Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “information processing”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,045 records · Page 58
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

SatCORPS Global Cloud Composite (GCC): the Design and Delivery of A High Quality, High Resolution, Global Cloud Product Available in Near-Real Time

The NASA Satellite ClOud and Radiation Property retrieval System (SatCORPS) supports the development of an analysis ready and cloud-optimized data transformation pipeline and geospatial service enablement of a global cloud composite (GCC) product derived from global geostationary satellite imagery. This geospatial service will be available at high temporal and spatial resolution via the SatCORPS web mapping application for visualization and analysis as well as direct ingestion to common geospatial software and custom programming. The resulting global cloud composite products from the processing pipeline can then be geospatially-service enabled as ArcGIS Image Services and Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Mapping/Coverage Services for visualization and analysis via a web mapping application and common geospatial software. Near real time global observations are created through the composition of five geostationary satellites that provides modelling and forecasting communities with the capability to provide high quality and timely information to start the projection process. The Global Cloud Composite product combines information from geostationary satellites, GOES-16, GOES-17, Himawari-8, Meteosat-11 and Meteosat-9 to create a single global composite netcdf file and images using the different products within the netcdf file. The SatCORPS team, though our Global Cloud Composite (GCC) product and web-based visualization tools including Geographical Information System (GIS) services provide near real time global cloud product information to both automated processes and traditional web users that is timely and high quality derived from geostationary satellites. The Global Cloud Composite product takes advantage of the scalable processing resources provided by the AWS batch service to provide new composites every thirty minutes. Because information from each of the low earth orbiting satellites is available on schedules tuned to the specific satellite, the processing algorithm temporally composites the final dataset as each satellite’s information becomes available. The SatCORPS team has leveraged our experience using Amazon Web Services (AWS) to build a low latency high availability tool that allows end users both human and automated to acquire high quality and high-resolution Geostationary Earth Orbiting (GEO) information at zero cost to the end user. This presentation will describe how we architected and implemented the service as well as lessons learned based on our experiences both developing and operating the system. The lessons learned include how we integrated multiple services including Amazon Batch, Amazon S3 and Amazon Lambda service to create a low cost but high-performance processing system that is capable of identifying and processing the most appropriate satellite overpass information into global cloud composites. We will also describe our web-based tools including our Geographic Information System that can be used for visualization and analysis. The products from the processing can be geospatially-service enabled as ArcGIS Image Services and Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Mapping/Coverage Services for visualization and analysis via a web mapping application and common geospatial software. The SatCORPS Global Composite Cloud product provides sophisticated global composited cloud research products with very low latency that we see that as filling a rapidly growing need in the research and modelling community with no up-front nor ongoing costs associated with downloading or using the information.

AWS AMCE SMCE GCC SATCORPS GLOBAL CLOUD COMPOSITE ↗
NASA NTRS2004

New Analyses of Diverse Hadean Zircon Inclusions from Jack Hills, Western Australia

The geological record is the only direct source of information regarding physical/chemical processes that may have ultimately been responsible for the origin of life. Known terrestrial rocks have ages that span from present day to approx. 4.0 Ga. This leaves a time gap of more than 500 Myr between lunar formation, and preservation of the oldest terrestrial crust. What were planetary conditions like wherein the prebiotic chemistry leading to life took place? The recent discovery of up to 4.37 Ga detrital zircons from Western Australia represents the only tangible record of the time period termed the Hadean Eon (4.5-4.0 Ga). Knowledge of the paragenesis of the oldest zircons potentially contributes information regarding the origin of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, continental lithosphere and the potential for life on the Hadean Earth.

D Trail↗
NASA NTRS1972

Post-threshold energy dependence of the cross section for endoergic processes - Vibrational excitation and reactive scattering.

The essential features of the translational energy dependence or excitation function for two types of endoergic collisional processes are deduced on the basis of information on the inverse, exoergic processes. Microreversibility is conveniently exploited via the symmetric field function, Y(E), which is uniquely determined at a given total energy, E. In the case of the vibrational excitation of diatomic molecules by atomic or molecular impact, use is made of the abundant data on the temperature dependence of the relaxation time.

Levine, R. D.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Is Linear Displacement Information Or Angular Displacement Information Used During The Adaptation of Pointing Responses To An Optically Shifted Image?

Twenty-four observers looked through a pair of 20 diopter wedge prisms and pointed to an image of a target which was displaced vertically from eye level by 6 cm at a distance of 30 cm. Observers pointed 40 times, using only their right hand, and received error-corrective feedback upon termination of each pointing response (terminal visual feedback). At three testing distances, 20, 30, and 40 cm, ten pre-exposure and ten post-exposure pointing responses were recorded for each hand as observers reached to a mirror-viewed target located at eye level. The difference between pre- and post-exposure pointing response (adaptive shift) was compared for both Exposed and Unexposed hands across all three testing distances. The data were assessed according to the results predicted by two alternative models for processing spatial-information: one using angular displacement information and another using linear displacement information. The angular model of spatial mapping best predicted the observer's pointing response for the Exposed hand. Although the angular adaptive shift did not change significantly as a function of distance (F(2,44) = 1.12, n.s.), the linear adaptive shift increased significantly over the three testing distances 02 44) = 4.90 p less than 0.01).

Bautista, Abigail B.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Visual search in a forced-choice paradigm

The processing of visual information was investigated in the context of two visual search tasks. The first was a forced-choice task in which one of two alternative letters appeared in a visual display of from one to five letters. The second task included trials on which neither of the two alternatives was present in the display. Search rates were estimated from the slopes of best linear fits to response latencies plotted as a function of the number of items in the visual display. These rates were found to be much slower than those estimated in yes-no search tasks. This result was interpreted as indicating that the processes underlying visual search in yes-no and forced-choice tasks are not the same.

Holmgren, J. E.↗
NASA NTRS1967

Advanced space information systems

Onboard computers for pre-transmission data processing, automation of data acquisition centers, and real time data relay to control centers for advanced space information systems

REAL TIME↗
NASA NTRS2005

Geospatial Analysis and Remote Sensing from Airplanes and Satellites for Cultural Resources Management

Cultural resource management consists of research to identify, evaluate, document and assess cultural resources, planning to assist in decision-making, and stewardship to implement the preservation, protection and interpretation of these decisions and plans. One technique that may be useful in cultural resource management archaeology is remote sensing. It is the acquisition of data and derivative information about objects or materials (targets) located on the Earth's surface or in its atmosphere by using sensor mounted on platforms located at a distance from the targets to make measurements on interactions between the targets and electromagnetic radiation. Included in this definition are systems that acquire imagery by photographic methods and digital multispectral sensors. Data collected by digital multispectral sensors on aircraft and satellite platforms play a prominent role in many earth science applications, including land cover mapping, geology, soil science, agriculture, forestry, water resource management, urban and regional planning, and environmental assessments. Inherent in the analysis of remotely sensed data is the use of computer-based image processing techniques. Geographical information systems (GIS), designed for collecting, managing, and analyzing spatial information, are also useful in the analysis of remotely sensed data. A GIS can be used to integrate diverse types of spatially referenced digital data, including remotely sensed and map data. In archaeology, these tools have been used in various ways to aid in cultural resource projects. For example, they have been used to predict the presence of archaeological resources using modern environmental indicators. Remote sensing techniques have also been used to directly detect the presence of unknown sites based on the impact of past occupation on the Earth's surface. Additionally, remote sensing has been used as a mapping tool aimed at delineating the boundaries of a site or mapping previously unknown features. All of these applications are pertinent to the goals of site discovery and assessment in cultural resource management.

Giardino, Marco J.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Hydrologic land use classification of the Patuxent River watershed using remotely sensed data

The Patuxent River Watershed is located in central Maryland between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. and is approximately 2330 sq km in area and 175 km long. This region is now at a critical point because of major concerns such as water management and quality, flooding and land use within the watershed. Data from the NASA-directed LANDSAT and Earth Resources Aircraft Programs were used to provide a new dimension in information collection and processing for the management of watersheds. Digital data from LANDSAT-1 were analyzed along with selected IR photography from U-2 flight number 74-060B taken 28 April 1974, which was digitized in three channels. Processing of the data was accomplished using a multispectral analysis system. Land use themes consisting of surface water, wetlands, forest, residential, cropland/pasture, urban, and extractive were developed and delineated through the watershed. Area measurements of watershed themes were obtained and will serve as a calibration input to a deterministic hydrologic model on a sub-watershed. Using the derived residential and urban theme areas from LANDSAT an estimated basin imperviousness was also calculated. Thematic maps were produced at 1:62,500 scale. Floodprone areas were also classified and delineated at a scale of 1:24,000. Comparison with standard floodprone area maps at the same scale have indicated a few areas of discrepancy. Such information can be used for updating or checking floodprone area boundaries as well as monitoring changes in floodplain areas.

Dallam, W. C.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Research and Educational Opportunities with NASA GSFC

The research carried out in the Earth sciences at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center will be the focus of the presentation. These research interests span the full breath of disciplines in Earth System Science. Branches and research groups focus on areas as diverse as planetary geomagnetics and atmospheric chemistry. There are 4 major laboratories in the directorate and 2 organizations that focus on scientific information technology. These laboratories focus on atmospheric sciences (atmospheric chemistry, climate and radiation, regional processes, atmospheric modeling), hydrological sciences (snow, ice, oceans, and seasonal-to-interannual prediction), terrestrial physics (geology, terrestrial biology, land-atmosphere interactions, geophysics), climate modeling (global warming, greenhouse gases, climate change). Two of the labs also have branches that focus on sensor development especially using lidar and microwave technologies. In the information technologies, areas of scientific and technical research, and expertise include massively parallel computers, technologies for high speed electronic networks, scientific visualization, information systems, archive and distribution systems, and information processing. Examples will be presented from each of these research disciplines.

Meeson, Blanche W.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Improved Discrete Approximation of Laplacian of Gaussian

An improved method of computing a discrete approximation of the Laplacian of a Gaussian convolution of an image has been devised. The primary advantage of the method is that without substantially degrading the accuracy of the end result, it reduces the amount of information that must be processed and thus reduces the amount of circuitry needed to perform the Laplacian-of- Gaussian (LOG) operation. Some background information is necessary to place the method in context. The method is intended for application to the LOG part of a process of real-time digital filtering of digitized video data that represent brightnesses in pixels in a square array. The particular filtering process of interest is one that converts pixel brightnesses to binary form, thereby reducing the amount of information that must be performed in subsequent correlation processing (e.g., correlations between images in a stereoscopic pair for determining distances or correlations between successive frames of the same image for detecting motions). The Laplacian is often included in the filtering process because it emphasizes edges and textures, while the Gaussian is often included because it smooths out noise that might not be consistent between left and right images or between successive frames of the same image.

Shuler, Robert L., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Visual Impairment/Intracranial Pressure Risk Assessment

Since 2006 there have been 6 reported cases of altered visual acuity and intracranial pressure (ICP) in long duration astronauts. In order to document this risk and develop an integrated approach to its mitigation, the NASA Space Life Sciences Directorate (SLSD) and Human Research Program (HRP) have chosen to use the Human System Risk Board (HSRB) and the risk management analysis tool (RMAT). The HSRB is the venue in which the stakeholders and customers discuss and vet the evidence and the RMAT is the tool that facilitates documentation and comparison of the evidence across mission profiles as well as identification of risk factors, and documentation of mitigation strategies. This process allows for information to be brought forward and dispositioned so that it may be properly incorporated into the RMAT and contribute to the design of the research and mitigation plans. The evidence thus far has resulted in the identification of a visual impairment/intracranial pressure (VIIP) project team, updating of both short and long duration medical requirements designed to assess visual acuity, and a research plan to characterize this issue further. In order to understand this issue more completely, a plan to develop an Accelerated Research Collaboration (ARC) has been approved by the HSRB. The ARC is a novel research model pioneered by the Myelin Repair Foundation. It is a patient centered research model that brings together researchers and clinicians, under the guidance of a scientific advisory panel, to collaborate and produce results much quickly than accomplished through traditional research models. The data and evidence from the updated medical requirements and the VIIP ARC will be reviewed at the HSRB on a regular basis. Each review package presented to the HSRB will include an assessment and recommendation with respect to continuation of research, countermeasure development, occupational surveillance modalities, selection criteria, etc. This process will determine the course of the VIIP project and ultimately how SLSD and HRP mitigate this emerging human health and performance risk.

Fogarty, Jennifer A.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Modernization of the NASA scientific and technical information program

The NASA Scientific and Technical Information Program utilizes a technology infrastructure assembled in the mid 1960s to late 1970s to process and disseminate its information products. When this infrastructure was developed it placed NASA as a leader in processing STI. The retrieval engine for the STI database was the first of its kind and was used as the basis for developing commercial, other U.S., and foreign government agency retrieval systems. Due to the combination of changes in user requirements and the tremendous increase in technological capabilities readily available in the marketplace, this infrastructure is no longer the most cost-effective or efficient methodology available. Consequently, the NASA STI Program is pursuing a modernization effort that applies new technology to current processes to provide near-term benefits to the user. In conjunction with this activity, we are developing a long-term modernization strategy designed to transition the Program to a multimedia, global 'library without walls.' Critical pieces of the long-term strategy include streamlining access to sources of STI by using advances in computer networking and graphical user interfaces; creating and disseminating technical information in various electronic media including optical disks, video, and full text; and establishing a Technology Focus Group to maintain a current awareness of emerging technology and to plan for the future.

Cotter, Gladys A.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Collective Intelligence and Three Aspects of Planning in Organizations: A NASA Example

For many complex sociotechnical systems, planning seems to require explicit coordination; certainly, in executing a plan the activities of different actors must be tightly coupled. However, distributing the needed planning information can be very burdensome and error prone, because different groups need different collections of information, updated or kept current on different time cycles. Further, the information needed to form successful plans is often highly distributed, and while feedback about the success of prior plans may exist, it may not be available to those in a position of using this to improve plans or to detect and resolve other problems in the system (Weick, 1995). Tools to support various aspects of planning have been developed, and can provide a huge benefit to the individuals working on that aspect. To be tractable, most solutions address a quite bounded slice of work, isolating it from the larger context. Prospective planning takes place over multiple, nested cycles of decision making. This builds a plan that specifies activities of different granularity. "Subplans" may specify multiple parallel activities by different groups and individuals, as well as sequential, nested actions by a single actor. Planning produces valuable, sharable, external, representations: in addition to prospective use, plans support retrospective assessment and also action in the present. Viewing planning in a larger context - both temporal and organizational -- enables noticing what one does not know and generating more systemic and effective solutions. Viewing a problem as one of collective intelligence invites thinking about the larger organizational context. Many approaches to supporting collective intelligence do not support execution of highly contingent actions, distributed across many players, and hence provide incomplete support for planning. However, CI technology maybe helpful in managing the processes of gathering information for decision making in planning and of distributing plan information to various actors, needed on various time cycles.

Billman, Dorrit↗
NASA NTRS2007

Effects of Artificial Gravity and Bed Rest on Spatial Orientation and Balance Control

While the vestibular system should be well-adapted to bed rest (a condition it experiences approximately 8/24 hrs each day), questions remain regarding the degree to which repeated exposures to the unusual gravito-inertial force environment of a short-radius centrifuge might affect central processing of vestibular information used in spatial orientation and balance control. Should these functions be impaired by intermittent AG, its feasibility as a counter-measure would be diminished. We, therefore, examined the effects of AG on spatial orientation and balance control in 15 male volunteers before and after 21 days of 6 HDT bed rest (BR). Eight of the subjects were treated with daily 1hr AG exposures (2.5g at the feet; 1.0g at the heart) aboard a short radius (3m) centrifuge, while the other seven served as controls (C). Spatial orientation was assessed by measures of ocular counter-rolling (OCR; rotation of the eye about the line of sight, an otolith-mediated reflex) and subjective visual vertical (SVV; perception of the spatial upright). Both OCR and SVV measurements were made with the subject upright, lying on their left sides, and lying on their right sides. OCR was measured from binocular eye orientation recordings made while the subjects fixated for 10s on a point target directly in front of the face at a distance of 1 m. SVV was assessed by asking subjects (in the dark) to adjust to upright (using a handheld controller) the orientation of a luminous bar randomly perturbed (15) to either side of the vertical meridian. Balance control performance was assessed using a computerized dynamic posturography (CDP) protocol similar to that currently required for all returning crew members. During each session, the subjects completed a combination of trials of sensory organization test (SOT) 2 (eyes closed, fixed platform) and SOT 5 (eyes closed, sway-referenced platform) with and without static and dynamic pitch plane head movements (plus or minus 20 deg., dynamic paced by an audible tone at 0.33Hz). OCR and CDP performance were unaffected by BR and BR+AG; post-BR measures were unchanged from baseline for both AG and C groups. Similarly, BR did not affect SVV in the C group. However, BR+AG disrupted one measure of spatial orientation: SVV error was significantly increased on R+0 and R+1 following BR in the AG group. These results suggest a transient untoward effect on central vestibular processing may accompany repeated exposure to intermittent AG, a potential side-effect that should be studied more closely in future studies.

Paloski, William H.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Process evaluation distributed system

The distributed system includes a database server, an administration module, a process evaluation module, and a data display module. The administration module is in communication with the database server for providing observation criteria information to the database server. The process evaluation module is in communication with the database server for obtaining the observation criteria information from the database server and collecting process data based on the observation criteria information. The process evaluation module utilizes a personal digital assistant (PDA). A data display module in communication with the database server, including a website for viewing collected process data in a desired metrics form, the data display module also for providing desired editing and modification of the collected process data. The connectivity established by the database server to the administration module, the process evaluation module, and the data display module, minimizes the requirement for manual input of the collected process data.

Moffatt, Christopher L.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

MIKA: Manager for Intelligent Knowledge Access Toolkit for Engineering Knowledge Discovery and Information Retrieval

Repositories of safety reports are often underutilized and only analyzed manually by trained experts, despite safety management systems requiring reports. These collections of documents contain a wealth of information from past projects and operations that could improve system safety and design. Advances in natural language processing techniques have improved information extraction and retrieval in consumer technology, biomedicine, and finance, for instance, but have not been applied to engineering documents on the same scale. To this end, the Manager for Intelligent Knowledge Access (MIKA) open-source toolkit has been developed for rapid knowledge discovery and information retrieval in safety engineering applications. The MIKA toolkit uses state-of-the-art natural language processing algorithms and allows a user to apply these methods to their own dataset. This paper describes the MIKA toolkit and its two primary capabilities, knowledge discovery and information retrieval, and demonstrates the toolkit via a case study on National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reports.

Machine Learning↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

MIKA: Manager for Intelligent Knowledge Access Toolkit for Engineering Knowledge Discovery and Information Retrieval

Repositories of safety reports are often underutilized and only analyzed manually by trained experts, despite safety management systems requiring reports. These collections of documents contain a wealth of information from past projects and operations that could improve system safety and design. Advances in natural language processing techniques have improved information extraction and retrieval in consumer technology, biomedicine, and finance, for instance, but have not been applied to engineering documents on the same scale. To this end, the Manager for Intelligent Knowledge Access (MIKA) open-source toolkit has been developed for rapid knowledge discovery and information retrieval in safety engineering applications. The MIKA toolkit uses state-of-the-art natural language processing algorithms and allows a user to apply these methods to their own dataset. This paper describes the MIKA toolkit and its two primary capabilities, knowledge discovery and information retrieval, and demonstrates the toolkit via a case study on National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reports.

Systems Engineering↗