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At least 1,027 records · Page 57

Risk-Significant Adverse Condition Awareness Strengthens Assurance of Fault Management Systems

As spaceflight systems increase in complexity, Fault Management (FM) systems are ranked high in risk-based assessment of software criticality, emphasizing the importance of establishing highly competent domain expertise to provide assurance. Adverse conditions (ACs) and specific vulnerabilities encountered by safety- and mission-critical software systems have been identified through efforts to reduce the risk posture of software-intensive NASA missions. Acknowledgement of potential off-nominal conditions and analysis to determine software system resiliency are important aspects of hazard analysis and FM. A key component of assuring FM is an assessment of how well software addresses susceptibility to failure through consideration of ACs. Focus on significant risk predicted through experienced analysis conducted at the NASA Independent Verification Validation (IVV) Program enables the scoping of effective assurance strategies with regard to overall asset protection of complex spaceflight as well as ground systems. Research efforts sponsored by NASA's Office of Safety and Mission Assurance defined terminology, categorized data fields, and designed a baseline repository that centralizes and compiles a comprehensive listing of ACs and correlated data relevant across many NASA missions. This prototype tool helps projects improve analysis by tracking ACs and allowing queries based on project, mission type, domaincomponent, causal fault, and other key characteristics. Vulnerability in off-nominal situations, architectural design weaknesses, and unexpected or undesirable system behaviors in reaction to faults are curtailed with the awareness of ACs and risk-significant scenarios modeled for analysts through this database. Integration within the Enterprise Architecture at NASA IVV enables interfacing with other tools and datasets, technical support, and accessibility across the Agency. This paper discusses the development of an improved workflow process utilizing this database for adaptive, risk-informed FM assurance that critical software systems will safely and securely protect against faults and respond to ACs in order to achieve successful missions.

Fault management↗

Natural Language Processing Analysis of Notices to Airmen for Air Traffic Management Optimization

With new emerging technologies in the field of NLP, we explore their applications to digitize and analyze heritage Air Traffic Management (ATM) documents for planning and optimizing airspace operations. Specifically, this research focuses on harvesting semi-structured or un-structured information contained in Notices to Airmen (NOTAMs). Using NLP and other advanced data analytics, we will construct a data-driven framework which facilitates finding language patterns and the use of pretrained language models for classification and extraction of useful airspace constraints and restrictions. These may lead to tools that assist airspace users in understanding the constraints more efficiently, contributing to better route planning and safer execution. This paper explores three workflows entailing different NLP tasks. First, unsupervised techniques like word embedding and topic modeling are used for pattern finding and document classification. Second, a dataset is created by extracting information from the semi-structured NOTAM format as metadata for categorizing, visualizing, and extracting key entities driving NOTAM content. Third, modern pre-built deep learning based transformer models such as BERT, RoBERTa, and XLNet are evaluated on the question answering task, an even more robust approach to information extraction, as well as their respective fine-tuning tasks. In this work we include various performance metrics for the trained models to evaluate both accuracy and precision and we show that the models can be generalized for their respective tasks. The research work developed shows promise in uncovering trends in digital NOTAMs in the NAS and also offers a new framework for digitizing and inferring insights from free-form legacy NOTAMs, that are yet to be digitized.

Natural Language Processing↗

Expanded Coverage of Phytocompounds by Mass Spectrometry Imaging Using On-Tissue Chemical Derivatization by 4-APEBA

Probing the entirety of any species metabolome is an analytical grand challenge, especially at a cellular scale. Where spatial metabolomics, completed primarily by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI), has limited molecular coverage for several reasons. To expand the scope of spatial metabolomics, we developed an on-tissue chemical derivatization (OTCD) workflow using 4-APEBA for confident identification of several dozen elusive phytocompounds, including several phytohormones, which have various roles within stress responses and cellular communication. Superiority of 4-APEBA is established in comparison to other derivatization agents with (1) broad specificity towards carbonyls, (2) low background, and (3) introduction of bromine isotopes, where the latter two facilitate confident bioinformatics. In conclusion, the outlined workflow trailblazes a path towards spatial hormonomics within plant samples, enhancing detection of carboxylates, aldehydes, ketones, and plausibly phenols.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Risk-Significant Adverse Condition Awareness Strengthens Assurance of Fault Management Systems

As spaceflight systems increase in complexity, Fault Management (FM) systems are ranked high in risk-based assessment of software criticality, emphasizing the importance of establishing highly competent domain expertise to provide assurance. Adverse conditions (ACs) and specific vulnerabilities encountered by safety- and mission-critical software systems have been identified through efforts to reduce the risk posture of software-intensive NASA missions. Acknowledgement of potential off-nominal conditions and analysis to determine software system resiliency are important aspects of hazard analysis and FM. A key component of assuring FM is an assessment of how well software addresses susceptibility to failure through consideration of ACs. Focus on significant risk predicted through experienced analysis conducted at the NASA Independent Verification & Validation (IV&V) Program enables the scoping of effective assurance strategies with regard to overall asset protection of complex spaceflight as well as ground systems. Research efforts sponsored by NASAs Office of Safety and Mission Assurance (OSMA) defined terminology, categorized data fields, and designed a baseline repository that centralizes and compiles a comprehensive listing of ACs and correlated data relevant across many NASA missions. This prototype tool helps projects improve analysis by tracking ACs and allowing queries based on project, mission type, domain/component, causal fault, and other key characteristics. Vulnerability in off-nominal situations, architectural design weaknesses, and unexpected or undesirable system behaviors in reaction to faults are curtailed with the awareness of ACs and risk-significant scenarios modeled for analysts through this database. Integration within the Enterprise Architecture at NASA IV&V enables interfacing with other tools and datasets, technical support, and accessibility across the Agency. This paper discusses the development of an improved workflow process utilizing this database for adaptive, risk-informed FM assurance that critical software systems will safely and securely protect against faults and respond to ACs in order to achieve successful missions.

IV&V↗

Global Sensitivity Analyses for Test Planning with Black-Box Models for Mars Sample Return

This work describes sensitivity analyses performed on complex black-box models used to support experimental test planning under limited resources in the context of the Mars Sample Return program, which aims at bringing to Earth rock and atmospheric samples from Mars. We develop a systematic workflow that allows the analysts to simultaneously obtain quantitative insights on key drivers of uncertainty, on the direction of impact, and the presence of interactions. We apply novel optimal transport-based global sensitivity measures to tackle the multivariate nature of the output. On the modeling side, we apply multi-fidelity techniques that leverage low-fidelity models to speed up the calculations and make up for the limited amount of high-fidelity samples, while keeping these in the loop for accuracy guarantees. The sensitivity analysis reveals insights useful for the analysts to understand the model's behavior and identify the factors to focus on during testing in order to maximize the value of information extracted from them to ensure mission success when limited resources are available.

Giuseppe Cataldo↗

New U.S. Data Tools are Playing a Crucial Role in Decarbonizing Buildings at Speed, Scale, and Low Cost

Preparing buildings for retrofits traditionally requires expensive on-site audits or timeintensive simulation models. As a result, the majority of buildings fail to pursue cost-saving retrofits. To address these barriers, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has introduced the Building Efficiency Targeting Tool for Energy Retrofits (BETTER)-a new, free, on-line tool that utilizes a data-driven analytical engine and user-friendly web interface to automatically analyze a building's monthly energy usage in response to weather conditions. The tool benchmarks a building's electric and fossil energy usage against peers; estimates energy, cost, and emissions reductions at the building and portfolio levels; recommends energy efficiency measures; and prioritizes buildings for net-zero energy retrofits. Thanks to interoperability with the DOE's Standard Energy Efficiency Data (SEED) platform, BETTER is supporting U.S. jurisdictions to prepare buildings for retrofit at speed, scale, and low cost to comply with energy policies. This paper discusses the use of BETTER and SEED by one of the branches of the California state government to streamline a retrofit program across 455 public non-residential buildings to align with state goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It describes the organization's challenge to reduce energy consumption across a geographically diverse, aging portfolio; explores how BETTER and SEED improved workflow efficiency; presents preliminary results, including avoiding audit costs of $3.28 million and developing the groundwork for retrofit projects estimated to prevent emission of 2,271 t CO2e annually; and provides guidance for other jurisdictions seeking similar results.

BETTER↗

A Data Processing Pipeline To Extract A Knowledge Graph From Sec Documents For Socio-technical Analysis Of Critical Infrastructure Influence

The code is written in Python and consists of the following pipeline that is implemented in Apache Airflow. This pipeline intends to understand the companies that are directly or indirectly involved with a type of critical infrastructure system at some point in that system's lifecycle. The pipeline takes a configuration file that specifies a list of initial companies to consider, a geographic region of interest (disk) expressed as a latitude/longitude point and distance, and a set of SEC form types from which to extract entities and relations. There are three main components to this pipeline as currently implemented: Social Network Extraction, Critical Infrastructure Network Extraction, and Inference and Fusion. First, Social Network Extraction, implemented as the `organizations_sec` component of the workflow graph queries the SEC EDGAR webservice using the list of initial companies from the configuration file. Given this, it extracts metadata that documents the number of each type of form for the given set of companies and their location. This forms metadata represents a catalog of data sources for the extracted social network knowledge graph. The pipeline then downloads these forms from the website and saves them in a build directory for further processing. These documents are then parsed for entities and relations. Second, the Critical Network Extraction component extracts entities and relations for a critical infrastructure sector. Currently, we focus on Electric Vehicle charging stations and this information is available via the Department of Energy (DOE) database on fueling stations maintained by NREL. Third, the Inference and Fusion component relates the social network graph to the critical infrastructure graph in order to understand the impact of a company within a geographic region. Relations include ownership of the EV Charging Station asset as well as maintenance/ownership of the EV payment networks. The fused network can be represented in many ways and currently we emit a knowledge graph.

Weaver, GabrielA.↗

Using Apptainer in a Pilot-based Distributed Workload

GlideinWMS is a pilot and pressure-based workload manager for distributed scientific computing. Many experiments like CMS and Fermilab’s Neutrino experiments use it to provision elastic clusters for their analysis and simulations, split into close to a million concurrent jobs. Most user jobs require containers, and the pilots use Apptainer to set up the desired platform. For the pilots that run as regular batch jobs, Apptainer is safer, lighter, and easier to use than other containerization solutions. Many images used by the pilots are expanded SIF images distributed via the CernVM-FS: this combination is very efficient. At Fermilab, for example, we store on GitHub Dockerfiles that mimic the platform in the worker nodes of local clusters. GitHub workflows build and push the images to Docker Hub, and a service periodically pulls and converts them to the expanded SIF images in the CernVM-FS, so the scientists can find a familiar environment everywhere. Apptainer has also been used to run services inside the pilot jobs, like benchmarks that characterize the worker node being used, or a Triton Inference Server that allows sharing a GPU with all the jobs that run in parallel on a node.

Mambelli, Marco [Fermilab] (ORCID:0000000294892681↗

Analysis of Validating and Verifying OpenACC Compilers 3.0 and Above

OpenACC is a high-level directive-based parallel programming model that can manage the sophistication of heterogeneity in architectures and abstract it from the users. The portability of the model across CPUs and accelerators has gained the model a wide variety of users. This means it is also crucial to analyze the reliability of the compilers’ implementations. To address this challenge, the OpenACC Validation and Verification team has proposed a validation testsuite to verify the OpenACC implementations across various compilers with an infrastructure for a more streamlined execution. This paper will cover the following aspects: (a) the new developments since the last publication on the testsuite, (b) outline the use of the infrastructure, (c) discuss tests that highlight our workflow process, (d) analyze the results from executing the testsuite on various systems, and (e) outline future developments.

Jarmusch, Aaron↗

A robust synthetic data generation framework for machine learning in high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM)

Machine learning techniques are attractive options for developing highly-accurate analysis tools for nanomaterials characterization, including high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). However, successfully implementing such machine learning tools can be difficult due to the challenges in procuring sufficiently large, high-quality training datasets from experiments. In this work, we introduce Construction Zone, a Python package for rapid generation of complex nanoscale atomic structures which enables fast, systematic sampling of realistic nanomaterial structures and can be used as a random structure generator for large, diverse synthetic datasets. Using Construction Zone, we develop an end-to-end machine learning workflow for training neural network models to analyze experimental atomic resolution HRTEM images on the task of nanoparticle image segmentation purely with simulated databases. Further, we study the data curation process to understand how various aspects of the curated simulated data—including simulation fidelity, the distribution of atomic structures, and the distribution of imaging conditions—affect model performance across three benchmark experimental HRTEM image datasets. Using our workflow, we are able to achieve state-of-the-art segmentation performance on these experimental benchmarks and, further, we discuss robust strategies for consistently achieving high performance with machine learning in experimental settings using purely synthetic data. Construction Zone and its documentation are available at https://github.com/lerandc/construction_zone.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Scoping study of lower hybrid current drive for CFETR

The paper assesses the applicability of lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) for two potential operating scenarios for the China Fusion Engineering Test Reactor (CFETR): the “hybrid” scenario in which some of the plasma current is sustained by the Ohmic transformer, and the fully non-inductive “steady state” scenario. Here, the πScope workflow engine was used to set up a large number of ray tracing/Fokker-Planck simulations (> 10 4 ) with parametric scans in the antenna poloidal position and launched parallel refractive index (n || ) for both the hybrid and steady state scenarios. Modeling predicts efficient off-axis current drive (1.3 MA for 20 MW launched power) with a peak near ρ of 0.6-0.65 for waves launched from the high field side (HFS). Waves launched from the low field side (LFS) damp at larger radius (ρ > 0.73) with similar efficiency to HFS launch. Stability analysis of the CFETR scenarios favors current drive profiles peaked near the mid-radius, suggesting that HFS launch is preferable due to the current drive location. The effect of wave scattering from density blobs in the edge/scrape-off-layer region was assessed through rotation of the perpendicular wavenumber at the ray origin. Simulations show that this effect can be quite large both in efficiency and damping location, however by adjusting the launched n|| much of the unperturbed performance can be recovered.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

A Framework for Optimal Placement of Rooftop Photovoltaic: Maximizing Solar Production and Operational Cost Savings in Residential Communities

Optimizing the placement of photovoltaic (PV) panels on residential buildings has the potential to significantly increase energy efficiency benefits to both homeowners and communities. Strategic PV placement can lower electricity costs by reducing the electricity fed from the grid during on-peak hours, while maintaining PV panel efficiency in terms of the amount of solar radiation received. In this article, we present a framework that identifies the ideal location of PV panels on residential rooftops. Our framework combines energy and environmental simulation, parametric modeling, and optimization to inform PV placement as it relates to and affects the entire community (in terms of both energy use and financial cost), as well as individual buildings. Ensuring that our framework accounts for shading from nearby buildings, different utility rate structures, and different buildings’ energy demand profiles means that existing communities and future housing developments can be optimized for energy savings and PV efficiency. The framework comprises two workflows, each contributing to optimal PV placement with a unique target: (a) maximizing PV panel efficiency (i.e., solar generation) and (b) minimizing operational energy cost considering utility rate structures for operational energy. We apply our framework to a residential community in Fort Collins, Colorado, to demonstrate the optimal PV placement, considering the two workflow targets. Here, we present our results and illustrate the effect of PV location and orientation on solar energy production efficiency and operational energy cost.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Developing an Automated Microscopic Traffic Simulation Scenario Generation Tool

Traffic simulation is an effective tool for urban planners, traffic engineers, and researchers to study traffic. In particular, microscopic traffic simulation, which simulates individual vehicles’ movements within a transportation network, has demonstrated its importance in analyzing and managing transportation systems. However, integrating data from various sources, generating traffic scenarios, and importing information into traffic simulators to conduct microscopic simulations have always been a challenge. This paper presents a solution to overcome this challenge: RealTwin, a comprehensive tool for automated scenario generation for microscopic traffic simulation. Following a streamlined scenario generation and calibration workflow, RealTwin effectively bridges gaps between traffic data from various sources and traffic simulators, making microscopic traffic simulation more accessible for researchers and engineers across various levels of expertise. Using RealTwin to generate a real-world traffic scenario in Simulation of Urban Mobility (SUMO), VISSIM, and AIMSUN, RealTwin’s ability is demonstrated in the construction of realistic and consistent traffic scenarios in different simulators. Furthermore, this paper introduces and illustrates RealTwin’s capability for technology (e.g., autonomous vehicle) scenario generation. This feature can contribute to more comprehensive microscopic simulations, facilitating the analysis of potential effects of various technological innovations on mobility, energy efficiency, and safety. Finally, RealTwin is used to calibrate a simulation in SUMO. In conclusion, the calibration module enhances RealTwin’s ability to generate consistent simulations across different platforms and more realistic simulations that reflect real-world traffic operations.

autonomous vehicle↗

Weather from 250 Miles Up: Visualizing Precipitation Satellite Data (and Other Weather Applications) Using CesiumJS

Geospatial weather visualization remains predominately a two-dimensional endeavor. Even popular advanced tools like the Nullschool Earth display 2-dimensional fields on a 3-dimensional globe. Yet much of the observational data and model output contains detailed three-dimensional fields. In 2014, NASA and JAXA (Japanese Space Agency) launched the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite. Its two instruments, the Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) and GPM Microwave Imager (GMI) observe much of the Earth's atmosphere between 65 degrees North Latitude and 65 degrees South Latitude. As part of the analysis and visualization tools developed by the Precipitation Processing System (PPS) Group at NASA Goddard, a series of CesiumJS [Using Cesium Markup Language (CZML), JavaScript (JS) and JavaScript Object Notation (JSON)] -based globe viewers have been developed to improve data acquisition decision making and to enhance scientific investigation of the satellite data. Other demos have also been built to illustrate the capabilities of CesiumJS in presenting atmospheric data, including model forecasts of hurricanes, observed surface radar data, and gridded analyses of global precipitation. This talk will present these websites and the various workflows used to convert binary satellite and model data into a form easily integrated with CesiumJS.

web applications↗

Adapting a Low-Cost and Open-Source Commercial Pipetting Robot for Nanoliter Liquid Handling

Nanoliter liquid handling capabilities in bioanalytical workflows can reduce reagent costs and improve sample processing efficiency. Here we report the successful modification of a low-cost commercially available pipetting robot, the Opentrons 1 (OT1), using inexpensive 3D-printed parts to accommodate low-nanoliter volumes. The pipetting accuracy and precision of the modified OT1 for 50 nL volumes of water was 0.2% and 2%, respectively. The accuracy and precision at 20 nL was 1% and 3.8%, respectively. The platform was successfully applied to the preparation of low-nanogram proteomic samples for liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis. The modified OT1 is thus an effective platform for nanoliter liquid handling and, at a total cost of less than $6000 including the commercial liquid handler and all modifications, is far less expensive and more versatile than other platforms with similar capabilities, placing this technology within reach of a far broader scientific community.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

Phylogenomic discovery and engineering of nitrogen fixation into the bioenergy woody crop poplar

Biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) is a key process enabling plants in specific lineages to convert atmospheric dinitrogen (N₂) into bioavailable ammonia through symbioses with diazotrophic microbes. Expanding this capability beyond native nitrogen-fixing clades into non-nodulating crops would reduce synthetic fertilizer use, lowering energy inputs and environmental impacts in agriculture. Supported by DOE Funding Award DE-SC0018247, the NitFix project advanced foundational knowledge required to engineer root-nodule symbioses in new host species. The team generated the most comprehensive phylogenomic analysis to date of all known nodulating lineages, resolving the evolutionary history of nitrogen-fixing symbiosis and identifying core gene suites retained across nodulating taxa. Through multimodal genomics, transcriptomics, and functional analyses in Medicago truncatula and related species, the project mapped regulatory networks underlying nodule organogenesis, bacterial infection, and nitrogen-fixation efficiency. Key discoveries include the identification of conserved signaling modules for rhizobial recognition, transcription factors controlling nodule differentiation, and metabolic pathways integrating fixed nitrogen into plant growth. The project also developed enabling tools—including optimized transformation pipelines, gene-editing workflows, and imaging-based phenotyping—to accelerate engineering efforts in emerging models. Together, these results refine the mechanistic framework of symbiotic nitrogen fixation and highlight transferable components essential for rewiring these traits into non-nodulating crops.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Optimal Efficiency and Operational Cost Savings: A Framework for Automated Rooftop PV Placement

Residential energy consumers are charged based on a utility rate structure, such as net metering or feed-in tariff. To lower consumers' electricity bills, expensive batteries are deployed to reduce the electricity fed from the grid during peak hours. However, strategic photovoltaic (PV) panel placement enables the reduction of operational energy cost while considering the spatial feasibility and efficiency for hosting rooftop PV. In this paper, we present a framework to automatically identify the optimal location of rooftop PV panels on residential buildings. Our framework integrates multiple workflows, including energy and environmental simulation, parametric modeling, and optimization to identify the ideal location of PV panels to balance the demand and supply at a building and community scale. These workflows are linked using the Grasshopper plug-in for Rhinoceros CAD software. The framework includes two different workflows, each satisfying a target for optimal PV placement: (a) maximizing PV panel efficiency, where users aim to maximize energy generation, and (b) minimizing operational energy cost, where "best'' panels are selected considering utility rates for operational energy cost. Our framework is demonstrated in a residential community in Fort Collins, Colorado, to generate the optimal PV placement for each of the two aforementioned targets. Results from the two workflows are compared to illustrate the effect of PV location and orientation on solar energy production efficiency and operational energy cost. The developed workflows are introduced as tools within the Grasshopper plug-in to investigate the solar potential of rooftop PV panels while taking into account factors such as contextual shading, utility rate structures, and buildings' energy demand profiles.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗

Geochemical and Microstructural Characterization of Shale Rock: A Workflow for Site Evaluation for Energy–Fluids Storage

Shales are a central component of petroleum systems, as source, seal, and unconventional reservoir rocks. Unlike traditional unconventional shale, a newly emerging Caney Shale play is regarded as an unconventional of unconventional shales (UUS), due to its high content of fine-grained materials, lower reservoir porosity, dominance of nanopores, and a scarcity of visible natural fractures. Other developed unconventional shales such as the Woodford and Barnett have larger average pore size, higher porosity, and extensive natural fractures at core scale that contribute to reservoir quality. In this work, the Caney Shale was cored in entirety to characterize its interbedded ductile and reservoir intervals and establish criteria for their recognition. Representative ductile and reservoir intervals known as D2 and R3, respectively, were selected for detailed analysis including variations in elemental composition, mineralogy, facies, and the presence of natural fractures at well and core scales using X-ray fluorescence, X-ray diffraction, and thin section and core description. Characteristics of microstructure and microgeochemistry at nano- and microscales are compared using field emission scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy and lowpressure nitrogen adsorption isotherms with fractal dimension analysis. The ductile (detrital clay-rich) member D2 is characterized by higher concentrations of Ti and Al and lower Si, while the reservoir R3 (possibly biogenic silica-accumulated) is characterized by lower Ti and Al and higher Si. Eight mixed carbonate–siliciclastic facies are recognized, and R3 shows a higher heterogeneity of facies stacking and average fracture abundance than D2. Further, R3 shows a more microscopically heterogeneous fabric/texture of matrix and a higher microporosity than D2 that has a higher pore surface heterogeneity. A fundamental understanding of the compositional and microstructural characteristics of UUS and further ductile/reservoir intervals will allow for a better assessment of reservoir quality, more effective production of hydrocarbons, and optimized selection of safe caprocks in carbon sequestration and subsurface hydrogen storage.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗