161 research outputs found
Monitoring wood decay in poles by the vibroacoustic method
Despite recent advances in the development of new materials, wood continues to be used globally for the support of overhead cable networks used by telecommunications and electrical utility companies. As a natural material, wood is subject to decay and will eventually fail, causing disruption to services and danger to public and company personnel. The traditional method of testing poles for decay involves hitting them with a hammer and listening to the sound that results. However, evidence suggests that a large number of poles are replaced unnecessarily and a significant number of poles continue to fail unexpectedly in service. Therefore, a more accurate method for assessing the structural integrity of wooden poles is required. The underlying physical principles behind the 'pole tester's approach' have been identified and used in the development of a decay meter to enable objective monitoring of decay in wooden poles
Geophysical Exploration of Vesta
Dawnâs year-long stay at Vesta allows
comprehensive mapping of the shape, topography,
geology, mineralogy, elemental abundances, and
gravity field using itâs three instruments and highprecision
spacecraft navigation. In the current Low
Altitude Mapping Orbit (LAMO), tracking data is being
acquired to develop a gravity field expected to be
accurate to degree and order ~20 [1, 2]. Multi-angle
imaging in the Survey and High Altitude Mapping
Orbit (HAMO) has provided adequate stereo coverage
to develop a shape model accurate to ~10 m at 100 m
horizontal spatial resolution. Accurate mass determination
combined with the shape yields a more precise
value of bulk density, albeit with some uncertainty
resulting from the unmeasured seasonally-dark north
polar region. The shape and gravity of Vesta can be
used to infer the interior density structure and investigate
the nature of the crust, informing models for Vestaâs
formation and evolution
Crash Analysis and Energy Absorption Characteristics of S-shaped Longitudinal Members
This paper presents finite element simulations of the crash behavior and the energy absorption characteristics of thin S-shaped longitudinal members with variable cross-sections made of different materials to investigate the design of optimized energy-absorbing members. Numerical studies are carried out by simulation via the explicit finite element code LS-DYNA [1] to determine the desired variables for the design of energy-absorbing members. The specific energy absorption (SEA), the weight of the members and the peak force responses during the frontal impact are the main measurements of the S-shaped members' performance. Several types of inner stiffening members are also investigated to determine the influence of the additional stiffness on the crash behavior
Fitting Pulsar Wind Tori. II. Error Analysis and Applications
We have applied the torus fitting procedure described in Ng & Romani (2004)
to PWNe observations in the Chandra data archive. This study provides
quantitative measurement of the PWN geometry and we characterize the
uncertainties in the fits, with statistical errors coming from the fit
uncertainties and systematic errors estimated by varying the assumed fitting
model. The symmetry axis of the PWN are generally well determined, and
highly model-independent. We often derive a robust value for the spin
inclination . We briefly discuss the utility of these results in
comparison with new radio and high energy pulse measurementsComment: 15 pages, 3 figures, ApJ in pres
Assessment of injury severity of nearside occupants in pole impacts to side of passenger cars in European traffic accidents - analysis of German and UK in-depth data
The national accident statistics demonstrate that the
situation of passenger car side impacts is dominated
by car to car accidents. Car side to pole impacts are
relatively infrequent events. However the importance
of car side to pole impacts is significantly increasing
with fatal and seriously injured occupants.
For the present study the German in-depth database
GIDAS (German In-Depth-Accident Study) and the
UK database CCIS (Co-operative Crash Injury
Study) were used. Two approaches were undertaken
to better understand the scenario of car to
pole impacts. The first part is a statistical analysis
of passenger car side to pole impacts to describe the
characteristics and their importance relevant to
other types of impact and to get further knowledge
about the main factors influencing the accident outcome.
The second part contains a case by case review
on passenger cars first registered 1998 onwards
to further investigate this type of impact including
regression analysis to assess the relationship
between injury severity and pole impact relevant
factors
Detection of the energetic pulsar PSR B1509-58 and its pulsar wind nebula in MSH 15-52 using the Fermi-Large Area Telescope
We report the detection of high energy gamma-ray emission from the young and
energetic pulsar PSR B150958 and its pulsar wind nebula (PWN) in the
composite supernova remnant SNR G320.4-1.2 (aka MSH 15-52). Using 1 year of
survey data with the Fermi-Large Area Telescope (LAT), we detected pulsations
from PSR B1509-58 up to 1 GeV and extended gamma-ray emission above 1 GeV
spatially coincident with the PWN. The pulsar light curve presents two peaks
offset from the radio peak by phases 0.96 0.01 and 0.33 0.02. New
constraining upper limits on the pulsar emission are derived below 1 GeV and
confirm a severe spectral break at a few tens of MeV. The nebular spectrum in
the 1 - 100 GeV energy range is well described by a power-law with a spectral
index of (1.57 0.17 0.13) and a flux above 1 GeV of (2.91
0.79 1.35) 10^{-9} cm^{-2} s^{-1}. The first errors represent the
statistical errors on the fit parameters, while the second ones are the
systematic uncertainties. The LAT spectrum of the nebula connects nicely with
Cherenkov observations, and indicates a spectral break between GeV and TeV
energies.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication by Ap
Flight Operations for the LCROSS Lunar Impactor Mission
The LCROSS (Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite) mission was conceived as a low-cost means of determining the nature of hydrogen concentrated at the polar regions of the moon. Co-manifested for launch with LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter), LCROSS guided its spent Centaur upper stage into the Cabeus crater as a kinetic impactor, and observed the impact flash and resulting debris plume for signs of water and other compounds from a Shepherding Spacecraft. Led by NASA Ames Research Center, LCROSS flight operations spanned 112 days, from June 18 through October 9, 2009. This paper summarizes the experiences from the LCROSS flight, highlights the challenges faced during the mission, and examines the reasons for its ultimate success
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