Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “DECELERATION”

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 1,315 records · Page 73
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2017

Quasi-periodic Oscillations in Flares and Coronal Mass Ejections Associated with Magnetic Reconnection

We propose a mechanism for quasi-periodic oscillations of both coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and flare loops as related to magnetic reconnection in eruptive solar flares. We perform two-dimensional numerical MHD simulations of magnetic flux rope eruption, with three different values of the global Lundquist number. In the low Lundquist number run, no oscillatory behavior is found. In the moderate Lundquist number run, on the other hand, quasi-periodic oscillations are excited both at the bottom of the flux rope and at the flare loop top. In the high Lundquist number run, quasi-periodic oscillations are also excited; in the meanwhile, the dynamics become turbulent owing to the formation of multiple plasmoids in the reconnection current sheet. In high and moderate Lundquist number runs, thin reconnection jets collide with the flux rope bottom or flare loop top and dig them deeply. Steep oblique shocks are formed as termination shocks where reconnection jets are bent (rather than decelerated) in the horizontal direction, resulting in supersonic backflows. The structure becomes unstable, and quasi-periodic oscillations of supersonic backflows appear at locally confined high-beta regions at both the flux rope bottom and flare loop top. We compare the observational characteristics of quasi-periodic oscillations in erupting flux ropes, post-CME current sheets, flare ribbons, and light curves with corresponding dynamical structures found in our simulation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

H i Kinematics along the Minor Axis of M82

M82 is one of the best-studied starburst galaxies in the local universe, and is consequently a benchmark for researching star formation feedback at both low and high redshift. We introduce new VLA H i observations that reveal the cold gas kinematics along the minor axis in unprecedented detail. This includes the detection of H i up to 10 kpc along the minor axis toward the south and beyond 5 kpc to the north. A surprising aspect of these observations is that the line-of-sight H i velocity decreases substantially from about 120 to $50\,\mathrm{km}\,{{\rm{s}}}^{-1}$ from 1.5 to 10 kpc off the midplane. The velocity profile is not consistent with the H i gas cooling from the hot wind. We determine that the velocity decrease is substantially greater than the deceleration expected from gravitational forces alone. If the H i consists of a continuous population of cold clouds, some additional drag force must be present, and the magnitude of the drag force places a joint constraint on the ratio of the ambient medium to the typical cloud size and density. We also demonstrate that the H i kinematics are inconsistent with a simple conical outflow centered on the nucleus, but instead require the more widespread launch of the H i over the ~1 kpc extent of the starburst region. Regardless of the launch mechanism for the H i gas, the observed velocity decrease along the minor axis is sufficiently great that the H i may not escape the halo of M82. The inferred H i outflow rate at 10 kpc off the midplane is much less than 1 ${M}_{\odot }$ yr–1.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Fermi and Swift Observations of GRB 190114C: Tracing the Evolution of High-energy Emission from Prompt to Afterglow

We report on the observations of gamma-ray burst (GRB) 190114C by the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory . The prompt gamma-ray emission was detected by the Fermi GRB Monitor (GBM), the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT), and the Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) and the long-lived afterglow emission was subsequently observed by the GBM, LAT, Swift X-ray Telescope (XRT), and Swift UV Optical Telescope. The early-time observations reveal multiple emission components that evolve independently, with a delayed power-law component that exhibits significant spectral attenuation above 40 MeV in the first few seconds of the burst. This power-law component transitions to a harder spectrum that is consistent with the afterglow emission observed by the XRT at later times. This afterglow component is clearly identifiable in the GBM and BAT light curves as a slowly fading emission component on which the rest of the prompt emission is superimposed. As a result, we are able to observe the transition from internal-shock- to external-shock-dominated emission. We find that the temporal and spectral evolution of the broadband afterglow emission can be well modeled as synchrotron emission from a forward shock propagating into a wind-like circumstellar environment. We estimate the initial bulk Lorentz factor using the observed high-energy spectral cutoff. Considering the onset of the afterglow component, we constrain the deceleration radius at which this forward shock begins to radiate in order to estimate the maximum synchrotron energy as a function of time. We find that even in the LAT energy range, there exist high-energy photons that are in tension with the theoretical maximum energy that can be achieved through synchrotron emission from a shock. These violations of the maximum synchrotron energy are further compounded by the detection of very high-energy (VHE) emission above 300 GeV by MAGIC concurrent with our observations. We conclude that the observations of VHE photons from GRB 190114C necessitates either an additional emission mechanism at very high energies that is hidden in the synchrotron component in the LAT energy range, an acceleration mechanism that imparts energy to the particles at a rate that is faster than the electron synchrotron energy-loss rate, or revisions of the fundamental assumptions used in estimating the maximum photon energy attainable through the synchrotron process.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Generation and Life Cycle of Solar Spicules

The physical mechanism for the creation of solar spicules is proposed with three stages of their life cycle. It is assumed that at stage I the density hump is formed locally in the x-y plane in the lower chromosphere in the presence of temperature gradients of electrons and ions along the z-axis (the vertical direction). In this region, the density structure of quasi-neutral (n i ≃ n e = n) plasma after taking birth is accelerated in the vertical direction owing to the thermal force F th ∝ ∇n(x, y, t) × (∇T e + ∇T i ). The exact time-dependent analytical solution of two-fluid plasma equations is presented assuming that density is maximum at the center of the density structure and decays away from it gradually. The 2D density structure is created as a step function H(t) in time at the bottom of the chromosphere, and consequently, the vertical plasma velocity turns out to be the ramp function of time R(t) = tH(t), whereas the source term S(x, y, t) for the density follows the delta function δ(t) form. The upward acceleration a = a(x, y) $\hat{z}$ produced in this density structure is greater than the downward constant solar acceleration −g ⊙ in the chromosphere. In the transition region, the temperature gradients are steeper; therefore, the upward acceleration increases in magnitude g ⊙ ≪ a and the density hump spends less time there. This is stage II of its life cycle. In stage III, the density structure enters into the corona, where the gradients of temperatures vanish and the structure decelerates to zero velocity under the action of the solar gravitational force.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

The Landscape of Thermal Transients from Supernovae Interacting with a Circumstellar Medium

The interaction of supernova ejecta with a surrounding circumstellar medium (CSM) generates a strong shock, which can convert ejecta kinetic energy into observable radiation. Given the diversity of potential CSM structures (arising from diverse mass-loss processes such as late-stage stellar outbursts, binary interaction, and winds), the resulting transients can display a wide range of light-curve morphologies. We provide a framework for classifying the transients arising from interaction with a spherical CSM shell. The light curves are decomposed into five consecutive phases, starting from the onset of interaction and extending through shock breakout and subsequent shock cooling. The relative prominence of each phase in the light curve is determined by two dimensionless quantities representing the CSM-to-ejecta mass ratio η, and the breakout parameter ξ. These two parameters define four light-curve morphology classes, where each class is characterized by the location of the shock breakout and the degree of deceleration as the shock sweeps up the CSM. We compile analytic scaling relations connecting the luminosity and duration of each light-curve phase to the physical parameters. We then run a grid of radiation hydrodynamics simulations for a wide range of ejecta and CSM parameters to numerically explore the landscape of interaction light curves, and to calibrate and confirm the analytic scalings. We connect our theoretical framework to several case studies of observed transients, highlighting the relevance in explaining slow-rising and superluminous supernovae, fast blue optical transients, and double-peaked light curves.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Maximum Energy of Particles Accelerated in Gamma-Ray Burst Afterglow Shocks

Particle acceleration in relativistic collisionless shocks remains an open problem in high-energy astrophysics. Particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations predict that electron acceleration in weakly magnetized shocks proceeds via small-angle scattering, leading to a maximum electron energy significantly below the Bohm limit. This upper bound on electron energy manifests observationally as a characteristic synchrotron cutoff, providing a direct probe of the underlying acceleration physics. Gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglows offer an exceptional laboratory for testing these predictions. Here, we model the spectral evolution of GRB afterglows during the relativistic deceleration phase, incorporating PIC-motivated acceleration prescriptions and self-consistently computing synchrotron and synchrotron self-Compton emission. We find that low-energy bursts in low-density environments, typical of short GRBs, exhibit a pronounced synchrotron cutoff in the GeV band within minutes to hours after the trigger. Applying our framework to GRB 190114C and GRB 130427A, we find that current observations are insufficient to discriminate between PIC-motivated acceleration and the Bohm limit, primarily due to poor photon statistics in the Fermi-Large Area Telescope band. Nevertheless, future MeV–TeV afterglow observations can break model degeneracies and place substantially tighter constraints on the mechanisms responsible for particle acceleration in relativistic shocks. To this end, we simulate a fiducial nearby short GRB as a promising probe of the cutoff location, for which the two acceleration scenarios are cleanly distinguishable and the detection of such an event in the near future remains feasible.

Wu, Zhao-Feng [Purdue University, West Lafayette, ↗
DOE OSTI2026

Simulation to a Newborn Supernova Remnant from a Low-mass Iron Core Star

Supernova remnant observations show a high degree of asymmetry, mixing, and inhomogeneity. These asymmetries are seeded during the early seconds of the explosion and are further enhanced and modified as the shock and ejecta move through the stellar progenitor and into the circumstellar medium. We present simulations of a 9.6 M⊙ zero-metallicity progenitor initialized after shock revival and evolved for several years when the ejecta is in the circumstellar medium. A suite of 1D and 2D simulations examines the effects of neutron-star wind and radioactive decay heating. In 1D, decay heating forms a low-density bubble that suppresses the reverse shock. While in 2D, the heating is localized to metal-rich pockets, inflating them and compressing the surrounding material into dense shells. In 3D, the neutron-star wind and decay heating modify the plume morphology, producing more large-scale structures. The extended plume morphology leads to an asymmetrical shock breakout. After breakout, the leading plumes cannot keep up with the shock front, resulting in deceleration and fragmentation by the reverse shock while retaining the large-scale asymmetry. The projected ejecta morphology and velocities are strongly viewing angle dependent. The relatively uniform metal-rich distribution does not resemble the strongly inhomogeneous ejecta structure of Cas A. The 160-isotope decay network shows that 24.4% of the radioactive heating comes from decay chains other than the canonical 56Ni chain. The low explosion energy, low 56Ni yield, and Ni/Fe ratio greater than unity suggest an observational signature similar to an electron capture supernova.

Neopane, Sudarshan [University of Tennessee (UT)]↗
DOE OSTI2017

Kinematics of Magnetic Bright Features in the Solar Photosphere

Convective flows are known as the prime means of transporting magnetic fields on the solar surface. Thus, small magnetic structures are good tracers of turbulent flows. We study the migration and dispersal of magnetic bright features (MBFs) in intergranular areas observed at high spatial resolution with Sunrise/IMaX. We describe the flux dispersal of individual MBFs as a diffusion process whose parameters are computed for various areas in the quiet-Sun and the vicinity of active regions from seeing-free data. We find that magnetic concentrations are best described as random walkers close to network areas (diffusion index, γ=1.0), travelers with constant speeds over a supergranule (γ=1.9--2.0), and decelerating movers in the vicinity of flux emergence and/or within active regions (γ=1.4--1.5). The three types of regions host MBFs with mean diffusion coefficients of 130 km{sup 2} s{sup −1}, 80–90 km{sup 2} s{sup −1}, and 25–70 km{sup 2} s{sup −1}, respectively. The MBFs in these three types of regions are found to display a distinct kinematic behavior at a confidence level in excess of 95%.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

TRANSPORT OF SOLAR WIND H{sup +} AND He{sup ++} IONS ACROSS EARTH’S BOW SHOCK

We have investigated the dependence of mass, energy, and charge of solar wind (SW) transport across Earth’s bow shock. An examination of 111 crossings during quiet SW in both quasi-perpendicular and quasi-parallel shock regions shows that 64 crossings had various degrees of heating and thermalization of SW. We found 22 crossings where the SW speed was <400 km s{sup −1}. The shock potential of a typical supercritical quasi-perpendicular shock estimated from deceleration of the SW and cutoff energy of electron flat top distribution is ∼50 Volts. We find that the temperatures of H{sup +} and He{sup ++} beams that penetrate the shock can sometimes be nearly the same in the upstream and downstream regions, indicating little or no heating had occurred crossing the bow shock. None of the models predict that the SW can cross the bow shock without heating. Our observations are important constraints for new models of collisionless shocks.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Mode Conversion of a Solar Extreme-ultraviolet Wave over a Coronal Cavity

We report on observations of an extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) wave event in the Sun on 2011 January 13 by Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory and Solar Dynamics Observatory in quadrature. Both the trailing edge and the leading edge of the EUV wave front in the north direction are reliably traced, revealing generally compatible propagation velocities in both perspectives and a velocity ratio of about 1/3. When the wave front encounters a coronal cavity near the northern polar coronal hole, the trailing edge of the front stops while its leading edge just shows a small gap and extends over the cavity, meanwhile getting significantly decelerated but intensified. We propose that the trailing edge and the leading edge of the northward propagating wave front correspond to a non-wave coronal mass ejection component and a fast-mode magnetohydrodynamic wave component, respectively. The interaction of the fast-mode wave and the coronal cavity may involve a mode conversion process, through which part of the fast-mode wave is converted to a slow-mode wave that is trapped along the magnetic field lines. This scenario can reasonably account for the unusual behavior of the wave front over the coronal cavity.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Observations of Reconnection Flows in a Flare on the Solar Disk

Magnetic reconnection is a well-accepted part of the theory of solar eruptive events, though the evidence is still circumstantial. Intrinsic to the reconnection picture of a solar eruptive event, particularly in the standard model for two-ribbon flares (CSHKP model), are an advective flow of magnetized plasma into the reconnection region, expansion of field above the reconnection region as a flux rope erupts, retraction of heated post-reconnection loops, and downflows of cooling plasma along those loops. We report on a unique set of Solar Dynamics Observatory /Atmospheric Imaging Assembly imaging and Hinode /EUV Imaging Spectrometer spectroscopic observations of the disk flare SOL2016-03-23T03:54 in which all four flows are present simultaneously. This includes spectroscopic evidence for a plasma upflow in association with large-scale expanding closed inflow field. The reconnection inflows are symmetric, and consistent with fast reconnection, and the post-reconnection loops show a clear cooling and deceleration as they retract. Observations of coronal reconnection flows are still rare, and most events are observed at the solar limb, obscured by complex foregrounds, making their relationship to the flare ribbons, cusp field, and arcades formed in the lower atmosphere difficult to interpret. The disk location and favorable perspective of this event have removed these ambiguities giving a clear picture of the reconnection dynamics.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Origin of Intense Electron Heating in Relativistic Blast Waves

The modeling of gamma-ray burst afterglow emission bears witness to strong electron heating in the precursor of Weibel-mediated, relativistic collisionless shock waves propagating in unmagnetized electron–ion plasmas. In this Letter, we propose a theoretical model, which describes electron heating via a Joule-like process caused by pitch-angle scattering in the decelerating, self-induced microturbulence and the coherent charge-separation field induced by the difference in inertia between electrons and ions. The emergence of this electric field across the precursor of electron–ion shocks is confirmed by large-scale particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. Integrating the model using a Monte Carlo-Poisson method, we compare the main observables to the PIC simulations to conclude that the above mechanism can indeed account for the bulk of electron heating.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Modeling Heavy/Medium-Duty Fuel Consumption Based on Drive Cycle Properties

This paper presents multiple methods for predicting heavy/medium-duty vehicle fuel consumption based on driving cycle information. A polynomial model, a black box artificial neural net model, a polynomial neural network model, and a multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) model were developed and verified using data collected from chassis testing performed on a parcel delivery diesel truck operating over the Heavy Heavy-Duty Diesel Truck (HHDDT), City Suburban Heavy Vehicle Cycle (CSHVC), New York Composite Cycle (NYCC), and hydraulic hybrid vehicle (HHV) drive cycles. Each model was trained using one of four drive cycles as a training cycle and the other three as testing cycles. By comparing the training and testing results, a representative training cycle was chosen and used to further tune each method. HHDDT as the training cycle gave the best predictive results, because HHDDT contains a variety of drive characteristics, such as high speed, acceleration, idling, and deceleration. Among the four model approaches, MARS gave the best predictive performance, with an average absolute percent error of -1.84% over the four chassis dynamometer drive cycles. To further evaluate the accuracy of the predictive models, the approaches were first applied to real-world data. MARS outperformed the other three approaches, providing an average absolute percent error of -2.2% of four real-world road segments. The MARS model performance was then compared to HHDDT, CSHVC, NYCC, and HHV drive cycles with the performance from Future Automotive System Technology Simulator (FASTSim). The results indicated that the MARS method achieved a comparative predictive performance with FASTSim.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
DOE OSTI2017

The Accuracy and Correction of Fuel Consumption from Controller Area Network Broadcast

Fuel consumption (FC) has always been an important factor in vehicle cost. With the advent of electronically controlled engines, the controller area network (CAN) broadcasts information about engine and vehicle performance, including fuel use. However, the accuracy of the FC estimates is uncertain. In this study, the researchers first compared CAN-broadcasted FC against physically measured fuel use for three different types of trucks, which revealed the inaccuracies of CAN-broadcast fueling estimates. To match precise gravimetric fuel-scale measurements, polynomial models were developed to correct the CAN-broadcasted FC. Lastly, the robustness testing of the correction models was performed. The training cycles in this section included a variety of drive characteristics, such as high speed, acceleration, idling, and deceleration. The mean relative differences were reduced noticeably.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Leveraging Big Data Analysis Techniques for U.S. Vocational Vehicle Drive Cycle Characterization, Segmentation, and Development

Under a collaborative interagency agreement between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) performed a series of in-depth analyses to characterize on-road driving behavior including distributions of vehicle speed, idle time, accelerations and decelerations, and other driving metrics of medium- and heavy-duty vocational vehicles operating within the United States. As part of this effort, NREL researchers segmented U.S. medium- and heavy-duty vocational vehicle driving characteristics into three distinct operating groups or clusters using real-world drive cycle data collected at 1 Hz and stored in NREL's Fleet DNA database. The Fleet DNA database contains millions of miles of historical drive cycle data captured from medium- and heavy-duty vehicles operating across the United States. The data encompass existing DOE activities as well as contributions from valued industry stakeholder participants. For this project, data captured from 913 unique vehicles comprising 16,250 days of operation were drawn from the Fleet DNA database and examined. The Fleet DNA data used as a source for this analysis has been collected from a total of 30 unique fleets/data providers operating across 22 unique geographic locations spread across the United States. This includes locations with topographies ranging from the foothills of Denver, Colorado, to the flats of Miami, Florida. This paper includes the results of the statistical analysis performed by NREL and a discussion and detailed summary of the development of the vocational drive cycle weights and representative transient drive cycles for testing and simulation. Additional discussion of known limitations and potential future work is also included.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Real-World Evaluation of National Energy Efficiency Potential of Cold Storage Evaporator Technology in the Context of Engine Start-Stop Systems

National concerns over energy consumption and emissions from the transportation sector have prompted regulatory agencies to implement aggressive fuel economy targets for light-duty vehicles through the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration/Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) program. Automotive manufacturers have responded by bringing competitive technologies to market that maximize efficiency while meeting or exceeding consumer performance and comfort expectations. In a collaborative effort among Toyota Motor Corporation, Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the real-world savings of one such technology is evaluated. A commercially available Toyota Highlander equipped with two-phase cold storage technology was tested at ANL’s chassis dynamometer testing facility. The cold storage technology maintains the thermal state of air-conditioning evaporators to enable longer and more frequent engine-off operation in vehicles equipped with start-stop functionality. Test results were analyzed and provided to NREL where a novel simulation framework was developed and calibrated to the test data. The vehicle model was then exercised over a large set of real-world drive cycle and ambient condition data to estimate national-level fuel economy benefits. Results indicate that the cold storage evaporator provided national fuel consumption reductions of 0.113% relative to a conventional evaporator in the same vehicle. In addition, when the cold storage evaporator engine stop/start was enabled for any temperature and the baseline was limited to the EPA menu, Start and Stop credit assumption of 27°C, a national fuel savings of 0.497% was found. Fuel savings resulted from a combination of extended engine-off duration during idle events and increased frequency of deceleration fuel cutoff, both enabled by the ability of the cold storage evaporator to maintain thermal state in situations where air conditioning is active.

DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗
DOE OSTI2021

Correlation between Sensor Performance, Autonomy Performance and Fuel-Efficiency in Semi-Truck Platoons

Semi-trucks, specifically class-8 trucks, have recently become a platform of interest for autonomy systems. Platooning involves multiple trucks following each n close proximity, with only the lead truck being manually driven and the rest being controlled autonomously. This approach to semi-truck autonomy is easily integrated on existing platforms, reduces delivery times, and reduces green- house gas emissions via fuel economy benefits. Level 1 SAE fuel studies were performed on class-8 trucks operating with the Auburn Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control (CACC) system, and fuel savings up to 10-12% were seen. Enabling platooning autonomy required the use of radar, global positioning systems (GPS), and wireless vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication. Poor measurements and state estimates can lead to incorrect or missing positioning data, which can lead to unnecessary dynamics and finally wasted fuel. This is especially an issue if deceleration is applied in response to a bad measurement. In this study, a faulty radar was shown to cause a greater than 5% increase in fuel consumption. The mechanism of this fuel consumption increase is investigated and applied to other types of sensor failures to indicate their potential effects on fuel economy. This analysis indicates that poor GPS signals over short time can be largely filtered out, with no real gain or loss of fuel economy. V2V communications were intentionally limited by causing interference, which resulted in dropped communication packets over a small physical area, but not an appreciable impact on fuel economy.

vehicle platooning, sensor performance, semi-auton↗
DOE OSTI2025

A species scale-driven breakdown of effective field theory in time-dependent string backgrounds

We present a novel way in which effective field theory (EFT) can break down in cosmological string backgrounds depending on the behavior of the quantum gravity cutoff in infinite distance limits, known as the species scale $Λ_s$. Namely, EFT can break down if the species scale $Λ_s$ falls off so rapidly as the Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) scale factor grows from some initial value $a_i$ to some final value $a_f$ that the physical momentum of an initial Hubble-sized perturbation $\sim H_i^{-1}$ grows to exceed the species scale. For EFT to remain valid, a new condition $H_i \frac{a_i}{a_f} \ll Λ_{s,f}$ must hold, which is distinct from Trans-Planckian conditions discussed in the literature. Using the universal relation $\frac{\nabla m}{m} \cdot \frac{\nabla Λ_s}{Λ_s} = \frac{1}{d-2}$ in the infinite distance limits of moduli space where $m$ is the mass scale of the lightest tower and $\nabla$ measures variations with respect to the canonical metric on moduli space, we show that spatially flat FRW solutions in the string landscape violate this condition or at best marginally satisfy it. However, we find that sufficiently large negative spatial curvature always avoids a breakdown. To avoid EFT breakdown, we derive an upper bound on the duration of quasi-de Sitter expansion that classically evolves to decelerated expansion. Our bound is proportional to the Trans-Planckian Censorship Conjecture (TCC) bound, with the advantage that it applies to any FRW solution in the string landscape. Finally, we distinguish EFT breakdown from TCC violation, the latter being a quantum gravity constraint rather than an EFT limitation. Perhaps our most surprising finding is that in any flat FRW solution that develops a weakly coupled string at future infinity the EFT inevitably breaks down.

Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.C↗