Results for “Locating Profile” — Page 7

NASA NTRS2003

Volatile-rich Crater Interior Deposits in the Polar Regions of Mars: Evidence for Ice Cap Advance and Retreat

Many craters on Mars are partially filled by distinctive material emplaced by post-impact processes. This crater fill material is an interior mound which is generally separated from the walls of the crater by a trough that may be continuous along the crater circumference (i.e. a ring-shaped trough), or which may only partially contact the crater walls (i.e. a crescent-shaped trough). The fill deposit is frequently offset from the crater center and may be asymmetric in plan view. Populations of such craters include those in the circum-south polar cap region, in Arabia Terra, associated with the Medusae Fossae Formation, and in the northern lowlands proximal to the north polar cap. We focus on those craters in circumpolar regions and assess their relationship to polar cap advance and retreat, especially the possibility that fill material represents remnants of a formerly larger contiguous cap. Volatile-rich deposits have the property of being modifiable by the local stability of the solid volatile, which is governed by local energy balance. Here we test the hypothesis that asymmetries in volatile fill shape, profile, and center-location within a crater result from asymmetries in local energy balance within the crater, due mainly to variation of solar insolation and radiative effects of the crater walls over the crater interior. Model profiles of crater fill are compared with MOLA topographic profiles to assess this hypothesis. If asymmetry in morphology and location of crater fill are consistent with radiative-dominated asymmetries in energy budget within the crater, then 1) the volatile-rich composition of the fill is supported (this process should not be effective at shaping volcanic or sedimentary deposits), and 2) the dominant factor determining the observed shape of volatile-rich crater fill is the local radiative energy budget (and erosive processes such as eolian deflation are secondary or unnecessary). We also use a geographic and energy model approach to specifically test the idea that material in partially filled craters around the south pole may once have been contiguous to the cap and may have been sustained and modified by radiative processes specific to the crater environment (as opposed to the surrounding plains) as the cap retreated.

Russell, Patrick S.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Experimental/Analytical Characterization of the RBCC Rocket-Ejector Mode

The experimental/analytical research work described here addresses the rocket-ejector mode (Mach 0-2 operational range) of the RBCC engine. The experimental phase of the program includes studying the mixing and combustion characteristics of the rocket-ejector system utilizing state-of-the-art diagnostic techniques. A two-dimensional variable geometry rocket-ejector system with enhanced optical access was utilized as the experimental platform. The goals of the experimental phase of the research being conducted at Penn State are to: (a) systematically increase the range of rocket-ejector understanding over a wide range of flow/geometry parameters and (b) provide a comprehensive data base for evaluating and anchoring CFD codes. Concurrent with the experimental activities, a CFD code benchmarking effort at Marshall Space Flight Center is also being used to further investigate the RBCC rocket-ejector mode. Experiments involving the single rocket based optically-accessible rocket-ejector system have been conducted for Diffusion and Afterburning (DAB) as well as Simultaneous Mixing and Combustion configurations. For the DAB configuration, air is introduced (direct-connect) or ejected (sea-level static) into a constant area mixer section with a centrally located gaseous oxygen (GO2)/gaseous hydrogen (GH2) rocket combustor. The downstream flowpath for this configuration includes a diffuser, an afterburner and a final converging nozzle. For the SMC configuration, the rocket is centrally located in a slightly divergent duct. For all tested configurations, global measurements of the axial pressure and heat transfer profiles as well as the overall engine thrust were made. Detailed measurements include major species concentration (H2 O2 N2 and H2O) profiles at various mixer locations made using Raman spectroscopy. Complementary CFD calculations of the flowfield at the experimental conditions also provide additional information on the physics of the problem. These calculations are being conducted at Marshall Space Flight Center to benchmark the FDNS code for RBCC engine operations for such configurations. The primary fluid physics of interests are the mixing and interaction of the rocket plume and secondary flow, subsequent combustion of the fuel rich rocket exhaust with the secondary flow and combustion of the injected afterburner flow. The CFD results are compared to static pressure along the RBCC duct walls, Raman Spectroscopy specie distribution data at several axial locations, net engine thrust and entrained air for the SLS cases. The CFD results compare reasonably well with the experimental results.

Ruf, J. H.↗

NASA NTRS2012

One Engine Inoperative (OEI) and Autorotation For Heavy Lift Rotorcraft Systems

Federal Aviation Administration will certainly require the Heavy Lift Rotorcraft to be operated under Category A performance and operations requirements. Because of the weight, no operation will be allowed except Category A according to FAA Part 29.1(c). This means that any where along the flight path, the aircraft must be able to land safely following an engine failure or continue flight. A repeatable flight profile must be developed and executed to ensure that the aircraft can be safely landed or flown away depending on its location on the flight profile. This means that there will be no Height-Velocity testing required as is currently required for Part 29 Category B. Since all the configurations shown to date are different than existing rotorcraft, each type would have to develop their individual requirements under existing special conditions FAA Part 21.17(b). This means the FAA will take the opportunity to negotiate additional requirements or change requirements to ensure safety. For example, since the tiltrotor did not fit normal rotorcraft category, new rules were negotiated between the applicant and the FAA. As a result of this negotiation, performance requirements for Category A were increased. The rules were written in terms of guaranteed performance instead of Category A requirements. Detailed discussion will follow later. The proposed tiltrotor would likely follow along with the current tiltrotor rules with the possibility of increase Category A performance requirements. Compounding with addition of wing and auxiliary thrust to both the tandem and coaxial rotor would result in new special condition aircraft. To my knowledge, no compound tandem or compound coaxial rotor has ever been certified by FAA.

Wood, Tom↗

NASA NTRS2015

Estimating Planetary Boundary Layer Heights from NOAA Profiler Network Wind Profiler Data

An algorithm was developed to estimate planetary boundary layer (PBL) heights from hourly archived wind profiler data from the NOAA Profiler Network (NPN) sites located throughout the central United States. Unlike previous studies, the present algorithm has been applied to a long record of publicly available wind profiler signal backscatter data. Under clear conditions, summertime averaged hourly time series of PBL heights compare well with Richardson-number based estimates at the few NPN stations with hourly temperature measurements. Comparisons with clear sky reanalysis based estimates show that the wind profiler PBL heights are lower by approximately 250-500 m. The geographical distribution of daily maximum PBL heights corresponds well with the expected distribution based on patterns of surface temperature and soil moisture. Wind profiler PBL heights were also estimated under mostly cloudy conditions, and are generally higher than both the Richardson number based and reanalysis PBL heights, resulting in a smaller clear-cloudy condition difference. The algorithm presented here was shown to provide a reliable summertime climatology of daytime hourly PBL heights throughout the central United States.

Wind Profiler↗

NASA NTRS1993

A detailed study of mean-flow solutions for stability analysis of transitional flows

A finite-volume upwind-difference parabolized Navier-Stokes code is utilized to obtain laminar mean-flow solutions at Mach 3.5 on a half-angle cone of 5 deg at an angle-of-attack of 2 deg. A detailed study is conducted on this configuration; the main focus is the velocity profiles in the leeward and windward symmetry planes at various axial locations. Comparisons of the solution profiles are made with both a central-difference code that incorporates scalar and matrix dissipation models and another state-of-the-art upwind-difference finitevolume code. The results obtained emphasize the importance of using matrix dissipation models for schemes that require explicit artificial dissipation. These results also illustrate the accuracy and efficiency of the planeby-plane marching procedure for computing mean-flow solutions for predicting the onset of transition with linear instability.

Ramakrishnan, R.↗

DOE OSTI2023

Using observational mean-flow data to drive large-eddy simulations of a diurnal cycle at the SWiFT site

Reproducing realistic date- and site-specific unsteady wind conditions in large-eddy simulations is becoming increasingly useful in wind energy. How to run a large-eddy simulation to match observed conditions, however, remains an open research question. One approach that has received considerable attention is mesoscale-to-microscale coupling, in which information about the mesoscale weather, most commonly acquired from a mesoscale numerical weather model, is passed on to a microscale model. In this paper, we demonstrate how the recently developed profile-assimilation technique, a form of mesoscale-to-microscale coupling, can be used to drive large-eddy simulations solely based on observed mean-flow profiles at a single location, bypassing the need for auxiliary mesoscale simulations. The new approach is evaluated for a diurnal cycle at the Scaled Wind Farm Technology site. Observed mean-flow profiles from the ground up to a height of 2 km are reconstructed by aggregating measurements from multiple instruments, and gaps in the data are infilled with natural neighbor interpolation. We perform nine simulations using various forcing approaches to deal with data limitations. The results show that it is indeed possible to drive microscale large-eddy simulation with observations using the profile-assimilation technique, notwithstanding large gaps in virtual potential temperature measurements. However, profile assimilation with vertical smoothing of the error between the desired and actual profiles is required. Without that smoothing, the microscale simulations develop unrealistically high turbulence levels under many situations. Finally, we show that simulated mesoscale data can account for missing observations, although care is needed as both data sources are not necessarily compatible.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

NASA NTRS1985

A comparison of SAGE I data during the stratospheric warming of February-March, 1979

The fine scale vertical structure of SAGE I ozone and aerosol data during a stratospheric warming is investigated using meteorological and SBUV ozone data. By stratifying the ozone and aerosol data for a limited time period, a comparison of the structure of profiles becomes possible under different meteorological conditions. For example, the cold air region shows more laminated structures than the other regions. In addition, vertical motions calculated at the same locations as the SAGE profiles show that they are consistent with variances found in the ozone and aerosol data.

Nagatani, R. M.↗

DOE OSTI2023

Effect of the neutral beam injector operational regime on the Alfven eigenmode saturation phase in DIII-D plasma

The aim of this study is to analyze the effect of the neutral beam injector (NBI) operation regime on the saturation phase of the Alfven Eigenmodes (AEs) in DIII-D plasma. Here, the analysis is done using the linear and nonlinear versions of the gyro-fluid code FAR3d. A set of parametric analyses are performed modifying the nonlinear simulation EP $β$ (NBI injection power), EP energy (NBI voltage) and the radial location of the EP density profile gradient (NBI radial deposition). The analysis indicates a transition from the soft (local plasma relaxation) to the hard MHD (global plasma relaxation) limit if the simulation EP $β$ $\unicode{x2A7E}$ $0.02$, leading to bursting MHD activity caused by radial AEs overlapping. MHD bursts cause an enhancement of the EP transport showing ballistic-like features as avalanche-like events. Simulations in the soft MHD limit show an increment of the EP density gradient as the EP $β$ increases. On the other hand, there is a gradient upper limit in the hard MHD limit, consistent with the critical-gradient behavior. AEs induce shear flows and zonal current leading to the deformation of the flux surfaces and the safety factor profile, respectively, particularly strong for the simulation in the hard MHD limit. Simulations in the hard MHD regime show a decrease of the AE frequency in the saturation phase; this is caused by the destabilization of a transitional mode between a $9/3-10/3$ TAE and a $9/3$ RSAE that may explain the AE frequency down-sweeping observed in some DIII-D discharges. Reducing the EP energy in the nonlinear simulations leads to a weakening of the plasma perturbation. On the other hand, increasing the EP energy causes the opposite effect. Nonlinear simulations of off-axis NBI profiles indicate a lower plasma perturbation as the EP density gradient is located further away from the magnetic axis.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 site. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 site. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 site. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 site. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 site. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 site. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 site. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 sites. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 sites. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2023

AWAKEN Virtual Tower / Derived Data

Virtual tower data consist of profiles of wind speed and direction at a number of locations near the A1 sites. These profiles were computed from dual-Doppler analysis of two Halo XR+ scanning Doppler lidars located at sites A5 and A7. Both lidars performed shallow RHI scans in the general direction of the A1 site. Scan azimuths were periodically adjusted to sample different locations. This resulted in a total of 14 unique tower locations over 5 periods between 12 November 2022 and 17 October 2023.

17 WIND ENERGY↗