24,179 research outputs found
Meteoroid detector
A meteoroid detector is described which uses, a cold cathode discharge tube with a gas-pressurized cell in space for recording a meteoroid puncture of the cell and for determining the size of the puncture
Clearcutting in Appalachia: Impacts on Stream Water Quality in an Appalachian Watershed
Clearcutting forests has the potential to impact the water quality of high water headwater streams. In this study, we measured the effect of forest clearcut events on parameters of stream water quality within Michaux State Forest. The watershed of two streams included 2.1% and 11.6% of the total catchment in clearcuts, while the other 4 watersheds had no clearcuts. We measured pH, electrical conductivity, total suspended solids, and nitrate (ppm) and phosphate (ppm) concentrations from six different tributary streams. Mann-Whitney U tests maintain no statistical difference observed between pH (U= 4.00, p= 1.00), temperature (U=1.00, p=0.165), electrical conductivity (U=2.00, p=0.355), suspended solids (U=2.00, p=0.325), nitrate concentration (U=2.00, p=0.264), or phosphate concentration (U=2.00, p=0.340). However, post-hoc analysis confirms stream 6 as an upper outlier for electrical conductivity (EC= 86.8 uS). This may be due to this site’s proximity to a busy road. These results suggest that there is no significant impact of clearcutting on stream water quality in Michaux State Forest. However, further repetition of this experiment would be necessary to make this conclusion statistically robust
Numerical Aerodynamic Simulation (NAS)
The history of the Numerical Aerodynamic Simulation Program, which is designed to provide a leading-edge capability to computational aerodynamicists, is traced back to its origin in 1975. Factors motivating its development and examples of solutions to successively refined forms of the governing equations are presented. The NAS Processing System Network and each of its eight subsystems are described in terms of function and initial performance goals. A proposed usage allocation policy is discussed and some initial problems being readied for solution on the NAS system are identified
On the soft X-ray spectrum of cooling flows
Strong evidence for cooling flows has been found in low resolution X-ray
imaging and spectra of many clusters of galaxies. However high resolution X-ray
spectra of several clusters from the Reflection Grating Spectrometer (RGS) on
XMM-Newton now show a soft X-ray spectrum inconsistent with a simple cooling
flow. The main problem is a lack of the emission lines expected from gas
cooling below 1--2 keV. Lines from gas at about 2--3 keV are observed, even in
a high temperature cluster such as A 1835, indicating that gas is cooling down
to about 2--3 keV, but is not found at lower temperatures. Here we discuss
several solutions to the problem; heating, mixing, differential absorption and
inhomogeneous metallicity. Continuous or sporadic heating creates further
problems, including the targetting of the heat at the cooler gas and also the
high total energy required. So far there is no clear observational evidence for
widespread heating, or shocks, in cluster cores, except in radio lobes which
occupy only part of the volume. The implied ages of cooling flows are short, at
about 1 Gyr. Mixing. or absorption, of the cooling gas are other possibilities.
Alternatively, if the metals in the intracluster medium are not uniformly
spread but are clumped, then little line emission is expected from the gas
cooling below 1 keV. The low metallicity part cools without line emission
whereas the strengths of the soft X-ray lines from the metal-rich gas depend on
the mass fraction of that gas and not on the abundance, since soft X-ray line
emission dominates the cooling function below 2 keV.Comment: 5 pages, with 2 figures, submitted to MNRA
On the evolution of cooling cores in X-ray galaxy clusters
(Abridged) To define a framework for the formation and evolution of the
cooling cores in X-ray galaxy clusters, we study how the physical properties
change as function of the cosmic time in the inner regions of a 4 keV and 8 keV
galaxy cluster under the action of radiative cooling and gravity only. The
cooling radius, R_cool, defined as the radius at which the cooling time equals
the Universe age at given redshift, evolves from ~0.01 R200 at z>2, where the
structures begin their evolution, to ~0.05 R200 at z=0. The values measured at
0.01 R200 show an increase of about 15-20 per cent per Gyr in the gas density
and surface brightness and a decrease with a mean rate of 10 per cent per Gyr
in the gas temperature. The emission-weighted temperature diminishes by about
25 per cent and the bolometric X-ray luminosity rises by a factor ~2 after 10
Gyrs when all the cluster emission is considered in the computation. On the
contrary, when the core region within 0.15 R500 is excluded, the gas
temperature value does not change and the X-ray luminosity varies by 10-20 per
cent only. The cooling time and gas entropy radial profiles are well
represented by power-law functions. The behaviour of the inner slopes of the
gas temperature and density profiles are the most sensitive and unambiguous
tracers of an evolving cooling core. Their values after 10 Gyrs of radiative
losses, T_gas ~ r^0.4 and n_gas ~ r^(-1.2) for the hot (cool) object, are
remarkably in agreement with the observational constraints available for nearby
X-ray luminous cooling core clusters. Because our simulations do not consider
any AGN heating, they imply that the feedback process does not greatly alter
the gas density and temperature profiles as generated by radiative cooling
alone.Comment: 8 pages. MNRAS in pres
NASA metrology information system: A NEMS subsystem
the NASA Metrology Information Systems (NMIS) is being developed as a standardized tool in managing the NASA field Center's instrument calibration programs. This system, as defined by the NASA Metrology and Calibration Workshop, will function as a subsystem of the newly developed NASA Equipment Management System (NEMS). The Metrology Information System is designed to utilize and update applicable NEMS data fields for controlled property and to function as a stand alone system for noncontrolled property. The NMIS provides automatic instrument calibration recall control, instrument historical performance data storage and analysis, calibration and repair labor and parts cost data, and instrument user and location data. Nineteen standardized reports were developed to analyze calibration system operations
Feasibility study for a scanning celestial attitude determination system SCADS on the IMP spacecraft Final report
System design analysis to establish feasibility of using electro-optical celestial scanning sensor on IMP spacecraft for determination of spacecraft attitude by star measurement
Advanced propellant management system for spacecraft propulsion systems. Phase 1 - Survey study and evaluation
Apollo spacecraft propulsion system propellant managemen
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