11,622 research outputs found
A Short Ion Path High Voltage Tube
A vacuum tube for the acceleration of charged particles is described. The total acceleration of the ions takes place in a distance of 18 inches although the total height of the tube is about 14 feet. It has been used at one million volts peak a.c. with target currents of 5 ma of electrons and 0.2 ma of positive ions
Regenerative fuel cell combines high efficiency with low cost
Hydrogen/oxygen regenerative fuel cell stores electrical energy efficiently and inexpensively. The fuel cell has a high energy-to-weight ratio, and is adapted for a large number of cycles with deep discharge
Discovery of a Binary Centaur
We have identified a binary companion to (42355) 2002 CR46 in our ongoing
deep survey using the Hubble Space Telescope's High Resolution Camera. It is
the first companion to be found around an object in a non-resonant orbit that
crosses the orbits of giant planets. Objects in orbits of this kind, the
Centaurs, have experienced repeated strong scattering with one or more giant
planets and therefore the survival of binaries in this transient population has
been in question. Monte Carlo simulations suggest, however, that binaries in
(42355) 2002 CR46 -like heliocentric orbits have a high probability of survival
for reasonable estimates of the binary's still-unknown system mass and
separation. Because Centaurs are thought to be precursors to short period
comets, the question of the existence of binary comets naturally arises; none
has yet been definitively identified. The discovery of one binary in a sample
of eight observed by HST suggests that binaries in this population may not be
uncommon.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figures, 1 table accepted for publication in Icaru
An analytical analysis of the dispersion predictions for effluents from the Saturn 5 and Scout-Algol 3 rocket exhausts
Predictions of the spatial concentration mapping of the potentially toxic constituents of the exhaust effluents from a launch of a Saturn 5 and of a Scout-Algol 3 vehicle utilizing the NASA/MSFC Multilayer Diffusion Program are provided. In the case of the Saturn 5, special attention was given to the concentration fields of carbon monoxide with a correlation of carbon dioxide concentrations. The Scout-Algol 3 provided an example of the centerline concentrations of hydrogen chloride, carbon monoxide, and alumina under typical meteorological conditions. While these results define the specific environmental impact of these two launches under the meteorological conditions existing during launches, they also provide a basis for the empirical monitoring of the constituents of the exhaust effluents of these vehicles
A Method for the Study of Human Factors in Aircraft Operations
A method for the study of human factors in the aviation environment is described. A conceptual framework is provided within which pilot and other human errors in aircraft operations may be studied with the intent of finding out how, and why, they occurred. An information processing model of human behavior serves as the basis for the acquisition and interpretation of information relating to occurrences which involve human error. A systematic method of collecting such data is presented and discussed. The classification of the data is outlined
HST-NICMOS Observations of M31's Metal Rich Globular Clusters and Their Surrounding Fields: I. Techniques
We have obtained HST-NICMOS observations of five of M31's most metal rich
globular clusters. These data allow photometry of individual stars in the
clusters and their surrounding fields. However, to achieve our goals -- obtain
accurate luminosity functions to compare with their Galactic counterparts,
determine metallicities from the slope of the giant branch, identify long
period variables, and estimate ages from the AGB tip luminosity, we must be
able to disentangle the true properties of the population from the
observational effects associated with measurements made in very crowded fields.
In this paper we present a careful analysis of photometry in crowded regions,
and show how image blending affects the results and interpretation of such
data. Although this analysis is specifically for our NICMOS observations in
M31, the techniques we develop can be applied to any imaging data taken in
crowded fields; we show how the effects of image blending will even limit NGST.
We use three different techniques to analyze the effects of crowding on our
data, including the insertion of artificial stars (traditional completeness
tests) and the creation of completely artificial clusters. They are used to
derive threshold- and critical-blending radii for each cluster, which determine
how close to the cluster center reliable photometry can be achieved. The
simulations also allow us to quantify and correct for the effects of blending
on the slope and width of the RGB at different surface brightness levels.Comment: AAS LaTeX v5.0, 18 pages. Submitted to the A
Insulating and Conducting Phases of RbC60
Optical measurements were performed on thin films of RbC,
identified by X-ray diffraction as mostly material. The samples were
subjected to various heat treatments, including quenching and slow cooling from
400K. The dramatic increase in the transmission of the quenched samples, and
the relaxation towards the transmission observed in slow cooled samples
provides direct evidence for the existence of a metastable insulating phase.
Slow cooling results in a phase transition between two electrically conducting
phases.Comment: Minor revisions. Submitted to PRB, RevTeX 3.0 file, 2 postscript
figures included, ir_dop
- …