143,190 research outputs found
Developing Guidelines for Two-Dimensional Model Review and Acceptance
Two independent modelers ran two hydraulic models, SRH-2D and HEC-RAS 2D. The models were applied to the Lakina River (MP 44 McCarthy Road) and to Quartz Creek (MP 0.7 Quartz Creek Road), which approximately represent straight and bend flow conditions, respectively. We compared the results, including water depth, depth averaged velocity, and bed shear stress, from the two models for both modelers.
We found that the extent and density of survey data were insufficient for Quartz Creek. Neither model was calibrated due to the lack of basic field data (i.e., discharge, water surface elevation, and sediment characteristics). Consequently, we were unable to draw any conclusion about the accuracy of the models.
Concerning the time step and the equations used (simplified or full) to solve the momentum equation in the HEC-RAS 2D model, we found that the minimum time step allowed by the model must be used if the diffusion wave equation is used in the simulations. A greater time step can be used if the full momentum equation is used in the simulations.
We developed a set of guidelines for reviewing model results, and developed and provided a two-day training workshop on the two models for ADOT&PF hydraulic engineers
Protection of Works of Art From Atmospheric Ozone
Assesses the colorfastness of organic colorants and watercolor pigments tested in atmospheric ozone. A summary of a full report of the Environmental Quality Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
Shape: A 3D Modeling Tool for Astrophysics
We present a flexible interactive 3D morpho-kinematical modeling application
for astrophysics. Compared to other systems, our application reduces the
restrictions on the physical assumptions, data type and amount that is required
for a reconstruction of an object's morphology. It is one of the first publicly
available tools to apply interactive graphics to astrophysical modeling. The
tool allows astrophysicists to provide a-priori knowledge about the object by
interactively defining 3D structural elements. By direct comparison of model
prediction with observational data, model parameters can then be automatically
optimized to fit the observation. The tool has already been successfully used
in a number of astrophysical research projects.Comment: 13 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in the "IEEE
Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics
Airborne Particles in Museums
Presents one in a series of research activities aimed at a better understanding of the origin and fate of air pollution within the built environment
Examples of finite element mesh generation using SDRC IDEAS
IDEAS (Integrated Design Engineering Analysis Software) offers a comprehensive package for mechanical design engineers. Due to its multifaceted capabilities, however, it can be manipulated to serve the needs of electrical engineers, also. IDEAS can be used to perform the following tasks: system modeling, system assembly, kinematics, finite element pre/post processing, finite element solution, system dynamics, drafting, test data analysis, and project relational database
Hubble Ultraviolet Spectroscopy of Jupiter Trojans
We present the first ultraviolet spectra of Jupiter Trojans. These
observations were carried out using the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph on
the Hubble Space Telescope and cover the wavelength range 200-550 nm at low
resolution. The targets include objects from both of the Trojan color
subpopulations (less-red and red). We do not observe any discernible absorption
features in these spectra. Comparisons of the averaged UV spectra of less-red
and red targets show that the subpopulations are spectrally distinct in the UV.
Less-red objects display a steep UV slope and a rollover at around 450 nm to a
shallower visible slope, whereas red objects show the opposite trend.
Laboratory spectra of irradiated ices with and without HS exhibit
distinct UV absorption features; consequently, the featureless spectra observed
here suggest HS alone is not responsible for the observed color
bimodality of Trojans, as has been previously hypothesized. We propose some
possible explanations for the observed UV-visible spectra, including complex
organics, space weathering of iron-bearing silicates, and masked features due
to previous cometary activity.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, accepted by A
Optimal Radiometric Calibration for Camera-Display Communication
We present a novel method for communicating between a camera and display by
embedding and recovering hidden and dynamic information within a displayed
image. A handheld camera pointed at the display can receive not only the
display image, but also the underlying message. These active scenes are
fundamentally different from traditional passive scenes like QR codes because
image formation is based on display emittance, not surface reflectance.
Detecting and decoding the message requires careful photometric modeling for
computational message recovery. Unlike standard watermarking and steganography
methods that lie outside the domain of computer vision, our message recovery
algorithm uses illumination to optically communicate hidden messages in real
world scenes. The key innovation of our approach is an algorithm that performs
simultaneous radiometric calibration and message recovery in one convex
optimization problem. By modeling the photometry of the system using a
camera-display transfer function (CDTF), we derive a physics-based kernel
function for support vector machine classification. We demonstrate that our
method of optimal online radiometric calibration (OORC) leads to an efficient
and robust algorithm for computational messaging between nine commercial
cameras and displays.Comment: 10 pages, Submitted to CVPR 201
Water Ice and Dust in the Innermost Coma of Comet 103P/Hartley 2
On November 4th, 2010, the Deep Impact eXtended Investigation (DIXI)
successfully encountered comet 103P/Hartley 2, when it was at a heliocentric
distance of 1.06 AU. Spatially resolved near-IR spectra of comet Hartley 2 were
acquired in the 1.05-4.83 micron wavelength range using the HRI-IR
spectrometer. We present spectral maps of the inner ~10 kilometers of the coma
collected 7 minutes and 23 minutes after closest approach. The extracted
reflectance spectra include well-defined absorption bands near 1.5, 2.0, and
3.0 micron consistent in position, bandwidth, and shape with the presence of
water ice grains. Using Hapke's radiative transfer model, we characterize the
type of mixing (areal vs. intimate), relative abundance, grain size, and
spatial distribution of water ice and refractories. Our modeling suggests that
the dust, which dominates the innermost coma of Hartley 2 and is at a
temperature of 300K, is thermally and physically decoupled from the
fine-grained water ice particles, which are on the order of 1 micron in size.
The strong correlation between the water ice, dust, and CO2 spatial
distribution supports the concept that CO2 gas drags the water ice and dust
grains from the nucleus. Once in the coma, the water ice begins subliming while
the dust is in a constant outflow. The derived water ice scale-length is
compatible with the lifetimes expected for 1-micron pure water ice grains at 1
AU, if velocities are near 0.5 m/s. Such velocities, about three order of
magnitudes lower than the expansion velocities expected for isolated 1-micron
water ice particles [Hanner, 1981; Whipple, 1951], suggest that the observed
water ice grains are likely aggregates.Comment: 51 pages, 12 figures, accepted for publication in Icaru
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