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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.

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At least 721 records · Page 40
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1974

Multiple docking adapter window for the S-190 experiment

Martin Marietta/NASA subcontracted the design, fabrication, testing, and installation of the multiple docking adapter S-190 experiment window assembly to Actron. In this paper, we primarily treat the thermal-optical analysis aspect of the design phase. The window is a pane of BK 7 glass 59.18 cm by 44.91 cm by 4.06 cm. Though it must meet many mechanical specifications, the optical requirements, dictated by the high acuity, distortion-free S-190 multiband camera system, are the most severe. Under operating conditions over any 7.6-cm circular area, the maximum rms deviation from the best-fitting plane must be less than 12.0 nm, and from the reference plane through the entire window, 60.0 nm.

Gimlett, J. I.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Thermostructural testing of instrumented ATJ-S graphite nosetip models in the AFFDL 50 MW rent facility

Instrumented ATJ-S graphite shell nosetip models were tested in the AFFDL 50 MW RENT Facility. The inside surface of the models were instrumented with seven thermocouples and three clip-on extensometers. One thermocouple was located at the inside stagnation point and three thermocouples were located at 120 degree intervals on the aft portion of the skirt of the model. In addition, three thermocouples at 120 degree intervals plus three clip-on extensometers at 120 degree intervals offset 60 degrees from the thermocouples were located in the critical region. The outside surface temperature of the models was monitored in two locations by optical pyrometers. Finally, the tests were recorded by three high speed motion picture cameras. Pressure models and calorimeters were also tested in order to help define the flow field condition and heating distribution around the models.

Budde, C. L.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Acoustically-tuned optical spectrometer

Lens arrangement corrects for aberrations and gives resolution of 0.7 seconds of arc. In spectrometer, light from telescope is relayed by doublet lens to acoustically tuned optical filter. Selected wavelengths are relayed by triplet lens to charge coupled device camera. Intervening cylindrical lens, tilted at 12 degree angle, corrects for astigmatism and coma introduced by two element birefringent crystal in filter.

Sklar, E.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Side-Looking Viewer for Crevices

Side-looking optical viewer inserted into gap 1 mm wide to depth of 10 cm. Instrument allows human observer to inspect small crevices from comfortable viewing angle. Small mirror atop pair of thin, flat legs inserted into gap. Mirror reflects image of gap wall or other object into microscope, which magnifies image 20 times. Quartz/halogen lamp in separate unit provides light to illuminate gap via optical-fiber bundle. Observer looks directly through microscope or attaches photographic or video camera without disturbing setup.

Hagen, G. R.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Technology and the Hubble Space Telescope Satellite

The hardware components of the HST and their capabilities are examined. The free-flying satellite observatory is 13.1-m long, 4.2-m in diameter, weighs 11,000 kg, is in a 600-km orbit, and is remotely controlled. The HST is divided into four sections: (1) optical telescope assembly, (2) support system module, (3) scientific instruments, and (4) solar arrays. The optical telescope assembly contains the f24 Cassegrain primary optics. The support system module is the host spacecraft for the optical and scientific system. The scientific instruments consist of the Wide Field Planetary Camera, Faint Object Camera, High Speed Photometer, Faint Object Spectrograph, and High Resolution Spectrograph; and the 48,760 solar cells are deployed on-orbit in a window shade fashion. Consideration is given to the operation and maintenance of the HST.

Odom, James B.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Fluid Dynamic Verification Experiments on STS-70

Fluid dynamic experiments were flown on STS-70 as phase two of the engineering evaluation of the first bioreactor Engineering Development Unit (EDU#1). The phase one experiments were comparative cell cultures in identical units on earth and onboard STS-70. In phase two, two types of fluid dynamic experiments were performed. Qualitative comparisons of the basic flow patterns were evaluated with the use of 'dye' streaklines formed from alternate injections of either a mild acid or base solution into the external flow loop that was then perfused into the vessel. The presence of Bromothymol Blue in the fluid then caused color changes from yellow to blue or vice versa, indicating the basic fluid motions. This reversible change could be repeated as desired. In the absence of significant density differences in the fluid, the flow patterns in space should be the same as on earth. Video tape records of the flow patterns for a wide range of operating conditions were obtained. The second type of fluid dynamic experiment was the quantitative evaluation of the trajectories of solid beads of various densities and sizes. The beads were introduced into the vessel and the paths recorded on video tape, with the vessel operated at various rotation rates and flow perfusion rates. Because of space limitations, the video camera was placed as close as possible to the vessel, resulting in significant optical distortion. This report describes the analysis methods to obtain comparisons between the in-flight fluid dynamics and numerical models of the flow field. The methods include optical corrections to the video images and calculation of the bead trajectories for given operating conditions and initial bead locations.

Kleis, Stanley J.↗
NASA NTRS2008

A Stereo Imaging Velocimetry Technique for Analyzing Structure of Flame Balls at Low Lewis-Number (SOFBALL) Data

Stereo Imaging Velocimetry (SIV) is a NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) developed fluid physics technique for measuring threedimensional (3-D) velocities in any optically transparent fluid that can be seeded with tracer particles. SIV provides a means to measure 3-D fluid velocities quantitatively and qualitatively at many points. This technique provides full-field 3-D analysis of any optically clear fluid or gas experiment using standard off-the-shelf CCD cameras to provide accurate and reproducible 3-D velocity profiles for experiments that require 3-D analysis. A flame ball is a steady flame in a premixed combustible atmosphere which, due to the transport properties (low Lewis-number) of the mixture, does not propagate but is instead supplied by diffusive transport of the reactants, forming a premixed flame. This flame geometry presents a unique environment for testing combustion theory. We present our analysis of flame ball phenomena utilizing SIV technology in order to accurately calculate the 3-D position of a flame ball(s) during an experiment, which can be used as a direct comparison of numerical simulations.

McDowell, Mark↗
NASA NTRS2010

The Morphology of Passively Evolving Galaxies at Z approximately 2 from HST/WFC3 Deep Imaging in the Hubble Ultradeep Field

We present near-IR images of six passive galaxies (SSFR< 10(exp -2)/ Gyr) at redshift 1.3 < z < 2.4 with stellar mass M approximately 10(exp 11) solar M, selected from the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS), obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and the WFC3/IR camera. These images provide the deepest and highest angular resolution view of the optical rest-frame morphology of such systems to date. We find that the light profile of these galaxies is generally regular and well described by a Sersic model with index typical of today's spheroids. We confirm the existence of compact and massive early-type galaxies at z approximately 2: four out of six galaxies have r(sub e) approximately 1 kpc or less. The images reach limiting surface brightness mu approximates 26.5 mag/square arcsec in the F160W bandpass; yet there is no evidence of a faint halo in the galaxies of our sample, even in their stacked image. We also find very weak "morphological k-correction" in the galaxies between the rest-frame UV (from the ACS z-band), and the rest-frame optical (WFC3 H-band): the visual classification, Sersic indices and physical sizes of these galaxies are independent or only mildly dependent on the wavelength, within the errors. The presence of an active nucleus is suspected in two out of six galaxies (33%), opening the intriguing possibility that a large, presently unaccounted population of AGN is hosted in these galaxies, possibly responsible for the cessation of star formation.

Cassata, P.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Miniaturized Airborne Imaging Central Server System

In recent years, some remote-sensing applications require advanced airborne multi-sensor systems to provide high performance reflective and emissive spectral imaging measurement rapidly over large areas. The key or unique problem of characteristics is associated with a black box back-end system that operates a suite of cutting-edge imaging sensors to collect simultaneously the high throughput reflective and emissive spectral imaging data with precision georeference. This back-end system needs to be portable, easy-to-use, and reliable with advanced onboard processing. The innovation of the black box backend is a miniaturized airborne imaging central server system (MAICSS). MAICSS integrates a complex embedded system of systems with dedicated power and signal electronic circuits inside to serve a suite of configurable cutting-edge electro- optical (EO), long-wave infrared (LWIR), and medium-wave infrared (MWIR) cameras, a hyperspectral imaging scanner, and a GPS and inertial measurement unit (IMU) for atmospheric and surface remote sensing. Its compatible sensor packages include NASA s 1,024 1,024 pixel LWIR quantum well infrared photodetector (QWIP) imager; a 60.5 megapixel BuckEye EO camera; and a fast (e.g. 200+ scanlines/s) and wide swath-width (e.g., 1,920+ pixels) CCD/InGaAs imager-based visible/near infrared reflectance (VNIR) and shortwave infrared (SWIR) imaging spectrometer. MAICSS records continuous precision georeferenced and time-tagged multisensor throughputs to mass storage devices at a high aggregate rate, typically 60 MB/s for its LWIR/EO payload. MAICSS is a complete stand-alone imaging server instrument with an easy-to-use software package for either autonomous data collection or interactive airborne operation. Advanced multisensor data acquisition and onboard processing software features have been implemented for MAICSS. With the onboard processing for real time image development, correction, histogram-equalization, compression, georeference, and data organization, fast aerial imaging applications, including the real time LWIR image mosaic for Google Earth, have been realized for NASA fs LWIR QWIP instrument. MAICSS is a significant improvement and miniaturization of current multisensor technologies. Structurally, it has a complete modular and solid-state design. Without rotating hard drives and other moving parts, it is operational at high altitudes and survivable in high-vibration environments. It is assembled from a suite of miniaturized, precision-machined, standardized, and stackable interchangeable embedded instrument modules. These stackable modules can be bolted together with the interconnection wires inside for the maximal simplicity and portability. Multiple modules are electronically interconnected as stacked. Alternatively, these dedicated modules can be flexibly distributed to fit the space constraints of a flying vehicle. As a flexibly configurable system, MAICSS can be tailored to interface a variety of multisensor packages. For example, with a 1,024x1,024 pixel LWIR and a 8,984x6,732 pixel EO payload, the complete MAICSS volume is approximately 7x9x11 in. (=18x23x28 cm), with a weight of 25 lb (=11.4 kg).

Sun, Xiuhong↗
NASA NTRS2013

Phoenix Telemetry Processor

Phxtelemproc is a C/C++ based telemetry processing program that processes SFDU telemetry packets from the Telemetry Data System (TDS). It generates Experiment Data Records (EDRs) for several instruments including surface stereo imager (SSI); robotic arm camera (RAC); robotic arm (RA); microscopy, electrochemistry, and conductivity analyzer (MECA); and the optical microscope (OM). It processes both uncompressed and compressed telemetry, and incorporates unique subroutines for the following compression algorithms: JPEG Arithmetic, JPEG Huffman, Rice, LUT3, RA, and SX4. This program was in the critical path for the daily command cycle of the Phoenix mission. The products generated by this program were part of the RA commanding process, as well as the SSI, RAC, OM, and MECA image and science analysis process. Its output products were used to advance science of the near polar regions of Mars, and were used to prove that water is found in abundance there. Phxtelemproc is part of the MIPL (Multi-mission Image Processing Laboratory) system. This software produced Level 1 products used to analyze images returned by in situ spacecraft. It ultimately assisted in operations, planning, commanding, science, and outreach.

Stanboli, Alice↗
NASA NTRS2003

Demonstration of extreme wavefront sensing performance on the TPF high contrast imaging testbed

The Terrestrial Platet Finder high contrast imaging testbed facilitates the investigation into the diversity of engineering challenges presented by the goal of direct exo-planet detection, for instance, HCIT offers a high-density deformable mirror to control the optical wavefront errors, a configurable coronagraph to control the diffracted light, and translatable cameras for measuring the focal and pupil planes before and after the coronagraph. In this paper, we summarize the measurements that are obtained about the occulter focal plane.

Trauger, John T.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Mount St. Helens dust veil observed at Boulder, Colorado by optical techniques

Following the May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens, photometric and photograhic observations were taken at Boulder, Colorado, to record the optical effects of volcanic dust atmospherically transported to this area. The instruments used included a narrow-beamwidth solar photometer which recorded solar irradiance in eight narrow-bandwidth channels in the wavelength range 0.3 to 1.1 microns, a solar aureole photometer, and two time-lapse camera systems. The eight-channel solar photometer data have been analyzed to obtain the wavelength dependence of optical thickness. At the longer wavelengths, on May 20, 1980, the optical thickness was as much as nine times that expected from a 'clean atmosphere' model. During the first several days following the eruption, the dust veil sometimes exhibited sufficient spatial structure that its motion can be seen on the time-lapse films. The results of analysis to date are presented and the plans for additional analysis are outlined.

Lerfald, G.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Charter and activities of the SIRTF in-orbit checkout focus integrated products team and optical performance of the CTA

We describe a strategy to determine the initial mirror spacing by quantitatively evaluating the shapes of the images formed by the telescope using the Infrared Array Camera and other science instruments. We show that this information can be used to predict the direction and magnitude of the secondary mirror move that will result in the telescope best focus. The tools used to evaluate focus position and optical quality of the in orbit CTA have been qualified during the BRUTUS test are here described.

Integrated↗
NASA NTRS2000

A New Digital Holographic Instrument for Measuring Microphysical Properties of Contrails in the SASS (Subsonic Assessment) Program

SPEC incorporated designed, built and operated a new instrument, called a pi-Nephelometer, on the NASA DC-8 for the SUCCESS field project. The pi-Nephelometer casts an image of a particle on a 400,000 pixel solid-state camera by freezing the motion of the particle using a 25 ns pulsed, high-power (60 W) laser diode. Unique optical imaging and particle detection systems precisely detect particles and define the depth-of-field so that at least one particle in the image is almost always in focus. A powerful image processing engine processes frames from the solid-state camera, identifies and records regions of interest (i.e. particle images) in real time. Images of ice crystals are displayed and recorded with 5 micron pixel resolution. In addition, a scattered light system simultaneously measures the scattering phase function of the imaged particle. The system consists of twenty-eight 1-mm optical fibers connected to microlenses bonded on the surface of avalanche photo diodes (APDs). Data collected with the pi-Nephelometer during the SUCCESS field project was reported in a special issue of Geophysical Research Letters. The pi-Nephelometer provided the basis for development of a commercial imaging probe, called the cloud particle imager (CPI), which has been installed on several research aircraft and used in More than a dozen field programs.

Lawson, R. Paul↗
NASA NTRS2003

Sonoluminescence Bubble Measurements using Vision-Based Algorithms

Vision-based measurement methods were used to measure bubble sizes in this sonoluminescence experiment. Bubble imaging was accomplished by placing the bubble between a bright light source and a microscope-CCD camera system. A collimated light-emitting diode was operated in a pulsed model with an adjustable time delay with respect to the piezo-electric transducer drive signal. The light-emitting diode produced a bubble shadowgraph consisting of a multiple exposure made by numerous light pulses imaged onto a charge-couple device camera. Each image was transferred from the camera to a computer-controlled machine vision system via a frame grabber. The frame grabber was equipped with on-board memory to accomodate sequential image buffering while images were transferred to the host processor and analyzed. This configuration allowed the host computer to perform diameter measurements, centroid position measurements and shape estimation in "real-time" as the next image was being acquired. Bubble size measurement accuracy with an uncertainty of 3 microns was achieved using standard lenses and machine vision algorithms. Bubble centroid position accuracy was also within the 3 micron tolerance of the vision system. This uncertainty estimation accounted for the optical spatial resolution, digitization errors and the edge detection algorithm accuracy. The vision algorithms include camera calibration, thresholding, edge detection, edge position determination, distance between two edges computations and centroid position computations.

Hall, Nancy R.↗
NASA NTRS2016

Wavefront-Error Performance Characterization for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) Science Instruments

The science instruments (SIs) comprising the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) were tested in three cryogenic-vacuum test campaigns in the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)'s Space Environment Simulator (SES). In this paper, we describe the results of optical wavefront-error performance characterization of the SIs. The wavefront error is determined using image-based wavefront sensing (also known as phase retrieval), and the primary data used by this process are focus sweeps, a series of images recorded by the instrument under test in its as-used configuration, in which the focal plane is systematically changed from one image to the next. High-precision determination of the wavefront error also requires several sources of secondary data, including 1) spectrum, apodization, and wavefront-error characterization of the optical ground-support equipment (OGSE) illumination module, called the OTE Simulator (OSIM), 2) plate scale measurements made using a Pseudo-Nonredundant Mask (PNRM), and 3) pupil geometry predictions as a function of SI and field point, which are complicated because of a tricontagon-shaped outer perimeter and small holes that appear in the exit pupil due to the way that different light sources are injected into the optical path by the OGSE. One set of wavefront-error tests, for the coronagraphic channel of the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) Longwave instruments, was performed using data from transverse translation diversity sweeps instead of focus sweeps, in which a sub-aperture is translated andor rotated across the exit pupil of the system.Several optical-performance requirements that were verified during this ISIM-level testing are levied on the uncertainties of various wavefront-error-related quantities rather than on the wavefront errors themselves. This paper also describes the methodology, based on Monte Carlo simulations of the wavefront-sensing analysis of focus-sweep data, used to establish the uncertainties of the wavefront error maps.

wavefront error↗
NASA NTRS2018

On the Development of the Marshall Grazing Incidence X-ray Spectrograph (MaGIXS) Mirrors

The Marshall Grazing Incidence X-ray Spectrograph (MaGIXS) is a sounding rocket experiment that will obtain spatially resolved soft X-ray spectra of the solar corona from 0.5 - 2 keV. The optical system comprises a Wolter-I telescope mirror, a slit spectrograph, and a CCD camera. The spectrograph has a finite conjugate paraboloid pair, which re-images the slit, and a varied line-space planar reflection grating. Both the Wolter-I mirror and paraboloid pair are being fabricated at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), using nickel replication. The MaGIXS mirror mandrels have been diamond turned, polished, and have yielded a set of engineering mirrors. Unlike other grazing incidence instruments, such as FOXSI, ART-XC, and IXPE, the MaGIXS prescriptions have large departure from a cone. This property exacerbates challenges with conventional lap polishing techniques and interferometric metrology. Here we discuss the progression of the optical surfaces of the mandrels through lap polishing, X-ray data from the replicated shells obtained in the MSFC Stray Light Facility (SLF), and our transition to using the ZEEKO computer numerical controlled (CNC) polisher for figure correction.

Champey, Patrick↗
NASA NTRS2016

Wavefront-Error Performance Characterization for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) Science Instruments

The science instruments (SIs) comprising the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) were tested in three cryogenic-vacuum test campaigns in the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)'s Space Environment Simulator (SES) test chamber. In this paper, we describe the results of optical wavefront-error performance characterization of the SIs. The wavefront error is determined using image-based wavefront sensing, and the primary data used by this process are focus sweeps, a series of images recorded by the instrument under test in its as-used configuration, in which the focal plane is systematically changed from one image to the next. High-precision determination of the wavefront error also requires several sources of secondary data, including 1) spectrum, apodization, and wavefront-error characterization of the optical ground-support equipment (OGSE) illumination module, called the OTE Simulator (OSIM), 2) F-number and pupil-distortion measurements made using a pseudo-nonredundant mask (PNRM), and 3) pupil geometry predictions as a function of SI and field point, which are complicated because of a tricontagon-shaped outer perimeter and small holes that appear in the exit pupil due to the way that different light sources are injected into the optical path by the OGSE. One set of wavefront-error tests, for the coronagraphic channel of the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) Longwave instruments, was performed using data from transverse translation diversity sweeps instead of focus sweeps, in which a sub-aperture is translated and/or rotated across the exit pupil of the system. Several optical-performance requirements that were verified during this ISIM-level testing are levied on the uncertainties of various wavefront-error-related quantities rather than on the wavefront errors themselves. This paper also describes the methodology, based on Monte Carlo simulations of the wavefront-sensing analysis of focus-sweep data, used to establish the uncertainties of the wavefront-error maps.

image analysis↗