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At least 811 records · Page 45

UAS remote sensing (Osprey platform): Red-green-blue (RGB) imagery, thermal infrared (TIR) imagery, and canopy reflectance, Seward Peninsula, Alaska, 2018

Airborne remote sensing data collected using the Brookhaven National Laboratory's (BNL) heavy-lift unoccupied aerial system (UAS) octocopter platform - the Osprey - operated by the Terrestrial Ecosystem Science and Technology (TEST) group. This package includes data from 34 flights flown over the NGEE-Arctic Council Mile Maker 72 (MM72), Kougarok MM64, Kougarok MM80, and Teller MM27 sites in July, 2018. The Osprey is a multi-sensor UAS platform that simultaneously measures very high spatial resolution optical red/green/blue (RGB) and thermal infrared (TIR) surface "skin" temperature imagery, as well as surface reflectance at 1 nm intervals in the visible to near-infrared spectral range from ~350-1000 nm measured at regular intervals along each flight path. This package provide the Level 0 (raw, unprocessed) data collected by the Osprey platform. Ancillary aircraft data, flight mission parameters, and general flight conditions provided by the onboard flight and data collection computers are also included. Data and metadata are provided as text (*.txt, *.json), tabular (*.dat, *.csv, *.waypoint), and image (*.jpg) formats. This metadata document contains flight campaign, instrument and file metadata, along with a description of the L0 data, and file naming scheme. The Next-Generation Ecosystem Experiments: Arctic (NGEE Arctic), was a research effort to reduce uncertainty in Earth System Models by developing a predictive understanding of carbon-rich Arctic ecosystems and feedbacks to climate. NGEE Arctic was supported by the Department of Energy's Office of Biological and Environmental Research. The NGEE Arctic project had two field research sites: 1) located within the Arctic polygonal tundra coastal region on the Barrow Environmental Observatory (BEO) and the North Slope near Utqiagvik (Barrow), Alaska and 2) multiple areas on the discontinuous permafrost region of the Seward Peninsula north of Nome, Alaska. Through observations, experiments, and synthesis with existing datasets, NGEE Arctic provided an enhanced knowledge base for multi-scale modeling and contributed to improved process representation at global pan-Arctic scales within the Department of Energy's Earth system Model (the Energy Exascale Earth System Model, or E3SM), and specifically within the E3SM Land Model component (ELM).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

UAS remote sensing (Osprey platform): Red-green-blue (RGB) imagery, thermal infrared (TIR) imagery, and canopy reflectance, Seward Peninsula, Alaska, 2019

Airborne remote sensing data collected using the Brookhaven National Laboratory's (BNL) heavy-lift unoccupied aerial system (UAS) octocopter platform - the Osprey - operated by the Terrestrial Ecosystem Science and Technology (TEST) group (https://www.bnl.gov/testgroup). This package includes data from 17 flights flown over the NGEE-Arctic Council Mile Maker 64 (MM64) and Teller MM27 sites in July, 2019. The Osprey is a multi-sensor UAS platform that simultaneously measures very high spatial resolution optical red/green/blue (RGB) and thermal infrared (TIR) surface "skin" temperature imagery, as well as surface reflectance at 1 nm intervals in the visible to near-infrared spectral range from ~350-1000 nm measured at regular intervals along each flight path. This package provide the Level 0 (raw, unprocessed) data collected by the Osprey platform. Ancillary aircraft data, flight mission parameters, and general flight conditions provided by the onboard flight and data collection computers are also included. Data and metadata are provided as text (*.txt, *.json), tabular (*.dat, *.csv, *.waypoint), and image (*.jpg) formats. This metadata document contains flight campaign, instrument and file metadata, along with a description of the L0 data, and file naming scheme. The Next-Generation Ecosystem Experiments: Arctic (NGEE Arctic), was a research effort to reduce uncertainty in Earth System Models by developing a predictive understanding of carbon-rich Arctic ecosystems and feedbacks to climate. NGEE Arctic was supported by the Department of Energy's Office of Biological and Environmental Research. The NGEE Arctic project had two field research sites: 1) located within the Arctic polygonal tundra coastal region on the Barrow Environmental Observatory (BEO) and the North Slope near Utqiagvik (Barrow), Alaska and 2) multiple areas on the discontinuous permafrost region of the Seward Peninsula north of Nome, Alaska. Through observations, experiments, and synthesis with existing datasets, NGEE Arctic provided an enhanced knowledge base for multi-scale modeling and contributed to improved process representation at global pan-Arctic scales within the Department of Energy's Earth system Model (the Energy Exascale Earth System Model, or E3SM), and specifically within the E3SM Land Model component (ELM).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Vegetation Warming Experiment: Leaf mass area, leaf carbon and nitrogen content, Utqiagvik, Alaska, 2021-2022

Leaf mass per area (LMA), and leaf carbon and nitrogen content of an Arctic graminoid, Carex aquatilis, from within warming chambers and paired control plots. The plants were sampled in July 2021 and July 2022 as part of the Zero Power Warming (ZPW) vegetation warming experiment conducted on the Barrow Environmental Observatory (BEO), Utqiagvik (formerly Barrow), Alaska. Samples include leaves used for gas exchange measurements and bulk harvests from each warming chamber and paired ambient plot. The files included in this data package are in .csv format, and include 3 data files and 4 metadata files. See related datasets for plant physiology, phenology, thaw depth and environmental conditions of the plots and warming chambers. The Next-Generation Ecosystem Experiments: Arctic (NGEE Arctic), was a research effort to reduce uncertainty in Earth System Models by developing a predictive understanding of carbon-rich Arctic ecosystems and feedbacks to climate. NGEE Arctic was supported by the Department of Energy's Office of Biological and Environmental Research. The NGEE Arctic project had two field research sites: 1) located within the Arctic polygonal tundra coastal region on the Barrow Environmental Observatory (BEO) and the North Slope near Utqiagvik (Barrow), Alaska and 2) multiple areas on the discontinuous permafrost region of the Seward Peninsula north of Nome, Alaska. Through observations, experiments, and synthesis with existing datasets, NGEE Arctic provided an enhanced knowledge base for multi-scale modeling and contributed to improved process representation at global pan-Arctic scales within the Department of Energy's Earth system Model (the Energy Exascale Earth System Model, or E3SM), and specifically within the E3SM Land Model component (ELM).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Volatile-rich lunar soil - Evidence of possible cometary impact.

A subsurface Apollo 16 soil, 61221, is much richer in volatile compounds than soils from any other locations or sites as shown by thermal analysis-gas release measurements. A weight loss of 0.03% during the interval 175 to 350 C was associated with the release of water, carbon dioxide, methane, hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen, and minor amounts of hydrocarbons and other species. These volatile components may have been brought to this site by a comet, which may have formed North Ray crater.

Gibson, E. K., Jr.↗

A new method for satellite orbit determination using an operational worldwide transponder network

The method utilizes computer programs developed for the forthcoming ATS-F/NIMBUS-F tracking and data relay experiment where the basic tracking measurements are multiple path round-trip propagation times and rates. This method of orbit computation has recently been successfully evaluated by tracking a geostationary satellite (ATS-3) using an existing VHF (150 MHz) network of automatic transponders. A master station sequentially interrogates each transponder via the ATS-3. The master site is located at Schenectady, N. Y. and four automatic transponders were located at Shannon, Reykajavik, Buenos Aires, and Seattle respectively. Data at hourly intervals were collected during a 24 hour period on April 18-19, 1973. After correcting this data for known systematic errors it was provided as input to an orbit determination program where all satellite motions during signal propagation are rigorously accounted for. The resulting estimated ATS-3 orbit yielded observational residuals on the order of 100 meters. By using more than one satellite the present scheme is further capable of accurately locating several stationary or mobile terminals as part of the overall orbital solution.

Lynn, J. J.↗

Preliminary results of the large experimental wind turbine phase of the national wind energy program

The preliminary results of two projects in the development phase of reliable wind turbines designed to supply cost-competitive electrical energy were discussed. An experimental 100 kW wind turbine design and its status are first reviewed. The results of two parallel design studies for determining the configurations and power levels for wind turbines with minimum energy costs are also discussed. These studies predict wind energy costs of 1.5 to 7 cents per kW-h for wind turbines produced in quantities of 100 to 1000 per year and located at sites having average winds of 12 to 18 mph.

Thomas, R. L.↗

Preliminary results of the large experimental wind turbine phase of the national wind energy program

A major phase of the wind energy program is the development of reliable wind turbines for supplying cost-competitive electrical energy. This paper discusses the preliminary results of two projects in this phase of the program. First an experimental 100 kW wind turbine design and its status are reviewed. Also discussed are the results of two parallel design studies for determining the configurations and power levels for wind turbines with minimum energy costs. These studies show wind energy costs of 7 to 1.5 c/kWH for wind turbines produced in quantities of 100 to 1000 a year and located at sites having average winds of 12 to 18 mph.

Thomas, R. L.↗

US Army Corps of Engineers program

The application of satellite remote sensing technology in hydrologic studies and regulatory programs of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is discussed. Site selection, location of construction material, environment impact assessment, analysis of hydrologic systems, reservoir system analysis, water quality, quantity and quality of runoff from urban areas, river hydraulics, and sediment movement are among the applications described. Emphasis is placed on introducing automatic classification of multispectral data into modeling techniques used in hydrologic studies.

Jarman, J.↗

Particle impact tests

Particle impact tests were performed on three types of orbiter surface with a micrometeoroid facility. The test equipment electrostatically accelerated micron sized particles to high velocities simulating micrometeoroid impacts. Test particles were titanium diboride with typical velocities in the range 1 to 2.3 km x sec/1 and equivalent particle diameters in the range 4 to 16 microns. Impact angles to the material surface were 90, 60 and 30 degrees. The particle impact sites were located on the sample surfaces and craters were photographed with a magnification of 400X.

Komatsu, G. K.↗

Pc 3 magnetic pulsations and precipitation of energetic electrons

The synchronous altitude satellite ATS 1 data and near-conjugate measurements of bremsstrahlung X-rays and ground magnetic variations were used to analyze an event of modulated auroral zone electron precipitation and magnetic pulsations in the Pc range. Transverse, azimuthal, nearly linearly polarized waves observed at ATS 1, ground magnetic pulsations at College, Alaska, and intervals of modulated electron precipitation centered on local magnetic moon, and noted in the X-ray data from Fort Yukon, Alaska, are discussed, noting that the origin of the Pc 3 waves is attributed to local field line resonances induced by Kelvin-Helmholtz instability at the magnetopause. The wave resonance model can explain observed differences in the pulsation activity at the ground, balloon, and satellite if account is taken of the spatial sensitivities of the techniques and the location of observing sites with respect to the probable location of resonant field lines. The data suggest that electron precipitation pulsations will correlate with Pc 3 magnetic pulsations when substorm injections coupled with azimuthal drift provide enhanced energetic particle fluxes with dayside resonance regions.

Arthur, C. W.↗

Microwave radiometer measurements of soil moisture content

A unique set of radiometer measurements is presented, recorded during a 1000-h day and night monitoring of irrigated fields from fully saturated to completely dry. Radiometer measurements were recorded at 2.8-cm (X-band) and 21.4-cm (L-band) wavelengths for a range of incident angles from nadir to 50 deg. Soil moisture and soil temperature profile measurements were recorded to a depth of 15 cm. The test site was located in east-central Texas on a clay soil (Miller clay). Three bare-surface plots were used, each having a distinctly different surface roughness. Vegetated plots were also measured. The data quantify the sensitivity of microwave radiometer measurements to soil moisture variations, the effect of surface roughness on the measurement, and the influence of surface vegetation.

Newton, R. W.↗

Electronic search and rescue aids

There are two elements to the basic electronic search and rescue problem: a means for immediately alerting potential rescuers and an effective method to guide the rescue forces to the scene of the emergency. An Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) used by aircraft or an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) used by maritime vessels has the capability of providing for both an immediate alert and a homing signal to assist rescue forces in locating the site of the distress. This paper describes the development of ELT/EPIRB systems. Emphasis is placed on the SARSAT project, the COSPAS/SARSAT project, and an experimental 406 MHz ELT/EPIRB system.

Trudell, B. J.↗

Vomiting Center reanalyzed: An electrical stimulation study

Electrical stimulation of the brainstem of 15 decerebrate cats produced stimulus-bound vomiting in only 4 animals. Vomiting was reproducible in only one cat. Effective stimulating sites were located in the solitary tract and reticular formation. Restricted localization of a vomiting center, stimulation of which evoked readily reproducible results, could not be obtained.

Miller, A. D.↗

SONTRAC: A solar neutron track chamber detector

The recent detection on the solar maximum mission (SMM) satellite of high energy neutrons emitted during large solar flares has provided renewed incentive to design a neutron detector which has the sensitivity, energy resolution, and time resolution to measure the neutron time and energy spectra with sufficient precision to improve our understanding of the basic flare processes. Over the past two decades a variety of neutron detectors has been flown to measure the atmospheric neutron intensity above 10 MeV and to search for solar neutrons. The SONTRAC (Solar Neutron Track Chamber) detector, a new type of neutron detector which utilizes n-p scattering and has a sensitivity 1-3 orders of magnitude greater than previous instruments in the 20-200 MeV range is described. The energy resolution is 1% for neutron kinetic energy, T sub n 50 MeV. When used with a coded aperture mask at 50 m (as would be possible on the space station) an angular resolution of approx. 4 arc sec could be achieved, thereby locating the sites of high energy nuclear interactions with an angular precision comparable to the existing x-ray experiments on SMM. The scintillation chamber is investigated as a track chamber for high energy physics, either by using arrays of scintillating optical fibers or by optical imaging of particle trajectories in a block of scintillator.

Frye, G. M., Jr.↗

Canopy reflectance modeling in a tropical wooded grassland

Geometric/optical canopy reflectance modeling and spatial/spectral pattern recognition is used to study the form and structure of savanna in West Africa. An invertible plant canopy reflectance model is tested for its ability to estimate the amount of woody vegetation from remotely sensed data in areas of sparsely wooded grassland. Dry woodlands and wooded grasslands, commonly referred to as savannas, are important ecologically and economically in Africa, and cover approximately forty percent of the continent by some estimates. The Sahel and Sudan savannas make up the important and sensitive transition zone between the tropical forests and the arid Sahara region. The depletion of woody cover, used for fodder and fuel in these regions, has become a very severe problem for the people living there. LANDSAT Thematic Mapper (TM) data is used to stratify woodland and wooded grassland into areas of relatively homogeneous canopy cover, and then an invertible forest canopy reflectance model is applied to estimate directly the height and spacing of the trees in the stands. Because height and spacing are proportional to biomass in some cases, a successful application of the segmentation/modeling techniques will allow direct estimation of tree biomass, as well as cover density, over significant areas of these valuable and sensitive ecosystems. The model being tested in sites in two different bioclimatic zones in Mali, West Africa, will be used for testing the canopy model. Sudanian zone crop/woodland test sites were located in the Region of Segou, Mali.

Simonett, David↗

GPS-based geodesy in California, Mexico and the Caribbean

The NASA GPS-based geophysical geodetics system will be capable of 1-3 cm relative position accuracies on regional baselines and GPS ephemerides with submeter accuracies. Simultaneity and mutual visibility allow high differential carrier phase and group delay measurements to be obtained without clock errors. Both mobile GPS terminal sites and fiducial sites whose locations are accurately maintained by independent VLBI and SLR systems are to be used. A system validation and multiyear measurement program is under way.

Melbourne, W. G.↗

A demonstration of sub-meter GPS orbit determination and high precision user positioning

It was demonstrated that the submeter GPS (Global Positioning System) orbits can be determined using multiday arc solutions with the current GPS constellation subset visible for about 8 h each day from North America. Submeter orbit accuracy was shown through orbit repeatability and orbit prediction. North American baselines of 1000-2000 km length can be estimated simultaneously with the GPS orbits to an accuracy of better than 1.5 parts in 108 (3 cm over 2000 km distance) with a daily precision of two parts in 108 or better. The most reliable baseline solutions are obtained using the same type of receivers and antennas at each end of the baseline. Baselines greater than 1000 km distance from Florida to sites in the Caribbean region have also been determined with daily precision of 1-4 parts in 108. The Caribbean sites are located well outside the fiducial tracking network and the region of optimal GPS common visibility. Thus, these results further demonstrate the robustness of the multiday arc GPS orbit solutions.

Bertiger, Willy I.↗

Viscoelastic deformation near active plate boundaries

Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) now has the capacity to monitor geodetic positions with precisions of a few 1 mm over continental baselines. For tectonic applications, one of the major products of the VLBI program is the determination of the rate of change of station locations. Vector site velocities are now routinely produced. One of the novel techniques, VLBI Euler poles, is discussed.

Ward, Steven N.↗