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At least 739 records · Page 41

Calculation of 5250.216 A line profiles in sunspots.

It is shown that spectral line profiles, used in the calibration and interpretation of magnetograph results, cannot be considered as reliable when they are calculated under the assumption of pure absorption and local thermodynamic equilibrium, frequently employed. Because of this assumption, the line-to-continuous absorption ratio becomes very large at the top of the sunspot model, causing the emergent intensity to originate at a very shallow depth in the sunspot. This is illustrated by calculations of the Fe I 5250.2 A line for three sunspot models.

Dunn, A. R.↗

Star formation in IC 1848 A

Recent far-infrared photometric and near-infrared spectroscopic observations of IC 1848 A/W5 East are reported. The source appears to be excited by a star of spectral type near B0, which can explain the far-infrared luminosity, 2 micron spectrum, radio continuum, and radio molecular observations. Although this star appears surrounded by a local very compact H II region, the density over a large scale is relatively low. This puts constraints on models for the formation of this star.

Thronson, H. A., Jr.↗

Radiometric responsivity determination for Feature Identification and Location Experiment (FILE) flown on space shuttle mission

A procedure was developed to obtain the radiometric (radiance) responsivity of the Feature Identification and Local Experiment (FILE) instrument in preparation for its flight on Space Shuttle Mission 41-G (November 1984). This instrument was designed to obtain Earth feature radiance data in spectral bands centered at 0.65 and 0.85 microns, along with corroborative color and color-infrared photographs, and to collect data to evaluate a technique for in-orbit autonomous classification of the Earth's primary features. The calibration process incorporated both solar radiance measurements and radiative transfer model predictions in estimating expected radiance inputs to the FILE on the Shuttle. The measured data are compared with the model predictions, and the differences observed are discussed. Application of the calibration procedure to the FILE over an 18-month period indicated a constant responsivity characteristic. This report documents the calibration procedure and the associated radiometric measurements and predictions that were part of the instrument preparation for flight.

Wilson, R. G.↗

Optical protocols for terabit networks

This paper describes a new fiber-optic local area network technology providing 100X improvement over current technology, has full crossbar funtionality, and inherent data security. Based on optical code-division multiple access (CDMA), using spectral phase encoding/decoding of optical pulses, networking protocols are implemented entirely in the optical domain and thus conventional networking bottlenecks are avoided. Component and system issues for a proof-of-concept demonstration are discussed, as well as issues for a more practical and commercially exploitable system. Possible terrestrial and aerospace applications of this technology, and its impact on other technologies are explored. Some initial results toward realization of this concept are also included.

Chua, P. L.↗

Pyroclastic deposits on the western limb of the moon

A geologic characterization is presented of 17 newly identified localized pyroclastic deposits on the western limb of the moon. The results show that lunar pyroclastic deposits are more pervasive on the western limb of the moon than once thought. The western limb dark-mantle deposits in the proximal zone are probably related to faults and fractures associated with the Cordillera ring of Orientale Basin. All the localized pyroclastic deposits on the western limb for which near-infrared reflectance spectra have been obtained exhibit parameter that allowed them to be assigned to the three spectral groups described elsewhere. Western limb pyroclastic deposits appear to represent various stages in a formational sequence in which an initial explosive phase is followed by varying amounts of mare flooding. In view of their sequential formation, both the pyroclastic and mare materials associated with individual volcanic complexes may be the products of the same parent magmas and have very similar compositions.

Coombs, Cassandra R.↗

Estimating Lunar Pyroclastic Deposit Depth from Imaging Radar Data: Applications to Lunar Resource Assessment

Lunar pyroclastic deposits represent one of the primary anticipated sources of raw materials for future human settlements. These deposits are fine-grained volcanic debris layers produced by explosive volcanism contemporaneous with the early stage of mare infilling. There are several large regional pyroclastic units on the Moon (for example, the Aristarchus Plateau, Rima Bode, and Sulpicius Gallus formations), and numerous localized examples, which often occur as dark-halo deposits around endogenic craters (such as in the floor of Alphonsus Crater). Several regional pyroclastic deposits were studied with spectral reflectance techniques: the Aristarchus Plateau materials were found to be a relatively homogeneous blanket of iron-rich glasses. One such deposit was sampled at the Apollo 17 landing site, and was found to have ferrous oxide and titanium dioxide contents of 12 percent and 5 percent, respectively. While the areal extent of these deposits is relatively well defined from orbital photographs, their depths have been constrained only by a few studies of partially filled impact craters and by imaging radar data. A model for radar backscatter from mantled units applicable to both 70-cm and 12.6-cm wavelength radar data is presented. Depth estimates from such radar observations may be useful in planning future utilization of lunar pyroclastic deposits.

Campbell, B. A.↗

Highly blueshifted H I gas toward the Galactic center

Gusten and Downes (1981) discovered the presence of -190 km/s absorbing H I gas toward the Galactic center. Using the VLA in its most compact hybrid configuration, we were able to image the distribution of this high-negative-velocity H I spectral feature with a spatial and spectral resolution of about 25 arcsec and 6.2 km/s, respectively. The blueshifted H I gas is dominated by systematic radial motion as great as -210 km/s and is localized to within several arcmin of the dynamical center of the Galaxy. We show a striking column of diffuse H I gas extending for several arcmin in the direction along the rotation axis of the molecular disk encircling the Galactic center. The H I optical depth distribution indicates that a total of about 3000 solar masses of neutral material, with -211 to -160 km/sec velocity, appears to be associated with this feature. This unusual kinematic feature appears to coexist with two systems of rotationally supported ionized (Sgr A West) and molecular (circumnuclear disk) gas.

Yusef-Zadeh, Farhad↗

XMM Observations of 'New' Swift BAT Sources

Because the E> 15 keV band is unaffected by absorption this band offers the best hope of obtaining an unbiased sample of AGN. The Swift BAT survey has produced the first large sample of hard x-ray bright AGN in the local universe providing the data necessary to determine the true characteristics of the AGN population. However to use this data one needs to obtain the x-ray spectral properties of these objects.We will present the complete sample of x-ray spectra of the BAT objects and the implications of these data.

Mushotzky, Richard F.↗

The Extragalactic Radio Background

The existence of an isotropic component of the high-latitude radio sky has been recognized for nearly fifty years, but has typically been assumed to be Galactic in origin. We use recent radio observations to test whether the observed high-latitude component could originate within either an extended Galactic halo or a more local "bubble" structure. The lack of significant polarization from the isotropic component, combined with the lack of significant correlation with the Galactic far-infrared emission, rule out an origin within the Galaxy. We conclude that an extragalactic origin is the only viable alternative for the bulk of the isotropic high-latitude emission. The extragalactic component is 2-3 times brighter than local (Galactic) emission towards the Galactic poles and is consistent with a power law in frequency with amplitude T(sub r) = 24.1 plus or minus 2.1 K and spectral index beta = -2.599 plus or minus 0.036 evaluated at reference frequency 310 MHz.

Kogut, A.↗

Eruption Characterisitics of Lunar Localized Pyroclastic Deposits Based on Water Content, Mineralogy, Regolith Properties

Lunar pyroclastic deposits are low albedo deposits present throughout the lunar surface including both maria and highlands, nearside and farside, and high latitudes and equatorial regions [e.g., 1]. There are two main types of pyroclastic deposits based upon size: localized (<2500 km2) and regional pyroclastic deposits (>2500 km2) [1]. In this study, we focus on the smaller localized pyroclastic deposits. The first and most detailed study of localized pyroclastic deposits are the deposits in Alphonsus crater [2]. This study included examining the radar and volumetric properties of these deposits. They found that vulcanian-like eruptions are most consistent with their observations. They imagined that a dike intrudes into the crust and creates a cooled basaltic cap. With increasing pressure under the basaltic cap, the pressure eventually overwhelms the surrounding rocks and results in explosive decompression. Later studies examined several pyroclastic deposits across the lunar surface using radar [2–4], digital terrain models (DTMs) [2,4], visible and near-infrared spectrometers [1,4–7], and a radiometer [4] to determine the mineralogy (e.g., olivine, glass, clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene, and plagioclase), deposit thickness and volume, proportion of juvenile material, radar backscatter, surface rock abundance, and regolith density. These various properties were examined against one another to better group localized pyroclastic deposits and understand how they relate to one another [4]. One of the studies divided pyroclastic deposits into three groups based upon the shape of the 1-μm absorption feature. The three Groups could be interpretated as having highlands and pyroclastic material (Group I), mare and pyroclastic material (Group II), and glass and orthopyroxene material (Group III) [5]. Building on that foundation, another study divided the pyroclastic deposits into four groups based upon their surface rock abundance and glass abundance [4], where deposits are classified based upon low surface rock abundance and high glass abundance (Glassy deposits); high rock abundance, high glass abundance (Blocky deposits); moderate rock abundance and low glass abundance (Crystalline deposits); and high rock abundance and low glass abundance (Indistinct Group). In addition to these studies, we can now look at their water contents using the new Effective Single Particle Absorption Thickness (ESPAT) parameter map [8]. The ESPAT map measures the strength of the 3-μm absorption feature in single scattering albedo space. The strength of this feature and its relationship to water content has been calibrated to returned samples, which allows for water content to be derived from remote spectral data (i.e., Moon Mineralogy Mapper). The goal of this study is to examine how water content in the pyroclastic deposits varies with respect to the geometric, mineralogic, and physical properties of the localized pyroclastic deposits as measured by a previous study [i.e., 4]. A more complete version of this work is found in [9].

D Trang↗

Three-dimensional characterization of modifications in sapphire exposed to laser-induced damage using multimodal spectral microimaging

Sapphire (Al 2 O 3 ) is a commonly used dielectric material with many applications in lasers and optical systems. Owing to its high resistivity to laser induced damage, it is particularly suitable for use in high power laser systems. This work focuses on developing techniques to characterize material modifications in sapphire. These techniques were applied following localized laser induced ablation, commonly referred to as laser-damage, resulting from exposure to single 100-ps and 6-ns pulses. Measurements of fluorescence-based piezospectroscopy and confocal Raman microscopy were performed with spatial resolution on the order of 1 μ m. Raman microscopy reveals that the relaxation of material exposed to the rapid laser heating, elastic and viscoplastic deformation, melting, and solidification leads to the formation of a polycrystalline material phase. In addition, narrowband fluorescence lines, referred to as R 1 and R 2 , exhibit pressure-sensitive changes to their spectral profiles, allowing 3D internal stresses to be recorded with spatial resolution of the order of a few micrometers.

Laser-damage↗

Multi-Dimensional Spectral Difference Method for Unstructured Grids

A new, high-order, conservative, and efficient method for conservation laws on unstructured grids is developed. It combines the best features of structured and unstructured grid methods to attain computational efficiency and geometric flexibility; it utilizes the concept of discontinuous and high-order local representations to achieve conservation and high accuracy; and it is based on the finite-difference formulation for simplicity. Universal reconstructions are obtained by distributing unknowns in a geometrically similar manner for all unstructured cells. Placements of the unknown and flux points with various order of accuracy are given for the line, triangular and tetrahedral elements. The data structure of the new method permits an optimum use of cache memory, resulting in further computational efficiency on modern computers. A new pointer system is developed that reduces memory requirements and simplifies programming for any order of accuracy. Numerical solutions are presented and compared with the exact solutions for wave propagation problems in both two and three dimensions to demonstrate the capability of the method. Excellent agreement has been found. The method is simpler and more efficient than previous discontinuous Galerkin and spectral volume methods for unstructured grids.

Liu, Yen↗

Laboratory Reflectance Spectra of 160 Minerals, 0.4 to 2.5 Micrometers

This reports provides reflectance spectra of 160 minerals in both digital and printed form. In order to demonstrate the effect of particle size on reflectance, the spectral data for 135 of the minerals are presented at three different grain sizes. These are 125-500 microns, 45-125 microns and less than 45 microns. Ancillary information is provided with each mineral spectrum, which includes the mineral name, minerology, supplier, sampling locality and our designated sample number. The purity of every mineral sample was evaluated by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The composition of certain minerals known to deviate strongly from idealized end-member compositions was determined by electron microprobe analysis. The compositional information obtained by microbe analysis and accessory minerals identified by XRD are noted with the ancillary information. In addition, the spectrum acquired from the coarsest grain size available for each sample was processed with a feature-finding algorithm to quantify the characteristics of the spectral absorption features. All the reflectance spectra presented here are provided in digital form on IBM-compatible 3.5" diskettes. Also included on diskette is a program for displaying the spectral data and searching for spectral features that runs on an IBM-compatible PC with standard VCA graphics.

reflectance spectra↗

Molecular Dynamical and Quantum Mechanical Exploration of the Site-Specific Dynamics of Cy3 Dimers Internally Linked to dsDNA

Performing spectroscopic measurements on biomolecules labeled with fluorescent probes is a powerful approach to locating the molecular behavior and dynamics of large systems at specific sites within their local environments. The indocarbocyanine dye Cy3 has emerged as one of the most commonly used chromophores. The incorporation of Cy3 dimers into DNA enhances experimental resolution owing to the spectral characteristics influenced by the geometric orientation of excitonically coupled monomeric units. Various theoretical models and simulations have been utilized to aid in the interpretation of the experimental spectra. In this study, we employ all-atom molecular dynamics simulations to study the structural dynamics of Cy3 dimers internally linked to the dsDNA backbone. We used quantum mechanical calculations to derive insights from both the linear absorption spectra and the circular dichroism data. Furthermore, we explore potential limitations within a commonly used force field for cyanine dyes. The molecular dynamics simulations suggest the presence of four possible Cy3 dimeric populations. The spectral simulations on the four populations show one of them to agree better with the experimental signatures, suggesting it to be the dominant population. Furthermore, the relative orientation of Cy3 in this population compares very well with previous predictions from the Holstein–Frenkel Hamiltonian model.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Active experiments from ground

Recent ground-based stimulation and observations of ionospheric and magnetospheric phenomena are reported. The studies included amplification and emission generation by coherent ducted whistler mode signals in the magnetosphere, recipitation of radiation belt particles by the injection of VLF waves from ground-based sources, spectral broadening of the VLF signals during ionospheric propagation and the generation of ELF/VLF signals by HF heating of the auroral electrojet. The capabilities of controlled stimulation of the local terrestrial magnetic field environment provides the means for further investigations into the processes of energy exchange between waves and radiation belt particles and the interrelationships of the exchange with the energy coupling between the magnetosphere and ionosphere.

Inan, U. S.↗

Upper tropospheric equatorial waves in ECMWF analyses

An observational study is presented of travelling waves in the near-equatorial upper tropospheric wind field as revealed in operational analyses produced by the European Center for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) over the years 1980-1987. Space-time spectra are presented that reveal the seasonal and interannual variability of traveling waves in the tropical wind fields. The zonal wind spectra exhibit a majority of power in the lowest resolved frequencies, and there is a lack of notable spectral peaks. The upper tropospheric meridional wind spectra show maxima for westward-propagating zonal waves 4-7 with 6- to 10-day periods. The events are also longitudinally localized, with a preference for westward-propagating waves occurring over the eastern Pacific Ocean during August-September. The waves exhibit maximum amplitudes in the upper troposphere and weak coherence with the near-surface layers of the atmosphere.

Randel, William J.↗

Characteristics of turbulence in a boundary layer with zero pressure gradient

The results of an experimental investigation of a turbulent boundary layer with zero pressure gradient are presented. Measurements with the hot-wire anemometer were made of turbulent energy and turbulent shear stress, probability density and flattening factor of u-fluctuation, spectra of turbulent energy and shear stress, and turbulent dissipation. The importance of the region near the wall and the inadequacy of the concept of local isotropy are demonstrated. Attention is given to the energy balance and the intermittent character of the outer region of the boundary layer. Also several interesting features of the spectral distribution of the turbulent motions are discussed.

FLOW, TURBULENT↗

Characteristics of turbulence in boundary layer with zero pressure gradient

The results of an experimental investigation of a turbulent boundary layer with zero pressure gradient are presented. Measurements with the hot-wire anemometer were made of turbulent energy and turbulent shear stress, probability density and flattening factor of u-fluctuation (fluctuation in x-direction), spectra of turbulent energy and shear stress, and turbulent dissipation. The importance of the region near the wall and the inadequacy of the concept of local isotropy are demonstrated. Attention is given to the energy balance and the intermittent character of the outer region of the boundary layer. Also several interesting features of the spectral distribution of the turbulent motions are discussed.

Klebanoff, P S↗