some similarities to ring furrows are discussed, and it is suggested that the furrows arise as a result of a sequence of processes including crater formation on a plains surface, partial burial by plains-forming materials, and preferential water/ice erosion of the exposed rim. The presence of significant ground-water/ice storage systems near ring furrows is inferred.

De Hon, Rene A.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Effects of lateral viscosity variations on long-wavelength geoid anomalies and topography

The effects of lateral variations in the earth mantle viscosity, due to temperature- or stress-dependent rheology, on the long-wavelength geoid anomalies are examined. Results from simple perturbation theory combined with findings from numerical models for convective flow led to a conclusion that the geoid due to the very longest wavelength convective patterns (l = 2,3) on earth is probably not seriously contaminated by lateral variations due either to temperature or stress dependence. Considerable contamination of the higher-degree geoid (l value of no less than 4) is to be expected due to lateral viscosity variations in phase with the fundamental convection scale length.

Richards, Mark A.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Surface topography of the Greenland Ice Sheet from satellite radar altimetry

Surface elevation maps of the southern half of the Greenland subcontinent are produced from radar altimeter data acquired by the Seasat satellite. A summary of the processing procedure and examples of return waveform data are given. The elevation data are used to generate a regular grid which is then computer contoured to provide an elevation contour map. Ancillary maps show the statistical quality of the elevation data and various characteristics of the surface. The elevation map is used to define ice flow directions and delineate the major drainage basins. Regular maps of the Jakobshavns Glacier drainage basin and the ice divide in the vicinity of Crete Station are presented. Altimeter derived elevations are compared with elevations measured both by satellite geoceivers and optical surveying.

Bindschadler, Robert A.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Dynamical diffraction imaging (topography) with X-ray synchrotron radiation

By contrast to electron microscopy, which yields information on the location of features in small regions of materials, X-ray diffraction imaging can portray minute deviations from perfect crystalline order over larger areas. Synchrotron radiation-based X-ray optics technology uses a highly parallel incident beam to eliminate ambiguities in the interpretation of image details; scattering phenomena previously unobserved are now readily detected. Synchrotron diffraction imaging renders high-resolution, real-time, in situ observations of materials under pertinent environmental conditions possible.

Kuriyama, M.↗
NASA NTRS1990

High-resolution topography and albedo of the South Polar layered deposits on Mars

Using a new photoclinometric technique with high-resolution Mariner 9 images, maximum slopes of 10 - 20 deg are found to occur on an exposure of layered deposits within the south polar residual cap of Mars. Stereophotogrammetry is used to constrain the photoclinometric solutions, which resolve layer thicknesses of 100-300 m. Albedo variations are correlated with slope, indicating that frost is present on level areas. There is evidence for temporal changes in frost distribution in the seven days between the to images used in this study. The magnitude of the slopes derived here and consideration of the stability of water ice at the surface of the layered deposits strongly suggest the presence of a competent weathering rind. The weathered surface may be composed of dark filamentary sublimation residue particles that protect the underlying ice from solar heating. This hypothesis is consistent with previous studies of the regional color and albedo of the layered deposits, which indicate that the deposits are slightly darker and less red than the bright dust that mantles much of the south polar region. Furthermore, the proposed weathering mechanism provides a plausible source of dark, saltating material for the Martian polar dune fields.

Herkenhoff, Ken E.↗
NASA NTRS1991

High-resolution measurements of surface topography with airborne laser altimetry and the global positioning system

Recently, an airborne lidar system that measures laser pulse time-of-flight and the distortion of the pulse waveform upon reflection from earth surface terrain features was developed and is now operational. This instrument is combined with Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers and a two-axis gyroscope for accurate recovery of aircraft position and pointing attitude. The laser altimeter system is mounted on a high-altitude aircraft platform and operated in a repetitively-pulsed mode for measurements of surface elevation profiles at nadir. The laser transmitter makes use of recently developed short-pulse diode-pumped solid-state laser technology in Q-switched Nd:YAG operating at its fundamental wavelength of 1064 nm. A reflector telescope and silicon avalanche photodiode are the basis of the optical receiver. A high-speed time-interval unit and a separate high-bandwidth waveform digitizer under microcomputer control are used to process the backscattered pulses for measurements of terrain. Other aspects of the lidar system are briefly discussed.

Garvin, James B.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Airborne lidar for profiling of surface topography

A lidar system is described that measures laser pulse time-of-flight and the distortion of the pulse waveform for reflection from earth surface terrain features. This instrument system is mounted on a high-altitude aircraft platform and operated in a repetitively pulsed mode for measurements of surface elevation profiles. The laser transmitter makes use of recently developed short-pulse diode-pumped solid-state laser technology. Aircraft position in three dimensions is measured to submeter accuracy by use of differential Global Positioning System receivers. Instrument construction and performance are detailed.

Bufton, Jack L.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Topex/Poseidon - The ocean topography experiment

The technology and objectives of the satellite are delineated with emphasis given to the implications of sea-level measurements and the importance of large-scale oceanic circulation. The satellite altimeter system is described which comprises radar altimetry and orbit determination, and the utility of the system is discussed relative to the GEOS-3 and Seasat. A radiometer measures the sea-surface microwave-brightness temperature at three frequencies, and the laser-reflector array provides orbit determination. The three-year primary mission is expected to collect sea-level data to a precision of a few cm and interpret the in situ data to present a 4D global description of oceanic circulation. The data can be used to assess wind-forcing, heat-transport, and wave-interaction algorithms, as well as to assess large-scale meteorological parameters.

Fu, Lee-Lueng↗