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At least 91 records · Page 5

GRAM Series of Atmospheric Models for Aeroentry and Aeroassist

The eight destinations in the Solar System with sufficient atmosphere for either aeroentry or aeroassist, including aerocapture, are: Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn; Uranus. and Neptune, and Saturn's moon Titan. Engineering-level atmospheric models for four of these (Earth, Mars, Titan, and Neptune) have been developed for use in NASA's systems analysis studies of aerocapture applications in potential future missions. Work has recently commenced on development of a similar atmospheric model for Venus. This series of MSFC-sponsored models is identified as the Global Reference Atmosphere Model (GRAM) series. An important capability of all of the models in the GRAM series is their ability to simulate quasi-random perturbations for Monte Carlo analyses in developing guidance, navigation and control algorithms, and for thermal systems design. Example applications for Earth aeroentry and Mars aerocapture systems analysis studies are presented and illustrated. Current and planned updates to the Earth and Mars atmospheric models, in support of NASA's new exploration vision, are also presented.

Duvall, Aleta

Mars-GRAM Support for the Mars Ascent Vehicle

Mars sample return is a bold concept, which entails gathering a varied, scientifically-relevant collection of Martian rock core samples and bringing them to Earth for analysis. To support this endeavor, the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is developing the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV), which is responsible for getting the collected samples off the planet. The MAV Preliminary Architecture Assessment (PAA) study is designing two vehicle architectures based on different propulsion configurations: a two-stage solid-solid concept, and a hybrid concept. Given different thrust profiles for the two configurations, each concept uses a unique trajectory to reach the same orbit. In support of the PAA, The MSFC Natural Environments Branch (EV44) was asked to produce tables of atmospheric parameters along each of the two trajectories. The Mars Global Reference Atmospheric Model (Mars-GRAM) is an EV44 tool that is ideally suited for this analysis. Mars-GRAM will continue supporting MAV development in future design cycles.

Burns, K. L.

Status of Outer Planet Global Reference Atmospheric Model (GRAM) Upgrades

The inability to test planetary spacecraft in the flight environment prior to a mission requires engineers to rely on ground-based testing and models of the vehicle and expected environments. One of the most widely used engineering models of the atmosphere is the Global Reference Atmospheric Model (GRAM) developed and maintained by the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). The NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) has provided funding support to upgrade the GRAMs.

Justh, H. L.

Appendix to: Methodology for Creating Thermodynamic Tables for Application to Computation of Speed of Sound by the Global Reference Atmospheric Model (GRAM) Suite: Validation Testing

The primary report to which this document appends provides the background, methodology, and outputs for the development of constituent-specific tables of specific heats as functions of temperature and pressure. These tables are used by the GRAM Suite to compute speed of sound by a process detailed in the primary report. The current document details verification and validation testing that was performed on the contents and implementation of the output tables.

Speed of Sound

Structural basis of undecaprenyl phosphate glycosylation leading to polymyxin resistance in Gram-negative bacteria

In Gram-negative bacteria, the enzymatic modification of Lipid A with aminoarabinose (L-Ara4N) leads to resistance against polymyxin antibiotics and cationic antimicrobial peptides. ArnC, an integral membrane glycosyltransferase, attaches a formylated form of aminoarabinose to the lipid undecaprenyl phosphate, enabling its association with the bacterial inner membrane. Here, we present cryo-electron microscopy structures of ArnC from S. enterica in apo and nucleotide-bound conformations. These structures reveal a conformational transition that takes place upon binding of the partial donor substrate. Using coarse-grained and atomistic simulations, we provide insights into substrate coordination before and during catalysis, and we propose a catalytic mechanism that may operate on all similar metal-dependent polyprenyl phosphate glycosyltransferases. The reported structures provide a new target for drug design aiming to combat polymyxin resistance.

Ashraf, Khuram U. [Rutgers University, Newark, NJ

Gram-Schmidt algorithms for covariance propagation

This paper addresses the time propagation of triangular covariance factors. Attention is focused on the square-root free factorization, P = UDU/T/, where U is unit upper triangular and D is diagonal. An efficient and reliable algorithm for U-D propagation is derived which employs Gram-Schmidt orthogonalization. Partitioning the state vector to distinguish bias and colored process noise parameters increases mapping efficiency. Cost comparisons of the U-D, Schmidt square-root covariance and conventional covariance propagation methods are made using weighted arithmetic operation counts. The U-D time update is shown to be less costly than the Schmidt method; and, except in unusual circumstances, it is within 20% of the cost of conventional propagation.

Thornton, C. L.

Gram-Schmidt algorithms for covariance propagation

This paper addresses the time propagation of triangular covariance factors. Attention is focused on the square-root free factorization, P = UD(transpose of U), where U is unit upper triangular and D is diagonal. An efficient and reliable algorithm for U-D propagation is derived which employs Gram-Schmidt orthogonalization. Partitioning the state vector to distinguish bias and coloured process noise parameters increase mapping efficiency. Cost comparisons of the U-D, Schmidt square-root covariance and conventional covariance propagation methods are made using weighted arithmetic operation counts. The U-D time update is shown to be less costly than the Schmidt method; and, except in unusual circumstances, it is within 20% of the cost of conventional propagation.

Thornton, C. L.

Use of the 4D-Global Reference Atmosphere Model (GRAM) for space shuttle descent design

The method of using the Global Reference Atmosphere Model (GRAM) mean and dispersed atmospheres to study skipout/overshoot requirements, to characterize mean and worst case vehicle temperatures, study control requirements, and verify design was discussed. Landing sites in these analyses range from 65 N to 30 S, while orbit inclinations vary from 20 deg to 98 deg. The primary concern was that they cannot use as small vertical steps in the reentry calculation as desired because the model predicts anomalously large density shear rates for very small vertical step sizes. The winds predicted by the model are not satisfactory. This is probably because they are geostrophic winds and because the model has an error in the computation of winds in the equatorial regions.

Mccarty, S. M.

Variational calculations of subbands in a quantum well with uniform electric field - Gram-Schmidt orthogonalization approach

Variational calculations of subband eigenstates in an infinite quantum well with an applied electric field using Gram-Schmidt orthogonalized trial wave functions are presented. The results agree very well with the exact numerical solutions even up to 1200 kV/cm. It is also shown that, for increasing electric fields, the energy of the ground state decreases, while that of higher subband states increases slightly up to 1000 kV/cm and then decreases for a well size of 100 A.

Ahn, Doyeol