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LRN, ERN:, & BERN @ Wireless Integrating the Sciences (WITS) Theatre

In order to develop a call to action for a learning tool that would work to best teach Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM), the NASA Goddard team will partner with the inventor of Bop It!, an interactive game of verbs and following instructions; and Global Imagination, the developers of Magic Planet. In this paper Decision-making Orbital Health! (DOH!) will be described as a game derived from the basic functions necessary for Bop lt!, a familiar game. that will ask the educational audience to respond to changing commands to Bop It!, Twist It!, and Squeeze It! The success of the new version of the game, will be that the Earth will be making these commands from Dynamic Planet, and the crowd assembled can play wirelessly. Wireless Integrating The Sciences (WITS) Theatre : A balanced approach will describe how the communities local to Goddard and perhaps San Francisco will develop curriculum that helps kids teach kids with an engaging game and a STEM message. The performing arts will be employed to make it entertaining and appropriate to the size of the gathering, and the students educational level.

Hilliard, L.↗

The Evolution of the Deformation Substructure in a Ni-Co-Cr Equiatomic Solid Solution Alloy

The equiatomic NiCoCr alloy exhibits an excellent combination of strength and ductility, even greater than the FeNiCrCoMn high entropy alloy, and also displays a simultaneous increase in strength and ductility with decreasing the testing temperature. To systemically investigate the origin of the exceptional properties of NiCoCr alloy, which are related to the evolution of the deformation substructure with strain, interrupted tensile testing was conducted on the equiatomic NiCoCr single-phase solid solution alloy at both cryogenic and room temperatures at five different plastic strain levels of 1.5%, 6.5%, 29%, 50% and 70%. The evolution of deformation substructure was examined using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), transmission Kikuchi diffraction (TKD), conventional transmission electron microscopy (CTEM), diffraction contrast imaging using STEM (DCI-STEM) and atomic resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy. While the deformation substructure mainly consisted of planar dislocation slip and the dissociation of dislocations into stacking faults at small strain levels (≤6.5%), at larger strain levels, additional substructures including nanotwins and a new phase with hexagonal close packed (HCP) lamellae also appeared. The volume fraction of the HCP lamellae increases with increasing deformation, especially at cryogenic temperature. First principles calculations at 0 K indicate that the HCP phase is indeed energetically favorable relative to FCC for this composition. The effects of the nanotwin and HCP lamellar structures on hardening rate and ductility at both cryogenic and room temperature are qualitatively discussed.

Twinning↗

Aligned and Electrospun Piezoelectric Polymer Fiber Assembly and Scaffold

A method of manufacturing and/or using a scaffold assembly for stem cell culture and tissue engineering applications is disclosed. The scaffold at least partially mimics a native biological environment by providing biochemical, topographical, mechanical and electrical cues by using an electroactive material. The assembly includes at least one layer of substantially aligned, electrospun polymer fiber having an operative connection for individual voltage application. A method of cell tissue engineering and/or stem cell differentiation that uses the assembly seeded with a sample of cells suspended in cell culture media, incubates and applies voltage to one or more layers, and thus produces cells and/or a tissue construct. In another aspect, the invention provides a method of manufacturing the assembly including the steps of providing a first pre-electroded substrate surface; electrospinning a first substantially aligned polymer fiber layer onto the first surface; providing a second pre-electroded substrate surface; electrospinning a second substantially aligned polymer fiber layer onto the second surface; and, retaining together the layered surfaces with a clamp and/or an adhesive compound.

Scott Carnell, Lisa A.↗

Metal Abundances in Hot White Dwarfs with Signatures of a Superionized Wind

About a dozen hot white dwarfs with effective temperatures T(sub eff) = 65000−120000 K exhibit unusual absorption features in their optical spectra. These objects were tentatively identified as Rydberg lines of ultra-high excited metals in ionization stages v–x, indicating line formation in a dense environment with temperatures near 106 K. Since some features show blueward extensions, it was argued that they stem from a superionized wind. A unique assignment of the lines to particular elements is not possible, although they probably stem from C, N, O, and Ne. To further investigate this phenomenon, we analyzed the ultraviolet spectra available from only three stars of this group; that is, two helium-rich white dwarfs, HE 0504–2408 and HS 0713+3958 with spectral type DO, and a hydrogen-rich white dwarf, HS 2115+1148 with spectral type DAO. We identified light metals (C, N, O, Si, P, and S) with generally subsolar abundances and heavy elements from the iron group (Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) with solar or oversolar abundance. The abundance patterns are not unusual for hot WDs and can be interpreted as the result of gravitational settling and radiative levitation of elements. As to the origin of the ultra-high ionized metals lines, we discuss the possible presence of a multicomponent radiatively driven wind that is frictionally heated.

K Werner↗

Systemic Alterations with Spaceflight Associated Health Risks Originating from Both Circulating miRNAs and Mitochondrial Biology

The many known health risks currently associated with space travel include increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, central nervous system related diseases, muscle degeneration, and changes with host-gut microbiome interactions that can have profound impact with these and other health risks. The majority of the risk from space travel stem of the two components of the space environment which are microgravity and radiation. Two specific systemic effects have been uncovered by us to impact the body as a whole due to the space environment. One factor is related from our earlier work (Beheshti et al, PLOS One, 2018), we predicted that there is a systemic component of the host that causes general increased health risks due to spaceflight driven by a circulating microRNA (miRNA) signature consisting of 13 miRNAs that directly regulates both p53 and TGF1. MiRNAs are small non-coding RNA molecules with a negative and post-transcriptional regulation on gene expression) are increasingly recognized as major systemic regulators of responses to stressors, including microgravity, oxidative stress, and DNA damage. In addition, due to the size and stability of miRNAs, it is known that miRNAs can circulate throughout the body and have been found in the majority of the bodily fluids including blood, urine, saliva, and tears. Here, we start to dissect the actual impact of this miRNA signature on both the radiation and microgravity components and prove that this miRNA signature actually exists in the circulation of a host. The other systemic factor we uncovered was the impact the mitochondria on the whole body due to spaceflight. We hypothesize that spaceflight may promote a physiologic response driven by systemic mitochondria pathways leading to metabolic disorder stemming from the liver and directly impacting other organs and tissues. A systems biology method was implemented utilizing GeneLab datasets that involved in vitro experiments performed at the low Earth orbit, in vivo experiments involving mice flown to space, and finally human physiological data from astronauts. A comprehensive multi-omics approach was implemented which involved correlating transcriptomic analysis with proteomics, metabolomics, and methylation analysis. This approach led us to confirm our hypothesis that a systemic mitochondrial driven response is responsible for increasing potential health risk and is conserved from the in vitro studies, to the in vivo studies, and finally confirmed in astronauts.

Radiation↗

NASA Studies the Earth from the Philippines

The Cloud, Aerosol and Monsoon Processes Philippines Experiment (CAMP2Ex) is a NASA/NRL mission studying clouds and aerosols with the NASA P-3B aircraft, a Learet and an ocean research vessel. The mission is based in the Philippines from late August through early October 2019. This presentation is aimed at 8-12th grade students in the Philippines for education/outreach purposes to expose students to NASA Earth and Airborne Science research, the CAMP2Ex mission, and careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).The presentation starts with an overview of NASA Earth science, including discussing how and why NASA studies the earth using satellites, airplanes, and sensors on the ground. We discuss the NASA Airborne Science Program and how NASA uses airplanes to study the Earth from the equator to the poles. We discuss the CAMP2Ex mission specifically, including mission science goals and why we are based in the Philippines. We will discuss basic cloud physics and remote sensing using demonstrations and activities. Finally, we discuss careers in STEM and at NASA, giving personal examples of the career paths of scientists, engineers and pilots on the CAMP2Ex mission.

Schaller, Emily L.↗

Deciphering the Effects of Microgravity Cell by Cell

Forces generated by gravity have a profound impact on the behavior of cells in tissues affecting the course of the cell cycle and differentiation fate of progenitors in mammalian tissues. These cells are contributing to normal tissue regenerative health and defence against disease. In Human space exploration context, it is extremely important to determine spaceflight provoked changes in tissue's regenerational capabilities. Microgravity experienced during spaceflight causes unloading and mechanical disuse on all orthostatic support tissues, therefore impacting stem cell fate and lineage commitment decisions. Investigating how ESCs respond to mechanical stimulation is a platform for fundamental developmental and regeneration research applicable for spaceflight. However, the gene expression programs associatiated with early committment stem cell pathways in response to physical stimulation are not readily known. Single-cell RNA-seq technologies have recently revolutionized the world of molecular biology by providing the capability to assess gene expression pattern within a single cell. Our method isolates and separately barcodes mRNAs from thousands of single cells and sequences their expressomes. Understanding regenerative processes on a molecular level would not only help reduce long-term spaceflight impact on health, but also may enable the development of novel tissue regenerative approaches to tissue degeneration on Earth.

Single cell sequencing↗

Nonlinear Görtler Vortices and Their Secondary Instability in a Hypersonic Boundary Layer

Nonlinear development of the Görtler instability over a concave surface gives rise to a highly distorted inflectional flow field in the boundary layer that leads to both wall-normal and spanwise gradients in the flow. Such nonlinear structures are susceptible to strong, high-frequency secondary instabilities that may lead to the onset of laminar-turbulent transition. The present numerical study uses direct numerical simulations and linear secondary instability theory to investigate finite amplitude Görtler vortices and their secondary instability characteristics, respectively, in the hypersonic flow over an axisymmetric cone with a concave aft body. To complement previous studies in the literature wherein the Görtler instability was usually studied for a flat plate and initiated at some upstream location by imposing an eigenfunction as the inflow condition or by blowing and suction at the wall, the present investigation is focused on fully realizable Görtler instability that is excited by an azimuthally periodic array of surface protuberances. Furthermore, while the previous work had mostly focused on the secondary instability of Görtler vortices with cross-plane velocity contours that resembled bell-shaped structures, the present results confirm that fully developed mushroom structures also exist in the hypersonic regime when the Görtler vortex amplitude is sufficiently large. Computations further reveal that the dominant modes of secondary instability in these mushroom-shaped structures correspond to an antisymmetic (i.e., sinuous) “stem” mode that concentrates within the strong, nearly wall-normal internal shear layers surrounding the stem regions underneath the caps of the mushroom structures. Additionally, there exist a multitude of other significantly unstable secondary instability modes of both symmetric and antisymmetric types. Analogous to the secondary instability of crossflow vortices in hypersonic flows, secondary instability modes of both symmetric and antisymmetric types. Analogous to the secondary instability of crossflow vortices in hypersonic flows, secondary instability modes originating from the Mack mode instability play an important role during the nonlinear breakdown process.

Laminar turbulent transition↗

Apatite Nanoresponse to Acidic Dissolution

Phosphorus uptake by plants and organisms is one of the most important life-sustaining processes occurring in the critical zone (CZ). Because 95% of Earth’s reserves is relatively immobile in the form of apatite, plants and organisms rely on molecular scale solubilization process to extract available P. As the world experiences a global P shortage, influencing food production, it becomes increasingly important to understand apatite dissolution. The detailed study of chemically weathered apatite surfaces at the μm to nm-scale is key to understanding P solubilization and uptake in the CZ, allowing for better crop management and efficient fertilization. Apatite weathering is generally viewed in terms of a pH-dependent process where protons weaken atomic bonds, this leading to the disintegration of the apatite structure. A general feature of apatite weathering in acid and near neutral pH conditions is an apparent non-stoichiometric dissolution characterized by [Ca/P]aq > 1.66 in both fluorapatites (FAP) and hydroxyapatites (HAP). This process leads to the formation of a surface altered layer (SAL) with a different composition from the bulk, which many have argued is a Ca-depleted “leached layer.” We investigated apatite weathering at the nanoscale using FIB-prepared TEM-foils. Our preliminary results based on laboratory-altered FAP at ambient T and pH 3 show the formation of amorphous SALs with a maximum thickness of ~10 nm. High resolution chemical mapping and profiling using STEM-EELS and STEM-EDXS indicate that the SALs are generally, but not always, depleted in Ca and enriched in P. These results provide an alternate view of the mechanism of apatite dissolution with stoichiometric breakdown of the apatite structure, followed by the reprecipitation of an amorphous surface layer depleted in Ca. This mechanism can be described in terms of coupled interfacial dissolution-reprecipitation (CIDR), which is increasingly viewed as a universal mechanism of silicate mineral and glass dissolution. Our observation that apatite may dissolve similarly to silicates implies not only that apatite weathering may be more complex than originally thought, but also that the CIDR mechanism may extend beyond silicates.

mineralogy↗

Aero Fair Presentation

Diversity and Inclusion Outreach event to promote STEM, NASA, and Aeronautics to underrepresented middle school students in the Bay Area. Connect with the community. Engage with students to showcase NASA Ames Aeronautics and spark interest in a STEM education.

Aero Fair↗

My Journey to NASA and Role as a (Molecular) Biologist…

My journey to NASA started in undergrad, where I performed microbiology research and became hooked in the STEM fields. From there I earned a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Mayo Graduate school where I performed Pancreatic Cancer research and then went on to perform postdoctoral research in Developmental Biology at the University of Miami. Trained as a biologist, I landed my first job at NASA as a mission scientist on the Rodent Research project. As a mission scientist, I led science activities associated with development, flight, and post-flight analysis of rodent research missions on the ISS in consultation with project engineers, operational specialists, mission PI(s), and mission Implementation Partner(s). I also assessed the feasibility of scientific experiments as a technical and scientific expert in rodent research on the ISS. Eager to learn more about the molecular changes that occur as a result of spaceflight exposure, I transitioned to the NASA GeneLab project where I eventually became the data processing lead. NASA’s GeneLab helps scientists understand how the fundamental building blocks of life – DNA, RNA, proteins, and metabolites – change from exposure to the space environment including microgravity and cosmic radiation exposure. GeneLab does so by providing fully coordinated epigenomics, genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics data (collectively known as omics data) alongside essential metadata describing each spaceflight and space-relevant experiment. To maximize the intelligibility of these data, particularly for users with limited bioinformatics knowledge, GeneLab has started processing and analyzing these datasets to generate differential gene expression data and identify biological and physiological pathways that are dysregulated as a result of spaceflight. The user interface was designed to be accessible to a broad variety of users, including high school and college students who can use it to learn about omics data analysis and space biology. During the NASA Ames ECN at Lincoln HS Virtual Panel event, I will provide an overview of my journey to NASA including my work at NASA on both the Rodent Research and GeneLab projects. I will conclude by providing resources for opportunities to work with GeneLab and NASA at large followed by links to programs designed specifically to engage women in STEM fields.

Amanda M Saravia-Butler↗

An Evening with NASA Scientists and Engineers: A Senior Living Community Outreach Program

Introduction: An Evening with NASA Scientists and Engineers is an outreach program for senior living communities, where participants learn from and interact with a scientist or engineer in a virtual setting. Participants learn about NASA science and engineering through a behind-the-scenes look from the people who work at NASA. The program focuses on both the stories behind the discoveries and the stories behind the people. The audience tunes in to the events via the NASA Zoom Webinar platform, where they have the opportunity to ask questions throughout the approximately 30-minute program. By bringing the audience into the conversation, we build rapport and thus improve their connection with NASA. Overview: An Evening with NASA Scientists and Engineers began in September 2020 when we identified a need for outreach to this particular demographic, as senior living communities had been hit especially hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program covers a wide range of topics, including heliophysics, astrophysics, planetary science, Earth science, planetary defense, and more, depending on what is topically appropriate at the time, and occurs on a roughly monthly basis. Each interactive presentation is between 20-25 minutes with 5-10 minutes of dedicated Q&A. Future dates and topics may change depending on new developments to NASA missions and stories. Audience: As of December 2021, we have four regularly attending senior living communities, spanning the East Coast from New Hampshire to Florida, with each joining the overall program at various stages of its development. The ability to reach many different senior living communities is crucial so that a diversity of people may benefit from this program. The audience consists of seniors with varying experience and comprehension levels – some are very familiar with the sciences while others are simply curious to learn more. Residents tune in to each event from their individual rooms or from their larger community rooms. RiverWoods Exeter. The RiverWoods Exeter community was our initial audience who acted as our “guinea pig” to see how this program might be implemented and to work out any major issues. They are located in Exeter, NH but also have two additional campuses in Durham, NH and Manchester, NH, that joined us a few months into the program. Culpepper Garden. Our second community to join the program was Culpepper Garden, a senior living community in Arlington, VA that provides both independent and assisted living housing to low-income seniors. Edinburgh Square. Our third community, Edinburgh Square, connected with us after hearing about the program through Culpepper Garden. Edinburgh Square is an HUD-subsidized retirement community in Roanoke, VA that houses both seniors and those living with disabilities. Moonstruck Astronomy Club. The Moonstruck Astronomy Club consists of residents from the On Top of the World retirement community in Ocala, FL and was the latest senior living community to join us. NASA Zoom Webinar: An Evening with NASA Scientists and Engineers reaches numerous senior living communities through live presentations that we host using the NASA Zoom Webinar virtual platform. Participants are typically already familiar with the Zoom platform which enables a lower barrier to entry. A recording of each talk is added to a designated video playlist on the NASA STEM YouTube channel so that audiences worldwide may view them [1]. These recordings began with our April 1, 2021 presentation, as this was when NASA Zoom Webinar was implemented, thus enabling us to record each talk. Metrics: We record attendance numbers from the senior living communities for each event as well as those from YouTube views after the presentation recording is posted online. Depending on which communities tune in, typical attendance numbers are between 60-100 people. RiverWoods Exeter has the most regularly attending residents, with an average of 55 attendees per event. As of December 2021, we have hosted fourteen events, nine of which were recorded and posted to our designated NASA STEM YouTube Channel playlist. The nine recordings combined have roughly 4,000 YouTube views thus far, with specific videos seeing higher view counts around launch dates (e.g. NASA’s DART mission) and trending topics (e.g. JWST). A list of speakers, topics, and links to presentation recordings is shown in Table 1. Future Program Expansion: Thus far, we have been adding communities on an individual basis. To make this process more streamlined, we are looking into working with senior living community networks and organizations such as LeadingAge [2]. In this manner, we will be able to reach more communities while also making it easier to send and receive relevant information.

S L Tiedeken↗

A Transmission Electron Microscopy Study of a Refractory Metal Grain from a Calcium-Aluminum-Rich Inclusion in the Leoville CV3 Chondrite

Introduction: Calcium-aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) are an important component of chondritic meteorites. They can contain materials that are thermodynamically predicted and isotopically age dated to be among the first-formed solids in our solar system [1-5]. Observed in some CAIs are micron to sub-micron sized inclusions rich in Fe, Ni, and high-Z elements such as Pt, Os, Ir and W, in the form of refractory metal nuggets (RMNs), fremdlinges, and ‘nugget like objects’ (NLOs) [1,6]. Refractory siderophile elements such as Os, Ir and Ru are thermodynamically predicted to condense at temperatures well in excess of the major CAI phases such as melilite, perovskite, spinel and hibonite [2,7-9]. These refractory metal inclusions in CAIs can therefore serve as probes into the thermodynamic landscape of the early solar protoplanetary disk. Here we report on a refractory grain identified in a CAI of the Leoville CV3 chondrite. This work is part of an ongoing effort to gain insight into the thermochemistry of the early solar system through systematic analyses of the structure and chemistry of various components in CAIs [10-13]. Sample and Analytical Techniques: A fluffy type A CAI (Fig. 1A) was identified in a section of the Leoville, CV3 chondrite (Center for Meteorite Studies, Arizona State University collection, #821_C_3) using a JOEL-JXA 8530F electron microprobe at Arizona State University. Backscattered electron (BSE) imaging and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) were used to identify refractory metal grains in the CAI using a Thermo Fisher (formerly FEI) Helios NanoLab 660 G3 focused-ion-beam scanning-electron microscope (FIBSEM) located at the Kuiper Materials Imaging and Characterization Facility (KMICF) at the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona. The FIB is equipped with an EDAX EDS system. We selected one of the larger (micron-sized) refractory metal grains, designated as ‘Spud’ (Fig. 1B) for further analysis. ‘Spud’ was extracted and thinned to electron transparency (<100 nm) using the FIB-SEM located in KMICF, following methods described by [14- 15]. The FIB section was analyzed using a 200 keV Hitachi HF5000 scanning transmission electron microscope (S/TEM) located at KMICF. The HF5000 is equipped with cold-field emission gun, 3rd-order spherical aberration corrector for STEM imaging, and an Oxford Instruments X-Max N 100 TLE energydispersive spectroscopy (EDS) system with dual 100 mm2 windowless silicon-drift detectors (Ω = 2.0 sr). Selected-area electron-diffraction (SAED) patterns were acquired to aid in determination of crystallinity and phase. Results: The mineralogy, texture, and morphology of the CAI are consistent with that of a fluffy type A (FTA) CAI [16]. BSE imaging at high magnifications revealed grains with high contrast, indicative of compositions rich in elements of higher atomic number relative to surrounding material. These high-Z grains have sizes that range from ∼250 nm to 4 µm. EDS analyses confirm that the bright grains are metal-rich inclusions. A minor fraction of the grains are composed of only Fe and Ni, but the majority (∼60%) of the identified inclusions also contained various refractory siderophiles including Os, Ru, Zr, Ir and Mo. EDS analysis on the FIB-SEM of Spud shows that it contains Fe, Ni, Mo and Ru. High-angle annular dark-field (HAAFD) imaging and EDS mapping in the TEM (Fig. 2) show that Spud occurs in melilite (Ca1.9Al1.99Si1.06O7). Spud contains a subhedral to anhedral morphology and is compositionally heterogenous (polyphasic, Fig. 2). Local spatial correlation occurs among Fe, Ni, and Pt, and also among Os, Ru, and Mo. SAED patterns show that the Fe-Ni-Pt, Fe-Os-Mo-Ru and Fe-Pt regions are crystalline. Discussion: CAIs can contain various types of inclusions rich in Fe, Ni and refractory siderophiles such as Os, Ru, W and Pt [1]. RMNs are micron-sized, single phase alloy grains and can contain Os, Ir, Ru and Rh [1,7,17]. NLOs are also micron-sized inclusions, but contain two phases, a refractory metal, and an oxide [6]. Fremdlinge are the largest of such inclusions (tens of microns in size) and are complex aggregates of Fe-Ni alloy, silicates, oxides, and sulfides [1,17]. While the size of Spud matches previous descriptions of RMNs and NLOs, Spud is neither a single-phase alloy like RMNs, nor does it contain one metal phase and one oxide like NLOs. Spud does not match the above described categories of refractory metal inclusions. The presence of refractory siderophiles such as Mo, Os, Ru, and Pt suggests a high-temperature origin. Thermodynamic modelling by [7] indicates condensation temperatures of 1917 K, 1693 K, 1613 K and 1415 K for Os, Mo, Ru and Pt respectively. These models also show that following the initial condensation of a refractory metal, alloying of solutes such as Fe, Ni and W, occurs in levels proportional to their partial pressures in the surrounding gas. Such alloying occurs at temperatures above the condensation temperatures of common CAI phases such as melilite (1529 K), perovskite (1441 K), spinel (197 K) and forsterite (1354 K) [2]. The polyphasic nature of Spud could be the result of such high-temperature alloying, possibly shortly after the condensation of Mo and Ru at 1693 K and 1613 K respectively. That Spud occurs as an inclusion is consistent with it having formed prior to and at temperature above that of its host melilite in this FTA CAI, which is qualitatively consistent with such prior thermodynamic modeling. Further, the polyphasic nature of Spud is similar to refractory grains from a FTA CAI in the Northwest Africa (NWA) 8323, CV3 chondrite [11-13]. These data suggest that such refractory metal grains could have been widespread in the inner and early solar protoplanetary disk and represent some of the earliest formed solids to have condensed. Acknowledgments: Research and instrumentation supported by NASA grants #NNX12AL47G, #NNX15AJ22G and #80NSSC19K0509, and NSF grants #1531243 and #0619599. Fig 2. STEM data on ‘Spud’. HAADF Image (Top) False-color EDS Maps (Bottom) References: [1] MacPherson G. J. (2014) T. of Geochem. Vol I: Met. And Cosmochem. Processes, 139-179. [2] Lodders K. (2003) ApJ, 591, 1220-1247. [3] Ebel D. S. (2006) Met. & the Early S. Sys. II., 253- 277. [4] Amelin Y. (2002) Science, 297, 1678-1683. [5] Connelly J.N. et.al. (2012) Science, 338, 651-655. [6] Schwander D. et al. (2015) GCA, 18, 70-87. [7] Palme H. and Wlotzka F. (1976) EPSL, 33, 45-60. [8] Berg T. et al. (2009) ApJ, 702, 172-176. [9] Liffman K. et al. (2021) Icarus, 221, 89-105. [10] Zega T.J. et al. (2021) PSJ, 2, 115. [11] Ramprasad T. et al. (2020) LPSC LI, Abstract #2472. [12] Ramprasad T. et al. (2021) Microscopy & Microanalysis, S1, 2792-2794. [13] Ramprasad T. et al. (2021) 84th MetSoc, Abstract #6123. [14] Zega T.J. et al. (2007) MAPS, 42, 1373-1386. [15] Ramprasad T. et al. (2022) MAPS, in revision. [16] Grossman L. (1975), GCA, 39, 433-454. [17] El Goresy A. et al. (1978) LPSC IX, Abstract#1100

T. Ramprasad↗

Aero Fair 2022

Diversity and Inclusion Outreach event to promote STEM, NASA, and Aeronautics to underrepresented middle school students in the Bay Area. Connect with the community. Engage with students to showcase NASA Ames Aeronautics and spark interest in a STEM education.

Aero Fair 2022↗

Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Health, Labor, and Crop Benefits of Climate Change Mitigation in the United States

Societal benefits from climate change mitigation accrue via multiple pathways. We examine the US impacts of emission changes on several factors that are affected by both climate and air quality responses. Nationwide benefits through midcentury stem primarily from air quality improvements, which are realized rapidly, and include human health, labor productivity, and crop yield benefits. Benefits from reduced heat exposure become large around 2060, thereafter often dominating over those from improved air quality. Monetized benefits are in the tens of trillions of dollars for avoided deaths and tens of billions for labor productivity and crop yield increases and reduced hospital expenditures. Total monetized benefits this century are dominated by health and are much larger than in previous analyses due to improved understanding of the human health impacts of exposure to both heat and air pollution. Benefit–cost ratios are therefore much larger than in prior studies, especially those that neglected clean air benefits. Specifically, benefits from clean air exceed costs in the first decade, whereas benefits from climate alone exceed costs in the latter half of the century. Furthermore, monetized US benefits largely stem from US emissions reductions. Increased emphasis on the localized, near-term air quality–related impacts would better align policies with societal benefits and, by reducing the mismatch between perception of climate as a risk distant in space and time and the need for rapid action to mitigate long-term climate change, might help increase acceptance of mitigation policies.

climate change↗

Aero Fair 2022

Diversity and Inclusion Outreach event to promote STEM, NASA, and Aeronautics to underrepresented middle school students in the Bay Area. Connect with the community. Engage with students to showcase NASA Ames Aeronautics and spark interest in a STEM education.

Aero Fair 2022↗

Challenges to Aboveground Biomass Prediction from Waveform Lidar

Accurate accounting of aboveground biomass density (AGBD) is crucial for carbon cycle, biodiversity, and climate change science. The Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI), which maps global AGBD from waveform lidar, is the first of a new generation of Earth observation missions designed to improve carbon accounting. This paper explores the possibility that lidar waveforms may not be unique to AGBD—that forest stands with different AGBD may produce highly similar waveforms—and we hypothesize that non-uniqueness may contribute to the large uncertainties in AGBD predictions. Our analysis integrates simulated GEDI waveforms from 428 in situ stem maps with output from an individual-based forest gap model, which we use to generate a database of potential forest stands and simulate GEDI waveforms from those stands. We use this database to predict the AGBD of the 428 in situ stem maps via two different methods: a linear regression from waveform metrics, and a waveform-matching approach that accounts for waveform-AGBD non-uniqueness. We find that some in situ waveforms are more unique to AGBD than others, which notably impacts AGBD prediction uncertainty (7–411 Mg ha−1, average of 167 Mg ha−1). We also find that forest structure complexity may influence the non-uniqueness effect; stands with low structural complexity are more unique to AGBD than more mature stands with multiple cohorts and canopy layers. These findings suggest that the non-uniqueness phenomena may be introduced by the measuring characteristics of waveform lidar in combination with how forest structure manifests at small scales, and we discuss how this complexity may complicate uncertainty estimation in AGBD prediction. This analysis suggests a limit to the accuracy and precision of AGBD predictions from lidar waveforms seen in empirical studies, and underscores the need for further exploration of the relationships between lidar remote sensing measurements, forest structure, and AGBD.

GEDI↗

Mining the Gravity Mutants of Arabidopsis

Gravity mutants are a valuable resource for understanding gravity perception, signaling, and response in plants. A review of 190 publications resulted in a list of 97 loci with mutations that caused a gravitropic phenotype. While all these mutants show some form of gravity phenotype, several are also generally defective in growth. After removing these nonspecific mutants, 76 loci were deemed to have true gravity mutants. The gene list was then used to create a sortable database containing key factors of gravity signaling as well as data on methodologies and the development of mutant lines. Indexing this database has allowed us to pull out trends that were not visible in individual publications. For example, mutants that are unable to rearrange starch statoliths make up a larger proportion of the described inflorescence stems mutants than any other organ. Comparing these statolith mutants across organs shows that root and inflorescence stems consistently display different phenotypes for the same class of defect. The more severe gravity defects are most commonly described in root tissue while other tissues are more likely to show only a delayed or reduced response to gravity. The experience of members of the GeneLab plant Analytics Working Group (AWG) in data visualization and gene mapping have sparked new ideas for utilizing this database. Knowledge of shared traits, mutant development, and growth can provide a new resource for the production of seed lines specialized for their response to gravity.

gravitropism↗