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CERES Monthly Gridded Single Satellite Fluxes and Clouds (FSW) in HDF (CER_FSW_Terra-FM1-MODIS_Edition2C)

The Monthly Gridded Radiative Fluxes and Clouds (FSW) product contains a month of space and time averaged Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) data for a single scanner instrument. The FSW is also produced for combinations of scanner instruments. All instantaneous fluxes from the CERES CRS product for a month are sorted by 1-degree spatial regions and by the Universal Time (UT) hour of observation. The mean of the instantaneous fluxes for a given region-hour bin is determined and recorded on the FSW along with other flux statistics and scene information. The mean adjusted fluxes at the four atmospheric levels defined by CRS are also included for both clear-sky and total-sky scenes. In addition, four cloud height categories are defined by dividing the atmosphere into four intervals with boundaries at the surface, 700-, 500-, 300-hPa, and the Top-of-the-Atmosphere (TOA). The cloud layers from CRS are put into one of the cloud height categories and averaged over the region. The cloud properties are also column averaged and included on the FSW. [Location=GLOBAL] [Temporal_Coverage: Start_Date=1998-01-01; Stop_Date=2005-12-31] [Spatial_Coverage: Southernmost_Latitude=-90; Northernmost_Latitude=90; Westernmost_Longitude=-180; Easternmost_Longitude=180] [Data_Resolution: Latitude_Resolution=1 degree; Longitude_Resolution=1 degree; Horizontal_Resolution_Range=100 km - < 250 km or approximately 1 degree - < 2.5 degrees; Temporal_Resolution=1 month; Temporal_Resolution_Range=Monthly - < Annual].

NET FLUX↗

CERES) Monthly Gridded Single Satellite Fluxes and Clouds (FSW) in HDF (CER_FSW_Terra-FM2-MODIS_Edition2C)

The Monthly Gridded Radiative Fluxes and Clouds (FSW) product contains a month of space and time averaged Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) data for a single scanner instrument. The FSW is also produced for combinations of scanner instruments. All instantaneous fluxes from the CERES CRS product for a month are sorted by 1-degree spatial regions and by the Universal Time (UT) hour of observation. The mean of the instantaneous fluxes for a given region-hour bin is determined and recorded on the FSW along with other flux statistics and scene information. The mean adjusted fluxes at the four atmospheric levels defined by CRS are also included for both clear-sky and total-sky scenes. In addition, four cloud height categories are defined by dividing the atmosphere into four intervals with boundaries at the surface, 700-, 500-, 300-hPa, and the Top-of-the-Atmosphere (TOA). The cloud layers from CRS are put into one of the cloud height categories and averaged over the region. The cloud properties are also column averaged and included on the FSW. [Location=GLOBAL] [Temporal_Coverage: Start_Date=1998-01-01; Stop_Date=2001-10-31] [Spatial_Coverage: Southernmost_Latitude=-90; Northernmost_Latitude=90; Westernmost_Longitude=-180; Easternmost_Longitude=180] [Data_Resolution: Latitude_Resolution=1 degree; Longitude_Resolution=1 degree; Horizontal_Resolution_Range=100 km - < 250 km or approximately 1 degree - < 2.5 degrees; Temporal_Resolution=1 month; Temporal_Resolution_Range=Monthly - < Annual].

CLOUD OVERLAP↗

Impact of a Merged Precipitation Data on Global Soil Moisture Variability

Accurate soil moisture information has proved to be important to climate simulations and climate and weather forecasts. However, many difficulties exist that limit our understanding of soil moisture distribution and variability. One of them is the lack of accurate precipitation with appropriate spatial and temporal resolution. Precipitation as an input forcing to the land surface greatly influences soil moisture characteristics and variability. To improve precipitation data quality, an algorithm has been developed to generate a spatially and temporally continuous 3-hourly global precipitation data for the period of 1987 to present. This precipitation product is a combination of the precipitation from Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSMI) with the Goddard Earth Observing System-1 Data Assimilation System (GEOS-1 DAS) employing a Physical-space Statistical Analysis System (PSAS). In this study we investigate the impact of this merged/analyzed precipitation data on the global soil moisture variability using an Off-line Land-surface GEOS Assimilation (OLGA) system. Two OLGA integrations starting from 1987 to 1993 are performed forced with the analyzed and GEOS-1 DAS precipitation respectively. We examine the spatial and temporal characteristics of soil moisture variability in response to the analyzed precipitation. The influence of this merged precipitation on the soil moisture variability and regional hydrological budget is estimated throughout the comparison with the results forced with the GEOS-1 DAS precipitation only. In the OLGA the sut@-grid scale horizontal heterogeneity is explicitly represented on the tile space. This provides a means to assess the role of the surface moisture heterogeneity in the interaction with the surface atmosphere and surface hydrological budget, and to validate OLGA results at tile space with in situ observation. ABRACOS (Anglo-Brazilian Amazonian Climate Observation Study), FIFE (First ISLSCP Field Experiment) I and HAPEX data will be used in the validation.

Yang, Runhua↗

Information theory analysis of sensor-array imaging systems for computer vision

Information theory is used to assess the performance of sensor-array imaging systems, with emphasis on the performance obtained with image-plane signal processing. By electronically controlling the spatial response of the imaging system, as suggested by the mechanism of human vision, it is possible to trade-off edge enhancement for sensitivity, increase dynamic range, and reduce data transmission. Computational results show that: signal information density varies little with large variations in the statistical properties of random radiance fields; most information (generally about 85 to 95 percent) is contained in the signal intensity transitions rather than levels; and performance is optimized when the OTF of the imaging system is nearly limited to the sampling passband to minimize aliasing at the cost of blurring, and the SNR is very high to permit the retrieval of small spatial detail from the extensively blurred signal. Shading the lens aperture transmittance to increase depth of field and using a regular hexagonal sensor-array instead of square lattice to decrease sensitivity to edge orientation also improves the signal information density up to about 30 percent at high SNRs.

Huck, F. O.↗

Spatial Interpolation of Air Pollutant and Meteorological Variables in Central Amazonia

The Amazon Rainforest is highlighted by the global community both for its extensive vegetation cover that constantly suffers the effects of anthropic action and for its substantial biodiversity. This dataset presents data of meteorological variables from the Amazon Rainforest region with a spatial resolution of 0.001° in latitude and longitude, resulting from an interpolation process. The original data were obtained from the GoAmazon 2014/5 project, in the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) repository, and then processed through mathematical and statistical methods. The dataset presented here can be used in experiments in the field of Data Science, such as training models for predicting climate variables or modeling the distribution of species.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

A Parameter Estimation Scheme for Multiscale Kalman Smoother (MKS) Algorithm Used in Precipitation Data Fusion

A new approach is presented in this paper to effectively obtain parameter estimations for the Multiscale Kalman Smoother (MKS) algorithm. This new approach has demonstrated promising potentials in deriving better data products based on data of different spatial scales and precisions. Our new approach employs a multi-objective (MO) parameter estimation scheme (called MO scheme hereafter), rather than using the conventional maximum likelihood scheme (called ML scheme) to estimate the MKS parameters. Unlike the ML scheme, the MO scheme is not simply built on strict statistical assumptions related to prediction errors and observation errors, rather, it directly associates the fused data of multiple scales with multiple objective functions in searching best parameter estimations for MKS through optimization. In the MO scheme, objective functions are defined to facilitate consistency among the fused data at multiscales and the input data at their original scales in terms of spatial patterns and magnitudes. The new approach is evaluated through a Monte Carlo experiment and a series of comparison analyses using synthetic precipitation data. Our results show that the MKS fused precipitation performs better using the MO scheme than that using the ML scheme. Particularly, improvements are significant compared to that using the ML scheme for the fused precipitation associated with fine spatial resolutions. This is mainly due to having more criteria and constraints involved in the MO scheme than those included in the ML scheme. The weakness of the original ML scheme that blindly puts more weights onto the data associated with finer resolutions is overcome in our new approach.

multiscale↗

Characteristics of the IBEX Ribbon and Their Implications for a Source Region Outside the Heliopause

This paper presents a comprehensive exploration of the Interstellar Boundary Explorer energetic neutral atom (ENA) ribbon, focusing on its spatial and temporal variations over 14 yr. Methodological advancements, including a refined map modeling procedure and a new ribbon separation technique with appropriate error propagation, enable a detailed investigation of the ribbon’s features. Utilizing statistically robust metrics, this study reveals details of the ribbon across energy and time. Key findings include energy- and time-dependent variations in flux, angular radius, ribbon profile width, and higher moments. By applying these metrics, we reveal new complexity to the evolution of the ribbon over time, highlighting the nuanced relationship between it and the solar wind. Furthermore, the study examines for the first time the ribbon as it passes through the starboard/heliotail region (Lon EC 120°–180°), revealing properties distinct from other portions of the ribbon. The analysis uncovers an anticorrelation between ribbon width and flux, which provides quantitative support for a multisource ribbon created by a combination of solar wind neutrals that generate a spatiall narrow ribbon component and heliosheath neutrals giving rise to a broad component. Finally, differences in the temporal evolution of the ENA flux at different energies provide additional support that the location of the ribbon source region is beyond the heliopause.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Arctic extreme precipitation changes from 1980 to 2022 in response to sea ice decline and enhanced atmospheric rivers

Arctic extreme precipitation (EP) broadly impacts permafrost degradation, glacier and snow cover changes, and ice sheet mass balance as well as ecosystems. However, investigation of EP spatiotemporal variations over the Arctic remains challenging, and their primary drivers are still poorly understood. Performance estimation of three state-of-the-art reanalysis products (Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR), European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Reanalysis version 5 (ERA-5), and Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications, version 2 (MERRA-2)) against gauge-based precipitation observations reveals that MERRA-2 outperforms other reanalysis for Arctic EP changes. Based on MERRA-2 data, both annual EP amount and occurrence days averaged over the Arctic show statistically significant positive trends during 1980–2022 (3.37 ± 1.03 mm dec −1 and 0.42 ± 0.17 d dec −1 , respectively), with the most pronounced increase in the autumn. Spatial heterogeneity in annual and seasonal EP trends is found across the Arctic, with the largest positive annual trends of 30 mm dec −1 over the Bering Sea and the Denmark Strait. The significant EP increase is closely associated with intensified atmospheric rivers (ARs) and widespread decline in sea ice concentration (SIC). Specially, SIC and ARs are responsible for 12% and 50% of Arctic EP inter-annual variance, respectively, while ARs directly contribute 28.3% of the total annual EP amounts. These findings explain the mechanistic controls on Arctic EP, providing critical insights for projecting polar weather and climate extremes and their impacts on the Arctic environment.

atmospheric rivers↗

Characterization of Biomass-Based Fuels and Fuel Blends for Low-Emissions, Advanced Compression Ignition Engines (Final Report)

The goal of the Co-Optima program was to accelerate deployment of co-optimized fuels and engines that will reduce fuel consumption, and criterion pollutants and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for both spark and compression-ignited engines. In this project, combustion measurements from a constant pressure flow rig (CPFR) with optical access were used to assess fundamental combustion behavior of number of different candidate fuels and fuel blends. This chamber and its peripheral systems allowed stable control of ambient air pressure and temperature and fuel injection pressure and timing for hundreds of repeat injections allowing statistical interpretation of the results. The optical diagnostics enabled capturing of liquid length, vapor length, ignition timing, lift-off length as well as localized (temporal and spatially resolved) mixture refractive index, flame structure, and soot mass. The operating conditions allowed the study of combustion conditions promoting lean lifted flame combustion (LLFC), a mixing-controlled low-temperature combustion (LTC) strategy to reduce soot production in Advanced Compression Ignition (ACI) engines.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

Fast and accurate learned multiresolution dynamical downscaling for precipitation

Abstract. This study develops a neural-network-based approach for emulating high-resolution modeled precipitation data with comparable statistical properties but at greatly reduced computational cost. The key idea is to use combination of low- and high-resolution simulations (that differ not only in spatial resolution but also in geospatial patterns) to train a neural network to map from the former to the latter. Specifically, we define two types of CNNs, one that stacks variables directly and one that encodes each variable before stacking, and we train each CNN type both with a conventional loss function, such as mean square error (MSE), and with a conditional generative adversarial network (CGAN), for a total of four CNN variants. We compare the four new CNN-derived high-resolution precipitation results with precipitation generated from original high-resolution simulations, a bilinear interpolater and the state-of-the-art CNN-based super-resolution (SR) technique. Results show that the SR technique produces results similar to those of the bilinear interpolator with smoother spatial and temporal distributions and smaller data variabilities and extremes than the original high-resolution simulations. While the new CNNs trained by MSE generate better results over some regions than the interpolator and SR technique do, their predictions are still biased from the original high-resolution simulations. The CNNs trained by CGAN generate more realistic and physically reasonable results, better capturing not only data variability in time and space but also extremes such as intense and long-lasting storms. The new proposed CNN-based downscaling approach can downscale precipitation from 50 to 12 km in 14 min for 30 years once the network is trained (training takes 4 h using 1 GPU), while the conventional dynamical downscaling would take 1 month using 600 CPU cores to generate simulations at the resolution of 12 km over the contiguous United States.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Measurement of ocean wave heights using the Geos 3 altimeter

Radar altimeter signals transmitted from the low-orbiting satellite Geos 3 were analyzed for two selected orbits over high seas associated with hurricane 'Caroline' in the Gulf of Mexico and a North Atlantic storm. The measured values of significant wave height are in reasonable agreement with surface measurements, provided that the altimeter data are properly edited. The internal consistency of estimated wave heights for the North Atlantic storm, a standard deviation of 0.6 m or less, and the good agreement with surface truth lend credence to the method. A statistical analysis of the pulse slope variation gives estimated values of significant wave height within + or - 1 m of the true values 75% of the time for spatial averaging over 70 km.

Rufenach, C. L.↗

Estimating time and time-lag in time-of-flight velocimetry

Estimating time and time-lag in time-of-flight velocimeters is investigated. Statistics of a filtered Poisson point process is given. A Maximum Likelihood Estimator is compared with suboptimum estimators in terms of robustness. For a dominating background combined spatial and temporal processing can improve the robustness compared with purely temporal processing. Schemes for the spatial filters are given.

Lading, L.↗

The Fifth Calibration/Data Product Validation Panel Meeting

The minutes and associated documents prepared from presentations and meetings at the Fifth Calibration/Data Product Validation Panel meeting in Boulder, Colorado, April 8 - 10, 1992, are presented. Key issues include (1) statistical characterization of data sets: finding statistics that characterize key attributes of the data sets, and defining ways to characterize the comparisons among data sets; (2) selection of specific intercomparison exercises: selecting characteristic spatial and temporal regions for intercomparisons, and impact of validation exercises on the logistics of current and planned field campaigns and model runs; and (3) preparation of data sets for intercomparisons: characterization of assumptions, transportable data formats, labeling data files, content of data sets, and data storage and distribution (EOSDIS interface).

Source record↗

Global and Local Distortion Inference During Embedded Zerotree Wavelet Decompression

This paper presents algorithms for inferring global and spatially local estimates of the squared-error distortion measures for the Embedded Zerotree Wavelet (EZW) image compression algorithm. All distortion estimates are obtained at the decoder without significantly compromising EZW's rate-distortion performance. Two methods are given for propagating distortion estimates from the wavelet domain to the spatial domain, thus giving individual estimates of distortion for each pixel of the decompressed image. These local distortion estimates seem to provide only slight improvement in the statistical characterization of EZW compression error relative to the global measure, unless actual squared errors are propagated. However, they provide qualitative information about the asymptotic nature of the error that may be helpful in wavelet filter selection for low bit rate applications.

Huber, A. Kris↗

NASA Tech Briefs, September 2006

Topics covered include: Improving Thermomechanical Properties of SiC/SiC Composites; Aerogel/Particle Composites for Thermoelectric Devices; Patches for Repairing Ceramics and Ceramic- Matrix Composites; Lower-Conductivity Ceramic Materials for Thermal-Barrier Coatings; An Alternative for Emergency Preemption of Traffic Lights; Vehicle Transponder for Preemption of Traffic Lights; Automated Announcements of Approaching Emergency Vehicles; Intersection Monitor for Traffic-Light-Preemption System; Full-Duplex Digital Communication on a Single Laser Beam; Stabilizing Microwave Frequency of a Photonic Oscillator; Microwave Oscillators Based on Nonlinear WGM Resonators; Pointing Reference Scheme for Free-Space Optical Communications Systems; High-Level Performance Modeling of SAR Systems; Spectral Analysis Tool 6.2 for Windows; Multi-Platform Avionics Simulator; Silicon-Based Optical Modulator with Ferroelectric Layer; Multiplexing Transducers Based on Tunnel-Diode Oscillators; Scheduling with Automated Resolution of Conflicts; Symbolic Constraint Maintenance Grid; Discerning Trends in Performance Across Multiple Events; Magnetic Field Solver; Computing for Aiming a Spaceborne Bistatic- Radar Transmitter; 4-Vinyl-1,3-Dioxolane-2-One as an Additive for Li-Ion Cells; Probabilistic Prediction of Lifetimes of Ceramic Parts; STRANAL-PMC Version 2.0; Micromechanics and Piezo Enhancements of HyperSizer; Single-Phase Rare-Earth Oxide/Aluminum Oxide Glasses; Tilt/Tip/Piston Manipulator with Base-Mounted Actuators; Measurement of Model Noise in a Hard-Wall Wind Tunnel; Loci-STREAM Version 0.9; The Synergistic Engineering Environment; Reconfigurable Software for Controlling Formation Flying; More About the Tetrahedral Unstructured Software System; Computing Flows Using Chimera and Unstructured Grids; Avoiding Obstructions in Aiming a High-Gain Antenna; Analyzing Aeroelastic Stability of a Tilt-Rotor Aircraft; Tracking Positions and Attitudes of Mars Rovers; Stochastic Evolutionary Algorithms for Planning Robot Paths; Compressible Flow Toolbox; Rapid Aeroelastic Analysis of Blade Flutter in Turbomachines; General Flow-Solver Code for Turbomachinery Applications; Code for Multiblock CFD and Heat-Transfer Computations; Rotating-Pump Design Code; Covering a Crucible with Metal Containing Channels; Repairing Fractured Bones by Use of Bioabsorbable Composites; Kalman Filter for Calibrating a Telescope Focal Plane; Electronic Absolute Cartesian Autocollimator; Fiber-Optic Gratings for Lidar Measurements of Water Vapor; Simulating Responses of Gravitational-Wave Instrumentation; SOFTC: A Software Correlator for VLBI; Progress in Computational Simulation of Earthquakes; Database of Properties of Meteors; Computing Spacecraft Solar-Cell Damage by Charged Particles; Thermal Model of a Current-Carrying Wire in a Vacuum; Program for Analyzing Flows in a Complex Network; Program Predicts Performance of Optical Parametric Oscillators; Processing TES Level-1B Data; Automated Camera Calibration; Tracking the Martian CO2 Polar Ice Caps in Infrared Images; Processing TES Level-2 Data; SmaggIce Version 1.8; Solving the Swath Segment Selection Problem; The Spatial Standard Observer; Less-Complex Method of Classifying MPSK; Improvement in Recursive Hierarchical Segmentation of Data; Using Heaps in Recursive Hierarchical Segmentation of Data; Tool for Statistical Analysis and Display of Landing Sites; Automated Assignment of Proposals to Reviewers; Array-Pattern-Match Compiler for Opportunistic Data Analysis; Pre-Processor for Compression of Multispectral Image Data; Compressing Image Data While Limiting the Effects of Data Losses; Flight Operations Analysis Tool; Improvement in Visual Target Tracking for a Mobile Robot; Software for Simulating Air Traffic; Automated Vectorization of Decision-Based Algorithms; Grayscale Optical Correlator Workbench; "One-Stop Shopping" for Ocean Remote-Sensing and Model Data; State Analysis Database Tool; Generating CAHV and CAHVOmages with Shadows in ROAMS; Improving UDP/IP Transmission Without Increasing Congestion; FORTRAN Versions of Reformulated HFGMC Codes; Program for Editing Spacecraft Command Sequences; Flight-Tested Prototype of BEAM Software; Mission Scenario Development Workbench; Marsviewer; Tool for Analysis and Reduction of Scientific Data; ASPEN Version 3.0; Secure Display of Space-Exploration Images; Digital Front End for Wide-Band VLBI Science Receiver; Multifunctional Tanks for Spacecraft; Lightweight, Segmented, Mostly Silicon Telescope Mirror; Assistant for Analyzing Tropical-Rain-Mapping Radar Data; and Anion-Intercalating Cathodes for High-Energy- Density Cells.

Source record↗

MODIS 3 Km Aerosol Product: Applications over Land in an Urban/suburban Region

MODerate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instruments aboard the Terra and Aqua satellites have provided a rich dataset of aerosol information at a 10 km spatial scale. Although originally intended for climate applications, the air quality community quickly became interested in using the MODIS aerosol data. However, 10 km resolution is not sufficient to resolve local scale aerosol features. With this in mind, MODIS Collection 6 is including a global aerosol product with a 3 km resolution. Here, we evaluate the 3 km product over the Baltimore/Washington D.C., USA, corridor during the summer of 2011, by comparing with spatially dense data collected as part of the DISCOVER-AQ campaign these data were measured by the NASA Langley Research Center airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) and a network of 44 sun photometers (SP) spaced approximately 10 km apart. The HSRL instrument shows that AOD can vary by up to 0.2 within a single 10 km MODIS pixel, meaning that higher resolution satellite retrievals may help to characterize aerosol spatial distributions in this region. Different techniques for validating a high-resolution aerosol product against SP measurements are considered. Although the 10 km product is more statistically reliable than the 3 km product, the 3 km product still performs acceptably, with more than two-thirds of MODIS/SP collocations falling within the expected error envelope with high correlation (R > 0.90). The 3 km product can better resolve aerosol gradients and retrieve closer to clouds and shorelines than the 10 km product, but tends to show more significant noise especially in urban areas. This urban degradation is quantified using ancillary land cover data. Overall, we show that the MODIS 3 km product adds new information to the existing set of satellite derived aerosol products and validates well over the region, but due to noise and problems in urban areas, should be treated with some degree of caution.

MODIS↗

Assessing Uncertainties in Gridded Emissions: A Case Study for Fossil Fuel Carbon Dioxide (FFCO2) Emission Data

Fossil fuel carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions (FFCO2) are the largest input to the global carbon cycle on a decadal time scale. Because total emissions are assumed to be reasonably well constrained by fuel statistics, FFCO2 often serves as a reference in order to deduce carbon uptake by poorly understood terrestrial and ocean sinks. Conventional atmospheric CO2 flux inversions solve for spatially explicit regional sources and sinks and estimate land and ocean fluxes by subtracting FFCO2. Thus, errors in FFCO2 can propagate into the final inferred flux estimates. Gridded emissions are often based on disaggregation of emissions estimated at national or regional level. Although national and regional total FFCO2 are well known, gridded emission fields are subject to additional uncertainties due to the emission disaggregation. Assessing such uncertainties is often challenging because of the lack of physical measurements for evaluation. We first review difficulties in assessing uncertainties associated with gridded FFCO2 emission data and present several approaches for evaluation of such uncertainties at multiple scales. Given known limitations, inter-emission data differences are often used as a proxy for the uncertainty. The popular approach allows us to characterize differences in emissions, but does not allow us to fully quantify emission disaggregation biases. Our work aims to vicariously evaluate FFCO2 emission data using atmospheric models and measurements. We show a global simulation experiment where uncertainty estimates are propagated as an atmospheric tracer (uncertainty tracer) alongside CO2 in NASA's GEOS model and discuss implications of FFCO2 uncertainties in the context of flux inversions. We also demonstrate the use of high resolution urban CO2 simulations as a tool for objectively evaluating FFCO2 data over intense emission regions. Though this study focuses on FFCO2 emission data, the outcome of this study could also help improve the knowledge of similar gridded emissions data for non-CO2 compounds with similar emission characteristics.

FFCO↗

A spatially-resolved model of neutron-irradiated tungsten coupling stochastic cluster dynamics and finite deformation plasticity

Structural materials used in nuclear reactors face severe degradation in mechanical properties, such as hardening and embrittlement. At the microscopic scale, this occurs due to creation and accumulation of irradiation-induced defects and their interaction with system dislocations. Although techniques exist which can model evolution of irradiation defects, for instance kinetic transport theory-based models, their interaction with mechanical deformation of the bulk material has not been investigated extensively. In this work, we demonstrate a novel spatially-resolved multiscale coupling between microscopic irradiation defect evolution, modeled using Stochastic Cluster Dynamics (SCD) and macroscopic mechanical deformation modeled using a finite-deformation plasticity model. SCD is used to determine the statistically averaged defect cluster spacing, dependent on operating conditions such as irradiation dose and temperature. This acts as an initial condition that governs the critical resolved shear stress of dislocation glide in the macroscopic plasticity model. This framework is used to predict mechanical behavior in post-mortem test of irradiated Tungsten samples, which has found its importance as structural material used in nuclear reactors. The results obtained using the coupled approach are in good agreement with experimental data of uniaxial tension tests. The model is able to capture the effect of temperature and irradiation dose on the material hardening. Two methods are proposed to estimate hardness – using Tabor's Law relating uniaxial yield stress to hardness and from flat-punch simulations. The results are in reasonable agreement with hardness data from micro-indentation experiments of irradiated Tungsten samples. Finally, the model is also able to reveal microstructural details such as spatial variation in defect density and local stress.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗