SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Launch Campaign”

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.

SourceResearch connectionFrom yearThrough year

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 19 records

All sources NASA NTRS DOE OSTI

DOE OSTI2025

Ground calibration and in-flight commissioning of the Gamma-Ray and Neutron Spectrometer (GRNS) for NASA’s Psyche mission

NASA's Psyche spacecraft is currently enroute to the asteroid 16 Psyche, where it will perform an orbital investigation focused on determining the nature of the asteroid. A key part of this investigation is measurements of elemental composition to determine if the asteroid is rich in iron-nickel metal. To that end, the Psyche spacecraft payload includes a Gamma-Ray and Neutron Spectrometer (GRNS). GRNS is composed of two subsystems; a Gamma-Ray Spectrometer (GRS) with a high-purity germanium γ-ray sensor surrounded by a borated plastic scintillator Anti-Coincidence Shield (ACS), and a Neutron Spectrometer (NS) with three 3 He-filled gas proportional counters that are sensitive to different neutron energy regimes. We describe results from the pre-launch calibration campaign, along with early in-flight results from post-launch instrument commissioning. The information detailed here is focused on providing future users of GRNS data with the information needed to properly interpret the observations from the instrument.

Peplowski, Patrick N. [Johns Hopkins Univ., Baltim↗

DOE OSTI2022

2021 Annual Report: Atmospheric Radiation Measurement

In fiscal year 2021 (FY2021), the COVID-19 pandemic continued to have an impact on activities within the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility. Travel was limited, which affected field activities and forced the continuation of virtual meetings. However, the ability to travel expanded significantly through the year, bringing some return to normalcy, and throughout the year, there was a great deal of activity dedicated to advancing the facility. Because of COVID, ARM twice delayed the TRacking Aerosol Convection interactions ExpeRiment (TRACER) in the Houston, Texas, area. Originally planned to launch in the spring, TRACER started October 1, 2021, one month after the Surface Atmosphere Integrated Field Laboratory (SAIL) campaign began near Crested Butte, Colorado. ARM teams worked onsite and remotely to make sure both campaigns could launch on this new schedule that was set early in the year. Data from SAIL and TRACER will be critical to improving earth system models, each contributing to different sets of issues. SAIL measurements will provide insights into how precipitation forms and water travels through the Upper Colorado River Basin. TRACER scientists want to know whether tiny atmospheric particles can influence the severity of thunderstorms. In October 2020, the Multidisciplinary Drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition ended after 13 months. MOSAiC data from ARM and other organizations are already helping scientists better understand how ice, atmosphere, and ocean systems are connected in the central Arctic. This report discusses some early investigations from MOSAiC, along with other ARM campaigns and activities generating prolific research. In this report, you will also learn how research activities moved forward during the pandemic at ARM’s fixed-location atmospheric observatories. There were important science applications from measurements across the facility. ARM spent a significant amount of FY2021 looking back—and ahead. In November 2020, ARM had its Triennial Review. This review is held every three years to evaluate ARM’s effectiveness in science, operations, and management. Overall, the reviewers had positive feedback regarding the breadth and impact of science activities using ARM data and the way ARM strives to meet changing user needs. The reviewers also provided some recommendations for strengthening ARM going forward. Incorporating feedback from the review, we finalized an updated Decadal Vision document that will help guide ARM priorities in the coming years. This report describes the four themes driving ARM’s Decadal Vision.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2024

Adoption of a token-based authentication model for the CMS Submission Infrastructure

The CMS Submission Infrastructure (SI) is the main computing resource provisioning system for CMS workloads. A number of HTCondor pools are employed to manage this infrastructure, which aggregates geographically distributed resources from the WLCG and other providers. Historically, the model of authentication among the diverse components of this infrastructure has relied on the Grid Security Infrastructure (GSI), based on identities and X509 certificates. In contrast, commonly used modern authentication standards are based on capabilities and tokens. The WLCG has identified this trend and aims at a transparent replacement of GSI for all its workload management, data transfer and storage access operations, to be completed during the current LHC Run 3. As part of this effort, and within the context of CMS computing, the Submission Infrastructure group is in the process of phasing out the GSI part of its authentication layers, in favor of IDTokens and Scitokens. The use of tokens is already well integrated into the HTCondor Software Suite, which has allowed us to fully migrate the authentication between internal components of SI. Additionally, recent versions of the HTCondor-CE support tokens as well, enabling CMS resource requests to Grid sites employing this CE technology to be granted by means of token exchange. After a rollout campaign to sites, successfully completed by the third quarter of 2022, the totality of HTCondor CEs in use by CMS are already receiving Scitoken-based pilot jobs. On the ARC CE side, a parallel campaign was launched to foster the adoption of the REST interface at CMS sites (required to enable token-based job submission via HTCondor-G), which is nearing completion as well. In this contribution, the newly adopted authentication model will be described. We will then report on the migration status and final steps towards complete GSI phase out in the CMS SI.

Pérez-Calero Yzquierdo, Antonio↗

DOE OSTI2023

Code Benchmark of the HTTF Pressurized Conduction Cooldown Test Using SAM

The High Temperature Test Facility (HTTF) at Oregon State University is an integral system test facility to simulate postulated reactor transients of prismatic high-temperature gas-cooled reactors(HTGRs). A series of test campaigns was launched, providing abundant test data that could be used to benchmark reactor system analysis codes like the System Analysis Module (SAM). In this study, a SAM model of the facility is developed based on the two-dimensional (2D) ring model approach. All components including the ceramic matrix, graphite heaters, helium coolant channels, core barrel, upcomer, pressure vessel, and reactor cavity cooling system are modeled as concentric cylindrical rings. The model is used to simulate one of the benchmark problems-Pressurized Conduction Cooldown (PCC)-within the scope of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Nuclear Energy Agency International HTTF Benchmark. The simulations consist of two parts. In the first part, operating and boundary conditions as well as thermophysical properties of materials are specified for the benchmark problem. In this work, results from the first part will be used in code-to-code comparison. In the second part, the SAM model is used to simulate Test PG-27, which is the first PCC test carried out in the HTTF, with only two of the ten heater banks activated. The results in the second part are used for code-to-data comparison. Because the helium coolant flow rate is not measured in this facility, it is estimated using the input power and inlet/outlet coolant temperatures. Additionally, radial heat flow in the ceramic blocks is complicated by hundreds of cylindrical coolant channels and heater rods embedded in them. As such, it is necessary to deduce an effective thermal conductivity for the ceramic to analyze the core thermal behavior. SAM predictions of the helium coolant and ceramic temperatures are compared with test data measured in three equivalent sectors. Overall, the SAM results agree reasonably well with test data within the variation of data among the three sectors, which demonstrates SAM's capability in capturing transient effects in HTGR using the simplified 2D ring model.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Generation IV Benchmarking of TRISO Fuel Performance Models Under Accident Conditions Final Report

The Generation IV International Forum (GIF) is a co-operative international endeavor of fourteen members organized to carry out the research and development needed to establish the feasibility and performance capabilities of the next generation nuclear energy systems. GIF selected six reactor technologies, amongst which is the Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) that is primarily dedicated to the cogeneration of electricity and hydrogen. The technical basis for VHTR is the tristructural isotropic (TRISO)-coated particle fuel, the graphite as the core structure, helium coolant, as well as the dedicated core layout and lower power density to removal decay heat in a natural way. At the heart of safety features of the VHTR concept lie the TRISO fuel particles that are designed to keep their structural integrity and retain fission products at temperatures up to 1600°C. As part as the design and future operation of VHTRs, a key aspect is the accurate prediction of fuel performance under irradiation and accident conditions. Modeling and simulation allow prediction of TRISO fuel behavior when subject to neutron flux and in high temperature accident scenarios. The refinement of the fuel performance models and codes is performed by comparison to in-pile and out-of-pile experimental data that reproduce the expected irradiation conditions in high temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs). Historically, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) developed a benchmark dedicated to the validation of predictive methods for fuel and fission product behavior through the Coordinated Research Program CRP-2 (IAEA, 1997). CRP-2 was later updated to cover fuel fabrication, quality assurance, irradiation performance, safety testing, and spent fuel. The scope of the resulting CRP-6 benchmarks focused on HTGR fuel performance and fission product release (IAEA, 2012). Taking advantage of additional TRISO fuel fabrication, irradiation, and safety testing campaigns, GIF launched a Generation IV Benchmarking of TRISO Fuel Performance Models under Accident Conditions in late 2015. This GIF benchmark is a three-year program steered by Idaho National Laboratory (INL, USA). The other participants include the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA, Japan) and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI, Korea). The objectives of the benchmark are to: follow on the IAEA CRP benchmarks, (2) model fission product release under accident conditions, (3) compare results obtained by the fuel performance modeling codes of the benchmark participants, and (4) compare these code predictions to experimental data. Safety tests chosen for modeling include the first and second experiments of the Advanced Gas Reactor program (AGR-1 and AGR-2) and the High Flux Reactor (HFR) EU1bis experiment. This report presents the results obtained by the three research institutions using their respective fuel performance modeling codes. Comparisons of the corresponding fission product release predictions are made with experimental data from AGR-1, AGR-2, and HFR-EU1bis. The benchmark results show good agreements between all participants but also show a general trend of over-prediction of the experimental release data, which is mainly attributed to the use of over-estimated diffusion coefficients.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2024

Optimization of the N ∥ Upshift in the DIII-D high field side lower hybrid current drive experiment

High field side lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) is one potential candidate for efficient non-inductive current drive in tokamak power plants, and the first test of this technology will occur on the DIII-D tokamak during the 2024 campaign. Previous LFS launch experiments operated in the multi-pass regime and relied on scrape-off layer interactions to close the spectral gap. In the DIII-D experiment, single-pass damping is achievable via an upshift in the parallel refractive index N ∥ caused by mode converting twice (slow → fast → slow). This mode conversion affects the ray trajectories and can lead to enhanced N ∥ upshift depending on where mode conversion occurs. Compared to multi-pass absorption experiments, the optimization of launched N ∥ and plasma parameters can be counter-intuitive: increased density may increase efficiency and smaller N ∥,launch tend to damp closer to the separatrix. A hard x-ray camera installed to measure the bremsstrahlung (50–250 keV) radiation from LHCD-generated fast electrons is capable of verifying the trends reporting in this paper through comparison to the ray-tracing/Fokker–Planck codes GENRAY/CQL3D.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2022

COVID-19 through Adverse Outcome Pathways: Building networks to better understand the disease – 3rd CIAO AOP Design Workshop

On April 28-29, 2021, 50 scientists from different fields of expertise met for the 3rd online CIAO workshop. The CIAO project “Modelling the Pathogenesis of COVID-19 using the Adverse Outcome Pathway (AOP) framework” aims at building a holistic assembly of the available scientific knowledge on COVID-19 using the AOP framework. An individual AOP depicts the disease progression from the initial contact with the SARS-CoV-2 virus through biological key events (KE) toward an adverse outcome such as respiratory distress, anosmia or multiorgan failure. Assembling the individual AOPs into a network highlights shared KEs as central biological nodes involved in multiple outcomes observed in COVID-19 patients. During the workshop, the KEs and AOPs established so far by the CIAO members were presented and positioned on a timeline of the disease course. Modulating factors influencing the progression and severity of the disease were also addressed as well as factors beyond purely biological phenomena. CIAO relies on an interdisciplinary crowdsourcing effort, therefore, approaches to expand the CIAO network by widening the crowd and reaching stakeholders were also discussed. To conclude the workshop, it was decided that the AOPs/KEs will be further consolidated, integrating virus variants and long COVID when relevant, while an outreach campaign will be launched to broaden the CIAO scientific crowd.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2023

United States cool surfaces deployment plan

Solar-reflective building envelope surfaces, such as cool roofs and walls, can be especially helpful in disadvantaged communities that often have poorly insulated older homes, aging or absent air conditioning units, steep utility bills, polluted air, and high vulnerability and exposure to extreme heat. With support from the U.S. Department of Energy, our project seeks to dramatically increase the climate-appropriate deployment of cool surfaces across the United States with an emphasis on their application to disadvantaged communities. First, we sought to identify cool-surface deployment barriers, opportunities, and models by (a) reviewing the history of cool-surface deployment activities, (b) interviewing cool-surface stakeholders, (c) researching successful energy-efficiency/green building deployment models; and (d) interviewing the actors who have implemented these models. Second, we conducted a workshop to engage stakeholders in development of a deployment plan. Third, we asked several U.S. federal agencies (a) how cool surfaces and cool surface stakeholders could support their missions and (b) how agency activities could support cool-surface deployment. Fourth, we identified a set of transformative ideas that form the core of the deployment plan. Transformative ideas include but are not limited to initiatives to (a) launch an educational campaign to make the general public and building professionals aware of how cool roofs and walls exclude unwanted solar heat; (b) create a “Cool Roof Prize” stimulating the development of affordable, high-performance cool asphalt roofing shingles; (c) conduct high-profile, large-scale demonstration programs that bring cool surfaces to disadvantaged heat-vulnerable communities; and (d) support local, regional, and state climate action (heat mitigation) plans with cool surfaces.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2025

Prioritizing Nuclear Materials for SAM-3 Neutron Irradiation Campaign: Structural and Cladding Materials Candidates

This report outlines a framework for selecting structural and cladding materials for the Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF) SAM-3 neutron irradiation campaign to support the advancement of nuclear energy technologies. The document begins with an introduction that provides background context, highlights the motivations for launching a new irradiation campaign, and defines the overall objectives. The core of the report describes the design considerations for the irradiation campaign, including capsule configurations, irradiation temperature ranges, and target dose levels (defined by displacements per atom, or dpa). The material recommendation was guided by the Specimen Identification and Prioritization (SIP) Working Group, a multidisciplinary team of experts representing national laboratories, academia, industry, federal government and agency. This group played a central role in identifying candidate materials, evaluating technical justifications, and ensuring alignment with boarder programmatic goals. A detailed set of criteria for material prioritization is then presented, taking into account reactor relevance, performance gaps, advanced manufacturing methods, and emerging material classes. Based on the input of SIP working group, specific materials were selected and justified for inclusion in the irradiation campaign by the NSUF leadership and its U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)-Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) management. The final section provides recommended capsule designs, summarizing critical parameters such as material type, fabrication method, sample geometry, irradiation conditions, and specimen quantities. This report serves as a foundation for executing a focused and high-impact neutron irradiation campaign aimed at addressing key materials challenges for both existing and advanced nuclear reactors.

36 - MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2025

Observational ozone datasets over the global oceans and polar regions (version 2024)

Studying tropospheric ozone over the remote areas of the planet, such as the open oceans and the polar regions, is crucial to understand the role of ozone as a global climate forcer and regulator of atmospheric oxidative capacity. A focus on the pristine oceanic and polar regions complements the available land-based datasets and provides insights into key photochemical and depositional loss processes that control the concentrations and spatiotemporal variability in ozone as well as the physicochemical mechanisms driving these patterns. However, an assessment of the role of ozone over the oceanic and polar regions has been hampered by a lack of comprehensive observational datasets. Here, we present the first comprehensive collection of ozone data over the oceans and the polar regions. The overall dataset consists of 77 ship cruises/buoy-based observations and 48 aircraft-based campaigns. The dataset, consisting of more than 630 000 independent ozone measurement data points covering the period from 1977 to 2022 and an altitude range from the surface to 5000 m (with a focus on the lowest 2000 m), allows systematic analyses of the spatiotemporal distribution and long-term trends over the 11 defined ocean/polar regions. The datasets from ships, buoys, and aircraft are complemented by ozonesonde data from 29 launch sites or field campaigns and by 21 non-polar and 17 polar ground-based station datasets. The datasets contain information on how long the observed air masses were isolated from land, as estimated by backward trajectories from the individual observation points. To extract observations representative of oceanic conditions, we recommend using a subset of the data with an isolation time of 72 h or longer, from the analysis with coincident radon observations. These filtered oceanic and polar data showed typically flat diurnal cycles at high latitudes, whereas daytime decreases in ozone (11 %–16 %) were observed at lower latitudes. The ship/buoy- and aircraft-based datasets presented here will supplement the land-based ones in the TOAR-II (Tropospheric Ozone Assessment Report Phase II) database to provide a fully global assessment of tropospheric ozone. The described dataset is available at https://doi.org/10.17596/0004044 (Kanaya et al., 2025).

Kanaya, Yugo [Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Scienc↗

DOE OSTI2022

Solar Decathlon Celebrates 20 Years of Building Impact

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon® is a collegiate competition that has inspired students worldwide to enter the clean energy workforce since its inception. Celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2022, the Solar Decathlon has challenged more than 25,000 students to create efficient, affordable buildings powered by renewables, while promoting student innovation, STEM education, and workforce development opportunities in the buildings industry. Compelling graphics, videos, and visuals are being developed to launch a 20th anniversary campaign in January 2022. These graphics include an interactive 20th anniversary infographic, a "Solar Decathlon - By the Numbers" video, and a graphic highlighting the diverse group of more than 25,000 past participants. In presenting these graphics at the ACEEE summer 2022 panel, attendees will be exposed to the latest communications techniques to apply to their own work. The Solar Decathlon invests in compelling visuals to recruit and inspire an imaginative and diverse group of participants each year - something that organizations of all sizes in the energy efficiency sector also need to do as they recruit for new talent. The Virtual Village of the 2020 Build Challenge homes (with more than 11,000 unique views) and the map of past competition houses highlight the competition's emphasis on multimedia that connects with competitors and the general public. Using more than 4,400 publicly available photos, including engaging virtual event snapshots with Department of Energy leaders, the Solar Decathlon captures the innovate ideas of the Build Challenge and Design Challenge teams in a way that everyone can understand.

collegiate competition↗

DOE OSTI2021

S0 Uncrewed Aircraft System Measurement Characterization Field Campaign Report

The lower atmosphere contributes directly to the modulation of weather and climate. Understanding the importance of this part of the atmosphere, scientists have worked to improve the representation of the atmospheric boundary layer in numerical prediction tools. Such work depends upon information from observing systems, including remote sensors, weather balloons, and research aircraft. Recent years have seen significant advances in uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) for atmospheric research. Those efforts have provided new perspectives on atmospheric and surface conditions, particularly from smaller UAS (sUAS) platforms. This field campaign included collection of data using several sUAS, and comparing the sUAS data to those from different observing facilities at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility’s Southern Great Plains (SGP) observatory in Oklahoma. Over the course of one week, the Black Swift Technologies and University of Nebraska teams conducted flights for the sole purpose of system evaluation and intercomparison. In addition, these teams conducted joint flight operations at the Marshall, Oklahoma Mesonet site alongside teams from the University of Colorado, University of Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State University to collect additional data for side-by-side comparison. Platforms operated by Black Swift Technologies and the University of Nebraska under this project included one fixed-wing and two rotary-wing platforms, as well as an instrumented surface vehicle. These include the Black Swift Technologies S0 UAS, the University of Nebraska M600 UAS, a University of Nebraska-operated Meteomatics Meteodrone UAS, and the University of Nebraska CoMeT (Combined Mesonet and Tracker) vehicle. Additional details on all of these platforms can be found in de Boer et al. (in prep). In total, 95 sUAS flights were conducted for a combined total of 18.6 flight hours. The S0 was operated both to the south and north of the SGP 60 m tower, while the M600 and Meteodrone were operated directly to the east of the tower. Weather conditions were generally good, with moderate winds. Flights were conducted both to follow the extra radiosondes that were launched as part of this campaign, as well as to conduct extended statistical sampling at tower instrument heights. The later flights also provided data for statistical platform intercomparison.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2020

Production Operations Management System (POMS) for Fermilab Experiments

The Production Operations Management System (POMS) software allows production teams and analysis groups across multiple Fermilab experiments to launch, modify and monitor large scale campaigns of related Monte Carlo or data processing jobs, and currently manages the majority of production computing of experiments at Fermilab.POMS provides a web service interface that enables automated job submission on distributed resources according to customers’ requests, as well as subsequent monitoring of those submissions as well as recovery of failed submissions, debugging and record keeping.POMS interfaces with existing HEP data access, processing, movement and monitoring tools at Fermilab, including Jobsub (for job submission), SAM (for data management), and Landscape (for monitoring), and in combination with them handles the creation of intermediate datasets of files for multistage campaigns.POMS visualizes these campaigns with an interactive GUI interface. An important feature of POMS is a one-to-one connection between the GUI campaign visualizer and a text based representation of the complete campaign configuration. An extensible library of template campaign configurations is available. The templates are user modifiable and map cleanly to and from the GUI description of the campaign.This paper will discuss the current usage, history, and some technical details of POMS, as well as planned future extensions, particularly interfacing with Rucio as well as SAM for file movement.

Mengel, Marc↗

DOE OSTI2024

Geophysical Observations of the 2023 September 24 OSIRIS-REx Sample Return Capsule Reentry

Sample return capsules (SRCs) entering Earth's atmosphere at hypervelocity from interplanetary space are a valuable resource for studying meteor phenomena. The 2023 September 24 arrival of the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security-Regolith Explorer SRC provided an unprecedented chance for geophysical observations of a well-characterized source with known parameters, including timing and trajectory. A collaborative effort involving researchers from 16 institutions executed a carefully planned geophysical observational campaign at strategically chosen locations, deploying over 400 ground-based sensors encompassing infrasound, seismic, distributed acoustic sensing, and Global Positioning System technologies. Additionally, balloons equipped with infrasound sensors were launched to capture signals at higher altitudes. This campaign (the largest of its kind so far) yielded a wealth of invaluable data anticipated to fuel scientific inquiry for years to come. The success of the observational campaign is evidenced by the near-universal detection of signals across instruments, both proximal and distal. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of the collective scientific effort, field deployment, and preliminary findings. The early findings have the potential to inform future space missions and terrestrial campaigns, contributing to our understanding of meteoroid interactions with planetary atmospheres. Furthermore, the data set collected during this campaign will improve entry and propagation models and augment the study of atmospheric dynamics and shock phenomena generated by meteoroids and similar sources.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

DOE OSTI2025

Delving into the depths of NGC 3783 with XRISM

The 2024 X-ray/UV observation campaign of NGC 3783, led by XRISM, revealed the launch of an ultrafast outflow (UFO) with a radial velocity of 0.19c (57 000 km s −1 ). This event is synchronized with the sharp decay, within less than half a day, of a prominent soft X-ray/UV flare. Accounting for the look-elsewhere effect, the XRISM Resolve data alone indicate a low probability of 2 × 10 −5 that this UFO detection is due to random chance. The UFO features narrow H-like and He-like Fe lines with a velocity dispersion of ∼1000 km s −1 , suggesting that it originates from a dense clump. Beyond this primary detection, there are hints of weaker outflow signatures throughout the rise and fall phases of the soft flare. Their velocities increase from 0.05c to 0.3c over approximately three days, and they may be associated with a larger stream in which the clump is embedded. The radiation pressure is insufficient to drive the acceleration of this rapidly evolving outflow. The observed evolution of the outflow kinematics instead closely resembles that of solar coronal mass ejections, implying magnetic driving and, conceivably, reconnection near the accretion disk as the likely mechanisms behind both the UFO launch and the associated soft flare.

Astronomy and AstroPhysics↗

DOE OSTI2024

Characterizing Overwater High Ozone Events in the Houston–Galveston–Brazoria Region during the 2021 GO3 and TRACER-AQ Campaigns

Photochemical modeling outputs showing high ozone concentrations over the Gulf of Mexico and Galveston Bay during ozone episodes in the Houston–Galveston–Brazoria (HGB) region have not been previously verified using in situ observations. Such data were collected systematically, for the first time, from July to October 2021 from three boats deployed for the Galveston Offshore Ozone Observations (GO3) and Tracking Aerosol Convection Interactions Experiment—Air Quality (TRACER-AQ) field campaigns. A pontoon boat and a commercial vessel operated in Galveston Bay, while another commercial vessel operated in the Gulf of Mexico offshore of Galveston. All three boats had continuously operating sampling systems that included ozone analyzers and weather stations, and the two boats operating in Galveston Bay had a ceilometer. The sampling systems operated autonomously on the two commercial boats as they traveled their daily routes. Thirty-seven ozonesondes were launched over water on forecast high ozone days in Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. During the campaigns, multiple periods of ozone exceeding 100 ppbv were observed over water in Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. These events included previously identified conditions for high ozone events in the HGB region, such as the bay/sea-breeze recirculation and postfrontal environments, as well as a localized coastal high ozone event after the passing of a tropical system (Hurricane Nicholas) that was not well forecast.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2025

Delving into the depths of NGC 3783 with XRISM II. Cross-calibration of X-ray instruments used in the large, multi-mission observational campaign

Context. Accurate X-ray spectroscopic measurements are fundamental for deriving basic physical parameters of the most abundant baryon components in the Universe. The plethora of X-ray observatories currently operational enables a panchromatic view of the high-energy emission of celestial sources. However, uncertainties in the energy-dependent calibration of the instrument transfer functions (e.g. the effective area, energy redistribution, or gain) can limit - and historically, did limit - the accuracy of X-ray spectroscopic measurements. Aims. We revised the status of the cross-calibration among the scientific payload on board four operation missions: Chandra, NuSTAR, XMM-Newton, and the recently launched XRISM. XRISM carries the micro-calorimeter Resolve, which yields the best energy resolution at energies ≥2 keV. For this purpose, we used the data from a 10-day-long observational campaign targeting the nearby active galactic nucleus NGC 3783, carried out in July 2024. Methods. We present a novel model-independent method for assessing the cross-calibration status that is based on a multi-node spline of the spectra with the highest-resolving power (XRISM/Resolve in our campaign). We also estimated the impact of the intrinsic variability of NGC 3783 on the cross-calibration status due to the different time coverages of participating observatories and performed an empirical reassessment of the Resolve throughput at low energies. Results. Based on this analysis, we derived a set of energy-dependent correction factors of the observed responses, enabling a statistically robust analysis of the whole spectral dataset. They will be employed in subsequent papers describing the astrophysical results of the campaign. Aims. We revised the status of the cross-calibration among the scientific payload on board four operation missions: Chandra, NuSTAR, XMM-Newton, and the recently launched XRISM. XRISM carries the micro-calorimeter Resolve, which yields the best energy resolution at energies ≥2 keV. For this purpose, we used the data from a 10-day-long observational campaign targeting the nearby active galactic nucleus NGC 3783, carried out in July 2024. Methods. We present a novel model-independent method for assessing the cross-calibration status that is based on a multi-node spline of the spectra with the highest-resolving power (XRISM/Resolve in our campaign). We also estimated the impact of the intrinsic variability of NGC 3783 on the cross-calibration status due to the different time coverages of participating observatories and performed an empirical reassessment of the Resolve throughput at low energies. Results. Based on this analysis, we derived a set of energy-dependent correction factors of the observed responses, enabling a statistically robust analysis of the whole spectral dataset. They will be employed in subsequent papers describing the astrophysical results of the campaign.

Active Galactic Nuclei, individual: NGC 3783↗

DOE OSTI2023

Ice Cryo-Encapsulation Balloon (Project ICEBall) Field Campaign Report

The Ice Cryo-Encapsulation Balloon (ICEBall) field campaign was designed to sample the ice crystals that compose high-altitude cirrus with a passive device. The campaign made use of a new instrument, ICEBall, which is a balloon-borne ice crystal sampling system. The ice crystal sounding system is capable of measuring ice crystal concentration, temperature, atmospheric pressure, ice crystal habit, aerosol particle morphology, and residual composition. The 3-kg instrument is carried upwards at 5 m s-1 by a high-altitude balloon. The instrument can be cut down from the balloon at any altitude up to 20 km, and the apparatus returns to the surface by parachute. Basic measurements such as temperature and pressure are recorded onboard, and high-frequency Global Positioning System (GPS) records altitude and latitude/longitude. Ice crystal concentrations are measured through the use of a high-resolution video camera mounted on the device. Ice crystals are collected through an open aperture leading to insulated collection chambers cooled with dry ice. Upon exiting the top of the cloud system, the chamber aperture is closed, and the ~1 mm3 sample cell is magnetically sealed and isolated at -78 °C, ensuring that ice particles do not sublimate or grow after collection. Once the crystals are returned to the surface, they are double-sealed and immersed at liquid nitrogen temperature in “dry-cryo shippers” before being transported back to the laboratory. Dr. Magee’s laboratory at The College of New Jersey contains a cryo-stage scanning electron microscope (SEM), which was used to interrogate the crystals and aerosol particles. The main purpose of this pilot field campaign was to provide an unprecedented level of detail on the crystal habits and ice surface complexity in mid-latitude cirrus, which may help resolve issues associated with habit identification and classification in cirrus. The ICEBall campaign was originally scheduled to run from March 28 to April 18 of 2021 at the U.S. Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Southern Great Plains observatory. The COVID-19 pandemic intervened and caused us to shift the dates of the experiment to October 16-November 6 of 2021. This period is also climatologically favorable for cirrus. The approximately six-month gap between our original field campaign dates and the actual dates afforded us the opportunity to build two new ICEBall payload instruments. These instruments were tested during an August 2021 trip to The College of New Jersey. During this field testing phase, we decided to launch the ICEBall payload upstream from the ARM SGP site with the goal of landing in the vicinity of the site. Our goal was to sample the ice crystals before the cirrus were advected over the remote-sensing instruments at the SGP site. The team assembled for the field campaign consisted of the Principle Investigator (PI) and Co-Principle Investigator (Co-PI) (Drs. Harrington and Magee), The Pennsylvania State University research scientist Dr. Alfred Moyle, and two graduate students (Ms. Marley Majetic and Gwenore Pokrifka). The team operated out of a house rented in Enid, Oklahoma. We successfully sampled seven cirrus cloud systems during the three-week field campaign (October 21, 23-26, 31, and November 1). This was a much higher success rate than either of the PIs anticipated (our goal was closer to sampling three or four cases). The balloon was typically launched from oil pads or farm fields northwest of Enid and the payload was typically retrieved somewhat north of the SGP site. We never landed directly at the SGP site, and so did not need regular access to the SGP facilities. Our greatest concern going into the field campaign was the longer-term storage of crystals in the -196°C cryo dry-shipper dewars and the subsequent transport across the country. We had tested storage and transport prior to the field campaign, but we had never stored crystals for a few weeks nor had we transported the dewars over long distances. To our great relief, the storage and transport worked flawlessly and we were able to image a large number of crystals from six of the seven cases. Working with the staff at the ARM SGP office was excellent. They not only helped us find the sources we needed for helium, liquid nitrogen, and other materials, but also helped with contacts within the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Vance Air Force Base. One goal of our field project was to tie the in situ measurements of ice crystal habits to the radar signatures derived from the Ka-band ARM Zenith-pointing Radar (KAZR). Unfortunately KAZR was down for the duration of our experiment. However, the Ka-band Scanning ARM Cloud Radar (KASACR) was put into vertically pointing mode during the ICEBall campaign and those data, along with Doppler lidar measurements, have proved very useful.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗