The FIELDS Instrument Suite for Solar Probe Plus: Measuring the Coronal Plasma and Magnetic Field, Plasma Waves and Turbulence, and Radio Signatures of Solar Transients.

NASA's Solar Probe Plus (SPP) mission will make the first in situ measurements of the solar corona and the birthplace of the solar wind. The FIELDS instrument suite on SPP will make direct measurements of electric and magnetic fields, the properties of in situ plasma waves, electron density and temperature profiles, and interplanetary radio emissions, amongst other things. Here, we describe the scientific objectives targeted by the SPP/FIELDS instrument, the instrument design itself, and the instrument concept of operations and planned data products

The FIELDS Instrument Suite for Solar Probe Plus

NASA's Solar Probe Plus (SPP) mission will make the first in situ measurements of the solar corona and the birthplace of the solar wind. The FIELDS instrument suite on SPP will make direct measurements of electric and magnetic fields, the properties of in situ plasma waves, electron density and temperature profiles, and interplanetary radio emissions, amongst other things. Here, we describe the scientific objectives targeted by the SPP/FIELDS instrument, the instrument design itself, and the instrument concept of operations and planned data products

Application of advanced technology to space automation

Automated operations in space provide the key to optimized mission design and data acquisition at minimum cost for the future. The results of this study strongly accentuate this statement and should provide further incentive for immediate development of specific automtion technology as defined herein. Essential automation technology requirements were identified for future programs. The study was undertaken to address the future role of automation in the space program, the potential benefits to be derived, and the technology efforts that should be directed toward obtaining these benefits

Nova técnica para medida de temperatura em redes de sensores de grades de Bragg em fibras ópticas usando realimentação óptica

Orientador: Jose Antonio Siqueira DiasTese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Eletrica e de ComputaçãoResumo: O crescente interesse na utilização de Grades de Bragg (FBG) em sistemas sensores pode ser explicado por algumas de suas características, que são: imunidade à interferência eletromagnética (EMI), isolamento elétrico, baixo peso, flexibilidade, e transmissão de informações a longa distância. Este trabalho apresenta uma nova técnica de interrogação capaz de medir a temperatura de uma rede de sensores de grades de Bragg em fibras ópticas, onde um circuito eletrônico realiza rotinas de controle possibilitando a implementação de uma realimentação óptica. O esquema optoeletrônico empregado é capaz de realizar a interrogação de todos os sensores da rede de maneira quase instantânea, além de permitir que novos sensores possam ser facilmente acrescentados. Um protótipo contendo dois sensores foi construído e testado para validar a técnica obtendo-se uma alta resolução de ± 1 mºC na medida de temperatura em uma faixa de 72ºCAbstract: The increasing interest in the use of fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) in sensing systems can be explained by some of its features, which are immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI), electrical insulation, low weight, flexibility, and long distance data transmission capability. This work presents a new interrogation technique capable of measuring temperature of Bragg gratings sensor networks in optical fibers, where an electronic circuit, capable to perform control routines, allows the implementation of an optical feedback. The optoelectronic scheme used is capable of performing the interrogation of all the sensors of the network almost instantly, and allows new sensors to be easily added. A prototype containing two channels was built and tested to validate the technique achieving a high resolution of ± 1 mºC in temperature measurements in a range of 72º C.DoutoradoEletrônica, Microeletrônica e OptoeletrônicaDoutor em Engenharia Elétric

Research and Technology 1990

A brief but comprehensive review is given of the technical accomplishments of the NASA Lewis Research Center during the past year. Topics covered include instrumentation and controls technology; internal fluid dynamics; aerospace materials, structures, propulsion, and electronics; space flight systems; cryogenic fluids; Space Station Freedom systems engineering, photovoltaic power module, electrical systems, and operations; and engineering and computational support

Frequency Transfer Techniques and Applications in Fiber Optic Communication Systems

Modern society is dependent on communications and the developments of these increases constantly through a seemingly endless demand for communication services and thereby synchronization and time. This is confirmed by a vast range of research on communications, irrespective of technology and protocol. Historically, the national metrology institutes are the distributors of stable accurate time and frequency through national timescales, but that situation has changed with the arrival of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) such as GPS (Global Positioning System). The introduction of GNSS-based solutions has resulted in improvement for system users and owners in need of time and frequency. When using a GNSS receiver, sufficient accuracy and precision is often achieved. However, a disadvantage of this development is that GNSS-solutions are based on weak radio signals that can be interfered with. The main objective of the research that forms the groundwork for this thesis is the development of new fiber based methods for time and frequency. The aim is to complement GNSS-based methods for redundancy, with the intention of strengthening the robustness of the Swedish infrastructure. The research has resulted in two unique and innovative transmission technologies, one of which has been patented (two-color, one-way). The first method is based on a non-insertion technology that utilizes passive listening to existing data frames in a fiber optical network and does not require any particular bandwidth. This technology only uses a fraction of the optical signal for time and frequency measurement from an indirect connection to the network. This method has resulted in a precision relative to the GPS carrier phase of less than 1 ns root mean square for distances exceeding 1,100 km. This precision has been achieved for all of the included experiments, conducted within the framework of the thesis, regardless of configuration. The other fiber based technology is a one-way method that uses two wavelengths (colors) for the realization of a correction algorithm and signals thereto. It was developed because the symmetry required for performing two-way time and frequency transfer is rarely precise enough. This optical fiber technique was evaluated with respect to a GPS precise point positioning technique in an urban fiber optical network. The difference in frequency stability between the two systems has been shown to be about 3 × 10-15 over an averaging interval of 10,000 s for a distance of 3 km. The method has also been evaluated in several laboratory experiments with fiber distances up to 160 km. The best performing result is presented as time resolved transit time variations compared with arrival time difference. The standard deviation of the difference between the reference measurement and the one-way, two-color technique result is 3.12 ns and the data showed temperature dependence in transit time of 6 ns / °C

Optical generation of mm-wave signals for use in broadband radio over fiber systems

In future cellular radio networks Radio over Fiber (RoF) is a very attractive technology to deliver microwave and millimeter-wave signals containing broad band multimedia services to numerous base stations of the network. The radio signals are placed on an optical carrier and distributed by means of an optical fiber network to the base stations (BS). In the BS the optical signals heterodyne in a photodiode to produce the radio signals which are then sent via a wireless link to the mobile units (MU). The optical fiber network provides high frequency, wideband, low loss and a means of signal distribution immune to electromagnetic interference. In this thesis, different methods of electrooptical upconversion were investigated. The generation of an optical double-sideband with suppressed carrier (DSB-SC) signal is a straightforward method due to the fact that only one optical modulator driven at half the millimeter-wave frequency is required. One or both sidebands were ASK-modulated with baseband data rates of up to 10 Gbps. Optical single sideband modulation proves to be dispersion resilient as error free transmission was demonstrated after 53 km of single mode fiber transmission for data rates up to 10 Gbps. Wireless links up to 7 m were also demonstrated, proving the feasibility of this approach for broadband wireless inhouse access systems.Für zukünftige zellulare Funknetze ist „Radio over Fiber (RoF)“ eine sehr attraktive Technologie, um breitbandige Multimedia-Dienste mit Mikro- und Millimeterwellen zu übertragen. Die Funksignale werden dabei auf eine optische Trägerwelle aufmoduliert und mittels eines optischen Fasernetzes zu den Basisstationen (BS) verteilt. In den BS erfolgt die Überlagung der optischen Signale durch eine Fotodiode, um die Funksignale zu erzeugen. Diese werden dann über eine drahtlose Verbindung zu den beweglichen Multimedia-Endgeräten geschickt. Vorteile des optischen Fasernetzes sind Breitbandigkeit, geringe Dämpfung und eine gegenüber elektromagnetischen Störungen immune Signalverteilung. In dieser Arbeit werden verschiedene Methoden der elektrooptischen Aufwärtskonversion erforscht und die wichtigsten Eigenschaften dieser untersucht. Die Erzeugung eines optischen Zweiseitenbandsignales mit unterdrücktem Träger (DSB-SC) ist eine einfache Methode, da nur ein optischer Modulator, betrieben mit der halben elektrischen Trägerfrequenz, benötigt wird. Eine oder beide Seitenbänder konnten mit Bitraten bis zu 10 Gbps amplitudenmoduliert werden. Optische Einseitenbandmodulation ist extrem tolerant bezüglich der chromatischen Dispersion der Faser, wie die fehlerfreie Übertragung nach 53 km Glasfaser beweist. Drahtlose Links bis zu 7 m wurden realisiert und zeigen die Möglichkeit dieser Verfahren für breitbandige drahtlose Inhouse-Zugangssysteme