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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1989

MU radar observation of a mesospheric gravity wave breaking caused by convective instability

In recent measurements of mesospheric winds with the MU radar at Shigaraki (34.9 N, 136.1 E), Japan, a couple of wind velocity data was obtained showing that a monochromatic inertia-gravity wave was propagating vertically in the mesosphere. The data show that the velocity amplitude of the wave did not increase exponentially above a height and further show that the wave form had broken down at a level. Evaluating the changes of the atmospheric stability in the wave field from the measured wind data and from the estimated wave parameters, the breakdown of the wave was shown to be connected with the occurrence of convective instability in the wave field.

Muraoka, Y.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Sea surface mean square slope from Ku-band backscatter data

A surface mean-square-slope parameter analysis is conducted for 14-GHz airborne radar altimeter near-nadir, quasi-specular backscatter data, which in raw form obtained by least-squares fitting of an optical scattering model to the return waveform show an approximately linear dependence over the 7-15 m/sec wind speed range. Slope data are used to draw inferences on the structure of the high-wavenumber portion of the spectrum. A directionally-integrated model height spectrum that encompasses wind speed-dependent k exp -5/2 and classical Phillips k exp -3 power laws subranges in the range of gravity waves is supported by the data.

Jackson, F. C.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Data Analysis And Polarization Measurements With GEMS

The Gravity and Extreme Magnetism SMEX (GEMS) mission was selected by NASA for flight in 2014. GEMS will make the first sensitive survey of X-ray polarization across a wide range of source classes including black hole and neutron star binaries, AGN of different types, rotation and accretion-powered pulsars, magnetars, shell supernova remnants and pulsar wind nebulae. GEMS employs grazing-incidence foil mirrors and novel time-projection chamber (TPC) polarimeters leveraging the photoelectric effect. The GEMS detectors image the charge tracks of photoelectrons produced by 2 - 10 keV X-rays. The initial direction of the photoelectron is determined by the linear polarization of the photon. We present an overview of the data analysis challenges and methods for GEMS, including procedures for producing optimally filtered images of the charge tracks and estimating their initial directions. We illustrate our methods using laboratory measurements of polarized and unpolarized X-rays with flight-like detectors as well as from simulated tracks. We also present detailed simulations exploring the statistics of polarization measurements appropriate for GEMS, and make comparisons with previous work.

Stohmayer, Tod↗
NASA NTRS2012

Evaluating Material Flammability in Microgravity and Martian Gravity Compared to the NASA Standard Normal Gravity Test

Drop tower tests are conducted at Martian gravity to determine the flammability of three materials compared to previous tests in other normal gravity and reduced gravity environments. The comparison is made with consideration of a modified NASA standard test protocol. Material flammability limits in the different gravity and flow environments are tabulated to determine the factor of safety associated with normal gravity flammability screening. Previous testing at microgravity and Lunar gravity indicated that some materials burned to lower oxygen concentrations in low gravity than in normal gravity, although the low g extinction limit criteria are not the same as 1g due to time constraints in drop testing. Similarly, the data presented in this paper for Martian gravity suggest that there is a gravity level below Earth s at which materials burn more readily than on Earth. If proven for more materials, this may indicate the need to include a factor of safety on 1g flammability limits.

Oslon, Sandra. L.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Gravity field information from Gravity Probe-B

The Gravity Probe-B Mission will carry the Stanford Gyroscope relativity experiment into orbit in the mid 1990's, as well as a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver whose tracking data will be used to study the earth gravity field. Estimates of the likely quality of a gravity field model to be derived from the GPS data are presented, and the significance of this experiment to geodesy and geophysics are discussed.

Smith, D. E.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Mars gravity field derived from Viking-1 and Viking-2 - The navigation result

Viking-1 and Viking-2 Doppler tracking data taken during orbit phases characterized by 1500 km subperiapse altitudes have provided a basis for a determination of the Martian gravity field. Navigation results show that the linear combination of short-arc gravity estimates is an acceptable technique for obtaining gravity models over multiple data arcs. An ensemble field composed of Viking data and Mariner-9 a priori retains the inherent local accuracy of its constituent fields. At the same time, the model can be made to be valid globally by careful weighting of a priori Mariner-9 data. The sixth degree and order model presented reduces the error concerning the change in period by more than an order of magnitude during the high altitude (1500 km) phases of the Viking mission. The resulting areoid deviates by no more than 150 m from the areoid produced by the a priori Mariner-9 field.

Christensen, E. J.↗
NASA NTRS2016

The Development of the GSFC DORIS Contribution to ITRF2014

The NASA GSFC DORIS analysis center has processed data from January 1993 to December 2014 and provided 1141 weekly solutionsin the form of normal equations for incorporation into the DORIS solution for ITRF2014. The solution time series, designated asgscwd26, were based on tracking data to eleven DORIS satellites divided generally into seven-day arcs. With respect to the ITRF2008 submission (Le Bail et al., 2010), the measurement model was updated to model the beacon frequency variations at certain DORIS sites,to apply the DORIS antenna phase law for the Starec and Alcatel antennae, and to apply the antenna offset corrections in the NASAGSFC orbit determination software rather than using the data-supplied corrections. We show that computing the antenna offset correctionsin the orbit determination software is superior to using the offset corrections that are supplied with the DORIS data, and that thisimproves the RMS of fit for SPOT-2, Envisat, SPOT-4, and SPOT-5. The updates for the force model included: (1) the development of improved nonconservative force modeling for SPOT-2, SPOT-3, SPOT-5, Envisat, and HY-2A, and (2) the application of an updatedstatic gravity model based on GRACE and GOCE data, and weekly models of the variations in the low degree gravity field deducedindependently from tracking by Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) and DORIS. The post-ITRF2008 DORIS coordinate WRMS afterthe launch of Envisat and SPOT-5 is improved from 11.20 to 12.45 mm with ITRF2008 (Le Bail et al., 2010), to between 8.50 and9.99 mm with the gscwd26 SINEX solution. The application of the DORIS antenna phase laws shifts the DORIS scale wrt DPOD2008by +6.0 mm from 19930103 to 20020606, and by +11.4 mm from 20020613 to 20111030. The application of more detailed models of time-variable gravity reduces the slopes in the Helmert transformation parameters Tx, and Ty (w.r.t. DPOD2008) after 2005. The annual amplitude in these parameters is reduced from 3.2 mm (for Tx), 4.1 mm (for Ty), to 1.7 mm (for Tx) and 2.8 mm (for Ty).

Lemoine, F. G.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Analysis of Buoyancy Effects in Helium Jets Using High-Speed Rainbow Schlieren Deflectometry

The flow phenomena of buoyant jets have been analyzed by many researchers in recent years. Few, however have studied jets in microgravity conditions, and the exact nature of the flow under these conditions has until recently been unknown. This study seeks to extend the work done by researchers at the university of Oklahoma in examining and documenting the behavior of helium jets in micro-gravity conditions. Quantitative rainbow schlieren deflectometry data have been obtained for helium jets discharging vertically into quiescent ambient air from tubes of several diameters at various flow rates using a high-speed digital camera. These data have obtained before, during and after the onset of microgravity conditions. High-speed rainbow schlieren deflectometry has been developed for this study with the installation and use of a high-speed digital camera and modifications to the optical setup. Higher temporal resolution of the transitional phase between terrestrial and micro-gravity conditions has been obtained which has reduced the averaging effect of longer exposure times used in all previous schlieren studies. Results include color schlieren images, color time-space images (temporal evolution images), frequency analyses, contour plots of hue and contour plots of helium mole fraction. The results, which focus primarily on the periods before and during the onset of microgravity conditions, show that the pulsation of the jets normally found in terrestrial gravity ("earth"-gravity) conditions cease, and the gradients in helium diminish to produce a widening of the jet in micro-gravity conditions. In addition, the results show that the disturbance propagate upstream from a downstream source.

Leptuch, Peter A.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Operating the Dual-Orbiter GRAIL Mission to Measure the Moon's Gravity

NASA's mission to measure the Moon's gravity and determine the interior structure, from crust to core, has almost completed its 3-month science data collection phase. The twin orbiters of the Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission were launched from Florida on September 10, 2011, on a Delta-II launch vehicle. After traveling for nearly four months on a low energy trajectory to the Moon, they were inserted into lunar orbit on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. In January 2012 a series of circularization maneuvers brought the orbiters into co-planar near-circular polar orbits. In February a distant (75- km) rendezvous was achieved and the science instruments were turned on. A dual- frequency (Ka and S-band) inter-orbiter radio link provides a precise orbiter-to-orbiter range measurement that enables the gravity field estimation. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA, manages the GRAIL project. Mission management, mission planning and sequencing, and navigation are conducted at JPL. Lockheed Martin, the flight system manufacturer, operates the orbiters from their control center in Denver, Colorado. The orbiters together have performed 28 propulsive maneuvers to reach and maintain the science phase configuration. Execution of these maneuvers, as well as the payload checkout and calibration activities, has gone smoothly due to extensive pre-launch operations planning and testing. The key to the operations success has been detailed timelines for product interchange between the operations teams and proven procedures from previous JPL/LM planetary missions. Once in science phase, GRAIL benefitted from the payload operational heritage of the GRACE mission that measures the Earth's gravity.

Moon missions↗
NASA NTRS1998

Operational Data Reduction Procedure for Determining Density and Vertical Structure of the Martian Upper Atmosphere from Mars Global Surveyor Accelerometer Measurements

The success of aerobraking by the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft was partly due to the analysis of MGS accelerometer data. Accelerometer data was used to determine the effect of the atmosphere on each orbit, to characterize the nature of the atmosphere, and to predict the atmosphere for future orbits. To interpret the accelerometer data, a data reduction procedure was developed to produce density estimations utilizing inputs from the spacecraft, the Navigation Team, and pre-mission aerothermodynamic studies. This data reduction procedure was based on the calculation of aerodynamic forces from the accelerometer data by considering acceleration due to gravity gradient, solar pressure, angular motion of the MGS, instrument bias, thruster activity, and a vibration component due to the motion of the damaged solar array. Methods were developed to calculate all of the acceleration components including a 4 degree of freedom dynamics model used to gain a greater understanding of the damaged solar array. The total error inherent to the data reduction procedure was calculated as a function of altitude and density considering contributions from ephemeris errors, errors in force coefficient, and instrument errors due to bias and digitization. Comparing the results from this procedure to the data of other MGS Teams has demonstrated that this procedure can quickly and accurately describe the density and vertical structure of the Martian upper atmosphere.

Cancro, George J.↗
NASA NTRS2020

Central Valley Water Resources II: Groundwater Sustainability Management Support in the California Central Valley using GRACE and InSAR Datasets

California’s Central Valley is one of the most productive agricultural regions in the United States, producing a fourth of the nation’s food supply. The water demand in this region is heavily dependent on groundwater resources, resulting in over pumping of aquifers at unsustainable rates during recent periods of severe drought. Over the past century, Central Valley aquifers have experienced a significant decline in groundwater levels, resulting in land subsidence and irreversible loss in groundwater storage. In 2014, the state enacted the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, requiring high and medium priority subbasins to suspend overdraft and achieve sustainable levels of pumping and recharge by 2042.The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) oversees subbasin groundwater management; however, monitoring remains challenging due to sparse and inconsistent in situ data. To assist the DWR, this project developed a user-friendly executable application and an interactive visualization tool to quantify groundwater storage and land subsidence trends using remotely sensed and in situ data. The team utilized NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), GRACE Follow-On (GRACE-FO), Sentinel-1 C-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (C-SAR) interferograms, and Advanced Land Observing Satellite 2 (ALOS-2) Phased Array L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar 2 (PALSAR-2) interferograms in conjunction with well and GPS measurements to analyze groundwater and subsidence trends. GRACE and well data returns produced a strong Pearson correlation of .84, while Sentinel-1 and GPS data returns produced a Pearson correlation of .41 over the entire Central Valley. These findings suggest remotely sensed GRACE and interferometric SAR data can be used in the absence of in situ data.

DEVELOP Project Summary↗
NASA NTRS1971

Lunar gravity derived from long-period satellite motion, a proposed method

A method was devised to determine the spherical harmonic coefficients of the lunar gravity field. The method consists of a two-step data reduction and estimation process. Pseudo-Doppler data were generated simulating two different lunar orbits. The analysis included the perturbing effects of the L1 lunar gravity field, the earth, the sun, and solar radiation pressure. Orbit determinations were performed on these data and long-period orbital elements were obtained. The Kepler element rates from these solutions were used to recover L1 lunar gravity coefficients. Overall results of the experiment show that lunar gravity coefficients can be accurately determined and that the method is dynamically consistent with long-period perturbation theory.

Ferrari, A. J.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Some physiological effects of alternation between zero gravity and one gravity

The anatomy and physiology of the healthy vestibular system and the history of its study, maintenance of muskuloskeletal fitness under low-gravity conditions, tests of motion sickness, and data and techniques on testing subjects in a slow rotation room, are covered. Components of the inner ear labyrinth and their behavior in relation to equilibrium, gravity and inertial forces, motion sickness, and dizziness are discussed. Preventive medicine, the biologically effective force environment, weightlessness per se, activity in a weightless spacecraft, exercizing required to maintain musculoskeletal function, and ataxia problems are dealt with.

Graybiel, A.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Development and analysis of a twelfth degree and order gravity model for Mars

Satellite geodesy techniques previously applied to artificial earth satellites have been extended to obtain a high-resolution gravity field for Mars. Two-way Doppler data collected by 10 Deep Space Network (DSN) stations during Mariner 9 and Viking 1 and 2 missions have been processed to obtain a twelfth degree and order spherical harmonic model for the martian gravitational potential. The quality of this model was evaluated by examining the rms residuals within the fit and the ability of the model to predict the spacecraft state beyond the fit. Both indicators show that more data and higher degree and order harmonics will be required to further refine our knowledge of the martian gravity field. The model presented shows much promise, since it resolves local gravity features which correlate highly with the martian topography. An isostatic analysis based on this model, as well as an error analysis, shows rather complete compensation on a global (long wavelength) scale. Though further model refinements are necessary to be certain, local (short wavelength) features such as the shield volcanos in Tharsis appear to be uncompensated. These are interpreted to place some bounds on the internal structure of Mars.

Christensen, E. J.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Effects of differential rotation on the gravitational figures of Jupiter and Saturn

It is assumed that observed zonal currents in the atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn correspond to a state of permanent rotation, and that the angular velocity is constant on cylindrical surfaces parallel to the rotation axis. The equation of hydrostatic equilibrium for a rotating planet is solved under these restrictive assumptions, and the effect of the hypothesized rotation state on the planet's gravity harmonics and external shape is investigated. Spacecraft data on zonal currents are used to derive nearly model-independent corrections to the first four zonal gravity harmonic coefficients, which can be used to correct observed gravity harmonics to values appropriate for solid-body rotation. If the assumed rotation state is applicable, then zonal currents lead to measurable topography of isopycnic surfaces with respect to the reference figure defined by the magnetospheric rotation period and the gravity harmonics. The amplitude of the topography is on the order of 5 km for Jupiter and 60 km for Saturn.

Hubbard, W. B.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Electrodynamics of the middle atmosphere: Superpressure balloon program

In this experiment a comprehensive set of electrical parameters were measured during eight long duration flights in the southern hemisphere stratosphere. These flight resulted in the largest data set ever collected from the stratosphere. The stratosphere has never been electrodynamically sampled in the systematic manner before. New discoveries include short term variability in the planetary scale electric current system, the unexpected observation of stratospheric conductivity variations over thunderstorms and the observation of direct stratospheric conductivity variations following a relatively small solar flare. Major statistical studies were conducted of the large scale current systems, the stratospheric conductivity and the neutral gravity waves (from pressure and temperature data) using the entire data set.

Holzworth, Robert H.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Low Gravity Guidance System for Airborne Microgravity Research

Microgravity research techniques have been established to achieve a greater understanding of the role of gravity in the fundamentals of a variety of physical phenomena and material processing. One technique in use at the NASA Lewis Research Center involves flying Keplarian trajectories with a modified Lear Jet and DC-9 aircraft to achieve a highly accurate Microgravity environment by neutralizing accelerations in all three axis of the aircraft. The Low Gravity Guidance System (LGGS) assists the pilot and copilot in flying the trajectories by displaying the aircraft acceleration data in a graphical display format. The Low Gravity Guidance System is a microprocessor based system that acquires and displays the aircraft acceleration information. This information is presented using an electroluminescent display mounted over the pilot's instrument panel. The pilot can select the Microgravity range that is required for a given research event. This paper describes the characteristics, design, calibration and testing of the Low Gravity Guidance System Phase 3, significant lessons from earlier systems and the developmental work on future systems.

Rieke, W. J.↗