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At least 811 records · Page 45

The origin and evolution of the coordinated data analysis workshop process

During the planning stage for the International Magnetospheric Study (IMS), it was stressed that coordinated observations among various satellites and among satellite, ground-based, balloon, and rocket (GBR) experiments were essential in obtaining the required observational data base. In the course of operating the Satellite Situation Center (SSC), it was found to be desirable to assemble a problem-oriented digital data base, consisting of a large number of physical parameters obtained from satellite and GBR sensors, in a computer system which would permit a large number of scientists to manipulate, display, discuss, study and analyze the data together in a coordinated manner. It was felt that such a process might shorten the time required to gain full scientific understanding of the observations. This approach was called the Coordinated Data Analysis Workshop (CDAW) process. Attention is given to the preliminary concept, the the initial implementation of the CDAW process, and aspects of subsequent evolution.

Vette, J. I.↗

A computational study of saddle point separation and horseshoe vortex system

Incompressible flow around a cylinder-end wall junction has been simulated by solving the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations in three dimensions. The equations, cast in generalized curvilinear coordinates, are solved in time as a hyperbolic system by adding a pressure term in the continuity equation and are marched to a steady state. Various physical quantities associated with the saddle point of separation and the horseshoe vortex system are calculated. Computational and experimental results are generally consistent. The skin friction and the pressure distribution on the end wall are consistent with the physics of the problem. Secondary flows both in front of the cylinder and behind it are predicted that are in qualitative agreement with flow visualization results. The calculations also indicate a strongly nonuniform pressure loading along the length of the cylinder. A new mechanism for the existence of the recirculation bubbles behind the cylinder-end wall with relatively low ratio of cylinder height to the approaching boundary layer thickness is observed which is markedly different from its two-dimensional counterpart.

Kaul, U. K.↗

Viewing ISS Data in Real Time via the Internet

EZStream is a computer program that enables authorized users at diverse terrestrial locations to view, in real time, data generated by scientific payloads aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The only computation/communication resource needed for use of EZStream is a computer equipped with standard Web-browser software and a connection to the Internet. EZStream runs in conjunction with the TReK software, described in a prior NASA Tech Briefs article, that coordinates multiple streams of data for the ground communication system of the ISS. EZStream includes server components that interact with TReK within the ISS ground communication system and client components that reside in the users' remote computers. Once an authorized client has logged in, a server component of EZStream pulls the requested data from a TReK application-program interface and sends the data to the client. Future EZStream enhancements will include (1) extensions that enable the server to receive and process arbitrary data streams on its own and (2) a Web-based graphical-user-interface-building subprogram that enables a client who lacks programming expertise to create customized display Web pages.

Myers, Gerry↗

Automated drafting system uses computer techniques

Automated drafting system produces schematic and block diagrams from the design engineers freehand sketches. This system codes conventional drafting symbols and their coordinate locations on standard size drawings for entry on tapes that are used to drive a high speed photocomposition machine.

Millenson, D. H.↗

LUMIS: Land Use Management and Information Systems; coordinate oriented program documentation

An integrated geographic information system to assist program managers and planning groups in metropolitan regions is presented. The series of computer software programs and procedures involved in data base construction uses the census DIME file and point-in-polygon architectures. The system is described in two parts: (1) instructions to operators with regard to digitizing and editing procedures, and (2) application of data base construction algorithms to achieve map registration, assure the topological integrity of polygon files, and tabulate land use acreages within administrative districts.

Source record↗

Computational design of an experimental laser-powered thruster

An extensive numerical experiment, using the developed computer code, was conducted to design an optimized laser-sustained hydrogen plasma thruster. The plasma was sustained using a 30 kW CO2 laser beam operated at 10.6 micrometers focused inside the thruster. The adopted physical model considers two-dimensional compressible Navier-Stokes equations coupled with the laser power absorption process, geometric ray tracing for the laser beam, and the thermodynamically equilibrium (LTE) assumption for the plasma thermophysical and optical properties. A pressure based Navier-Stokes solver using body-fitted coordinate was used to calculate the laser-supported rocket flow which consists of both recirculating and transonic flow regions. The computer code was used to study the behavior of laser-sustained plasmas within a pipe over a wide range of forced convection and optical arrangements before it was applied to the thruster design, and these theoretical calculations agree well with existing experimental results. Several different throat size thrusters operated at 150 and 300 kPa chamber pressure were evaluated in the numerical experiment. It is found that the thruster performance (vacuum specific impulse) is highly dependent on the operating conditions, and that an adequately designed laser-supported thruster can have a specific impulse around 1500 sec. The heat loading on the wall of the calculated thrusters were also estimated, and it is comparable to heat loading on the conventional chemical rocket. It was also found that the specific impulse of the calculated thrusters can be reduced by 200 secs due to the finite chemical reaction rate.

Jeng, San-Mou↗

The Critical Role of Computational Fluid Dynamics in Rotary-Wing Aerodynamics

Helicopter rotor aerodynamics is basically the study of unsteady aerodynamic flows in a rotating and translating coordinate system. Current trends in this field are briefly reviewed by examining recent advances in lifting-surface theory, wake modeling, panel methods, and finite-difference models' Examples are used to illustrate selected current methods and some indications of promising future directions are highlighted.

Davis, Sanford S.↗

Displaying and Analyzing Antenna Radiation Patterns

Radiant Energy Display and Analysis Software Package (REDAP) is a computer program for processing antenna-radiation- pattern data that have been preprocessed by a data-collection program and stored in a spherical-coordinate format. REDAP is designed specifically for application to data generated in testing of antennas in an anechoic chamber at Johnson Space Center; parts of REDAP may be reusable for processing antenna-test data collected elsewhere. REDAP provides a graphical user interface (GUI) and executes mathematical and plotting routines on a personal computer.

Siekierski, Jim↗

Geographical correlation of earth cloud cover pictures obtained from unoriented satellites

Mathematical models have been developed for the determination of the geographic coordinates of cloud photographs taken from earth satellites. The proposed methods were realized on a Minsk-22 computer, and were used to process the earth cloud pictures obtained from the communications satellite Molyniya 1 and the automatic stations Zond 5 and 7. Experience using these methods showed that the accuracy of orientation angular element determination is on the order of 1 deg.

Solovyev, V. I.↗

Geodetic control net

Computer program, originally developed for Mariner flyby missions, computes planetary control net from measurements of topographical features identified on television pictures. Program solves for areocentric coordinates of 115 surface points and orthogonal camera matrices of 57 far and near encounter pictures.

Davies, M. E.↗

Correlated wave functions for three-particle systems with Coulomb interaction - The muonic helium atom

A computational procedure for calculating correlated wave functions is proposed for three-particle systems interacting through Coulomb forces. Calculations are carried out for the muonic helium atom. Variational wave functions which explicitly contain interparticle coordinates are presented for the ground and excited states. General Hylleraas-type trial functions are used as the basis for the correlated wave functions. Excited-state energies of the muonic helium atom computed from 1- and 35-term wave functions are listed for four states.

Huang, K.-N.↗

Evaluation of MOSTAS computer code for predicting dynamic loads in two-bladed wind turbines

Calculated dynamic blade loads are compared with measured loads over a range of yaw stiffnesses of the DOE/NASA Mod-0 wind turbine to evaluate the performance of two versions of the MOSTAS computer code. The first version uses a time-averaged coefficient approximation in conjunction with a multiblade coordinate transformation for two-bladed rotors to solve the equations of motion by standard eigenanalysis. The results obtained with this approximate analysis do not agree with dynamic blade load amplifications at or close to resonance conditions. The results of the second version, which accounts for periodic coefficients while solving the equations by a time history integration, compare well with the measured data.

Kaza, K. R. V.↗

High resolution vertical profiles of wind, temperature and humidity obtained by computer processing and digital filtering of radiosonde and radar tracking data from the ITCZ experiment of 1977

Results are presented from computer processing and digital filtering of radiosonde and radar tracking data obtained during the ITCZ experiment when coordinated measurements were taken daily over a 16 day period across the Panama Canal Zone. The temperature relative humidity and wind velocity profiles are discussed.

Danielson, E. F.↗

Variable-grid-size transformation for solving nonsimilar laminar and turbulent boundary-layers

A numerical code has been developed to calculate nonsimilar boundary-layers (either laminar, transitional, or turbulent). The formulation of the equations of motion employs two transformations for the y-coordinate which provide a dense spacing of points near the wall and, therefore, can provide engineering solutions using relatively few points in the y-direction. The turbulent viscosity is correlated in terms of a length scale, which is in turn a function of the physical y-coordinate and of the mean-flow velocity gradient at that point. The boundary-layer solutions computed using the present code are compared with theoretical solutions presented by other investigators and with data from the literature. Comparisons with the data indicate that the theoretical solutions provide suitable values for the pitot-pressure profiles and the displacement thickness. Significant differences exist in the one comparison between the theoretical and the experimental heat-transfer rates for hypersonic flow past a flat plate.

Bertin, J. J.↗

A diagonal form of an implicit approximate-factorization algorithm

A modification of an implicit approximate-factorization finite-difference algorithm applied to partial differential equations is presented. This algorithm is applied to the two- and three-dimensional Euler equations in general curvilinear coordinates. The modification transforms the coupled system of equations into an uncoupled diagonal form that requires less computational work. For steady-state applications, the resulting diagonal algorithm retains the stability and accuracy characteristics of the original algorithm. The diagonal algorithm reduces the storage requirement of the implicit solution process and therefore has an important effect on the application of implicit finite-difference schemes to vector processors. Results are presented for realistic two-dimensional transonic flow fields about airfoils. Computation costs are reduced to 24-34%.

Pulliam, T. H.↗

Implicit TVD schemes for hyperbolic conservation laws in curvilinear coordinates

The Harten (1983, 1984) total variation-diminishing (TVD) schemes, constituting a one-parameter explicit and implicit, second-order-accurate family, have the property of not generating spurious oscillations when applied to one-dimensional, nonlinear scalar hyperbolic conservation laws and constant coefficient hyperbolic systems. These methods are presently extended to the multidimensional hyperbolic conservation laws in curvilinear coordinates. Means by which to linearize the implicit operator and solution strategies, in order to improve the computation efficiency of the implicit algorithm, are discussed. Numerical experiments with steady state airfoil calculations indicate that the proposed linearized implicit TVD schemes are accurate and robust.

Yee, H. C.↗

Computer-generated 3D ultrasound images of the carotid artery

A method is under development to measure carotid artery lesions from a computer-generated three-dimensional ultrasound image. For each image, the position of the transducer in six coordinates (x, y, z, azimuth, elevation, and roll) is recorded and used to position each B-mode picture element in its proper spatial position in a three-dimensional memory array. After all B-mode images have been assembled in the memory, the three-dimensional image is filtered and resampled to produce a new series of parallel-plane two-dimensional images from which arterial boundaries are determined using edge tracking methods.

Selzer, Robert H.↗

Calculating Dynamics Of Helicopters And Slung Loads

General equations derived for numerical simulations of motions of multiple-lift, slung-load systems consisting of two or more lifting helicopters and loads slung from them by various combinations of spreader bars, cables, nets, and attaching hardware. Equations readily programmable for efficient computation of motions and lend themselves well to analysis and design of control strategies for stabilization and coordination.

Cicolani, Luigi↗