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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.

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A Model for the Effectiveness of Aircraft Alerting and Warning Systems

The effectiveness of an alerting system with a single alert was analyzed. The pilot's decision behavior is modeled by the theory of signal detection and therefore accounts for different strengths of cross check information and different pilot criteria. The model includes the effects of the alerting and warning system (CAWS) error rate; the pilot's past experience with the CAWS accuracy; his reliance on the CAWS rather than independent monitoring; missed alerts; and adoption of a minimum error or Neyman-Pearson objective rather than minimum cost objective. It is showwn that for rare events: (1) the expected cost is greatly increased if the pilot ignores the a posteriori information in the existence of an alert; (2) the expected cost is insensitive to CAWS Type 1 errors; and (3) the expected cost is sensitive to CAWS type 2 errors only when the cross check information is ambiguous.

Curry, R. E.↗

Relationship between circum-Arctic atmospheric wave patterns and large-scale wildfires in boreal summer

Long-term assessment of severe wildfires and associated air pollution and related climate patterns in and around the Arctic is essential for assessing healthy human life status. To examine the relationships, we analyzed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) modern-era retrospective analysis for research and applications, version 2 (MERRA-2). Our investigation based on this state-of-the-art atmospheric reanalysis data reveals that 13 out of the 20 months with the highest PM2.5 (corresponding to the highly elevated organic carbon in the particulate organic matter [POM] form) monthly mean mass concentration over the Arctic for 2003–2017 were all in summer (July and August), during which POM of ⩾0.5 μg/cu. m and PM2.5 were positively correlated. This correlation suggests that high PM2.5 in the Arctic is linked to large wildfire contributions and characterized by significant anticyclonic anomalies (i.e. clockwise atmospheric circulation) with anomalous surface warmth and drier conditions over Siberia and subpolar North America, in addition to Europe. A similar climate pattern was also identified through an independent regression analysis for the July and August mean data between the same atmospheric variables and the sign-reversed Scandinavian pattern index. We named this pattern of recent atmospheric circulation anomalies the circum-Arctic wave (CAW) pattern as a manifestation of eastward group-velocity propagation of stationary Rossby waves (i.e. large-scale atmospheric waves). The CAW induces concomitant development of warm anticyclonic anomalies over Europe, Siberia, Alaska, and Canada, as observed in late June 2019. Surprisingly, the extended regression analysis of the 1980–2017 period revealed that the CAW pattern was not prominent before 2003. Understanding the CAW pattern under future climate change and global warming would lead to better prediction of co-occurrences of European heatwaves and large-scale wildfires with air pollution over Siberia, Alaska, and Canada in and around the Arctic in summer.

wildfire↗

Integrator Windup Protection-Techniques and a STOVL Aircraft Engine Controller Application

Integrators are included in the feedback loop of a control system to eliminate the steady state errors in the commanded variables. The integrator windup problem arises if the control actuators encounter operational limits before the steady state errors are driven to zero by the integrator. The typical effects of windup are large system oscillations, high steady state error, and a delayed system response following the windup. In this study, methods to prevent the integrator windup are examined to provide Integrator Windup Protection (IW) for an engine controller of a Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) aircraft. An unified performance index is defined to optimize the performance of the Conventional Anti-Windup (CAW) and the Modified Anti-Windup (MAW) methods. A modified Genetic Algorithm search procedure with stochastic parameter encoding is implemented to obtain the optimal parameters of the CAW scheme. The advantages and drawbacks of the CAW and MAW techniques are discussed and recommendations are made for the choice of the IWP scheme, given some characteristics of the system.

KrishnaKumar, K.↗

A comparison of two multi-variable integrator windup protection schemes

Two methods are examined for limit and integrator wind-up protection for multi-input, multi-output linear controllers subject to actuator constraints. The methods begin with an existing linear controller that satisfies the specifications for the nominal, small perturbation, linear model of the plant. The controllers are formulated to include an additional contribution to the state derivative calculations. The first method to be examined is the multi-variable version of the single-input, single-output, high gain, Conventional Anti-Windup (CAW) scheme. Except for the actuator limits, the CAW scheme is linear. The second scheme to be examined, denoted the Modified Anti-Windup (MAW) scheme, uses a scalar to modify the magnitude of the controller output vector while maintaining the vector direction. The calculation of the scalar modifier is a nonlinear function of the controller outputs and the actuator limits. In both cases the constrained actuator is tracked. These two integrator windup protection methods are demonstrated on a turbofan engine control system with five measurements, four control variables, and four actuators. The closed-loop responses of the two schemes are compared and contrasted during limit operation. The issue of maintaining the direction of the controller output vector using the Modified Anti-Windup scheme is discussed and the advantages and disadvantages of both of the IWP methods are presented.

Mattern, Duane↗

The Effects of Aviation Weather Information Systems on General Aviation Weather Information Systems on General Pilots' Workload

My work at NASA Langley has focused around Aviation Weather Information CAWING displays. The majority of my time at LYRIC has been spent on the Workload and Relative Position (WaRP) Study. The goal of this project is to determine how an AWIN display at various positions within the cockpit affects pilot performance and workload. The project is being conducted in Languages Cessna 206H research aircraft. During the past year the design of the experiment was finalized and approved. Despite facing several delays the data collection was completed in early February. Alter the completion of the data collection an extensive data entry task began. This required recording air speed, altitude, course heading, bank angle, and vertical speed information from videos of the primary flight displays. This data was then used to determine root mean square error (RMSE) for each experimental condition. In addition to the performance data (RMSE) taken from flight path deviation, the study also collected data on pilot;s accuracy in reporting weather information, and a subjective rating of workload from the pilot. The data for this experiment is currently being analyzed. Overall the current experiment should help to determine potential costs and benefits associated with AWIN displays. The data will be used to determine if a private pilot can safely fly a general aviation aircraft while operating a weather display. Clearly a display that adds to the pilot#s already heavy workload represents a potential problem. The study will compare the use of an AWIN display to conventional means of acquiring weather data. The placement of the display within the cockpit (i.e., either on the yoke, kneeboard, or panel) will be also compared in terms of workload, performance, and pilot preference.

Scerbo, Mark↗

Backstop: Shuttle Will Fly with Outstanding Waivers; New Oversight Eases Conflicts on Safety

he space shuttle Discovery is carrying some 300 waivers to technical specifications as it enters the home stretch of its planned return to flight next month. There were about 6,000 waivers in place when Columbia crashed. Shuttle managers say they are working to reduce the number of waivers remaining by fixing the problems they highlight, a change prompted by the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. In the wake of the accident, NASA has heeded the CAWS recommendation that waivers be the responsibility of an "independent technical authority" (ITA), rather than the shuttle program itself. To carry out the recommendation of the CAIB-which found an inherent conflict of interest in having the same managers make decisions about cost, schedule and safety-then-Administrator Sean O'Keefe designated the agency's chief engineer as the formal ITA. He is responsible for setting, maintaining and granting waivers across the agency. In mid-January, Fred Gregory, then O'Keefe's deputy and now his acting replacement, launched the ITA within NASA under Chief Engineer Rex Geveden, the former program manager on the Gravity Probe B experiment.

Morring, Frank, Jr.↗

Correction to "Influence of Dust and Black Carbon on the Snow Albedo in the NASA Goddard Earth Observing System Version 5 Land Surface Model"

The website information describing the forcing meteorological data used for the land surface model (LSM) simulation, which were observed at an Automated Meteorological Station CAWS) at the Sapporo District Meteorological Observatory maintained by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), was missing from the text. The 1-hourly data were obtained from the website of Kisyoutoukeijouhou (Information for available JMA-observed meteorological data in the past) on the website of JMA (in Japanese) (available at: http://www.jma.go.jpijmaimenulreport.html). The measurement height information of 59.5 m for the anemometer at the Sapporo Observatory was also obtained from the website of JMA (in Japanese) (available at: http://www.jma.go.jp/jma/menu/report.html). In addition, the converted 10-m wind speed, based on the AWS/JMA data, was further converted to a 2-m wind speed prior to its use with the land model as a usual treatment of off-line Catchment simulation. Please ignore the ice absorption data on the website mentioned in paragraph [15] which was not used for our calculations (but the data on the website was mostly the same as the estimated ice absorption coefficients by the following method because they partially used the same data by Warren [1984]). We calculated the ice absorption coefficients with the method mentioned in the same paragraph, for which some of the refractive index data by Warren [1984] were used and then interpolated between wavelengths, and also mentioned in paragraph [20] for the visible (VIS) and near-infrared (NIR) ranges. The optical data we used were interpolated between wavelengths as necessary.

Yasunari, Teppei J.↗

Abiogenic synthesis on mars.

Atmospheres capable of producing organic compounds discussed, studying abiogenic synthesis in Mars simulator

ABIOGENESIS↗

Design and physical characteristics of the Transonic Aircraft Technology (TACT) research aircraft

The Transonic Aircraft Technology (TACT) research program provided data necessary to verify aerodynamic concepts, such as the supercritical wing, and to gain the confidence required for the application of such technology to advanced high performance aircraft. An F-111A aircraft was employed as the flight test bed to provide full scale data. The data were correlated extensively with predictions based on data obtained from wind tunnel tests. An assessment of the improvement afforded at transonic speeds in drag divergence, maneuvering performance, and airplane handling qualities by the use of the supercritical wing was included in the program. Transonic flight and wind tunnel testing techniques were investigated, and specific research technologies evaluated were also summarized.

Painter, W. D.↗