The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

Adhesive bond failure monitoring with triboluminescent optical fiber sensor

One of the most severe damage modes in modern wind turbines is the failure of the adhesive joints in the trailing edge of the large composite blades. The geometrical shape of the blade and current manufacturing techniques make the trailing edge of the wind turbine blade more sensitive to damage. Failure to timely detect this damage type may result in catastrophic failures, expensive system downtime, and high repair costs. A novel sensing system called the In-situ Triboluminescent Optical Fiber (ITOF) sensor has been proposed for monitoring the initiation and propagation of disbonds in composite adhesive joints. The ITOF sensor combines the triboluminescent property of ZnS:Mn with the many desirable features of optical fiber to provide in-situ and distributed damage sensing in large composite structures like the wind blades. Unlike other sensor systems, the ITOF sensor does not require a power source at the sensing location or for transmitting damage-induced signals to the hub of the wind turbine. Composite parts will be fabricated and the ITOF integrated within the bondline to provide in-situ and real time damage sensing. Samples of the fabricated composite parts with integrated ITOF will be subjected to tensile and flexural loads, and the response from the integrated sensors will be monitored and analyzed to characterize the performance of the ITOF sensor as a debonding damage monitoring system. In addition, C-scan and optical microscopy will be employed to gain greater insights into the damage propagation behavior and the signals received from the ITOF sensors

Damage mitigation techniques in wind turbine blades: A review

Wind blades are major structural elements of wind turbines, but they are prone to damage like any other composite component. Blade damage can cause sudden structural failure and the associated costs to repair them are high. Therefore, it is important to identify the causation of damage to prevent defects during the manufacturing phase, transportation, and in operation. Generally, damage in wind blades can arise due to manufacturing defects, precipitation and debris, water ingress, variable loading due to wind, operational errors, lightning strikes, and fire. Early detection and mitigation techniques are required to avoid or reduce damage in costly wind turbine blades. This article provides an extensive review of viable solutions and approaches for damage mitigation in wind turbine blades

Triboluminescent sensor network for load monitoring in wind turbine blades

Wind turbines require control systems to ensure safe operation, to maximize power production, and to minimize extreme and fatigue loading of the structure. As wind blades become larger and are located in remote areas as well as offshore, there is a growing need to monitor and control the various loads acting on these composite structures. Nanotechnology Patronas Group Inc. is working with the High-Performance Materials Institute, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, to develop a new sensor system based on the proprietary in-situ triboluminescent optical fiber (ITOF) sensor. The new sensor, ITOFPress™, consists of an ITOF sensor network with micro-exciters integrated within a polymer matrix. The ITOFPress™ will provide real time quasi-distributed load information on the composites blades that will serve as inputs for enhanced active control of wind turbines. According to experts, this capability has the potential to improve the power output from a turbine by a significant amount due to increased operational time. Three key sensor design factors: the number of sensor network excitation points, the coarseness of micro-exciters, and the triboluminescent concentration will be investigated to determine their relationship to the ITOFPress™ load sensing performance. The sensor configuration performance will be evaluated by measuring and comparing the triboluminescent signals received during mechanical loading. In addition, microscopy tools such as the scanning electron microscope will be used to characterize the interface between the integrated ITOF sensor and the polymer matrix material

Development of friction-induced triboluminescent sensor for load monitoring

Real-time load monitoring of critical civil and mechanical structures especially dynamic structures such as wind turbine blades is imperative for longer service life. This article proposed a novel sensor system based on the proprietary in situ triboluminescent optical fiber (ITOF) sensor for dynamic load monitoring. The new ITOF sensor patch consists of an ITOF sensor network with micro-exciters integrated within a polymer matrix. The sensor patch was subjected to repeated flexural loading and produced triboluminescent emissions due to the friction between micro-exciters and ITOF sensors corresponding to each loading cycle. The friction-induced triboluminescent intensity directly depends on the loading rate, the coefficient of friction, and the applied load on patch. In general, the triboluminescent intensity increases exponentially with an increase in load. Additionally, the sensor patches comprising the coarser micro-exciters exhibited better results. Similarly, better results were achieved at higher loading rates although a threshold loading rate is required to excite the triboluminescent crystals for this sample configuration. The proposed new sensor has the ability to monitor dynamic continuous applied loads

Randomized Controlled Trial of Early Outpatient COVID-19 Treatment with High-Titer Convalescent Plasma

BACKGROUNDThe efficacy of polyclonal high titer convalescent plasma to prevent serious complications of COVID-19 in outpatients with recent onset of illness is uncertain. METHODSThis multicenter, double-blind randomized controlled trial compared the efficacy and safety of SARS-CoV-2 high titer convalescent plasma to placebo control plasma in symptomatic adults ≥18 years positive for SARS-CoV-2 regardless of risk factors for disease progression or vaccine status. Participants with symptom onset within 8 days were enrolled, then transfused within the subsequent day. The measured primary outcome was COVID-19-related hospitalization within 28 days of plasma transfusion. The enrollment period was June 3, 2020 to October 1, 2021. RESULTSA total of 1225 participants were randomized and 1181 transfused. In the pre-specified modified intention-to-treat analysis that excluded those not transfused, the primary endpoint occurred in 37 of 589 (6.3%) who received placebo control plasma and in 17 of 592 (2.9%) participants who received convalescent plasma (relative risk, 0.46; one-sided 95% upper bound confidence interval 0.733; P=0.004) corresponding to a 54% risk reduction. Examination with a model adjusting for covariates related to the outcome did not change the conclusions. CONCLUSIONEarly administration of high titer SARS-CoV-2 convalescent plasma reduced outpatient hospitalizations by more than 50%. High titer convalescent plasma is an effective early outpatient COVID-19 treatment with the advantages of low cost, wide availability, and rapid resilience to variant emergence from viral genetic drift in the face of a changing pandemic. TRIAL REGISTRATIONClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04373460

Early Outpatient Treatment for Covid-19 with Convalescent Plasma.

BackgroundPolyclonal convalescent plasma may be obtained from donors who have recovered from coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). The efficacy of this plasma in preventing serious complications in outpatients with recent-onset Covid-19 is uncertain.MethodsIn this multicenter, double-blind, randomized, controlled trial, we evaluated the efficacy and safety of Covid-19 convalescent plasma, as compared with control plasma, in symptomatic adults (≥18 years of age) who had tested positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, regardless of their risk factors for disease progression or vaccination status. Participants were enrolled within 8 days after symptom onset and received a transfusion within 1 day after randomization. The primary outcome was Covid-19-related hospitalization within 28 days after transfusion.ResultsParticipants were enrolled from June 3, 2020, through October 1, 2021. A total of 1225 participants underwent randomization, and 1181 received a transfusion. In the prespecified modified intention-to-treat analysis that included only participants who received a transfusion, the primary outcome occurred in 17 of 592 participants (2.9%) who received convalescent plasma and 37 of 589 participants (6.3%) who received control plasma (absolute risk reduction, 3.4 percentage points; 95% confidence interval, 1.0 to 5.8; P = 0.005), which corresponded to a relative risk reduction of 54%. Evidence of efficacy in vaccinated participants cannot be inferred from these data because 53 of the 54 participants with Covid-19 who were hospitalized were unvaccinated and 1 participant was partially vaccinated. A total of 16 grade 3 or 4 adverse events (7 in the convalescent-plasma group and 9 in the control-plasma group) occurred in participants who were not hospitalized.ConclusionsIn participants with Covid-19, most of whom were unvaccinated, the administration of convalescent plasma within 9 days after the onset of symptoms reduced the risk of disease progression leading to hospitalization. (Funded by the Department of Defense and others; CSSC-004 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04373460.)