National Geodetic Satellite Program, Part 1

The work performed by individual contributors to the National Geodetic Satellite Program is presented. The purpose of the organization, the instruments used in obtaining the data, a description of the data itself, the theory used in processing the data, and evaluation of the results are detailed for the participating organizations

Applications of information theory in filtering and sensor management

“A classical sensor tasking methodology is analyzed in the context of generating sensor schedules for monitoring resident space objects (RSOs). This approach, namely maximizing the expected Kullback-Leibler divergence in a measurement update, is evaluated from a probabilistic perspective to determine the accuracy of the conventional approach. In this investigation, a newdivergence-based approach is proposed to circumvent themyopic nature of the measure, forecasting the potential information contribution to a time of interest and leveraging the system dynamics and measurement model to do so. The forecasted objective exploits properties of a batch measurement update to frequently exhibit faster optimization times when compared to an accumulation of the conventional myopic employment. The forecasting approach additionally affords the ability to emphasize tracking performance at the point in time to which the information is mapped. The forecasted divergence is lifted into the multitarget domain and combined with a collision entropy objective. The addition of the collision consideration assists the tasking policy in avoiding scenarios in which determining the origin of a measurement is difficult, ameliorating issues when executing the sensor schedule. The properties of the divergencebased and collision entropy-based objectives are explored to determine appropriate optimization schemes that can enable their use in real-time application. It is demonstrated through a single-target tasking simulation that the forecasted measure successfully outperforms traditional approaches with regard to tracking performance at the forecasted time. This simulation is followed by a multitarget tasking scenario in which different optimization strategies are analyzed, illustrating the feasibility of the proposed tasking policy and evaluating the solution from both schedule quality and runtime perspectives”--Abstract, page iii

Satellite meteorology in the cold war era: scientific coalitions and international leadership 1946-1964

In tracing the history of the TIROS meteorological satellite system, this dissertation details the convergence of two communities: the DOD space scientists who established US capability to launch and operate these remote sensing systems and the US Weather Bureau meteorologists who would be the managers and users of satellite data. Between 1946 and 1964, these persons participated in successive coalitions. These coalitions were necessary in part because satellite systems were too big—geographically, fiscally, and technically—to be developed and operated within a single institution. Thus, TIROS technologies and people trace their roots to several research centers—institutions that the USWB and later NASA attempted to coordinate for US R&D. The gradual transfer of persons and hardware from the armed services to the non-military NASA sheds light on the US’s evolution as a Cold War global power, shaped from the “top-down” (by the executive and legislative branches) as well as the “bottom-up” (by military and non-military scientific communities). Through these successive coalitions, actor terms centered on “basic science” or the circulation of atmospheric data were used to help define bureaucratic places (the Upper Atmospheric Rocket Research Panel, International Geophysical Year, NASA, and the World Weather Watch) in which basic research would be supported by sustained and collaboration could take place with international partners.Ph.D

NASA thesaurus. Volume 2: Access vocabulary

The access vocabulary, which is essentially a permuted index, provides access to any word or number in authorized postable and nonpostable terms. Additional entries include postable and nonpostable terms, other word entries and pseudo-multiword terms that are permutations of words that contain words within words. The access vocabulary contains almost 42,000 entries that give increased access to the hierarchies in Volume 1 - Hierarchical Listing

NASA thesaurus. Volume 3: Definitions

Publication of NASA Thesaurus definitions began with Supplement 1 to the 1985 NASA Thesaurus. The definitions given here represent the complete file of over 3,200 definitions, complimented by nearly 1,000 use references. Definitions of more common or general scientific terms are given a NASA slant if one exists. Certain terms are not defined as a matter of policy: common names, chemical elements, specific models of computers, and nontechnical terms. The NASA Thesaurus predates by a number of years the systematic effort to define terms, therefore not all Thesaurus terms have been defined. Nevertheless, definitions of older terms are continually being added. The following data are provided for each entry: term in uppercase/lowercase form, definition, source, and year the term (not the definition) was added to the NASA Thesaurus. The NASA History Office is the authority for capitalization in satellite and spacecraft names. Definitions with no source given were constructed by lexicographers at the NASA Scientific and Technical Information (STI) Facility who rely on the following sources for their information: experts in the field, literature searches from the NASA STI database, and specialized references

City Resilience Dynamics tool

acceptedVersio

NASA thesaurus. Volume 1: Hierarchical Listing

There are over 17,000 postable terms and nearly 4,000 nonpostable terms approved for use in the NASA scientific and technical information system in the Hierarchical Listing of the NASA Thesaurus. The generic structure is presented for many terms. The broader term and narrower term relationships are shown in an indented fashion that illustrates the generic structure better than the more widely used BT and NT listings. Related terms are generously applied, thus enhancing the usefulness of the Hierarchical Listing. Greater access to the Hierarchical Listing may be achieved with the collateral use of Volume 2 - Access Vocabulary and Volume 3 - Definitions

Earth Resources: A continuing bibliography with indexes, issue 17

This bibliography lists 775 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system between January 1 and March 31, 1978. Emphasis is placed on the use of remote sensing and geophysical instrumentation in spacecraft and aircraft to survey and inventory natural resources and urban areas. Subject matter is grouped according to agriculture and forestry, environmental changes and cultural resources, geodesy and cartography, geology and mineral resources, hydrology and water management, data processing and distribution systems, instrumentation and sensors, and economic analysis