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Collection of programs performs complicated ray-tracing and diffraction calculations. Optical Surface Analysis Code (OSAC) designed to provide comprehensive analysis of performance of optical system. Analyzes both conventional and x-ray systems. Composed of nine compatible programs executed in a sequence defined by user. Written in FORTRAN IV.
Compared to the current instrument landing system, the microwave landing system (MLS), which is in the advanced stage of implementation, can potentially provide significant fuel and time savings as well as more flexibility in approach and landing functions. However, the expanded coverage and increased accuracy requirements of the MLS make it more susceptible to the features of the site in which it is located. An analytical approach is presented for evaluating the multipath effects of scatterers that are commonly found in airport environments. The approach combines a multiplane model with a ray-tracing technique and a formulation for estimating the electromagnetic fields caused by the antenna array in the presence of scatterers. The model is applied to several airport scenarios. The reduced computational burden enables the scattering effects on MLS position information to be evaluated in near real time. Evaluation in near real time would permit the incorporation of the modeling scheme into air traffic control automation; it would adaptively delineate zones of reduced accuracy within the MLS coverage volume, and help establish safe approach and takeoff trajectories in the presence of uneven terrain and other scatterers.
To determine if the source of the Jovian Io-dependent DAM (decametric) emission is along the instantaneous Io flux tube (IIFT), the results of ray-tracing calculations are compared with radio emission data obtained by the Planetary Radio Astronomy instruments on Voyager 1 and 2. RX mode gyroemission at frequencies near the local gyrofrequency and sources along field lines within the active sector between 150 and 270 deg longitude are assumed. The results indicate good agreement with the observations if the source is within 20 deg of the IIFT, but the maximum gyrofrequency of the model magnetic field is smaller than the observed maximum frequency of the DAM for the assumed active field line. While errors in the magnetic-field model coupled with emission at large Doppler shift might explain this discrepancy, a more natural explanation is that the higher-frequency component of the DAM is due to second-harmonic gyroemission.
As the Galileo probe relay radio link (RRL) signal propagates outward through the Jovian atmosphere, the atmosphere will manifest itself in two ways. First, the geometric path length of the signal is increased, resulting in a small change of the RRL signal departure angle from the proble (transmitter). Secondly, the velocity of the signal is decreased. For a spherical, static atmosphere with a known profile of refractivity versus altitude the effects of refraction on the RRL frequency can be found using a variation of standard ray-tracing techniques, whereby the ray departure angle is found by an iterative process. From the dispersive characteristics of a mixture of hydrogen and helium with trace amounts of methane and ammonia a simple model of the Jovian atmosphere is constructed assuming spherical symmetry and uniform mixing. The contribution to the RRL Doppler frequency arising from refraction is calculated, and its effect on the Doppler wind measurements is discussed.
Preliminary results are reported from ground measurements of noise emitted by a full-scale advanced single-rotation turbofan model mounted on the wing of the NASA Lewis Propfan Test Assessment aircraft during test flights in October 1987. The procedures and instruments employed in the test program are described, and the data are presented in tables. The repeatability of the measurements is shown to be good within one test day, with day-to-day variations attributed to cross-wind convection. Fair agreement is found between these measurements and the predictions of ray-tracing models.
The present conference on adaptive optics (AO) and optical structures addresses AO systems and controls, AO components, nonlinear optics applications to AO, astronomical applications of AO, large telescopes and optical alignment, as well as the wavefront control experiment for the use of AO in beam propagation. Specific references are made to applications of electromagnetic theory in optics, theoretical studies of system performance and design parameters, Hartmann-Shack wavefront sensing, the use of ray-based techniques in cophasing segmented mirrors, the use of a phase-conjugating mirror for real-time phase visualization, and the absolute instability of oppositely directed waves with respect to a high-reflectivity phase-conjugate mirror. Also addressed are automatic control systems, precision segmented reflectors, AO system creation, the VLT's 8.2-m primary mirrors, an optical 12-m telescope, alignment optimization via the Talbot effect, and a combination of interferometry and ray-tracing analysis.
An inverse photoelectron spectrometer is described which is based on the design of a magnetically focused low energy electron gun. The magnetic lens extends its field over a relatively large segment of the electron trajectory, which could provide a better focusing effect on a high-current-density low-velocity electron beam, providing the magnetic field in the vicinity of the target is reduced sufficiently to preserve the collinearity of the beam. In order to prove the concept, ray tracing is conducted using the Herrmannsfeldt program for solving electron trajectories in electrostatic and magnetostatic focusing systems. The program allows the calculation of the angles of the electron trajectories with the z axis, at the target location. The results of the ray-tracing procedure conducted for this gun are discussed. Some of the advantages of the magnetic focusing are also discussed.
A method for visualizing data on a globe or unit sphere is described. Information that is distributed over a sphere - global oceanographic or geographic measurements, all-sky astronomy observations, or any quantities that are best represented in spherical coordinates - can benefit from this technique. Retaining a better sense of the geometry and information content of the data, 3D graphics can provide an unobstructed view of the entire sphere, without undue deformation of its surface area. A 'parameterized ray trace' produces look-up tables (LUTs) that can be used for all visualizations. The ray-trace result shows one or more spheres with the data as a texture map and three reflecting rectangles that 'mirror' the far sides of the sphere(s) into view. The LUTs need only be created once. No special purpose hardware is required beyond a PC or workstation that supports color. Examples from astronomical and geophysical datasets, which are commonly displayed with an area deforming (2D) projection, are presented.
The effects of nonspherical small ice crystals on the IR radiative properties of cirrus clouds are investigated utilizing light scattering properties of spheroidal particles. Employing the anomalous diffraction theory for spheres and results from the exact spheroid scattering program, efficient parameterization equations are developed for calculations of the absorption and scattering properties for small ice crystals. Parameterization formulas are developed for large ice crystals employing results computed from the geometric ray-tracing method and the Fraunhofer diffraction theory for hexagonal crystals and spheroids.
The development of the polarization lidar technique is reviewed, and the current capabilities and limitations of the technique for the cloud research are discussed. At present, polarization lidar is a key component of climate-research programs designed to characterize the properties of cirrus clouds and is an integral part of multiple remote-sensor studies of mixed-phase cloud systems such as winter mountain storms, making it possible to discriminate between cloud phases and to identify some particle types and orientations. Recent theoretical approaches involving ice crystal ray-tracing and cloud microphysical-model simulations are expected to increase the utility of the polarization lidar technique.
Space radiation exposure limits for astronauts are based on recommendations of the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements. These limits now include the age at exposure and sex of the astronaut. A recently-developed computerized anatomical female (CAF) model is discussed in detail. Computer-generated, cross-sectional data are presented to illustrate the completeness of the CAF model. By applying ray-tracing techniques, shield distribution functions have been computed to calculate absorbed dose and dose equivalent values for a variety of critical body organs (e.g., breasts, lungs, thyroid gland, etc.) and mission scenarios. Specific risk assessments, i.e., cancer induction and mortality, are reviewed.
Ray-tracing simulations and estimates of whistler wave damping show that magnetospherically reflected whistlers can persist for about 100 s in a LF band (about 1 kHz). The combined contribution from whistler rays produced by a single lightning flash but entering the magnetosphere at different points form a continuous hisslike signal, as observed at a fixed point. Estimates indicate that the total whistler wave energy input into the magnetosphere from lightning discharges may maintain experimentally observed levels of magnetospheric hiss.
Ray-trace equations for uniaxial birefringent materials are used here to derive third-order estimates for aberrations that are produced in imaging through uniaxial plates and horizontal-vertical (HV) depolarizers. An HV depolarizer is a spatial pseudodepolarizer; it converts a uniform input polarization state into a continuum of spatially varying polarization states in an output beam. An HV depolarizer consists of two birefringent wedges whose crystal axes are crossed at 90 deg. The interface between the wedges is included, which leads to a spatially varying retardance that provides the spatial pseudodepolarization. In HV depolarizers, spherical aberration, astigmatism, and image doubling are the principal aberrations for on-axis objects. Only spherical aberration occurs in isotropic plates, while the presence of birefringent wedges introduces astigmatism and image doubling. It is shown that image separation is proportional to the magnitude of the retardance variation.
This paper examines the adaptation of low-cost Schmidt-Cassegrain astronomical telescopes to perform the laser-beam-focusing and scattered-light collection tasks associated with dual-beam laser Doppler velocimetry. A generic telescope design is analyzed using ray-tracing methods and Gaussian beam-propagation theory. A straightforward modification procedure to convert from infinite to near unity conjugate-ratio operation with very low residual aberration is identified and tested with a 200-mm-aperture telescope modified for f/10 operation. Performance data for this modified telescope configuration are near the diffraction limit and agree well with predictions.
Using a model that combines single-scattering properties for spheroidal and hexagonal ice crystals, the thermal infrared radiative properties of cirrus clouds have been investigated. Infrared scattering and absorption properties for randomly oriented spheroids and hexagons are parameterized based on the anomalous diffraction theory and a geometric ray-tracing method, respectively. Using observed ice crystal size distributions, upwelling radiances at the top of cirrus cloudy atmospheres have been computed. Results show that the presence of small ice crystals can produce significant brightness temperature differences between two infrared wavelengths in the 10-micron window. Theoretical results have been compared with observed brightness temperature differences between 8.35 and 11.16 microns and between 11.16 and 12 microns. The observed values were obtained from the high-spectral resolution interferometer sounder. It is shown that the use of the present nonspherical model for ice crystals in radiative transfer calculations leads to a significantly better interpretation of the observed data than does the use of the spherical model.
A discussion is given of the many factors that affect sonic booms with particular emphasis on the application and development of improved computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes. The benefits that accrue from interference (induced) lift, distributing lift using canard configurations, the use of wings with dihedral or anhedral and hybrid laminar flow control for drag reduction are detailed. The application of the most advanced codes to a wider variety of configurations along with improved ray-tracing codes to arrive at more accurate and, hopefully, lower sonic booms is advocated. Finally, it is speculated that when all of the latest technology is applied to the design of a supersonic transport it will be found environmentally acceptable.
To be successful in the development of satellite retrieval methodologies for the determination of cirrus cloud properties, we must have fundamental scattering and absorption data on nonspherical ice crystals that are found in cirrus clouds. Recent aircraft observations (Platt et al. 1989) reveal that there is a large amount of small ice particles, on the order of 10 micron, in cirrus clouds. Thus it is important to explore the potential differences in the scattering and absorption properties of ice crystals with respect to their sizes and shapes. In this study the effects of nonspherical small ice crystals on the infrared radiative properties of cirrus clouds are investigated using light scattering properties of spheroidal particles. In Section 2, using the anomalous diffraction theory for spheres and results from the exact spheroid scattering program, efficient parameterization equations are developed for calculations of the scattering and absorption properties for small ice crystals. Parameterization formulas are also developed for large ice crystals using results computed from the geometric ray-tracing technique and the Fraunhofer diffraction theory for spheroids and hexagonal crystals. This is presented in Section 3. Finally, applications to the satellite remote sensing are described in Section 4.
An investigation of the coupling efficiencies to a gaussian-beam of a double-slot antenna on a hyperhemispherical lens is presented. It is shown that both lenses couple equally well to an appropriate gaussian beam (about 80 percent). The radiation patterns of both lenses with a double-slot antenna are computed using the ray-tracing method. The experimental radiation patterns are presented and show close agreement to the theoretically computed patterns.