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At least 1,117 records · Page 62

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NASA NTRS1992

Patterns of seismic activity preceding large earthquakes

A mechanical model of seismic faults is employed to investigate the seismic activities that occur prior to major events. The block-and-spring model dynamically generates a statistical distribution of smaller slipping events that precede large events, and the results satisfy the Gutenberg-Richter law. The scaling behavior during a loading cycle suggests small but systematic variations in space and time with maximum activity acceleration near the future epicenter. Activity patterns inferred from data on seismicity in California demonstrate a regional aspect; increased activity in certain areas are found to precede major earthquake events. One example is given regarding the Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989 which is located near a fault section associated with increased activity levels.

Shaw, Bruce E.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Design and implementation of active members for precision space structures

This paper describes the development and implementation of an active member in a precision truss structure. The active member utilizes a piezoelectric actuator motor imbedded in a steel case with built-in displacement sensor. This active member is used in structural quieting. Collocated active damping control loops are designed in order to impedance match piezoelectric active members to the structure. Results from application of these controllers and actuators to the JPL Phase B testbed are given.

Webster, M. S.↗

NASA NTRS1992

On the placement of active members in adaptive truss structures for vibration control

The problem of optimal placement of active members which are used for vibration control in adaptive truss structures is investigated. The control scheme is based on the method of eigenvalue assignment as a means of shaping the transient response of the controlled adaptive structures, and the minimization of required control action is considered as the optimization criterion. To this end, a performance index which measures the control strokes of active members is formulated in an efficient way. In order to reduce the computation burden, particularly for the case where the locations of active members have to be selected from a large set of available sites, several heuristic searching schemes are proposed for obtaining the near-optimal locations. The proposed schemes significantly reduce the computational complexity of placing multiple active members to the order of that when a single active member is placed.

Lu, L.-Y.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Effect of chemical form of selenium on tissue glutathione peroxidase activity in developing rats

The hypothesis that the stage of development of rats may affect the availability of various forms of selenium for the activity of glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx) in the rat was experimentally investigated. One experiment evaluated the availability of selenium as selenite or selenomethionine for GSPHx activity during three developmental states in rats: fetus and 7-day old and 14-day old nursing pups. In all tissues studied, GSHPx activity was highest in the 14-day-old pups whose dams were in the selenomethionine group. Rat pups given intraperitoneal selenite had higher liver and kidney GSHPx activity than pups given the same amount of selenium as intraperitoneal selenomethionine. In a second experiment, all dams were fed the same basal diet and pups were weaned to diets containing one of two levels of selenium and one of three forms of selenium (selenite, selenomethionine, or selenocystine). The results also supported the hypothesis these dietary forms of selenium are differentially available for GSHPx activity.

Lane, Helen W.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Pre- and main-sequence evolution of solar activity

The magnetic activity on single solarlike stars declines with stellar age. This has important consequences for the influence of the sun on the early solar system. What is meant by stellar activity, and how it is measured, is reviewed. Stellar activity on the premain-sequence phase of evolution is discussed; the classical T Tauri stars do not exhibit solarlike activity, while the naked T Tauri stars do. The emission surface fluxes of the naked T Tauri stars are similar to those of the youngest main-sequence G stars. The best representation for solarlike stars is a decay proportional to exp(A x t exp 0.5), where A is a function of line excitation temperature. From these decay laws, one can determine the interdependences of the activity, age, and rotation periods. The fluxes of ionizing photons at the earth early in its history are discussed; there was sufficient fluence to account for the observed isotopic ratios of the noble gases.

Walter, Frederick M.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Optimal active vibration absorber: Design and experimental results

An optimal active vibration absorber can provide guaranteed closed-loop stability and control for large flexible space structures with collocated sensors/actuators. The active vibration absorber is a second-order dynamic system which is designed to suppress any unwanted structural vibration. This can be designed with minimum knowledge of the controlled system. Two methods for optimizing the active vibration absorber parameters are illustrated: minimum resonant amplitude and frequency matched active controllers. The Controls-Structures Interaction Phase-1 Evolutionary Model at NASA LaRC is used to demonstrate the effectiveness of the active vibration absorber for vibration suppression. Performance is compared numerically and experimentally using acceleration feedback.

Lee-Glauser, Gina↗

NASA NTRS1992

Digital active material processing platform effort (DAMPER), SBIR phase 2

Applied Technology Associates, Inc., (ATA) has demonstrated that inertial actuation can be employed effectively in digital, active vibration isolation systems. Inertial actuation involves the use of momentum exchange to produce corrective forces which act directly on the payload being actively isolated. In a typical active vibration isolation system, accelerometers are used to measure the inertial motion of the payload. The signals from the accelerometers are then used to calculate the corrective forces required to counteract, or 'cancel out' the payload motion. Active vibration isolation is common technology, but the use of inertial actuation in such systems is novel, and is the focus of the DAMPER project. A May 1991 report was completed which documented the successful demonstration of inertial actuation, employed in the control of vibration in a single axis. In the 1 degree-of-freedom (1DOF) experiment a set of air bearing rails was used to suspend the payload, simulating a microgravity environment in a single horizontal axis. Digital Signal Processor (DSP) technology was used to calculate in real time, the control law between the accelerometer signals and the inertial actuators. The data obtained from this experiment verified that as much as 20 dB of rejection could be realized by this type of system. A discussion is included of recent tests performed in which vibrations were actively controlled in three axes simultaneously. In the three degree-of-freedom (3DOF) system, the air bearings were designed in such a way that the payload is free to rotate about the azimuth axis, as well as translate in the two horizontal directions. The actuator developed for the DAMPER project has applications beyond payload isolation, including structural damping and source vibration isolation. This report includes a brief discussion of these applications, as well as a commercialization plan for the actuator.

Blackburn, John↗

NASA NTRS1993

Optimal active vibration absorber - Design and experimental results

Lee-Glauser, Gina↗

NASA NTRS1993

Responses of large-scale coronal structures to chromospheric activity

We have followed the transit of two active regions across the western solar limb during June 29 through July 2, 1980, as imaged in 3.5-16 keV X-rays by HXIS aboard the SMM. During frequent brightenings of large-scale coronal structures, hard X-ray emission in the 11-16 keV energy band was recorded up to altitudes of 76,000 km. Soft X-rays could be seen in excess of 250,000 km altitude above the photospheric active region. Many X-ray brightenings low in the corona in the active regions were followed by enhancements high in the corona in the large-scale coronal structures. Although subsequent enhancements rarely appeared in the same position, similar portions of the corona brightened intermittently, indicating that the general configuration of the coronal structures above the active regions did not change much, in spite of the frequent energy inputs. These inputs were of two kinds: nonthermal, with very fast response at high coronal altitudes within seconds or tens of seconds, and thermal, with a delay of several minutes. The nonthermal response is short-lived, reflecting the time profile of the primary source; the thermal response is more gradual and longer lasting than the primary source. In some enhancements of large-scale coronal structures both these kinds of response occur and can be clearly recognized. There are also active-region brightenings without any response in the high corona and, vice versa, high-corona brightenings without any obvious primary source; in the latter case, it is likely that the source was hidden behind the limb.

Farnik, Frantisek↗

NASA NTRS1991

Valsalva maneuver: Insights into baroreflex modulation of human sympathetic activity

Valsalva's maneuver, voluntary forced expiration against a closed glottis, is a well-characterized research tool, used to assess the integrity of human autonomic cardiovascular control. Valsalva straining provokes a stereotyped succession of alternating positive and negative arterial pressure and heart rate changes mediated in part by arterial baroreceptors. Arterial pressure changes result primarily from fluctuating levels of venous return to the heart and changes of sympathetic nerve activity. Muscle sympathetic activity was measured directly in nine volunteers to explore quantitatively the relation between arterial pressure and human sympathetic outflow during pressure transients provoked by controlled graded Valsalva maneuvers. Our results underscore several properties of sympathetic regulation during Valsalva straining. First, muscle sympathetic nerve activity changes as a mirror image of changes in arterial pressure. Second, the magnitude of sympathetic augmentation during Valsalva straining predicts phase 4 arterial pressure elevations. Third, post-Valsalva sympathetic inhibition persists beyond the return of arterial and right atrial pressures to baseline levels which reflects an alteration of the normal relation between arterial pressure and muscle sympathetic activity. Therefore, Valsalva straining may have some utility for investigating changes of reflex control of sympathetic activity after space flight; however, measurement of beat-to-beat arterial pressure is essential for this use. The utility of this technique in microgravity can not be determined from these data. Further investigations are necessary to determine whether these relations are affected by the expansion of intrathoracic blood volume associated with microgravity.

Smith, Michael L.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Synergism of active and passive microwave data for estimating bare surface soil moisture

Active and passive microwave sensors were applied effectively to the problem of estimating the surface soil moisture in a variety of environmental conditions. Research to date has shown that both types of sensors are also sensitive to the surface roughness and the vegetation cover. In estimating the soil moisture, the effect of the vegetation and roughness are often corrected either by acquiring multi-configuration (frequency and polarization) data or by adjusting the surface parameters in order to match the model predictions to the measured data. Due to the limitations on multi-configuration spaceborne data and the lack of a priori knowledge of the surface characteristics for parameter adjustments, it was suggested that the synergistic use of the sensors may improve the estimation of the soil moisture over the extreme range of naturally occurring soil and vegetation conditions. To investigate this problem, the backscattering and emission from a bare soil surface using the classical rough surface scattering theory were modeled. The model combines the small perturbation and the Kirchhoff approximations in conjunction with the Peak formulation to cover a wide range of surface roughness parameters with respect to frequency for both active and passive measurements. In this approach, the same analytical method was used to calculate the backscattering and emissivity. Therefore, the active and passive simulations can be combined at various polarizations and frequencies in order to estimate the soil moisture more actively. As a result, it is shown that (1) the emissivity is less dependent on the surface correlation length, (2) the ratio of the backscattering coefficient (HH) over the surface reflectivity (H) is almost independent of the soil moisture for a wide range of surface roughness, and (3) this ratio can be approximated as a linear function of the surface rms height. The results were compared with the data obtained by a multi-frequency radiometer-scatterometer system working at frequencies between 3.0 GHz to 11.0 GHz. The data were acquired over bare soil surfaces with moisture variations due to freezing and thawing and roughness changes due to rain and erosion. The model predictions are shown to be in reasonable agreement with the data. In addition, it was shown that the same ratio when calculated from the data shows almost no dependence on the soil moisture. Finally, a simple technique which combines the backscattering coefficient at HH polarization (active sensing) with the emissivity at H polarization (passive sensing) is suggested for retrieving the soil moisture from bare soil surfaces.

Saatchi, Sasan S.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Active control of buildings during earthquakes

The objective of this report is to provide an overview of the different types of control systems used in buildings, to discuss the problems associated with current active control mechanisms, and to show the cost-effectiveness of applying active control to buildings. In addition, a small case study investigates the feasibility and benefits of using embedded actuators in buildings. Use of embedded actuators could solve many of the current problems associated with active control by providing a wider bandwidth of control, quicker speed of response, increased reliability and reduced power requirement. Though embedded actuators have not been developed for buildings, they have previously been used in space structures. Many similarities exist between large civil and aerospace structures indicating that direct transfer of concepts between the two disciplines may be possible. In particular, much of the Controls-Structures Interaction (CSI) technology currently being developed could be beneficially applied to civil structures. While several buildings with active control systems have been constructed in Japan, additional research and experimental verification are necessary before active control systems become widely accepted and implemented.

Vance, Vicki L.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Actively Controlled Shaft Seals for Aerospace Applications

This study experimentally investigates an actively controlled mechanical seal for aerospace applications. The seal of interest is a gas seal, which is considerably more compact than previous actively controlled mechanical seals that were developed for industrial use. In a mechanical seal, the radial convergence of the seal interface has a primary effect on the film thickness. Active control of the film thickness is established by controlling the radial convergence of the seal interface with a piezoelectric actuator. An actively controlled mechanical seal was initially designed and evaluated using a mathematical model. Based on these results, a seal was fabricated and tested under laboratory conditions. The seal was tested with both helium and air, at rotational speeds up to 3770 rad/sec, and at sealed pressures as high as 1.48 x 10(exp 6) Pa. The seal was operated with both manual control and with a closed-loop control system that used either the leakage rate or face temperature as the feedback. The output of the controller was the voltage applied to the piezoelectric actuator. The seal operated successfully for both short term tests (less than one hour) and for longer term tests (four hours) with a closed-loop control system. The leakage rates were typically 5-15 slm (standard liters per minute), and the face temperatures were generally maintained below 100C. When leakage rate was used as the feedback signal, the setpoint leakage rate was typically maintained within 1 slm. However, larger deviations occurred during sudden changes in sealed pressure. When face temperature was used as the feedback signal, the setpoint face temperature was generally maintained within 3 C, with larger deviations occurring when the sealed pressure changes suddenly. the experimental results were compared to the predictions from the mathematical model. The model was successful in predicting the trends in leakage rate that occurred as the balance ratio and sealed pressure changed, although the leakage rates were not quantitatively predicted with a high degree of accuracy. This model could be useful in providing valuable design information for future actively controlled mechanical seals.

Salant, Richard F.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Coronal mass ejections and major solar flares: The great active center of March 1989

The solar flare and coronal mass ejection (CME) events associated with the large and complex March 1989 active region are discussed. This active region gave us a chance to study the relation of CME with truly major solar flares. The work concentrates on questions of the relation of CMEs and flares to one another and to other types of activity on the Sun. As expected, some major (X-3B class) flares had associated CMEs. However, an unexpected finding is that others did not. In fact, there is strong evidence that the X4-4B flare of March 9th had no CME. This lack of a CME for such an outstanding flare event has important implications to theories of CME causation.Apparently, not all major flares cause CMEs or are caused by CMEs. The relations between CMEs and other types of solar activity are also discussed. No filament disappearances are reported for major CMEs studied here. Comparing these results with other studies, CMEs occur in association with flares and with erupting prominences, but neither are required for a CME. The relation between solar structures showing flaring without filament eruptions and structures showing filament eruptions without flares becomes important. The evolutionary relation between an active flaring sunspot region and extensive filaments without sunspots is reviewed, and the concept of an 'evolving magnetic structure' (EMS) is introduced. It is suggested that all CMEs arise in EMSs and that CMEs provide a major path through which azimuthal magnetic fields escape form the Sun during the solar cycle.

Feynman, Joan↗

NASA NTRS1994

The one hundredth year of Rudolf Wolf's death: Do we have the correct reconstruction of solar activity?

In the one hundred years since Wolf died, little effort has gone into research to see if improved reconstructions of sunspot numbers can be made. We have gathered more than 349,000 observations of daily sunspot group counts from more than 350 observers active from 1610 to 1993. Based upon group counts alone, it is possible to make an objective and homogeneous reconstruction of sunspot numbers. From our study, it appears that the Sun has steadily increased in activity since 1700 with the exception of a brief decrease in the Dalton Minimum (1795-1823). The significant results here are the greater depth of the Dalton Minimum, the generally lower activity throughout the 1700's, and the gradual rise in activity from the Maunder Minimum to the present day. This solar activity reconstruction is quite similar to those Wolf published before 1868 rather than the revised Wolf reconstructions after 1873 which used geomagnetic fluctuations.

Hoyt, Douglas V.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Midtail plasma flows and the relationship to near-Earth substorm activity: A case study

Recent simulations of magnetotail reconnection have pointed to a link between plasma flows, dipolarization, and the substorm current wedge. In particular, Hesse and Birn (1991) have proposed that earthward jetting of plasma from the reconnection region transports flux into the near-Earth region. At the inner edge of the plasma sheet this flux piles up, producing a dipolarization of the magnetic field. The vorticity produced by the east-west deflection of the flow at the inner edge of the plasma sheet gives rise to field-aligned currents that have region 1 polarity. Thus in this scenario the earthward flow from the reconnection region produces the dipolarization ad the current wedge in a self-consistent fashion. In this study we examine observations made on April 8, 1985 by the Active Magnetospheric Particle Tracer Explorers (AMPTE)/Ion Release Module (IRM), the geosynchronous satellites 1979-053, 1983-019, and 1984-037, and Syowa station, as well as AE. This event is unique because IRM was located near the neutral sheet in the midnight sector for am extended period of time. Ground data show that there was ongoing activity in the IRM local time sector for several hours, beginning at 1800 UT and reaching a crescendo at 2300 UT. This activity was also accompanied by energetic particle variations, including injections, at geosynchronous orbit in the nighttime sector. Significantly, there were no fast flows at the neutral sheet until the great intensification of activity at 2300 UT. At that time, IRM recorded fast eartheard flow simultaneous with a dipolatization of the magetic field. We conclude that while the aforementioned scenario for the creation of the current wedge encounters serious problems explaining the earlier activity, the observations at 2300 UT are consistent with the scenario of Hesse and Birn (1191). On that basis it is argued that the physics of substorms is not exclusively rooted in the development of a global tearing mode. Processes at the inner edge of the cross-tail current that cause a disruption of the current and a consequent dipolarization and current wedge may be unrelated to the formation of a macroscale reconnection region. Thus the global evolution of a substorm is probably a complicated superposition of such processes operating on a very localized scale and a global macroscale process that allows for such things as releasing te energy stored in lobe flux and creation of plasmoids.

Lopez, R. E.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Temperature structure of active regions deduced from helium-like sulphur lines

Solar active-region temperatures have been determined from the full-Sun spectra of helium-like sulfur (S XV) observed by the Bragg Crystal Spectrometer on Board the Yohkoh satellite. The average temperature deduced from S XV is demonstrated to vary with the solar activity level: A temperature of 2.5 x 10(exp 6) K is derived from the spectra taken during low solar activity, similar to the general corona, while 4 x 10(exp 6) K is obtained during a higher activity phase. For the latter, the high- temperature tail of the differential emission measure of active regions is found most likely due to the superposition of numerous flare-like events (micro/nano-flares).

Watanabe, Tetsuya↗

NASA NTRS1996

Twin Knudsen Cell Configuration for Activity Measurements by Mass Spectrometry

A twin Knudsen cell apparatus for alloy activity measurements by mass spectrometry is described. Two Knudsen cells - one containing an alloy and one containing a pure component - are mounted on a single flange and translated into the sampling region via a motorized x-y table. Mixing of the molecular beams from the cells is minimized by a novel system of shutters. Activity measurements were taken on two well-characterized alloys to verify the operation of the system. Silver activity measurements are reported for Ag-Cu alloys and aluminum activity measurements are reported for Fe-Al alloys. The temperature dependence of activity for a 0.474 mol fraction Al-Fe alloy gives a partial molar heat of aluminum. Measurements taken with the twin cell show good agreement with literature values for these alloys.

Jacobson, N. S.↗