Gas temperature layer visualization in hypersonic shock tunnel using electric discharge

A novel technique for visualizing the gas temperature layer around bodies flying at hypersonic speeds is presented. The high temperature zone is visualized by photographing the light emitted from the electric discharge generated over a model exposed to hypersonic flow in a shock tunnel. The technique is based on electrical discharge phenomena, where the frequency of radiation emitted by the discharge path passing through the flow field varies with the temperature of the gas medium in the discharge path. The experiments are carried out in the hypersonic shock tunnel HST-1 at a nominal Mach number of 5.75 using helium as the driver gas, with free stream velocity of 1.38 km/s and free stream molecular density of $2.3396×10^{16} molecules/cm^3$. The electric discharge is generated across a line electrode embedded in the model surface and a point electrode suspended in the free stream. A high voltage discharge device (1.6 kV and 1 A) along with a micro-controller based pulse delay control module is integrated with the shock tunnel for generating and controlling electric discharge which lasts for ~2 μs. The gas temperature layer at zero angle of incidence around a flat plate and slightly blunted (5 mm bluntness radius) 20° apex angle slender cone model are visualized in this study. The visualized thickness of the high temperature layer around the flat plate is ~2 mm, which agrees well with numerical simulation, carried out using 2-D Navier-Stokes equation

Moisture variability over the Indo-Pacific region and its influence on the Indian summer monsoon rainfall

The Indo-Pacific Ocean (i.e. region between 30°E and 150°E) has been experiencing a warming since the 1950s. At the same time, the large-scale summer monsoon rainfall over India and the moisture over the East Africa/Arabian Sea are both decreasing. In this study, we intend to investigate how the decrease of moisture over the East Africa/Arabian Sea is related to the Indo-Pacific Ocean warming and how this could affect the variability of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall. We performed the analysis for the period 1951–2012 based on observed precipitation, sea surface temperature and atmospheric reanalysis products and we verified the robustness of the result by comparing different datasets. The decreasing trend of moisture over the East Africa/Arabian Sea coincides with an increasing trend of moisture over the western Pacific region. This is accompanied by the strengthening (weakening) of the upward motion over the western Pacific (East Africa/Arabian Sea) that, consequently, contributes to modulate the western Pacific-Indian Ocean Walker circulation. At the same time, the low-level westerlies are weakening over the peninsular India, thus contributing to the reduction of moisture transport towards India. Therefore, rainfall has decreased over the Western Ghats and central-east India. Contrary to previous decades, since 2003 moisture over the East Africa/Arabian Sea started to increase and this is accompanied by the strengthening of convection due to increased warming of sea surface temperature over the western Arabian Sea. Despite this moisture increase over the Arabian Sea, we found that moisture transport is still weakening over the Indian landmass in the very recent decade and this has been contributing to the decreased precipitation over the northeast India and southern part of the Western Ghats