2,039 research outputs found
Comparison of measured and EF5-r derived NâO fluxes from a spring-fed river
There is considerable uncertainty in the estimates of indirect NâO emissions as defined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) methodology. Direct measurements of NâO yields and fluxes in aquatic river environments are sparse and more data are required to determine the role that rivers play in the global NâO budget.
The objectives of this research were to measure the NâO fluxes from a spring-fed river, relate these fluxes to the dissolved NâO concentrations and NOââN loading of the river, and to try and define the indirect emission factor (EF5-r) for the river.
Gas bubble ebullition was observed at the river source with bubbles containing 7.9 ”L NâO Lâ»Âč. River NOââN and dissolved NâO concentrations ranged from 2.5 to 5.3 mg Lâ»Âč and 0.4 to 1.9 ”g NâO-N Lâ»Âč respectively with NâO saturation reaching 404%. Floating headspace chambers were used to sample NâO fluxes. NâOâN fluxes were significantly related to dissolved NâOâN concentrations (rÂČ = 30.6) but not to NOââN concentrations. The NâOâN fluxes ranged from 38-501 ”g mâ»ÂČ hâ»Âč, averaging 171 ”g mâ»ÂČ hâ»Âč (± Std. Dev. 85) overall. The measured NâOâN fluxes equated to an EF5-r of only 6.6% of that calculated using the IPCC methodology, and this itself was considered to be an over-estimate due to the degassing of antecedent dissolved NâO present in the groundwater that fed the river
The Probing In-Situ With Neutron and Gamma Rays (PING) Instrument for Planetary Composition Measurements
The Probing In situ with Neutrons and Gamma rays (PING) instrument (formerly named PNG-GRAND) [I] experiment is an innovative application of the active neutron-gamma ray technology successfully used in oil field well logging and mineral exploration on Earth over many decades. The objective of our active neutron-gamma ray technology program at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC) is to bring PING to the point where it can be flown on a variety of surface lander or rover missions to the Moon, Mars, Venus, asteroids, comets and the satellites of the outer planets and measure their bulk surface and subsurface elemental composition without the need to drill into the surface. Gamma-Ray Spectrometers (GRS) have been incorporated into numerous orbital planetary science missions. While orbital measurements can map a planet, they have low spatial and elemental sensitivity due to the low surface gamma ray emission rates reSUlting from using cosmic rays as an excitation source, PING overcomes this limitation in situ by incorporating a powerful neutron excitation source that permits significantly higher elemental sensitivity elemental composition measurements. PING combines a 14 MeV deuterium-tritium Pulsed Neutron Generator (PNG) with a gamma ray spectrometer and two neutron detectors to produce a landed instrument that can determine the elemental composition of a planet down to 30 - 50 cm below the planet's surface, The penetrating nature of .5 - 10 MeV gamma rays and 14 MeV neutrons allows such sub-surface composition measurements to be made without the need to drill into or otherwise disturb the planetary surface, thus greatly simplifying the lander design, We are cun'ently testing a PING prototype at a unique outdoor neutron instrumentation test facility at NASA/GSFC that provides two large (1.8 m x 1.8 m x ,9 m) granite and basalt test formations placed outdoors in an empty field, Since an independent trace elemental analysis has been performed on both these Columbia River basalt and Concord Gray granite materials, these large samples present two known standards with which to compare PING's experimentally measured elemental composition results, We will present both gamma ray and neutron experimental results from PING measurements of the granite and basalt test formations in various layering configurations and compare the results to the known composition
Paper Session II-A - Results of a Wheel Electrometer for Measuring the Triboelectric Properties of Martian Regolith
The preliminary results of a prototype Wheel Electrometer System (WES) are presented that show that it is indeed possible to use the static electricity generated between polymers and soils after contact (triboelectricity) as a means of detecting property changes. Changes in the triboelectric signals offer information as to the mechanical properties of the soil such as grain size differences, texture, hardness and even moisture content. Initially, four polymers are chosen that span the triboelectric series such as Teflon, Lucite, Fiberglass and Lexan. It is shown that the average charge on Teflon is much higher when rolled over beach sand as compared to Martian simulant and limestone. Lucite was the most susceptible to particle size differences, while Lexan was able to detect underlying materials in the case of a soil lightly covered with a different soil type. All polymers responded differently when rolled over dry soil compared with moist soil. This information can be used as a type of triboelectric spectroscopy when a library of data is used to categorize the unique charging characteristics of individual polymers. This system is of great interest to planetary scientists and such measurements may be included in future Mars rover missions
Fluctuations of an Atomic Ledge Bordering a Crystalline Facet
When a high symmetry facet joins the rounded part of a crystal, the step line
density vanishes as sqrt(r) with r denoting the distance from the facet edge.
This means that the ledge bordering the facet has a lot of space to meander as
caused by thermal activation. We investigate the statistical properties of the
border ledge fluctuations. In the scaling regime they turn out to be
non-Gaussian and related to the edge statistics of GUE multi-matrix models.Comment: Version with major revisions -- RevTeX, 4 pages, 2 figure
Paper Session I-C - Comparison of Surface Resistivity and Triboelectric Charge Generation Characteristics of Materials
Electrostatic discharge can be a significant threat to electronic components, equipment and personnel, especially when working around flammable materials. The development of ways to predict the susceptibility of materials to generate significant charge is important for the safety of these personnel and equipment. The classification of materials as conductors or insulators is based on the surface resistivity of the materials. Though surface resistivity is an important piece of information when choosing electrostatically safe materials, this classification system does not provide any information as to the probability of the materials to generate charge when placed in contact with other materials (triboelectric charging). Without that information, the probability for hazardous electrostatic discharge to occur is not known. In this paper we show that there is no significant correlation between surface resistivity and triboelectric charge generation and emphasize the need for a test method to predict the susceptibility of materials for triboelectric charge generation in order to better evaluate a materialâs propensity to cause an electrostatic discharge
Is a community still a community? Reviewing definitions of key terms in community ecology
Community ecology is an inherently complicated field, confounded by the conflicting use of fundamental terms. Nearly two decades ago, Fauth etal. (1996) demonstrated that imprecise language led to the virtual synonymy of important terms and so attempted to clearly define four keywords in community ecology; community, assemblage, guild, and ensemble. We revisit Fauth etal.\u27s conclusion and discuss how the use of these terms has changed over time since their review. An updated analysis of term definition from a selection of popular ecological textbooks suggests that definitions have drifted away from those encountered pre-1996, and slightly disagreed with results from a survey of 100 ecology professionals (comprising of academic professors, nonacademic PhDs, graduate and undergraduate biology students). Results suggest that confusion about these terms is still widespread in ecology. We conclude with clear suggestions for definitions of each term to be adopted hereafter to provide greater cohesion among research groups
Doubly Special Relativity and de Sitter space
In this paper we recall the construction of Doubly Special Relativity (DSR)
as a theory with energy-momentum space being the four dimensional de Sitter
space. Then the bases of the DSR theory can be understood as different
coordinate systems on this space. We investigate the emerging geometrical
picture of Doubly Special Relativity by presenting the basis independent
features of DSR that include the non-commutative structure of space-time and
the phase space algebra. Next we investigate the relation between our geometric
formulation and the one based on quantum -deformations of the
Poincar\'e algebra. Finally we re-derive the five-dimensional differential
calculus using the geometric method, and use it to write down the deformed
Klein-Gordon equation and to analyze its plane wave solutions.Comment: 26 pages, one formula (67) corrected; some remarks adde
Non-universal equilibrium crystal shape results from sticky steps
The anisotropic surface free energy, Andreev surface free energy, and
equilibrium crystal shape (ECS) z=z(x,y) are calculated numerically using a
transfer matrix approach with the density matrix renormalization group (DMRG)
method. The adopted surface model is a restricted solid-on-solid (RSOS) model
with "sticky" steps, i.e., steps with a point-contact type attraction between
them (p-RSOS model). By analyzing the results, we obtain a first-order shape
transition on the ECS profile around the (111) facet; and on the curved surface
near the (001) facet edge, we obtain shape exponents having values different
from those of the universal Gruber-Mullins-Pokrovsky-Talapov (GMPT) class. In
order to elucidate the origin of the non-universal shape exponents, we
calculate the slope dependence of the mean step height of "step droplets"
(bound states of steps) using the Monte Carlo method, where p=(dz/dx,
dz/dy)$, and represents the thermal averag |p| dependence of , we
derive a |p|-expanded expression for the non-universal surface free energy
f_{eff}(p), which contains quadratic terms with respect to |p|. The first-order
shape transition and the non-universal shape exponents obtained by the DMRG
calculations are reproduced thermodynamically from the non-universal surface
free energy f_{eff}(p).Comment: 31 pages, 21 figure
Reassessing candidate eccentric binary black holes: Results with a model including higher-order modes
The detection of eccentricity from a gravitational wave signal is expected to
help distinguish between formation channels for a given binary. In this study,
we reassess all previously-reported binary black holes with previous claims of
possible eccentricity as well as a few binaries with more interesting source
parameters, for the first time using a model (TEOBResumSGeneral) which accounts
for the full eccentricity range possible and incorporates higher-order
gravitational emission critical to model emission from highly eccentric orbits.
We estimate the eccentricity of these five events. For the first time, we
present marginal evidence of eccentricity for one of the events: GW190929.
Contrary to previous work with different settings, we do not find evidence
supporting eccentric orbits for the same systems. We find the incorporation of
eccentricity in our analyses dramatically shifts the posterior in multiple
parameters for several events, features could negatively impact other analyses
- âŠ