Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Ce”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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

At least 73 records · Page 4

Fine structure in plasma waves and radiation near the plasma frequency in Earth's foreshock

Novel observations are presented of intrunsic fine structure in the frequency spectrum of electomagnetic (EM) radiation and plasma waves near the electron plasma frequency f(sub p) during a period of unusually high interplanetary magnetic field strength. Measured using the wideband receiver on the International Sun-Earth Explorer (ISEE) 1 spacecraft, fine-structured emissions are observed both in the solar wind and the foreshock, The fine structure is shown to correspond to emissions spaced above f(sub p) near half harmonies of the electon cyclotron frequency f(sub ce), i.e., near f(sub p) + nf(sub ce)/2. These appear to be the first space physics observations of emissions spaced by f(sub ce)/2. Indirect but strong arguments are used to discriminate between EM and electrostatic (ES) signals, to identify whether ISEE 1 is in the solar wind or the foreshock, and to determine the relative frequencies of the emissions and the local f(sub p). The data are consistent with generation of the ES and EM emissions in the foreshock, with subsequent propagation of the EM emissions into the solar wind. It remains possible that some emissions currently identified as ES have significant EM character. The ES and EM emisions often merge into one another with minimal changes in frequency, arguing that their source regions and generation mechanisms are related and imposing significant constraints on theories. The f(sub ce)/2 ES and EM fine structures observed may be intrinsic to the emission mechanisms or to superposition of two series of signals with f(sub ce) spacing that differ in starting frequency by f(sub ce)/2. Present theories for nonlinear wave coupling processes, cyclotron maser emission, and other linear instability processes are all unable to explain multiple EM and/or ES components spaced by approximately f(sub ce)/2 above f(sub p) for f(sub p)/f(sub ce) much greater than 1 and typical for shock beams parameters. Suitable avenues for further theoretical research are identified. Empirically, the observed fine structures appear very similar to those in split bnad and multiple-lane type II solar radio bursts; interpretation of both these type II fine structures in terms of f(sub ce)/2 splitting is suggested, thereby supporting and generalizing a suggestion by Wild (1950). A possible application to continuum radiation is mentioned. The ubiquity of these fine structures in the Earth's f(sub p) radiation and foreshock waves remains unknown. Only the ISEE 1 wideband receiver has sufficient frequency resolution (approximately less than or equal to 100 Hz) to perform a dedicated search. Further study of the ubiquity of these fine structures, of how reliably the splitting corresponds to f(sub ce)/2, and of the other interpretations above is necessary.

Cairns, Iver H.↗

Coma Physics of an Interstellar Object: JWST Spatial-Spectral Mapping of 3I/ATLAS

We report a survey of molecular emission from cometary volatiles using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) toward interstellar object 3I/ATLAS carried out on UT 2025 December 22 and 23 at a heliocentric distance (\rh{}) of $2.37-2.41$ au. These measurements of CO, \ce{CO2}, \ce{H2O}, \ce{CH3OH}, and \ce{CH4} sampled molecular chemistry in 3I/ATLAS as it receded from its encounter with our Sun and entered the vicinity of the \ce{H2O} ice line --- the region between \rh{} = $2-3$ au where the temperature becomes too low for H$_2$O to vigorously sublime and CO and \ce{CO2} begin to control the overall activity. CO was the most abundant molecule, followed by \ce{H2O} and \ce{CO2}, whose molecular abundances with respect to CO were $(40.5\pm3.1)\%$ and ($41.6\pm0.3)\%$, respectively. This work presents spatial-spectral maps of column density and rotational temperature as a function of distance from the nucleus for all detected species. The spatial distributions of both quantities were highly anisotropic for the apolar species in the coma of 3I/ATLAS, yet were more nearly symmetric for the polar molecules. These results demonstrate how volatiles were segregated in the nucleus ices of 3I/ATLAS and reveal heating and cooling mechanisms in its coma. Derived maps of the ortho-to-para ratio (OPR) for \ce{H2O} were flat with increasing distance from the nucleus and consistent with a coma-averaged value $\mathrm{OPR}=2.7\pm0.2$, slightly less than the expected equilibrium value of three.

Nathan X Roth↗

Cerium Stable Isotope Analysis of Synthetic and Terrestrial Rock Reference Materials by MC-ICPMS

Cerium is the most abundant rare earth element (REE) in the solar photosphere, CI chondrites, and the Earth. It has four main stable isotopes (masses: 136,138,140, and 142), with 138Ce being the most studied species, used in geochronology and petrogenesis. In addition, more abundant 140Ce and 142Ce are suggested to be potentially applicable in geochemical investigations. In this work, we developed a modified four-step ion chromatography procedure for Ce chemical separation. Using a MC-ICPMS, we designed a cup configuration to measure 142Ce/140Ce ratio of the samples with an optimized Nd correction equation. A 0.03‰ (2SD) reproducibility was obtained for Ce Ames metal standard. We analyzed ten different igneous and one sedimentary geochemical reference materials. Mean δ142Ce range from −0.07 to 0.32‰. Most of the samples show a heavier Ce isotopic composition than the Ce Ames standard. The majority of rocks have a homogenous δ142Ce. The δ142Ce does not show any correlation with rock chemical composition including their Ce content or rock types. A carbonatite (SARM 40) has a mean δ142Ce of −0.07 ± 0.13‰ (2SD), lower than the other rocks, suggesting the possibility of a pronounced isotopic fractionation. Our work demonstrates the applicability of the developed methodology and the potential of Ce stable isotopes for future geochemical studies. Production of a larger database of δ142Ce values is required to obtain a clearer view on the similarities and differences between different geological material and explaining Ce stable isotope dynamics.

Cerium↗

Examination of Martian sedimentary rocks to understand possible paleo-ocean and its age

It is well known that the terrestrial marine sediments have large cerium anomaly on their chondrite-normalized REE pattern. Siliceous shale and calcaleous sediments have negative Ce-anomaly. Ferromanganese nodule have positive or negative Ce-anomaly. The Ce-anomaly is considered to be a result of tetravalent state of cerium rather than common trivalent. Ferromanganese nodule which formed under reducing condition has negative Ce-anomaly. Then, combined study of Ce-anomaly with Ce isotopes is expected to play an important role in geochemistry. La-138 decays to Ce-138 and Ba-138 with a total half life of about 1 x 10 to the 11th years. Cerium anomalies (positive or negative) are expected in Martian paleo-ocean and in sediments as observed in the terrestrial environment. A list of things to be examined is given.

Tanaka, T.↗

Topside sounders as mobile ionospheric heaters

There is evidence that satellite-borne RF sounders can act as mobile ionospheric heaters in addition to performing topside sounding. The main objective of topside sounding is to use sounder-generated electromagnetic (em) waves to obtain ionospheric topside vertical electron-density (N(sub e) profiles. These profiles are obtained from mathematical inversions of the frequency vs. delay-time ionospheric reflection traces. In addition to these em reflection traces, a number of narrowband intense signals are observed starting at zero delay times after the transmitted pulses. Some of these signals, termed plasma resonances, appear at characteristic frequencies of the ambient medium such as at the electron cyclotron frequency f(sub ce), the harmonics nf(sub ce), the electron plasma frequency f(sub pe) and the upper-hybrid frequency f(sub uh), where (f(sub uh))(exp 2) = (f(sub ce))(exp 2) + (f(sub pe))(exp 2) . These signals have been attributed to the oblique echoes of sounder-generated electrostatic (es) waves. These resonances provide accurate in situ f(sub pe) and f(sub ce) values which, in turn, lead to accurate N(sub e) and [B] values where B is the ambient magnetic field. Resonances are also observed between the nf(sub ce) harmonics both above and below f(sub uh). The former, known as the Qn plasma resonances, are mainly attributed to the matching of the wave group velocity of sounder-generated (Bernstein-mode) es waves to the satellite velocity. The frequency spectrum of these waves in the magnetosphere can be used to detect non-Maxwellian electron velocity-distributions. In addition, these resonances also exhibit components that appear to be the result of plasma emissions stimulated by the sounder pulses. The plasma resonances observed between the nf(sub ce) harmonics and below f(sub uh), known as the Dn plasma resonances, are entirely attributed to such sounder-stimulated plasma emissions. There are other sounder-stimulated plasma phenomena that also fall into this category, e.g., ion affects on electron-resonant phenomena, proton-cyclotron echoes and N(sub e) field-aligned irregularities (FAI). Some of these phenomena are more pronounced when f(sub pe)/f(sub ce) approx. = n where n is an integer significantly greater than one. The observations suggest that the sounder-stimulated plasma phenomena are stimulated, or enhanced, on a time scale much less than one second. The purpose of this presentation is to review the above topics with particular emphasis on the sounder-stimulated plasma phenomena.

Benson, R. F.↗

Evaluation of capillary electrophoresis for in-flight ionic contaminant monitoring of SSF potable water

Until 1989, ion chromatography (IC) was the baseline technology selected for the Specific Ion Analyzer, an in-flight inorganic water quality monitor being designed for Space Station Freedom. Recent developments in capillary electrophoresis (CE) may offer significant savings of consumables, power consumption, and weight/volume allocation, relative to IC technology. A thorough evaluation of CE's analytical capability, however, is necessary before one of the two techniques is chosen. Unfortunately, analytical methods currently available for inorganic CE are unproven for NASA's target list of anions and cations. Thus, CE electrolyte chemistry and methods to measure the target contaminants must be first identified and optimized. This paper reports the status of a study to evaluate CE's capability with regard to inorganic and carboxylate anions, alkali and alkaline earth cations, and transition metal cations. Preliminary results indicate that CE has an impressive selectivity and trace sensitivity, although considerable methods development remains to be performed.

Mudgett, Paul D.↗

Advanced Air Transportation Technologies (AATT) Project: Distributed Air-Ground Traffic Management

This viewgraph presentation provides an overview of active Distributed Air Ground Traffic Management (DAG-TM) work and reported on its overall progress to date. It does not include details on the concept elements (CEs).The DAG-TM research project is defined as a concept development and definition project and no tools will be delivered. Of the 14 CEs, three are being explored actively: CE-5, CE-6, and CE-11. Overviews of CE-5 (Free Maneuvering for User-Preferred Separation Assurance and Local TFM Conformance), CE-6 (En Route and Transition Trajectory Negotiation for User-Preferred Separation and Local TFM Conformance) and CE-11 (Self-Spacing for Merging and In-Trail Separation) are presented.

Mogford, Richard↗

A Virtual Mission Operations Center - Collaborative Environment

Development of technologies that enable significant reductions in the cost of space mission operations is critical if constellations, formations, federations and sensor webs, are to be economically feasible. One approach to cost reduction is to infuse automation technologies into mission operations centers so that fewer personnel are needed for mission support. But missions are more culturally and politically adverse to the risks of automation. Reducing the mission risk associated with increased use of automation within a MOC is therefore of great importance. The belief that mission risk increases as more automation is used stems from the fact that there is inherently less direct human oversight to investigate and resolve anomalies in an unattended MOC. The Virtual Missions Operations Center - Collaborative Environment (VMOC-CE) project was launched to address this concern. The goal of the VMOC-CE project is to identify, develop, and infuse technology to enable mission operations between onsite operators and on-call personnel in geographically dispersed locations. VMOC-CE enables missions to more readily adopt automation because off-site operators and engineers can more easily identify, investigate, and resolve anomalies without having to be present in the MOC. The VMOC-CE intent is to have a single access point for all resources used in a collaborative mission operations environment. Team members will be able to interact during spacecraft operations, specifically for resolving anomalies, utilizing a desktop computer and the Internet. Mission operations management can use the VMOC-CE as a tool to participate in and monitor status of anomaly resolution or other mission operations issues. In this paper we present the VMOC-CE project, system capabilities and technologies, operations concept, and results of its pilot in support of the Earth Science Mission Operations System (ESMOS).

Medina, Barbara↗

Histochemical discrimination of fibers in regenerating rat infraorbital nerve

In rat dorsal root ganglia, histochemical staining of carbonic anhydrase (CA) and cholinesterase (CE) yields a reciprocal pattern of activity: Sensory processes are CA positive and CE negative, whereas motor processes are CA negative and CE positive. In rat infraorbital nerve (a sensory peripheral nerve), we saw extensive CA staining of nearly 100% of the myelinated axons. Although CE reactivity in myelinated axons was extremely rare, we did observe CE staining of unmyelinated autonomic fibers. Four weeks after transection of infraorbital nerves, CA-stained longitudinal sections of the proximal stump demonstrated 3 distinct morphological zones. A fraction of the viable axons retained CA activity to within 2 mm of the distal extent of the stump, and the stain is capable of resolving growth sprouts being regenerated from these fibers. Staining of unmyelinated autonomic fibers in serial sections shows that CE activity was not retained as far distally as is the CA sensory staining.

NASA Discipline Musculoskeletal↗

Global Top-Down Smoke-Aerosol Emissions Estimation Using Satellite Fire Radiative Power Measurements

Fire emissions estimates have long been based on bottom-up approaches that are not only complex, but also fraught with compounding uncertainties. We present the development of a global gridded (1 deg ×1 deg) emission coefficients (Ce) product for smoke total particulate matter (TPM) based on a top-down approach using coincident measurements of fire radiative power (FRP) and aerosol optical thickness (AOT) from the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensors aboard the Terra and Aqua satellites. This new Fire Energetics and Emissions Research version 1.0 (FEER.v1) Ce product has now been released to the community and can be obtained from http://feer.gsfc. nasa.gov/, along with the corresponding 1-to-1 mapping of their quality assurance (QA) flags that will enable the Ce values to be filtered by quality for use in various applications. The regional averages of Ce values for different ecosystem types were found to be in the ranges of 16-21/gMJ−1 for savanna and grasslands, 15-32/gMJ−1 for tropical forest, 9-12/gMJ−1 for North American boreal forest, and 18- 26/MJ−1 for Russian boreal forest, croplands and natural vegetation. The FEER.v1 Ce product was multiplied by time-integrated FRP data to calculate regional smoke TPM emissions, which were compared with equivalent emissions products from three existing inventories. FEER.v1 showed higher and more reasonable smoke TPM estimates than two other emissions inventories that are based on bottom-up approaches and already reported in the literature to be too low, but portrayed an overall reasonable agreement with another top-down approach. This suggests that top-down approaches may hold better promise and need to be further developed to accelerate the reduction of uncertainty associated with fire emissions estimation in air-quality and climate research and applications. Results of the analysis of FEER.v1 data for 2004-2011 show that 65-85 Tg yr−1 of TPM is emitted globally from open biomass burning, with a generally decreasing trend over this short time period. The FEER.v1 Ce product is the first global gridded product in the family of "emission factors", that is based essentially on satellite measurements, and requires only direct satellite FRP measurements of an actively burning fire anywhere to evaluate its emission rate in near-real time, which is essential for operational activities, such as the monitoring and forecasting of smoke emission impacts on air quality.

biomass burning↗

Spatial cyclotron damping

To examine spatial electron cyclotron damping in a uniform Vlasov plasma, it is noted that the plasma response to a steady-state transverse excitation consists of several terms (dielectric-pole, free-streaming, and branch-cut), but that the cyclotron-damped pole term is the dominant term for z l = c/w sub ce provided (w sub pe/w sub ce) squared (c/a) is much greater than 1. If the latter inequality does not hold, then the free-streaming and branch-cut terms persist well past z = c/w sub ce as w sub 1 approaches w sub ce, making experimental measurement of cyclotron damping essentially impossible. Considering only (w sub pe/w sub ce) squared (c/a) is much greater than 1, it is shown how collisional effects should be estimated and how a finite-width excitation usually has little effect on the cyclotron-damped part of the response. Criteria is established concerning collisional damping, measurable damping length sizes, and allowed uncertainty in the magnetic field Beta. Results of numerical calculations, showing the regions in the appropriate parameter spaces that meet these criteria, are presented. From these results, one can determine the feasibility of, or propose parameter values for, an experiment designed to measure spatial cyclotron damping. It is concluded that the electron temperature T sub e should be at least 1 ev., and preferably 10 ev. or higher, for a successful experiment.

Olson, C. L.↗

Long-term acid-induced wall extension in an in-vitro system

When frozen-thawed Avena sativa L. coleoptile and Cucumis sativa L. hypocotyl sections, under tension, are acid-treated, they undergo rapid elongation (acid-extension). The acid-extension response consists of two concurrent phases: a burst of extension which decays exponentially over 1-2 h (ExE), and a constant rate of extension (CE) which can persist for at least 6h. The extension (delta L) is closely represented by the equation: delta L = a-a e(-kt) + C t where a is the total extension of the exponential phase, k is the rate constant for ExE, and c is the rate of linear extension (CE). Low pH and high tension increased a and c, whereas temperature influenced k. The magnitude of the CE (over 50% extension/10 h), the similarity in its time course to auxin-induced growth, and the apparent yield threshold for CE indicate that CE is more likely than ExE to be the type of extension which cell walls undergo during normal auxin-induced growth.

Non-NASA Center↗

Concurrent Engineering for the Management of Research and Development

The Management of Research and Development (R&D) is facing the challenges of reducing time from R&D to customer, reducing the cost of R&D, having higher accountability for results (improved quality), and increasing focus on customers. Concurrent engineering (CE) has shown great success in the automotive and technology industries resulting in significant decreases in cycle time, reduction of total cost, and increases in quality and reliability. This philosophy of concurrency can have similar implications or benefits for the management of R&D organizations. Since most studies on the application of CE have been performed in manufacturing environments, research into the benefits of CE into other environments is needed. This paper presents research conducted at the NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) investigating the application of CE in the management of an R&D organization. In particular the paper emphasizes possible barriers and enhancers that this environment presents to the successful implementation of CE. Preliminary results and recommendations are based on a series of interviews and subsequent surveys, from which data has been gathered and analyzed as part of the GRC's Continuous Improvement Process.

DelRosario, Ruben↗

Influence of Exercise Modality on Cerebral-Ocular Hemodynamics and Pressures

Background: Moderate and high intensity aerobic or resistance exercise has clearly identified benefits for cardiac, muscle, and bone health. However, the impact of such exercise - either as a mitigating or an exacerbating factor - on the development of the visual impairment and intracranial pressure syndrome (VIIP) is unknown. Accordingly, our aim was to characterize the effect of an acute bout of resistance (RE), moderate-intensity continuous (CE), and high-intensity interval exercise (IE) during a cephalad fluid shift on cerebral-ocular hemodynamics and pressures. Methods: 10 male subjects (36 plus or minus 9 years) completed 4 testing days in a 15 degree head-down tilt (HDT): (1) assessment of maximum volume of O (sub 2), (2) RE session (4 sets of 12 repetition maximum leg press exercise), (3) CE session (30 minutes of cycling at 60 percent maximum volume of O (sub 2)), and (4) IE session (4 by 4-minute intervals of exercise at 85 percent maximum volume of O (sub 2) with 3-minute active rest periods). During each session, blood flow (Vivid-e, GE Healthcare) in extracranial arteries (common carotid artery, CCA; internal carotid artery, ICA; external carotid artery, ECA and vertebral artery, VA), and mean blood flow velocity in middle cerebral artery (MCA), internal jugular pressure (IJP; VeinPress), and intraocular pressure (IOP; Icare PRO) were measured at rest, at the end of each resistance or interval set, and every 5 minutes during continuous exercise. Translaminar pressure gradient (TLPG) was estimated by subtracting IJP from IOP. Results: There were no differences across days in pre-exercise resting blood flows or pressures. IOP decreased slightly from HDT rest (20.2 plus or minus 2.3 millimeters of mercury) to exercise (RE: 19.2 plus or minus 2.8 millimeters of mercury; CE: 18.9 plus or minus 3.2 millimeters of mercury; IE: 20.1 plus or minus 2.8 millimeters of mercury), while IJP decreased during CE (31.6 plus or minus 9.5 millimeters of mercury) and RE (32.0 plus or minus 8.1 millimeters of mercury), and increased during IE (35.1 plus or minus 9.5 millimeters of mercury) from HDT rest (33.3 plus or minus 6.5 millimeters of mercury). Estimated TLPG was increased during IE only. Compared to RE and CE, IE resulted in the greatest increase in MCA blood flow velocity and extracranial artery blood flow. Conclusions: These preliminary results suggest that high-intensity IE acutely increases cerebral blood flow, IJP, and TLPG. Alterations in TLPG is one mechanism that may contribute to optic nerve sheath edema in astronauts. Accordingly, acutely raising IOP and/or orbital pressure during exercise could optimize cerebral-ocular pressures during spaceflight.

Scott, J.↗

Significance of the South Pacific Convergence Zone in energy conversions of the Southern Hemisphere during FGGE, 10-27 January 1979

An attempt is made to relate the circulation features of the South Pacific Convergence Zone (SPCZ) to those of the Southern Hemisphere (SH) for the whole area and for three subsections. It is established that during the period of Jan. 10-24, 1979, when the SPCZ was convectively active, it played a significant role in the baroclinic energy conversion (CE) within the tropical SH. When the SPCZ dissipated the CE did likewise. A zonal wavenumber analysis shows that wavenumber four was dominant in the CE process in the SH topics when the SPCZ was active, but that it did not dominate when the SPCZ dissipated. It is shown that the most intense convective activity in the tropics occurred in the SPCZ and that its location corresponded favorably to maximum values of CE greater than zero.

Huang, H.-J.↗

Identifying motor and sensory myelinated axons in rabbit peripheral nerves by histochemical staining for carbonic anhydrase and cholinesterase activities

Carbonic anhydrase (CA) and cholinesterase (CE) histochemical staining of rabbit spinal nerve roots and dorsal root ganglia demonstrated that among the reactive myeliated axons, with minor exceptions, sensory axons were CA positive and CE negative whereas motor axons were CA negative and CE positive. The high specificity was achieved by adjusting reaction conditions to stain subpopulations of myelinated axons selectively while leaving 50 percent or so unstained. Fixation with glutaraldehyde appeared necessary for achieving selectivity. Following sciatic nerve transection, the reciprocal staining pattern persisted in damaged axons and their regenerating processes which formed neuromas within the proximal nerve stump. Within the neuromas, CA-stained sensory processes were elaborated earlier and in greater numbers than CE-stained regenerating motor processes. The present results indicate that histochemical axon typing can be exploited to reveal heterogeneous responses of motor and sensory axons to injury.

Riley, Danny A.↗

Assessment of a prototype sunphotometer for network applications, phase 1

Data taken in Tucson, AZ, for comparing the CE sunphotometer's results against the Univ. of Arizona's no. 3 solar radiometer are in very good agreement. The spectral voltage intercepts obtained on 15 different days taken with the CE instrument during a seven week period are stable and follow the same daily trends as the voltage intercepts for similar wavelengths contained in the Univ. of Arizona's no. 3 radiometer. The spectral optical depths obtained from both instruments are also in very good agreement and follow the same trends. The only problem that exists in the CE instrument does not have a heater to stabilize the detector temperature which is important around 1000 nm. Zenith sky radiance scans are in good agreement, but both instruments are biased by direct solar rays entering the instrument's respective entrance apertures. All diffuse light data shown were, therefore, taken with the instruments shielded from the direct sun. The CE sunphotometer results pertaining to the water vapor wavelength's are also in good agreement with the Univ. of Arizona's no. 3 and should prove useful for water vapor retrieval.

Reagan, J. A.↗

Time aspects of the European Complement to GPS: Continental and transatlantic experimental phases

The CNES project of a European Complement to GPS (CE-GPS) is conceived to fulfill the needs of Civil Aviation for a non-precise approach phase with GPS as sole navigation means. This generates two missions: a monitoring mission - alarm of failure - ,and a navigation mission - generating a GPS-like signal on board the geostationary satellites. The host satellites will be the Inmarsat constellation. The CE-GPS missions lead to some time requirements, mainly the accuracy of GPS time restitution and of monitoring clock synchronization. To demonstrate that the requirements of the CE-GPS could be achieved, including the time aspects, an experiment has been scheduled over the Last two years, using a part of the Inmarsat II F-2 payload and specially designed ground stations based on 10 channels GPS receivers. This paper presents a review of the results obtained during the continental phase of the CE-GPS experiment with two stations in France, along with some experimental results obtained during the transatlantic phase (three stations in France, French Guyana, and South Africa). It describes the synchronization of the monitoring clocks using the GPS Common-view or the C- to L-Band transponder of the Inmarsat satellite, with an estimated accuracy better than 10 ns (1 sigma).

Uhrich, Pierre J. M.↗