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At least 991 records · Page 55
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2012

NEGLECTED CLOUDS IN T AND Y DWARF ATMOSPHERES

As brown dwarfs cool, a variety of species condense in their atmospheres, forming clouds. Iron and silicate clouds shape the emergent spectra of L dwarfs, but these clouds dissipate at the L/T transition. A variety of other condensates are expected to form in cooler T dwarf atmospheres. These include Cr, MnS, Na{sub 2}S, ZnS, and KCl, but the opacity of these optically thinner clouds has not been included in previous atmosphere models. Here, we examine their effect on model T and Y dwarf atmospheres. The cloud structures and opacities are calculated using the Ackerman and Marley cloud model, which is coupled to an atmosphere model to produce atmospheric pressure-temperature profiles in radiative-convective equilibrium. We generate a suite of models between T{sub eff} = 400 and 1300 K, log g = 4.0 and 5.5, and condensate sedimentation efficiencies from f{sub sed} = 2 to 5. Model spectra are compared to two red T dwarfs, Ross 458C and UGPS 0722-05; models that include clouds are found to match observed spectra significantly better than cloudless models. The emergence of sulfide clouds in cool atmospheres, particularly Na{sub 2}S, may be a more natural explanation for the 'cloudy' spectra of these objects, rather than the reemergence of silicate clouds that wane at the L-to-T transition. We find that sulfide clouds provide a mechanism to match the near- and mid-infrared colors of observed T dwarfs. Our results indicate that including the opacity of condensates in T dwarf atmospheres is necessary to accurately determine the physical characteristics of many of the observed objects.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1987

A fast radiation parameterization for atmospheric circulation models

Several currently available broadband parameterizations for longwave and shortwave radiation have been combined to produce a computationally fast radiation parameterization that is well suited for atmospheric circulation models. The main features of the parameterization are the ability to include overlapping partly cloudy layers in the longwave, the use of a delta-Eddington technique to treat clouds in the shortwave, and a computational structure that is amenable to vectorization on supercomputers. Selected results of off-line one-dimensional computations using the code have been compared with more rigorous methods as part of an international intercomparison program and found to be quite accurate.

HARSHVARDHAN↗
NASA NTRS2014

Development of the GEOS-5 Atmospheric General Circulation Model: Evolution from MERRA to MERRA2.

The Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications-2 (MERRA2) version of the GEOS-5 (Goddard Earth Observing System Model - 5) Atmospheric General Circulation Model (AGCM) is currently in use in the NASA Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO) at a wide range of resolutions for a variety of applications. Details of the changes in parameterizations subsequent to the version in the original MERRA reanalysis are presented here. Results of a series of atmosphere-only sensitivity studies are shown to demonstrate changes in simulated climate associated with specific changes in physical parameterizations, and the impact of the newly implemented resolution-aware behavior on simulations at different resolutions is demonstrated. The GEOS-5 AGCM presented here is the model used as part of the GMAO's MERRA2 reanalysis, the global mesoscale "nature run", the real-time numerical weather prediction system, and for atmosphere-only, coupled ocean-atmosphere and coupled atmosphere-chemistry simulations. The seasonal mean climate of the MERRA2 version of the GEOS-5 AGCM represents a substantial improvement over the simulated climate of the MERRA version at all resolutions and for all applications. Fundamental improvements in simulated climate are associated with the increased re-evaporation of frozen precipitation and cloud condensate, resulting in a wetter atmosphere. Improvements in simulated climate are also shown to be attributable to changes in the background gravity wave drag, and to upgrades in the relationship between the ocean surface stress and the ocean roughness. The series of "resolution aware" parameters related to the moist physics were shown to result in improvements at higher resolutions, and result in AGCM simulations that exhibit seamless behavior across different resolutions and applications.

AGCM↗
NASA NTRS2002

Ground Operations of the ISS GNC Babb-Mueller Atmospheric Density Model

The ISS GNC system was updated recently with a new software release that provides onboard state determination capability. Prior to this release, only the Russian segment maintained and propagated the onboard state, which was periodically updated through Russian ground tracking. The new software gives the US segment the capability for maintaining the onboard state, and includes new GPS and state vector propagation capabilities. Part of this software package is an atmospheric density model based on the Babb-Mueller algorithm. Babb-Mueller efficiently mimics a full analytical density model, such as the Jacchia model. While lacchia is very robust and is used in the Mission Control Center, it is too computationally intensive for use onboard. Thus, Babb-Mueller was chosen as an alternative. The onboard model depends on a set of calibration coefficients that produce a curve fit to the lacchia model. The ISS GNC system only maintains one set of coefficients onboard, so a new set must be uplinked by controllers when the atmospheric conditions change. The onboard density model provides a real-time density value, which is used to calculate the drag experienced by the ISS. This drag value is then incorporated into the onboard propagation of the state vector. The propagation of the state vector, and therefore operation of the BabbMueller algorithm, will be most critical when GPS updates and secondary state vector sources fail. When GPS is active, the onboard state vector will be updated every ten seconds, so the propagation error is irrelevant. When GPS is inactive, the state vector must be updated at least every 24 hours, based on current protocol. Therefore, the Babb-Mueller coefficients must be accurate enough to fulfill the state vector accuracy requirements for at least one day. A ground operations concept was needed in order to manage both the on board Babb-Mueller density model and the onboard state quality. The Babb-Mueller coefficients can be determined operationally in two ways. The first method is to calibrate the coefficients in real-time, where a set of custom coefficients is generated for the real-time atmospheric conditions. The second approach is to generate pre-canned sets of coefficients that encompass the expected atmospheric conditions over the lifetime of the vehicle. These predetermined sets are known as occurrences. Even though a particular occurrence will not match the true atmospheric conditions, the error will be constrained by limiting the breadth of each occurrence. Both methods were investigated and the advantages and disadvantages of each were considered. The choice between these implementations was a trade-off between the additional accuracy of the real-time calibration and the simpler development for the approach using occurrences. The operations concept for the frequency of updates was also explored, and depends on the deviation in solar flux that still achieves the necessary accuracy of the coefficients. This was determined based on historical solar flux trends. This analysis resulted in an accurate and reliable implementation of the Babb-Mueller coefficients and how flight controllers use them during realtime operations.

Brogan, Jonathan↗
NASA NTRS1973

Introduction to stellar atmospheres and interiors

Stellar atmospheres are examined, giving attention to the transfer of radiation, the physical properties of gases, model atmospheres, and questions of line absorption in stellar atmospheres. Observational data are considered together with the equations for the stellar interior and aspects of stellar evolution. The calculation of model atmospheres and interiors is also discussed, taking into account numerical integration, a model solar atmosphere, and model stellar interiors.

Novotny, E.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Atmospheric disturbance modelling requirements for flying qualities applications

Flying qualities are defined as those airplane characteristics which govern the ease or precision with which the pilot can accomplish the mission. Some atmospheric disturbance modelling requirements for aircraft flying qualities applications are reviewed. It is concluded that some simplifications are justified in identifying the primary influence on aircraft response and pilot control. It is recommended that a universal environmental model be developed, which could form the reference for different applications. This model should include the latest information on winds, turbulence, gusts, visibility, icing and precipitation. A chosen model would be kept by a national agency and updated regularly by feedback from users. A user manual is believed to be an essential part of such a model.

Moorhouse, D. J.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Titan's aerosols. I - Laboratory investigations of shapes, size distributions, and aggregation of particles produced by UV photolysis of model Titan atmospheres

Experiments in which C2H2, C2H4, and HCN were photolyzed separately and as a mixture in UV light have been conducted in order to ascertain the physical properties of model Titan atmosphere aerosols. Aerosols formed from photolysis of C2H4 were physically similar to those formed from C2H2; protolysis of HCN rapidly generated particles that did not grow to sizes greater than 0.09 microns. While the formation of particles from C4H2 was observed within minutes, formation was slowed by a factor of 4 when C2H2 and HCN were added.

Scattergood, Thomas W.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Two approaches to determining the sea-to-air flux of dimethyl sulfide - Satellite ocean color and a photochemical model with atmospheric measurements

The feasibility of using remotely sensed data to map the marine sources of a photoreactive trace gas was investigated by comparing satellite ocean color data with result of a photochemical model with atmospheric measurements of dimethyl sulfide (DMS). A mean DMS flux for a region in the tropical North Atlantic for October 1980 was derived, using an empirical relationship between DMS and chlorophyll a data obtained by the CZCS instrument, and was compared with the sea-to-air flux derived from a one-dimensional photochemical model that reproduces boundary layer concentrations of ozone, CO, NO, and hydrocarbons measured by an experimental vessel cruising at the same location and time. Results suggest that surface sensing of DMS sources is feasible but only in regions and seasons where phytoplankton pigment is a meaningful marker for biogenic emissions.

Thompson, Anne M.↗
DOE OSTI2015

Introducing Enabling Computational Tools to the Climate Sciences: Multi-Resolution Climate Modeling with Adaptive Cubed-Sphere Grids

The research investigates and advances strategies how to bridge the scale discrepancies between local, regional and global phenomena in climate models without the prohibitive computational costs of global cloud-resolving simulations. In particular, the research explores new frontiers in computational geoscience by introducing high-order Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR) techniques into climate research. AMR and statically-adapted variable-resolution approaches represent an emerging trend for atmospheric models and are likely to become the new norm in future-generation weather and climate models. The research advances the understanding of multi-scale interactions in the climate system and showcases a pathway how to model these interactions effectively with advanced computational tools, like the Chombo AMR library developed at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The research is interdisciplinary and combines applied mathematics, scientific computing and the atmospheric sciences. In this research project, a hierarchy of high-order atmospheric models on cubed-sphere computational grids have been developed that serve as an algorithmic prototype for the finite-volume solution-adaptive Chombo-AMR approach. The foci of the investigations have lied on the characteristics of both static mesh adaptations and dynamically-adaptive grids that can capture flow fields of interest like tropical cyclones. Six research themes have been chosen. These are (1) the introduction of adaptive mesh refinement techniques into the climate sciences, (2) advanced algorithms for nonhydrostatic atmospheric dynamical cores, (3) an assessment of the interplay between resolved-scale dynamical motions and subgrid-scale physical parameterizations, (4) evaluation techniques for atmospheric model hierarchies, (5) the comparison of AMR refinement strategies and (6) tropical cyclone studies with a focus on multi-scale interactions and variable-resolution modeling. The results of this research project demonstrate significant advances in all six research areas. The major conclusions are that statically-adaptive variable-resolution modeling is currently becoming mature in the climate sciences, and that AMR holds outstanding promise for future-generation weather and climate models on high-performance computing architectures.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Assessment of Low-Altitude Atmospheric Turbulence Models for Aircraft Aeroelasticity

We investigate the dynamic aeroelastic response of large but slow aircraft in low-altitude atmospheric turbulence. To this end, three turbulence models of increasing fidelity, namely, the one-dimensional von Kármán model, the two-dimensional Kaimal model and full three-dimensional wind fields extracted from large-eddy simulations (LES) are used to simulate ambient turbulence near the ground. Load calculations and flight trajectory predictions are conducted for a representative high-aspect-ratio wing aircraft, using a fully coupled nonlinear flight dynamics/aeroelastic model, when it operates in background atmospheric turbulence generated by the aforementioned models. Comparison of load envelopes and spectral content, on vehicles of varying flexibility, shows strong dependency between the selected turbulence model and aircraft aeroelastic response (e.g. 58% difference in the predicted magnitude of the wing root bending moment between LES and von Kármán models). This is mainly due to the presence of large flow structures at low altitudes that have comparable dimensions to the vehicle, and which despite the relatively small wind speeds within the Earth boundary layer, result in overall high load events for slow-moving vehicles. Results show that one-dimensional models that do not capture those effects provide fairly non-conservative load estimates and are unsuitable for very flexible airframe design.

atmospheric turbulence↗
DOE OSTI2017

HELIOS: AN OPEN-SOURCE, GPU-ACCELERATED RADIATIVE TRANSFER CODE FOR SELF-CONSISTENT EXOPLANETARY ATMOSPHERES

We present the open-source radiative transfer code named HELIOS, which is constructed for studying exoplanetary atmospheres. In its initial version, the model atmospheres of HELIOS are one-dimensional and plane-parallel, and the equation of radiative transfer is solved in the two-stream approximation with nonisotropic scattering. A small set of the main infrared absorbers is employed, computed with the opacity calculator HELIOS-K and combined using a correlated-k approximation. The molecular abundances originate from validated analytical formulae for equilibrium chemistry. We compare HELIOS with the work of Miller-Ricci and Fortney using a model of GJ 1214b, and perform several tests, where we find: model atmospheres with single-temperature layers struggle to converge to radiative equilibrium; k-distribution tables constructed with ≳0.01 cm{sup −1} resolution in the opacity function (≲10{sup 3} points per wavenumber bin) may result in errors ≳1%–10% in the synthetic spectra; and a diffusivity factor of 2 approximates well the exact radiative transfer solution in the limit of pure absorption. We construct “null-hypothesis” models (chemical equilibrium, radiative equilibrium, and solar elemental abundances) for six hot Jupiters. We find that the dayside emission spectra of HD 189733b and WASP-43b are consistent with the null hypothesis, while the latter consistently underpredicts the observed fluxes of WASP-8b, WASP-12b, WASP-14b, and WASP-33b. We demonstrate that our results are somewhat insensitive to the choice of stellar models (blackbody, Kurucz, or PHOENIX) and metallicity, but are strongly affected by higher carbon-to-oxygen ratios. The code is publicly available as part of the Exoclimes Simulation Platform (exoclime.net).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

AATTENUATION—The Atmospheric Attenuation Model for CSP Tower Plants: A Look-Up Table for Operational Implementation

Attenuation of solar radiation between the receiver and the heliostat field in concentrated solar power (CSP) tower plants can reduce the overall system performance significantly. The attenuation varies strongly with time and the average attenuation at different sites might also vary strongly from each other. If no site specific attenuation data is available, the optimal plant design cannot be determined and rough estimations of the attenuation effect are required leading to high uncertainties of yield analysis calculations. The attenuation is caused mainly by water vapor content and aerosol particles in the lower atmospheric layer above ground. Although several on-site measurement systems have been developed during recent years, attenuation data sets are usually not available to be included during the plant project development. An Atmospheric Attenuation (AATTENUATION) model to derive the atmospheric transmittance between a heliostat and receiver on the basis of common direct normal irradiance (DNI), temperature, relative humidity, and barometric pressure measurements was developed and validated by the authors earlier. The model allows the accurate estimation of attenuation for sites with low attenuation and gives an estimation of the attenuation for less clear sites. However, the site-dependent coefficients of the AATTENUATION model had to be developed individually for each site of interest, which required time-consuming radiative transfer simulations, considering the exact location and altitude, as well as the pre-dominant aerosol type at the location. This strongly limited the application of the model despite its typically available input data. In this manuscript, a look-up table (LUT) is presented which enables the application of the AATTENUATION model at the site of interest without the necessity to perform the according complex radiative transfer calculations for each site individually. This enables the application of the AATTENUATION model for virtually all resource assessments for tower plants and in an operational mode in real time within plant monitoring systems around the world. The LUT also facilitates the generation of solar attenuation maps on the basis of long-term meteorological data sets which can be considered during resource assessment for CSP tower plant projects. The LUTs are provided together with this manuscript as supplementary files. The LUT for the AATTENUATION model was developed for a solar zenith angle (SZA) grid of 1°, an altitude grid of 100 m, 7 different standard aerosol types and the standard AFGL atmospheres for mid-latitudes and the tropics. The LUT was tested against the original version of the AATTENUATION model at 4 sites in Morocco and Spain, and it was found that the additional uncertainty introduced by the application of the LUT is negligible. With the information of latitude, longitude, altitude above mean sea level, DNI, relative humidity (RH), ambient temperature (Tair), and barometric pressure (bp), the attenuation can be now derived easily for each site of interest.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS2013

An Atmospheric Variability Model for Venus Aerobraking Missions

Aerobraking has proven to be an enabling technology for planetary missions to Mars and has been proposed to enable low cost missions to Venus. Aerobraking saves a significant amount of propulsion fuel mass by exploiting atmospheric drag to reduce the eccentricity of the initial orbit. The solar arrays have been used as the primary drag surface and only minor modifications have been made in the vehicle design to accommodate the relatively modest aerothermal loads. However, if atmospheric density is highly variable from orbit to orbit, the mission must either accept higher aerothermal risk, a slower pace for aerobraking, or a tighter corridor likely with increased propulsive cost. Hence, knowledge of atmospheric variability is of great interest for the design of aerobraking missions. The first planetary aerobraking was at Venus during the Magellan mission. After the primary Magellan science mission was completed, aerobraking was used to provide a more circular orbit to enhance gravity field recovery. Magellan aerobraking took place between local solar times of 1100 and 1800 hrs, and it was found that the Venusian atmospheric density during the aerobraking phase had less than 10% 1 sigma orbit to orbit variability. On the other hand, at some latitudes and seasons, Martian variability can be as high as 40% 1 sigmaFrom both the MGN and PVO mission it was known that the atmosphere, above aerobraking altitudes, showed greater variability at night, but this variability was never quantified in a systematic manner. This paper proposes a model for atmospheric variability that can be used for aerobraking mission design until more complete data sets become available.

Tolson, Robert T.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Multiscale Simulation of Precipitation Over East Asia by Variable Resolution CAM-MPAS

This study evaluates the precipitation over East Asia simulated by the variable resolution CAM-MPAS featuring the Model for Prediction Across Scales (MPAS) atmospheric dynamical core coupled with the physics parameterizations of the Community Atmosphere Model (CAM) version 5.4. Two CAM-MPAS experiments, one with a global quasi-uniform resolution mesh of 120 km (MPAS-UR) and the other with a variable resolution mesh of 30 to 120 km refined over East Asia (MPAS-VR), are conducted from 1989 to 2005 following the Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project protocol. Two regional climate model simulations at ~25 km resolution from the Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment East Asia second plan are also analyzed for comparison. Results show that CAM-MPAS performs better than the selected regional models in simulating the precipitation climatology over East Asia. Compared with MPAS-UR, MPAS-VR with refinement over East Asia better simulates the precipitation over and around the Tibetan Plateau (TP), the frequency distribution of light, moderate, and heavy precipitation in various regions of China, and the interannual precipitation pattern associated with the East Asian summer monsoon. The improvements in MPAS-VR relative to MPAS-UR largely come from the decreased grid spacing rather than the use of finer-scale terrain information. Particularly, decreased grid spacing is more essential for simulating the precipitation magnitude over TP and the location of peak precipitation south of TP, likely due to the better resolved physical and dynamical processes associated with orographic precipitation. The 30-120 km CAM-MPAS model is shown to be a promising tool for precipitation simulation over East Asia.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2018

VLTI-GRAVITY Measurements of Cool Evolved Stars I. Variable Photosphere and Extended Atmosphere of the Mira Star R Peg

Context. Dynamic model atmospheres of Mira stars predict variabilities in the photospheric radius and in atmospheric molecular layers which are not yet strongly constrained by observations. Aim. Here we measure the variability of the oxygen-rich Mira star R Peg in near-continuum and molecular bands. Methods. We used near-infrared K-band spectro-interferometry with a spectral resolution of about 4000 obtained at four epochs between post-maximum and minimum visual phases employing the newly available GRAVITY beam combiner at the Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). Results. Our observations show a continuum radius that is anti-correlated with the visual lightcurve. Uniform disc (UD) angular diameters at a near-continuum wavelength of 2.24 m are steadily increasing with values of 8.7 0.1 mas, 9.4 0.1 mas, 9.8 0.1 mas, and 9.9 0.1 mas at visual phases of 0.15, 0.36, 0.45, 0.53, respectively. UD diameters at a bandpass around 2.05 m, dominated by water vapour, follow the near-continuum variability at larger UD diameters between 10.7 mas and 11.7 mas. UD diameters at the CO 2-0 bandhead, instead, are correlated with the visual lightcurve and anti-correlated with the near-continuum UD diameters, with values between 12.3 mas and 11.7 mas. Conclusions. The observed anti-correlation between continuum radius and visual lightcurve is consistent with an earlier study of the oxygen-rich Mira S Lac, and with recent 1D CODEX dynamic model atmosphere predictions. The amplitude of the variation is comparable to the earlier observations of S Lac, and smaller than predicted by CODEX models. The wavelength-dependent visibility variations at our epochs can be reproduced by a set of CODEX models at model phases between 0.3 and 0.6. The anti-correlation of water vapour and CO contributions at our epochs suggests that these molecules undergo different processes in the extended atmosphere along the stellar cycle. The newly available GRAVITY instrument is suited to conducting longer time series observations, which are needed to provide strong constraints on the model-predicted intra- and inter-cycle variability.

photospheric radius↗
NASA NTRS1992

A toy model linking atmospheric thermal radiation and sea ice growth

A simplified analytical model of sea ice growth is presented where the atmosphere is in thermal radiative equilibrium with the ice. This makes the downwelling longwave radiation reaching the ice surface an internal variable rather than a specified forcing. Analytical results demonstrate how the ice state depends on properties of the ice and on the externally specified climate.

Thorndike, A. S.↗
NASA NTRS2017

Description and Evaluation of the Multiscale Online Nonhydrostatic AtmospheRe CHemistry Model (NMMB-MONARCH) Version 1.0: Gas-Phase Chemistry at Global Scale

This paper presents a comprehensive description and benchmark evaluation of the tropospheric gas-phase chemistry component of the Multiscale Online Nonhydrostatic AtmospheRe CHemistry model (NMMBMONARCH), formerly known as NMMB/BSC-CTM, that can be run on both regional and global domains. Here, we provide an extensive evaluation of a global annual cycle simulation using a variety of background surface stations (EMEP, WDCGG and CASTNET), ozonesondes (WOUDC, CMD and SHADOZ), aircraft data (MOZAIC and several campaigns), and satellite observations (SCIAMACHY and MOPITT).We also include an extensive discussion of our results in comparison to other state-of-the-art models. We note that in this study, we omitted aerosol processes and some natural emissions (lightning and volcano emissions). The model shows a realistic oxidative capacity across the globe. The seasonal cycle for CO is fairly well represented at different locations (correlations around 0.3-0.7 in surface concentrations), although concentrations are underestimated in spring and winter in the Northern Hemisphere, and are overestimated throughout the year at 800 and 500 hPa in the Southern Hemisphere. Nitrogen species are well represented in almost all locations, particularly NO2 in Europe (root mean square error - RMSE - below 5 ppb). The modeled vertical distributions of NOx and HNO3 are in excellent agreement with the observed values and the spatial and seasonal trends of tropospheric NO2 columns correspond well to observations from SCIAMACHY, capturing the highly polluted areas and the biomass burning cycle throughout the year. Over Asia, the model underestimates NOx from March to August, probably due to an underestimation of NOx emissions in the region. Overall, the comparison of the modeled CO and NO2 with MOPITT and SCIAMACHY observations emphasizes the need for more accurate emission rates from anthropogenic and biomass burning sources (i.e., specification of temporal variability).

atmospheric chemistry↗