Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “CH4”

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 1,333 records · Page 74
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1988

Measurements of air-broadened and nitrogen-broadened Lorentz width coefficients and pressure shift coefficients in the nu4 and nu2 bands of C-12H4

Air-broadened and N2-broadened halfwidth and pressure shift coefficients of 294 transitions in the nu4 and nu2 bands of C-12H4 have been measured from laboratory absorption spectra recorded at room temperature with the Fourier transform spectrometer in the McMath solar telescope facility of the National Solar Observatory. Total pressures of up to 551 Torr were employed with absorption paths of 5-150 cm, CH4 volume mixing ratios of 2.6 percent or less, and resolutions of 0.005 and 0.01/cm. A nonlinear least-squares spectral fitting technique has been utilized in the analysis of the twenty-five measured spectra. Lines up to J double-prime = 18 in the nu4 band and J double-prime = 15 in the nu2 band have been analyzed.

Rinsland, Curtis P.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Radio science with Voyager 2 at Uranus - Results on masses and densities of the planet and five principal satellites

Phase-coherent Doppler data generated by the Deep Space Network with the radio communication system during the Voyager 2 encounter with Uranus in January 1986, optical navigation data generated by the Voyager Navigation Team with the Voyager 2 imaging system, and ground-based astrometric data obtained over an 8-yr period are compiled and analyzed to determine the masses and densities of Uranus and its principal satellites. The data-analysis procedures are explained in detail, and the results are presented in tables and graphs. The mean density of Uranus is found to be 1.285 + or - 0.001 g/cu cm, whereas the mean uncompressed mass of all five satellites is 1.48 + or - 0.06 g/cu cm, or 0.10 g/cu cm above the density expected for a homogeneous solar mix of rock, H2O and NH3 ice, and CH4 as clathrate hydrate. This difference is tentatively attributed to the presence of 15 mass percent of pure graphite, which would provide the thermal conductivity required to keep the satellites cold and undifferentiated.

Anderson, J. D.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Effects of charged particles on the surfaces of the satellites of Uranus

Measurements of the ion and electron fluxes in the Uranian magnetosphere made by the low-energy charged-particle (LECP) instrument on the Voyager 2 spacecraft are used to discuss possible particle-induced modifications of the moons and rings of Uranus. The energy spectra of the orbit-integrated particle dosages expected on the major moons are derived from the LECP measurements of particle intensities and pitch-angle distributions. Laboratory-derived results on charged-particle-induced chemical and physical modifications of H2O, CH4, CO, and CO2 ions are used. The erosion rates of water ice and the darkening of organic ices on the surfaces of the moons are estimated from the orbit-integrated fluxes. Significant darkening of fresh organic ices to depths of the order of 1 micron is expected to occur for times as short as a few thousand years. Darkening at deeper depths will occur at increasingly longer times. The implications of these results for the interpretation of remote-sensing data are discussed.

Lanzerotti, L. J.↗
NASA NTRS1987

The atmosphere of Uranus - Results of radio occultation measurements with Voyager 2

The Uranian atmosphere is investigated on the basis of S-band and X-band occultation observations (including measurements of Doppler frequency perturbations) obtained during the Voyager 2 encounter with Uranus in January 1986. The data are presented in extensive tables and graphs and characterized in detail. The atmosphere is assumed to have an H2/He abundance ratio of about 85/15, but also to contain small amounts of CH4 at above-cloud relative humidity 30 percent, cloud-base relative humidity 78 percent, and below-cloud mixing ratio 2.3 percent by number density. Other parameters estimated include magnetic-field rotation period 17.24 h, 1-bar equatorial radius 25,559 + or - 4 km, polar radius 24,973 + or - 20 km, equatorial acceleration of gravity 8.69 + or - 0.01 m/sec sq, and atmospheric temperature 76 + or - 2 K (assuming 85 + or - 3 percent H2).

Lindal, G. F.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Vertical temperature gradients on Uranus - Implications for layered convection

Analyses of Voyager IR spectroscopy and radio occultation measurements confirm ground-based observations that the deep lapse rate of Uranus exceeds that for an adiabat of H2 in thermodynamic equilibrium. However, in approximately the same region of the atmosphere, Voyager IR and ground-based observations also indicate that the ratio of ortho to para hydrogen is near the equilibrium value. These two sets of observations can be reconciled by postulating the existence of rapid convective overturning within layers which are thin in comparison to a pressure scale height. Two forms of layered convection are examined. In one case, deposition of kinetic energy results in thin, rapidly overturning layers. Possible kinetic energy sources include braking waves and local instabilities. In the second case considered, molecular-weight discontinuities due to CH4 stratification stabilize the interfaces of thin layers. It is argued that both forms may be important in the convective portion of the Uranus atmosphere.

Gierasch, Peter J.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Solid hydrocarbon aerosols produced in simulated Uranian and Neptunian stratospheres

Solid hydrocarbon films were deposited in an RF plasma discharge of various CH4/H2/He mixtures under conditions simulating the formation of solid aerosols by magnetospheric charged particles in the stratospheres of Uranus and Neptune. The percentage of CH4 ranged from 0.0002 to 100 percent; the pressure in the discharge chamber was either 130 or 660 microbar; and the films produced were yellow to deep red-brown in color and 2-25 microns thick. The real and imaginary parts of the refractive index at wavelengths from 350 nm to 2.5 microns were determined for all the films, and the results are compared with observational data and the predictions of theoretical models in extensive tables and graphs. Good agreement is demonstrated, suggesting that aerosol production by this mechanism may be competitive with UV or charged-particle irradiation of hydrocarbon condensates.

Khare, B. N.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Trace gas emissions from a mid-latitude prescribed chaparral fire

Smoke-plume gas samples were collected at altitudes from 35-670 m above the ground over the San Dimas Experimental Forest during a 400-acre prescribed chaparral fire. Mean emission ratios relative to CO2 for CO, H2, CH4, and total nonmethane hydrocarbons were lower than previous values obtained for large biomass-burning field experiments. Comparison of samples from vigorously flaming and mixed stages of combustion revealed little differences in CO2 normalized emission ratios for these gases (except for N2O).

Cofer, Wesley R., III↗
NASA NTRS1987

Neutral upper atmospheres of the outer planets

The major characteristics of the neutral upper atmospheres of outer planets are discussed, with special attention given to the Uranus upper atmosphere, probed by Voyager 2. The composition, thermal structure, photochemistry, and vertical mixing of the Uranus atmosphere are compared with the respective features of other outer planets. Unlike the atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn, which reflect the solar ratios of the elements, the Uranus atmosphere was found to have only few constituents, including NH3, CH4, H2, He, C2H2, and C2H6. The eddy diffusion coefficient of Uranus, determined from occultation experiments, was found to be in the range 10,000-100,000 sq cm/sec, the lowest value amongst the major planets; this implies relatively sluggish vertical mixing. Another major difference from Saturn and Jupiter is in the fact that stable hydrocarbon products (C2H2 and C2H6) in the Uranus atmosphere begin to condense at around 5-10 mb level, resulting in the production of haze in the lower stratosphere.

Atreya, S. K.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Estimation of the reaction rate for the formation of CH3O from H + H2CO - Implications for chemistry in the solar system

Troe's (1977) approximate theory is presently used in conjunction with transition state theory to estimate the rate coefficient of the reaction by which CO is reduced to CH4; attention is given to the role that may be played in the reduction process by the formation of the CH3O radical from H + H2CO. Attention is given to the implications of such a reaction (1) for the CO chemistry on Jupiter and within the solar nebula, (2) for the interpretation of such experimental results as those of Bar-Nun and Shaviv (1975) and Bar-Nun and Chang (1983), and (3) for organic synthesis in the prebiotic terrestrial atmosphere.

Yung, Yuk L.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Abundances in Comet Halley at the time of the spacecraft encounters

Spectrophotometric observations of Comet Halley obtained in March 1986 at the time of the spacecraft encounters with the comet are described, and the column densities derived from the integrated emission band fluxes are presented. The scale lengths are determined from the spatial profiles of the observed species. Production rates are derived and the parent identities and abundance ratios of the studied species are discussed. The data indicate that the abundance of the primordial condensate NH3 comprises about 0.2 percent of the total volatile fraction of the comet nucleus. The ratio of production rates Q(NH2)/Q(H2O) = 0.003 indicates that Q(NH3)/Q(H2O) is roughly 0.3 percent, which is nearly 10 times lower than the value determined from Giotto ion mass spectrometer data. The production rate Q(CH)/Q(H2O) of 0.007 and the CH spatial profile indicate that CH cannot derive entirely from direct photodissociation of CH4.

Wyckoff, Susan↗
NASA NTRS1988

Response function of a tunable diode laser spectrometer from an iterative deconvolution procedure

A deconvolution procedure commonly used for resolution enhancement of spectra has been applied to the determination of the response function of a tunable diode laser spectrometer. The method is sufficiently fast and simple for routine application when correcting for nonnegligible instrumental broadening. Absolute linestrengths of CH4 in the 1327/cm region and line positions of HNO3 in the 1335/cm region, measured with the aid of the deconvolution technique, are reported here.

May, Randy D.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Infrared measurements of column abundances of several trace gases in the Antarctic atmosphere

Atmospheric emission measurements were made in 1978 from an LC 130 aircraft from Point Mugu, CA, to McMurdo Station, Antarctica, and from McMurdo over the Antarctic continent on several different flights. These included a number of flights over the South Pole. In December 1980, infrared solar spectra were obtained from the ground at South Pole Station. Infrared solar spectra were also obtained from South Pole during late November and early December of 1986. These latter measurements were extended to cover additional spectral regions to obtain column densities of a number of additional constituents. The results obtained from these measurement series are reviewed and, where measurements were made during both periods, compared. Spectral absorption or emission features due to HNO3, NO, NO2, HCl, (H-16)2O, (H-18)2O, HDO, CH4, and N2O were used to obtain data on the total column abundances for these compounds.

Murcray, F. J.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Effect of computed horizontal diffusion coefficients on two-dimensional N2O model distributions

The effects of horizontal diffusion coefficients K(yy) and K(yz), computed directly from the residual circulation, on the N2O distribution in a photochemical model were investigated, using a modified version of the two-dimensional model of Guthrie et al. (1984). The residual circulation was computed using the NMC's temperature data and the heating rates reported by Rosenfield et al. (1987). As compared with the effect of the residual circulation alone, the use of horizontal diffusion coefficients produced substantial changes in the N2O distribution and increased the N2O's lifetime values by a few percent. It is suggested that trace gases, such as CH4, CFCl3, CF2Cl2, CH3Cl, and CCl4, which impact the NO(x), HO(x), and Cl(x) radical distributions and therefore ozone, will be influenced in a similar manner by the addition of more realistic diffusion fields.

Jackman, Charles H.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Methane photochemistry and methane production on Neptune

The Neptune stratosphere's methane photochemistry is presently studied by means of a numerical model in which the observed mixing ratio of methane prompts photolysis near the CH4 homopause. Haze generation by methane photochemistry has its basis in the formation of hydrocarbon ices and polyacetylenes; the hazes can furnish the requisite aerosol haze at the appropriate pressure levels required by observations of Neptune in the visible and near-IR. Comparisons of model predictions with Uranus data indicate a lower ratio of polyacetylene production to hydrocarbon ice, as well as a lower likelihood of UV postprocessing of the acetylene ice to polymers on Neptune, compared to Uranus.

Romani, P. N.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Measurements of several atmospheric gases above the South Pole in December 1986 from high-resolution 3- to 4-micron solar spectra

This paper reports the quantitative analysis of absorption features of a number of atmospheric gases in 0.02/cm resolution 3- to 4-micron solar spectra recorded at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. The measurements were obtained shortly after the austral spring ozone minimum and define, for the first time, the ambient levels of the species immediately following the breakup of the polar vortex. The retrieved total vertical column amounts in molecules per sq cm are: 2.4 + or - 0.4 x 10 to the 21st for H2(O-16), 4.5 + or - 0.5 x 10 to the 18th for H2(O-18), 3.9 + or - 0.4 x 10 to the 17th for HDO, 2.1 + or - 0.2 x 10 to the 19th for CH4, 5.1 + or - 0.5 x 10 to the 21st for CO2, 3.9 + or - 0.4 x 10 to the 18th for N2O, and 3.7 + or - 0.5 x 10 to the 15th for C2H6. Identification of (C-12)H3D absorption features and a search for H2CO absorption in the spectral data are also described.

Goldman, Aaron↗
NASA NTRS1988

Accretional heating of the satellites of Saturn and Uranus

A model developed specifically for accretional heating of small icy satellites of massive planets was used to investigate the effects of various parameters on the accretional heating of the Saturn and Uranus satellites. It was shown that accretional heating is completely dominated by cisplanetary impactors, with substantial deposition of heat occurring well below a satellite's surface. Three parameters that have large uncertainties were found to affect accretional temperature profile: the Safronov parameter for cisplanetary impactors, the fraction of impactor energy deposited below the surface, and the exponent in the impactor size-distribution equation. For most satellites, the depth of maximum heating and the maximum temperature reached have smooth positive dependences on satellite size. Accretional heating of these satellites is insufficient to melt H2O ice, but, if NH3 or CH4 are present, accretional heating may produce a warm buoyant mobile zone tens of kilometers below the surface.

Squyres, Steven W.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Methane line parameters from 3700 to 4136/cm

The positions and strengths of about 1900 absorption lines of methane between 3700 and 4136/cm were measured experimentally to provide a reference line list for the identification of weak CH4 features in planetary spectra. The line parameters were obtained at room temperature with accuracies of 0.0002-0.003/cm for positions and + or - 3-40 percent for strengths using spectra recorded at 0.011/cm resolution (unapodized) with a Fourier transform spectrometer at Kitt Peak National Observatory/National Solar Observatory. Individual line strengths range from 0.00002-0.013/sq cm per atm at room temperature, and the sum of the observed strengths is 1.42/sq cm per atm at 297 K. All measurements are reported in natural isotopic abundance.

Brown, Linda R.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Global climate changes as forecast by Goddard Institute for Space Studies three-dimensional model

The global climate effects of time-dependent atmospheric trace gas and aerosol variations are simulated by NASA-Goddard's three-dimensional climate model II, which possesses 8 x 10-deg horizontal resolution, for the cases of a 100-year control run and three different atmospheric composition scenarios in which trace gas growth is respectively a continuation of current exponential trends, a reduced linear growth, and a rapid curtailment of emissions due to which net climate forcing no longer increases after the year 2000. The experiments begin in 1958, run to the present, and encompass measured or estimated changes in CO2, CH4, N2O, chlorofluorocarbons, and stratospheric aerosols. It is shown that the greenhouse warming effect may be clearly identifiable in the 1990s.

Hansen, J.↗