Planning for development: thematic geology maps Bridgend Area

This report summarises the work carried out during Phase 4 of a contract (PECD 7/1/004) commissioned by the Department of the Environment for the Welsh Otlice. The objectives of Phase 4 were to provide an up-to-date geological base in the form of thematic geology maps as a guide to planning for future development within the Bridgend and Llantrisant areas. It follows directly from a pilot study of the Bridgend area during Phase 1 (Fletcher, C. J. N., and others, 1982), which developed techniques and explored the potential of thematic geology maps for this area

Damage tolerant composite wing panels for transport aircraft

Commercial aircraft advanced composite wing surface panels were tested for durability and damage tolerance. The wing of a fuel-efficient, 200-passenger airplane for 1990 delivery was sized using grahite-epoxy materials. The damage tolerance program was structured to allow a systematic progression from material evaluations to the optimized large panel verification tests. The program included coupon testing to evaluate toughened material systems, static and fatigue tests of compression coupons with varying amounts of impact damage, element tests of three-stiffener panels to evaluate upper wing panel design concepts, and the wing structure damage environment was studied. A series of technology demonstration tests of large compression panels is performed. A repair investigation is included in the final large panel test

Development of pressure containment and damage tolerance technology for composite fuselage structures in large transport aircraft

NASA sponsored composites research and development programs were set in place to develop the critical engineering technologies in large transport aircraft structures. This NASA-Boeing program focused on the critical issues of damage tolerance and pressure containment generic to the fuselage structure of large pressurized aircraft. Skin-stringer and honeycomb sandwich composite fuselage shell designs were evaluated to resolve these issues. Analyses were developed to model the structural response of the fuselage shell designs, and a development test program evaluated the selected design configurations to appropriate load conditions

Gamma Rays from Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays in Cygnus A

Ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) accelerated in the jets of active galactic nuclei can accumulate in high magnetic field, ~100 kpc-scale regions surrounding powerful radio galaxies. Photohadronic processes involving UHECRs and photons of the extragalactic background light make ultra-relativistic electrons and positrons that initiate electromagnetic cascades, leading to the production of a gamma-ray synchrotron halo. We calculate the halo emission in the case of Cygnus A and show that it should be detectable with the Fermi Gamma ray Space Telescope and possibly detectable with ground-based gamma-ray telescopes if radio galaxies are the sources of UHECRs.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures, extended calculations, added references; ApJL, in pres

ACEE composite structures technology

Toppics addressed include: advanced composites on Boeing commercial aircraft; composite wing durability; damage tolerance technology development; heavily loaded wing panel design; and pressure containment and damage tolerance in fuselages

Wave Energy Amplification in a Metamaterial based Traveling Wave Structure

We consider the interaction between a particle beam and a propagating electromagnetic wave in the presence of a metamaterial. We show that the introduction of a metamaterial gives rise to a novel dispersion curve which determines a unique wave particle relationship, via the frequency dependence of the metamaterial and the novel ability of metamaterials to exhibit simultaneous negative permittivity and permeability. Using a modified form of Madey's theorem we find that the novel dispersion of the metamaterial leads to a amplification of the EM wave power

Red Men\u27s March

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-ps/2426/thumbnail.jp

Solar activity during Skylab: Its distribution and relation to coronal holes

Solar active regions observed during the period of Skylab observations (May 1973-February 1974) were examined for properties that varied systematically with location on the sun, particularly with respect to the location of coronal holes. Approximately 90 percent of the optical and X-ray flare activity occurred in one solar hemisphere (136-315 heliographic degrees longitude). Active regions within 20 heliographic degrees of coronal holes were below average in lifetimes, flare production, and magnetic complexity. Histograms of solar flares as a function of solar longitude were aligned with H alpha synoptic charts on which active region serial numbers and coronal hole boundaries were added

Data assimilation of three mars years of thermal emission spectrometer observations: Large-scale transient and stationary waves

Introduction: Large-scale traveling and stationary planetary waves are diagnosed from an analysis of profiles retrieved from the Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) [1] aboard the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft during its scientific mapping phase. The analysis was conducted by assimilating the TES temperature profile and total dust opacity retrievals [2] into a pseudo-spectral Mars general circulation model to produce a full, physically self consistent record of all atmospheric variables stored at an interval of two hours over the entire MGS mapping phase. The data cover a period of about three Mars years, corresponding to the interval 1999–2004 on Earth. These include the year which contained the 2001 global dust storm [3] and two years of more moderate dust activity, although large regional storms occurred during southern hemisphere summer in both years and there was considerable atmospheric variability between all three years [4]. We focus on the planetary wave activity, both traveling and stationary large-scale waves, in the assimilated record. Data assimilation is a particularly useful technique for the analysis of transient wave behaviour since it is capable of producing global, time-dependent atmospheric fields, which the assimilation scheme endeavours to make as consistent as possible with whatever observations are available. These atmospheric variables may be sampled from the model as often as desired, on a regular grid of points. If particular variables, or regions of the atmosphere, are not observed directly, the model will at least ensure that they are consistent with the laws of physics incorporated within its framework. A complex climatology of transient waves is revealed, modulated by the large-scale topography and surface thermal properties, the time of year and, crucially, the amount of dust suspended in the atmosphere. Some individual case studies show the temporal and spatial structures of the waves in the assimilation record, although the large data set has by no means been fully explored. Companion papers discuss the thermal atmospheric tides [5] and the processes associated with the initiation of dust storms [6] from the same assimilated analysis. Output from the same assimilation has also been used to identify potential deficiencies in the model, such as the lack of water ice clouds [7]

Re-Survey and Population Status Update of the Black Rail in Virginia

The Black Rail is the most imperiled bird species along the Atlantic Coast. This species is undergoing a conservation crisis that without emergency management intervention may be extirpated from many portions of its Atlantic Coast range in our lifetime. Black Rails have undergone significant reduction in it breeding range, loss of breeding sites in the core stronghold of its population, and has a dim future in the face of sea-level rise and other disturbances. The objective of this study was to provide an update of the population status of Black Rails in Virginia. We conducted a previous study for Black Rails in 2007 that marked the first time that a systematic survey of the species was conducted in the Commonwealth. Results of that survey effort showed that Black Rails were only detected in 10 of 212 survey points located on the Delmarva Peninsula and were completely absent from 40 additional survey locations on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. Based on the low detection rates, and apparent population decline from earlier decades, a re-survey of the lower Delmarva Peninsula was considered critical to provide current trends and distribution. We conducted surveys for Black Rail in 2014 on Virginia’s eastern shore (i.e., the lower Delmarva Peninsula) by selecting all 12 survey points with positive occurrences in the 2007 survey effort, 114 survey points that were a subset of locations without Black Rail occurrences from the 2007 survey, and a selection of 9 new points never before surveyed on the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge (total points surveyed = 134). Black Rails were only detected at 2 survey locations. Both of these detections were of single birds from the Saxis Wildlife Management Area. Black rails were absent from 10 other survey locations where they were detected in 2007. Population numbers of the Black Rail in Virginia has reached an all-time low in Virginia. Traditional strongholds such as the Saxis WMA have held more than 20 Black Rails as recent as the 1990s have become significantly reduced. Reasons for the decline of Black Rails are not completely understood but are likely a result of a combination of factors that degrade or remove their required habitat, disrupt breeding productivity, or lower survival. High marsh habitats that Black Rails rely upon are particularly vulnerable to loss and transformation as a result of sea-level rise and receive high visitation by nest predators that can disrupt breeding. Overall, the dramatic population loss of Black Rails in the Mid-Atlantic provides indication that the ecosystem they rely on is no longer suitable. Emergency management actions are required to prevent further population loss and begin restoration. A critical management need for the Black Rail is to create and manage habitats that are not influenced by sea-level rise. Artificial habitats such as managed impoundments offer the best opportunity to fit these demands. Impoundments could be placed inland to avoid rising seas and could be fenced to reduce predator visitation. A broad strategy and site-specific recommendations for managing impoundments to benefit Black Rails are still in need of development through experimentation. We recommend continual monitoring of the Black Rail population in Virginia into the future using the same protocol as 2007 and this 2014 study. Monitoring of Saxis WMA should occur annually and the remaining survey locations should be visited every 4 to 5 years. Survey points with no rail detections from 2007 and not surveyed in 2014 should be rotated into future survey designs to be assess whether or not birds are not moving in the landscape between monitoring benchmarks