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At least 1,261 records · Page 70

Sensitivity of current remote sensing instrumentation to diagnostic spectral features in geologic materials

The capability of some current remote sensing instruments to discriminate and identify geologic materials based on spectral reflectance in the visible and near-IR (0.4-2.6 microns) are studied. Laboratory reflectance spectra of selected geologic materials were convolved to the bandpasses of the Landsat 4 Thematic Mapper and the Shuttle Multispectral InfraRed Radiometer. As a secondary goal, spectral parameters which are particularly useful for exploring specific geological problems have been identified, as a guide both to the design of future sensors having a limited number of bandpasses, as well as to aid efficient analysis of large three-dimensional data sets returned by imaging spectrometers.

Singer, R. B.↗

Calibration of passive remote observing optical and microwave instrumentation; Proceedings of the Meeting, Orlando, FL, Apr. 3-5, 1991

Various papers on the calibration of passive remote observing optical and microwave instrumentation are presented. Individual topics addressed include: on-board calibration device for a wide field-of-view instrument, calibration for the medium-resolution imaging spectrometer, cryogenic radiometers and intensity-stabilized lasers for EOS radiometric calibrations, radiometric stability of the Shuttle-borne solar backscatter ultraviolet spectrometer, ratioing radiometer for use with a solar diffuser, requirements of a solar diffuser and measurements of some candidate materials, reflectance stability analysis of Spectralon diffuse calibration panels, stray light effects on calibrations using a solar diffuser, radiometric calibration of SPOT 23 HRVs, surface and aerosol models for use in radiative transfer codes. Also addressed are: calibrated intercepts for solar radiometers used in remote sensor calibration, radiometric calibration of an airborne multispectral scanner, in-flight calibration of a helicopter-mounted Daedalus multispectral scanner, technique for improving the calibration of large-area sphere sources, remote colorimetry and its applications, spatial sampling errors for a satellite-borne scanning radiometer, calibration of EOS multispectral imaging sensors and solar irradiance variability.

Guenther, Bruce W.↗

Simple Creep Test For Ceramic Fibers

Simple bend-stress-relaxation test yields information on creep-related properties of polycrystalline ceramic fibers. Determination of these properties important part of efforts to develop ceramic composite materials that retain mechanical strength and resistance to creep at high temperatures. Present test measures effects of time, temperature, and applied strain on creep-related relaxation of bend stress in ceramic fiber of almost any diameter in almost any environment, without need for contact sensors. Degree of relaxation of bend stress determined from radii of curvature.

Dicarlo, James A.↗

Detection of Delamination in Composite Beams Using Broadband Acoustic Emission Signatures

Delamination in composite structure may be caused by imperfections introduced during the manufacturing process or by impact loads by foreign objects during the operational life. There are some nondestructive evaluation methods to detect delamination in composite structures such as x-radiography, ultrasonic testing, and thermal/infrared inspection. These methods are expensive and hard to use for on line detection. Acoustic emission testing can monitor the material under test even under the presence of noise generated under load. It has been used extensively in proof-testing of fiberglass pressure vessels and beams. In the present work, experimental studies are conducted to investigate the use of broadband acoustic emission signatures to detect delaminations in composite beams. Glass/epoxy beam specimens with full width, prescribed delamination sizes of 2 inches and 4 inches are investigated. The prescribed delamination is produced by inserting Teflon film between laminae during the fabrication of composite laminate. The objectives of this research is to develop a method for predicting delamination size and location in laminated composite beams by combining smart materials concept and broadband AE analysis techniques. More specifically, a piezoceramic (PZT) patch is bonded on the surface of composite beams and used as a pulser. The piezoceramic patch simulates the AE wave source as a 3 cycles, 50KHz, burst sine wave. One broadband AE sensor is fixed near the PZT patch to measure the AE wave near the AE source. A second broadband AE sensor, which is used as a receiver, is scanned along the composite beams at 0.25 inch step to measure propagation of AE wave along the composite beams. The acquired AE waveform is digitized and processed. Signal strength, signal energy, cross-correlation of AE waveforms, and tracking of specific cycle of AE waveforms are used to detect delamination size and location.

Okafor, A. C.↗

Miniature Heat Transport System for Nanosatellite Technology

The scientific understanding of key physical processes between the Sun and the Earth require simultaneous measurements from many vantage points in space. Nano-satellite technologies will enable a class of constellation missions for the NASA Space Science Sun-Earth Connections. This recent emphasis on the implementation of smaller satellites leads to a requirement for development of smaller subsystems in several areas. Key technologies under development include: advanced miniaturized chemical propulsion; miniaturized sensors; highly integrated, compact electronics; autonomous onboard and ground operations; miniatures low power tracking techniques for orbit determination; onboard RF communications capable of transmitting data to the ground from far distances; lightweight efficient solar array panels; lightweight, high output battery cells; lightweight yet strong composite materials for the nano-spacecraft and deployer-ship structures. These newer smaller systems may have higher power densities and higher thermal transport requirements than seen on previous small satellites. Furthermore, the small satellites may also have a requirement to maintain thermal control through extended earth shadows, possibly up to 8 hours long. Older thermal control technology, such as heaters, thermostats, and heat pipes, may not be sufficient to meet the requirements of these new systems. Conversely, a miniature two-phase heat transport system (Mini-HTS) such as a Capillary Pumped Loop (CPL) or Loop Heat Pipe (LBP) is a viable alternative. A Mini-HTS can provide fine temperature control, thermal diode action, and a highly efficient means of heat transfer. The Mini-HTS would have power capabilities in the range of tens of watts or less and provide thermal control over typical spacecraft ranges. The Mini-HTS would allow the internal portion of the spacecraft to be thermally isolated from the external radiator, thus protecting the internal components from extreme cold temperatures during an eclipse. The Mini-HTS would transport the beat from these components to a radiator during their operational modes, and it would be shutdown during non-operational or eclipse modes. Shutdown of the Mini-HTS would be accomplished with small heaters and has been successfully demonstrated on numerous occasions, both in the lab and on flight experiments. Efforts are now underway to miniaturize two-phase heat transport systems for the Nanosatellite project, with potential application to other small satellite programs. 'ne goal of this project is to design, build, and test miniature heat transport systems (MHTS) that would demonstrate the feasibility of a small Capillary Pumped Loop (CPL) or Loop Heat Pipe (LBP).

Douglas, Donya M,↗

Electronics for Low-Temperature Space Operation Being Evaluated

Electronic components and systems capable of low-temperature operation are needed for many future NASA missions where it is desirable to have smaller, lighter, and cheaper (unheated) spacecraft. These missions include Mars (-20 to -120 C) orbiters, landers, and rovers; Europa (-150 C) oceanic exploratory probes and instrumentation; Saturn (-183 C) and Pluto (-229 C) interplanetary probes. At the present, most electronic equipment can operate down to only -55 C. It would be very desirable to have electronic components that expand the operating temperature range down to -233 C. The successful development of these low-temperature components will eventually allow space probes and onboard electronics to operate in very cold environments (out as far as the planet Pluto). As a result, radioisotope heating units, which are used presently to keep space electronics near room temperature, will be reduced in number or eliminated. The new cold electronics will make spacecraft design and operation simpler, more flexible, more reliable, lighter, and cheaper. Researchers at the NASA Glenn Research Center are evaluating potential commercial off-the- shelf devices and are developing new electronic components that will tolerate operation at low temperatures down to -233 C. This work is being carried out mainly inhouse and also through university grants and commercial contracts. The components include analog-to-digital converters, semiconductor switches, capacitors, dielectric and packaging material, and batteries. For example, the effect of low temperature on the capacitance of three different types of capacitors is shown in the graph. Using these advanced components, system products will be developed, including dc/dc converters, battery charge/discharge management systems, digital control electronics, transducers, and sensor instrumentation.

Patterson, Richard L.↗

Cylindrical Piezoelectric Fiber Composite Actuators

The use of piezoelectric devices has become widespread since Pierre and Jacques Curie discovered the piezoelectric effect in 1880. Examples of current applications of piezoelectric devices include ultrasonic transducers, micro-positioning devices, buzzers, strain sensors, and clocks. The invention of such lightweight, relatively inexpensive piezoceramic-fiber-composite actuators as macro fiber composite (MFC) actuators has made it possible to obtain strains and displacements greater than those that could be generated by prior actuators based on monolithic piezoceramic sheet materials. MFC actuators are flat, flexible actuators designed for bonding to structures to apply or detect strains. Bonding multiple layers of MFC actuators together could increase force capability, but not strain or displacement capability. Cylindrical piezoelectric fiber composite (CPFC) actuators have been invented as alternatives to MFC actuators for applications in which greater forces and/or strains or displacements may be required. In essence, a CPFC actuator is an MFC or other piezoceramic fiber composite actuator fabricated in a cylindrical instead of its conventional flat shape. Cylindrical is used here in the general sense, encompassing shapes that can have circular, elliptical, rectangular or other cross-sectional shapes in the planes perpendicular to their longitudinal axes.

Allison, Sidney G.↗

Deployable Fresnel Rings

Deployable Fresnel rings (DFRs) significantly enhance the realizable gain of an antenna. This innovation is intended to be used in combination with another antenna element, as the DFR itself acts as a focusing or microwave lens element for a primary antenna. This method is completely passive, and is also completely wireless in that it requires neither a cable, nor a connector from the antenna port of the primary antenna to the DFR. The technology improves upon the previous NASA technology called a Tri-Sector Deployable Array Antenna in at least three critical aspects. In contrast to the previous technology, this innovation requires no connector, cable, or other physical interface to the primary communication radio or sensor device. The achievable improvement in terms of antenna gain is significantly higher than has been achieved with the previous technology. Also, where previous embodiments of the Tri-Sector antenna have been constructed with combinations of conventional (e.g., printed circuit board) and conductive fabric materials, this innovation is realized using only conductive and non-conductive fabric (i.e., "e-textile") materials, with the possible exception of a spring-like deployment ring. Conceptually, a DFR operates by canceling the out-of-phase radiation at a plane by insertion of a conducting ring or rings of a specific size and distance from the source antenna, defined by Fresnel zones. Design of DFRs follow similar procedures to those outlined for conventional Fresnel zone rings. Gain enhancement using a single ring is verified experimentally and through computational simulation. The experimental test setup involves a microstrip patch antenna that is directly behind a single-ring DFR and is radiating towards a second microstrip patch antenna. The first patch antenna and DFR are shown. At 2.42 GHz, the DFR improves the transmit antenna gain by 8.6 dB, as shown in Figure 2, relative to the wireless link without the DFR. A figure illustrates the relative strength of power coupling between the first and second microstrip antennas with and without the DFR. Typically, a DFR is designed for use at a particular frequency; however, testing of a DFR indicated a relatively wide operational bandwidth of approximately 8.2%. Wider bandwidth operation and multi-band operation are anticipated by extending the known art of conventional Fresnel rings to the DFRs. Increasing the number of rings used to construct a DFR antenna increases the gain, with the upper bound limited often by the largest practical dimensions that can be tolerated for a given application. The maximum theoretical improvement in gain for a single ring is 9.5 dB. Experimental results are within 0.9 dB of this theoretical value. Adding rings increases gain, and theoretically, improvements of 10 to 13 dB above that of the primary antenna gain can be achieved with two- and three-ring versions.

Kennedy, Timothy F.↗

Development and Operation of a Material Identification and Discrimination Imaging Spectroradiometer

Many imaging applications require quantitative determination of a scene's spectral radiance. This paper describes a new system capable of real-time spectroradiometric imagery. Operating at a full-spectrum update rate of 30Hz, this imager is capable of collecting a 30 point spectrum from each of three imaging heads: the first operates from 400 nm to 950 nm, with a 2% bandwidth; the second operates from 1.5 micro-m to 5.5 micro-m with a 1.5% bandwidth; the third operates from 5 micro-m to 12 micro-m, also at a 1.5% bandwidth. Standard image format is 256 x 256, with 512 x 512 possible in the VIS/NIR head. Spectra of up to 256 points are available at proportionately lower frame rates. In order to make such a tremendous amount of data more manageable, internal processing electronics perform four important operations on the spectral imagery data in real-time. First, all data in the spatial/spectral cube of data is spectro-radiometrically calibrated as it is collected. Second, to allow the imager to simulate sensors with arbitrary spectral response, any set of three spectral response functions may be loaded into the imager including delta functions to allow single wavelength viewing; the instrument then evaluates the integral of the product of the scene spectral radiances and the response function. Third, more powerful exploitation of the gathered spectral radiances can be effected by application of various spectral-matched filtering algorithms to identify pixels whose relative spectral radiance distribution matches a sought-after spectral radiance distribution, allowing materials-based identification and discrimination. Fourth, the instrument allows determination of spectral reflectance, surface temperature, and spectral emissivity, also in real-time. The spectral imaging technique used in the instrument allows tailoring of the frame rate and/or the spectral bandwidth to suit the scene radiance levels, i.e., frame rate can be reduced, or bandwidth increased to improve SNR when viewing low radiance scenes. The unique challenges of design and calibration are described. Pixel readout rates of 160 MHz, for full frame readout rates of 1000 Hz (512 x 512 image) present the first challenge; processing rates of nearly 600 million integer operations per second for sensor emulation, or over 2 billion per second for matched filtering, present the second. Spatial and spectral calibration of 66,536 pixels (262,144 for the 512 x 512 version) and up to 1,000 spectral positions mandate novel decoupling methods to keep the required calibration memory to a reasonable size. Large radiometric dynamic range also requires care to maintain precision operation with minimum memory size.

Dombrowski, Mark↗

Processing Near-Infrared Imagery of the Orion Heatshield During EFT-1 Hypersonic Reentry

The Scientifically Calibrated In-Flight Imagery (SCIFLI) team captured high-resolution, calibrated, near-infrared imagery of the Orion capsule during atmospheric reentry of the EFT-1 mission. A US Navy NP-3D aircraft equipped with a multi-band optical sensor package, referred to as Cast Glance, acquired imagery of the Orion capsule's heatshield during a period when Orion was slowing from approximately Mach 10 to Mach 7. The line-of-sight distance ranged from approximately 65 to 40 nmi. Global surface temperatures of the capsule's thermal heatshield derived from the near-infrared intensity measurements complemented the in-depth (embedded) thermocouple measurements. Moreover, these derived surface temperatures are essential to the assessment of the thermocouples' reliance on inverse heat transfer methods and material response codes to infer the surface temperature from the in-depth measurements. The paper describes the image processing challenges associated with a manually-tracked, high-angular rate air-to-air observation. Issues included management of significant frame-to-frame motions due to both tracking jerk and jitter as well as distortions due to atmospheric effects. Corrections for changing sky backgrounds (including some cirrus clouds), atmospheric attenuation, and target orientations and ranges also had to be made. The image processing goal is to reduce the detrimental effects due to motion (both sensor and capsule), vibration (jitter), and atmospherics for image quality improvement, without compromising the quantitative integrity of the data, especially local intensity (temperature) variations. The paper will detail the approach of selecting and utilizing only the highest quality images, registering several co-temporal image frames to a single image frame to the extent frame-to-frame distortions would allow, and then co-adding the registered frames to improve image quality and reduce noise. Using preflight calibration data, the registered and averaged infrared intensity images were converted to surface temperatures on the Orion capsule's heatshield. Temperature uncertainties will be discussed relative to uncertainties of surface emissivity and atmospheric transmission loss. Comparison of limited onboard surface thermocouple data to the image derived surface temperature will be presented.

Spisz, Thomas S.↗

Modeling misregistration and related effects on multispectral classification

Misregistration is but one of a group of parameters (noise, class separability, spatial transient response, field sizes) affecting the accuracy of multispectral classification. The entire group must be considered simultaneously. Any noise in the measurements (due to the scene, to the sensor, or to the analog/digital conversion) will cause a finite fraction of the measurements to fall outside of the classification limits, even within nominally uniform fields. For field boundaries, where the effects of misregistration are felt, additional pixels will be misclassified due to the mixture of materials in the pixels. Misregistration causes field borders in a given (set of) band(s) to be closer than expected to a given pixel, causing additional pixels to be misclassified. Simplified models of the various effects are used to gain conceptual understanding and to estimate the performance to be expected.

Billingsley, F. C.↗

Composite Semiconductor Substrates

Epitaxial structure of three semiconductor materials - silicon, gallium arsenide, and cadmium telluride - makes possible integrated monolithic focal-plane arrays of photodectors. Silicon layer contains charge-coupled devices, gallium arsenide layer contains other fast electronic circuitry, and cadmium telluride layer serves as base for array of mercury cadmium telluride infrared sensors. Technique effectively combines two well-established techniques; metalorganic chemical-vapor deposition (MOCVD) and molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE). Multilayer structure includes HgCdTe light sensors with Si readout devices and GaAs signal-processing circuits. CdTe layer provides base for building up HgCdTe layer.

Nouhi, Akbar↗

Baseline program

This assumed program was developed from several sources of information and is extrapolated over future decades using a set of reasonable assumptions based on incremental growth. The assumptions for the NASA baseline program are as follows: balanced emphasis in four domains; a constant level of activity; low to moderate real budget growth; maximum use of commonality; and realistic and practical technology development. The first domain is low Earth Orbit (LEO). Activities there are concentrated on the space station but extend on one side to Earth-pointing sensors for unmanned platforms and on the other to the launch and staging of unmanned solar system exploration missions. The second domain is geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO) and cislunar space. Activities here include all GEO missions and operations, both unmanned and manned, and all transport of materials and crews between LEO and the vicinity of the Moon. The third domain is the Moon itself. Lunar activities are to include both orbiting and landing missions; the landings may be either unmanned or manned. The last domain is Mars. Missions to Mars will initially be unmanned but they will eventually be manned. Program elements and descriptions are discussed as are critiques of the NASA baseline.

Roberts, Barney B.↗

Evaluation of Oxygen Interactions with Materials 3: Mission and induced environments

The Evaluation of Oxygen Interactions with Materials 3 (EOIM-3) flight experiment was developed to obtain benchmark atomic oxygen/material reactivity data. The experiment was conducted during Space Shuttle mission 46 (STS-46), which flew July 31 to August 7, 1992. Quantitative interpretation of the materials reactivity measurements requires a complete and accurate definition of the space environment exposure, including the thermal history of the payload, the solar ultraviolet exposure, the atomic oxygen fluence, and any spacecraft outgassing contamination effects. The thermal history of the payload was measured using twelve thermocouple sensors placed behind selected samples and on the EOIM-3 payload structure. The solar ultraviolet exposure history of the EOIM-3 payload was determined by analysis of the as-flown orbit and vehicle attitude combined with daily average solar ultraviolet and vacuum ultraviolet (UV/VUV) fluxes. The atomic oxygen fluence was assessed in three different ways. First, the O-atom fluence was calculated using a program that incorporates the MSIS-86 atmospheric model, the as-flown Space Shuttle trajectory, and solar activity parameters. Second, the oxygen atom fluence was estimated directly from Kapton film erosion. Third, ambient oxygen atom measurements were made using the quadrupole mass spectrometer on the EOIM-3 payload. Our best estimate of the oxygen atom fluence as of this writing is 2.3 +/- 0.3 x 10(exp 20) atoms/sq cm. Finally, results of post-flight X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) surface analyses of selected samples indicate low levels of contamination on the payload surface.

Koontz, Steven L.↗

Summary of Precision Actuators for Space Application

The objective of this paper is to present the state-of-the-art of precision actuators in the United States. This report is based upon information available to the author and not on a comprehensive search of all developments in the US. Precision actuators are those with submicron resolution and often limited to less than about 0.2 % strain of the actuator material. Most of the actuators are those associated with Adaptive Structures. One definition of Adaptive Structures are systems whose geometric and physical structural characteristics can be beneficially modified to meet mission requirements either through remote commands or automatically in response to internal or external stimulations. Actuators, sensors, and control systems are directly integrated into the structure.

actuators adaptive structures space applications s↗

Marshall Space Flight Center Faculty Fellowship Program

The 2018 Marshall Faculty Fellowship Program involved 16 faculty in the laboratories and departments at Marshall Space Flight Center. These faculty engineers and scientists worked with NASA collaborators on NASA projects, bringing new perspectives and solutions to bear. This Technical Memorandum is a compilation of the research reports of the 2018 Marshall Faculty Fellowship program, along with the Program Announcement (Appendix A) and the Program Description (Appendix B). The research affected the following five areas: (1) Materials (2) Propulsion (3) Spacecraft systems (4) Vehicle systems (5) Space science The materials investigations includes Lunar Regolith for habitats, friction stir welding, and composite joints. Propulsion studies included cryogenic tank pressurization, transmitted torque in a cryogenic environment, and condensation in presence of noncondensables, Europa Lander Deorbit Stage, and catalyst development for a hybrid rocket. Spacecraft systems include wireless sensor networks and printed electronic inks. Vehicle systems studies were performed on Mars ascent vehicle analysis, architecture models, and Space Launch System manual steering. Space science studies included planetary lava flow. Our goal is to continue the Marshall Faculty Fellowship Program funded by Center internal project offices. Faculty Fellows in this 2018 program represented the following minority-serving institutions: Alabama A&M University, Southern University, Delgado Community College, and Dillard University.

Six, N. F.↗

Calibration and Validation of the SHERLOC Instrument Operating in Jezero Crater, Mars

The Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemistry (SHERLOC) is an instrument onboard the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover. It consists of a spectrometer that measures deep ultraviolet (DUV) resonance Raman and native fluorescence photons generated through surface interactions with a 248.6 nm pulsed laser. Two microscopic imagers, the Autofocus Context Imager (ACI) and the Wide-Angle Topographic Sensor for Operations and eNgineering (WATSON), provide high-resolution context images of SHERLOC targets. The ACI is co-boresighted with the spectrometer. To ensure proper calibration, the SHERLOC calibration target (SCT) is mounted on the front of the rover and consists of ten different materials. The SCT was designed, fabricated, assembled, and tested by Jacobs Technology, Inc., and NASA Johnson Space Center. The dimensions of the calibration target housing are 150 x 89 x 33 mm and it weighs ~437 g. The ten targets are arranged in two rows; the first six are hard targets (AlGaN for Raman and fluorescence, diffuse transmission target, a slice of the SaU008 Mars meteorite, an intensity maze, and polycarbonate over geocache coin) and the remaining four are soft-goods targets (Vectran, Ortho-Fabric, Teflon, and nGimat-coated Teflon). The hard targets calibrate the spectrometer’s Raman and fluorescence spectral accuracy, ambient light reflection, and Raman response curve, while the soft-goods targets are spacesuit materials that function as human exploration targets, some of which are also used for spectral calibration. SHERLOC also has an internal calibration target consisting of AlGaN on sapphire (275 nm) located inside the ACI opaque dust cover to ensure proper instrument functioning between calibration target analyses. Initial SHERLOC, ACI, and WATSON calibration and validation on Mars was performed using the internal calibration target on sols 59, 83, 98, and 141; WATSON imaging of the SCT on sols 26 and 62, and SHERLOC spectroscopy and ACI imaging of the SCT on sol 59. These early data provide initial insights into instrument performance and the stability and degradation of the calibration target materials relative to the Martian surface and dust environment. Early observations also have implications for future astronaut spacesuit materials.

Trevor G Graff↗

NDE in aerospace - Requirements for science, sensors and sense

The complexity of modern nondestructive evaluation (NDE) arises from four main factors: quantitative measurement science, physical models for computational analysis, realistic interfacing with engineering decisions, and direct access to management priorities. Recent advances in the four factors of NDE are addressed. Physical models of acoustic propagation are presented that have led to the development of measurement technologies advancing the ability to assure that materials and structures will perform as designed. In addition, a brief discussion is given of current research for future mission needs such as smart structures that sense their own health. Such advances permit projects to integrate design for inspection into their plans, bringing NDE into engineering and management priorities. The measurement focus is on ultrasonics with generous case examples. Problem solutions highlighted include critical stress in fasteners, residual stress in steel, NDE laminography, and solid rocket motor NDE.

Heyman, Joseph S.↗