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At least 1,783 records · Page 99

Validating a Monotonically-Integrated Large Eddy Simulation Code for Subsonic Jet Acoustics

The results of subsonic jet validation cases for the Naval Research Lab's Jet Engine Noise REduction (JENRE) code are reported. Two set points from the Tanna matrix, set point 3 (Ma = 0.5, unheated) and set point 7 (Ma = 0.9, unheated) are attempted on three different meshes. After a brief discussion of the JENRE code and the meshes constructed for this work, the turbulent statistics for the axial velocity are presented and compared to experimental data, with favorable results. Preliminary simulations for set point 23 (Ma = 0.5, Tj=T1 = 1.764) on one of the meshes are also described. Finally, the proposed configuration for the farfield noise prediction with JENRE's Ffowcs-Williams Hawking solver are detailed.

subsonic jet↗

Model Validation for Propulsion - On the TFNS and LES Subgrid Models for a Bluff Body Stabilized Flame

This paper summarizes the reacting results of simulating a bluff body stabilized flame experiment of Volvo Validation Rig using a releasable edition of the National Combustion Code (NCC). The turbulence models selected to investigate the configuration are the sub-grid scaled kinetic energy coupled large eddy simulation (K-LES) and the time-filtered Navier-Stokes (TFNS) simulation. The turbulence chemistry interaction used is linear eddy mixing (LEM).

Flame↗

NASA Double Asteroid Redirection Test (Dart) Trajectory Validation and Robustness

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission will be the first to test the concept of a kinetic impactor. Several studies have been made on asteroid redirection and impact mitigation, however, to this date no mission tested the proposed concepts. An impact study on a representative body allows the measurement of the effects on the target's orbit and physical structure. With this goal, DART's objective is to verify the effectiveness of the kinetic impact concept for planetary defense. The spacecraft uses solar electric propulsion to escape Earth, flyby (138971) 2001 CB21 for impart rehearsal, and impact the secondary body of the (65803) Didymos system. This work focuses on the interplanetary trajectory design part of the mission with the validation of the baseline trajectory, performance comparison to other mission objectives, and assessment of the baseline robustness to missed thrust events. Results show a good performance of the selected trajectory for different mission objectives: latest possible escape date, maximum kinetic energy on impact, shortest possible time of flight, and use of an Earth swing-by. The baseline trajectory was shown to be robust to a missed thrust with 1% of fuel margin being enough to recover the mission for failures of more than 14 days.

design↗

NASA Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) Trajectory Validation and Robutness

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission will be the first to test the concept of a kinetic impactor. Several studies have been made on asteroid redirection and impact mitigation, however, to this date no mission tested the proposed concepts. An impact study on a representative body allows the measurement of the effects on the target's orbit and physical structure. With this goal, DART's objective is to verify the effectiveness of the kinetic impact concept for planetary defense. The spacecraft uses solar electric propulsion to escape Earth, fly by (138971) 2001 CB21 for impact rehearsal, and impact Didymos-B, the secondary body of the binary (65803) Didymos system. This work focuses on the heliocentric transfer design part of the mission with the validation of the baseline trajectory, performance comparison to other mission objectives, and assessment of the baseline robustness to missed thrust events. Results show a good performance of the selected trajectory for different mission objectives: latest possible escape date, maximum kinetic energy on impact, shortest possible time of flight, and use of an Earth swing-by. The baseline trajectory was shown to be robust to a missed thrust with 1% of fuel margin being enough to recover the mission for failures of more than 14 days.

optimization↗

Validation of GNSS Multipath Model for Space Proximity Operations Using the Hubble Servicing Mission 4 Experiment

In the rendezvous and docking of spacecraft, GNSS signals can reflect off the target vehicle and cause prohibitively large errors in the chaser vehicle receiver at ranges below 200 meters. It has been proposed that the additional ray paths, or multipath, be used as a source of information about the state of the target relative to the receiver. With Hubble Servicing Mission 4 as a case study, electromagnetic ray tracing has been used to construct a model of reflected signals from known geometry. Oscillations in the prompt correlator power due to multipath, known as multipath fading, are studied as a means of model validation. Agreement between the measured and simulated multipath fading serves to confirm the presence of signals reflected off the target spacecraft that might be used for relative navigation.

Ashman, Ben↗

Validation of a Manually Oscillating Chair for In-The-Field Assessment of Dynamic Visual Acuity on Crewmembers Within Hours of Returning from Long-Duration Spaceflight

Due to the deconditioned state of crewmembers in the initial hours after landing, it is safer and more practical to perform a vision test while seated in a chair versus walking on a treadmill. The purpose of this study was to validate the ability of a manually operated oscillating chair to produce the oscillatory frequency and displacement equivalent of walking on a treadmill at a 4 mph pace. A fast Fourier transform (FFT)was performed on the vertical trunk acceleration to compare the peak and spread of the distribution of oscillation frequencies for each oscillating condition. Peak oscillation frequencies achieved with the manual chair were lower and more variable than those of treadmill walking and the automatic chair. This can mostly be attributed to operator fatigue. However, DVA scores across conditions were not significantly different, indicating that the manual chair can provide adequate vertical oscillation frequency and displacement with the added advantage of being portable enough for testing outside a laboratory. Furthermore the automatic chair very closely matches the oscillation frequency of treadmill walking, making it an ideal method for testing DVA in a laboratory setting.

Kreutzberg, G. A.↗

Airborne Hyperspectral Sensing of Monitoring Harmful Algal Blooms in the Great Lakes Region: System Calibration and Validation

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) in Lake Erie have been prominent in recent years. The bloom in 2014 reached a severe level causing the State of Ohio to declare a state of emergency. At that time NASA Glenn Research Center was requested by stakeholders to help monitor the blooms in Lake Erie. Glenn conducted flights twice a week in August and September and assembled and distributed the HAB information to the shoreline water resource managers using its hyperspectral imaging sensor (in development since 2006), the S􀂱3 Viking aircraft, and funding resources from the NASA Headquarters Earth Science Division. Since then, the State of Ohio, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have elevated their funding and activities for observing, monitoring, and addressing the root cause of HABs. Also, the communities and stakeholders have persistently requested NASA Glenn􀂶s participation in HAB observation. Abundant field campaigns and sample analyses have been funded by Ohio and NOAA, which provided a great opportunity for NASA to advance science and airborne hyperspectral remote sensing economically. Capitalizing on this opportunity to advance the science of algal blooms and remote sensing, NASA Glenn conducted the Airborne Hyperspectral Observation of harmful algal blooms campaign in 2015 that was, in many respects, twice as large as the 2014 campaign. Focusing mostly on Lake Erie, but also including other small inland lakes and the Ohio River, the campaign was conducted in partnership with a large number of partners specializing in marine science and remote sensing. Airborne hyperspectral observation of HABs holds promise to distinguish potential HABs from nuisance blooms, determine their concentrations, and delineate their movement in an augmented spatial and temporal resolution and under clouds􀂲all of which are excellent complements to satellite observations. Working with collaborators at several Ohio and Michigan institutions as well as one in South Dakota and one in Alabama, this effort was able to provide next-day georeferenced estimates of cyanobacteria and scum concentrations. Very prompt processing and analysis of the hyperspectral imagery is necessary for the information to be acted upon. For example, a next-day report of an overflight over the Ohio River indicated that a bloom could be present as far downstream as the Cincinnati intake, but the Ohio EPA had not received visual reports of a bloom that far downstream. Water samples were obtained at the Cincinnati water intake, based on the flight data, and detected microcystins in the source water. The flight data helped State and municipal authorities realize the potential extent of that bloom, and triggered response sampling, before the visual river-wide scums started forming. The present document describes the process that was utilized to take raw remote sensing data and create information products; this includes system calibration and validation, efforts to correct atmospheric effects, and algorithms that produce the data products. Furthermore, successful research into improved algorithms for expanding the capability to delineate in water constituents is included. Finally, comparisons that show expected relationships between ground-based measurements and hyperspectral imager version 2 (HSI2) data results are presented, giving confidence in the remote sensing products.

Hyperspectral Imaging↗

GOCI Yonsei Aerosol Retrieval (YAER) Algorithm and Validation During the DRAGON-NE Asia 2012 Campaign

The Geostationary Ocean Color Imager (GOCI) onboard the Communication, Ocean, and Meteorological Satellite (COMS) is the first multi-channel ocean color imager in geostationary orbit. Hourly GOCI top-of-atmosphere radiance has been available for the retrieval of aerosol optical properties over East Asia since March 2011. This study presents improvements made to the GOCI Yonsei Aerosol Retrieval (YAER) algorithm together with validation results during the Distributed Regional Aerosol Gridded Observation Networks - Northeast Asia 2012 campaign (DRAGONNE Asia 2012 campaign). The evaluation during the spring season over East Asia is important because of high aerosol concentrations and diverse types of Asian dust and haze. Optical properties of aerosol are retrieved from the GOCI YAER algorithm including aerosol optical depth (AOD) at 550 nm, fine-mode fraction (FMF) at 550 nm, single-scattering albedo (SSA) at 440 nm, Angstrom exponent (AE) between 440 and 860 nm, and aerosol type. The aerosol models are created based on a global analysis of the Aerosol Robotic Networks (AERONET) inversion data, and covers a broad range of size distribution and absorptivity, including nonspherical dust properties. The Cox-Munk ocean bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) model is used over ocean, and an improved minimum reflectance technique is used over land. Because turbid water is persistent over the Yellow Sea, the land algorithm is used for such cases. The aerosol products are evaluated against AERONET observations and MODIS Collection 6 aerosol products retrieved from Dark Target (DT) and Deep Blue (DB) algorithms during the DRAGON-NE Asia 2012 campaign conducted from March to May 2012. Comparison of AOD from GOCI and AERONET resulted in a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.881 and a linear regression equation with GOCI AOD = 1.083 x AERONET AOD - 0.042. The correlation between GOCI and MODIS AODs is higher over ocean than land. GOCI AOD shows better agreement with MODIS DB than MODIS DT. The other GOCI YAER products (AE, FMF, and SSA) show lower correlation with AERONET than AOD, but still show some skills for qualitative use.

Choi, Myungje↗

Validation of EO-1 Hyperion and Advanced Land Imager Using the Radiometric Calibration Test Site at Railroad Valley, Nevada

The Earth-Observing One (EO-1) satellite was launched in 2000. Radiometric calibration of Hyperion and the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) has been performed throughout the mission lifetime using various techniques that include ground-based vicarious calibration, pseudo-invariant calibration sites, and also the moon. The EO-1 mission is nearing its useful lifetime, and this work seeks to validate the radiometric calibration of Hyperion and ALI from 2013 until the satellite is decommissioned. Hyperion and ALI have been routinely collecting data at the automated Radiometric Calibration Test Site [RadCaTS/Railroad Valley (RRV)] since launch. In support of this study, the frequency of the acquisitions at RadCaTS has been significantly increased since 2013, which provides an opportunity to analyze the radiometric stability and accuracy during the final stages of the EO-1 mission. The analysis of Hyperion and ALI is performed using a suite of ground instrumentation that measures the atmosphere and surface throughout the day. The final product is an estimate of the top-of-atmosphere (TOA) spectral radiance, which is compared to Hyperion and ALI radiances. The results show that Hyperion agrees with the RadCaTS predictions to within 5% in the visible and near-infrared (VNIR) and to within 10% in the shortwave infrared (SWIR). The 2013-2014 ALI results show agreement to within 6% in the VNIR and 7.5% in the SWIR bands. A cross comparison between ALI and the Operational Land Imager (OLI) using RadCaTS as a transfer source shows agreement of 3%-6% during the period of 2013-2014.

Czapla-Myers, Jeffrey↗

Veggie and the VEG-01 Hardware Validation Test

This presentation presents a brief overview of KSC plant science hardware for space and then details the Veggie hardware and the VEG-01 hardware validation test. The test results and future plans are discussed.

Massa, Gioia↗

Applying Standard Independent Verification and Validation (IVV) Techniques Within an Agile Framework: Is There a Compatibility Issue?

Agile methods have gained wide acceptance over the past several years, to the point that they are now a standard management and execution approach for small-scale software development projects. While conventional Agile methods are not generally applicable to large multi-year and mission-critical systems, Agile hybrids are now being developed (such as SAFe) to exploit the productivity improvements of Agile while retaining the necessary process rigor and coordination needs of these projects. From the perspective of Independent Verification and Validation (IVV), however, the adoption of these hybrid Agile frameworks is becoming somewhat problematic. Hence, we find it prudent to question the compatibility of conventional IVV techniques with (hybrid) Agile practices.This paper documents our investigation of (a) relevant literature, (b) the modification and adoption of Agile frameworks to accommodate the development of large scale, mission critical systems, and (c) the compatibility of standard IVV techniques within hybrid Agile development frameworks. Specific to the latter, we found that the IVV methods employed within a hybrid Agile process can be divided into three groups: (1) early lifecycle IVV techniques that are fully compatible with the hybrid lifecycles, (2) IVV techniques that focus on tracing requirements, test objectives, etc. are somewhat incompatible, but can be tailored with a modest effort, and (3) IVV techniques involving an assessment requiring artifact completeness that are simply not compatible with hybrid Agile processes, e.g., those that assume complete requirement specification early in the development lifecycle.

Agile↗

Unmanned Aircraft Systems Minimum Operations Performance Standards End-to-End Verification and Validation (E2-V2) Simulation

As Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) make their way to mainstream aviation operations within the National Airspace System (NAS), research efforts are underway to develop a safe and effective environment for their integration into the NAS. Detect and Avoid (DAA) systems are required to account for the lack of "eyes in the sky" due to having no human on-board the aircraft. The current NAS relies on pilot's vigilance and judgement to remain Well Clear (CFR 14 91.113) of other aircraft. RTCA SC-228 has defined DAA Well Clear (DAAWC) to provide a quantified Well Clear volume to allow systems to be designed and measured against. Extended research efforts have been conducted to understand and quantify system requirements needed to support a UAS pilot's ability to remain well clear of other aircraft. The efforts have included developing and testing sensor, algorithm, alerting, and display requirements. More recently, sensor uncertainty and uncertainty mitigation strategies have been evaluated. This paper discusses results and lessons learned from an End-to-End Verification and Validation (E2-V2) simulation study of a DAA system representative of RTCA SC-228's proposed Phase I DAA Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS). NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) was called upon to develop a system that evaluates a specific set of encounters, in a variety of geometries, with end-to-end DAA functionality including the use of sensor and tracker models, a sensor uncertainty mitigation model, DAA algorithmic guidance in both vertical and horizontal maneuvering, and a pilot model which maneuvers the ownship aircraft to remain well clear from intruder aircraft, having received collective input from the previous modules of the system. LaRC developed a functioning batch simulation and added a sensor/tracker model from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) William J. Hughes Technical Center, an in-house developed sensor uncertainty mitigation strategy, and implemented a pilot model similar to one from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Lincoln Laboratory (MIT/LL). The resulting simulation provides the following key parameters, among others, to evaluate the effectiveness of the MOPS DAA system: severity of loss of well clear (SLoWC), alert scoring, and number of increasing alerts (alert jitter). The technique, results, and lessons learned from a detailed examination of DAA system performance over specific test vectors and encounter cases during the simulation experiment will be presented in this paper.

Ghatas, Rania W.↗

Model Validation for Propulsion - On the TFNS and LES Subgrid Models for a Bluff Body Stabilized Flame

With advances in computational power and availability of distributed computers, the use of even the most complex of turbulent chemical interaction models in combustors and coupled analysis of combustors and turbines is now possible and more and more affordable for realistic geometries. Recent more stringent emission standards have enticed the development of more fuel-efficient and low-emission combustion system for aircraft gas turbine applications. It is known that the NOx emissions tend to increase dramatically with increasing flame temperature. It is well known that the major difficulty, when modeling the turbulence-chemistry interaction, lies in the high non-linearity of the reaction rate expressed in terms of the temperature and species mass fractions. The transport filtered density function (FDF) model and the linear eddy model (LEM), which both use local instantaneous values of the temperature and mass fractions, have been shown to often provide more accurate results of turbulent combustion. In the present, the time-filtered Navier-Stokes (TFNS) approach capable of capturing unsteady flow structures important for turbulent mixing in the combustion chamber and two different subgrid models, LEM-like and EUPDF-like, capable of emulating the major processes occurring in the turbulence-chemistry interaction will be used to perform reacting flow simulations of a selected test case. The selected test case from the Volvo Validation Rig was documented by Sjunnesson.

bluff body↗

Validation of a Thermo-Ablative Model of Elastomeric Internal Insulation Materials

In thermo-ablative material modeling, as in many fields of analysis, the quality of the existing models significantly exceeds that of the experimental data required for their validation. In an effort to narrow this gap, a laboratory-scale internal insulation test bed was developed that exposes insulation samples to realistic solid rocket motor (SRM) internal environments while being instrumented to record real-time rates of both model inputs (i.e., chamber pressure, total surface heat flux, and radiative heat flux) as well as model outputs (i.e., material decomposition depths (MDDs) and in-depth material temperatures). In this work, the measured SRM internal environment parameters were used in conjunction with equilibrium thermochemistry codes as inputs to one-dimensional thermo-ablative models of the PBINBR and CFEPDM insulation samples used in the lab-scale test firings. The computed MDD histories were then compared with those deduced from real-time X-ray radiography of the insulation samples, and the calculated in-depth temperatures were compared with those measured by embedded thermocouples. The results of this exercise emphasize the challenges of modeling and testing elastomeric materials in SRM environments while illuminating the path forward to improved fidelity.

Martin, Heath T.↗

Parameter Validation for Evaluation of Spaceflight Hardware Reusability

Within recent years, there has been an influx of companies around the world pursuing reusable systems for space flight. Much like NASA, many of these new entrants are learning that reusable systems are complex and difficult to acheive. For instance, in its first attempts to retrieve spaceflight hardware for future reuse, SpaceX unsuccessfully tried to land on a barge at sea, resulting in a crash-landing. As this new generation of launch developers continues to develop concepts for reusable systems, having a systematic approach for determining the most effective systems for reuse is paramount. Three factors that influence the effective implementation of reusability are cost, operability and reliability. Therefore, a method that integrates these factors into the decision-making process must be utilized to adequately determine whether hardware used in space flight should be reused or discarded. Previous research has identified seven features that contribute to the successful implementation of reusability for space flight applications, defined reusability for space flight applications, highlighted the importance of reusability, and presented areas that hinder successful implementation of reusability. The next step is to ensure that the list of reusability parameters previously identified is comprehensive, and any duplication is either removed or consolidated. The characteristics to judge the seven features as good indicators for successful reuse are identified and then assessed using multiattribute decision making. Next, discriminators in the form of metrics or descriptors are assigned to each parameter. This paper explains the approach used to evaluate these parameters, define the Measures of Effectiveness (MOE) for reusability, and quantify these parameters. Using the MOEs, each parameter is assessed for its contribution to the reusability of the hardware. Potential data sources needed to validate the approach will be identified.

Childress-Thompson, Rhonda↗

Unmanned Aircraft Systems Detect and Avoid System: End-to-End Verification and Validation Simulation Study of Minimum Operations Performance Standards for Integrating Unmanned Aircraft into the National Airspace System

As Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) make their way to mainstream aviation operations within the National Airspace System (NAS), research efforts are underway to develop a safe and effective environment for their integration into the NAS. Detect and Avoid (DAA) systems are required to account for the lack of "eyes in the sky" due to having no human on-board the aircraft. The technique, results, and lessons learned from a detailed End-to-End Verification and Validation (E2-V2) simulation study of a DAA system representative of RTCA SC-228's proposed Phase I DAA Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS), based on specific test vectors and encounter cases, will be presented in this paper.

Ghatas, Rania W.↗

Validation of a Compact Isokinetic Total Water Content Probe for Wind Tunnel Characterization at NASA Glenn Icing Research Tunnel and at NRC Ice Crystal Tunnel

A new compact isokinetic probe to measure total water content in a wind tunnel environment has been developed. The probe has been previously tested under altitude conditions. This paper presents a comprehensive validation of the probe under a range of liquid water conditions at sea level in the NASA Glenn Icing Research Tunnel and with ice crystals at sea level at the NRC wind tunnel. The compact isokinetic probe is compared to tunnel calibrations and other probes.

meterological instruments↗

Validation Process for LEWICE by Use of a Navier-Stokes Solver

A research project is underway at NASA Glenn to produce computer software that can accurately predict ice growth under any meteorological conditions for any aircraft surface. This report will present results from the latest LEWICE release, version 3.5. This program differs from previous releases in its ability to model mixed phase and ice crystal conditions such as those encountered inside an engine. It also has expanded capability to use structured grids and a new capability to use results from unstructured grid flow solvers. A quantitative comparison of the results against a database of ice shapes that have been generated in the NASA Glenn Icing Research Tunnel (IRT) has also been performed. This paper will extend the comparison of ice shapes between LEWICE 3.5 and experimental data from a previous paper. Comparisons of lift and drag are made between experimentally collected data from experimentally obtained ice shapes and simulated (CFD) data on simulated (LEWICE) ice shapes. Comparisons are also made between experimentally collected and simulated performance data on select experimental ice shapes to ensure the CFD solver, FUN3D, is valid within the flight regime. The results show that the predicted results are within the accuracy limits of the experimental data for the majority of cases.

large-eddy simulations↗