Total Eclipse Aircraft Mission (TEAM)

A unique opportunity exists during the 2017 total solar eclipse that traverses the United States to study atmospheric chemistry by obtaining high altitude aircraft and balloon based measurements during this once-in-a-lifetime event. The Total Eclipse Aircraft Mission (TEAM) is a high altitude aircraft mission concept that is intended to acquire complementary measurements to those taken from high-altitude balloon platforms along the eclipse path using the University of North Dakota\u27s Citation Research Aircraft. Initial plans are to accurately measure temperature, O3, OH-, and NOX as a function of eclipse obscuration. One of the mission architectures under consideration includes a flight that begins and ends in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The research jet would ascend to its mission altitude in the lower stratosphere at an altitude of approximately 13 km, and begin gathering data while total eclipse is still over the Pacific Ocean. The aircraft would then intercept the eclipse line over Nebraska just before totality in that region, and be overtaken by the eclipse. The jet would return to its base in Grand Forks as total eclipse proceeds toward the southeastern portion of the United States, all the while collecting atmospheric data within the stratosphere. This paper will present the TEAM mission objectives, mission architecture, and outline the schedule, cost, and risk associated with this mission, along with tentative high-level functional and operational performance requirements

A Design for Inspiring Students with Near-Space Exploration

The prevalence of overseas success in engineering education represents a significant threat to the United States. Once the dominant force in advancing technology, the U.S. is seeing significant amounts of research and development work moving overseas. U.S. competitiveness and increased productivity requires demand for high-value-added products (Porter & Rivkin, 2012) such as those designed and developed by those with advanced training in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines. The U.S. economy, thus, depends on the production of skilled scientists and engineers--not just to sustain American leadership in science, but to sustain its national economy

Photometry of the trans-neptunian object 1993 SC.

We obtained broadband photometry of the Trans-Neptunian Object 1993 SC with the Steward Observatory 1.5-m telescope near Mt. Bigelow, Arizona and the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory CCD on 8 October 1996. 1993 SC exhibited a constant brightness (V = 22.67) with a 1 sigma scatter about the average of 0.06 magnitudes during a five hour interval. In addition, we obtained observations of 1993 SC with the Steward Observatory 2.3-m telescope on Kitt Peak, Arizona during 24 - 27 November 1995. Once again 1993 SC exhibited a constant brightness (V = 22.73) with a 1 sigma scatter about the average of 0.04 magnitudes. If 1993 SC has a lightcurve, the amplitude must be at the level of 0.12 magnitudes or less. If the obliquity of 1993 SC is near zero degrees, then 1993 SC is spherical with a semi-major to semi-minor axis ratio less than or equal to 1.12. A spherical nature for 1993 SC may be the result of self gravity exceeding the tensile strength of the material in the interior of 1993 SC. If the obliquity of 1993 SC is large, then 1993 SC could have an irregular shape. The steady intrinsic brightness for 1993 SC suggests that the object has a relatively uniform surface albedo. Our photometry and the assumption of a comet-like albedo (0.04) indicates that the diameter of 1993 SC is ~ 240 km

N-[2-(2-Methoxyphenyl)benzylidene]-tert-butyl­amine N-oxide

In the mol­ecule of the title compound, C18H21NO2, the two benzene rings are oriented at a dihedral angle of 58.19 (3)°. Intra­molecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds result in the formation of one six- and one five-membered ring, which adopt twist and envelope conformations, respectively. In the crystal structure, C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the mol­ecules

Identifying Near Earth Object Families

The study of asteroid families has provided tremendous insight into the forces that sculpted the main belt and continue to drive the collisional and dynamical evolution of asteroids. The identification of asteroid families within the NEO population could provide a similar boon to studies of their formation and interiors. In this study we examine the purported identification of NEO families by Drummond (2000) and conclude that it is unlikely that they are anything more than random fluctuations in the distribution of NEO osculating orbital elements. We arrive at this conclusion after examining the expected formation rate of NEO families, the identification of NEO groups in synthetic populations that contain no genetically related NEOs, the orbital evolution of the largest association identified by Drummond (2000), and the decoherence of synthetic NEO families intended to reproduce the observed members of the same association. These studies allowed us to identify a new criterion that can be used to select real NEO families for further study in future analyses, based on the ratio of the number of pairs and the size of strings to the number of objects in an identified association.Comment: Accepted for publication in Icarus. 19 pages including 11 figure

Synthesis of a mitochondria-targeted spin trap using a novel Parham-type cyclization

A new cyclic nitrone spin trap, [4-(3′,3′-dibutyl-2′-oxy-3′H-isoindol-5′-yloxy)butyl]triphenylphosphonium bromide (MitoSpin), bearing a lipophilic cation has been prepared by a route that involves a novel Parham-type lithiation–cyclization of an isocyanate to give the isoindolinone core. MitoSpin accumulates in a membrane potential dependent way in energized mitochondria and its oxidation could potentially be used in the study of oxidative stress resulting from reactive oxygen species generated in mitochondria

The Distribution of Basaltic Asteroids in the Main Belt

We present the observational results of a survey designed to target and detect asteroids whose colors are similar to those of Vesta family members and thus may be considered as candidates for having a basaltic composition. Fifty basaltic candidates were selected with orbital elements that lie outside of the Vesta dynamical family. Optical and near-infrared spectra were used to assign a taxonomic type to 11 of the 50 candidates. Ten of these were spectroscopically confirmed as V-type asteroids, suggesting that most of the candidates are basaltic and can be used to constrain the distribution of basaltic material in the Main Belt. Using our catalog of V-type candidates and the success rate of the survey, we calculate unbiased size-frequency and semi-major axis distributions of V-type asteroids. These distributions, in addition to an estimate for the total mass of basaltic material, suggest that Vesta was the predominant contributor to the basaltic asteroid inventory of the Main Belt, however scattered planetesimals from the inner Solar System (a < 2.0 AU) and other partially/fully differentiated bodies likely contributed to this inventory. In particular, we infer the presence of basaltic fragments in the vicinity of asteroid 15 Eunomia, which may be derived from a differentiated parent body in the middle Main Belt (2.5 < a < 2.8). We find no asteroidal evidence for a large number of previously undiscovered basaltic asteroids, which agrees with previous theories suggesting that basaltic fragments from the ~100 differentiated parent bodies represented in meteorite collections have been "battered to bits" [Burbine, T.H., Meibom, A., Binzel, R.P., 1996. Mantle material in the Main Belt: Battered to bits? Met. & Planet. Sci. 31, 607].Comment: 67 pages, 11 figures, accepted to Icaru

Reproducibility and Sensitivity of Thirty-Six Methods to Quantify the SARS-CoV-2 Genetic Signal in Raw Wastewater: Findings from an Interlaboratory Methods Evaluation in the U.S.

In response to COVID-19, the international water community rapidly developed methods to quantify the SARS-CoV-2 genetic signal in untreated wastewater. Wastewater surveillance using such methods has the potential to complement clinical testing in assessing community health. This interlaboratory assessment evaluated the reproducibility and sensitivity of 36 standard operating procedures (SOPs), divided into eight method groups based on sample concentration approach and whether solids were removed. Two raw wastewater samples were collected in August 2020, amended with a matrix spike (betacoronavirus OC43), and distributed to 32 laboratories across the U.S. Replicate samples analyzed in accordance with the project\u27s quality assurance plan showed high reproducibility across the 36 SOPs: 80% of the recoverycorrected results fell within a band of ±1.15 log10 genome copies per L with higher reproducibility observed within a single SOP (standard deviation of 0.13 log10). The inclusion of a solids removal step and the selection of a concentration method did not show a clear, systematic impact on the recovery-corrected results. Other methodological variations (e.g., pasteurization, primer set selection, and use of RT-qPCR or RT-dPCR platforms) generally resulted in small differences compared to other sources of variability. These findings suggest that a variety of methods are capable of producing reproducible results, though the same SOP or laboratory should be selected to track SARS-CoV-2 trends at a given facility. The methods showed a 7 log10 range of recovery efficiency and limit of detection highlighting the importance of recovery correction and the need to consider method sensitivity when selecting methods for wastewater surveillance