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At least 1,369 records · Page 76

Magnetic field and electric current structure in the chromosphere

The three-dimensional vector magnetic field structure in the chromosphere above an active region is deduced by using high-resolution H-alpha filtergrams together with a simultaneous digital magnetogram. An analog model of the field is made with 400 metal wires representing field lines that outline the H-alpha structure. The height extent of the field is determined from vertical field-gradient observations around sunspots, from observed fibril heights, and from an assumption that the sources of the field are largely local. The computed electric currents (typically 10 mA/sq m) are found to flow in patterns not similar to observed features and not parallel to magnetic fields. Force structures correspond to observed solar features; the dynamics to be expected include: downward motion in bipolar areas in the lower chromosphere, an outflow of the outer chromosphere into the corona with radially outward flow above bipolar plage regions, and motion of arch filament systems.

Dravins, D.↗

Temperature and density structure of thermal proton flows

Thermal proton flows along magnetic field lines are an important feature of magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling. In this paper we report the results of a theoretical study of the thermal structure of such flows. The adopted steady state model is based upon O+, H+, and electrons with self-consistent solutions for the separate O+, H+, and electron temperatures, the O+ and H+ densities and the H+ drift velocity. Through investigation of a number of parameters affecting the model, it is shown that Joule heating arising from the flow of H+ through O+ preferentially heats H+, so that the H+ temperature is substantially greater than the O+ temperature. Low O+ densities characteristic of the trough region appear to give high H+/O+ temperature ratios. Typical O+ densities characteristic of polar wind flow regions give moderate H+/O3 temperature ratios. The Mach number of H+ outflow is substantially reduced in the present models in comparison with the older fixed temperature calculations.

Banks, P. M.↗

Test techniques for obtaining off-nominal compressor data during engine tests

Several unique techniques and related devices are in use at the Lewis Research Center for off-design testing of fan and compressor sections in full-scale jet engines. The devices presented not only permit a wide range of experimental conditions but also minimize downtime for hardware changes. The techniques involve use of such devices as inlet pressure distortion jets, a hydrogen burner for inlet temperature distortions, fan back pressure jets to simulate a variable area nozzle, and either an inflow-outflow bleed system or a fuel spurt system to alter compressor discharge pressure.

Biesiadny, T. J.↗

High resolution Lyman alpha observations of comet Kohoutek /1973f/ near perihelion

The hydrogen Lyman-alpha emission line of comet Kohoutek (1973f) was observed and resolved by the high-dispersion Skylab/ATM S082B spectrograph shortly after the comet's perihelion passage (29-31 December 1973). The Lyman-alpha line width was determined from three different exposures of the comet nuclear region. A simplified analysis of the optical thickness effects showed that this line width is consistent with the established hydrogen outflow velocity of 8 to 10 km/sec.

Keller, H. U.↗

Skylab ultraviolet stellar spectra - Variation of intensity and structure of strong lines with temperature and luminosity

Objective-prism spectra at ultraviolet wavelengths extending to 1300 A were photographed during the three Skylab missions in a survey covering 9 percent of the sky. Several spectral features, notably resonance lines of C IV and Si IV, show striking variations with stellar temperature and luminosity. Marked P Cygni profiles in C IV and Si IV, indicative of significant outflow of mass, appear in the spectra of all stars with bolometric magnitude brighter than -8.4.

Henize, K. G.↗

Measurements of capillary system degradation

The effects of vibration, flow transients, and warm gas pressurization on capillary acquisition system performance were evaluated. The degradation observed under wide band random and high frequency sinusoidal vibration was of a substantially different nature from that obtained under low frequency sinusoidal vibration. With the former, ingestion of small gas bubbles into the liquid region was correlated by a hydrostatic model, while the capillary stability was destroyed and liquid was lost from the liquid region with the latter. No degradation was observed as a result of flow transients in a flight-type multichannel screen device, but it was observed in a transparent laboratory device. Liquid hydrogen outflow tests were conducted with a multilayer dual-screen-liner system with both helium and hydrogen pressurant gases. The tendency towards dryout of the device with hydrogen pressurant was found to increase with increasing pressurant temperature and length of prepressurization period. Dryout did not occur with helium pressurant.

Warren, R. P.↗

A numerical investigation of severe thunderstorm gust fronts

A numerical model was developed to simulate the evolution and structure of severe thunderstorm gust fronts. The model is a non-hydrostatic, fine resolution, cross-sectional primitive equation model. Two-dimensional horizontal and vertical equations of motion, the continuity equation, and the thermodynamic energy equation were utilized. It was shown that two dominant factors influencing gust front configuration are surface friction and the solenoidal field coincident with the front. It is suggested that solenoidal accelerations oppose the deceleration of surface friction. After a downdraft is initiated in the model, these opposing tendencies soon reach a balance and the gust front achieves a quasi-steady configuration. Thus, the experiments indicate that surface friction does not induce a cycle of front formation and collapse. In addition, the effect of evaporative cooling in producing a vigorous downdraft was parameterized by a local cooling function. Greater cooling in the downdraft results in a more intense gust front that exhibits stronger wind maximums and greater shears. The ambient air stability was shown to be an important factor influencing the depth of the cold outflow.

Mitchell, K. E.↗

Gravity shear waves atop the cirrus layer of intense convective storms

Recent visual satellite photographs of certain intense convective storms have revealed concentric wave patterns. A model for the generation and growth of these waves is proposed. The proposed initial generating mechanism is similar to the effect noticed when a pebble is dropped into a calm pond. The penetration of the tropopause by overshooting convection is analogous to the pebble's penetration of the water's surface. The model for wave growth involves instability due to the wind shear resulting from the cirrus outflow. This model is based on an equation for the waves' phase speed which is similar to the Helmholtz equation. It, however, does not assume an incompressible atmosphere, but rather assumes density is a logarithmic function of height. Finally, the model is evaluated on the two mid-latitude and three tropical cases. The data indicate that shearing instability may be a significant factor in the appearance of these waves.

Stobie, J. G.↗

A review of 3U 1700-37 = HD 153919

X-ray, spectroscopic, and photometric data for the source are reviewed briefly. Some points of controversy and difficulty are discussed. The X-ray source 3U 1700-37 is moderately strong (approximately 100 Uhuru counts) and shows a long eclipse, with a period of 3.412 days. The X-rays are attenuated near 0.5 phase, and show a very wide gradual decrease on either side of the total eclipse. The low-energy cutoff is the strongest of all the X-ray binaries. These characteristics are all qualitatively compatible with the optical star's, which represent an extreme in several ways: (1) the primary is an extreme star with large mass outflow through a spherically symmetric stellar wind; (2) it is the hottest of all X-ray binary primaries (with possible exception of Cen X-3); and (3) the mass ratio is very high and the relative separation of the stars is low.

Hutchins, J. B.↗

Photosynthetic and respiratory activity in germfree higher plant species

Equipment developed for the study of gas exchange in germfree plants is described. The equipment includes a gas exchange chamber to house the plant under study, a gas feed assembly to introduce and remove gas from the chamber, and a clinostat to rotate the apparatus. Fluorescent and incandescent lights are used to illuminate the chamber and a sealed plastic barrier is used to isolate the potting soil from the chamber atmosphere. The gas outflow from the chamber can be diverted to an infrared CO2 analyzer. The performance of the system was evaluated.

Source record↗

Observations of comet Kohoutek /1973f/ with a ground-based Fabry-Perot spectrometer

Observations of H-alpha, H2O+, and forbidden O I emission lines from comet Kohoutek were made during a 2-month period around perihelion. Analyses of H-alpha line profiles and line intensities indicate that the mean outflow velocity of the hydrogen atoms was 7.8 (+ or - 0.2) km/sec and that the hydrogen atom production rate typically varied (0.4 to 1.4) times 10 to the 29-th power per sec for comet-sun distances between 1 AU and 0.4 AU, respectively. The identification of an H2O+ emission feature in certain H-alpha scans indicates that the H2O ions were moving in a tailward direction with a velocity of 20 to 40 km/sec with respect to the comet nucleus. An upper limit of 1 part in 100 was found for the D/H ratio in the cometary atomic hydrogen cloud.

Huppler, D.↗

Evidence for mass loss at moderate to high velocity in Be stars

Ultraviolet spectra of intermediate resolution have been obtained with Copernicus for 12 objects classified as Be or shell stars and for 19 additional early B dwarfs. Some of these spectra show marked asymmetries in certain resonance lines, especially the Si IV doublet at 1400 A, indicating the presence in some cases of outflowing material with maximum velocities of nearly 1000 km/s. Direct evidence for mass loss at these velocities is seen for the first time in dwarf stars as late as B1.5; the only objects later than B0.5 which show this effect are Be or shell stars. Among the stars considered, there is a correlation between the presence of mass-loss effects and projected rotational velocity, suggesting that the ultraviolet flux from B1-B2 dwarfs is sufficient to drive high-velocity stellar winds only if rotational effects reduce the effective gravity near the equator. The mass-loss rate for one of the most active Be stars, 59 Cyg, is crudely estimated to be one billionth or one ten-billionth of a solar mass per year. The data suggest that the extended atmospheres associated with Be-star phenomena may be formed by mass ejection.

Snow, T. P., Jr.↗

The dynamics of the intergalactic medium in the vicinity of clusters of galaxies

Numerical solutions to the problem of infall of matter into clusters of galaxies are presented. It is assumed that the universe can be described by a Friedmann cosmological model with a Hubble constant 50 km/s/Mpc. It is found that physically reasonable models having a deceleration parameter of 1/2 lead to excessive X-ray emission from clusters of galaxies. Models including a heat flux due to thermal conduction, heating of the intracluster medium by galaxy motions, and a gas outflow from the galaxies in the cluster are discussed, and the results are compared with the observational data in both the X-ray and radio bands. It is concluded that the density parameter must be less than 0.2 in order that the predicted X-ray emission not exceed that observed. No models have been found which give a good description of the observed cluster X-ray sources, with the exception of a fully adiabatic model in a high-density universe.

Lea, S. M.↗

A biological and physical oceanographic remote sensing study aboard the Calypso

The paper discusses an oceanographic remote sensing program conducted aboard the R/V Calypso in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea to provide information for correlating ocean measurements with remotely sensed observations. Remote sensors on satellites and aircraft are used as operations and experiment planning tools as well as for scientific data acquisition. Emphasis is on providing surface-truth measurements for OCS flights and on investigating the area of the Gulf affected by the outflow of the Mississippi River. The discussion covers the shipboard instrumentation, ocean color scanner data acquisition and results, NOAA/VHRR data analysis approach, and Landsat and APT/ATS as planning tools. The research effort has demonstrated the feasibility of using satellite data as a supportive method to aid an oceanographic research vessel on a near real-time basis.

Harlan, J. C.↗

A comparison of the computed and experimental three dimensional flow in a transonic compressor rotor

The three dimensional inviscid flow in a transonic compressor rotor; total pressure ratio of 1.65, has been numerically computed using MacCormack's time-marching method. This solution is compared to intra-blade static density measurements obtained by gas fluorescence. These results and comparisons illustrate the importance of three dimensional flow phenomena in determining the rotor flow field and show that while the viscous phenomena have an important influence, particularly on the outflow, the inviscid computation properly models the flow in the inlet portion of the rotor passages.

Thompkins, W. T., Jr.↗

Comments on the origin of Mercury

The ratio between the mass of condensed matter in Mercury's nebular zone and the final mass of condensed matter in the planet is calculated, and the result suggests that condensed matter equal to more than 10 times the planet's mass was lost from that zone. Five hypotheses to account for this loss are considered: (1) the temperature in Mercury's zone was appreciably higher than the suggested value of 1400 K, (2) the excess was expelled by solar mass outflow, (3) the excess was dragged down by the sun during its contraction, (4) the excess was knocked out by Jupiter-perturbed planetesimals, and (5) the excess was knocked out by earth- and Venus-perturbed planetesimals. The plausibility of each hypothesis is examined, and it is concluded that only planetesimal scattering by earth and Venus appears to be ruled out

Kaula, W. M.↗

Intensity of the Fe XV emission line corona, the level of geomagnetic activity, and the velocity of the solar wind

The method of superposed epochs is used to determine the average solar wind velocity and the Kp index following central meridian passage of coronal weak and bright features identified from OSO 7 isophotograms of the Fe XV (284 A) emission line. It is found that bright coronal regions possess magnetic fields of closed configuration, thus reducing particle escape, while coronal holes possess open magnetic field lines favorable to particle escape or enhanced outflow of the solar wind.

Bell, B.↗