Dynamic radioactive particle source

DOEpatents

Moore, Murray E; Gauss, Adam Benjamin; Justus, Alan Lawrence

2012-06-26

A method and apparatus for providing a timed, synchronized dynamic alpha or beta particle source for testing the response of continuous air monitors (CAMs) for airborne alpha or beta emitters is provided. The method includes providing a radioactive source; placing the radioactive source inside the detection volume of a CAM; and introducing an alpha or beta-emitting isotope while the CAM is in a normal functioning mode.

10 CFR 835.209 - Concentrations of radioactive material in air.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... Section 835.209 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY OCCUPATIONAL RADIATION PROTECTION Standards for Internal and External Exposure § 835.209 Concentrations of radioactive material in air. (a) The derived air... exposures to airborne radioactive material. (b) The estimation of internal dose shall be based on bioassay...

Environmental hazards and distribution of radioactive black sand along the Rosetta coastal zone in Egypt using airborne spectrometric and remote sensing data.

PubMed

Kaiser, M F; Aziz, A M; Ghieth, B M

2014-11-01

High-resolution airborne gamma ray spectrometry, conducted in 2003, was used to estimate radioactive elements spatial abundance along the Rosetta coastal zone area. It was noticed that both Uranium and Thorium are concentrated in the black sand deposits along the beach. In contrary, Potassium was observed in high level abundance at the cultivated Nile Delta lands due to the accumulated usage of fertilizers. Exposure Rate (ER), Absorbed Dose Rate (ADR) and Annual Effective Dose Rate (AEDR) were calculated to evaluate the radiation background influence in human. Results indicated that the human body in the study sites is subjected to radiation hazards exceeds the accepted limit for long duration exposure. In addition, the areas covered by the highest concentration of Uranium and Thorium show the highest level of radiogenic heat production. Detection the environmental hazards of the radioactive black sands in the study site encouraged this research to monitor the spatial and temporal distribution of these sediments. The Landsat Thematic Mapper images acquired in 1990, 2003 and 2013 were analyzed using remote sensing image processing techniques. Image enhancements, classification and changes detection indicated a positive significant relationship between the patterns of coastline changes and distribution of the radioactive black sand in the study sites. The radioactive black sands are usually concentrated in the eroded areas. Therefore, in 1990 high concentration of the radioactive black sands were observed along the eastern and western flanks of the Rosetta promontory. Distribution of these sediments decreased due to the construction of the protective sea walls. Most of the radioactive black sands are transported toward the east in Abu Khashaba bay under the effect of the longshore currents and toward the west in Alexandria and Abu Quir bay under the action of the seasonal reverse currents. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Quantifying Airborne Allergen Levels Before and After Rain Events Using TRMM/GPM and Ground-Sampled Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stewart, Randy M.

2006-01-01

Allergies affect millions of Americans, increasing health risks and also increasing absenteeism and reducing productivity in the workplace. Outdoor allergens, such as airborne pollens and mold spores, commonly trigger respiratory distress symptoms, but rainfall reduces the quantity of allergens in the air (EPA, 2003). The current NASA Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission provides accurate information related to rain events. These capabilities will be further enhanced with the future Global Precipitation Measurement mission. This report examines the effectiveness of combining these NASA resources with established ground-based allergen/spore sampling systems to better understand the benefits that rain provides in removing allergens and spores from the air.

Airborne bacterial dispersal during and after dressing and bed changes on burns patients.

PubMed

Bache, Sarah E; Maclean, Michelle; Gettinby, George; Anderson, John G; MacGregor, Scott J; Taggart, Ian

2015-02-01

It is acknowledged that activities such as dressing changes and bed sheet changes are high-risk events; creating surges in levels of airborne bacteria. Burns patients are particularly high dispersers of pathogens; due to their large, often contaminated, wound areas. Prevention of nosocomial cross-contamination is therefore one of the major challenges faced by the burns team. In order to assess the contribution of airborne spread of bacteria, air samples were taken repeatedly throughout and following these events, to quantify levels of airborne bacteria. Air samples were taken at 3-min intervals before, during and after a dressing and bed change on a burns patient using a sieve impaction method. Following incubation, bacterial colonies were enumerated to calculate bacterial colony forming units per m(3) (cfu/m(3)) at each time point. Statistical analysis was performed, whereby the period before the high-risk event took place acted as a control period. The periods during and after the dressing and bed sheet changes were examined for significant differences in airborne bacterial levels relative to the control period. The study was carried out four times, on three patients with burns between 35% total burn surface area (TBSA) and 51% TBSA. There were significant increases in airborne bacteria levels, regardless of whether the dressing change or bed sheet change took place first. Of particular note, is the finding that significantly high levels (up to 2614cfu/m(3)) of airborne bacteria were shown to persist for up to approximately 1h after these activities ended. This is the most accurate picture to date of the rapidly changing levels of airborne bacteria within the room of a burns patient undergoing a dressing change and bed change. The novel demonstration of a significant increase in the airborne bacterial load during these events has implications for infection control on burns units. Furthermore, as these increased levels remained for approximately 1h afterwards

Assessment of Airborne Particles. Fundamentals, Applications, and Implications to Inhalation Toxicity.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mercer, Thomas T., Ed.; And Others

Concern over chemical and radioactive particulate matter in industry and over rapidly increasing air pollution has stimulated research both on the properties of airborne particles and methods for assessing them and on their biological effects following inhalation. The Third Rochester International Conference on Environmental Toxicity was,…

Sampling the Vertical Moisture Structure of an Atmospheric River Event Using Airborne GPS Radio Occultation Profiling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haase, J. S.; Malloy, K.; Murphy, B.; Sussman, J.; Zhang, W.

2015-12-01

Atmospheric rivers (ARs) are of high concern in California, bringing significant rain to the region over extended time periods of up to 5 days, potentially causing floods, and more importantly, contributing to the Sierra snowpack that provides much of the regional water resources. The CalWater project focuses on predicting the variability of the West Coast water supply, including improving AR forecasting. Unfortunately, data collection over the ocean remains a challenge and impacts forecasting accuracy. One novel technique to address this issue includes airborne GPS radio occultation (ARO), using broadcast GPS signals from space to measure the signal ray path bending angle and refractivity to retrieve vertical water vapor profiles. The Global Navigation Satellite System Instrument System for Multistatic and Occultation Sensing (GISMOS) system was developed for this purpose for recording and processing high-sample rate (10MHz) signals in the lower troposphere. Previous studies (Murphy et al, 2014) have shown promising results in acquiring airborne GPS RO data, comparing it to dropsondes and numerical weather models. CalWater launched a field campaign in the beginning of 2015 which included testing GISMOS ARO on the NOAA GIV aircraft for AR data acquisition, flying into the February 6th AR event that brought up to 35 cm of rain to central California. This case study will compare airborne GPS RO refractivity profiles to the NCEP-NCAR final reanalysis model and dropsonde profiles. We will show the data distribution and explain the sampling characteristics, providing high resolution vertical information to the sides of the aircraft in a manner complementary to dropsondes beneath the flight track. We will show how this method can provide additional reliable data during the development of AR storms.

Quick response airborne command post communications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blaisdell, Randy L.

1988-08-01

National emergencies and strategic crises come in all forms and sizes ranging from natural disasters at one end of the scale up to and including global nuclear warfare at the other. Since the early 1960s the U.S. Government has spent billions of dollars fielding airborne command posts to ensure continuity of government and the command and control function during times of theater conventional, theater nuclear, and global nuclear warfare. Unfortunately, cost has prevented the extension of the airborne command post technology developed for these relatively unlikely events to the lower level, though much more likely to occur, crises such as natural disasters, terrorist acts, political insurgencies, etc. This thesis proposes the implementation of an economical airborne command post concept to address the wide variety of crises ignored by existing military airborne command posts. The system is known as the Quick Response Airborne Command Post (QRAC Post) and is based on the exclusive use of commercially owned and operated aircraft, and commercially available automated data processing and communications resources. The thesis addresses the QRAC Post concept at a systems level and is primarily intended to demonstrate how current technology can be exploited to economically achieve a national objective.

Comparison of radioactivity data measured in PM10 aerosol samples at two elevated stations in northern Italy during the Fukushima event.

PubMed

Tositti, Laura; Brattich, Erika; Cinelli, Giorgia; Previti, Alberto; Mostacci, Domiziano

2012-12-01

The follow-up of Fukushima radioactive plume resulting from the 11th March 2011 devastating tsunami is discussed for two Italian stations in the northern Apennines: Mt. Cimone (Modena) and Montecuccolino (Bologna). Radioactivity data collected at both stations are described, including comparison between local natural background of airborne particulate and artificial radioactivity referable to the arrival of the radioactive plume and its persistence and evolution. Analysis of back-trajectories was used to confirm the arrival of artificial radionuclides following atmospheric transport and processing. The Fukushima plume was first detected on 3rd April 2011 when high volume sampling revealed the presence of the artificial radionuclides (131)I, (137)Cs and (134)Cs. The highest activity concentrations of these nuclides were detected on 5th April 2011 at the Montecuccolino site. Fukushima radioactivity data at the two stations were usually comparable, suggesting a good vertical mixing of the plume; discrepancies were occasional and attributed to different occurrence of wet removal, typically characterized by a scattered spatial pattern. To understand the relevance to the local population of the extra dose due to the Fukushima plume, atmospheric activities of the related artificial nuclides were compared to those of the main natural radionuclides in ambient particulate, and found to be lower by over one order of magnitude. Radiation doses referable to Fukushima, maximized for a whole year occurrence at the highest activity level observed at our stations in the weeks affected by the Japanese plume, were estimated at 1.1 μSv/year. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Airborne soil organic particles generated by precipitation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Bingbing; Harder, Tristan H.; Kelly, Stephen T.

Airborne organic particles play a critical role in the Earth’s climate1, public health2, air quality3, and hydrological and carbon cycles4. These particles exist in liquid, amorphous semi-solid, or solid (glassy) phase states depending on their composition and ambient conditions5. However, sources and formation mechanisms for semi- solid and solid organic particles are poorly understood and typically neglected in atmospheric models6. Here we report field evidence for airborne solid organic particles generated by a “raindrop” mechanism7 pertinent to atmosphere – land surface interactions (Fig. 1). We find that after rain events at Southern Great Plains, Oklahoma, USA, submicron solid particles, withmore » a composition consistent with soil organic matter, contributed up to 60% of atmospheric particles in number. Subsequent experiments indicate that airborne soil organic particles are ejected from the surface of soils caused by intensive rains or irrigation. Our observations suggest that formation of these particles may be a widespread phenomenon in ecosystems where soils are exposed to strong, episodic precipitation events such as agricultural systems and grasslands8. Chemical imaging and micro-spectroscopy analysis of their physico-chemical properties suggests that airborne soil organic particles may have important impacts on cloud formation and efficiently absorb solar radiation and hence, are an important type of particles.« less

Challenges and Opportunities of Airborne Metagenomics

PubMed Central

Behzad, Hayedeh; Gojobori, Takashi; Mineta, Katsuhiko

2015-01-01

Recent metagenomic studies of environments, such as marine and soil, have significantly enhanced our understanding of the diverse microbial communities living in these habitats and their essential roles in sustaining vast ecosystems. The increase in the number of publications related to soil and marine metagenomics is in sharp contrast to those of air, yet airborne microbes are thought to have significant impacts on many aspects of our lives from their potential roles in atmospheric events such as cloud formation, precipitation, and atmospheric chemistry to their major impact on human health. In this review, we will discuss the current progress in airborne metagenomics, with a special focus on exploring the challenges and opportunities of undertaking such studies. The main challenges of conducting metagenomic studies of airborne microbes are as follows: 1) Low density of microorganisms in the air, 2) efficient retrieval of microorganisms from the air, 3) variability in airborne microbial community composition, 4) the lack of standardized protocols and methodologies, and 5) DNA sequencing and bioinformatics-related challenges. Overcoming these challenges could provide the groundwork for comprehensive analysis of airborne microbes and their potential impact on the atmosphere, global climate, and our health. Metagenomic studies offer a unique opportunity to examine viral and bacterial diversity in the air and monitor their spread locally or across the globe, including threats from pathogenic microorganisms. Airborne metagenomic studies could also lead to discoveries of novel genes and metabolic pathways relevant to meteorological and industrial applications, environmental bioremediation, and biogeochemical cycles. PMID:25953766

Airborne Microalgae: Insights, Opportunities, and Challenges

PubMed Central

Skjøth, Carsten Ambelas; Šantl-Temkiv, Tina; Löndahl, Jakob

2016-01-01

Airborne dispersal of microalgae has largely been a blind spot in environmental biological studies because of their low concentration in the atmosphere and the technical limitations in investigating microalgae from air samples. Recent studies show that airborne microalgae can survive air transportation and interact with the environment, possibly influencing their deposition rates. This minireview presents a summary of these studies and traces the possible route, step by step, from established ecosystems to new habitats through air transportation over a variety of geographic scales. Emission, transportation, deposition, and adaptation to atmospheric stress are discussed, as well as the consequences of their dispersal on health and the environment and state-of-the-art techniques to detect and model airborne microalga dispersal. More-detailed studies on the microalga atmospheric cycle, including, for instance, ice nucleation activity and transport simulations, are crucial for improving our understanding of microalga ecology, identifying microalga interactions with the environment, and preventing unwanted contamination events or invasions. PMID:26801574

Challenges and opportunities of airborne metagenomics.

PubMed

Behzad, Hayedeh; Gojobori, Takashi; Mineta, Katsuhiko

2015-05-06

Recent metagenomic studies of environments, such as marine and soil, have significantly enhanced our understanding of the diverse microbial communities living in these habitats and their essential roles in sustaining vast ecosystems. The increase in the number of publications related to soil and marine metagenomics is in sharp contrast to those of air, yet airborne microbes are thought to have significant impacts on many aspects of our lives from their potential roles in atmospheric events such as cloud formation, precipitation, and atmospheric chemistry to their major impact on human health. In this review, we will discuss the current progress in airborne metagenomics, with a special focus on exploring the challenges and opportunities of undertaking such studies. The main challenges of conducting metagenomic studies of airborne microbes are as follows: 1) Low density of microorganisms in the air, 2) efficient retrieval of microorganisms from the air, 3) variability in airborne microbial community composition, 4) the lack of standardized protocols and methodologies, and 5) DNA sequencing and bioinformatics-related challenges. Overcoming these challenges could provide the groundwork for comprehensive analysis of airborne microbes and their potential impact on the atmosphere, global climate, and our health. Metagenomic studies offer a unique opportunity to examine viral and bacterial diversity in the air and monitor their spread locally or across the globe, including threats from pathogenic microorganisms. Airborne metagenomic studies could also lead to discoveries of novel genes and metabolic pathways relevant to meteorological and industrial applications, environmental bioremediation, and biogeochemical cycles. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution.

Uptake of the natural radioactive gas radon by an epiphytic plant.

PubMed

Li, Peng; Zhang, Ruiwen; Gu, Mintian; Zheng, Guiling

2018-01-15

Radon ( 222 Rn) is a natural radioactive gas and the major radioactive contributor to human exposure. The present effective ways to control Rn contamination are ventilation and adsorption with activated carbon. Plants are believed to be negligible in reducing airborne Rn. Here, we found epiphytic Tillandsia brachycaulos (Bromeliaceae) was effective in reducing airborne Rn via the leaves. Rn concentrations in the Rn chamber after Tillandsia plant treatments decreased more than those in the natural situation. The specialized foliar trichomes densely covering Tillandsia leaves play a major role in the uptake of Rn because the amplified rough leaf surface area facilitates deposition of Rn progeny particles and the powdery epicuticular wax layer of foliar trichomes uptakes liposoluble Rn. The results provide us a new ecological strategy for Rn contamination control, and movable epiphytic Tillandsia plants can be applied widely in Rn removal systems. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Emergency communication and information issues in terrorist events involving radioactive materials.

PubMed

Becker, Steven M

2004-01-01

With the threat posed by terrorism involving radioactive materials now high on the nation's agenda, local, state, and federal agencies are moving to enhance preparedness and response capabilities. Crucial to these efforts is the development of effective risk communication strategies. This article reports findings from an ongoing study of risk communication issues in nuclear/radiological terrorism situations. It is part of a larger CDC-funded effort that aims to better understand communication challenges associated with weapons of mass destruction terrorism incidents. Presented here are formative research findings from 16 focus groups (n = 163) in which a multi-part, hypothetical radioactive materials terrorism situation was discussed. Twelve of the focus groups were carried out with members of the general public (drawn from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and geographic locations), and four groups were composed of first responders, hospital emergency department personnel, and public health professionals. One aim of the focus groups was to elicit detailed information on people's knowledge, views, perceptions, reactions, and concerns related to a nuclear/radiological terrorism event, and to better understand people's specific information needs and preferred information sources. A second aim was to pretest draft informational materials prepared by CDC and NIOSH. Key findings for the public and professional groups are presented, and the implications of the research for developing messages in radiological/nuclear terrorism situations are explored.

Environmental radioactivity in the UK: the airborne geophysical view of dose rate estimates.

PubMed

Beamish, David

2014-12-01

This study considers UK airborne gamma-ray data obtained through a series of high spatial resolution, low altitude surveys over the past decade. The ground concentrations of the naturally occurring radionuclides Potassium, Thorium and Uranium are converted to air absorbed dose rates and these are used to assess terrestrial exposure levels from both natural and technologically enhanced sources. The high resolution airborne information is also assessed alongside existing knowledge from soil sampling and ground-based measurements of exposure levels. The surveys have sampled an extensive number of the UK lithological bedrock formations and the statistical information provides examples of low dose rate lithologies (the formations that characterise much of southern England) to the highest sustained values associated with granitic terrains. The maximum dose rates (e.g. >300 nGy h(-1)) encountered across the sampled granitic terrains are found to vary by a factor of 2. Excluding granitic terrains, the most spatially extensive dose rates (>50 nGy h(-1)) are found in association with the Mercia Mudstone Group (Triassic argillaceous mudstones) of eastern England. Geological associations between high dose rate and high radon values are also noted. Recent studies of the datasets have revealed the extent of source rock (i.e. bedrock) flux attenuation by soil moisture in conjunction with the density and porosity of the temperate latitude soils found in the UK. The presence or absence of soil cover (and associated presence or absence of attenuation) appears to account for a range of localised variations in the exposure levels encountered. The hypothesis is supported by a study of an extensive combined data set of dose rates obtained from soil sampling and by airborne geophysical survey. With no attenuation factors applied, except those intrinsic to the airborne estimates, a bias to high values of between 10 and 15 nGy h(-1) is observed in the soil data. A wide range of

Airborne Geophysical Surveys Applied to Hydrocarbon Resource Development Environmental Studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, B. D.; Ball, L. B.; Finn, C.; Kass, A.; Thamke, J.

2014-12-01

mapping AEM surveys could also be effectively used in mapping tectonic features. Airborne radiometric methods have not been routinely used in hydrocarbon environmental studies but might be useful in understanding the surficial distribution of deposits related to naturally occurring radioactive materials.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Norden, K.; Congemi, J.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1987 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1987 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized. 16 tabs.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Norden, K.; Congemi, J.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1988 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1988 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized. 16 tabs.

Reduction of airborne radioactive dust by means of a charged water spray.

PubMed

Bigu, J; Grenier, M G

1989-07-01

An electrostatic precipitator based on charged water spray technology has been used in an underground uranium mine to control long-lived radioactive dust and short-lived aerosol concentration in a mine gallery where dust from a rock breaking/ore transportation operation was discharged. Two main sampling stations were established: one upstream of the dust precipitator and one downstream. In addition, dust samplers were placed at different locations between the dust discharge and the end of the mine gallery. Long-lived radioactive dust was measured using cascade impactors and nylon cyclone dust samplers, and measurement of the radioactivity on the samples was carried out by conventional methods. Radon and thoron progeny were estimated using standard techniques. Experiments were conducted under a variety of airflow conditions. A maximum radioactive dust reduction of about 40% (approximately 20% caused by gravitational settling) at a ventilation rate of 0.61 m3/sec was obtained as a result of the combined action of water scrubbing and electrostatic precipitation by the charged water spray electrostatic precipitator. This represents the optimum efficiency attained within the range of ventilation rates investigated. The dust reduction efficiency of the charged water spray decreased with increasing ventilation rate, i.e., decreasing air residence time, and hence, reduced dust cloud/charged water droplets mixing time.

Fourth Airborne Geoscience Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

The focus of the workshop was on how the airborne community can assist in achieving the goals of the Global Change Research Program. The many activities that employ airborne platforms and sensors were discussed: platforms and instrument development; airborne oceanography; lidar research; SAR measurements; Doppler radar; laser measurements; cloud physics; airborne experiments; airborne microwave measurements; and airborne data collection.

Quantifying population exposure to airborne particulate matter during extreme events in California due to climate change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahmud, A.; Hixson, M.; Kleeman, M. J.

2012-02-01

The effect of climate change on population-weighted concentrations of particulate matter (PM) during extreme events was studied using the Parallel Climate Model (PCM), the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model and the UCD/CIT 3-D photochemical air quality model. A "business as usual" (B06.44) global emissions scenario was dynamically downscaled for the entire state of California between the years 2000-2006 and 2047-2053. Air quality simulations were carried out for 1008 days in each of the present-day and future climate conditions using year-2000 emissions. Population-weighted concentrations of PM0.1, PM2.5, and PM10 total mass, components species, and primary source contributions were calculated for California and three air basins: the Sacramento Valley air basin (SV), the San Joaquin Valley air basin (SJV) and the South Coast Air Basin (SoCAB). Results over annual-average periods were contrasted with extreme events. Climate change between 2000 vs. 2050 did not cause a statistically significant change in annual-average population-weighted PM2.5 mass concentrations within any major sub-region of California in the current study. Climate change did alter the annual-average composition of the airborne particles in the SoCAB, with notable reductions of elemental carbon (EC; -3%) and organic carbon (OC; -3%) due to increased annual-average wind speeds that diluted primary concentrations from gasoline combustion (-3%) and food cooking (-4%). In contrast, climate change caused significant increases in population-weighted PM2.5 mass concentrations in central California during extreme events. The maximum 24-h average PM2.5 concentration experienced by an average person during a ten-year period in the SJV increased by 21% due to enhanced production of secondary particulate matter (manifested as NH4NO3). In general, climate change caused increased stagnation during future extreme pollution events, leading to higher exposure to diesel engines particles (+32%) and wood

Building damage assessment using airborne lidar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Axel, Colin; van Aardt, Jan

2017-10-01

The assessment of building damage following a natural disaster is a crucial step in determining the impact of the event itself and gauging reconstruction needs. Automatic methods for deriving damage maps from remotely sensed data are preferred, since they are regarded as being rapid and objective. We propose an algorithm for performing unsupervised building segmentation and damage assessment using airborne light detection and ranging (lidar) data. Local surface properties, including normal vectors and curvature, were used along with region growing to segment individual buildings in lidar point clouds. Damaged building candidates were identified based on rooftop inclination angle, and then damage was assessed using planarity and point height metrics. Validation of the building segmentation and damage assessment techniques were performed using airborne lidar data collected after the Haiti earthquake of 2010. Building segmentation and damage assessment accuracies of 93.8% and 78.9%, respectively, were obtained using lidar point clouds and expert damage assessments of 1953 buildings in heavily damaged regions. We believe this research presents an indication of the utility of airborne lidar remote sensing for increasing the efficiency and speed at which emergency response operations are performed.

Airborne Mission Concept for Coastal Ocean Color and Ecosystems Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guild, Liane S.; Hooker, Stanford B.; Morrow, John H.; Kudela, Raphael M.; Palacios, Sherry L.; Torres Perez, Juan L.; Hayashi, Kendra; Dunagan, Stephen E.

2016-01-01

Instruments, Inc.), an in-water system with microradiometers matching C-AIR, was deployed to compare sea-truth measurements and low-altitude Twin Otter flights within Monterey Bay red tide events. This novel airborne and in-water sensor capability advances the science of coastal measurements and enables rapid response for coastal events.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Benkovitz, C.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1979 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1979 release data are compared with previous year's releases in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Airborne multicamera system for geo-spatial applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bachnak, Rafic; Kulkarni, Rahul R.; Lyle, Stacey; Steidley, Carl W.

2003-08-01

Airborne remote sensing has many applications that include vegetation detection, oceanography, marine biology, geographical information systems, and environmental coastal science analysis. Remotely sensed images, for example, can be used to study the aftermath of episodic events such as the hurricanes and floods that occur year round in the coastal bend area of Corpus Christi. This paper describes an Airborne Multi-Spectral Imaging System that uses digital cameras to provide high resolution at very high rates. The software is based on Delphi 5.0 and IC Imaging Control's ActiveX controls. Both time and the GPS coordinates are recorded. Three successful test flights have been conducted so far. The paper present flight test results and discusses the issues being addressed to fully develop the system.

Airborne bacteria in the atmosphere: Presence, purpose, and potential

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smets, Wenke; Moretti, Serena; Denys, Siegfried; Lebeer, Sarah

2016-08-01

Numerous recent studies have highlighted that the types of bacteria present in the atmosphere often show predictable patterns across space and time. These patterns can be driven by differences in bacterial sources of the atmosphere and a wide range of environmental factors, including UV intensity, precipitation events, and humidity. The abundance of certain bacterial taxa is of interest, not only for their ability to mediate a range of chemical and physical processes in the atmosphere, such as cloud formation and ice nucleation, but also for their implications -both beneficial and detrimental-for human health. Consequently, the widespread importance of airborne bacteria has stimulated the search for their applicability. Improving air quality, modelling the dispersal of airborne bacteria (e.g. pathogens) and biotechnological purposes are already being explored. Nevertheless, many technological challenges still need to be overcome to fully understand the roles of airborne bacteria in our health and global ecosystems.

Airborne soil organic particles generated by precipitation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Bingbing; Harder, Tristan H.; Kelly, Stephen T.

Airborne organic particles play a critical role in Earth’s climate 1, public health 2, air quality 3, and hydrological and carbon cycles 4. However, sources and formation mechanisms for semi-solid and solid organic particles 5 are poorly understood and typically neglected in atmospheric models 6. Laboratory evidence suggests that fine particles can be formed from impaction of mineral surfaces by droplets 7. Here, we use chemical imaging of particles collected following rain events in the Southern Great Plains, Oklahoma, USA and after experimental irrigation to show that raindrop impaction of soils generates solid organic particles. We find that after rainmore » events, sub-micrometre solid particles, with a chemical composition consistent with soil organic matter, contributed up to 60% of atmospheric particles. Our irrigation experiments indicate that intensive water impaction is sufficient to cause ejection of airborne soil organic particles from the soil surface. Chemical imaging and micro-spectroscopy analysis of particle physico-chemical properties suggest that these particles may have important impacts on cloud formation and efficiently absorb solar radiation. Lastly, we suggest that raindrop-induced formation of solid organic particles from soils may be a widespread phenomenon in ecosystems such as agricultural systems and grasslands where soils are exposed to strong, episodic precipitation events 8.« less

Airborne soil organic particles generated by precipitation

DOE PAGES

Wang, Bingbing; Harder, Tristan H.; Kelly, Stephen T.; ...

2016-05-02

Airborne organic particles play a critical role in Earth’s climate 1, public health 2, air quality 3, and hydrological and carbon cycles 4. However, sources and formation mechanisms for semi-solid and solid organic particles 5 are poorly understood and typically neglected in atmospheric models 6. Laboratory evidence suggests that fine particles can be formed from impaction of mineral surfaces by droplets 7. Here, we use chemical imaging of particles collected following rain events in the Southern Great Plains, Oklahoma, USA and after experimental irrigation to show that raindrop impaction of soils generates solid organic particles. We find that after rainmore » events, sub-micrometre solid particles, with a chemical composition consistent with soil organic matter, contributed up to 60% of atmospheric particles. Our irrigation experiments indicate that intensive water impaction is sufficient to cause ejection of airborne soil organic particles from the soil surface. Chemical imaging and micro-spectroscopy analysis of particle physico-chemical properties suggest that these particles may have important impacts on cloud formation and efficiently absorb solar radiation. Lastly, we suggest that raindrop-induced formation of solid organic particles from soils may be a widespread phenomenon in ecosystems such as agricultural systems and grasslands where soils are exposed to strong, episodic precipitation events 8.« less

[Working environment measurement of radioactive substances].

PubMed

Kunugita, Naoki

2007-12-01

The control of the working environment is one of the most important duties in any working place to prevent occupational disease. In Japan, in the case of the controlled area using unsealed radioisotopes, the measurement of the concentration of airborne radioactive substances should be carried out under the regulations of the "Industrial Safety and Health Law" and the "Ordinance on Prevention of Ionizing Radiation Hazards". Many reports showed that the results of regular working environment measurements of radioactive substances were about background levels. Safe working environments are sufficiently guaranteed by a suitable estimation and handling under the strict regulation by the "Laws Concerning the Prevention from Radiation Hazards Due to Radioisotopes and Others". The regulation by "Ordinance on Prevention of Ionizing Radiation Hazards" would be relaxed in the field of education and research, which use very low quantities of radioactive substances, in ways such as estimation by calculation in place of the actual measurement, decrease of the number of monthly measurements, and measurement exemption for low levels of isotopes.

Radiochemical data collected on events from which radioactivity escaped beyond the borders of the Nevada test range complex. [NONE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hicks, H.G.

1981-02-12

This report identifies all nuclear events in Nevada that are known to have sent radioactivity beyond the borders of the test range complex. There have been 177 such tests, representing seven different types: nuclear detonations in the atmosphere, nuclear excavation events, nuclear safety events, underground nuclear events that inadvertently seeped or vented to the atmosphere, dispersion of plutonium and/or uranium by chemical high explosives, nuclear rocket engine tests, and nuclear ramjet engine tests. The source term for each of these events is given, together with the data base from which it was derived (except where the data are classified). Themore » computer programs used for organizing and processing the data base and calculating radionuclide production are described and included, together with the input and output data and details of the calculations. This is the basic formation needed to make computer modeling studies of the fallout from any of these 177 events.« less

Generating Continuous Surface Probability Maps from Airborne Video Using Two Sampling Intensities Along the Video Transect

Treesearch

Dennis M. Jacobs; William H. Cooke

2000-01-01

Airborne videography can be an effective tool for assessing the effects of catastrophic events on forest conditions. However, there is some question about the appropriate sampling intensity to use, especially when trying to develop correlations with probabilistic data sets such as are assembled through the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) surveys. We used airborne...

Airborne wireless communication systems, airborne communication methods, and communication methods

DOEpatents

Deaton, Juan D [Menan, ID; Schmitt, Michael J [Idaho Falls, ID; Jones, Warren F [Idaho Falls, ID

2011-12-13

An airborne wireless communication system includes circuitry configured to access information describing a configuration of a terrestrial wireless communication base station that has become disabled. The terrestrial base station is configured to implement wireless communication between wireless devices located within a geographical area and a network when the terrestrial base station is not disabled. The circuitry is further configured, based on the information, to configure the airborne station to have the configuration of the terrestrial base station. An airborne communication method includes answering a 911 call from a terrestrial cellular wireless phone using an airborne wireless communication system.

Quantifying population exposure to airborne particulate matter during extreme events in California due to climate change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahmud, A.; Hixson, M.; Kleeman, M. J.

2012-08-01

The effect of climate change on population-weighted concentrations of particulate matter (PM) during extreme pollution events was studied using the Parallel Climate Model (PCM), the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model and the UCD/CIT 3-D photochemical air quality model. A "business as usual" (B06.44) global emissions scenario was dynamically downscaled for the entire state of California between the years 2000-2006 and 2047-2053. Air quality simulations were carried out for 1008 days in each of the present-day and future climate conditions using year-2000 emissions. Population-weighted concentrations of PM0.1, PM2.5, and PM10 total mass, components species, and primary source contributions were calculated for California and three air basins: the Sacramento Valley air basin (SV), the San Joaquin Valley air basin (SJV) and the South Coast Air Basin (SoCAB). Results over annual-average periods were contrasted with extreme events. The current study found that the change in annual-average population-weighted PM2.5 mass concentrations due to climate change between 2000 vs. 2050 within any major sub-region in California was not statistically significant. However, climate change did alter the annual-average composition of the airborne particles in the SoCAB, with notable reductions of elemental carbon (EC; -3%) and organic carbon (OC; -3%) due to increased annual-average wind speeds that diluted primary concentrations from gasoline combustion (-3%) and food cooking (-4%). In contrast, climate change caused significant increases in population-weighted PM2.5 mass concentrations in central California during extreme events. The maximum 24-h average PM2.5 concentration experienced by an average person during a ten-yr period in the SJV increased by 21% due to enhanced production of secondary particulate matter (manifested as NH4NO3). In general, climate change caused increased stagnation during future extreme pollution events, leading to higher exposure to diesel engines

The risk of airborne influenza transmission in passenger cars.

PubMed

Knibbs, L D; Morawska, L; Bell, S C

2012-03-01

Travel in passenger cars is a ubiquitous aspect of the daily activities of many people. During the 2009 influenza A(H1N1) pandemic a case of probable transmission during car travel was reported in Australia, to which spread via the airborne route may have contributed. However, there are no data to indicate the likely risks of such events, and how they may vary and be mitigated. To address this knowledge gap, we estimated the risk of airborne influenza transmission in two cars (1989 model and 2005 model) by employing ventilation measurements and a variation of the Wells-Riley model. Results suggested that infection risk can be reduced by not recirculating air; however, estimated risk ranged from 59% to 99·9% for a 90-min trip when air was recirculated in the newer vehicle. These results have implications for interrupting in-car transmission of other illnesses spread by the airborne route.

In situ airborne measurements of aerosol optical properties during photochemical pollution events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mallet, M.; van Dingenen, R.; Roger, J. C.; Despiau, S.; Cachier, H.

2005-02-01

Dry aerosol optical properties (scattering, absorbing coefficients, and single scattering albedo) were derived from in situ airborne measurements during two photochemical pollution events (25 and 26 June) observed during the Experience sur Site pour Contraindre les Modeles de Pollution atmospherique et de Transport d'Emissions (ESCOMPTE) experiment. Two flights were carried out during daytime (one during the morning and one at noon) over a domain, allowing the investigation of how an air pollution event affects the particle optical properties. Both horizontal distribution and vertical profiles are presented. Results from the horizontal mapping show that plumes of enhanced scattering and absorption are formed in the planetary boundary layer (PBL) during the day in the sea breeze-driven outflow of the coastal urban-industrial area of Marseille-Fos de Berre. The domain-averaged scattering coefficient (at 550 nm) over land σs changes from 35 (28) Mm-1 during land breeze to 63 (43) Mm-1 during sea breeze on 25 June (26 June), with local maxima reaching > 100 Mm-1. The increase in the scattering coefficient is associated with new particle formation, indicative of secondary aerosol formation. Simultaneously, the domain-averaged absorption coefficient increases from 5.6 (3.4) Mm-1 to 9.3 (8.0) Mm-1. The pollution plume leads to strong gradients in the single scattering albedo ωo over the domain studied, with local values as low as 0.73 observed inside the pollution plume. The role of photochemistry and secondary aerosol formation during the 25 June case is shown to increase ωo and to make the aerosol more `reflecting' while the plume moves away from the sources. The lower photochemical activity, observed in the 26 June case, induces a relatively higher contribution of black carbon, making the aerosol more absorbing. Results from vertical profiles at a single near-urban location in the domain indicate that the changes in optical properties happen almost entirely within

Evaluation of an Airborne Spacing Concept to Support Continuous Descent Arrival Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Murdoch, Jennifer L.; Barmore, Bryan E.; Baxley, Brian T.; Capron, William R.; Abbott, Terence S.

2009-01-01

This paper describes a human-in-the-loop experiment of an airborne spacing concept designed to support Continuous Descent Arrival (CDA) operations. The use of CDAs with traditional air traffic control (ATC) techniques may actually reduce an airport's arrival throughput since ATC must provide more airspace around aircraft on CDAs due to the variances in the aircraft trajectories. The intent of airborne self-spacing, where ATC delegates the speed control to the aircraft, is to maintain or even enhance an airport s landing rate during CDA operations by precisely achieving the desired time interval between aircraft at the runway threshold. This paper describes the operational concept along with the supporting airborne spacing tool and the results of a piloted evaluation of this concept, with the focus of the evaluation on pilot acceptability of the concept during off-nominal events. The results of this evaluation show a pilot acceptance of this airborne spacing concept with little negative performance impact over conventional CDAs.

Airborne biological hazards and urban transport infrastructure: current challenges and future directions.

PubMed

Nasir, Zaheer Ahmad; Campos, Luiza Cintra; Christie, Nicola; Colbeck, Ian

2016-08-01

Exposure to airborne biological hazards in an ever expanding urban transport infrastructure and highly diverse mobile population is of growing concern, in terms of both public health and biosecurity. The existing policies and practices on design, construction and operation of these infrastructures may have severe implications for airborne disease transmission, particularly, in the event of a pandemic or intentional release of biological of agents. This paper reviews existing knowledge on airborne disease transmission in different modes of transport, highlights the factors enhancing the vulnerability of transport infrastructures to airborne disease transmission, discusses the potential protection measures and identifies the research gaps in order to build a bioresilient transport infrastructure. The unification of security and public health research, inclusion of public health security concepts at the design and planning phase, and a holistic system approach involving all the stakeholders over the life cycle of transport infrastructure hold the key to mitigate the challenges posed by biological hazards in the twenty-first century transport infrastructure.

[Radioactivity and food].

PubMed

Olszyna-Marzys, A E

1990-03-01

Two topics relating to radioactivity and food are discussed: food irradiation for preservation purposes, and food contamination from radioactive substances. Food irradiation involves the use of electromagnetic energy (x and gamma rays) emitted by radioactive substances or produced by machine in order to destroy the insects and microorganisms present and prevent germination. The sanitary and economic advantages of treating food in this way are discussed. Numerous studies have confirmed that under strictly controlled conditions no undesirable changes take place in food that has been irradiated nor is radioactivity induced. Reference is made to the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power station, which aroused public concern about irradiated food. The events surrounding the accident are reviewed, and its consequences with regard to contamination of different foods with radioactive substances, particularly iodine-131 and cesium-137, are described. Also discussed are the steps that have been taken by different international organizations to set limits on acceptable radioactivity in food.

Monte Carlo Simulations for Homeland Security Using Anthropomorphic Phantoms

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Burns, Kimberly A.

A radiological dispersion device (RDD) is a device which deliberately releases radioactive material for the purpose of causing terror or harm. In the event that a dirty bomb is detonated, there may be airborne radioactive material that can be inhaled as well as settle on an individuals leading to external contamination.

Exploring atmospheric radon with airborne gamma-ray spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baldoncini, Marica; Albéri, Matteo; Bottardi, Carlo; Minty, Brian; Raptis, Kassandra G. C.; Strati, Virginia; Mantovani, Fabio

2017-12-01

222Rn is a noble radioactive gas produced along the 238U decay chain, which is present in the majority of soils and rocks. As 222Rn is the most relevant source of natural background radiation, understanding its distribution in the environment is of great concern for investigating the health impacts of low-level radioactivity and for supporting regulation of human exposure to ionizing radiation in modern society. At the same time, 222Rn is a widespread atmospheric tracer whose spatial distribution is generally used as a proxy for climate and pollution studies. Airborne gamma-ray spectroscopy (AGRS) always treated 222Rn as a source of background since it affects the indirect estimate of equivalent 238U concentration. In this work the AGRS method is used for the first time for quantifying the presence of 222Rn in the atmosphere and assessing its vertical profile. High statistics radiometric data acquired during an offshore survey are fitted as a superposition of a constant component due to the experimental setup background radioactivity plus a height dependent contribution due to cosmic radiation and atmospheric 222Rn. The refined statistical analysis provides not only a conclusive evidence of AGRS 222Rn detection but also a (0.96 ± 0.07) Bq/m3 222Rn concentration and a (1318 ± 22) m atmospheric layer depth fully compatible with literature data.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Annual report, 1980

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Benkovitz, C.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1980 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1980 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants: Annual report, 1984

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Norden, K.; Congemi, J.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1984 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1984 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Annual report 1978

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Benkovitz, C.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commerical light water reactors during 1978 have been compiled and reported. Data on soild waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1978 release data are compared with previous years releases in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants: Annual report, 1985

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Norden, K.; Congemi, J.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1985 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1985 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Airborne radionuclides in the proglacial environment as indicators of sources and transfers of soil material.

PubMed

Łokas, Edyta; Wachniew, Przemysław; Jodłowski, Paweł; Gąsiorek, Michał

2017-11-01

A survey of artificial ( 137 Cs, 238 Pu, 239+240 Pu, 241 Am) and natural ( 226 Ra, 232 Th, 40 K, 210 Pb) radioactive isotopes in proglacial soils of an Arctic glacier have revealed high spatial variability of activity concentrations and inventories of the airborne radionuclides. Soil column 137 Cs inventories range from below the detection limit to nearly 120 kBq m -2 , this value significantly exceeding direct atmospheric deposition. This variability may result from the mixing of materials characterised by different contents of airborne radionuclides. The highest activity concentrations observed in the proglacial soils may result from the deposition of cryoconites, which have been shown to accumulate airborne radionuclides on the surface of glaciers. The role of cryoconites in radionuclide accumulation is supported by the concordant enrichment of the naturally occurring airborne 210 Pb in proglacial soil cores showing elevated levels of artificial radionuclides. The lithogenic radionuclides show less variability than the airborne radionuclides because their activity concentrations are controlled only by the mixing of material derived from the weathering of different parent rocks. Soil properties vary little within and between the profiles and there is no unequivocal relationship between them and the radionuclide contents. The inventories reflect the pathways and time variable inputs of soil material to particular sites of the proglacial zone. Lack of the airborne radionuclides reflects no deposition of material exposed to the atmosphere after the 1950s or its removal by erosion. Inventories above the direct atmospheric deposition indicate secondary deposition of radionuclide-bearing material. Very high inventories indicate sites where transport pathways of cryoconite material terminated. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tracking of airborne radionuclides from the damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear reactors by European networks.

PubMed

Masson, O; Baeza, A; Bieringer, J; Brudecki, K; Bucci, S; Cappai, M; Carvalho, F P; Connan, O; Cosma, C; Dalheimer, A; Didier, D; Depuydt, G; De Geer, L E; De Vismes, A; Gini, L; Groppi, F; Gudnason, K; Gurriaran, R; Hainz, D; Halldórsson, Ó; Hammond, D; Hanley, O; Holeý, K; Homoki, Zs; Ioannidou, A; Isajenko, K; Jankovic, M; Katzlberger, C; Kettunen, M; Kierepko, R; Kontro, R; Kwakman, P J M; Lecomte, M; Leon Vintro, L; Leppänen, A-P; Lind, B; Lujaniene, G; Mc Ginnity, P; Mc Mahon, C; Malá, H; Manenti, S; Manolopoulou, M; Mattila, A; Mauring, A; Mietelski, J W; Møller, B; Nielsen, S P; Nikolic, J; Overwater, R M W; Pálsson, S E; Papastefanou, C; Penev, I; Pham, M K; Povinec, P P; Ramebäck, H; Reis, M C; Ringer, W; Rodriguez, A; Rulík, P; Saey, P R J; Samsonov, V; Schlosser, C; Sgorbati, G; Silobritiene, B V; Söderström, C; Sogni, R; Solier, L; Sonck, M; Steinhauser, G; Steinkopff, T; Steinmann, P; Stoulos, S; Sýkora, I; Todorovic, D; Tooloutalaie, N; Tositti, L; Tschiersch, J; Ugron, A; Vagena, E; Vargas, A; Wershofen, H; Zhukova, O

2011-09-15

Radioactive emissions into the atmosphere from the damaged reactors of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant (NPP) started on March 12th, 2011. Among the various radionuclides released, iodine-131 ((131)I) and cesium isotopes ((137)Cs and (134)Cs) were transported across the Pacific toward the North American continent and reached Europe despite dispersion and washout along the route of the contaminated air masses. In Europe, the first signs of the releases were detected 7 days later while the first peak of activity level was observed between March 28th and March 30th. Time variations over a 20-day period and spatial variations across more than 150 sampling locations in Europe made it possible to characterize the contaminated air masses. After the Chernobyl accident, only a few measurements of the gaseous (131)I fraction were conducted compared to the number of measurements for the particulate fraction. Several studies had already pointed out the importance of the gaseous (131)I and the large underestimation of the total (131)I airborne activity level, and subsequent calculations of inhalation dose, if neglected. The measurements made across Europe following the releases from the Fukushima NPP reactors have provided a significant amount of new data on the ratio of the gaseous (131)I fraction to total (131)I, both on a spatial scale and its temporal variation. It can be pointed out that during the Fukushima event, the (134)Cs to (137)Cs ratio proved to be different from that observed after the Chernobyl accident. The data set provided in this paper is the most comprehensive survey of the main relevant airborne radionuclides from the Fukushima reactors, measured across Europe. A rough estimate of the total (131)I inventory that has passed over Europe during this period was <1% of the released amount. According to the measurements, airborne activity levels remain of no concern for public health in Europe.

Detection of solar events

DOEpatents

Fischbach, Ephraim; Jenkins, Jere

2013-08-27

A flux detection apparatus can include a radioactive sample having a decay rate capable of changing in response to interaction with a first particle or a field, and a detector associated with the radioactive sample. The detector is responsive to a second particle or radiation formed by decay of the radioactive sample. The rate of decay of the radioactive sample can be correlated to flux of the first particle or the field. Detection of the first particle or the field can provide an early warning for an impending solar event.

Airborne imaging spectrometers developed in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Jianyu; Xue, Yongqi

1998-08-01

Airborne imaging spectral technology, principle means in airborne remote sensing, has been developed rapidly both in the world and in China recently. This paper describes Modular Airborne Imaging Spectrometer (MAIS), Operational Modular Airborne Imaging Spectrometer (OMAIS) and Pushbroom Hyperspectral Imagery (PHI) that have been developed or are being developed in Airborne Remote Sensing Lab of Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics, CAS.

Radioactive cesium in dirt accumulations on the roof of buildings.

PubMed

Fujita, J; Mikasa, H; Fujii, N; Suzuki, Y; Nishiyama, K

1992-12-01

The concentrations of 137Cs and 134Cs in dirt deposits on the roofs of buildings are much higher than those in the surface of soil at ground level. Thus dirt on roofs concentrates radioactive cesium in fall-outs. The 137Cs concentration in dirt deposits on the roofs of older buildings is not consistently higher than that on the roofs of new ones, but the 137Cs/134Cs ratio is higher in deposits on older buildings constructed before the first half of the 1970s, and decreases exponentially with decrease in age of the buildings gradually reaching 1.9 +/- 0.2, the value in the air-borne dust at the time of the Chernobyl accident. From this relationship, the contribution of Chernobyl radioactivity to accumulated 137Cs was calculated as 32% on buildings constructed in 1962. The radioactive cesium concentrations in dirt deposits in gutters of private houses and on the roofs of university buildings in Japan were also determined.

Airborne Tactical Crossload Planner

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-12-01

set out in the Airborne Standard Operating Procedure (ASOP). 14. SUBJECT TERMS crossload, airborne, optimization, integer linear programming ...they land to their respective sub-mission locations. In this thesis, we formulate and implement an integer linear program called the Tactical...to meet any desired crossload objectives. xiv We demonstrate TCP with two real-world tactical problems from recent airborne operations: one by the

Airborne and ground reconnaissance of part of the syenite complex near Wausau, Marathon county, Wisconsin

USGS Publications Warehouse

Vickers, R.C.

1955-01-01

Airborne and ground reconnaissance for radioactive minerals in part of the syenite complex near Wausau, Marathon county, Wis., found 12 radioactive mineral localities. The rocks in the area are of Precambrian age and consist of syenite and nepheline syenite, which have intruded older granite, greenstone, quartzite, and argillite. There are very few outcrops, and much of the bedrock is deeply weathered and covered by residual soil. Thorium-bearing zircon pegatite float was found within the area of syenite and nepheline syenite at four localities. Reddish-brown euhedral to subeuhedral crystals of well-zoned zircon (variety cyrtolite) comprise more than 40 percent of some of the specimens. The radioactive mineral at four localities outside the area of syneites was identified as thorogummite, which occurred in nodular masses in residual soil. Alinement of the thorogummite float and associated radioactivity suggests that the thorogummite has resulted from weathering of narrow veins or pegmatites containing thorium-bearing minerals. Unidentified thorium-bearing minerals were found at three localities, and a specimen of allanite weighing about 2 pounds was found at one locality. Shallow trenches at two of the largest radioactivity anomalies showed that the radioactive material extended down into weathered bedrock. The occurrences might warrant additional physical exploration should there be sufficient demand for thorium. Further reconnaissance in the area would probably result in the discovery of additional occurrences.

International Symposium on Airborne Geophysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mogi, Toru; Ito, Hisatoshi; Kaieda, Hideshi; Kusunoki, Kenichiro; Saltus, Richard W.; Fitterman, David V.; Okuma, Shigeo; Nakatsuka, Tadashi

2006-05-01

Airborne geophysics can be defined as the measurement of Earth properties from sensors in the sky. The airborne measurement platform is usually a traditional fixed-wing airplane or helicopter, but could also include lighter-than-air craft, unmanned drones, or other specialty craft. The earliest history of airborne geophysics includes kite and hot-air balloon experiments. However, modern airborne geophysics dates from the mid-1940s when military submarine-hunting magnetometers were first used to map variations in the Earth's magnetic field. The current gamut of airborne geophysical techniques spans a broad range, including potential fields (both gravity and magnetics), electromagnetics (EM), radiometrics, spectral imaging, and thermal imaging.

Calculation of airborne radioactivity in a Technegas lung ventilation unit.

PubMed

López Medina, A; Miñano, J A; Terrón, J A; Bullejos, J A; Guerrero, R; Arroyo, T; Ramírez, A; Llamas, J M

1999-12-01

Airborne contamination by 99Tcm has been monitored in the Nuclear Medicine Department in our hospital to assess the risk of internal contamination to occupational workers exposed to Technegas studies. An air sampler fitted with a membrane filter was used. The optimum time for air absorption for obtaining the maximum activity in the filter was calculated. Maximum activity in the membrane filter ensures minimum uncertainty, which is especially important when low-level activities are being measured. The optimum time depends on air absorption velocity, room volume and filter efficiency for isotope collection. It tends to 1/lambda (lambda = disintegration constant for 99Tcm) for large volume and low velocity. Room activity with the air pump switched on was related to filter activity, and its variation with time was studied. Free activity in air for each study was approximately 7 x 10(-4) the activity used, and the effective half-life of the isotope in the room was 13.9 min (decay and diffusion). For a typical study (630 MBq), the effective dose to staff was 0.01 microSv when in the room for 10 min.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Annual report 1991, Volume 12

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Doty, K.; Congemi, J.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1991 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1991 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data Covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Annual report, 1982. Volume 3

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Norden, K.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1982 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1982 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Volume 11: Annual report, 1990

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Doty, K.; Congemi, J.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1990 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1990 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Annual report 1981. Vol. 2

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Benkovitz, C.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1981 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1981 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Annual report, 1983. Volume 4

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Norden, K.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1983 have been compiled and reported. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1983 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Occupational exposure to natural radioactivity in a zircon sand milling plant.

PubMed

Ballesteros, Luisa; Zarza, Isidoro; Ortiz, Josefina; Serradell, Vicente

2008-10-01

Raw zirconium sand is one of the substances (naturally occurring radioactive material, NORM) which is widely used in the ceramic industry. This sand contains varying concentrations of natural radionuclides: mostly U-238 but also Th-232 and U-235, together with their daughters, and therefore may need to be regulated by Directive 96/29/EURATOM. This paper describes the method used to perform the radiological study on a zircon sand milling plant and presents the results obtained. Internal and external doses were evaluated using radioactivity readings from sand, airborne dust, intermediate materials and end products. The results on total effective dose show the need for this type of industry to be carefully controlled, since values near to 1 mSv were obtained.

Radioactivity and food (in Spanish)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Olszyna-Marzys, A.E.

1990-03-01

Two topics relating to radioactivity and food are discussed: food irradiation for preservation purposes, and food contamination from radioactive substances. Food irradiation involves the use of electromagnetic energy (x and gamma rays) emitted by radioactive substances or produced by machine in order to destroy the insects and microorganisms present and prevent germination. The sanitary and economic advantages of treating food in this way are discussed. Numerous studies have confirmed that under strictly controlled conditions no undesirable changes take place in food that has been irradiated nor is radioactivity induced. Reference is made to the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear powermore » station, which aroused public concern about irradiated food. The events surrounding the accident are reviewed, and its consequences with regard to contamination of different foods with radioactive substances, particularly iodine-131 and cesium-137, are described. Also discussed are the steps that have been taken by different international organizations to set limits on acceptable radioactivity in food.15 references.« less

Meteorological factors associated with abundance of airborne fungal spores over natural vegetation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crandall, Sharifa G.; Gilbert, Gregory S.

2017-08-01

The abundance of airborne fungal spores in agricultural and urban settings increases with greater air temperature, relative humidity, or precipitation. The same meteorological factors that affect temporal patterns in spore abundance in managed environments also vary spatially across natural habitats in association with differences in vegetation structure. Here we investigated how temporal and spatial variation in aerial spore abundance is affected by abiotic (weather) and biotic (vegetation) factors as a foundation for predicting how fungi may respond to changes in weather and land-use patterns. We measured the phenology of airborne fungal spores across a mosaic of naturally occurring vegetation types at different time scales to describe (1) how spore abundance changes over time, (2) which local meteorological variables are good predictors for airborne spore density, and (3) whether spore abundance differs across vegetation types. Using an air volumetric vacuum sampler, we collected spore samples at 3-h intervals over a 120-h period in a mixed-evergreen forest and coastal prairie to measure diurnal, nocturnal, and total airborne spore abundance across vegetation types. Spore samples were also collected at weekly and monthly intervals in mixed-evergreen forest, redwood forest, and maritime chaparral vegetation types from 12 field sites across two years. We found greater airborne spore densities during the wetter winter months compared to the drier summer months. Mean total spore abundance in the mixed-evergreen forest was twice than in the coastal prairie, but there were no significant differences in total airborne spore abundance among mixed-evergreen forest, redwood forest, and maritime chaparral vegetation types. Weekly and monthly peaks in airborne spore abundance corresponded with rain events and peaks in soil moisture. Overall, temporal patterns in meteorological factors were much more important in determining airborne fungal spore abundance than the

Evaluation of meteorological airborne Doppler radar

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hildebrand, P. H.; Mueller, C. K.

1984-01-01

This paper will discuss the capabilities of airborne Doppler radar for atmospheric sciences research. The evaluation is based on airborne and ground based Doppler radar observations of convective storms. The capability of airborne Doppler radar to measure horizontal and vertical air motions is evaluated. Airborne Doppler radar is shown to be a viable tool for atmospheric sciences research.

Webinar: Airborne Data Discovery and Analysis with Toolsets for Airborne Data (TAD)

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2016-10-18

Webinar: Airborne Data Discovery and Analysis with Toolsets for Airborne Data (TAD) Wednesday, October 26, 2016 Join us on ... and flight data ranges are available. Registration is now open.  Access the full announcement   For TAD Information, ...

Importance of airborne algae and protozoa

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schlichting, H.E. Jr.

1969-12-01

Membrane filters, bubblers, and exposed culture media were used to sample viable algae and protozoa from the atmosphere in Michigan, Texas, and North Carolina from 1956 to 1967. Aerial algae and protozoa were most abundant and diverse in North Central Texas, 0-8 cells/ft/sup 3/, less abundant and diverse in Michigan, 0-1.8 cells/ft/sup 3/, and least abundant in Coastal North Carolina, less than 0.41 cells/ft/sup 3/. Other significant research from 1910 to 1968 is reviewed. A total of 187 taxa of algae and protozoa has been sampled and cultured through this period. The importance of airborne algae and protozoa to manmore » is shown as related to allergies, radioactivity, clogging of air filters, an aid in determining the origin of hurricanes and other storms and adding to the understanding of the dispersal of these microorganisms throughout the world. 15 references, 2 tables.« less

Processor architecture for airborne SAR systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glass, C. M.

1983-01-01

Digital processors for spaceborne imaging radars and application of the technology developed for airborne SAR systems are considered. Transferring algorithms and implementation techniques from airborne to spaceborne SAR processors offers obvious advantages. The following topics are discussed: (1) a quantification of the differences in processing algorithms for airborne and spaceborne SARs; and (2) an overview of three processors for airborne SAR systems.

Using NASA`s Airborne Topographic Mapper IV to Quantify Geomorphic Change in Arid Southwestern Stream Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Finnegan, D. C.; Krabill, W.; Lichvar, R. W.; Ericsson, M. P.; Frederick, E.; Manizade, S.; Yungel, J.; Sonntag, J.; Swift, R.

2005-12-01

Understanding how arid stream systems respond to individual climatic events is often difficult given the dynamic and `flashy' nature of most watersheds and the unpredictable nature of individual storm events. Until recently conventional methods for quantifying change dictated the use of stream gauge measurements coupled with periodic cross-section measurements to quantify changes in large-scale channel geometry. Using this approach to quantify change across large areas often proves to be impractical and unattainable given the laborious nature of most surveying techniques including modern GPS systems. Alternately, airborne laser technologies such as NASA's Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) are capable of quantifying small-scale changes (~5-10cm) across large-scale terrain rapidly and accurately. The ATM was developed at the NASA-GSFC Wallops Flight Facility. Its current version, ATM-4, measures topography 5,000 times per second across a 45-degree swath below the aircraft by transmitting a 532nm (green) laser pulse and receiving the backscattered signal in a high-speed waveform digitizer. The laser range measurements are combined with aircraft location from GPS and attitude from an inertial navigation system (INS) to provide a precise XYZ coordinate for each (~1-meter diameter) laser footprint on the ground. Our work focuses on the use of airborne laser altimetry to quantify the nature of individual surfaces and the geomorphic change that occurs within small arid stream systems during significant storm events. In September of 2003 and 2005 acquisition surveys using NASA's ATM-IV were flown over Mission Creek, a small arid stream system in Southern California's Mojave Desert with a relatively long gauging history (>40yrs), allowing us to quantify the geomorphic change occurring within the channel as a result of the record storm events during the winter of 2004-2005. Preliminary results associated with our work are encouraging and lead us to believe that when compared

Gross-alpha and gross-beta activities in airborne particulate samples. Analysis and prediction models.

PubMed

Dueñas, C; Fernández, M C; Carretero, J; Liger, E; Cañete, S

2001-04-01

Measurements of gross-alpha and gross-beta activities were made every week during the years 1992-1997 for airborne particulate samples collected using air filters at a clear site. The data are sufficiently numerous to allow the examination of variations in time and by these measurements to establish several features that should be important in understanding any trends of atmospheric radioactivity. Two models were used to predict the gross-alpha and gross-beta activities. A good agreement between the results of these models and the measurements was highlighted.

Airborne relay-based regional positioning system.

PubMed

Lee, Kyuman; Noh, Hongjun; Lim, Jaesung

2015-05-28

Ground-based pseudolite systems have some limitations, such as low vertical accuracy, multipath effects and near-far problems. These problems are not significant in airborne-based pseudolite systems. However, the monitoring of pseudolite positions is required because of the mobility of the platforms on which the pseudolites are mounted, and this causes performance degradation. To address these pseudolite system limitations, we propose an airborne relay-based regional positioning system that consists of a master station, reference stations, airborne relays and a user. In the proposed system, navigation signals are generated from the reference stations located on the ground and are relayed via the airborne relays. Unlike in conventional airborne-based systems, the user in the proposed system sequentially estimates both the locations of airborne relays and his/her own position. Therefore, a delay due to monitoring does not occur, and the accuracy is not affected by the movement of airborne relays. We conducted several simulations to evaluate the performance of the proposed system. Based on the simulation results, we demonstrated that the proposed system guarantees a higher accuracy than airborne-based pseudolite systems, and it is feasible despite the existence of clock offsets among reference stations.

Airborne Relay-Based Regional Positioning System

PubMed Central

Lee, Kyuman; Noh, Hongjun; Lim, Jaesung

2015-01-01

Ground-based pseudolite systems have some limitations, such as low vertical accuracy, multipath effects and near-far problems. These problems are not significant in airborne-based pseudolite systems. However, the monitoring of pseudolite positions is required because of the mobility of the platforms on which the pseudolites are mounted, and this causes performance degradation. To address these pseudolite system limitations, we propose an airborne relay-based regional positioning system that consists of a master station, reference stations, airborne relays and a user. In the proposed system, navigation signals are generated from the reference stations located on the ground and are relayed via the airborne relays. Unlike in conventional airborne-based systems, the user in the proposed system sequentially estimates both the locations of airborne relays and his/her own position. Therefore, a delay due to monitoring does not occur, and the accuracy is not affected by the movement of airborne relays. We conducted several simulations to evaluate the performance of the proposed system. Based on the simulation results, we demonstrated that the proposed system guarantees a higher accuracy than airborne-based pseudolite systems, and it is feasible despite the existence of clock offsets among reference stations. PMID:26029953

Rail assembly for use in a radioactive environment

DOEpatents

Watts, Ralph E.

1989-01-01

An improved rail assembly and method of construction thereof is disclosed herein that is particularly adapted for use with a crane trolley in a hot cell environment which is exposed to airborne and liquidborne radioactive contaminants. The rail assembly is generally comprised of a support wall having an elongated, rail-housing recess having a floor, side wall and ceiling. The floor of the recess is defined at least in part by the load-bearing surface of a rail, and is substantially flat, level and crevice-free to facilitate the drainage of liquids out of the recess. The ceiling of the recess overhangs and thereby captures trolley wheels within the recess to prevent them from becoming dislodged from the recess during a seismic disturbance. Finally, the interior of the recess includes a power track having a slot for receiving a sliding electrical connector from the crane trolley. The power track is mounted in an upper corner of the recess with its connector-receiving groove oriented downwardly to facilitate the drainage of liquidborne contaminants and to discourage the collection of airborne contaminants within the track.

Scrap metals industry perspective on radioactive materials.

PubMed

Turner, Ray

2006-11-01

With more than 80 reported/confirmed accidental melts worldwide since 1983 and still counting, potential contamination by radioactive materials remains as a major concern among recycled scrap and steel companies. Some of these events were catastrophic and have cost the industry millions of dollars in business and, at the same time, resulted in declining consumer confidence. It is also known that more events with confirmed radioactive contamination have occurred that involve mining of old steel slag and skull dumps. Consequently, the steel industry has since undergone massive changes that incurred unprecedented expenses through the installation of radiation monitoring systems in hopes of preventing another accidental melt. Despite such extraordinary efforts, accidental melts continue to occur and plague the industry. One recent reported/confirmed event occurred in the Republic of China in 2004, causing the usual lengthy shutdown for expensive decontamination efforts before the steel mill could resume operations. With this perspective in mind, the metal industry has a long-standing opposition to the release of radioactive materials of any kind to commerce for fear of contamination and the potential consequences.

Airborne irritant contact dermatitis due to synthetic fibres from an air-conditioning filter.

PubMed

Patiwael, Jiska A; Wintzen, Marjolein; Rustemeyer, Thomas; Bruynzeel, Derk P

2005-03-01

We describe 8 cases of occupational airborne irritant contact dermatitis in intensive care unit (ICU) employees caused by synthetic (polypropylene and polyethylene) fibres from an air-conditioning filter. Not until a workplace investigation was conducted, was it possible to clarify the unusual sequence of events. High filter pressure in the intensive care air-conditioning system, maintained to establish an outward airflow and prevent microorganisms from entering the ward, probably caused fibres from the filter to become airborne. Upon contact with air-exposed skin, fibres subsequently provoked skin irritation. Test periods in the ICU with varying filter pressures, in an attempt to improve environmental conditions, led to even higher filter pressure levels and more complaints. The sometimes-very-low humidity might have contributed to development of skin irritation. The fact that most patients recovered quickly after treatment with emollients and changing the filters made it most likely that the airborne dermatitis was of an irritant nature.

Airborne SAR systems for infrastructures monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perna, Stefano; Berardino, Paolo; Esposito, Carmen; Natale, Antonio

2017-04-01

The present contribution is aimed at showing the capabilities of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems mounted onboard airborne platforms for the monitoring of infrastructures. As well known, airborne SAR systems guarantee narrower spatial coverage than satellite sensors [1]. On the other side, airborne SAR products are characterized by geometric resolution typically higher than that achievable in the satellite case, where larger antennas must be necessarily exploited. More important, airborne SAR platforms guarantee operational flexibility significantly higher than that achievable with satellite systems. Indeed, the revisit time between repeated SAR acquisitions in the satellite case cannot be freely decided, whereas in the airborne case it can be kept very short. This renders the airborne platforms of key interest for the monitoring of infrastructures, especially in case of emergencies. However, due to the platform deviations from a rectilinear, reference flight track, the generation of airborne SAR products is not a turn of the crank procedure as in the satellite case. Notwithstanding proper algorithms exist in order to circumvent this kind of limitations. In this work, we show how the exploitation of airborne SAR sensors, coupled to the use of such algorithms, allows obtaining high resolution monitoring of infrastructures in urban areas. [1] G. Franceschetti, and R.Lanari, Synthetic Aperture Radar Processing, CRC PRESS, New York, 1999.

Long-range-transported bioaerosols captured in snow cover on Mount Tateyama, Japan: impacts of Asian-dust events on airborne bacterial dynamics relating to ice-nucleation activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maki, Teruya; Furumoto, Shogo; Asahi, Yuya; Lee, Kevin C.; Watanabe, Koichi; Aoki, Kazuma; Murakami, Masataka; Tajiri, Takuya; Hasegawa, Hiroshi; Mashio, Asami; Iwasaka, Yasunobu

2018-06-01

The westerly wind travelling at high altitudes over eastern Asia transports aerosols from the Asian deserts and urban areas to downwind areas such as Japan. These long-range-transported aerosols include not only mineral particles but also microbial particles (bioaerosols), that impact the ice-cloud formation processes as ice nuclei. However, the detailed relations of airborne bacterial dynamics to ice nucleation in high-elevation aerosols have not been investigated. Here, we used the aerosol particles captured in the snow cover at altitudes of 2450 m on Mt Tateyama to investigate sequential changes in the ice-nucleation activities and bacterial communities in aerosols and elucidate the relationships between the two processes. After stratification of the snow layers formed on the walls of a snow pit on Mt Tateyama, snow samples, including aerosol particles, were collected from 70 layers at the lower (winter accumulation) and upper (spring accumulation) parts of the snow wall. The aerosols recorded in the lower parts mainly came from Siberia (Russia), northern Asia and the Sea of Japan, whereas those in the upper parts showed an increase in Asian dust particles originating from the desert regions and industrial coasts of Asia. The snow samples exhibited high levels of ice nucleation corresponding to the increase in Asian dust particles. Amplicon sequencing analysis using 16S rRNA genes revealed that the bacterial communities in the snow samples predominately included plant associated and marine bacteria (phyla Proteobacteria) during winter, whereas during spring, when dust events arrived frequently, the majority were terrestrial bacteria of phyla Actinobacteria and Firmicutes. The relative abundances of Firmicutes (Bacilli) showed a significant positive relationship with the ice nucleation in snow samples. Presumably, Asian dust events change the airborne bacterial communities over Mt Tateyama and carry terrestrial bacterial populations, which possibly induce ice

Airborne asbestos exposures associated with gasket and packing replacement: a simulation study and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Madl, Amy K; Hollins, Dana M; Devlin, Kathryn D; Donovan, Ellen P; Dopart, Pamela J; Scott, Paul K; Perez, Angela L

2014-08-01

Exposures to airborne asbestos during the removal and installation of internal gaskets and packing associated with a valve overhaul were characterized and compared to published data according to different variables (e.g., product, equipment, task, tool, setting, duration). Personal breathing zone and area samples were collected during twelve events simulating gasket and packing replacement, clean-up and clothing handling. These samples were analyzed using PCM and TEM methods and PCM-equivalent (PCME) airborne asbestos concentrations were calculated. A meta-analysis was performed to compare these data with airborne asbestos concentrations measured in other studies involving gaskets and packing. Short-term mechanic and assistant airborne asbestos concentrations during valve work averaged 0.013f/cc and 0.008f/cc (PCME), respectively. Area samples averaged 0.008f/cc, 0.005f/cc, and 0.003f/cc (PCME) for center, bystander, and remote background, respectively. Assuming a tradesman conservatively performs 1-3 gasket and/or packing replacements daily, an average 8-h TWA was estimated to be 0.002-0.010f/cc (PCME). Combining these results in a meta-analysis of the published exposure data showed that the majority of airborne asbestos exposures during work with gaskets and packing fall within a consistent and low range. Significant differences in airborne concentrations were observed between power versus manual tools and removal versus installation tasks. Airborne asbestos concentrations resulting from gasket and packing work during a valve overhaul are consistent with historical exposure data on replacement of asbestos-containing gasket and packing materials involving multiple variables and, in nearly all plausible scenarios, result in average airborne asbestos concentrations below contemporaneous occupational exposure limits for asbestos. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Routing architecture and security for airborne networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Hongmei; Xie, Peng; Li, Jason; Xu, Roger; Levy, Renato

2009-05-01

Airborne networks are envisioned to provide interconnectivity for terrestial and space networks by interconnecting highly mobile airborne platforms. A number of military applications are expected to be used by the operator, and all these applications require proper routing security support to establish correct route between communicating platforms in a timely manner. As airborne networks somewhat different from traditional wired and wireless networks (e.g., Internet, LAN, WLAN, MANET, etc), security aspects valid in these networks are not fully applicable to airborne networks. Designing an efficient security scheme to protect airborne networks is confronted with new requirements. In this paper, we first identify a candidate routing architecture, which works as an underlying structure for our proposed security scheme. And then we investigate the vulnerabilities and attack models against routing protocols in airborne networks. Based on these studies, we propose an integrated security solution to address routing security issues in airborne networks.

Characterization of airborne and bulk particulate from iron and steel manufacturing facilities.

PubMed

Machemer, Steven D

2004-01-15

Characterization of airborne and bulk particulate material from iron and steel manufacturing facilities, commonly referred to as kish, indicated graphite flakes and graphite flakes associated with spherical iron oxide particles were unique particle characteristics useful in identifying particle emissions from iron and steel manufacturing. Characterization of airborne particulate material collected in receptor areas was consistent with multiple atmospheric release events of kish particles from the local iron and steel facilities into neighboring residential areas. Kish particles deposited in nearby residential areas included an abundance of graphite flakes, tens of micrometers to millimeters in size, and spherical iron oxide particles, submicrometer to tens of micrometers in size. Bulk kish from local iron and steel facilities contained an abundance of similar particles. Approximately 60% of blast furnace kish by volume consisted of spherical iron oxide particles in the respirable size range. Basic oxygen furnace kish contained percent levels of strongly alkaline components such as calcium hydroxide. In addition, concentrations of respirable Mn in airborne particulate in residential areas and at local iron and steel facilities were approximately 1.6 and 53 times the inhalation reference concentration of 0.05 microg/m3 for chronic inhalation exposure of Mn, respectively. Thus, airborne release of kish may pose potential respirable particulate, corrosive, or toxic hazards for human health and/or a corrosive hazard for property and the environment.

The Bayo Canyon/radioactive lanthanum (RaLa) program

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dummer, J.E.; Taschner, J.C.; Courtright, C.C.

1996-04-01

LANL conducted 254 radioactive lanthanum (RaLa) implosion experiments Sept. 1944-March 1962, in order to test implosion designs for nuclear weapons. High explosives surrounding common metals (surrogates for Pu) and a radioactive source containing up to several thousand curies of La, were involved in each experiment. The resulting cloud was deposited as fallout, often to distances of several miles. This report was prepared to summarize existing records as an aid in evaluating the off-site impact, if any, of this 18-year program. The report provides a historical setting for the program, which was conducted in Technical Area 10, Bayo Canyon about 3more » miles east of Los Alamos. A description of the site is followed by a discussion of collateral experiments conducted in 1950 by US Air Force for developing an airborne detector for tracking atmospheric nuclear weapons tests. All known off-site data from the RaLa program are tabulated and discussed. Besides the radiolanthanum, other potential trace radioactive material that may have been present in the fallout is discussed and amounts estimated. Off-site safety considerations are discussed; a preliminary off-site dose assessment is made. Bibliographical data on 33 persons important to the program are presented as footnotes.« less

SWUIS-A: A Versatile, Low-Cost UV/VIS/IR Imaging System for Airborne Astronomy and Aeronomy Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Durda, Daniel D.; Stern, S. Alan; Tomlinson, William; Slater, David C.; Vilas, Faith

2001-01-01

We have developed and successfully flight-tested on 14 different airborne missions the hardware and techniques for routinely conducting valuable astronomical and aeronomical observations from high-performance, two-seater military-type aircraft. The SWUIS-A (Southwest Universal Imaging System - Airborne) system consists of an image-intensified CCD camera with broad band response from the near-UV to the near IR, high-quality foreoptics, a miniaturized video recorder, an aircraft-to-camera power and telemetry interface with associated camera controls, and associated cables, filters, and other minor equipment. SWUIS-A's suite of high-quality foreoptics gives it selectable, variable focal length/variable field-of-view capabilities. The SWUIS-A camera frames at 60 Hz video rates, which is a key requirement for both jitter compensation and high time resolution (useful for occultation, lightning, and auroral studies). Broadband SWUIS-A image coadds can exceed a limiting magnitude of V = 10.5 in <1 sec with dark sky conditions. A valuable attribute of SWUIS-A airborne observations is the fact that the astronomer flies with the instrument, thereby providing Space Shuttle-like "payload specialist" capability to "close-the-loop" in real-time on the research done on each research mission. Key advantages of the small, high-performance aircraft on which we can fly SWUIS-A include significant cost savings over larger, more conventional airborne platforms, worldwide basing obviating the need for expensive, campaign-style movement of specialized large aircraft and their logistics support teams, and ultimately faster reaction times to transient events. Compared to ground-based instruments, airborne research platforms offer superior atmospheric transmission, the mobility to reach remote and often-times otherwise unreachable locations over the Earth, and virtually-guaranteed good weather for observing the sky. Compared to space-based instruments, airborne platforms typically offer

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Volume 13, Annual report 1992

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Doty, K.; Lucadamo, K.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1992 have been compiled and reported. The summary data for the years 1973 through 1991 are included for comparison. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1992 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants. Annual report 1989: Volume 10

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Norden, K.; Congemi, J.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1989 have been compiled and reported. The summary data for the years 1970 through 1988 are included for comparison. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1989 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Radioactive materials released from nuclear power plants: Annual report, 1993. Volume 14

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tichler, J.; Doty, K.; Lucadamo, K.

Releases of radioactive materials in airborne and liquid effluents from commercial light water reactors during 1993 have been compiled and reported. The summary data for the years 1974 through 1992 are included for comparison. Data on solid waste shipments as well as selected operating information have been included. This report supplements earlier annual reports issued by the former Atomic Energy Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The 1993 release data are summarized in tabular form. Data covering specific radionuclides are summarized.

Erik Lindbergh unveils a plaque commemorating his grandfather to dedicate the 747 Clipper Lindbergh, a NASA airborne infrared observatory known as SOFIA

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-21

Erik Lindbergh, grandson of aviator Charles Lindbergh, unveiled a plaque commemorating his grandfather on the 80th anniversary of Charles Lindbergh's transatlantic flight. The event was a dedication of the 747 Clipper Lindbergh, a NASA airborne infrared observatory that is beginning test flights in preparation for conducting world-class airborne astronomy. The project is known as the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or SOFIA.

Real-time detection of airborne fluorescent bioparticles in Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crawford, Ian; Gallagher, Martin W.; Bower, Keith N.; Choularton, Thomas W.; Flynn, Michael J.; Ruske, Simon; Listowski, Constantino; Brough, Neil; Lachlan-Cope, Thomas; Fleming, Zoë L.; Foot, Virginia E.; Stanley, Warren R.

2017-12-01

We demonstrate, for the first time, continuous real-time observations of airborne bio-fluorescent aerosols recorded at the British Antarctic Survey's Halley VI Research Station, located on the Brunt Ice Shelf close to the Weddell Sea coast (lat 75°34'59'' S, long 26°10'0'' W) during Antarctic summer, 2015. As part of the NERC MAC (Microphysics of Antarctic Clouds) aircraft aerosol cloud interaction project, observations with a real-time ultraviolet-light-induced fluorescence (UV-LIF) spectrometer were conducted to quantify airborne biological containing particle concentrations along with dust particles as a function of wind speed and direction over a 3-week period. Significant, intermittent enhancements of both non- and bio-fluorescent particles were observed to varying degrees in very specific wind directions and during strong wind events. Analysis of the particle UV-induced emission spectra, particle sizes and shapes recorded during these events suggest the majority of particles were likely a subset of dust with weak fluorescence emission responses. A minor fraction, however, were likely primary biological particles that were very strongly fluorescent, with a subset identified as likely being pollen based on comparison with laboratory data obtained using the same instrument. A strong correlation of bio-fluorescent particles with wind speed was observed in some, but not all, periods. Interestingly, the fraction of fluorescent particles to total particle concentration also increased significantly with wind speed during these events. The enhancement in concentrations of these particles could be interpreted as due to resuspension from the local ice surface but more likely due to emissions from distal sources within Antarctica as well as intercontinental transport. Likely distal sources identified by back trajectory analyses and dispersion modelling were the coastal ice margin zones in Halley Bay consisting of bird colonies with likely associated high bacterial

Radioactive contamination of scintillators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Danevich, F. A.; Tretyak, V. I.

2018-03-01

Low counting experiments (search for double β decay and dark matter particles, measurements of neutrino fluxes from different sources, search for hypothetical nuclear and subnuclear processes, low background α, β, γ spectrometry) require extremely low background of a detector. Scintillators are widely used to search for rare events both as conventional scintillation detectors and as cryogenic scintillating bolometers. Radioactive contamination of a scintillation material plays a key role to reach low level of background. Origin and nature of radioactive contamination of scintillators, experimental methods and results are reviewed. A programme to develop radiopure crystal scintillators for low counting experiments is discussed briefly.

Airborne Cloud Computing Environment (ACCE)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hardman, Sean; Freeborn, Dana; Crichton, Dan; Law, Emily; Kay-Im, Liz

2011-01-01

Airborne Cloud Computing Environment (ACCE) is JPL's internal investment to improve the return on airborne missions. Improve development performance of the data system. Improve return on the captured science data. The investment is to develop a common science data system capability for airborne instruments that encompasses the end-to-end lifecycle covering planning, provisioning of data system capabilities, and support for scientific analysis in order to improve the quality, cost effectiveness, and capabilities to enable new scientific discovery and research in earth observation.

Observation of wind field over heterogeneous terrain by the French-German airborne Doppler lidar WIND

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dabas, A.; Werner, C.; Delville, P.; Reitebuch, O.; Drobinski, P.; Cousin, F.

2003-04-01

In summer 2001, the French-German airborne Doppler lidar WIND participated to field campaign ESCOMPTE. ESCOMPTE was carried out in the region of Marseille along the Mediterranean coast of France. It was dedicated to the observation of heavy pollution events in this industrialized, densely populated region of nearly 4 million inhabitants. The aim was to gather a data base as comprehensive as possible on several pollution events and use them to check the ability of several regional forecast models to predict such events. The specific mission devoted to WIND was the characterization at mesoscale of the wind field and the topography of the planetary boundary layer. Both are complex around Marseille due the heterogeneity of the surface with a transition sea/land to the south, the fore-Alps to the North, the Rhône valley to the North-West etc... Seven, 3-hr flights were carried out and gave excellent results. In 2002, first comparisons were made with mesoscale models. They will be shown during the presentation. They are good examples of the usefulness of airborne Doppler lidar for validating and improving atmospheric model simulations.

Airborne observations of new particle formation events in the boundary layer using a Zeppelin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lampilahti, Janne; Manninen, Hanna E.; Nieminen, Tuomo; Mirme, Sander; Pullinen, Iida; Yli-Juuti, Taina; Schobesberger, Siegfried; Kangasluoma, Juha; Kontkanen, Jenni; Lehtipalo, Katrianne; Ehn, Mikael; Mentel, Thomas F.; Petäjä, Tuukka; Kulmala, Markku

2014-05-01

Atmospheric new particle formation (NPF) is a frequent and ubiquitous process in the atmosphere and a major source of newly formed aerosol particles [1]. However, it is still unclear how the aerosol particle distribution evolves in space and time during an NPF. We investigated where in the planetary boundary layer does NPF begin and how does the aerosol number size distribution develop in space and time during it. We measured in Hyytiälä, southern Finland using ground based and airborne measurements. The measurements were part of the PEGASOS project. NPF was studied on six scientific flights during spring 2013 using a Zeppelin NT class airship. Ground based measurements were simultaneously conducted at SMEAR II station located in Hyytiälä. The flight profiles over Hyytiälä were flown between sunrise and noon during the growth of the boundary layer. The profiles over Hyytiälä covered vertically a distance of 100-1000 meters reaching the mixed layer, stable (nocturnal) boundary layer and the residual layer. Horizontally the profiles covered approximately a circular area of four kilometers in diameter. The measurements include particle number size distribution by Neutral cluster and Air Ion Spectrometer (NAIS), Differential Mobility Particle Sizer (DMPS) and Particle Size Magnifier (PSM) [2], meteorological parameters and position (latitude, longitude and altitude) of the Zeppelin. Beginning of NPF was determined from an increase in 1.7-3 nm ion concentration. Height of the mixed layer was estimated from relative humidity measured on-board the Zeppelin. Particle growth rate during NPF was calculated. Spatial inhomogeneities in particle number size distribution during NPF were located and the birthplace of the particles was estimated using the growth rate and trajectories. We observed a regional NPF event that began simultaneously and evolved uniformly inside the mixed layer. In the horizontal direction we observed a long and narrow high concentration plume of

A Monte Carlo program to calculate the exposure rate from airborne radioactive gases inside a nuclear reactor containment building.

PubMed

Sherbini, S; Tamasanis, D; Sykes, J; Porter, S W

1986-12-01

A program was developed to calculate the exposure rate resulting from airborne gases inside a reactor containment building. The calculations were performed at the location of a wall-mounted area radiation monitor. The program uses Monte Carlo techniques and accounts for both the direct and scattered components of the radiation field at the detector. The scattered component was found to contribute about 30% of the total exposure rate at 50 keV and dropped to about 7% at 2000 keV. The results of the calculations were normalized to unit activity per unit volume of air in the containment. This allows the exposure rate readings of the area monitor to be used to estimate the airborne activity in containment in the early phases of an accident. Such estimates, coupled with containment leak rates, provide a method to obtain a release rate for use in offsite dose projection calculations.

Radioactive Nanomaterials for Multimodality Imaging

PubMed Central

Chen, Daiqin; Dougherty, Casey A.; Yang, Dongzhi; Wu, Hongwei; Hong, Hao

2016-01-01

Nuclear imaging techniques, including primarily positron emission tomography (PET) and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), can provide quantitative information for a biological event in vivo with ultra-high sensitivity, however, the comparatively low spatial resolution is their major limitation in clinical application. By convergence of nuclear imaging with other imaging modalities like computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and optical imaging, the hybrid imaging platforms can overcome the limitations from each individual imaging technique. Possessing versatile chemical linking ability and good cargo-loading capacity, radioactive nanomaterials can serve as ideal imaging contrast agents. In this review, we provide a brief overview about current state-of-the-art applications of radioactive nanomaterials in the circumstances of multimodality imaging. We present strategies for incorporation of radioisotope(s) into nanomaterials along with applications of radioactive nanomaterials in multimodal imaging. Advantages and limitations of radioactive nanomaterials for multimodal imaging applications are discussed. Finally, a future perspective of possible radioactive nanomaterial utilization is presented for improving diagnosis and patient management in a variety of diseases. PMID:27227167

Reconnaissance for radioactive materials in the southern part of Brazil

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pierson, Charles T.; Haynes, Donald D.; Filho, Evaristo Ribeiro

1957-01-01

During 1954-1956 a reconnaissance for radioactive minerals was made with carborne, airborne and handborne scintillation equipment in the southern Brazilian states of Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Parana, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. During the traverse covering more than 5,000 kilometers the authors checked the radioactivity of Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks, Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic sedimentary rocks, and Mesozoic alkalic intrusive and basaltic extrusive rocks. The 22 samples collected contained from 0.003 to 0.029 percent equivalent uranium oxide and from 0.10 to 0.91 percent equivalent thorimn; two samples were taken from radioactive pegmati tes for mineralogic studies. None of the localities is at present a commercial source of uranium or thorium; however, additional work should be done near the alkalic stock at Lages in the State of Santa Catarina and at the Passo das Tropas fossil plant locality near Santa Maria in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Near Lages highly altered alkalic rock from a dike contained 0.026 percent uranium oxide. At Passo das Tropas highly altered, limonite-impregnated sandstone from the Rio do Rasto group of sedimentary rocks contained 0.029 percent uranium oxide.

Effect of airborne particle on SO 2-calcite reaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Böke, Hasan; Göktürk, E. Hale; Caner-Saltık, Emine N.; Demirci, Şahinde

1999-02-01

In modern urban atmosphere, sulphur dioxide (SO 2) attacks calcite (CaCO 3) in calcareous stone-producing gypsum (CaSO 4·2H 2O) which forms crust at rain sheltered surfaces and accelerates erosion at areas exposed to rain. The airborne particles collected on stone surfaces have always been considered to enhance the gypsum crust formation and thus it is believed that they should be removed from the surface to decrease the effects of SO 2. In this study, our aim was to investigate this event by carrying out a series of experiments in laboratory using pure calcium carbonate powder to represent calcareous stone. Sodium montmorillonite, activated carbon, ferric oxide, vanadium pentoxide and cupric chloride were mixed in the pure calcium carbonate powder as substitutes of the airborne particles in the polluted atmosphere. The samples have been exposed at nearly 10 ppmv SO 2 concentrations at 90% relative humidity conditions in a reaction chamber for several days. The mineralogical composition of the exposed samples were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and infrared spectrometer (IR). Sulphation reaction products, calcium sulphite hemihydrate, gypsum and unreacted calcite, were determined quantitatively using IR. Exposed samples have also been investigated morphologically using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Experimental results reveal that calcium sulphite hemihydrate is the main reaction product of the SO 2-calcite reaction. It turns out that airborne particles play an important catalytic role in the oxidation of calcium sulphite hemihydrate into gypsum, although their presence does not very significantly affect the extent of sulphation reaction. This behaviour of airborne particles is explained by the presence of liquid film on the calcium carbonate surface where a series of reactions in the gas-liquid-solid interfaces takes place.

Study of different filtering techniques applied to spectra from airborne gamma spectrometry

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wilhelm, Emilien; Gutierrez, Sebastien; Reboli, Anne

2015-07-01

One of the features of spectra obtained by airborne gamma spectrometry is low counting statistics due to the short acquisition time (1 s) and the large source-detector distance (40 m). It leads to considerable uncertainty in radionuclide identification and determination of their respective activities from the windows method recommended by the IAEA, especially for low-level radioactivity. The present work compares the results obtained with filters in terms of errors of the filtered spectra with the window method and over the whole gamma energy range. The results are used to determine which filtering technique is the most suitable in combination withmore » some method for total stripping of the spectrum. (authors)« less

Airborne spread of expiratory droplet nuclei between the occupants of indoor environments: A review.

PubMed

Ai, Z T; Melikov, A K

2018-07-01

This article reviews past studies of airborne transmission between occupants in indoor environments, focusing on the spread of expiratory droplet nuclei from mouth/nose to mouth/nose for non-specific diseases. Special attention is paid to summarizing what is known about the influential factors, the inappropriate simplifications of the thermofluid boundary conditions of thermal manikins, the challenges facing the available experimental techniques, and the limitations of available evaluation methods. Secondary issues are highlighted, and some new ways to improve our understanding of airborne transmission indoors are provided. The characteristics of airborne spread of expiratory droplet nuclei between occupants, which are influenced correlatively by both environmental and personal factors, were widely revealed under steady-state conditions. Owing to the different boundary conditions used, some inconsistent findings on specific influential factors have been published. The available instrumentation was too slow to provide accurate concentration profiles for time-dependent evaluations of events with obvious time characteristics, while computational fluid dynamics (CFD) studies were mainly performed in the framework of inherently steady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes modeling. Future research needs in 3 areas are identified: the importance of the direction of indoor airflow patterns, the dynamics of airborne transmission, and the application of CFD simulations. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Open-air sprays for capturing and controlling airborne float coal dust on longwall faces

PubMed Central

Beck, T.W.; Seaman, C.E.; Shahan, M.R.; Mischler, S.E.

2018-01-01

Float dust deposits in coal mine return airways pose a risk in the event of a methane ignition. Controlling airborne dust prior to deposition in the return would make current rock dusting practices more effective and reduce the risk of coal-dust-fueled explosions. The goal of this U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health study is to determine the potential of open-air water sprays to reduce concentrations of airborne float coal dust, smaller than 75 µm in diameter, in longwall face airstreams. This study evaluated unconfined water sprays in a featureless tunnel ventilated at a typical longwall face velocity of 3.6 m/s (700 fpm). Experiments were conducted for two nozzle orientations and two water pressures for hollow cone, full cone, flat fan, air atomizing and hydraulic atomizing spray nozzles. Gravimetric samples show that airborne float dust removal efficiencies averaged 19.6 percent for all sprays under all conditions. The results indicate that the preferred spray nozzle should be operated at high fluid pressures to produce smaller droplets and move more air. These findings agree with past respirable dust control research, providing guidance on spray selection and spray array design in ongoing efforts to control airborne float dust over the entire longwall ventilated opening. PMID:29348700

Open-air sprays for capturing and controlling airborne float coal dust on longwall faces.

PubMed

Beck, T W; Seaman, C E; Shahan, M R; Mischler, S E

2018-01-01

Float dust deposits in coal mine return airways pose a risk in the event of a methane ignition. Controlling airborne dust prior to deposition in the return would make current rock dusting practices more effective and reduce the risk of coal-dust-fueled explosions. The goal of this U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health study is to determine the potential of open-air water sprays to reduce concentrations of airborne float coal dust, smaller than 75 µm in diameter, in longwall face airstreams. This study evaluated unconfined water sprays in a featureless tunnel ventilated at a typical longwall face velocity of 3.6 m/s (700 fpm). Experiments were conducted for two nozzle orientations and two water pressures for hollow cone, full cone, flat fan, air atomizing and hydraulic atomizing spray nozzles. Gravimetric samples show that airborne float dust removal efficiencies averaged 19.6 percent for all sprays under all conditions. The results indicate that the preferred spray nozzle should be operated at high fluid pressures to produce smaller droplets and move more air. These findings agree with past respirable dust control research, providing guidance on spray selection and spray array design in ongoing efforts to control airborne float dust over the entire longwall ventilated opening.

Determining a pre-mining radiological baseline from historic airborne gamma surveys: a case study.

PubMed

Bollhöfer, Andreas; Beraldo, Annamarie; Pfitzner, Kirrilly; Esparon, Andrew; Doering, Che

2014-01-15

Knowing the baseline level of radioactivity in areas naturally enriched in radionuclides is important in the uranium mining context to assess radiation doses to humans and the environment both during and after mining. This information is particularly useful in rehabilitation planning and developing closure criteria for uranium mines as only radiation doses additional to the natural background are usually considered 'controllable' for radiation protection purposes. In this case study we have tested whether the method of contemporary groundtruthing of a historic airborne gamma survey could be used to determine the pre-mining radiological conditions at the Ranger mine in northern Australia. The airborne gamma survey was flown in 1976 before mining started and groundtruthed using ground gamma dose rate measurements made between 2007 and 2009 at an undisturbed area naturally enriched in uranium (Anomaly 2) located nearby the Ranger mine. Measurements of (226)Ra soil activity concentration and (222)Rn exhalation flux density at Anomaly 2 were made concurrent with the ground gamma dose rate measurements. Algorithms were developed to upscale the ground gamma data to the same spatial resolution as the historic airborne gamma survey data using a geographic information system, allowing comparison of the datasets. Linear correlation models were developed to estimate the pre-mining gamma dose rates, (226)Ra soil activity concentrations, and (222)Rn exhalation flux densities at selected areas in the greater Ranger region. The modelled levels agreed with measurements made at the Ranger Orebodies 1 and 3 before mining started, and at environmental sites in the region. The conclusion is that our approach can be used to determine baseline radiation levels, and provide a benchmark for rehabilitation of uranium mines or industrial sites where historical airborne gamma survey data are available and an undisturbed radiological analogue exists to groundtruth the data. © 2013.

Data Analysis of Airborne Electromagnetic Bathymetry.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-04-01

7 AD-R 58 889 DATA ANALYSIS OF AIRBORNE ELECTROMAGNETIC BRTHYMETRY i/i (U) NAVAL OCEAN RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY NSTL STRTION MS R ZOLLINGER...Naval Ocean Research and Development Activity NSTL, Mississippi 39529 NORDA Report 93 April 1985 AD-A158 809 - Data Analysis of Airborne Electromagnetic ...8217 - Foreword CI Airborne electromagnetic (AEM) systems have traditionally been used for detecting anomalous conductors in the

Dynamic Radioactive Source for Evaluating and Demonstrating Time-dependent Performance of Continuous Air Monitors.

PubMed

McLean, Thomas D; Moore, Murray E; Justus, Alan L; Hudston, Jonathan A; Barbé, Benoît

2016-11-01

Evaluation of continuous air monitors in the presence of a plutonium aerosol is time intensive, expensive, and requires a specialized facility. The Radiation Protection Services Group at Los Alamos National Laboratory has designed a Dynamic Radioactive Source, intended to replace plutonium aerosol challenge testing. The Dynamic Radioactive Source is small enough to be inserted into the sampler filter chamber of a typical continuous air monitor. Time-dependent radioactivity is introduced from electroplated sources for real-time testing of a continuous air monitor where a mechanical wristwatch motor rotates a mask above an alpha-emitting electroplated disk source. The mask is attached to the watch's minute hand, and as it rotates, more of the underlying source is revealed. The measured alpha activity increases with time, simulating the arrival of airborne radioactive particulates at the air sampler inlet. The Dynamic Radioactive Source allows the temporal behavior of puff and chronic release conditions to be mimicked without the need for radioactive aerosols. The new system is configurable to different continuous air monitor designs and provides an in-house testing capability (benchtop compatible). It is a repeatable and reusable system and does not contaminate the tested air monitor. Test benefits include direct user control, realistic (plutonium) aerosol spectra, and iterative development of continuous air monitor alarm algorithms. Data obtained using the Dynamic Radioactive Source has been used to elucidate alarm algorithms and to compare the response time of two commercial continuous air monitors.

Dynamic Radioactive Source for Evaluating and Demonstrating Time-dependent Performance of Continuous Air Monitors

DOE PAGES

McLean, Thomas D.; Moore, Murray E.; Justus, Alan L.; ...

2016-01-01

Evaluation of continuous air monitors in the presence of a plutonium aerosol is time intensive, expensive, and requires a specialized facility. The Radiation Protection Services Group at Los Alamos National Laboratory has designed a Dynamic Radioactive Source, intended to replace plutonium aerosol challenge testing. Furthermore, the Dynamic Radioactive Source is small enough to be inserted into the sampler filter chamber of a typical continuous air monitor. Time-dependent radioactivity is introduced from electroplated sources for real-time testing of a continuous air monitor where a mechanical wristwatch motor rotates a mask above an alpha-emitting electroplated disk source. The mask is attached tomore » the watch’s minute hand, and as it rotates, more of the underlying source is revealed. The alpha activity we measured increases with time, simulating the arrival of airborne radioactive particulates at the air sampler inlet. The Dynamic Radioactive Source allows the temporal behavior of puff and chronic release conditions to be mimicked without the need for radioactive aerosols. The new system is configurable to different continuous air monitor designs and provides an in-house testing capability (benchtop compatible). It is a repeatable and reusable system and does not contaminate the tested air monitor. Test benefits include direct user control, realistic (plutonium) aerosol spectra, and iterative development of continuous air monitor alarm algorithms. We also used data obtained using the Dynamic Radioactive Source to elucidate alarm algorithms and to compare the response time of two commercial continuous air monitors.« less

Airborne Submillimeter Spectroscopy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zmuidzinas, J.

1998-01-01

This is the final technical report for NASA-Ames grant NAG2-1068 to Caltech, entitled "Airborne Submillimeter Spectroscopy", which extended over the period May 1, 1996 through January 31, 1998. The grant was funded by the NASA airborne astronomy program, during a period of time after the Kuiper Airborne Observatory was no longer operational. Instead. this funding program was intended to help develop instrument concepts and technology for the upcoming SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) project. SOFIA, which is funded by NASA and is now being carried out by a consortium lead by USRA (Universities Space Research Association), will be a 747 aircraft carrying a 2.5 meter diameter telescope. The purpose of our grant was to fund the ongoing development of sensitive heterodyne receivers for the submillimeter band (500-1200 GHz), using sensitive superconducting (SIS) detectors. In 1997 July we submitted a proposal to USRA to construct a heterodyne instrument for SOFIA. Our proposal was successful [1], and we are now continuing our airborne astronomy effort with funding from USRA. A secondary purpose of the NAG2-1068 grant was to continue the anaIN'sis of astronomical data collected with an earlier instrument which was flown on the NASA Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO). The KAO instrument and the astronomical studies which were carried out with it were supported primarily under another grant, NAG2-744, which extended over October 1, 1991 through Januarv 31, 1997. For a complete description of the astronomical data and its anailysis, we refer the reader to the final technical report for NAG2-744, which was submitted to NASA on December 1. 1997. Here we report on the SIS detector development effort for SOFIA carried out under NAG2-1068. The main result of this effort has been the demonstration of SIS mixers using a new superconducting material niobium titanium nitride (NbTiN), which promises to deliver dramatic improvements in sensitivity in the 700

Dose Calculation For Accidental Release Of Radioactive Cloud Passing Over Jeddah

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alharbi, N. D.; Mayhoub, A. B.

2011-12-01

For the evaluation of doses after the reactor accident, in particular for the inhalation dose, a thorough knowledge of the concentration of the various radionuclide in air during the passage of the plume is required. In this paper we present an application of the Gaussian Plume Model (GPM) to calculate the atmospheric dispersion and airborne radionuclide concentration resulting from radioactive cloud over the city of Jeddah (KSA). The radioactive cloud is assumed to be emitted from a reactor of 10 MW power in postulated accidental release. Committed effective doses (CEDs) to the public at different distance from the source to the receptor are calculated. The calculations were based on meteorological condition and data of the Jeddah site. These data are: pasquill atmospheric stability is the class B and the wind speed is 2.4m/s at 10m height in the N direction. The residence time of some radionuclides considered in this study were calculated. The results indicate that, the values of doses first increase with distance, reach a maximum value and then gradually decrease. The total dose received by human is estimated by using the estimated values of residence time of each radioactive pollutant at different distances.

Simultaneous sampling of indoor and outdoor airborne radioactivity after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident.

PubMed

Ishikawa, Tetsuo; Sorimachi, Atsuyuki; Arae, Hideki; Sahoo, Sarata Kumar; Janik, Miroslaw; Hosoda, Masahiro; Tokonami, Shinji

2014-02-18

Several studies have estimated inhalation doses for the public because of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) accident. Most of them were based on measurement of radioactivity in outdoor air and included the assumption that people stayed outdoors all day. Although this assumption gives a conservative estimate, it is not realistic. The "air decontamination factor" (ratio of indoor to outdoor air radionuclide concentrations) was estimated from simultaneous sampling of radioactivity in both inside and outside air of one building. The building was a workplace and located at the National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS) in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. Aerosol-associated radioactive materials in air were collected onto filters, and the filters were analyzed by γ spectrometry at NIRS. The filter sampling was started on March 15, 2011 and was continued for more than 1 year. Several radionuclides, such as (131)I, (134)Cs, and (137)Cs were found by measuring the filters with a germanium detector. The air decontamination factor was around 0.64 for particulate (131)I and 0.58 for (137)Cs. These values could give implications for the ratio of indoor to outdoor radionuclide concentrations after the FDNPP accident for a similar type of building.

Airborne laser-diode-array illuminator assessment for the night vision's airborne mine-detection arid test

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stetson, Suzanne; Weber, Hadley; Crosby, Frank J.; Tinsley, Kenneth; Kloess, Edmund; Nevis, Andrew J.; Holloway, John H., Jr.; Witherspoon, Ned H.

2004-09-01

The Airborne Littoral Reconnaissance Technologies (ALRT) project has developed and tested a nighttime operational minefield detection capability using commercial off-the-shelf high-power Laser Diode Arrays (LDAs). The Coastal System Station"s ALRT project, under funding from the Office of Naval Research (ONR), has been designing, developing, integrating, and testing commercial arrays using a Cessna airborne platform over the last several years. This has led to the development of the Airborne Laser Diode Array Illuminator wide field-of-view (ALDAI-W) imaging test bed system. The ALRT project tested ALDAI-W at the Army"s Night Vision Lab"s Airborne Mine Detection Arid Test. By participating in Night Vision"s test, ALRT was able to collect initial prototype nighttime operational data using ALDAI-W, showing impressive results and pioneering the way for final test bed demonstration conducted in September 2003. This paper describes the ALDAI-W Arid Test and results, along with processing steps used to generate imagery.

A Pill to Treat People Exposed to Radioactive Materials

ScienceCinema

Abergel, Rebecca

2018-01-16

Berkeley Lab's Rebecca Abergel discusses "A pill to treat people exposed to radioactive materials" in this Oct. 28, 2013 talk, which is part of a Science at the Theater event entitled Eight Big Ideas. Go here to watch the entire event with all 8 speakers:

Comparison of Air Impaction and Electrostatic Dust Collector Sampling Methods to Assess Airborne Fungal Contamination in Public Buildings.

PubMed

Normand, Anne-Cécile; Ranque, Stéphane; Cassagne, Carole; Gaudart, Jean; Sallah, Kankoé; Charpin, Denis-André; Piarroux, Renaud

2016-03-01

Many ailments can be linked to exposure to indoor airborne fungus. However, obtaining a precise measurement of airborne fungal levels is complicated partly due to indoor air fluctuations and non-standardized techniques. Electrostatic dust collector (EDC) sampling devices have been used to measure a wide range of airborne analytes, including endotoxins, allergens, β-glucans, and microbial DNA in various indoor environments. In contrast, viable mold contamination has only been assessed in highly contaminated environments such as farms and archive buildings. This study aimed to assess the use of EDCs, compared with repeated air-impactor measurements, to assess airborne viable fungal flora in moderately contaminated indoor environments. Indoor airborne fungal flora was cultured from EDCs and daily air-impaction samples collected in an office building and a daycare center. The quantitative fungal measurements obtained using a single EDC significantly correlated with the cumulative measurement of nine daily air impactions. Both methods enabled the assessment of fungal exposure, although a few differences were observed between the detected fungal species and the relative quantity of each species. EDCs were also used over a 32-month period to monitor indoor airborne fungal flora in a hospital office building, which enabled us to assess the impact of outdoor events (e.g. ground excavations) on the fungal flora levels on the indoor environment. In conclusion, EDC-based measurements provided a relatively accurate profile of the viable airborne flora present during a sampling period. In particular, EDCs provided a more representative assessment of fungal levels compared with single air-impactor sampling. The EDC technique is also simpler than performing repetitive air-impaction measures over the course of several consecutive days. EDC is a versatile tool for collecting airborne samples and was efficient for measuring mold levels in indoor environments. © The Author 2015

41 CFR 50-204.24 - Caution signs, labels, and signals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... established for a period of 30 days or less, such control device is not required. (d) Airborne radioactivity area. (1) As used in the provisions of this subpart, “airborne radioactivity area” means (i) any room, enclosure, or operating area in which airborne radioactive materials, composed wholly or partly of...

10 CFR Appendix C to Part 835 - Derived Air Concentration (DAC) for Workers From External Exposure During Immersion in a Cloud of...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... Exposure During Immersion in a Cloud of Airborne Radioactive Material C Appendix C to Part 835 Energy... Concentration (DAC) for Workers From External Exposure During Immersion in a Cloud of Airborne Radioactive... identifying the need for posting of airborne radioactivity areas in accordance with § 835.603(d). b. The air...

Radioactive materials in recycled metals.

PubMed

Lubenau, J O; Yusko, J G

1995-04-01

In recent years, the metal recycling industry has become increasingly aware of an unwanted component in metal scrap--radioactive material. Worldwide, there have been 35 instances where radioactive sources were unintentionally smelted in the course of recycling metal scrap. In some cases contaminated metal consumer products were distributed internationally. In at least one case, serious radiation exposures of workers and the public occurred. Radioactive material appearing in metal scrap includes sources subject to licensing under the Atomic Energy Act and also naturally occurring radioactive material. U.S. mills that have smelted a radioactive source face costs resulting from decontamination, waste disposal, and lost profits that range from 7 to 23 million U.S. dollars for each event. To solve the problem, industry and the government have jointly undertaken initiatives to increase awareness of the problem within the metal recycling industry. Radiation monitoring of recycled metal scrap is being performed increasingly by mills and, to a lesser extent, by scrap processors. The monitoring does not, however, provide 100% protection. Improvements in regulatory oversight by the government could stimulate improved accounting and control of licensed sources. However, additional government effort in this area must be reconciled with competing priorities in radiation safety and budgetary constraints. The threat of radioactive material in recycled metal scrap will continue for the foreseeable future and, thus, poses regulatory policy challenges for both developed and developing nations.

An update on airborne contact dermatitis.

PubMed

Huygens, S; Goossens, A

2001-01-01

This review is an update of 2 previously published articles on airborne contact dermatoses. Because reports in the literature often omit the term 'airborne', 18 volumes of Contact Dermatitis (April 1991-June 2000), 8 volumes of the American Journal of Contact Dermatitis (1992 1999) and 4 volumes of La Lettre du Gerda (1996-1999) were screened, and the cases cited were classified as to history, lesion locations, sensitization sources, and other factors. Reports on airborne dermatitis are increasingly being published, sometimes in relation to specific occupational areas.

Measurement of airborne 131I, 134)Cs and 137Cs due to the Fukushima reactor incident in Milan (Italy).

PubMed

Clemenza, M; Fiorini, E; Previtali, E; Sala, E

2012-12-01

After the earthquake and the tsunami occurred in Japan on March 2011, four of the Fukushima reactors had released in air a large amount of radioactive isotopes that diffused all over the world. The presence of airborne (131)I, (134)Cs, and (137)Cs in air particulate due to this accident were detected and measured in the Low Radioactivity Laboratory operating in the Department of Environmental Sciences of the University of Milano-Bicocca. The sensitivity of the detecting apparatus is of 0.2 uBq/m(3) of air. Concentration and time distribution of these radiocontaminations ranging from a few to 400 uBq/m(3) for the (131)I and of a few tens of uBq/m(3) for the (137)Cs and (134)Cs. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An integrated decision model for the application of airborne sensors for improved response to accidental and terrorist chemical vapor releases

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kapitan, Loginn

process for the selection and employment of airborne sensors to better plan, train and exercise ahead of potential chemical release events.

Chernobyl radioactivity found in mid-water sediment interceptors in the N. Pacific and Bering Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kusakabe, M.; Ku, T.-L.; Harada, K.; Taguchi, K.; Tsunogai, S.

1988-01-01

Fission-product nuclides 134Cs, 137Cs and 103Ru originated from the Chernobyl accident have been detected in sediment traps deployed at mid-water depths ranging from 110 to 780 m in the N. Pacific and the Bering Sea. The detected radioactivities, originally associated with fine airborne particles, have apparently been incorporated into much larger aggregates of predominantly biogenic material formed in the surface ocean, and transferred downward through the water column with velocities of the order of 100 m/day.

The Role of Airborne Proteins in Atopic Dermatitis

PubMed Central

Hostetler, Sarah Grim; Kaffenberger, Benjamin; Hostetler, Todd

2010-01-01

Atopic dermatitis is a common, chronic skin condition. A subpopulation of patients may have cutaneous exposure to common airborne proteins exacerbating their disease through direct proteolytic activity, direct activation of proteinase-activated receptor-2 itch receptors, and immunoglobulin E binding. The most common airborne proteins significant in atopic dermatitis include house dust mites, cockroach, pet dander, and multiple pollens. The literature on atopy patch testing, skin-prick testing, and specific IgE is mixed, with greater support for the use of atopy patch test. Patients with airborne proteins contributing to their disease typically have lesions predominately on air-exposed skin surfaces including the face, neck, and arms; a history of exacerbations after exposure to airborne proteins; severe disease resistant to conventional therapies; and concurrent asthma. Treatment strategies include airborne protein avoidance, removal of airborne proteins from the skin, and barrier repair. Further research is needed to establish the benefit of allergen-specific immunotherapy. PMID:20725535

Airborne Dust in Space Vehicles and Habitats

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

James, John

2006-01-01

Airborne dust, suspended inside a space vehicle or in future celestial habitats, can present a serious threat to crew health if it is not controlled. During the Apollo missions to the moon, lunar dust brought inside the capsule caused eye irritation and breathing difficulty to the crew when they launched from the moon and re-acquired "microgravity." During Shuttle flights reactive and toxic dusts such as lithium hydroxide have created a risk to crew health, and fine particles from combustion events can be especially worrisome. Under nominal spaceflight conditions, airborne dusts and particles tend to be larger than on earth because of the absence of gravity settling. Aboard the ISS, dusts are effectively managed by HEPA filters, although floating dust in newly-arrived modules can be a nuisance. Future missions to the moon and to Mars will present additional challenges because of the possibility that external dust will enter the breathing atmosphere of the habitat and reach the crew's respiratory system. Testing with simulated lunar and Martian dust has shown that these materials are toxic when placed into the lungs of test animals. Defining and evaluating the physical and chemical properties of Martian dusts through robotic missions will challenge our ability to prepare better dust simulants and to determine the risk to crew health from exposure to such dusts.

Recent improvements in hydrometeor sampling using airborne holography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stith, J. L.; Bansemer, A.; Glienke, S.; Shaw, R. A.; Aquino, J.; Fugal, J. P.

2017-12-01

Airborne digital holography provides a new technique to study the sizes, shapes and locations of hydrometeors. Airborne holographic cameras are able to capture more optical information than traditional airborne hydrometeor instruments, which allows for more detailed information, such as the location and shape of individual hydrometeors over a relatively wide range of sizes. These cameras can be housed in an anti-shattering probe arm configuration, which minimizes the effects of probe tip shattering. Holographic imagery, with its three dimensional view of hydrometeor spacing, is also well suited to detecting shattering events when present. A major problem with digital holographic techniques has been the amount of machine time and human analysis involved in analyzing holographic data. Here, we present some recent examples showing how holographic analysis can improve our measurements of liquid and ice particles and we describe a format we have developed for routine archiving of Holographic data, so that processed results can be utilized more routinely by a wider group of investigators. We present a side-by-side comparison of the imagery obtained from holographic reconstruction of ice particles from a holographic camera (HOLODEC) with imagery from a 3VCPI instrument, which utilizes a tube-based sampling geometry. Both instruments were carried on the NSF/NCAR GV aircraft. In a second application of holographic imaging, we compare measurements of cloud droplets from a Cloud Droplet Probe (CDP) with simultaneous measurements from HOLODEC. In some cloud regions the CDP data exhibits a bimodal size distribution, while the more local data from HOLODEC suggests that two mono-modal size distributions are present in the cloud and that the bimodality observed in the CDP is due to the averaging length. Thus, the holographic techniques have the potential to improve our understanding of the warm rain process in future airborne field campaigns. The development of this instrument has

Monitoring of airborne bacteria and aerosols in different wards of hospitals - Particle counting usefulness in investigation of airborne bacteria.

PubMed

Mirhoseini, Seyed Hamed; Nikaeen, Mahnaz; Khanahmd, Hossein; Hatamzadeh, Maryam; Hassanzadeh, Akbar

2015-01-01

The presence of airborne bacteria in hospital environments is of great concern because of their potential role as a source of hospital-acquired infections (HAI). The aim of this study was the determination and comparison of the concentration of airborne bacteria in different wards of four educational hospitals, and evaluation of whether particle counting could be predictive of airborne bacterial concentration in different wards of a hospital. The study was performed in an operating theatre (OT), intensive care unit (ICU), surgery ward (SW) and internal medicine (IM) ward of four educational hospitals in Isfahan, Iran. A total of 80 samples were analyzed for the presence of airborne bacteria and particle levels. The average level of bacteria ranged from 75-1194 CFU/m (3) . Mean particle levels were higher than class 100,000 cleanrooms in all wards. A significant correlation was observed between the numbers of 1-5 µm particles and levels of airborne bacteria in operating theatres and ICUs. The results showed that factors which may influence the airborne bacterial level in hospital environments should be properly managed to minimize the risk of HAIs especially in operating theaters. Microbial air contamination of hospital settings should be performed by the monitoring of airborne bacteria, but particle counting could be considered as a good operative method for the continuous monitoring of air quality in operating theaters and ICUs where higher risks of infection are suspected.

Airborne Transparencies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Horne, Lois Thommason

1984-01-01

Starting from a science project on flight, art students discussed and investigated various means of moving in space. Then they made acetate illustrations which could be used as transparencies. The projection phenomenon made the illustrations look airborne. (CS)

Airborne ballistic camera tracking systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Redish, W. L.

1976-01-01

An operational airborne ballistic camera tracking system was tested for operational and data reduction feasibility. The acquisition and data processing requirements of the system are discussed. Suggestions for future improvements are also noted. A description of the data reduction mathematics is outlined. Results from a successful reentry test mission are tabulated. The test mission indicated that airborne ballistic camera tracking systems are feasible.

Airborne Lidar Surface Topography (LIST) Simulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yu, Anthony W.; Krainak, Michael A.; Harding, David J.; Abshire, James B.; Sun, Xiaoli; Cavanaugh, John; Valett, Susan; Ramos-Izquierdo, Luis; Winkert, Tom; Plants, Michael;

Airborne asbestos in public buildings

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chesson, J.; Hatfield, J.; Schultz, B.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sampled air in 49 government-owned buildings (six buildings with no asbestos-containing material, six buildings with asbestos-containing material in generally good condition, and 37 buildings with damaged asbestos-containing material). This is the most comprehensive study to date of airborne asbestos levels in U.S. public buildings during normal building activities. The air outside each building was also sampled. Air samples were analyzed by transmission electron microscopy using a direct transfer preparation technique. The results show an increasing trend in average airborne asbestos levels; outdoor levels are lowest and levels in buildings with damaged asbestos-containing material are highest.more » However, the measured levels and the differences between indoors and outdoors and between building categories are small in absolute magnitude. Comparable studies from Canada and the UK, although differing in their estimated concentrations, also conclude that while airborne asbestos levels may be elevated in buildings that contain asbestos, levels are generally low. This conclusion does not eliminate the possibility of higher airborne asbestos levels during maintenance or renovation that disturbs the asbestos-containing material.« less

Airborne remote sensing of forest biomes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sader, Steven A.

1987-01-01

Airborne sensor data of forest biomes obtained using an SAR, a laser profiler, an IR MSS, and a TM simulator are presented and examined. The SAR was utilized to investigate forest canopy structures in Mississippi and Costa Rica; the IR MSS measured forest canopy temperatures in Oregon and Puerto Rico; the TM simulator was employed in a tropical forest in Puerto Rico; and the laser profiler studied forest canopy characteristics in Costa Rica. The advantages and disadvantages of airborne systems are discussed. It is noted that the airborne sensors provide measurements applicable to forest monitoring programs.

Survey of Costs Arising From Potential Radionuclide Scattering Events

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Luna, R.E.; Pe, Ph.D.; Yoshimura, H.R.

The potential effects from scattering radioactive materials in public places include health, social, and economic consequences. These are substantial consequences relative to potential terror activities that include use of radioactive material dispersal devices (RDDs). Such an event with radionuclides released and deposited on surfaces outside and inside people's residences and places of work, commerce, and recreation will require decisions on how to recover from the event. One aspect of those decisions will be the cost to clean up the residual radioactive contamination to make the area functional again versus abandonment and/or razing and rebuilding. Development of cleanup processes have beenmore » the subject of experiment from the beginning of the nuclear age, but formalized cost breakdowns are relatively rare and mostly applicable to long term releases in non-public sites. Pre-event cleanup cost estimation of cost for cleanup of radioactive materials released to the public environment is an issue that has seen sporadic activity over the last 20 to 30 years. This paper will briefly review several of the more important efforts to estimate the costs of remediation or razing and reconstruction of radioactively contaminated areas. The cost estimates for such recoveries will be compared in terms of 2005 dollars for the sake of consistency. Dependence of cost estimates on population density and needed degree of decontamination will be shown to be quite strong in the overall presentation of the data. (authors)« less

10 CFR 37.81 - Reporting of events.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Reporting of events. 37.81 Section 37.81 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION PHYSICAL PROTECTION OF CATEGORY 1 AND CATEGORY 2 QUANTITIES OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL Physical Protection in Transit § 37.81 Reporting of events. (a) The shipping licensee shall notify the...

Range expansion of the Bluetongue vector, Culicoides imicola, in continental France likely due to rare wind-transport events.

PubMed

Jacquet, Stéphanie; Huber, Karine; Pagès, Nonito; Talavera, Sandra; Burgin, Laura E; Carpenter, Simon; Sanders, Christopher; Dicko, Ahmadou H; Djerbal, Mouloud; Goffredo, Maria; Lhor, Youssef; Lucientes, Javier; Miranda-Chueca, Miguel A; Pereira Da Fonseca, Isabel; Ramilo, David W; Setier-Rio, Marie-Laure; Bouyer, Jérémy; Chevillon, Christine; Balenghien, Thomas; Guis, Hélène; Garros, Claire

2016-06-06

The role of the northward expansion of Culicoides imicola Kieffer in recent and unprecedented outbreaks of Culicoides-borne arboviruses in southern Europe has been a significant point of contention. We combined entomological surveys, movement simulations of air-borne particles, and population genetics to reconstruct the chain of events that led to a newly colonized French area nestled at the northern foot of the Pyrenees. Simulating the movement of air-borne particles evidenced frequent wind-transport events allowing, within at most 36 hours, the immigration of midges from north-eastern Spain and Balearic Islands, and, as rare events, their immigration from Corsica. Completing the puzzle, population genetic analyses discriminated Corsica as the origin of the new population and identified two successive colonization events within west-Mediterranean basin. Our findings are of considerable importance when trying to understand the invasion of new territories by expanding species.

Airborne Particles.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ojala, Carl F.; Ojala, Eric J.

1987-01-01

Describes an activity in which students collect airborne particles using a common vacuum cleaner. Suggests ways for the students to convert their data into information related to air pollution and human health. Urges consideration of weather patterns when analyzing the results of the investigation. (TW)

Mild Wind Series, Minute Steak Event

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-11-20

radioactive gas and debris from reaching the atmosphere, thereby complying with the test ban treaty. distance from the source point to the surface was...percent of the active data recorded on film is also important in the event of excessive radioactive release. The weighing of the experiments is arbitrary...in a water-base Polution . S41 ’ The caldera 245 feet In diameter and 17 feet deep formed at +23 minutes (figure 4.2). There was consistent

Predictors of Airborne Endotoxin Concentrations in Inner City Homes

PubMed Central

Mazique, D; Diette, GB; Breysse, PN; Matsui, EC; McCormack, MC; Curtin-Brosnan, J; Williams, D; Peng, RD; Hansel, NN

2011-01-01

Few studies have assessed in-home factors which contribute to airborne endotoxin concentrations. In 85 inner-city Baltimore homes, we found no significant correlation between settled dust and airborne endotoxin concentrations. Certain household activities and characteristics, including frequency of dusting, air conditioner use and type of flooring, explained 36–42% of the variability of airborne concentrations. Measurements of both airborne and settled dust endotoxin concentrations may be needed to fully characterize domestic exposure in epidemiologic investigations. PMID:21429483

Enhanced Army Airborne Forces: A New Joint Operational Capability

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-01-01

that are trained to carry out airborne operations, including the 75th Ranger Regiment and Army special forces. Today’s airborne forces lack protected...Operation Just Cause Airborne units were used extensively in Panama, and the 82nd Air- borne’s 1st Brigade and the 75th Ranger Regiment were both...carry out airborne operations, including the 75th Ranger Regiment and Army special forces. The changes made to transition the Army into a force

EUFAR the key portal and network for airborne research in Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gérard, Elisabeth; Brown, Philip

2017-04-01

will contribute substantially toward broadening the user base of existing airborne research facilities in Europe and mobilising additional resources to this end. EUFAR AISBL will be the most appropriate organisation for the (i) coordination of joint activities among the European institutions involved in airborne research, and also (ii) coordination of projects funded by the European Commission or other bodies for supporting activities beyond the self-financing perimeter of the AISBL (transnational access projects, education and training events, joint research activities, etc.). This will confirm EUFAR's position as the key portal for airborne research in Europe. This central position opens the way for further collaboration with other communities (UAS, etc.) and environmental research infrastructures (IAGOS, ACTRIS, ENVRIplus, EUROFLEETS, etc.) to ensure the mutual benefit of joint efforts in addressing future science challenges in a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of the Earth system.

Geoid determination by airborne gravimetry - principles and applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forsberg, R.; Olesen, A. V.

2009-12-01

The operational development of long-range airborne gravimetry has meant that large areas can be covered in a short time frame with high-quality medium-wavelength gravity field data, perfectly matching the needs of geoid determination. Geoid from a combination of surface, airborne and satellite data not only is able to cover the remaining large data voids on the earth, notably Antarctica and tropical jungle regions, but also provide seamless coverage across the coastal zone, and tie in older marine and land gravity data. Airborne gravity can therefore provide essential data for GPS applications both on land and at sea, e.g. for marine construction projects such as bridges, wind mill farms etc. Current operational accuracies with the DTU-Space/UiB airborne system are in the 1-2 mGal range, which translates into geoid accuracies of 5-10 cm, dependent on track spacing. In the paper we will outline the current accuracy of airborne gravity and geoid determination, and show examples from recent international airborne gravity campaigns, aimed at either providing national survey infrastructure, or scientific applications for e.g. oceanography or sea-ice thickness determination.

14 CFR 135.175 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Aircraft and Equipment § 135.175 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate a large, transport category aircraft in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather...

14 CFR 135.175 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Aircraft and Equipment § 135.175 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate a large, transport category aircraft in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather...

14 CFR 135.175 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Aircraft and Equipment § 135.175 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate a large, transport category aircraft in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather...

14 CFR 135.175 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Aircraft and Equipment § 135.175 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate a large, transport category aircraft in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather...

14 CFR 135.175 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Aircraft and Equipment § 135.175 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate a large, transport category aircraft in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather...

Airborne lidar experiments at the Savannah River Plant

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krabill, William B.; Swift, Robert N.

1985-01-01

The results of remote sensing experiments at the Department of Energy (DOE) Savannah River Nuclear Facility utilizing the NASA Airborne Oceanographic Lidar (AOL) are presented. The flights were conducted in support of the numerous environmental monitoring requirements associated with the operation of the facility and for the purpose of furthering research and development of airborne lidar technology. Areas of application include airborne laser topographic mapping, hydrologic studies using fluorescent tracer dye, timber volume estimation, baseline characterization of wetlands, and aquatic chlorophyll and photopigment measurements. Conclusions relative to the usability of airborne lidar technology for the DOE for each of these remote sensing applications are discussed.

[Air-borne disease].

PubMed

Lameiro Vilariño, Carmen; del Campo Pérez, Victor M; Alonso Bürger, Susana; Felpeto Nodar, Irene; Guimarey Pérez, Rosa; Pérez Alvarellos, Alberto

2003-11-01

Respiratory protection is a factor which worries nursing professionals who take care of patients susceptible of transmitting microorganisms through the air more as every day passes. This type of protection covers the use of surgical or hygienic masks against the transmission of infection by airborne drops to the use of highly effective masks or respirators against the transmission of airborne diseases such as tuberculosis or SARS, a recently discovered disease. The adequate choice of this protective device and its correct use are fundamental in order to have an effective protection for exposed personnel. The authors summarize the main protective respiratory devices used by health workers, their characteristics and degree of effectiveness, as well as the circumstances under which each device is indicated for use.

NASA COAST and OCEANIA Airborne Missions in Support of Ecosystem and Water Quality Research in the Coastal Zone

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guild, Liane S.; Hooker, Stanford B.; Kudela, Raphael; Morrow, John; Russell, Philip; Myers, Jeffrey; Dunagan, Stephen; Palacios, Sherry; Livingston, John; Negrey, Kendra;

Nepal and Papua Airborne Gravity Surveys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olesen, A. V.; Forsberg, R.; Kasenda, F.; Einarsson, I.; Manandhar, N.

2011-12-01

Airborne gravimetry offers a fast and economic way to cover vast areas and it allows access to otherwise difficult accessible areas like mountains, jungles and the near coastal zone. It has the potential to deliver high resolution and bias free data that may bridge the spectral gap between global satellite gravity models and the high resolution gravity information embedded in digital terrain models. DTU Space has for more than a decade done airborne gravity surveys in many parts of the world. Most surveys were done with a LaCoste & Romberg S-meter updated for airborne use. This instrument has proven to deliver near bias free data when properly processed. A Chekan AM gravimeter was recently added to the airborne gravity mapping system and will potentially enhance the spatial resolution and the robustness of the system. This paper will focus on results from two recent surveys over Nepal, flown in December 2010, and over Papua (eastern Indonesia), flown in May and June 2011. Both surveys were flown with the new double gravimeter setup and initial assessment of system performance indicates improved spatial resolution compared to the single gravimeter system. Comparison to EGM08 and to the most recent GOCE models highlights the impact of the new airborne gravity data in both cases. A newly computed geoid model for Nepal based on the airborne data allows for a more precise definition of the height of Mt. Everest in a global height system. This geoid model suggests that the height of Mt. Everest should be increased by approximately 1 meter. The paper will also briefly discuss system setup and will highlight a few essential processing steps that ensure that bias problems are minimized and spatial resolution enhanced.

14 CFR 121.357 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... § 121.357 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate any transport... December 31, 1964, unless approved airborne weather radar equipment has been installed in the airplane. (b...

14 CFR 121.357 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... § 121.357 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate any transport... December 31, 1964, unless approved airborne weather radar equipment has been installed in the airplane. (b...

14 CFR 125.223 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Equipment Requirements § 125.223 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate an airplane governed by this part in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather radar...

14 CFR 125.223 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Equipment Requirements § 125.223 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate an airplane governed by this part in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather radar...

14 CFR 125.223 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Equipment Requirements § 125.223 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate an airplane governed by this part in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather radar...

14 CFR 121.357 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... § 121.357 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate any transport... December 31, 1964, unless approved airborne weather radar equipment has been installed in the airplane. (b...

14 CFR 121.357 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... § 121.357 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate any transport... December 31, 1964, unless approved airborne weather radar equipment has been installed in the airplane. (b...

14 CFR 125.223 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Equipment Requirements § 125.223 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate an airplane governed by this part in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather radar...

14 CFR 125.223 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... Equipment Requirements § 125.223 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate an airplane governed by this part in passenger-carrying operations unless approved airborne weather radar...

14 CFR 121.357 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Airborne weather radar equipment... § 121.357 Airborne weather radar equipment requirements. (a) No person may operate any transport... December 31, 1964, unless approved airborne weather radar equipment has been installed in the airplane. (b...

NASA Program of Airborne Optical Observations.

PubMed

Bader, M; Wagoner, C B

1970-02-01

NASA's Ames Research Center currently operates a Convair 990 four-engine jet transport as a National Facility for airborne scientific research (astronomy, aurora, airglow, meteorology, earth resources). This aircraft can carry about twelve experiments to 12 km for several hours. A second aircraft, a twin-engine Lear Jet, has been used on a limited basis for airborne science and can carry one experiment to 15 km for 1 h. Mobility and altitude are the principal advantages over ground sites, while large payload and personnel carrying capabilities, combined with ease of operations and relatively low cost, are the main advantages compared to balloons, rockets, or satellites. Typical airborne instrumentation and scientific results are presented.

WESTERN AIRBORNE CONTAMINANTS ASSESSMENT PROJECT RESEARCH PLAN

EPA Science Inventory

The goal of the Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment Project (WACAP) is to assess the deposition of airborne contaminants in Western National Parks, providing regional and local information on exposure, accumulation, impacts, and probable sources. This project is being desig...

An overview of Airborne Data for Assessing Models (ADAM): a web development effort to effectively disseminate airborne data products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mangosing, D. C.; Chen, G.; Kusterer, J.; Rinsland, P.; Perez, J.; Sorlie, S.; Parker, L.

2011-12-01

One of the objectives of the NASA Langley Research Center's MEaSURES project, "Creating a Unified Airborne Database for Model Assessment", is the development of airborne Earth System Data Records (ESDR) for the regional and global model assessment and validation activities performed by the tropospheric chemistry and climate modeling communities. The ongoing development of ADAM, a web site designed to access a unified, standardized and relational ESDR database, meets this objective. The ESDR database is derived from publically available data sets, from NASA airborne field studies to airborne and in-situ studies sponsored by NOAA, NSF, and numerous international partners. The ADAM web development activities provide an opportunity to highlight a growing synergy between the Airborne Science Data for Atmospheric Composition (ASD-AC) group at NASA Langley and the NASA Langley's Atmospheric Sciences Data Center (ASDC). These teams will collaborate on the ADAM web application by leveraging the state-of-the-art service and message-oriented data distribution architecture developed and implemented by ASDC and using a web-based tool provided by the ASD-AC group whose user interface accommodates the nuanced perspective of science users in the atmospheric chemistry and composition and climate modeling communities.

An update on airborne contact dermatitis: 2001-2006.

PubMed

Santos, Raquel; Goossens, An

2007-12-01

Reports on airborne dermatoses are mainly published in the context of occupational settings. Hence, in recent years, dermatologists and also occupational physicians have become increasingly aware of the airborne source of contact dermatitis, resulting mainly from exposure to irritants or allergens. However, their occurrence is still underestimated, because reports often omit the term 'airborne' in relation to dust or volatile allergens. For the present update, we screened the journals 'Contact Dermatitis' (July 2000 to December 2006); 'Dermatitis', formerly named 'American Journal of Contact Dermatitis'; 'La Lettre du Gerda' (January 2000 to December 2006); and also included relevant articles from other journals published during the same period. This resulted in an updated list of airborne dermatitis causes.

Meeting Review: Airborne Aerosol Inlet Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baumgardner, Darrel; Huebert, Barry; Wilson, Chuck

1991-01-01

Proceedings from the Airborne Aerosol Inlet Workshop are presented. The two central topics of discussion were the role of aerosols in atmospheric processes and the difficulties in characterizing aerosols. The following topics were discussed during the working sessions: airborne observations to date; identification of inlet design issues; inlet modeling needs and directions; objectives for aircraft experiments; and future laboratory and wind tunnel studies.

Column Closure Studies of Lower Tropospheric Aerosol and Water Vapor During ACE-Asia Using Airborne Sunphotometer, Airborne In-Situ and Ship-Based Lidar Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schmid, B.; Hegg, A.; Wang, J.; Bates, D.; Redemann, J.; Russells, P. B.; Livingston, J. M.; Jonsson, H. H.; Welton, E. J.; Seinfield, J. H.

2003-01-01

We assess the consistency (closure) between solar beam attenuation by aerosols and water vapor measured by airborne sunphotometry and derived from airborne in-situ, and ship-based lidar measurements during the April 2001 Asian Pacific Regional Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACE-Asia). The airborne data presented here were obtained aboard the Twin Otter aircraft. Comparing aerosol extinction o(550 nm) from four different techniques shows good agreement for the vertical distribution of aerosol layers. However, the level of agreement in absolute magnitude of the derived aerosol extinction varied among the aerosol layers sampled. The sigma(550 nm) computed from airborne in-situ size distribution and composition measurements shows good agreement with airborne sunphotometry in the marine boundary layer but is considerably lower in layers dominated by dust if the particles are assumed to be spherical. The sigma(550 nm) from airborne in-situ scattering and absorption measurements are about approx. 13% lower than those obtained from airborne sunphotometry during 14 vertical profiles. Combining lidar and the airborne sunphotometer measurements reveals the prevalence of dust layers at altitudes up to 10 km with layer aerosol optical depth (from 3.5 to 10 km altitude) of approx. 0.1 to 0.2 (500 nm) and extinction-to-backscatter ratios of 59-71 sr (523 nm). The airborne sunphotometer aboard the Twin Otter reveals a relatively dry atmosphere during ACE- Asia with all water vapor columns less than 1.5 cm and water vapor densities w less than 12 g/cu m. Comparing layer water vapor amounts and w from the airborne sunphotometer to the same quantities measured with aircraft in-situ sensors leads to a high correlation (r(sup 3)=0.96) but the sunphotometer tends to underestimate w by 7%.

Airborne Nicotine, Secondhand Smoke, and Precursors to Adolescent Smoking.

PubMed

McGrath, Jennifer J; Racicot, Simon; Okoli, Chizimuzo T C; Hammond, S Katharine; O'Loughlin, Jennifer

2018-01-01

Secondhand smoke (SHS) directly increases exposure to airborne nicotine, tobacco's main psychoactive substance. When exposed to SHS, nonsmokers inhale 60% to 80% of airborne nicotine, absorb concentrations similar to those absorbed by smokers, and display high levels of nicotine biomarkers. Social modeling, or observing other smokers, is a well-established predictor of smoking during adolescence. Observing smokers also leads to increased pharmacological exposure to airborne nicotine via SHS. The objective of this study is to investigate whether greater exposure to airborne nicotine via SHS increases the risk for smoking initiation precursors among never-smoking adolescents. Secondary students ( N = 406; never-smokers: n = 338, 53% girls, mean age = 12.9, SD = 0.4) participated in the AdoQuest II longitudinal cohort. They answered questionnaires about social exposure to smoking (parents, siblings, peers) and known smoking precursors (eg, expected benefits and/or costs, SHS aversion, smoking susceptibility, and nicotine dependence symptoms). Saliva and hair samples were collected to derive biomarkers of cotinine and nicotine. Adolescents wore a passive monitor for 1 week to measure airborne nicotine. Higher airborne nicotine was significantly associated with greater expected benefits ( R 2 = 0.024) and lower expected costs ( R 2 = 0.014). Higher social exposure was significantly associated with more temptation to try smoking ( R 2 = 0.025), lower aversion to SHS ( R 2 = 0.038), and greater smoking susceptibility ( R 2 = 0.071). Greater social exposure was significantly associated with more nicotine dependence symptoms; this relation worsened with higher nicotine exposure (cotinine R 2 = 0.096; airborne nicotine R 2 = 0.088). Airborne nicotine exposure via SHS is a plausible risk factor for smoking initiation during adolescence. Public health implications include limiting airborne nicotine through smoking bans in homes and cars, in addition to stringent restrictions

Airborne Oceanographic Lidar (AOL) (Global Carbon Cycle)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

This bimonthly contractor progress report covers the operation, maintenance and data management of the Airborne Oceanographic Lidar and the Airborne Topographic Mapper. Monthly activities included: mission planning, sensor operation and calibration, data processing, data analysis, network development and maintenance and instrument maintenance engineering and fabrication.

Standardized Analytical Methods for Environmental Restoration Following Homeland Security Events

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Methodology was formulated for use in the event of a terrorist attack using a variety of chemical, radioactive, biological, and toxic agents. Standardized analysis procedures were determined for use should these events occur. This publication is annually updated....

Airborne Deployment and Calibration of Microwave Atmospheric Sounder on 6U CubeSat

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Padmanabhan, S.; Brown, S. T.; Lim, B.; Kangaslahti, P.; Russell, D.; Stachnik, R. A.

2015-12-01

To accurately predict how the distribution of extreme events may change in the future we need to understand the mechanisms that influence such events in our current climate. Our current observing system is not well-suited for observing extreme events globally due to the sparse sampling and in-homogeneity of ground-based in-situ observations and the infrequent revisit time of satellite observations. Observations of weather extremes, such as extreme precipitation events, temperature extremes, tropical and extra-tropical cyclones among others, with temporal resolution on the order of minutes and spatial resolution on the order of few kms (<10 kms), are required for improved forecasting of extreme weather events. We envision a suite of low-cost passive microwave sounding and imaging sensors on CubeSats that would work in concert with traditional flagship observational systems, such as those manifested on large environmental satellites (i.e. JPSS,WSF,GCOM-W), to monitor weather extremes. A 118/183 GHz sensor would enable observations of temperature and precipitation extremes over land and ocean as well as tropical and extra-tropical cyclones. This proposed project would enable low cost, compact radiometer instrumentation at 118 and 183 GHz that would fit in a 6U Cubesat with the objective of mass-producing this design to enable a suite of small satellites to image the key geophysical parameters needed to improve prediction of extreme weather events. We take advantage of past and current technology developments at JPL viz. HAMSR (High Altitude Microwave Scanning Radiometer), Advanced Component Technology (ACT'08) to enable low-mass, low-power high frequency airborne radiometers. In this paper, we will describe the design and implementation of the 118 GHz temperature sounder and 183 GHz humidity sounder on the 6U CubeSat. In addition, we will discuss the maiden airborne deployment of the instrument during the Plain Elevated Convection at Night (PECAN) experiment. The

10 CFR 72.126 - Criteria for radiological protection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... exposed to radiation or airborne radioactive materials. Structures, systems, and components for which... accessible work areas as appropriate to warn operating personnel of radiation and airborne radioactive...

Airborne oceanographic lidar system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1975-01-01

Specifications and preliminary design of an Airborne Oceanographic Lidar (AOL) system, which is to be constructed for installation and used on a NASA Wallops Flight Center (WFC) C-54 research aircraft, are reported. The AOL system is to provide an airborne facility for use by various government agencies to demonstrate the utility and practicality of hardware of this type in the wide area collection of oceanographic data on an operational basis. System measurement and performance requirements are presented, followed by a description of the conceptual system approach and the considerations attendant to its development. System performance calculations are addressed, and the system specifications and preliminary design are presented and discussed.

[Phylogenetic diversity of airborne microbes in Qingdao downtown in autumn].

PubMed

Wang, Lin; Song, Zhi-wen; Xu, Ai-ling; Wu, Deng-deng; Xia, Yan

2015-04-01

To determine the community structure of airborne microbes in Qingdao downtown in autumn, the airborne bacteria and fungi were collected by the KC-6120 air sampler and analyzed using the 16S/18S rDNA gene clone library method. Phylogenetic analysis of airborne bacteria showed that they belonged to six major phylogenetic groups: Proteobacteria (78. 8%), Firmicutes (14.6%), Actinobacteria (4.0%), Planctomycetes (1.3%), Cyanobacteria (0.7%), and Deinococcus-Thermus (0.7%). The dominant genera of airborne bacteria included Acinetobacter (39.7%), Staphylococcus (11.3%), Sphingomonas (8.6%), Paracoccus (6.0%) and Massilia (5.3%). The main types of airborne fungi were Ascomycota (97.5%) and Basidiomycota (2.5%). Dominant genera of airborne fungi included Pyrenophora (76.5%), Xylaria (13.6%) and Exophiala (2.5%). The pathogens or conditioned pathogens, such as Acinetobacter, Staphylococcus, or Sphingomonas were detected in the airborne bacteria, whereas certain kinds of fungi, such as P. graminea, X. hypoxylon and Zasmidium angulare that could cause a variety of crop diseases were also detected.

Infrared airborne spectroradiometer survey results in the western Nevada area

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Collins, W.; Chang, S. H.; Kuo, J. T.

1982-01-01

The Mark II airborne spectroradiometer system was flown over several geologic test sites in western Nevada. The infrared mineral absorption bands were observed and recorded for the first time using an airborne system with high spectral resolution in the 2.0 to 2.5 micron region. The data show that the hydrothermal alteration zone minerals, carbonates, and other minerals are clearly visible in the airborne survey mode. The finer spectral features that distinguish the various minerals with infrared bands are also clearly visible in the airborne survey data. Using specialized computer pattern recognition methods, it is possible to identify mineralogy and map alteration zones and lithologies by airborne spectroradiometer survey techniques.

Enumerating Spore-Forming Bacteria Airborne with Particles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lin, Ying; Barengoltz, Jack

2006-01-01

A laboratory method has been conceived to enable the enumeration of (1) Cultivable bacteria and bacterial spores that are, variously, airborne by themselves or carried by, parts of, or otherwise associated with, other airborne particles; and (2) Spore-forming bacteria among all of the aforementioned cultivable microbes.

The Perils of Paul: Near Disasters in Airborne Radiochemical Sampling

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Meade, Roger Allen

Beginning with the Trinity test in July 1945, Laboratory radiochemists have collected debris from nuclear tests by various means. At Trinity, two United States Army Sherman tanks were used. Beginning with Operation Crossroads and continuing throughout atmospheric testing, aircraft were used to fly in and around mushroom clouds to collect debris. Paul Guthals, the LASL project leader for sampling operations, flew on many of the B-57 sampling missions. Two such missions, one flown over the Nevada Test and one in the skies near Johnston Atoll, again proved the dangers involved in collecting airborne test debris. The events of these twomore » missions are briefly recounted.« less

An oil film information retrieval method overcoming the influence of sun glitter, based on AISA+ airborne hyper-spectral image

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhan, Yuanzeng; Mao, Tianming; Gong, Fang; Wang, Difeng; Chen, Jianyu

2010-10-01

As an effective survey tool for oil spill detection, the airborne hyper-spectral sensor affords the potentiality for retrieving the quantitative information of oil slick which is useful for the cleanup of spilled oil. But many airborne hyper-spectral images are affected by sun glitter which distorts radiance values and spectral ratios used for oil slick detection. In 2005, there's an oil spill event leaking at oil drilling platform in The South China Sea, and an AISA+ airborne hyper-spectral image recorded this event will be selected for studying in this paper, which is affected by sun glitter terribly. Through a spectrum analysis of the oil and water samples, two features -- "spectral rotation" and "a pair of fixed points" can be found in spectral curves between crude oil film and water. Base on these features, an oil film information retrieval method which can overcome the influence of sun glitter is presented. Firstly, the radiance of the image is converted to normal apparent reflectance (NormAR). Then, based on the features of "spectral rotation" (used for distinguishing oil film and water) and "a pair of fixed points" (used for overcoming the effect of sun glitter), NormAR894/NormAR516 is selected as an indicator of oil film. Finally, by using a threshold combined with the technologies of image filter and mathematic morphology, the distribution and relative thickness of oil film are retrieved.

Influence of radioactivity on surface charging and aggregation kinetics of particles in the atmosphere.

PubMed

Kim, Yong-Ha; Yiacoumi, Sotira; Lee, Ida; McFarlane, Joanna; Tsouris, Costas

2014-01-01

Radioactivity can influence surface interactions, but its effects on particle aggregation kinetics have not been included in transport modeling of radioactive particles. In this research, experimental and theoretical studies have been performed to investigate the influence of radioactivity on surface charging and aggregation kinetics of radioactive particles in the atmosphere. Radioactivity-induced charging mechanisms have been investigated at the microscopic level, and heterogeneous surface potential caused by radioactivity is reported. The radioactivity-induced surface charging is highly influenced by several parameters, such as rate and type of radioactive decay. A population balance model, including interparticle forces, has been employed to study the effects of radioactivity on particle aggregation kinetics in air. It has been found that radioactivity can hinder aggregation of particles because of similar surface charging caused by the decay process. Experimental and theoretical studies provide useful insights into the understanding of transport characteristics of radioactive particles emitted from severe nuclear events, such as the recent accident of Fukushima or deliberate explosions of radiological devices.

76 FR 76333 - Notification for Airborne Wind Energy Systems (AWES)

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-07

...-1279; Notice No. 11-07] Notification for Airborne Wind Energy Systems (AWES) AGENCY: Federal Aviation... CFR) part 77, ``Safe, Efficient Use and Preservation of the Navigable Airspace,'' to airborne wind energy systems (AWES). In addition, this notice requests information from airborne wind energy system...

Recognizing Airborne Hazards.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schneider, Christian M.

1990-01-01

The heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems in older buildings often do not adequately handle air-borne contaminants. Outlines a three-stage Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) assessment and describes a case in point at a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, school. (MLF)

Compact Highly Sensitive Multi-species Airborne Mid-IR Spectrometer

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Richter, Dirk; Weibring, P.; Walega, J.

2015-02-01

We report on the development and airborne field deployment of a mid-IR laser based spectrometer. The instrument was configured for the simultaneous in-situ detection of formaldehyde (CH2O) and ethane (C2H6). Numerous mechanical, optical, electronic, and software improvements over a previous instrument design resulted in reliable highly sensitive airborne operation with long stability times yielding 90% airborne measurement coverage during the recent air quality study over the Colorado front range, FRAPPÉ 2014. Airborne detection sensitivities of ~ 15 pptv (C2H6) and ~40 pptv (CH2O) were generally obtained for 1 s of averaging for simultaneous detection.

30 CFR 57.5005 - Control of exposure to airborne contaminants.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Control of exposure to airborne contaminants... Underground § 57.5005 Control of exposure to airborne contaminants. Control of employee exposure to harmful airborne contaminants shall be, insofar as feasible, by prevention of contamination, removal by exhaust...

Appendix : airborne incidents : an econometric analysis of severity

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-12-19

This is the Appendix for Airborne Incidents: An Econometric Analysis of Severity Report. : Airborne loss of separation incidents occur when an aircraft breaches the defined separation limit (vertical and/or horizontal) with another aircraft or terrai...

Networked Airborne Communications Using Adaptive Multi Beam Directional Links

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-03-05

Networked Airborne Communications Using Adaptive Multi-Beam Directional Links R. Bruce MacLeod Member, IEEE, and Adam Margetts Member, IEEE MIT...provide new techniques for increasing throughput in airborne adaptive directional net- works. By adaptive directional linking, we mean systems that can...techniques can dramatically increase the capacity in airborne networks. Advances in digital array technology are beginning to put these gains within reach

Scratched: World War II Airborne Operations That Never Happened

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-05-22

Approved for Public Release; Distribution is Unlimited SCRATCHED: WORLD WAR II AIRBORNE OPERATIONS THAT NEVER HAPPENED A Monograph by...2. REPORT TYPE Master’s Thesis 3. DATES COVERED (From - To) JUN 2013-MAY 2014 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Scratched: World War II Airborne...Maastricht gap, to get Allied troops through the West Wall. For numerous reasons, the overall Allied airborne effort of World War II provided mixed

Satellite and airborne IR sensor validation by an airborne interferometer

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gumley, L.E.; Delst, P.F. van; Moeller, C.C.

1996-11-01

The validation of in-orbit longwave IR radiances from the GOES-8 Sounder and inflight longwave IR radiances from the MODIS Airborne Simulator (MAS) is described. The reference used is the airborne University of Wisconsin High Resolution Interferometer Sounder (HIS). The calibration of each sensor is described. Data collected during the Ocean Temperature Interferometric Survey (OTIS) experiment in January 1995 is used in the comparison between sensors. Detailed forward calculations of at-sensor radiance are used to account for the difference in GOES-8 and HIS altitude and viewing geometry. MAS radiances and spectrally averaged HIS radiances are compared directly. Differences between GOES-8 andmore » HIS brightness temperatures, and GOES-8 and MAS brightness temperatures, are found to be with 1.0 K for the majority of longwave channels examined. The same validation approach will be used for future sensors such as the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS). 11 refs., 2 figs., 4 tabs.« less

SOFIA: The future of airborne astronomy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Erickson, Edwin F.; Davidson, Jacqueline A.

1995-01-01

For the past 20 years, the 91 cm telescope in NASA's Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO) has enabled scientists to observe infrared sources which are obscured by the earth's atmosphere at ground-based sites, and to observe transient astronomical events from anywhere in the world. To augment this capability, the United States and German Space Agencies (NASA and DARA) are collaborating in plans to replace the KAO with a 2.5 meter telescope installed in a Boeing 747 aircraft: SOFIA - The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. SOFIA's large aperture, wide wavelength coverage, mobility, accessibility, and sophisticated instruments will permit a broad range of scientific studies, some of which are described here. Its unique features complement the capabilities of other future space missions. In addition, SOFIA has important potential as a stimulus for development of new technology and as a national resource for education of K-12 teachers. If started in 1996, SOFIA will be flying in the year 2000.

Comparison of Airborne and Ground-Based Function Allocation Concepts for NextGen Using Human-In-The-Loop Simulations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wing, David J.; Prevot, Thomas; Murdoch, Jennifer L.; Cabrall, Christopher D.; Homola, Jeffrey R.; Martin, Lynne H.; Mercer, Joey S.; Hoadley, Sherwood T.; Wilson, Sara R.; Hubbs, Clay E.;

Characterization of airborne ice-nucleation-active bacteria and bacterial fragments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Šantl-Temkiv, Tina; Sahyoun, Maher; Finster, Kai; Hartmann, Susan; Augustin-Bauditz, Stefanie; Stratmann, Frank; Wex, Heike; Clauss, Tina; Nielsen, Niels Woetmann; Sørensen, Jens Havskov; Korsholm, Ulrik Smith; Wick, Lukas Y.; Karlson, Ulrich Gosewinkel

2015-05-01

Some bacteria have the unique capacity of synthesising ice-nucleation-active (INA) proteins and exposing them at their outer membrane surface. As INA bacteria enter the atmosphere, they may impact the formation of clouds and precipitation. We studied members of airborne bacterial communities for their capacity to catalyse ice formation and we report on the excretion of INA proteins by airborne Pseudomonas sp. We also observed for the first time that INA biological fragments <220 nm were present in precipitation samples (199 and 482 INA fragments per L of precipitation), which confirms the presence of submicron INA biological fragments in the atmosphere. During 14 precipitation events, strains affiliated with the genus Pseudomonas, which are known to carry ina genes, were dominant. A screening for INA properties revealed that ∼12% of the cultivable bacteria caused ice formation at ≤-7 °C. They had likely been emitted to the atmosphere from terrestrial surfaces, e.g. by convective transport. We tested the ability of isolated INA strains to produce outer membrane vesicles and found that two isolates could do so. However, only very few INA vesicles were released per INA cell. Thus, the source of the submicron INA proteinaceous particles that we detected in the atmosphere remains to be elucidated.

Background Radioactivity in River and Reservoir Sediments near Los Alamos, New Mexico

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

S.G.McLin; D.W. Lyons

2002-05-05

As part of its continuing Environmental Surveillance Program, regional river and lake-bottom sediments have been collected annually by Los Alamos National Laboratory (the Laboratory) since 1974 and 1979, respectively. These background samples are collected from three drainage basins at ten different river stations and five reservoirs located throughout northern New Mexico and southern Colorado. Radiochemical analyses for these sediments include tritium, strontium-90, cesium-137, total uranium, plutonium-238, plutonium-239,-240, americium-241, gross alpha, gross beta, and gross gamma radioactivity. Detection-limit radioactivity originates as worldwide fallout from aboveground nuclear weapons testing and satellite reentry into Earth's atmosphere. Spatial and temporal variations in individual analytemore » levels originate from atmospheric point-source introductions and natural rate differences in airborne deposition and soil erosion. Background radioactivity values on sediments reflect this variability, and grouped river and reservoir sediment samples show a range of statistical distributions that appear to be analyte dependent. Traditionally, both river and reservoir analyte data were blended together to establish background levels. In this report, however, we group background sediment data according to two criteria. These include sediment source (either river or reservoir sediments) and station location relative to the Laboratory (either upstream or downstream). These grouped data are statistically evaluated through 1997, and background radioactivity values are established for individual analytes in upstream river and reservoir sediments. This information may be used to establish the existence and areal extent of trace-level environmental contamination resulting from historical Laboratory research activities since the early 1940s.« less

30 CFR 56.5005 - Control of exposure to airborne contaminants.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Control of exposure to airborne contaminants... Air Quality and Physical Agents Air Quality § 56.5005 Control of exposure to airborne contaminants. Control of employee exposure to harmful airborne contaminants shall be, insofar as feasible, by prevention...

NASA airborne laser altimetry and ICESat-2 post-launch data validation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brunt, K. M.; Neumann, T.; Studinger, M.; Hawley, R. L.; Markus, T.

2016-12-01

A series of NASA airborne lidars have made repeated surveys over an 11,000-m ground-based kinematic GPS traverse near Summit Station, Greenland. These ground-based data were used to assess the surface elevation bias and measurement precision of two airborne laser altimeters: Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) and Land, Vegetation, and Ice Sensor (LVIS). Data from the ongoing monthly traverses allowed for the assessment of 8 airborne lidar campaigns; elevation biases for these altimeters were less than 12.2 cm, while assessments of surface measurement precision were less than 9.1 cm. Results from the analyses of the Greenland ground-based GPS and airborne lidar data provide guidance for validation strategies for Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite 2 (ICESat-2) elevation and elevation-change data products. Specifically, a nested approach to validation is required, where ground-based GPS data are used to constrain the bias and measurement precision of the airborne lidar data; airborne surveys can then be designed and conducted on longer length-scales to provide the amount of airborne data required to make more statistically meaningful assessments of satellite elevation data. This nested validation approach will continue for the ground-traverse in Greenland; further, the ICESat-2 Project Science Office has plans to conduct similar coordinated ground-based and airborne data collection in Antarctica.

Warriors from the Sky: US Army Airborne Operational Art in Normandy

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-05-25

capabilities required for conducting a cross- Channel joint forcible entry operation. This included the identification of specific missions for the airborne...cross- Channel joint forcible entry operation. This included the identification of specific missions for the airborne forces. As a result, the airborne...Operation Market Garden, Holland 1944 (HQ, 82 Airborne Division: Feb 1946), 4. Market Garden, following the invasion in Normandy, was the first

Efficiency calibration and minimum detectable activity concentration of a real-time UAV airborne sensor system with two gamma spectrometers.

PubMed

Tang, Xiao-Bin; Meng, Jia; Wang, Peng; Cao, Ye; Huang, Xi; Wen, Liang-Sheng; Chen, Da

2016-04-01

A small-sized UAV (NH-UAV) airborne system with two gamma spectrometers (LaBr3 detector and HPGe detector) was developed to monitor activity concentration in serious nuclear accidents, such as the Fukushima nuclear accident. The efficiency calibration and determination of minimum detectable activity concentration (MDAC) of the specific system were studied by MC simulations at different flight altitudes, different horizontal distances from the detection position to the source term center and different source term sizes. Both air and ground radiation were considered in the models. The results obtained may provide instructive suggestions for in-situ radioactivity measurements of NH-UAV. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Simple Method for Collecting Airborne Pollen

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kevan, Peter G.; DiGiovanni, Franco; Ho, Rong H.; Taki, Hisatomo; Ferguson, Kristyn A.; Pawlowski, Agata K.

2006-01-01

Pollination is a broad area of study within biology. For many plants, pollen carried by wind is required for successful seed set. Airborne pollen also affects human health. To foster studies of airborne pollen, we introduce a simple device--the "megastigma"--for collecting pollen from the air. This device is flexible, yielding easily obtained data…

Inter-agency Working Group for Airborne Data and Telemetry Systems (IWGADTS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Webster, Chris; Freudinger, Lawrence; Sorenson, Carl; Myers, Jeff; Sullivan, Don; Oolman, Larry

2009-01-01

The Interagency Coordinating Committee for Airborne Geosciences Research and Applications (ICCAGRA) was established to improve cooperation and communication among agencies sponsoring airborne platforms and instruments for research and applications, and to serve as a resource for senior level management on airborne geosciences issues. The Interagency Working Group for Airborne Data and Telecommunications Systems (IWGADTS) is a subgroup to ICCAGRA for the purpose of developing recommendations leading to increased interoperability among airborne platforms and instrument payloads, producing increased synergy among research programs with similar goals, and enabling the suborbital layer of the Global Earth Observing System of Systems.

Radioactive emission data from Canadian nuclear generating stations, 1988 to 1997. Report number INFO-0210/Rev.8

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

1998-12-31

This edition incorporates histograms for each nuclear generating station (NGS) displaying the annual gaseous emissions containing tritium, in the form of tritium oxide, noble gases, iodine-131, and radioactive particulates, as well as the annual liquid emissions containing tritium, in the form of tritiated water, and gross beta-gamma activity. For Pickering NGS A and Gentilly 2, annual emissions of carbon-14 are depicted; and for Darlington NGS A, airborne emissions of elemental tritium since 1988 are shown. In each case, the emission data are compared to the derived emission limits.

Using an Optionally Piloted Aircraft for Airborne Gravity Observations with the NOAA GRAV-D Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Youngman, M.; Johnson, J. A.; van Westrum, D.; Damiani, T.

2017-12-01

The U.S. National Geodetic Survey's (NGS) Gravity for the Redefintion of the American Vertical Datum (GRAV-D) project is collecting airborne gravity data to support a 1 cm geoid. Started in 2008, this project will collect airborne gravity data over the entire U.S. and territories by 2022. As of June 30, 2017, the project was almost 62% complete. With recent technological developments, NGS has been exploring using unmanned aircraft for airborne gravity measurements. This presentation will focus on results from two surveys over the U.S. Appalachian and Rocky Mountains using the Aurora Centaur Optionally Piloted Aircraft and the Micro-g Lacoste Turnkey Airborne Gravimeter System 7 (TAGS7). Collecting high quality data as well as dealing with remote locations has been a challenge for the GRAV-D project and the field of airborne gravity in general. Unmanned aircraft could potentially improve data quality, handle hard to reach locations, and reduce pilot fatigue. The optionally piloted Centaur aircraft is an attractive option because it is not restricted in U.S. airspace and delivers high quality gravity data. Specifically, the Centaur meets U.S. Federal Aviation Administration regulations for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) by using a safety pilot on board to maintain line of sight and the ability to take control in the event of an emergency. Even though this is a sizeable UAS, most traditional gravimeters are too large and heavy for the platform. With a smaller and lighter design, the TAGS7 was used for its ability to conform to the aircraft's size restrictions, with the added benefit of upgraded performance capabilities. Two surveys were performed with this aircraft and gravimeter, one in April and one in August to September of 2017. Initial results indicate that the high-gain, fast response of the Centaur autopilot (optimized for flights without passengers), coupled with the full-force feedback sensor of the TAGS7, provides superior performance in all conditions, and

Airborne Visible Laser Optical Communications Program (AVLOC)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ward, J. H.

1975-01-01

The design, development, and operation of airborne and ground-based laser communications and laser radar hardware is described in support of the Airborne Visible Laser Optical Communication program. The major emphasis is placed on the development of a highly flexible test bed for the evaluation of laser communications systems techniques and components in an operational environment.

Global Test Range: Toward Airborne Sensor Webs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mace, Thomas H.; Freudinger, Larry; DelFrate John H.

2008-01-01

This viewgraph presentation reviews the planned global sensor network that will monitor the Earth's climate, and resources using airborne sensor systems. The vision is an intelligent, affordable Earth Observation System. Global Test Range is a lab developing trustworthy services for airborne instruments - a specialized Internet Service Provider. There is discussion of several current and planned missions.

OPTIMIZING THE PAKS METHOD FOR MEASURING AIRBORNE ACROLEIN

EPA Science Inventory

Airborne acrolein is produced from the combustion of fuel and tobacco and is of concern due to its potential for respiratory tract irritation and other adverse health effects. Active sampling with DNPH-coated solid sorbents has been widely used for sampling airborne carbonyls; ...

OPTIMIZING THE PAKS METHOD FOR MEASURING AIRBORNE ACROLEIN

EPA Science Inventory

Airborne acrolein is produced from the combustion of fuel and tobacco and is of concern due to its potential for respiratory tract irritation and other adverse health effects. DNPH active-sampling is a method widely used for sampling airborne aldehydes and ketones (carbonyls); ...

Evaluation of Terrorist Interest in Radioactive Wastes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McFee, J.N.; Langsted, J.M.; Young, M.E.

2006-07-01

the analysis is that environmental management generated radioactive wastes have substantially less impact than radioactive sources if dispersed by terrorist-induced explosion or fire. From a health standpoint, the impact is very small. However, there is no basis to conclude that wastes are totally unattractive for use in a disruptive or economic damage event. Waste managers should be cognizant of this potential and take measures to ensure security of stored waste and waste shipments. (authors)« less

Airborne bacteria and fungi associated with waste-handling work.

PubMed

Park, Donguk; Ryu, Seunghun; Kim, Shinbum; Byun, Hyaejeong; Yoon, Chungsik; Lee, Kyeongmin

2013-01-01

Municipal workers handling household waste are potentially exposed to a variety of toxic and pathogenic substances, in particular airborne bacteria, gram-negative bacteria (GNB), and fungi. However, relatively little is known about the conditions under which exposure is facilitated. This study assessed levels of airborne bacteria, GNB, and fungi, and examined these in relation to the type of waste-handling activity (collection, transfer, transport, and sorting at the waste preprocessing plant), as well as a variety of other environmental and occupational factors. Airborne microorganisms were sampled using an Andersen single-stage sampler equipped with agar plates containing the appropriate nutritional medium and then cultured to determine airborne levels. Samples were taken during collection, transfer, transport, and sorting of household waste. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify environmental and occupational factors that significantly affect airborne microorganism levels during waste-handling activities. The "type of waste-handling activity" was the only factor that significantly affected airborne levels of bacteria and GNB, accounting for 38% (P = 0.029) and 50% (P = 0.0002) of the variation observed in bacteria and GNB levels, respectively. In terms of fungi, the type of waste-handling activity (R2 = 0.76) and whether collection had also occurred on the day prior to sampling (P < 0.0001, R2 = 0.78) explained most of the observed variation. Given that the type of waste-handling activity was significantly correlated with levels of bacteria, GNB, and fungi, we suggest that various engineering, administrative, and regulatory measures should be considered to reduce the occupational exposure to airborne microorganisms in the waste-handling industry.

Radioactivity of the moon and planets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Surkov, Iu. A.

The major results of studies of the radioactivity of the moon and terrestrial planets are reviewed. Measurements of the cosmogenic and natural radioactivity of the moon and Mars were obtained from planetary orbiter measurements, and those of Venus by in situ measurements, in addition to measurements of lunar samples brought back to earth. For the case of the moon, the Western maria on the near side are found to be the most radioactive areas, with highlands on both sides of the moon exhibiting lower radioactivity than the maria and lunar radioactivity levels in general less than those of the earth, which is correlated with different chemical compositions of the two bodies. The potassium, uranium and thorium contents of the landing sites of Veneras 8, 9 and 10 are shown to differ from each other, but be similar to those of terrestrial basalts, which they also resemble in density. Gamma-radiation and X-ray fluorescence measurements of Mars indicate the content of natural radioelements to be similar to that of the eruptive rocks of the earth crust, with Martian rocks of volcanic formations similar to terrestrial and lunar basalts, and those of the ancient terra formations more closely resembling the anorthosite-norite-troctolite association of the lunar highlands. It is pointed out that natural radioelements contents of all the bodies examined indicate a single chemical differentiation process, while cosmogenic radiation contents can aid in determining cosmic ray intensities as well as the sequences of geological events.

Airborne Dust Models in Valley Fever Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sprigg, W. A.; Galgiani, J. N.; Vujadinovic, M.; Pejanovic, G.; Vukovic, A. J.; Prasad, A. K.; Djurdjevic, V.; Nickovic, S.

2011-12-01

Dust storms (haboobs) struck Phoenix, Arizona, in 2011 on July 5th and again on July 18th. One potential consequence: an estimated 3,600 new cases of Valley Fever in Maricopa County from the first storm alone. The fungi, Coccidioides immitis, the cause of the respiratory infection, Valley Fever, lives in the dry desert soils of the American southwest and southward through Mexico, Central America and South America. The fungi become part of the dust storm and, a few weeks after inhalation, symptoms of Valley Fever may appear, including pneumonia-like illness, rashes, and severe fatigue. Some fatalities occur. Our airborne dust forecast system predicted the timing and extent of the storm, as it has done with other, often different, dust events. Atmosphere/land surface models can be part of public health services to reduce risk of Valley Fever and exacerbation of other respiratory and cardiovascular illness.

ASSESSMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE CONTAMINANTS FOUND IN LOW LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE STREAMS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

R.H. Little, P.R. Maul, J.S.S. Penfoldag

2003-02-27

This paper describes and presents the findings from two studies undertaken for the European Commission to assess the long-term impact upon the environment and human health of non-radioactive contaminants found in various low level radioactive waste streams. The initial study investigated the application of safety assessment approaches developed for radioactive contaminants to the assessment of nonradioactive contaminants in low level radioactive waste. It demonstrated how disposal limits could be derived for a range of non-radioactive contaminants and generic disposal facilities. The follow-up study used the same approach but undertook more detailed, disposal system specific calculations, assessing the impacts of bothmore » the non-radioactive and radioactive contaminants. The calculations undertaken indicated that it is prudent to consider non-radioactive, as well as radioactive contaminants, when assessing the impacts of low level radioactive waste disposal. For some waste streams with relatively low concentrations of radionuclides, the potential post-closure disposal impacts from non-radioactive contaminants can be comparable with the potential radiological impacts. For such waste streams there is therefore an added incentive to explore options for recycling the materials involved wherever possible.« less

Study on analysis from sources of error for Airborne LIDAR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ren, H. C.; Yan, Q.; Liu, Z. J.; Zuo, Z. Q.; Xu, Q. Q.; Li, F. F.; Song, C.

2016-11-01

With the advancement of Aerial Photogrammetry, it appears that to obtain geo-spatial information of high spatial and temporal resolution provides a new technical means for Airborne LIDAR measurement techniques, with unique advantages and broad application prospects. Airborne LIDAR is increasingly becoming a new kind of space for earth observation technology, which is mounted by launching platform for aviation, accepting laser pulses to get high-precision, high-density three-dimensional coordinate point cloud data and intensity information. In this paper, we briefly demonstrates Airborne laser radar systems, and that some errors about Airborne LIDAR data sources are analyzed in detail, so the corresponding methods is put forwarded to avoid or eliminate it. Taking into account the practical application of engineering, some recommendations were developed for these designs, which has crucial theoretical and practical significance in Airborne LIDAR data processing fields.

Airborne gamma radiation soil moisture measurements over short flight lines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peck, Eugene L.; Carrol, Thomas R.; Lipinski, Daniel M.

1990-01-01

Results are presented on airborne gamma radiation measurements of soil moisture condition, carried out along short flight lines as part of the First International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project Field Experiment (FIFE). Data were collected over an area in Kansas during the summers of 1987 and 1989. The airborne surveys, together with ground measurements, provide the most comprehensive set of airborne and ground truth data available in the U.S. for calibrating and evaluating airborne gamma flight lines. Analysis showed that, using standard National Weather Service weights for the K, Tl, and Gc radiation windows, the airborne soil moisture estimates for the FIFE lines had a root mean square error of no greater than 3.0 percent soil moisture. The soil moisture estimates for sections having acquisition time of at least 15 sec were found to be reliable.

77 FR 21834 - Airborne Radar Altimeter Equipment (For Air Carrier Aircraft)

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-04-11

... DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Aviation Administration Airborne Radar Altimeter Equipment... Technical Standard Order (TSO)-C67, Airborne Radar Altimeter Equipment (For Air Carrier Aircraft). SUMMARY: This is a confirmation notice of the cancellation of TSO-C67, Airborne Radar Altimeter Equipment (For...

Performance analysis and technical assessment of coherent lidar systems for airborne wind shear detection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huffaker, R. Milton; Targ, Russell

1988-01-01

Detailed computer simulations of the lidar wind-measuring process have been conducted to evaluate the use of pulsed coherent lidar for airborne windshear monitoring. NASA data fields for an actual microburst event were used in the simulation. Both CO2 and Ho:YAG laser lidar systems performed well in the microburst test case, and were able to measure wind shear in the severe weather of this wet microburst to ranges in excess of 1.4 km. The consequent warning time gained was about 15 sec.

SGA-WZ: A New Strapdown Airborne Gravimeter

PubMed Central

Huang, Yangming; Olesen, Arne Vestergaard; Wu, Meiping; Zhang, Kaidong

2012-01-01

Inertial navigation systems and gravimeters are now routinely used to map the regional gravitational quantities from an aircraft with mGal accuracy and a spatial resolution of a few kilometers. However, airborne gravimeter of this kind is limited by the inaccuracy of the inertial sensor performance, the integrated navigation technique and the kinematic acceleration determination. As the GPS technique developed, the vehicle acceleration determination is no longer the limiting factor in airborne gravity due to the cancellation of the common mode acceleration in differential mode. A new airborne gravimeter taking full advantage of the inertial navigation system is described with improved mechanical design, high precision time synchronization, better thermal control and optimized sensor modeling. Apart from the general usage, the Global Positioning System (GPS) after differentiation is integrated to the inertial navigation system which provides not only more precise altitude information along with the navigation aiding, but also an effective way to calculate the vehicle acceleration. Design description and test results on the performance of the gyroscopes and accelerations will be emphasized. Analysis and discussion of the airborne field test results are also given. PMID:23012545

Characterization of airborne bacteria at an underground subway station.

PubMed

Dybwad, Marius; Granum, Per Einar; Bruheim, Per; Blatny, Janet Martha

2012-03-01

The reliable detection of airborne biological threat agents depends on several factors, including the performance criteria of the detector and its operational environment. One step in improving the detector's performance is to increase our knowledge of the biological aerosol background in potential operational environments. Subway stations are enclosed public environments, which may be regarded as potential targets for incidents involving biological threat agents. In this study, the airborne bacterial community at a subway station in Norway was characterized (concentration level, diversity, and virulence- and survival-associated properties). In addition, a SASS 3100 high-volume air sampler and a matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry-based isolate screening procedure was used for these studies. The daytime level of airborne bacteria at the station was higher than the nighttime and outdoor levels, and the relative bacterial spore number was higher in outdoor air than at the station. The bacterial content, particle concentration, and size distribution were stable within each environment throughout the study (May to September 2010). The majority of the airborne bacteria belonged to the genera Bacillus, Micrococcus, and Staphylococcus, but a total of 37 different genera were identified in the air. These results suggest that anthropogenic sources are major contributors to airborne bacteria at subway stations and that such airborne communities could harbor virulence- and survival-associated properties of potential relevance for biological detection and surveillance, as well as for public health. Our findings also contribute to the development of realistic testing and evaluation schemes for biological detection/surveillance systems by providing information that can be used to mimic real-life operational airborne environments in controlled aerosol test chambers.

Characterization of Airborne Bacteria at an Underground Subway Station

PubMed Central

Dybwad, Marius; Granum, Per Einar; Bruheim, Per

2012-01-01

The reliable detection of airborne biological threat agents depends on several factors, including the performance criteria of the detector and its operational environment. One step in improving the detector's performance is to increase our knowledge of the biological aerosol background in potential operational environments. Subway stations are enclosed public environments, which may be regarded as potential targets for incidents involving biological threat agents. In this study, the airborne bacterial community at a subway station in Norway was characterized (concentration level, diversity, and virulence- and survival-associated properties). In addition, a SASS 3100 high-volume air sampler and a matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry-based isolate screening procedure was used for these studies. The daytime level of airborne bacteria at the station was higher than the nighttime and outdoor levels, and the relative bacterial spore number was higher in outdoor air than at the station. The bacterial content, particle concentration, and size distribution were stable within each environment throughout the study (May to September 2010). The majority of the airborne bacteria belonged to the genera Bacillus, Micrococcus, and Staphylococcus, but a total of 37 different genera were identified in the air. These results suggest that anthropogenic sources are major contributors to airborne bacteria at subway stations and that such airborne communities could harbor virulence- and survival-associated properties of potential relevance for biological detection and surveillance, as well as for public health. Our findings also contribute to the development of realistic testing and evaluation schemes for biological detection/surveillance systems by providing information that can be used to mimic real-life operational airborne environments in controlled aerosol test chambers. PMID:22247150

Airborne microorganisms associated with grain handling.

PubMed

Swan, J R; Crook, B

1998-01-01

There is substantial evidence that workers handling grain develop allergic respiratory symptoms. Microbiological contaminants are likely to be a significant contributing factor. Worker's exposure to microorganisms contaminating grain dust in the UK was therefore examined. Aerobiological studies were made when grain was being handled on farms and also during bulk handling of grain in dockside terminals. A quantitative and qualitative microbiological examination of the airborne grain dust was carried out. Samples of airborne grain dust were collected and viable bacteria, fungi and actinomycetes were grown, isolated and identified. It was found that workers handling grain or working close to grain at farms and docks were frequently exposed to more than 1 million bacteria and fungi per m3 air, and that airborne bacteria and fungi exceeded 10(4) per m3 air in all areas sampled. The qualitative examination of the samples showed that the predominant microorganisms present differed between freshly harvested grain and stored grain, but not between different types of grain.

Airborne microorganisms from waste containers.

PubMed

Jedlicka, Sabrina S; Stravitz, David M; Lyman, Charles E

2012-01-01

In physician's offices and biomedical labs, biological waste is handled every day. This waste is disposed of in waste containers designed for holding red autoclave bags. The containers used in these environments are closed hands-free containers, often with a step pedal. While these containers protect the user from surface-borne microorganisms, the containers may allow airborne microorganisms to escape via the open/close mechanism because of the air current produced upon open/close cycles. In this study, the air current was shown to be sufficient to allow airborne escape of microorganisms held in the container, including Aspergillus niger. However, bacterial cultures, such as Escherichia coli and Lactococcus lactis did not escape. This may be due to the choice of bacterial cultures and the absence of solid waste, such as dust or other particulate matter in the waste containers, that such strains of bacteria could travel on during aerosolization. We compared these results to those obtained using a re-designed receptacle, which mimimizes air currents, and detected no escaping microorganisms. This study highlights one potential source of airborne contamination in labs, hospitals, and other environments that dispose of biological waste.

Inactivation of an enterovirus by airborne disinfectants

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background The activity of airborne disinfectants on bacteria, fungi and spores has been reported. However, the issue of the virucidal effect of disinfectants spread by fogging has not been studied thoroughly. Methods A procedure has been developed to determine the virucidal activity of peracetic acid-based airborne disinfectants on a resistant non-enveloped virus poliovirus type 1. This virus was laid on a stainless carrier. The products were spread into the room by hot fogging at 55°C for 30 minutes at a concentration of 7.5 mL.m-3. Poliovirus inoculum, supplemented with 5%, heat inactivated non fat dry organic milk, were applied into the middle of the stainless steel disc and were dried under the air flow of a class II biological safety cabinet at room temperature. The Viral preparations were recovered by using flocked swabs and were titered on Vero cells using the classical Spearman-Kärber CPE reading method, the results were expressed as TCID50.ml-1. Results The infectious titer of dried poliovirus inocula was kept at 105 TCID50.mL-1 up to 150 minutes at room temperature. Dried inocula exposed to airborne peracetic acid containing disinfectants were recovered at 60 and 120 minutes post-exposition and suspended in culture medium again. The cytotoxicity of disinfectant containing medium was eliminated through gel filtration columns. A 4 log reduction of infectious titer of dried poliovirus inocula exposed to peracetic-based airborne disinfectant was obtained. Conclusion This study demonstrates that the virucidal activity of airborne disinfectants can be tested on dried poliovirus. PMID:23587047

The Western Airborne Contaminant Assessment Project (WACAP): An interdisciplinary evaluation of the impacts of airborne contaminants in Western U.S. National Parks

EPA Science Inventory

The Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment Project (WACAP) was initiated in 2002 by the National Park Service to determine if airborne contaminants were having an impact on remote western ecosystems. Multiple sample media (snow, water, sediment, fish and terrestrial vegetation...

Geronimo: Planning Considerations for Employing Airborne Forces

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-05-25

Information Operations and Reports (0704-0188), 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that... operation , a planner must adhere to joint planning considerations and understand the Air Force and Army requirements. Today the Army maintains only...one brigade and two battalions of deployable conventional airborne combat power. The special operations community also is airborne capable, and the

Airborne Network Optimization with Dynamic Network Update

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-03-26

Faculty Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate School of Engineering and Management Air Force Institute of Technology Air University...Member Dr. Barry E. Mullins Member AFIT-ENG-MS-15-M-030 Abstract Modern networks employ congestion and routing management algorithms that can perform...airborne networks. Intelligent agents can make use of Kalman filter predictions to make informed decisions to manage communication in airborne networks. The

[Development of a microenvironment test chamber for airborne microbe research].

PubMed

Zhan, Ningbo; Chen, Feng; Du, Yaohua; Cheng, Zhi; Li, Chenyu; Wu, Jinlong; Wu, Taihu

2017-10-01

One of the most important environmental cleanliness indicators is airborne microbe. However, the particularity of clean operating environment and controlled experimental environment often leads to the limitation of the airborne microbe research. This paper designed and implemented a microenvironment test chamber for airborne microbe research in normal test conditions. Numerical simulation by Fluent showed that airborne microbes were evenly dispersed in the upper part of test chamber, and had a bottom-up concentration growth distribution. According to the simulation results, the verification experiment was carried out by selecting 5 sampling points in different space positions in the test chamber. Experimental results showed that average particle concentrations of all sampling points reached 10 7 counts/m 3 after 5 minutes' distributing of Staphylococcus aureus , and all sampling points showed the accordant mapping of concentration distribution. The concentration of airborne microbe in the upper chamber was slightly higher than that in the middle chamber, and that was also slightly higher than that in the bottom chamber. It is consistent with the results of numerical simulation, and it proves that the system can be well used for airborne microbe research.

47 CFR 22.925 - Prohibition on airborne operation of cellular telephones.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Prohibition on airborne operation of cellular... CARRIER SERVICES PUBLIC MOBILE SERVICES Cellular Radiotelephone Service § 22.925 Prohibition on airborne... any other type of aircraft must not be operated while such aircraft are airborne (not touching the...

Airborne Doppler Wind Lidar Post Data Processing Software DAPS-LV

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kavaya, Michael J. (Inventor); Beyon, Jeffrey Y. (Inventor); Koch, Grady J. (Inventor)

2015-01-01

Systems, methods, and devices of the present invention enable post processing of airborne Doppler wind LIDAR data. In an embodiment, airborne Doppler wind LIDAR data software written in LabVIEW may be provided and may run two versions of different airborne wind profiling algorithms. A first algorithm may be the Airborne Wind Profiling Algorithm for Doppler Wind LIDAR ("APOLO") using airborne wind LIDAR data from two orthogonal directions to estimate wind parameters, and a second algorithm may be a five direction based method using pseudo inverse functions to estimate wind parameters. The various embodiments may enable wind profiles to be compared using different algorithms, may enable wind profile data for long haul color displays to be generated, may display long haul color displays, and/or may enable archiving of data at user-selectable altitudes over a long observation period for data distribution and population.

Urban greenness influences airborne bacterial community composition.

PubMed

Mhuireach, Gwynne; Johnson, Bart R; Altrichter, Adam E; Ladau, Joshua; Meadow, James F; Pollard, Katherine S; Green, Jessica L

2016-11-15

Urban green space provides health benefits for city dwellers, and new evidence suggests that microorganisms associated with soil and vegetation could play a role. While airborne microorganisms are ubiquitous in urban areas, the influence of nearby vegetation on airborne microbial communities remains poorly understood. We examined airborne microbial communities in parks and parking lots in Eugene, Oregon, using high-throughput sequencing of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene on the Illumina MiSeq platform to identify bacterial taxa, and GIS to measure vegetation cover in buffer zones of different diameters. Our goal was to explore variation among highly vegetated (parks) versus non-vegetated (parking lots) urban environments. A secondary objective was to evaluate passive versus active collection methods for outdoor airborne microbial sampling. Airborne bacterial communities from five parks were different from those of five parking lots (p=0.023), although alpha diversity was similar. Direct gradient analysis showed that the proportion of vegetated area within a 50m radius of the sampling station explained 15% of the variation in bacterial community composition. A number of key taxa, including several Acidobacteriaceae were substantially more abundant in parks, while parking lots had higher relative abundance of Acetobacteraceae. Parks had greater beta diversity than parking lots, i.e. individual parks were characterized by unique bacterial signatures, whereas parking lot communities tended to be similar to each other. Although parks and parking lots were selected to form pairs of nearby sites, spatial proximity did not appear to affect compositional similarity. Our results also showed that passive and active collection methods gave comparable results, indicating the "settling dish" method is effective for outdoor airborne sampling. This work sets a foundation for understanding how urban vegetation may impact microbial communities, with potential implications for designing

A resonance-free nano-film airborne ultrasound emitter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daschewski, Maxim; Harrer, Andrea; Prager, Jens; Kreutzbruck, Marc; Beck, Uwe; Lange, Thorid; Weise, Matthias

2013-01-01

In this contribution we present a novel thermo-acoustic approach for the generation of broad band airborne ultrasound and investigate the applicability of resonance-free thermo-acoustic emitters for very short high pressure airborne ultrasound pulses. We report on measurements of thermo-acoustic emitter consisting of a 30 nm thin metallic film on a usual soda-lime glass substrate, generating sound pressure values of more than 140 dB at 60 mm distance from the transducer and compare the results with conventional piezoelectric airborne ultrasound transducers. Our experimental investigations show that such thermo-acoustic devices can be used as broad band emitters using pulse excitation.

Airborne space laser communication system and experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Xiao-Ming; Zhang, Li-zhong; Meng, Li-Xin

2015-11-01

Airborne space laser communication is characterized by its high speed, anti-electromagnetic interference, security, easy to assign. It has broad application in the areas of integrated space-ground communication networking, military communication, anti-electromagnetic communication. This paper introduce the component and APT system of the airborne laser communication system design by Changchun university of science and technology base on characteristic of airborne laser communication and Y12 plan, especially introduce the high communication speed and long distance communication experiment of the system that among two Y12 plans. In the experiment got the aim that the max communication distance 144Km, error 10-6 2.5Gbps - 10-7 1.5Gbps capture probability 97%, average capture time 20s. The experiment proving the adaptability of the APT and the high speed long distance communication.

First Top-Down Estimates of Anthropogenic NOx Emissions Using High-Resolution Airborne Remote Sensing Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Souri, Amir H.; Choi, Yunsoo; Pan, Shuai; Curci, Gabriele; Nowlan, Caroline R.; Janz, Scott J.; Kowalewski, Matthew G.; Liu, Junjie; Herman, Jay R.; Weinheimer, Andrew J.

2018-03-01

A number of satellite-based instruments have become an essential part of monitoring emissions. Despite sound theoretical inversion techniques, the insufficient samples and the footprint size of current observations have introduced an obstacle to narrow the inversion window for regional models. These key limitations can be partially resolved by a set of modest high-quality measurements from airborne remote sensing. This study illustrates the feasibility of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) columns from the Geostationary Coastal and Air Pollution Events Airborne Simulator (GCAS) to constrain anthropogenic NOx emissions in the Houston-Galveston-Brazoria area. We convert slant column densities to vertical columns using a radiative transfer model with (i) NO2 profiles from a high-resolution regional model (1 × 1 km2) constrained by P-3B aircraft measurements, (ii) the consideration of aerosol optical thickness impacts on radiance at NO2 absorption line, and (iii) high-resolution surface albedo constrained by ground-based spectrometers. We characterize errors in the GCAS NO2 columns by comparing them to Pandora measurements and find a striking correlation (r > 0.74) with an uncertainty of 3.5 × 1015 molecules cm-2. On 9 of 10 total days, the constrained anthropogenic emissions by a Kalman filter yield an overall 2-50% reduction in polluted areas, partly counterbalancing the well-documented positive bias of the model. The inversion, however, boosts emissions by 94% in the same areas on a day when an unprecedented local emissions event potentially occurred, significantly mitigating the bias of the model. The capability of GCAS at detecting such an event ensures the significance of forthcoming geostationary satellites for timely estimates of top-down emissions.

[Studies on the size distribution of airborne microbes at home in Beijing].

PubMed

Fang, Zhi-Guo; Sun, Ping; Ouyang, Zhi-Yun; Liu, Peng; Sun, Li; Wang, Xiao-Yong

2013-07-01

The effect of airborne microbes on human health not only depends on their compositions (genera and species), but also on their concentrations and sizes. Moreover, there are different mechanisms of airborne microbes of different sizes with different effects on human health. The size distributions and median diameters were investigated in detail with imitated six-stage Andersen sampler in 31 selected family homes with children in Beijing. Results showed that there was similar distribution characteristics of airborne microbes in different home environment, different season, different child's sex, and different apartment's architecture, but different distribution characteristics between airborne bacteria and fungi were observed in family homes in Beijing. In general, although airborne bacteria and fungi were plotted with normal logarithmic distribution, the particle percentage of airborne bacteria increased gradually from stage 1 (> 8.2 microm) to stage 5 (1.0-2.0 microm), and then decreased dramatically in stage 6 (< 1.0 microm), the percentage of airborne fungi increased gradually from stage 1 to stage 4 (2.0-3.5 microm), and then decreased dramatically from stage 4 to stage 6. The size distributions of dominant fungi were different in different fungal genera. Cladosporium, Penicillium and Aspergillus were recorded with normal logarithmic distribution, with the highest percentage detected in stage 4, and Alternaria were observed with skew distribution, with the highest percentage detected in stage 2 (5.0-10.4 microm). Finally, the median diameters of airborne bacteria were larger than those of airborne fungi, and the lowest median diameter of airborne bacteria and fungi was found in winter, while there were no significant variations of airborne bacterial and fungal median diameters in spring, summer and autumn in a year in this study.

Latest Advancement In Airborne Relative Gravity Instrumentation.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brady, N.

2011-12-01

Airborne gravity surveying has been performed with widely varying degrees of success since early experimentation with the Lacoste and Romberg dynamic meter in the 1950s. There are a number of different survey systems currently in operation including relative gravity meters and gradiometers. Airborne gravity is ideally suited to rapid, wide coverage surveying and is not significantly more expensive in more remote and inhospitable terrain which makes airborne measurements one of the few viable options available for cost effective exploration. As improved instrumentation has become available, scientific applications have also been able to take advantage for use in determining sub surface geologic structures, for example under ice sheets in Antarctica, and more recently direct measurement of the geoid to improve the vertical datum in the United States. In 2004, Lacoste and Romberg (now Micro-g Lacoste) decided to build on their success with the newly developed AirSea II dynamic meter and use that system as the basis for a dedicated airborne gravity instrument. Advances in electronics, timing and positioning technology created the opportunity to refine both the hardware and software, and to develop a truly turnkey system that would work well for users with little or no airborne gravity experience as well as those with more extensive experience. The resulting Turnkey Airborne Gravity System (TAGS) was successfully introduced in 2007 and has since been flown in applications from oil, gas and mineral exploration surveys to regional gravity mapping and geoid mapping. The system has been mounted in a variety of airborne platforms including depending on the application of interest. The development experience with the TAGS enabled Micro-g Lacoste to embark on a new project in 2010 to completely redesign the mechanical and electronic components of the system rather than continuing incremental upgrades. Building on the capabilities of the original TAGS, the objectives for the

NASA Langley Airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar Instrument Description

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harper, David B.; Cook, Anthony; Hostetler, Chris; Hair, John W.; Mack, Terry L.

2006-01-01

NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) recently developed the LaRC Airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) to make measurements of aerosol and cloud distribution and optical properties. The Airborne HSRL has undergone as series of test flights and was successfully deployed on the Megacity Initiative: Local and Global Research Observations (MILAGRO) field mission in March 2006 (see Hair et al. in these proceedings). This paper provides an overview of the design of the Airborne HSRL and descriptions of some key subsystems unique to this instrument.

Characteristics of airborne bacteria in Mumbai urban environment.

PubMed

Gangamma, S

2014-08-01

Components of biological origin constitute small but a significant proportion of the ambient airborne particulate matter (PM). However, their diversity and role in proinflammatory responses of PM are not well understood. The present study characterizes airborne bacterial species diversity in Mumbai City and elucidates the role of bacterial endotoxin in PM induced proinflammatory response in ex vivo. Airborne bacteria and endotoxin samples were collected during April-May 2010 in Mumbai using six stage microbial impactor and biosampler. The culturable bacterial species concentration was measured and factors influencing the composition were identified by principal component analysis (PCA). The biosampler samples were used to stimulate immune cells in whole blood assay. A total of 28 species belonging to 17 genera were identified. Gram positive and spore forming groups of bacteria dominated the airborne culturable bacterial concentration. The study indicated the dominance of spore forming and human or animal flora derived pathogenic/opportunistic bacteria in the ambient air environment. Pathogenic and opportunistic species of bacteria were also present in the samples. TNF-α induction by PM was reduced (35%) by polymyxin B pretreatment and this result was corroborated with the results of blocking endotoxin receptor cluster differentiation (CD14). The study highlights the importance of airborne biological particles and suggests need of further studies on biological characterization of ambient PM. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Radioactive Cs in the estuary sediments near Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

PubMed

Yamasaki, Shinya; Imoto, Junpei; Furuki, Genki; Ochiai, Asumi; Ohnuki, Toshihiko; Sueki, Keisuke; Nanba, Kenji; Ewing, Rodney C; Utsunomiya, Satoshi

2016-05-01

The migration and dispersion of radioactive Cs (mainly (134)Cs and (137)Cs) are of critical concern in the area surrounding the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP). Considerable uncertainty remains in understanding the properties and dynamics of radioactive Cs transport by surface water, particularly during rainfall-induced flood events to the ocean. Physical and chemical properties of unique estuary sediments, collected from the Kuma River, 4.0km south of the FDNPP, were quantified in this study. These were deposited after storm events and now occur as dried platy sediments on beach sand. The platy sediments exhibit median particle sizes ranging from 28 to 32μm. There is increasing radioactivity towards the bottom of the layers deposited; approximately 28 and 38Bqg(-1) in the upper and lower layers, respectively. The difference in the radioactivity is attributed to a larger number of particles associated with radioactive Cs in the lower part of the section, suggesting that radioactive Cs in the suspended soils transported by surface water has decreased over time. Sequential chemical extractions showed that ~90% of (137)Cs was strongly bound to the residual fraction in the estuary samples, whereas 60~80% of (137)Cs was bound to clays in the six paddy soils. This high concentration in the residual fraction facilitates ease of transport of clay and silt size particles through the river system. Estuary sediments consist of particles <100μm. Radioactive Cs desorption experiments using the estuary samples in artificial seawater revealed that 3.4±0.6% of (137)Cs was desorbed within 8h. More than 96% of (137)Cs remained strongly bound to clays. Hence, particle size is a key factor that determines the travel time and distance during the dispersion of (137)Cs in the ocean. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[Carbon sources metabolic characteristics of airborne microbial communities in constructed wetlands].

PubMed

Song, Zhi-Wen; Wang, Lin; Xu, Ai-Ling; Wu, Deng-Deng; Xia, Yan

2015-02-01

Using BIOLOG-GN plates, this article describes the carbon sources metabolic characteristics of airborne microbial communities in a free surface-flow constructed wetland in different seasons and clarify the correlation between airborne microbial metabolic functions and environmental factors. The average well color development (AWCD), carbon metabolic profiles and McIntosh values of airborne microbial communities in different seasons were quite different. Analysis of the variations showed that AWCD in spring and summer differed significantly from that in autumn and winter (P < 0.01). In the same season, the degree of utilization of different types of carbon by airborne microbes was different. Summer had a significant difference from other seasons (P < 0.05). Dominant communities of airborne microbes in four seasons were carboxylic acids metabolic community, carbohydrates metabolic community, polymers metabolic community and carboxylic acids metabolic community respectively. Principal component analysis showed that the carbon metabolic characteristics of airborne microbial community in autumn were similar to those in winter but different from those in spring and summer. The characteristics of carbon metabolism revealed differences between summer and spring, autumn, or winter. These differences were mainly caused by amines or amides while the differences between spring and autumn or winter were mainly caused by carboxylic acids. Environmental factors, including changes in wind speed, temperature, and humidity acted to influence the carbon sources metabolic properties of airborne microbial community. The dominant environmental factors that acted to influence the carbon sources metabolic properties of airborne microbial community varied between different seasons.

Survey of airborne pollen in Hubei province of China.

PubMed

Liu, Guang-hui; Zhu, Rong-fei; Zhang, Wei; Li, Wen-jing; Wang, Zhong-xi; Chen, Huan

2008-12-01

To study the genera and seasonal distribution of airborne pollen in Hubei province of China, and its relationship with pollinosis. From November 2003 to October 2004, an airborne pollen investigation was performed in 16 chosen areas in 12 cities of Hubei province using gravity sedimentation technique. Meanwhile, univalent skin prick tests of pollens were performed and the invasion season was studied on 2,300 patients with pollinosis. Among them, 352 cases underwent the airway responsiveness measurements, and the correlation between airway responsiveness and results of pollen count was analyzed. A total of 61 pollen genera were observed and 257,520 pollens were collected. The peak of airborne pollen distribution occurred in two seasons each year: spring (March and April) and autumn (from August to October). The attack of pollinosis corresponded to the peak of pollen distribution. There was a significantly negative relationship between the provocation dose causing a 20% decrease of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) from baseline and airborne pollen concentration (r= -0.6829, P < 0.05). This study provides useful information for airborne pollen epidemiology of Hubei province, and it provides important insights to clinical prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of pollen-related allergic diseases.

Comparison of Ground-Based and Airborne Function Allocation Concepts for NextGen Using Human-In-The-Loop Simulations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wing, David J.; Prevot, Thomas; Murdoch, Jennifer L.; Cabrall, Christopher D.; Homola, Jeffrey R.; Martin, Lynne H.; Mercer, Joey S.; Hoadley, Sherwood T.; Wilson, Sara R.; Hubbs, Clay E.;

An approach to evaluating reactive airborne wind shear systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gibson, Joseph P., Jr.

1992-01-01

An approach to evaluating reactive airborne windshear detection systems was developed to support a deployment study for future FAA ground-based windshear detection systems. The deployment study methodology assesses potential future safety enhancements beyond planned capabilities. The reactive airborne systems will be an integral part of planned windshear safety enhancements. The approach to evaluating reactive airborne systems involves separate analyses for both landing and take-off scenario. The analysis estimates the probability of effective warning considering several factors including NASA energy height loss characteristics, reactive alert timing, and a probability distribution for microburst strength.

Airborne sound transmission loss characteristics of woodframe construction

Treesearch

Fred F. Rudder

1985-01-01

This report summarizes the available data on the airborne sound transmission loss properties of wood-frame construction and evaluates the methods for predicting the airborne sound transmission loss. The first part of the report comprises a summary of sound transmission loss data for wood-frame interior walls and floor-ceiling construction. Data bases describing the...

Airborne particles released by crushing CNT composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ogura, I.; Okayama, C.; Kotake, M.; Ata, S.; Matsui, Y.; Gotoh, K.

2017-06-01

We investigated airborne particles released as a result of crushing carbon nanotube (CNT) composites using a laboratory scale crusher with rotor blades. For each crushing test, five pellets (approximately 0.1 g) of a polymer (polystyrene, polyamide, or polycarbonate) containing multiwall CNTs (Nanocyl NC7000 or CNano Flotube9000) or no CNTs were placed in the container of the crusher. The airborne particles released by the crushing of the samples were measured. The real-time aerosol measurements showed increases in the concentration of nanometer- and micrometer-sized particles, regardless of the sample type, even when CNT-free polymers were crushed. The masses of the airborne particles collected on filters were below the detection limit, which indicated that the mass ratios of the airborne particles to the crushed pellets were lower than 0.02%. In the electron microscopic analysis, particles with protruding CNTs were observed. However, free-standing CNTs were not found, except for a poorly dispersed CNT-polystyrene composite. This study demonstrated that the crushing test using a laboratory scale crusher is capable of evaluating the potential release of CNTs as a result of crushing CNT composites. The advantage of this method is that only a small amount of sample (several pieces of pellets) is required.

Airborne laser sensors and integrated systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sabatini, Roberto; Richardson, Mark A.; Gardi, Alessandro; Ramasamy, Subramanian

2015-11-01

The underlying principles and technologies enabling the design and operation of airborne laser sensors are introduced and a detailed review of state-of-the-art avionic systems for civil and military applications is presented. Airborne lasers including Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR), Laser Range Finders (LRF), and Laser Weapon Systems (LWS) are extensively used today and new promising technologies are being explored. Most laser systems are active devices that operate in a manner very similar to microwave radars but at much higher frequencies (e.g., LIDAR and LRF). Other devices (e.g., laser target designators and beam-riders) are used to precisely direct Laser Guided Weapons (LGW) against ground targets. The integration of both functions is often encountered in modern military avionics navigation-attack systems. The beneficial effects of airborne lasers including the use of smaller components and remarkable angular resolution have resulted in a host of manned and unmanned aircraft applications. On the other hand, laser sensors performance are much more sensitive to the vagaries of the atmosphere and are thus generally restricted to shorter ranges than microwave systems. Hence it is of paramount importance to analyse the performance of laser sensors and systems in various weather and environmental conditions. Additionally, it is important to define airborne laser safety criteria, since several systems currently in service operate in the near infrared with considerable risk for the naked human eye. Therefore, appropriate methods for predicting and evaluating the performance of infrared laser sensors/systems are presented, taking into account laser safety issues. For aircraft experimental activities with laser systems, it is essential to define test requirements taking into account the specific conditions for operational employment of the systems in the intended scenarios and to verify the performance in realistic environments at the test ranges. To support the

UAVSAR: An Airborne Window on Earth Surface Deformation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hensley, Scott

2011-01-01

This study demonstrates that UAVSAR's precision autopilot and electronic steering have allowed for the reliable collection of airborne repeat pass radar interferometric data for deformation mapping. Deformation maps from temporal scales ranging from hours to months over a variety of signals of geophysical interest illustrate the utility of UAVSAR airborne repeat pass interferometry to these studies.

Functional Allocation with Airborne Self-Separation Evaluated in a Piloted Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wing, David J.; Murdoch, Jennifer L.; Chamberlain, James P.; Consiglio, Maria C.; Hoardley, Sherwood T.; Hubbs, Clay E.; Palmer, Michael T.

2010-01-01

A human-in-the-loop simulation experiment was designed and conducted to evaluate an airborne self-separation concept. The activity supports the National Aeronautics and Space Administration s (NASA) research focus on function allocation for separation assurance. The objectives of the experiment were twofold: (1) use experiment design features in common with a companion study of ground-based automated separation assurance to promote comparability, and (2) assess agility of self-separation operations in managing trajectory-changing events in high traffic density, en-route operations with arrival time constraints. This paper describes the experiment and presents initial results associated with subjective workload ratings and group discussion feedback obtained from the experiment s commercial transport pilot participants.

Airborne ROWS data report for the high resolution experiment, June 1993

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vandemark, D.; Hines, D.; Bailey, S.; Stewart, K.

1994-01-01

Airborne radar ocean wave spectrometer (ROWS) data collected during the Office of Naval Research's High Resolution Remote Sensing Experiment of June 1993 are presented. This data summary covers six flights made using NASA's T-39 aircraft over a region of the North Atlantic off the coast of North Carolina and includes multiple crossings of the gulf stream. The Ku-band ROWS was operated in a configuration which continuously switched between an altimeter and a spectrometer channel. Data derived from the two channels include altimeter radar cross section, altimeter-derived sea surface mean square slope and wind speed, and directional and nondirectional longwave spectra. Discussion is provided for several events of particular interest.

Airborne Next: Rethinking Airborne Organization and Applying New Concepts

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-06-01

9 Kenneth Macksey, Guderian: Panzer General-revised EDITION (South Yorkshire, England: Greenhill Books, 2003), 1–20. 10 Dr. John Arquilla...Airborne Operations: Field Manual 90=26, 1–5. 14 The 1st Special Forces Regiment has five active Special Forces Groups (1st, 3rd, 5th , 7th, 10th...Oxford University Press, 1981). Headrick, in his book, describes the interplay between technology and imperialism. For the purposes of this research

EUFAR training opportunities to advance European airborne research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reusen, I.; Brenguier, J.-L.; Brown, P.; Wendish, M.

2009-04-01

EUFAR, EUropean Facilities for Airborne Research, is an FP7 project (http://www.eufar.net) funded by the European Commission with 33 partners that aims at providing and improving the access to European airborne facilities (i.e. aircraft, airborne instruments, data processing centres) for researchers in environmental and geo-sciences through Networking Activities, Transnational Access and Joint Research Activities. This paper reports on the training opportunities within EUFAR for European researchers. In EUFAR three types of training opportunities are offered: 1) Participate in training courses (ET-TC) 2) Join an existing field campaign (ET-EC) 3) Participate in the design of a new field campaign (ET-TA), in the frame of EUFAR Transnational Access and tutored by more experienced researchers. During the 4-year EUFAR project (2008-2012), 4 training courses covering the complete chain from acquisition to interpretation of airborne data and images will be organised during spring/summer for early-stage researchers as well as university lecturers (new in FP7 EUFAR) in airborne research. The training courses will have an equal focus on theory and practical training/demonstration and each training course will be accompanied by a "student" airborne field campaign. Participants will be trained by top-class scientists, aircraft and/or instrument operators and each participant will get the opportunity to design his/her own experiment and to participate to that flight experiment. Furthermore, researchers have the opportunity to join an existing field campaign and work with more experienced researchers, aircraft and/or instrument operators. The list of airborne field campaigns open to join and the eligibility criteria, can be consulted at the EUFAR website. Finally, researchers have the opportunity to participate in the design of a new field campaign in the frame of EUFAR Transnational Access (TA). TA provides access to either aircraft or instrumentation that are not otherwise

Summaries of the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop. Volume 2; AIRSAR Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Yun-Jin (Editor)

1996-01-01

The Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on March 4-8, 1996, was divided into two smaller workshops:(1) The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, and The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop. This current paper, Volume 2 of the Summaries of the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, presents the summaries for The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop.

The alpine Swiss-French airborne gravity survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verdun, Jérôme; Klingelé, Emile E.; Bayer, Roger; Cocard, Marc; Geiger, Alain; Kahle, Hans-Gert

2003-01-01

In February 1998, a regional-scale, airborne gravity survey was carried out over the French Occidental Alps within the framework of the GéoFrance 3-D research program.The survey consisted of 18 NS and 16 EW oriented lines with a spacing of 10 and 20 km respectively, covering the whole of the Western French Alps (total area: 50 000 km2; total distance of lines flown: 10 000 km). The equipment was mounted in a medium-size aircraft (DeHavilland Twin Otter) flowing at a constant altitude of 5100 m a.s.l, and at a mean ground speed of about 280 km h-1. Gravity was measured using a LaCoste & Romberg relative, air/sea gravimeter (type SA) mounted on a laser gyro stabilized platform. Data from 5 GPS antennae located on fuselage and wings and 7 ground-based GPS reference stations were used to determine position and aircraft induced accelerations.The gravimeter passband was derived by comparing the vertical accelerations provided by the gravimeter with those estimated from the GPS positions. This comparison showed that the gravimeter is not sensitive to very short wavelength aircraft accelerations, and therefore a simplified formulation for computing airborne gravity measurements was developed. The intermediate and short wavelength, non-gravitational accelerations were eliminated by means of digital, exponential low-pass filters (cut-off wavelength: 16 km). An important issue in airborne gravimetry is the reliability of the airborne gravity surveys when compared to ground surveys. In our studied area, the differences between the airborne-acquired Bouguer anomaly and the ground upward-continued Bouguer anomaly of the Alps shows a good agreement: the rms of these differences is equal to 7.68 mGal for a spatial resolution of 8 km. However, in some areas with rugged topography, the amplitudes of those differences have a striking correlation with the topography. We then argue that the choice of an appropriate density (reduction by a factor of 10 per cent) for computing the

A Study of Reflected Sonic Booms Using Airborne Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kantor, Samuel R.; Cliatt, Larry J.

2017-01-01

In support of ongoing efforts to bring commercial supersonic flight to the public, the Sonic Booms in Atmospheric Turbulence (SonicBAT) flight test conducted at NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center. During this test, airborne sonic boom measurements were made using an instrumented TG-14 motor glider, called the Airborne Acoustic Measurement Platform (AAMP).During the flight program, the AAMP was consistently able to measure the sonic boom wave that was reflected off of the ground, in addition to the incident wave, resulting in the creation of a completely unique data set of airborne sonic boom reflection measurements.

Airborne Nanostructured Particles and Occupational Health

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maynard, Andrew D.; Kuempel, Eileen D.

2005-12-01

Nanotechnology is leading to the development in many field, of new materials and devices in many fields that demonstrate nanostructure-dependent properties. However, concern has been expressed that these same properties may present unique challenges to addressing potential health impact. Airborne particles associated with engineered nanomaterials are of particular concern, as they can readily enter the body through inhalation. Research into the potential occupational health risks associated with inhaling engineered nanostructured particles is just beginning. However, there is a large body of data on occupational and environmental aerosols, which is applicable to developing an initial assessment of potential risk and risk reduction strategies. Epidemiological and pathological studies of occupational and environmental exposures to airborne particles and fibers provide information on the aerosol-related lung diseases and conditions that have been observed in humans. Toxicological studies provide information on the specific disease mechanisms, dose-response relationships, and the particle characteristics that influence toxicity, including the size, surface area, chemistry or reactivity, solubility, and shape. Potential health risk will depend on the magnitude and nature of exposures to airborne nanostructured particles, and on the release, dispersion, transformation and control of materials in the workplace. Aerosol control methods have not been well-characterized for nanometer diameter particles, although theory and limited experimental data indicate that conventional ventilation, engineering control and filtration approaches should be applicable in many situations. Current information supports the development of preliminary guiding principles on working with engineered nanomaterials. However critical research questions remain to be answered before the potential health risk of airborne nanostructured particles in the workplace can be fully addressed.

Toolsets for Airborne Data (TAD): Enhanced Airborne Data Merging Functionality through Spatial and Temporal Subsetting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Early, A. B.; Chen, G.; Beach, A. L., III; Northup, E. A.

2016-12-01

NASA has conducted airborne tropospheric chemistry studies for over three decades. These field campaigns have generated a great wealth of observations, including a wide range of the trace gases and aerosol properties. The Atmospheric Science Data Center (ASDC) at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton Virginia originally developed the Toolsets for Airborne Data (TAD) web application in September 2013 to meet the user community needs for manipulating aircraft data for scientific research on climate change and air quality relevant issues. The analysis of airborne data typically requires data subsetting, which can be challenging and resource intensive for end users. In an effort to streamline this process, the TAD toolset enhancements will include new data subsetting features and updates to the current database model. These will include two subsetters: temporal and spatial, and vertical profile. The temporal and spatial subsetter will allow users to both focus on data from a specific location and/or time period. The vertical profile subsetter will retrieve data collected during an individual aircraft ascent or descent spiral. This effort will allow for the automation of the typically labor-intensive manual data subsetting process, which will provide users with data tailored to their specific research interests. The development of these enhancements will be discussed in this presentation.

An integrated compact airborne multispectral imaging system using embedded computer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yuedong; Wang, Li; Zhang, Xuguo

2015-08-01

An integrated compact airborne multispectral imaging system using embedded computer based control system was developed for small aircraft multispectral imaging application. The multispectral imaging system integrates CMOS camera, filter wheel with eight filters, two-axis stabilized platform, miniature POS (position and orientation system) and embedded computer. The embedded computer has excellent universality and expansibility, and has advantages in volume and weight for airborne platform, so it can meet the requirements of control system of the integrated airborne multispectral imaging system. The embedded computer controls the camera parameters setting, filter wheel and stabilized platform working, image and POS data acquisition, and stores the image and data. The airborne multispectral imaging system can connect peripheral device use the ports of the embedded computer, so the system operation and the stored image data management are easy. This airborne multispectral imaging system has advantages of small volume, multi-function, and good expansibility. The imaging experiment results show that this system has potential for multispectral remote sensing in applications such as resource investigation and environmental monitoring.

Present and Future Airborne and Space-borne Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-02-01

Present and Future Airborne and Space-borne Systems Wolfgang Keydel Microwaves and Radar Institute German Aerospace Research Centre (DLR...airborne and space-borne SAR systems with polarimetric interferometry capability, their technological, system technical and application related...interferometry accuracies in the cm range have been obtained. In order to reach these values an exact system calibration is indispensable. The calibration of

Short-range airborne transmission of expiratory droplets between two people.

PubMed

Liu, L; Li, Y; Nielsen, P V; Wei, J; Jensen, R L

2017-03-01

The occurrence of close proximity infection for many respiratory diseases is often cited as evidence of large droplet and/or close contact transmission. We explored interpersonal exposure of exhaled droplets and droplet nuclei of two standing thermal manikins as affected by distance, humidity, ventilation, and breathing mode. Under the specific set of conditions studied, we found a substantial increase in airborne exposure to droplet nuclei exhaled by the source manikin when a susceptible manikin is within about 1.5 m of the source manikin, referred to as the proximity effect. The threshold distance of about 1.5 m distinguishes the two basic transmission processes of droplets and droplet nuclei, that is, short-range modes and the long-range airborne route. The short-range modes include both the conventional large droplet route and the newly defined short-range airborne transmission. We thus reveal that transmission occurring in close proximity to the source patient includes both droplet-borne (large droplet) and short-range airborne routes, in addition to the direct deposition of large droplets on other body surfaces. The mechanisms of the droplet-borne and short-range airborne routes are different; their effective control methods also differ. Neither the current droplet precautions nor dilution ventilation prevents short-range airborne transmission, so new control methods are needed. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Factors contributing to airborne particle dispersal in the operating room.

PubMed

Noguchi, Chieko; Koseki, Hironobu; Horiuchi, Hidehiko; Yonekura, Akihiko; Tomita, Masato; Higuchi, Takashi; Sunagawa, Shinya; Osaki, Makoto

2017-07-06

Surgical-site infections due to intraoperative contamination are chiefly ascribable to airborne particles carrying microorganisms. The purpose of this study is to identify the actions that increase the number of airborne particles in the operating room. Two surgeons and two surgical nurses performed three patterns of physical movements to mimic intraoperative actions, such as preparing the instrument table, gowning and donning/doffing gloves, and preparing for total knee arthroplasty. The generation and behavior of airborne particles were filmed using a fine particle visualization system, and the number of airborne particles in 2.83 m 3 of air was counted using a laser particle counter. Each action was repeated five times, and the particle measurements were evaluated through one-way analysis of variance multiple comparison tests followed by Tukey-Kramer and Bonferroni-Dunn multiple comparison tests for post hoc analysis. Statistical significance was defined as a P value ≤ .01. A large number of airborne particles were observed while unfolding the surgical gown, removing gloves, and putting the arms through the sleeves of the gown. Although numerous airborne particles were observed while applying the stockinet and putting on large drapes for preparation of total knee arthroplasty, fewer particles (0.3-2.0 μm in size) were detected at the level of the operating table under laminar airflow compared to actions performed in a non-ventilated preoperative room (P < .01). The results of this study suggest that surgical staff should avoid unnecessary actions that produce a large number of airborne particles near a sterile area and that laminar airflow has the potential to reduce the incidence of bacterial contamination.

Drought-induced changes in Amazon forest structure from repeat airborne lidar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morton, D. C.; Leitold, V.; Longo, M.; Keller, M.; dos-Santos, M. N.; Scaranello, M. A., Sr.

2017-12-01

Drought events in tropical forests, including the 2015-2016 El Niño, may reduce net primary productivity and increase canopy tree mortality, thereby altering the short and long-term net carbon balance of tropical forests. Given the broad extent of drought impacts, forest inventory plots or eddy flux towers may not capture regional variability in forest response to drought. Here, we analyzed repeat airborne lidar data to evaluate canopy turnover from branch and tree fall before (2013-2014) and during (2014-2016) the recent El Niño drought in the eastern and central Brazilian Amazon. Coincident field surveys for a 16-ha subset of the lidar coverage provided complementary information to classify turnover areas by mechanism (branch, multiple branch, tree fall, multiple tree fall) and estimate the total coarse woody debris volume from canopy and understory tree mortality. Annualized rates of canopy turnover increased by 50%, on average, during the drought period in both intact and fragmented forests near Santarém, Pará. Turnover increased uniformly across all size classes, and there was limited evidence that taller trees contributed a greater proportion of turnover events in any size class in 2014-2016 compared to 2013-2014. This short-term increase in canopy turnover differs from findings in multi-year rainfall exclusion experiments that large trees were more sensitive to drought impacts. Field measurements confirmed the separability of the smallest (single branch) and largest damage classes (multiple tree falls), but single tree and multiple branch fall events generated similar coarse woody debris production and lidar-derived changes in canopy volume. Large-scale sampling possible with repeat airborne lidar data also captured strong local and regional gradients in canopy turnover. Differences in slope partially explained the north-south gradient in canopy turnover dynamics near Santarém, with larger increases in turnover on flatter terrain. Regional variability

Airborne field strength monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bredemeyer, J.; Kleine-Ostmann, T.; Schrader, T.; Münter, K.; Ritter, J.

2007-06-01

In civil and military aviation, ground based navigation aids (NAVAIDS) are still crucial for flight guidance even though the acceptance of satellite based systems (GNSS) increases. Part of the calibration process for NAVAIDS (ILS, DME, VOR) is to perform a flight inspection according to specified methods as stated in a document (DOC8071, 2000) by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). One major task is to determine the coverage, or, in other words, the true signal-in-space field strength of a ground transmitter. This has always been a challenge to flight inspection up to now, since, especially in the L-band (DME, 1GHz), the antenna installed performance was known with an uncertainty of 10 dB or even more. In order to meet ICAO's required accuracy of ±3 dB it is necessary to have a precise 3-D antenna factor of the receiving antenna operating on the airborne platform including all losses and impedance mismatching. Introducing precise, effective antenna factors to flight inspection to achieve the required accuracy is new and not published in relevant papers yet. The authors try to establish a new balanced procedure between simulation and validation by airborne and ground measurements. This involves the interpretation of measured scattering parameters gained both on the ground and airborne in comparison with numerical results obtained by the multilevel fast multipole algorithm (MLFMA) accelerated method of moments (MoM) using a complex geometric model of the aircraft. First results will be presented in this paper.

Apparatus and method for automated monitoring of airborne bacterial spores

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ponce, Adrian (Inventor)

2009-01-01

An apparatus and method for automated monitoring of airborne bacterial spores. The apparatus is provided with an air sampler, a surface for capturing airborne spores, a thermal lysis unit to release DPA from bacterial spores, a source of lanthanide ions, and a spectrometer for excitation and detection of the characteristic fluorescence of the aromatic molecules in bacterial spores complexed with lanthanide ions. In accordance with the method: computer-programmed steps allow for automation of the apparatus for the monitoring of airborne bacterial spores.

The role of viable airborne microorganisms deposition in the southeastern Mediterranean Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahav, E.; Paytan, A.; Herut, B.

2016-02-01

Rahav Eyal1*, Paytan Adina2, Herut Barak1[1] Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research, National Institute of Oceanography, Haifa 31080, Israel [2] Institute of Marine Science, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA 95064. * Presenting author A high diversity of bacteria, fungi and virus are carried by atmospheric dust and deposit into the ocean. The oligotrophic southeastern Mediterranean Sea (SEMS) is known to receive relatively high amounts of atmospheric dust, thereby potentially be impacted by transport of air-borne microorganisms of diverse biogeographic origin. In this study, we characterized the genetic fingerprinting of microorganisms attached to dust in representative samples collected between 2006-2012 during storm events in the SEMS. Statistical analysis showed that dust of common origin was clustered together based on its genetic signature. Thus, microorganisms picked up in diverse geographical areas can interact differently with ambient populations. Further, microcosm dust addition experiments with surface SEMS filtered (0.2 µm) and killed (autoclaved) seawater showed that airborne microorganisms originated in dust collected in the SEMS significantly enhanced system's bacterial productivity, introduced new species and altered the abundance and activity of ambient surface microbial populations. Our results demonstrate that dust-borne microorganisms may play a significant role in the SEMS ecology.

Airborne and Maritime/Fixed Station Joint Tactical Radio System (AMF JTRS)

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-12-01

Selected Acquisition Report (SAR) RCS: DD-A&T(Q&A)823-421 Airborne & Maritime/Fixed Station Joint Tactical Radio System (AMF JTRS) As of FY 2017...Information Program Name Airborne & Maritime/Fixed Station Joint Tactical Radio System (AMF JTRS) DoD Component Army Responsible Office References SAR...UNCLASSIFIED 5 Mission and Description Airborne & Maritime/Fixed Station Joint Tactical Radio System (AMF JTRS) products are software programmable

Analysis of Membrane Lipids of Airborne Micro-Organisms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

MacNaughton, Sarah

2006-01-01

A method of characterization of airborne micro-organisms in a given location involves (1) large-volume filtration of air onto glass-fiber filters; (2) accelerated extraction of membrane lipids of the collected micro-organisms by use of pressurized hot liquid; and (3) identification and quantitation of the lipids by use of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. This method is suitable for use in both outdoor and indoor environments; for example, it can be used to measure airborne microbial contamination in buildings ("sick-building syndrome"). The classical approach to analysis of airborne micro-organisms is based on the growth of cultureable micro-organisms and does not provide an account of viable but noncultureable micro-organisms, which typically amount to more than 90 percent of the micro-organisms present. In contrast, the present method provides an account of all micro-organisms, including cultureable, noncultureable, aerobic, and anaerobic ones. The analysis of lipids according to this method makes it possible to estimate the number of viable airborne micro-organisms present in the sampled air and to obtain a quantitative profile of the general types of micro-organisms present along with some information about their physiological statuses.

CLASS: Coherent Lidar Airborne Shear Sensor. Windshear avoidance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Targ, Russell

1991-01-01

The coherent lidar airborne shear sensor (CLASS) is an airborne CO2 lidar system being designed and developed by Lockheed Missiles and Space Company, Inc. (LMSC) under contract to NASA Langley Research Center. The goal of this program is to develop a system with a 2- to 4-kilometer range that will provide a warning time of 20 to 40 seconds, so that the pilot can avoid the hazards of low-altitude wind shear under all weather conditions. It is a predictive system which will warn the pilot about a hazard that the aircraft will experience at some later time. The ability of the system to provide predictive warnings of clear air turbulence will also be evaluated. A one-year flight evaluation program will measure the line-of-sight wind velocity from a wide variety of wind fields obtained by an airborne radar, an accelerometer-based reactive wind-sensing system, and a ground-based Doppler radar. The success of the airborne lidar system will be determined by its correlation with the windfield as indicated by the onboard reactive system, which indicates the winds actually experienced by the NASA Boeing 737 aircraft.

Lessons learned from case studies of inhalation exposures of workers to radioactive aerosols

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hoover, M.D.; Fencl, A.F.; Newton, G.J.

1995-12-01

Various Department of Energy requirements, rules, and orders mandate that lessons learned be identified, evaluated, shared, and incorporated into current practices. The recently issued, nonmandatory DOE standard for Development of DOE Lessons Learned Program states that a DOE-wide lessons learned program will {open_quotes}help to prevent recurrences of negative experiences, highlight best practices, and spotlight innovative ways to solve problems or perform work more safely, efficiently, and cost effectively.{close_quotes} Additional information about the lessons learned program is contained in the recently issued DOE handbook on Implementing U.S. Department of Energy Lessons Learned Programs and in October 1995 DOE SAfety Notice onmore » Lessons Learned Programs. This report summarizes work in progress at ITRI to identify lessons learned for worker exposures to radioactive aerosols, and describes how this work will be incorporated into the DOE lessons learned program, including a new technical guide for measuring, modeling, and mitigating airborne radioactive particles. Follow-on work is focusing on preparation of {open_quotes}lessons learned{close_quotes} training materials for facility designers, managers, health protection professionals, line supervisors, and workers.« less

Airborne tracking sunphotometer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matsumoto, Tak; Russell, Philip; Mina, Cesar; Van Ark, William; Banta, Victor

1987-01-01

An airborne tracking sunphotometer, mounted on the outside top surface of an aircaft has been developed to provide unresricted viewing of the sun. This instrument will substantially increase the data that scientists can gather for atmospheric studies. The instrument has six wavelength channels and an automatic data gathering system. The instrument's optical features, tracking capability, mechanical features, and data gathering system are described.

Airborne Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

NASA imaging technology has provided the basis for a commercial agricultural reconnaissance service. AG-RECON furnishes information from airborne sensors, aerial photographs and satellite and ground databases to farmers, foresters, geologists, etc. This service produces color "maps" of Earth conditions, which enable clients to detect crop color changes or temperature changes that may indicate fire damage or pest stress problems.

Resuspension of soil as a source of airborne lead near industrial facilities and highways.

PubMed

Young, Thomas M; Heeraman, Deo A; Sirin, Gorkem; Ashbaugh, Lowell L

2002-06-01

Geologic materials are an important source of airborne particulate matter less than 10 microm aerodynamic diameter (PM10), but the contribution of contaminated soil to concentrations of Pb and other trace elements in air has not been documented. To examine the potential significance of this mechanism, surface soil samples with a range of bulk soil Pb concentrations were obtained near five industrial facilities and along roadsides and were resuspended in a specially designed laboratory chamber. The concentration of Pb and other trace elements was measured in the bulk soil, in soil size fractions, and in PM10 generated during resuspension of soils and fractions. Average yields of PM10 from dry soils ranged from 0.169 to 0.869 mg of PM10/g of soil. Yields declined approximately linearly with increasing geometric mean particle size of the bulk soil. The resulting PM10 had average Pb concentrations as high as 2283 mg/kg for samples from a secondary Pb smelter. Pb was enriched in PM10 by 5.36-88.7 times as compared with uncontaminated California soils. Total production of PM10 bound Pb from the soil samples varied between 0.012 and 1.2 mg of Pb/kg of bulk soil. During a relatively large erosion event, a contaminated site might contribute approximately 300 ng/m3 of PM10-bound Pb to air. Contribution of soil from contaminated sites to airborne element balances thus deserves consideration when constructing receptor models for source apportionment or attempting to control airborne Pb emissions.

Global risk of radioactive fallout after major nuclear reactor accidents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lelieveld, J.; Kunkel, D.; Lawrence, M. G.

2012-05-01

Major reactor accidents of nuclear power plants are rare, yet the consequences are catastrophic. But what is meant by "rare"? And what can be learned from the Chernobyl and Fukushima incidents? Here we assess the cumulative, global risk of exposure to radioactivity due to atmospheric dispersion of gases and particles following severe nuclear accidents (the most severe ones on the International Nuclear Event Scale, INES 7), using particulate 137Cs and gaseous 131I as proxies for the fallout. Our results indicate that previously the occurrence of INES 7 major accidents and the risks of radioactive contamination have been underestimated. Using a global model of the atmosphere we compute that on average, in the event of a major reactor accident of any nuclear power plant worldwide, more than 90% of emitted 137Cs would be transported beyond 50 km and about 50% beyond 1000 km distance before being deposited. This corroborates that such accidents have large-scale and trans-boundary impacts. Although the emission strengths and atmospheric removal processes of 137Cs and 131I are quite different, the radioactive contamination patterns over land and the human exposure due to deposition are computed to be similar. High human exposure risks occur around reactors in densely populated regions, notably in West Europe and South Asia, where a major reactor accident can subject around 30 million people to radioactive contamination. The recent decision by Germany to phase out its nuclear reactors will reduce the national risk, though a large risk will still remain from the reactors in neighbouring countries.

Validating MODIS above-cloud aerosol optical depth retrieved from "color ratio" algorithm using direct measurements made by NASA's airborne AATS and 4STAR sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jethva, Hiren; Torres, Omar; Remer, Lorraine; Redemann, Jens; Livingston, John; Dunagan, Stephen; Shinozuka, Yohei; Kacenelenbogen, Meloe; Segal Rosenheimer, Michal; Spurr, Rob

2016-10-01

We present the validation analysis of above-cloud aerosol optical depth (ACAOD) retrieved from the "color ratio" method applied to MODIS cloudy-sky reflectance measurements using the limited direct measurements made by NASA's airborne Ames Airborne Tracking Sunphotometer (AATS) and Spectrometer for Sky-Scanning, Sun-Tracking Atmospheric Research (4STAR) sensors. A thorough search of the airborne database collection revealed a total of five significant events in which an airborne sun photometer, coincident with the MODIS overpass, observed partially absorbing aerosols emitted from agricultural biomass burning, dust, and wildfires over a low-level cloud deck during SAFARI-2000, ACE-ASIA 2001, and SEAC4RS 2013 campaigns, respectively. The co-located satellite-airborne matchups revealed a good agreement (root-mean-square difference < 0.1), with most matchups falling within the estimated uncertainties associated the MODIS retrievals (about -10 to +50 %). The co-retrieved cloud optical depth was comparable to that of the MODIS operational cloud product for ACE-ASIA and SEAC4RS, however, higher by 30-50 % for the SAFARI-2000 case study. The reason for this discrepancy could be attributed to the distinct aerosol optical properties encountered during respective campaigns. A brief discussion on the sources of uncertainty in the satellite-based ACAOD retrieval and co-location procedure is presented. Field experiments dedicated to making direct measurements of aerosols above cloud are needed for the extensive validation of satellite-based retrievals.

Validating MODIS Above-Cloud Aerosol Optical Depth Retrieved from Color Ratio Algorithm Using Direct Measurements Made by NASA's Airborne AATS and 4STAR Sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jethva, Hiren; Torres, Omar; Remer, Lorraine; Redemann, Jens; Livingston, John; Dunagan, Stephen; Shinozuka, Yohei; Kacenelenbogen, Meloe; Segal Rozenhaimer, Michal; Spurr, Rob

2016-01-01

We present the validation analysis of above-cloud aerosol optical depth (ACAOD) retrieved from the color ratio method applied to MODIS cloudy-sky reflectance measurements using the limited direct measurements made by NASAs airborne Ames Airborne Tracking Sunphotometer (AATS) and Spectrometer for Sky-Scanning, Sun-Tracking Atmospheric Research (4STAR) sensors. A thorough search of the airborne database collection revealed a total of five significant events in which an airborne sun photometer, coincident with the MODIS overpass, observed partially absorbing aerosols emitted from agricultural biomass burning, dust, and wildfires over a low-level cloud deck during SAFARI-2000, ACE-ASIA 2001, and SEAC4RS 2013 campaigns, respectively. The co-located satellite-airborne match ups revealed a good agreement (root-mean-square difference less than 0.1), with most match ups falling within the estimated uncertainties associated with the MODIS retrievals (about -10 to +50 ). The co-retrieved cloud optical depth was comparable to that of the MODIS operational cloud product for ACE-ASIA and SEAC4RS, however, higher by 30-50% for the SAFARI-2000 case study. The reason for this discrepancy could be attributed to the distinct aerosol optical properties encountered during respective campaigns. A brief discussion on the sources of uncertainty in the satellite-based ACAOD retrieval and co-location procedure is presented. Field experiments dedicated to making direct measurements of aerosols above cloud are needed for the extensive validation of satellite based retrievals.

Airborne concentrations of benzene due to diesel locomotive exhaust in a roundhouse.

PubMed

Madl, Amy K; Paustenbach, Dennis J

2002-12-13

Concentrations of airborne benzene due to diesel exhaust from a locomotive were measured during a worst-case exposure scenario in a roundhouse. To understand the upper bound human health risk due to benzene, an electromotive diesel and a General Electric four-cycle turbo locomotive were allowed to run for four 30-min intervals during an 8-h workshift in a roundhouse. Full-shift and 1-h airborne concentrations of benzene were measured in the breathing zone of surrogate locomotive repairmen over the 8-h workshift on 2 consecutive days. In addition, carbon monoxide was measured continuously; elemental carbon (surrogate for diesel exhaust) was sampled with full-shift area samples; and nitrogen dioxide/nitric oxide was sampled using full-shift and 15-min (nitrogen dioxide only) area samples. Peak concentrations of carbon monoxide ranged from 22.5 to 93 ppm. The average concentration of elemental carbon for each day of the roundhouse study was 0.0543 and 0.0552 microg/m(3 )for an 8-h workshift. These were considered "worst-case" conditions since the work environment was intolerably irritating to the eyes, nose, and throat. Short-term nitrogen dioxide concentrations ranged from 0.81 to 2.63 ppm during the diesel emission events with the doors closed. One-hour airborne benzene concentrations ranged from 0.001 to 0.015 ppm with 45% of the measurements below the detection limit of 0.002-0.004 ppm. Results indicated that the 8-h time-weighted average for benzene in the roundhouse was approximately 100-fold less than the current threshold limit value (TLV) of 0.5 ppm. These data are consistent with other studies, which have indicated that benzene concentrations due to diesel emissions, even in a confined environment, are quite low.

Data System for HS3 Airborne Field Campaign

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maskey, M.; Mceniry, M.; Berendes, T.; Bugbee, K.; Conover, H.; Ramachandran, R.

2014-12-01

Hurricane and Severe Storm Sentinel (HS3) is a NASA airborne field campaign aimed at better understanding the physical processes that control hurricane intensity change. HS3 will help answer questions related to the roles of environmental conditions and internal storm structures to storm intensification. Due to the nature of the questions that HS3 mission is addressing, it involves a variety of in-situ, satellite observations, airborne data, meteorological analyses, and simulation data. This variety of datasets presents numerous data management challenges for HS3. The methods used for airborne data management differ greatly from the methods used for space-borne data. In particular, metadata extraction, spatial and temporal indexing, and the large number of instruments and subsequent variables are a few of the data management challenges unique to airborne missions. A robust data system is required to successfully help HS3 scientist achieve their mission goals. Furthermore, the data system also needs to provide for data management that assists in broader use of HS3 data to enable future research activities. The Global Hydrology Resource Center (GHRC) is considering all these needs and designing a data system for HS3. Experience with past airborne field campaign puts GHRC in a good position to address HS3 needs. However, the scale of this mission along with science requirements separates HS3 from previous field campaigns. The HS3 data system will include automated services for geo-location, metadata extraction, discovery, and distribution for all HS3 data. To answer the science questions, the data system will include a visual data exploration tool that is fully integrated into the data catalog. The tool will allow visually augmenting airborne data with analyses and simulations. Satellite data will provide contextual information during such data explorations. All HS3 tools will be supported by an enterprise service architecture that will allow scaling, easy integration

Space-Wise approach for airborne gravity data modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sampietro, D.; Capponi, M.; Mansi, A. H.; Gatti, A.; Marchetti, P.; Sansò, F.

2017-05-01

Regional gravity field modelling by means of remove-compute-restore procedure is nowadays widely applied in different contexts: it is the most used technique for regional gravimetric geoid determination, and it is also used in exploration geophysics to predict grids of gravity anomalies (Bouguer, free-air, isostatic, etc.), which are useful to understand and map geological structures in a specific region. Considering this last application, due to the required accuracy and resolution, airborne gravity observations are usually adopted. However, due to the relatively high acquisition velocity, presence of atmospheric turbulence, aircraft vibration, instrumental drift, etc., airborne data are usually contaminated by a very high observation error. For this reason, a proper procedure to filter the raw observations in both the low and high frequencies should be applied to recover valuable information. In this work, a software to filter and grid raw airborne observations is presented: the proposed solution consists in a combination of an along-track Wiener filter and a classical Least Squares Collocation technique. Basically, the proposed procedure is an adaptation to airborne gravimetry of the Space-Wise approach, developed by Politecnico di Milano to process data coming from the ESA satellite mission GOCE. Among the main differences with respect to the satellite application of this approach, there is the fact that, while in processing GOCE data the stochastic characteristics of the observation error can be considered a-priori well known, in airborne gravimetry, due to the complex environment in which the observations are acquired, these characteristics are unknown and should be retrieved from the dataset itself. The presented solution is suited for airborne data analysis in order to be able to quickly filter and grid gravity observations in an easy way. Some innovative theoretical aspects focusing in particular on the theoretical covariance modelling are presented too

Airborne Tactical Intent-Based Conflict Resolution Capability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wing, David J.; Vivona, Robert A.; Roscoe, David A.

2009-01-01

Trajectory-based operations with self-separation involve the aircraft taking the primary role in the management of its own trajectory in the presence of other traffic. In this role, the flight crew assumes the responsibility for ensuring that the aircraft remains separated from all other aircraft by at least a minimum separation standard. These operations are enabled by cooperative airborne surveillance and by airborne automation systems that provide essential monitoring and decision support functions for the flight crew. An airborne automation system developed and used by NASA for research investigations of required functionality is the Autonomous Operations Planner. It supports the flight crew in managing their trajectory when responsible for self-separation by providing monitoring and decision support functions for both strategic and tactical flight modes. The paper focuses on the latter of these modes by describing a capability for tactical intent-based conflict resolution and its role in a comprehensive suite of automation functions supporting trajectory-based operations with self-separation.

Long-Term Stability of the SGA-WZ Strapdown Airborne Gravimeter

PubMed Central

Cai, Shaokun; Zhang, Kaidong; Wu, Meiping; Huang, Yangming

2012-01-01

Accelerometers are one of the most important sensors in a strapdown airborne gravimeter. The accelerometer's drift determines the long-term accuracy of the strapdown inertial navigation system (SINS), which is the primary and most critical component of the strapdown airborne gravimeter. A long-term stability test lasting 104 days was conducted to determine the characteristics of the strapdown airborne gravimeter's long-term drift. This stability test was based on the first set of strapdown airborne gravimeters built in China, the SGA-WZ. The test results reveal a quadratic drift in the strapdown airborne gravimeter data. A drift model was developed using the static data in the two end sections, and then this model was used to correct the test data. After compensating for the drift, the drift effect improved from 70 mGal to 3.46 mGal with a standard deviation of 0.63 mGal. The quadratic curve better reflects the drift's real characteristics. In comparison with other methodologies, modelling the drift as a quadratic curve was shown to be more appropriate. Furthermore, this method allows the drift to be adjusted throughout the course of the entire campaign. PMID:23112647

Improved Airborne System for Sensing Wildfires

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McKeown, Donald; Richardson, Michael

2008-01-01

The Wildfire Airborne Sensing Program (WASP) is engaged in a continuing effort to develop an improved airborne instrumentation system for sensing wildfires. The system could also be used for other aerial-imaging applications, including mapping and military surveillance. Unlike prior airborne fire-detection instrumentation systems, the WASP system would not be based on custom-made multispectral line scanners and associated custom- made complex optomechanical servomechanisms, sensors, readout circuitry, and packaging. Instead, the WASP system would be based on commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) equipment that would include (1) three or four electronic cameras (one for each of three or four wavelength bands) instead of a multispectral line scanner; (2) all associated drive and readout electronics; (3) a camera-pointing gimbal; (4) an inertial measurement unit (IMU) and a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver for measuring the position, velocity, and orientation of the aircraft; and (5) a data-acquisition subsystem. It would be necessary to custom-develop an integrated sensor optical-bench assembly, a sensor-management subsystem, and software. The use of mostly COTS equipment is intended to reduce development time and cost, relative to those of prior systems.

Characterization of events of transport over the Mediterranean Basin during summer 2012

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bucci, Silvia; Fierli, Federico; Di Donfrancesco, Guido; Diliberto, Luca; Viterbini, Maurizio; Ravetta, François; Pap, Ines; Weinhold, Kay; Größ, Johannes; Wiedensohler, Alfred; Cairo, Francesco

2014-05-01

Long-range transport has a great influence on the atmospheric composition in the Mediterranean Basin (MB). This work focuses on the dust intrusion events and the outflows of polluted air from the Po Valley during the PEGASOS (Pan-European Gas-AeroSOls Climate Interaction Study), TRAQA (TRAnsport et Qualité de l'Air au dessus du bassin Méditerranéen) and Supersito Arpa (Emilia Romagna) measurements campaigns of June - July 2012. In order to investigate the sources and identify the transport patterns, numerical simulations, in-situ, remote sensing and airborne aerosol measurements were jointly used. The ground based lidar situated at the San Pietro Capofiume (SPC) station, in the eastern part of the Po Valley, provides continuous measurements of backscatter and depolarization profiles and the Aerodynamical Particle Sizer (APS), in the same site, gives the aerosol spectral distribution at the ground. Observations show two main events of mineral aerosol inflow over north Italy (19- 21 June and 29-01 July). Optical properties provide a primary discrimination between coarser (likely dust) and finer particles (probably anthropogenic). The vertical statistical distribution of the different aerosol classes shows that larger particles are mainly individuated over the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) level while smaller particles tend to follow the daily evolution of the PBL or remain confined under it. Dust events are also detected during the TRAQA airborne campaign in the area of the gulf of Genoa, contributing to the identification of the dust plume characterization. Cluster trajectories analysis coupled to mesoscale simulations highlights the effective export of air masses from the Sahara with frequent intrusions of dust over the Po Valley, as recorded in the observational SPC site. Transport analysis also indicates an inversion of the main advection pattern (the Po Valley outflow is mainly directed eastward in the Adriatic region) during 23th and 26th June, with a

76 FR 50808 - Airborne Supplemental Navigation Equipment Using the Global Positioning System (GPS)

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-08-16

... DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Aviation Administration Airborne Supplemental Navigation.... ACTION: Notice of intent to cancel Technical Standard Order (TSO)- C129a, Airborne Supplemental... notice announces the FAA's intent to cancel TSO-C129a, Airborne Supplemental Navigation Equipment Using...

AIRBORNE CONTACT DERMATITIS – CURRENT PERSPECTIVES IN ETIOPATHOGENESIS AND MANAGEMENT

PubMed Central

Handa, Sanjeev; De, Dipankar; Mahajan, Rahul

2011-01-01

The increasing recognition of occupational origin of airborne contact dermatitis has brought the focus on the variety of irritants, which can present with this typical morphological picture. At the same time, airborne allergic contact dermatitis secondary to plant antigens, especially to Compositae family, continues to be rampant in many parts of the world, especially in the Indian subcontinent. The recognition of the contactant may be difficult to ascertain and the treatment may be even more difficult. The present review focuses on the epidemiological, clinical and therapeutic issues in airborne contact dermatitis. PMID:22345774

Airborne exposure limits for chemical and biological warfare agents: is everything set and clear?

PubMed

Sabelnikov, Alex; Zhukov, Vladimir; Kempf, C Ruth

2006-08-01

Emergency response strategies (guidelines) for biological, chemical, nuclear, or radiological terrorist events should be based on scientifically established exposure limits for all the agents or materials involved. In the case of a radiological terrorist event, emergency response guidelines (ERG) have been worked out. In the case of a terrorist event with the use of chemical warfare (CW) agents the situation is not that clear, though the new guidelines and clean-up values are being generated based on re-evaluation of toxicological and risk data. For biological warfare (BW) agents, such guidelines do not yet exist. In this paper the current status of airborne exposure limits (AELs) for chemical and biological warfare (CBW) agents are reviewed. Particular emphasis is put on BW agents that lack such data. An efficient, temporary solution to bridge the gap in experimental infectious data and to set provisional AELs for BW agents is suggested. It is based on mathematically generated risks of infection for BW agents grouped by their alleged ID50 values in three categories: with low, intermediate and high ID50 values.

An integrated GPS-FID system for airborne gas detection of pipeline right-of-ways

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gehue, H.L.; Sommer, P.

1996-12-31

Pipeline integrity, safety and environmental concerns are of prime importance in the Canadian natural gas industry. Terramatic Technology Inc. (TTI) has developed an integrated GPS/FID gas detection system known as TTI-AirTrac{trademark} for use in airborne gas detection (AGD) along pipeline right-of-ways. The Flame Ionization Detector (FID), which has traditionally been used to monitor air quality for gas plants and refineries, has been integrated with the Global Positioning System (GPS) via a 486 DX2-50 computer and specialized open architecture data acquisition software. The purpose of this technology marriage is to be able to continuously monitor air quality during airborne pipeline inspection.more » Event tagging from visual surveillance is used to determine an explanation of any delta line deviations (DLD). These deviations are an indication of hydrocarbon gases present in the plume that the aircraft has passed through. The role of the GPS system is to provide mapping information and coordinate data for ground inspections. The ground based inspection using a handheld multi gas detector will confirm whether or not a leak exists.« less

Human Occupancy as a Source of Indoor Airborne Bacteria

PubMed Central

Hospodsky, Denina; Qian, Jing; Nazaroff, William W.; Yamamoto, Naomichi; Bibby, Kyle; Rismani-Yazdi, Hamid; Peccia, Jordan

2012-01-01

Exposure to specific airborne bacteria indoors is linked to infectious and noninfectious adverse health outcomes. However, the sources and origins of bacteria suspended in indoor air are not well understood. This study presents evidence for elevated concentrations of indoor airborne bacteria due to human occupancy, and investigates the sources of these bacteria. Samples were collected in a university classroom while occupied and when vacant. The total particle mass concentration, bacterial genome concentration, and bacterial phylogenetic populations were characterized in indoor, outdoor, and ventilation duct supply air, as well as in the dust of ventilation system filters and in floor dust. Occupancy increased the total aerosol mass and bacterial genome concentration in indoor air PM10 and PM2.5 size fractions, with an increase of nearly two orders of magnitude in airborne bacterial genome concentration in PM10. On a per mass basis, floor dust was enriched in bacterial genomes compared to airborne particles. Quantitative comparisons between bacterial populations in indoor air and potential sources suggest that resuspended floor dust is an important contributor to bacterial aerosol populations during occupancy. Experiments that controlled for resuspension from the floor implies that direct human shedding may also significantly impact the concentration of indoor airborne particles. The high content of bacteria specific to the skin, nostrils, and hair of humans found in indoor air and in floor dust indicates that floors are an important reservoir of human-associated bacteria, and that the direct particle shedding of desquamated skin cells and their subsequent resuspension strongly influenced the airborne bacteria population structure in this human-occupied environment. Inhalation exposure to microbes shed by other current or previous human occupants may occur in communal indoor environments. PMID:22529946

The wildfire experiment (WIFE): observations with airborne remote sensors

Treesearch

L.F. Radke; T.L. Clark; J.L. Coen; C.A. Walther; R.N. Lockwood; P.J. Riggan; J.A. Brass; R.G. Higgins

2000-01-01

Airborne remote sensors have long been a cornerstone of wildland fire research, and recently three-dimensional fire behaviour models fully coupled to the atmosphere have begun to show a convincing level of verisimilitude. The WildFire Experiment (WiFE) attempted the marriage of airborne remote sensors, multi-sensor observations together with fire model development and...

Materiel requirements for airborne minefield detection system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bertsche, Karl A.; Huegle, Helmut

1997-07-01

Within the concept study, Material Requirements for an airborne minefield detection systems (AMiDS) the following topics were investigated: (i) concept concerning airborne minefield detection technique sand equipment, (ii) verification analysis of the AMiDS requirements using simulation models and (iii) application concept of AMiDS with regard o tactics and military operations. In a first approach the problems concerning unmanned airborne minefield detection techniques within a well-defined area were considered. The complexity of unmanned airborne minefield detection is a result of the following parameters: mine types, mine deployment methods, tactical requirements, topography, weather conditions, and the size of the area to be searched. In order to perform the analysis, a simulation model was developed to analyze the usability of the proposed remote controlled air carriers. The basic flight patterns for the proposed air carriers, as well as the preparation efforts of military operations and benefits of such a system during combat support missions were investigated. The results of the conceptual study showed that a proposed remote controlled helicopter drone could meet the stated German MOD scanning requirements of mine barriers. Fixed wing air carriers were at a definite disadvantage because of their inherently large turning loops. By implementing a mine detection system like AMiDS minefields can be reconnoitered before an attack. It is therefore possible either to plan, how the minefields can be circumvented or where precisely breaching lanes through the mine barriers are to be cleared for the advancing force.

Airborne aldehydes in cabin-air of commercial aircraft: Measurement by HPLC with UV absorbance detection of 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazones.

PubMed

Rosenberger, Wolfgang; Beckmann, Bibiana; Wrbitzky, Renate

2016-04-15

This paper presents the strategy and results of in-flight measurements of airborne aldehydes during normal operation and reported "smell events" on commercial aircraft. The aldehyde-measurement is a part of a large-scale study on cabin-air quality. The aims of this study were to describe cabin-air quality in general and to detect chemical abnormalities during the so-called "smell-events". Adsorption and derivatization of airborne aldehydes on 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine coated silica gel (DNPH-cartridge) was applied using tailor-made sampling kits. Samples were collected with battery supplied personal air sampling pumps during different flight phases. Furthermore, the influence of ozone was investigated by simultaneous sampling with and without ozone absorption unit (ozone converter) assembled to the DNPH-cartridges and found to be negligible. The method was validated for 14 aldehydes and found to be precise (RSD, 5.5-10.6%) and accurate (recovery, 98-103 %), with LOD levels being 0.3-0.6 μg/m(3). According to occupational exposure limits (OEL) or indoor air guidelines no unusual or noticeable aldehyde pollution was observed. In total, 353 aldehyde samples were taken from two types of aircraft. Formaldehyde (overall average 5.7 μg/m(3), overall median 4.9 μg/m(3), range 0.4-44 μg/m(3)), acetaldehyde (overall average 6.5 μg/m(3), overall median 4.6, range 0.3-90 μg/m(3)) and mostly very low concentrations of other aldehydes were measured on 108 flights. Simultaneous adsorption and derivatization of airborne aldehydes on DNPH-cartridges to the Schiff bases and their HPLC analysis with UV absorbance detection is a useful method to measure aldehydes in cabin-air of commercial aircraft. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Study of airborne science experiment management concepts for application to space shuttle, volume 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mulholland, D. R.; Reller, J. O., Jr.; Neel, C. B.; Haughney, L. C.

1973-01-01

Airborne research management and shuttle sortie planning at the Ames Research Center are reported. Topics discussed include: basic criteria and procedures for the formulation and approval of airborne missions; ASO management structure and procedures; experiment design, development, and testing aircraft characteristics and experiment interfaces; information handling for airborne science missions; mission documentation requirements; and airborne science methods and shuttle sortie planning.

The evolutionary trend in airborne and satellite radar altimeters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fedor, L. S.; Walsh, E. J.

1984-01-01

The manner in which airborne and satellite radar altimeters developed and where the trend is leading was investigated. The airborne altimeters have progressed from a broad beamed, narrow pulsed, nadir looking instrument, to a pulse compressed system that is computer controlled, to a scanning pencil beamed system which produce a topographic map of the surface beneath the aircraft in real time. It is suggested that the airborne systems lie in the use of multiple frequencies. The satellite altimeters evolve towards multifrequency systems with narrower effective pulses and higher pulse compression ratios to reduce peak transmitted power while improving resolution. Applications indicate wide swath systems using interferometric techniques or beam limited systems using 100 m diameter antennas.

Airborne Quercus pollen in SW Spain: Identifying favourable conditions for atmospheric transport and potential source areas.

PubMed

Maya-Manzano, José María; Fernández-Rodríguez, Santiago; Smith, Matt; Tormo-Molina, Rafael; Reynolds, Andrew M; Silva-Palacios, Inmaculada; Gonzalo-Garijo, Ángela; Sadyś, Magdalena

2016-11-15

The pollen grains of Quercus spp. (oak trees) are allergenic. This study investigates airborne Quercus pollen in SW Spain with the aim identifying favourable conditions for atmospheric transport and potential sources areas. Two types of Quercus distribution maps were produced. Airborne Quercus pollen concentrations were measured at three sites located in the Extremadura region (SW Spain) for 3 consecutive years. The seasonal occurrence of Quercus pollen in the air was investigated, as well as days with pollen concentrations ≥80Pm(-3). The distance that Quercus pollen can be transported in appreciable numbers was calculated using clusters of back trajectories representing the air mass movement above the source areas (oak woodlands), and by using a state-of-the-art dispersion model. The two main potential sources of Quercus airborne pollen captured in SW Spain are Q. ilex subsp. ballota and Q. suber. The minimum distances between aerobiological stations and Quercus woodlands have been estimated as: 40km (Plasencia), 66km (Don Benito), 62km (Zafra) from the context of this study. Daily mean Quercus pollen concentration can exceed 1,700Pm(-3), levels reached not less than 24 days in a single year. High Quercus pollen concentration were mostly associated with moderate wind speed events (6-10ms(-1)), whereas that a high wind speed (16-20ms(-1)) seems to be associated with low concentrations. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A metagenomic framework for the study of airborne microbial communities.

PubMed

Yooseph, Shibu; Andrews-Pfannkoch, Cynthia; Tenney, Aaron; McQuaid, Jeff; Williamson, Shannon; Thiagarajan, Mathangi; Brami, Daniel; Zeigler-Allen, Lisa; Hoffman, Jeff; Goll, Johannes B; Fadrosh, Douglas; Glass, John; Adams, Mark D; Friedman, Robert; Venter, J Craig

2013-01-01

Understanding the microbial content of the air has important scientific, health, and economic implications. While studies have primarily characterized the taxonomic content of air samples by sequencing the 16S or 18S ribosomal RNA gene, direct analysis of the genomic content of airborne microorganisms has not been possible due to the extremely low density of biological material in airborne environments. We developed sampling and amplification methods to enable adequate DNA recovery to allow metagenomic profiling of air samples collected from indoor and outdoor environments. Air samples were collected from a large urban building, a medical center, a house, and a pier. Analyses of metagenomic data generated from these samples reveal airborne communities with a high degree of diversity and different genera abundance profiles. The identities of many of the taxonomic groups and protein families also allows for the identification of the likely sources of the sampled airborne bacteria.

A Metagenomic Framework for the Study of Airborne Microbial Communities

PubMed Central

Tenney, Aaron; McQuaid, Jeff; Williamson, Shannon; Thiagarajan, Mathangi; Brami, Daniel; Zeigler-Allen, Lisa; Hoffman, Jeff; Goll, Johannes B.; Fadrosh, Douglas; Glass, John; Adams, Mark D.; Friedman, Robert; Venter, J. Craig

2013-01-01

Understanding the microbial content of the air has important scientific, health, and economic implications. While studies have primarily characterized the taxonomic content of air samples by sequencing the 16S or 18S ribosomal RNA gene, direct analysis of the genomic content of airborne microorganisms has not been possible due to the extremely low density of biological material in airborne environments. We developed sampling and amplification methods to enable adequate DNA recovery to allow metagenomic profiling of air samples collected from indoor and outdoor environments. Air samples were collected from a large urban building, a medical center, a house, and a pier. Analyses of metagenomic data generated from these samples reveal airborne communities with a high degree of diversity and different genera abundance profiles. The identities of many of the taxonomic groups and protein families also allows for the identification of the likely sources of the sampled airborne bacteria. PMID:24349140

Research on airborne infrared leakage detection of natural gas pipeline

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tan, Dongjie; Xu, Bin; Xu, Xu; Wang, Hongchao; Yu, Dongliang; Tian, Shengjie

2011-12-01

An airborne laser remote sensing technology is proposed to detect natural gas pipeline leakage in helicopter which carrying a detector, and the detector can detect a high spatial resolution of trace of methane on the ground. The principle of the airborne laser remote sensing system is based on tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS). The system consists of an optical unit containing the laser, camera, helicopter mount, electronic unit with DGPS antenna, a notebook computer and a pilot monitor. And the system is mounted on a helicopter. The principle and the architecture of the airborne laser remote sensing system are presented. Field test experiments are carried out on West-East Natural Gas Pipeline of China, and the results show that airborne detection method is suitable for detecting gas leak of pipeline on plain, desert, hills but unfit for the area with large altitude diversification.

Radioactive release during nuclear accidents in Chernobyl and Fukushima

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nur Ain Sulaiman, Siti; Mohamed, Faizal; Rahim, Ahmad Nabil Ab

2018-01-01

Nuclear accidents that occurred in Chernobyl and Fukushima have initiated many research interests to understand the cause and mechanism of radioactive release within reactor compound and to the environment. Common types of radionuclide release are the fission products from the irradiated fuel rod itself. In case of nuclear accident, the focus of monitoring will be mostly on the release of noble gases, I-131 and Cs-137. As these are the only accidents have been rated within International Nuclear Events Scale (INES) Level 7, the radioactive release to the environment was one of the critical insights to be monitored. It was estimated that the release of radioactive material to the atmosphere due to Fukushima accident was approximately 10% of the Chernobyl accident. By referring to the previous reports using computational code systems to model the release rate, the release activity of I-131 and Cs-137 in Chernobyl was significantly higher compare to Fukushima. The simulation code also showed that Chernobyl had higher release rate of both radionuclides on the day of accident. Other factors affecting the radioactive release for Fukushima and Chernobyl accidents such as the current reactor technology and safety measures are also compared for discussion.

Indoor airborne endotoxin assessment in homes of Paris newborn babies.

PubMed

Dassonville, C; Demattei, C; Vacquier, B; Bex-Capelle, V; Seta, N; Momas, I

2008-12-01

The aims of this study were first to assess airborne endotoxin levels in the dwellings of 162 newborns living in Paris twice during a 1-year period, and second, to identify predictors for endotoxin concentrations using questionnaire data in relation to housing factors and living conditions. Air samples were collected on a glass fiber filter in polystyrene filter holders, using a pump at a flow rate of 3.5 l/min for 24 h placed in the main room of the home. Endotoxin levels were measured using a chromogenic kinetic Limulus Amoebocyte Lysate test. Geometric means (geometric standard deviation) of airborne endotoxin levels at two different visits were respectively 0.509 (4.289) EU/m3 and 0.557 (3.029) EU/m3. Airborne endotoxin levels were significantly increased: (i) in cold season (P = 0.024), with (ii) the presence of visible cockroaches in the previous 12 months at home (P < 0.001), (iii) increased number of inhabitants per square meter (P = 0.012), (iv) the high frequency of cleaning with the floor cloths (P = 0.0014), and (v) the low frequency of vacuuming (P = 0.0045). This study provided for the first time airborne endotoxin levels issued from repeated measurements in Paris dwellings. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS This analysis contributed to identify a few factors that determined indoor airborne endotoxin levels. However, the predictive model including housing factors and living conditions poorly estimated endotoxin levels. Consequently, multiple samples and longer sampling periods might improve the estimate of long-term airborne endotoxin exposure especially its variability, in cohort studies.

Airborne Operations in World War II, European Theater

DTIC Science & Technology

1956-09-01

GARDEN Gee Hamilcar HANDS UP Formation usually composed of two or more elements and roughly equivalent to a squadron Forward Visual Control Post Ground...USAF HISTORICAL STUDIES: NO. 97 AIRBORNE OPERATIONS IN WORLD WAR II, EUROPEAN THEATER By Dr. John C. Warren USAF Historical Division Research Studies...OMB control number. 1. REPORT DATE SEP 1956 2. REPORT TYPE 3. DATES COVERED - 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Airborne Operations in World War II 5a

Radioactive Decay

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Radioactive decay is the emission of energy in the form of ionizing radiation. Example decay chains illustrate how radioactive atoms can go through many transformations as they become stable and no longer radioactive.

An investigation of airborne allergenic pollen at different heights.

PubMed

Xiao, Xiaojun; Fu, Aixiang; Xie, Xiongjie; Kang, Minxiong; Hu, Dongsheng; Yang, Pingchang; Liu, Zhigang

2013-01-01

Airborne pollen is an important source of allergens in a number of allergic diseases. Data on the concentrations of pollen at different heights in the air are scarce. The aim of the present study was to investigate different types and numbers of airborne pollen and their seasonal variation at different heights in the urban area of Shenzhen (China) and their associations with meteorological factors. The concentration of airborne pollen at different heights was monitored with Burkard traps from July 1, 2006, to June 30, 2007, in Shenzhen; the results were analyzed with SAS 9.13 software. In total, 1,095 films (at 3 heights, 365 films at each height) were exposed throughout the year, and 48 families and 85 genera of pollen taxa were identified. The total pollen count was 55,830 grains (25,204 grains at 1.5 m; 16,218 grains at 35 m, and 14,408 grains at 70 m); pollen grains were present in the atmosphere throughout the year, with two peaks of airborne pollen: one peak in February to April and the other in September to November. On the basis of our local investigations, the pollen concentrations and the pollen types in the air decrease gradually with increasing height. The distribution and concentrations of airborne pollen at different heights in the atmosphere were influenced by composite factors such as the season and meteorological factors. Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Review of Monte Carlo simulations for backgrounds from radioactivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selvi, Marco

2013-08-01

For all experiments dealing with the rare event searches (neutrino, dark matter, neutrino-less double-beta decay), the reduction of the radioactive background is one of the most important and difficult tasks. There are basically two types of background, electron recoils and nuclear recoils. The electron recoil background is mostly from the gamma rays through the radioactive decay. The nuclear recoil background is from neutrons from spontaneous fission, (α, n) reactions and muoninduced interactions (spallations, photo-nuclear and hadronic interaction). The external gammas and neutrons from the muons and laboratory environment, can be reduced by operating the detector at deep underground laboratories and by placing active or passive shield materials around the detector. The radioactivity of the detector materials also contributes to the background; in order to reduce it a careful screening campaign is mandatory to select highly radio-pure materials. In this review I present the status of current Monte Carlo simulations aimed to estimate and reproduce the background induced by gamma and neutron radioactivity of the materials and the shield of rare event search experiment. For the electromagnetic background a good level of agreement between the data and the MC simulation has been reached by the XENON100 and EDELWEISS experiments, using the GEANT4 toolkit. For the neutron background, a comparison between the yield of neutrons from spontaneous fission and (α, n) obtained with two dedicated softwares, SOURCES-4A and the one developed by Mei-Zhang-Hime, show a good overall agreement, with total yields within a factor 2 difference. The energy spectra from SOURCES-4A are in general smoother, while those from MZH presents sharp peaks. The neutron propagation through various materials has been studied with two MC codes, GEANT4 and MCNPX, showing a reasonably good agreement, inside 50% discrepancy.

Airborne and food sensitization patterns in children and adults with eosinophilic esophagitis.

PubMed

He, Yu Ting; Christos, Paul J; Reisacher, William R

2018-05-01

The pathogenesis of eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is currently unknown, but evidence suggests that allergic sensitization to food and airborne allergens may play a key role. This retrospective study examines the rate of sensitization to both food and airborne allergens in EoE patients, and compares their sensitivity patterns to control groups. We identified 103 patients with a diagnosis of EoE via esophageal eosinophilia (≥15 eosinophils/high-power field [hpf]), who had undergone comprehensive food and/or airborne allergen testing through either skin or in vitro methods. Food and airborne allergen sensitization was defined as positive testing in at least 1 food subgroup (milk, peanut, tree nut, seafood/fish, soy, grain, egg) or airborne subgroup (tree, grass, weed, mite/cockroach, animal, mold), respectively. The same sensitization criterion was applied to allergic rhinitis (AR) patients, with and without a clinical suspicion of food allergy (FA), in order to create control groups. Sensitization in the EoE group to at least 1 subgroup of food allergen and airborne allergen was seen in 77.1% (64/83) and 71.7% (38/53), respectively (p = 0.82). There were significant differences in sensitization between EoE and control groups for tree nut, soy, grain, and egg, but no differences noted in any of the other food or airborne allergen subgroups, even after accounting for age and gender. EoE and control groups had similar airborne allergen sensitization patterns, yet dissimilar food allergen sensitization patterns, suggesting that specific allergens may play a more prominent role in the pathogenesis of EoE. The EoE group had a more uniform distribution pattern for food allergens, compared to controls. © 2018 ARS-AAOA, LLC.

Risk factors for closed-head injuries during military airborne operations.

PubMed

Knapik, Joseph J; Steelman, Ryan; Hoedebecke, Kyle; Klug, Kevin L; Rankin, Shawn; Proctor, Stanley; Graham, Bria; Jones, Bruce H

2014-02-01

One of the more serious adverse outcomes of military airborne operations is closed-head injuries. This investigation examined risk factors for closed-head injuries in an Army airborne infantry unit. Closed-head injuries were defined as energy exchanges in which the head contacted the ground or an object and the soldier sought medical care for external trauma, headache, loss of consciousness, or altered mental state. Injury data were obtained by investigators in the drop zone and diagnoses were confirmed by a physician. Operational data on potential injury risk factors were obtained from routine reports published by the infantry unit. Weather data were obtained using a pocket weather tracker. There were 96,132 jumps resulting in 310 closed-head injuries for a crude incidence of 3.22/1000 jumps. In 98% of known cases the injury was associated with parachute landings. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that independent risk factors for closed-head injuries included night jumps, combat loads, higher wind speeds, higher temperatures, enlisted rank, and entanglements. This study identifies the current incidence and extrinsic risk factors for closed-head injuries during military airborne operations. Although it is necessary to conduct airborne training under realistic conditions, trainers and commanders should be aware of these risks and plan airborne operations accordingly.

Great Lakes Hyperspectral Water Quality Instrument Suite for Airborne Monitoring of Algal Blooms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lekki, John; Leshkevich, George; Nguyen, Quang-Viet; Flatico, Joseph; Prokop, Norman; Kojima, Jun; Anderson, Robert; Demers, James; Krasowski, Michael

2007-01-01

NASA Glenn Research Center and NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab are collaborating to utilize an airborne hyperspectral imaging sensor suite to monitor Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) in the western basin of Lake Erie. The HABs are very dynamic events as they form, spread and then disappear within a 4 to 8 week time period in late summer. They are a concern for human health, fish and wildlife because they can contain blue green toxic algae. Because of this toxicity there is a need for the blooms to be continually monitored. This situation is well suited for aircraft based monitoring because the blooms are a very dynamic event and they can spread over a large area. High resolution satellite data is not suitable by itself because it will not give the temporal resolution due to the infrequent overpasses of the quickly changing blooms. A custom designed hyperspectral imager and a point spectrometer mounted on aT 34 aircraft have been used to obtain data on an algal bloom that formed in the western basin of Lake Erie during September 2006. The sensor suite and operations will be described and preliminary hyperspectral data of this event will be presented

Airborne particulate matter in spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1988-01-01

Acceptability limits and sampling and monitoring strategies for airborne particles in spacecraft were considered. Based on instances of eye and respiratory tract irritation reported by Shuttle flight crews, the following acceptability limits for airborne particles were recommended: for flights of 1 week or less duration (1 mg/cu m for particles less than 10 microns in aerodynamic diameter (AD) plus 1 mg/cu m for particles 10 to 100 microns in AD); and for flights greater than 1 week and up to 6 months in duration (0.2 mg/cu m for particles less than 10 microns in AD plus 0.2 mg/cu m for particles 10 to 100 microns in AD. These numerical limits were recommended to aid in spacecraft atmosphere design which should aim at particulate levels that are a low as reasonably achievable. Sampling of spacecraft atmospheres for particles should include size-fractionated samples of 0 to 10, 10 to 100, and greater than 100 micron particles for mass concentration measurement and elementary chemical analysis by nondestructive analysis techniques. Morphological and chemical analyses of single particles should also be made to aid in identifying airborne particulate sources. Air cleaning systems based on inertial collection principles and fine particle collection devices based on electrostatic precipitation and filtration should be considered for incorporation into spacecraft air circulation systems. It was also recommended that research be carried out in space in the areas of health effects and particle characterization.

76 FR 20489 - Occupational Radiation Protection

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-13

...-5865, e-mail: [email protected]hq.doe.gov . SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Background The requirements in... Exposure during Immersion in a Cloud of Airborne Radioactive Material. The calculations done for the 2007... absorbed by the body; they affect the worker only while immersed in a cloud of airborne radioactivity. A...

DC-8 Airborne Laboratory in flight

NASA Image and Video Library

1998-02-20

NASA's DC-8 Airborne Science platform shown against a background of a dark blue sky on February 20, 1998. The aircraft is shown from the right rear, slightly above its plane, with the right wing in the foreground and the left wing and horizontal tail in the background. The former airliner is a "dash-72" model and has a range of 5,400 miles. The craft can stay airborne for 12 hours and has an operational speed range between 300 and 500 knots. The research flights are made at between 500 and 41,000 feet. The aircraft can carry up to 30,000 lbs of research/science payload equipment installed in 15 mission-definable spaces.

Airborne pollen trends in the Iberian Peninsula.

PubMed

Galán, C; Alcázar, P; Oteros, J; García-Mozo, H; Aira, M J; Belmonte, J; Diaz de la Guardia, C; Fernández-González, D; Gutierrez-Bustillo, M; Moreno-Grau, S; Pérez-Badía, R; Rodríguez-Rajo, J; Ruiz-Valenzuela, L; Tormo, R; Trigo, M M; Domínguez-Vilches, E

2016-04-15

Airborne pollen monitoring is an effective tool for studying the reproductive phenology of anemophilous plants, an important bioindicator of plant behavior. Recent decades have revealed a trend towards rising airborne pollen concentrations in Europe, attributing these trends to an increase in anthropogenic CO2 emissions and temperature. However, the lack of water availability in southern Europe may prompt a trend towards lower flowering intensity, especially in herbaceous plants. Here we show variations in flowering intensity by analyzing the Annual Pollen Index (API) of 12 anemophilous taxa across 12 locations in the Iberian Peninsula, over the last two decades, and detecting the influence of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). Results revealed differences in the distribution and flowering intensity of anemophilous species. A negative correlation was observed between airborne pollen concentrations and winter averages of the NAO index. This study confirms that changes in rainfall in the Mediterranean region, attributed to climate change, have an important impact on the phenology of plants. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Bacterial diversity and composition during rain events with and without Saharan dust influence reaching a high mountain lake in the Alps.

PubMed

Peter, Hannes; Hörtnagl, Paul; Reche, Isabel; Sommaruga, Ruben

2014-12-01

The diversity of airborne microorganisms that potentially reach aquatic ecosystems during rain events is poorly explored. Here, we used a culture-independent approach to characterize bacterial assemblages during rain events with and without Saharan dust influence arriving to a high mountain lake in the Austrian Alps. Bacterial assemblage composition differed significantly between samples with and without Saharan dust influence. Although alpha diversity indices were within the same range in both sample categories, rain events with Atlantic or continental origins were dominated by Betaproteobacteria, whereas those with Saharan dust intrusions were dominated by Gammaproteobacteria. The high diversity and evenness observed in all samples suggests that different sources of bacteria contributed to the airborne assemblage collected at the lake shore. During experiments with bacterial assemblages collected during rain events with Saharan dust influence, cell numbers rapidly increased in sterile lake water from initially ∼3 × 103 cell ml-1 to 3.6-11.1 x105 cells ml-1 within 4-5 days, and initially, rare taxa dominated at the end of the experiment. Our study documents the dispersal of viable bacteria associated to Saharan dust intrusions travelling northwards as far as 47° latitude.

Sources of Radioactive Isotopes for Dirty Bombs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lubenau, Joel

2004-05-01

From the security perspective, radioisotopes and radioactive sources are not created equal. Of the many radioisotopes used in industrial applications, medical treatments, and scientific research, only eight, when present in relatively large amounts in radioactive sources, pose high security risks primarily because of their prevalence and physical properties. These isotopes are americium-241, californium-252, cesium-137, cobalt-60, iridium-192, radium-226, plutonium-238, and strontium-90. Except for the naturally occurring radium-226, nuclear reactors produce the other seven in bulk commercial quantities. Half of these isotopes emit alpha radiation and would, thus, primarily pose internal threats to health; the others are mainly high-energy gamma emitters and would present both external and internal health hazards. Therefore, the response to a "dirty bomb" event depends on what type of radioisotope is chosen and how it is employed. While only a handful of major corporations produce the reactor-generated radioisotopes, they market these materials to thousands of smaller companies and users throughout the world. Improving the security of the high-risk radioactive sources will require, among other efforts, cooperation among source suppliers and regulatory agencies.

54. DETAIL OF GENERAL ELECTRIC AIRBORNE BEACON EQUIPMENT TEST SET ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

54. DETAIL OF GENERAL ELECTRIC AIRBORNE BEACON EQUIPMENT TEST SET (LEFT) AND ASSOCIATED GOULD BRUSH CHART RECORDERS (RIGHT). ELAPSED TIME COUNTER SITS ATOP AIRBORNE BEACON EQUIPMENT TEST SET. - Vandenberg Air Force Base, Space Launch Complex 3, Launch Operations Building, Napa & Alden Roads, Lompoc, Santa Barbara County, CA

MULTIPLY: Development of a European HSRL Airborne Facility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Binietoglou, Ioannis; Serikov, Ilya; Nicolae, Doina; Amiridis, Vassillis; Belegante, Livio; Boscornea, Andrea; Brugmann, Bjorn; Costa Suros, Montserrat; Hellmann, David; Kokkalis, Panagiotis; Linne, Holger; Stachlewska, Iwona; Vajaiac, Sorin-Nicolae

2016-08-01

MULTIPLY is a novel airborne high spectral resolution lidar (HSRL) currently under development by a consortium of European institutions from Romania, Germany, Greece, and Poland. Its aim is to contribute to calibration and validations activities of the upcoming ESA aerosol sensing missions like ADM-Aeolus, EarthCARE and the Sentinel-3/-4/-5/-5p which include products related to atmospheric aerosols. The effectiveness of these missions depends on independent airborne measurements to develop and test the retrieval methods, and validate mission products following launch. The aim of ESA's MULTIPLY project is to design, develop, and test a multi-wavelength depolarization HSRL for airborne applications. The MULTIPLY lidar will deliver the aerosol extinction and backscatter coefficient profiles at three wavelengths (355nm, 532nm, 1064nm), as well as profiles of aerosol intensive parameters (Ångström exponents, extinction- to-backscatter ratios, and linear particle depolarization ratios).

Control of airborne infectious diseases in ventilated spaces

PubMed Central

Nielsen, Peter V.

2009-01-01

We protect ourselves from airborne cross-infection in the indoor environment by supplying fresh air to a room by natural or mechanical ventilation. The air is distributed in the room according to different principles: mixing ventilation, displacement ventilation, etc. A large amount of air is supplied to the room to ensure a dilution of airborne infection. Analyses of the flow in the room show that there are a number of parameters that play an important role in minimizing airborne cross-infection. The air flow rate to the room must be high, and the air distribution pattern can be designed to have high ventilation effectiveness. Furthermore, personalized ventilation may reduce the risk of cross-infection, and in some cases, it can also reduce the source of infection. Personalized ventilation can especially be used in hospital wards, aircraft cabins and, in general, where people are in fixed positions. PMID:19740921

Methods of sampling airborne fungi in working environments of waste treatment facilities.

PubMed

Černá, Kristýna; Wittlingerová, Zdeňka; Zimová, Magdaléna; Janovský, Zdeněk

2016-01-01

The objective of the present study was to evaluate and compare the efficiency of a filter based sampling method and a high volume sampling method for sampling airborne culturable fungi present in waste sorting facilities. Membrane filters method was compared with surface air system method. The selected sampling methods were modified and tested in 2 plastic waste sorting facilities. The total number of colony-forming units (CFU)/m3 of airborne fungi was dependent on the type of sampling device, on the time of sampling, which was carried out every hour from the beginning of the work shift, and on the type of cultivation medium (p < 0.001). Detected concentrations of airborne fungi ranged 2×102-1.7×106 CFU/m3 when using the membrane filters (MF) method, and 3×102-6.4×104 CFU/m3 when using the surface air system (SAS) method. Both methods showed comparable sensitivity to the fluctuations of the concentrations of airborne fungi during the work shifts. The SAS method is adequate for a fast indicative determination of concentration of airborne fungi. The MF method is suitable for thorough assessment of working environment contamination by airborne fungi. Therefore we recommend the MF method for the implementation of a uniform standard methodology of airborne fungi sampling in working environments of waste treatment facilities. This work is available in Open Access model and licensed under a CC BY-NC 3.0 PL license.

Airborne Observations of Water Vapor Deuterium Excess in the Mid-Latitude Lower Troposphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salmon, O. E.; Welp, L.; Shepson, P. B.; Stirm, B. H.

2017-12-01

Water vapor is responsible for over half of the natural atmospheric greenhouse effect. As global temperatures increase due to fossil fuel combustion, atmospheric water vapor concentrations are also expected to increase in positive feedback. Additionally, studies have shown that urban areas can influence humidity levels, and the frequency and intensity of precipitation events. It is thus important to understand anthropogenic modification of the hydrological cycle, particularly around urban areas, where over half of the world's population resides. Airborne measurements of water vapor isotopologues containing 2H and 18O were conducted to better understand processes influencing atmospheric moisture levels around urban areas. Airborne measurements were conducted around the Indianapolis and Washington, D.C.-Baltimore areas during afternoon hours in February and March 2016, using a Los Gatos Research Water Vapor Isotope Analyzer installed in Purdue University's experimental aircraft, the Airborne Laboratory for Atmospheric Research. The measurements of 2H and 18O allow for the calculation of deuterium excess (= δ2H - 8*δ18O), which provides information about non-equilibrium processes, such as kinetic effects, air parcel mixing, and transpiration. There are few studies that have reported observations of deuterium excess above the surface level ( 100 m). During the measurement campaign, vertical profiles were frequently conducted from 300 m above the ground to an altitude of approximately 1.5 km, effectively characterizing water vapor isotope profiles spanning the boundary layer and lower free troposphere. Measurements probed the transition from planetary boundary layer air to free troposphere air to provide high resolution deuterium excess information across this interface. Processes such as Rayleigh distillation, atmospheric mixing, and surface fluxes potentially impacting water vapor deuterium excess through the boundary layer and free troposphere with be discussed.

Airborne tunable diode laser spectrometer for trace-gas measurement in the lower stratosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Podolske, James; Loewenstein, Max

1993-01-01

This paper describes the airborne tunable laser absorption spectrometer, a tunable diode laser instrument designed for in situ trace-gas measurement in the lower stratosphere from an ER-2 high-altitude research aircraft. Laser-wavelength modulation and second-harmonic detection are employed to achieve the required constituent detection sensitivity. The airborne tunable laser absorption spectrometer was used in two polar ozone campaigns, the Airborne Antarctic Ozone Experiment and the Airborne Arctic Stratospheric Expedition, and measured nitrous oxide with a response time of 1 s and an accuracy not greater than 10 percent.

Holographic Airborne Rotating Lidar Instrument Experiment (HARLIE)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schwemmer, Geary K.

1998-01-01

Scanning holographic lidar receivers are currently in use in two operational lidar systems, PHASERS (Prototype Holographic Atmospheric Scanner for Environmental Remote Sensing) and now HARLIE (Holographic Airborne Rotating Lidar Instrument Experiment). These systems are based on volume phase holograms made in dichromated gelatin (DCG) sandwiched between 2 layers of high quality float glass. They have demonstrated the practical application of this technology to compact scanning lidar systems at 532 and 1064 nm wavelengths, the ability to withstand moderately high laser power and energy loading, sufficient optical quality for most direct detection systems, overall efficiencies rivaling conventional receivers, and the stability to last several years under typical lidar system environments. Their size and weight are approximately half of similar performing scanning systems using reflective optics. The cost of holographic systems will eventually be lower than the reflective optical systems depending on their degree of commercialization. There are a number of applications that require or can greatly benefit from a scanning capability. Several of these are airborne systems, which either use focal plane scanning, as in the Laser Vegetation Imaging System or use primary aperture scanning, as in the Airborne Oceanographic Lidar or the Large Aperture Scanning Airborne Lidar. The latter class requires a large clear aperture opening or window in the aircraft. This type of system can greatly benefit from the use of scanning transmission holograms of the HARLIE type because the clear aperture required is only about 25% larger than the collecting aperture as opposed to 200-300% larger for scan angles of 45 degrees off nadir.

Characteristics of airborne micro-organisms in a neurological intensive care unit: Results from China.

PubMed

Yu, Yao; Yin, Sufeng; Kuan, Yi; Xu, Yingjun; Gao, Xuguang

2015-06-01

To describe the characteristics of airborne micro-organisms in the environment in a Chinese neurological intensive care unit (NICU). This prospective study monitored the air environment in two wards (large and small) of an NICU in a tertiary hospital in China for 12 months, using an LWC-1 centrifugal air sampler. Airborne micro-organisms were identified using standard microbiology techniques. The mean ± SD number of airborne bacteria was significantly higher in the large ward than in the small ward (200 ± 51 colony-forming units [CFU]/m(3) versus 110 ± 40 CFU/m(3), respectively). In the large ward only, the mean number of airborne bacteria in the autumn was significantly higher than in any of the other three seasons. A total of 279 airborne micro-organisms were identified (large ward: 195; small ward: 84). There was no significant difference in the type and distribution of airborne micro-organisms between the large and small wards. The majority of airborne micro-organisms were Gram-positive cocci in both wards. These findings suggest that the number of airborne micro-organisms was related to the number of patients on the NICU ward. © The Author(s) 2015 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

National center for airborne laser mapping proposed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carter, Bill; Shrestha, Ramesh L.; Dietrich, Bill

Researchers from universities, U.S. government agencies, U.S. national laboratories, and private industry met in the spring to learn about the current capabilities of Airborne Laser Swath Mapping (ALSM), share their experiences in using the technology for a wide variety of research applications, outline research that would be made possible by research-grade ALSM data, and discuss the proposed operation and management of the brand new National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping (NCALM).The workshop successfully identified a community of researchers with common interests in the advancement and use of ALSM—a community which strongly supports the immediate establishment of the NCALM.

Airborne Intercept Monitoring

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-04-01

Primary mirror of Zerodur with Pilkington 747 coating • FOV = 0.104 degrees Airborne Intercept Monitoring RTO-MP-SET-105 16 - 3 UNCLASSIFIED...Pointing System (SPS). The STS is a 0.75 meter aperture Mersenne Cassegrain telescope and the SAT is a 0.34 meter aperture 3- mirror anastigmat telescope...UNLIMITED UNCLASSIFIED/UNLIMITED • Air Flow to Mitigate Thermal “Seeing” Effects • Light weighted primary mirror to reduce mass The SAT

[Airborne Fungal Aerosol Concentration and Distribution Characteristics in Air- Conditioned Wards].

PubMed

Zhang, Hua-ling; Feng, He-hua; Fang, Zi-liang; Wang, Ben-dong; Li, Dan

2015-04-01

The effects of airborne fungus on human health in the hospital environment are related to not only their genera and concentrations, but also their particle sizes and distribution characteristics. Moreover, the mechanisms of aerosols with different particle sizes on human health are different. Fungal samples were obtained in medicine wards of Chongqing using a six-stage sampler. The airborne fungal concentrations, genera and size distributions of all the sampling wards were investigated and identified in detail. Results showed that airborne fungal concentrations were not correlated to the diseases or personnel density, but were related to seasons, temperature, and relative humidity. The size distribution rule had roughly the same for testing wards in winter and summer. The size distributions were not related with diseases and seasons, the percentage of airborne fungal concentrations increased gradually from stage I to stage III, and then decreased dramatically from stage V to stage VI, in general, the size of airborne fungi was a normal distribution. There was no markedly difference for median diameter of airborne fungi which was less 3.19 μm in these wards. There were similar dominant genera in all wards. They were Aspergillus spp, Penicillium spp and Alternaria spp. Therefore, attention should be paid to improve the filtration efficiency of particle size of 1.1-4.7 μm for air conditioning system of wards. It also should be targeted to choose appropriate antibacterial methods and equipment for daily hygiene and air conditioning system operation management.

Real-time monitoring of non-viable airborne particles correlates with airborne colonies and represents an acceptable surrogate for daily assessment of cell-processing cleanroom performance.

PubMed

Raval, Jay S; Koch, Eileen; Donnenberg, Albert D

2012-10-01

Airborne particulate monitoring is mandated as a component of good manufacturing practice. We present a procedure developed to monitor and interpret airborne particulates in an International Organization for Standardization (ISO) class 7 cleanroom used for the cell processing of Section 351 and Section 361 products. We collected paired viable and non-viable airborne particle data over a period of 1 year in locations chosen to provide a range of air quality. We used receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis to determine empirically the relationship between non-viable and viable airborne particle counts. Viable and non-viable particles were well-correlated (r(2) = 0.78), with outlier observations at the low end of the scale (non-viable particles without detectable airborne colonies). ROC analysis predicted viable counts ≥ 0.5/feet(3) (a limit set by the United States Pharmacopeia) at an action limit of ≥ 32 000 particles (≥ 0.5 µ)/feet(3), with 95.6% sensitivity and 50% specificity. This limit was exceeded 2.6 times during 18 months of retrospective daily cleanroom data (an expected false alarm rate of 1.3 times/year). After implementing this action limit, we were alerted in real time to an air-handling failure undetected by our hospital facilities management. A rational action limit for non-viable particles was determined based on the correlation with airborne colonies. Reaching or exceeding the action limit of 32 000 non-viable particles/feet(3) triggers suspension of cleanroom cell-processing activities, deep cleaning, investigation of air handling, and a deviation management process. Our full procedure for particle monitoring is available as an online supplement.

Real-time monitoring of non-viable airborne particles correlates with airborne colonies and represents an acceptable surrogate for daily assessment of cell-processing cleanroom performance

PubMed Central

RAVAL, JAY S.; KOCH, EILEEN; DONNENBERG, ALBERT D.

2014-01-01

Background aims Airborne particulate monitoring is mandated as a component of good manufacturing practice. We present a procedure developed to monitor and interpret airborne particulates in an International Organization for Standardization (ISO) class 7 cleanroom used for the cell processing of Section 351 and Section 361 products. Methods We collected paired viable and non-viable airborne particle data over a period of 1 year in locations chosen to provide a range of air quality. We used receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis to determine empirically the relationship between non-viable and viable airborne particle counts. Results Viable and non-viable particles were well-correlated (r 2 = 0.78), with outlier observations at the low end of the scale (non-viable particles without detectable airborne colonies). ROC analysis predicted viable counts ≥0.5/feet 3 (a limit set by the United States Pharmacopeia) at an action limit of ≥32 000 particles (≥0.5 μ)/feet 3 , with 95.6% sensitivity and 50% specificity. This limit was exceeded 2.6 times during 18 months of retrospective daily cleanroom data (an expected false alarm rate of 1.3 times/year). After implementing this action limit, we were alerted in real time to an air-handling failure undetected by our hospital facilities management. Conclusions A rational action limit for non-viable particles was determined based on the correlation with airborne colonies. Reaching or exceeding the action limit of 32 000 non-viable particles/feet 3 triggers suspension of cleanroom cell-processing activities, deep cleaning, investigation of air handling, and a deviation management process. Our full procedure for particle monitoring is available as an online supplement. PMID:22746538

Airborne asbestos exposures associated with work on asbestos fire sleeve materials.

PubMed

Blake, Charles L; Harbison, Stephen C; Johnson, Giffe T; Harbison, Raymond D

2011-11-01

Asbestos-containing fire sleeves have been used as a fire protection measure for aircraft fluid hoses. This investigation was conducted to determine the level of airborne asbestos fiber exposure experienced by mechanics who work with fire sleeve protected hoses. Duplicate testing was performed inside a small, enclosed workroom during the fabrication of hose assemblies. Personal air samples taken during this work showed detectable, but low airborne asbestos fiber exposures. Analysis of personal samples (n=9) using phrase contract microscopy (PCM) indicated task duration airborne fiber concentrations ranging from 0.017 to 0.063 fibers per milliliter (f/ml) for sampling durations of 167-198 min, and 0.022-0.14 f/ml for 30 min samples. Airborne chrysotile fibers were detected for four of these nine personal samples, and the resulting asbestos adjusted airborne fiber concentrations ranged from 0.014 to 0.025 f/ml. These results indicate that work with asbestos fire sleeve and fire sleeve protected hose assemblies, does not produce regulatory noncompliant levels of asbestos exposure for persons who handle, cut and fit these asbestos-containing materials. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

VISAGE Visualization for Integrated Satellite, Airborne and Ground-Based Data Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Conover, Helen; Berendes, Todd; Naeger, Aaron; Maskey, Manil; Gatlin, Patrick; Wingo, Stephanie; Kulkarni, Ajinkya; Gupta, Shivangi; Nagaraj, Sriraksha; Wolff, David;

Airborne Imagery Collections Barrow 2013

DOE Data Explorer

Cherry, Jessica; Crowder, Kerri

2015-07-20

The data here are orthomosaics, digital surface models (DSMs), and individual frames captured during low altitude airborne flights in 2013 at the Barrow Environmental Observatory. The orthomosaics, thermal IR mosaics, and DSMs were generated from the individual frames using Structure from Motion techniques.

78 FR 44625 - Proposed Information Collection (Open Burn Pit Registry Airborne Hazard Self-Assessment...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-07-24

... DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS Proposed Information Collection (Open Burn Pit Registry Airborne... to ``OMB Control No. 2900--NEW, Open Burn Pit Registry Airborne Hazard Self-Assessment Questionnaire... health effects of service members' exposure to toxic airborne chemicals and fumes caused by open burn...

A comparison of airborne and ground-based radar observations with rain gages during the CaPE experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Satake, Makoto; Short, David A.; Iguchi, Toshio

1992-01-01

The vicinity of KSC, where the primary ground truth site of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) program is located, was the focal point of the Convection and Precipitation/Electrification (CaPE) experiment in Jul. and Aug. 1991. In addition to several specialized radars, local coverage was provided by the C-band (5 cm) radar at Patrick AFB. Point measurements of rain rate were provided by tipping bucket rain gage networks. Besides these ground-based activities, airborne radar measurements with X- and Ka-band nadir-looking radars on board an aircraft were also recorded. A unique combination data set of airborne radar observations with ground-based observations was obtained in the summer convective rain regime of central Florida. We present a comparison of these data intending a preliminary validation. A convective rain event was observed simultaneously by all three instrument types on the evening of 27 Jul. 1991. The high resolution aircraft radar was flown over convective cells with tops exceeding 10 km and observed reflectivities of 40 to 50 dBZ at 4 to 5 km altitude, while the low resolution surface radar observed 35 to 55 dBZ echoes and a rain gage indicated maximum surface rain rates exceeding 100 mm/hr. The height profile of reflectivity measured with the airborne radar show an attenuation of 6.5 dB/km (two way) for X-band, corresponding to a rainfall rate of 95 mm/hr.

Airborne Observations of Enhanced Marine Boundary Layer Carbon Monoxide over Remote Tropical Oceans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campos, T. L.; Stell, M. H.; Apel, E. C.; Hornbrook, R. S.; Hills, A. J.; Weinheimer, A. J.; Montzka, D.; Kaser, L.; Aquino, J.

2014-12-01

Recent airborne observations of tropical marine boundary layer carbon monoxide included several instances of elevated MBL CO with a notable absence of corresponding enhancements in ozone. Instances were observed during the recent CONTRAST exploration of tropical Pacific marine dynamics and composition. The lack of correlation between sampled carbon monoxide and ozone is consistent with an oceanic source of CO. Carbon monoxide vertical flux will be estimated for all CONTRAST boundary layer transects, with particular focus on these events. Complementary correlative observations of trace organics lend insight into processes defining this composition. The frequency of occurrence will be presented along with comparison to similar observations within other data sets, including TORERO (2012), and HIPPO (2009-2012).

Airborne Microwave Imaging of River Velocities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Plant, William J.

2002-01-01

The objective of this project was to determine whether airborne microwave remote sensing systems can measure river surface currents with sufficient accuracy to make them prospective instruments with which to monitor river flow from space. The approach was to fly a coherent airborne microwave Doppler radar, developed by APL/UW, on a light airplane along several rivers in western Washington state over an extended period of time. The fundamental quantity obtained by this system to measure river currents is the mean offset of the Doppler spectrum. Since this scatter can be obtained from interferometric synthetic aperture radars (INSARs), which can be flown in space, this project provided a cost effective means for determining the suitability of spaceborne INSAR for measuring river flow.

Airborne asbestos in Colorado public schools.

PubMed

Chadwick, D A; Buchan, R M; Beaulieu, H J

1985-02-01

Levels of airborne asbestos for six Colorado public school facilities with sprayed-on asbestos materials were documented using three analytical techniques. Phase contrast microscopy showed levels up to the thousandths of a fiber per cubic centimeter (f/cc), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) up to the hundredths of a f/cc, and transmission electron microscopy coupled to selected area electron diffraction and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (TEM-SAED-EDXA) up to the tenths of an asbestos f/cc. Phase contrast microscopy was found to be an inadequate analytical technique for documenting the levels of airborne asbestos fibers in the schools: only large fibers which were not embedded in the filter were counted, and asbestos fibers were not distinguished from nonasbestos.

EUFAR the unique portal for airborne research in Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gérard, Elisabeth; Brown, Philip

2016-04-01

Created in 2000 and supported by the EU Framework Programmes since then, EUFAR was born out of the necessity to create a central network and access point for the airborne research community in Europe. With the aim to support researchers by granting them access to research infrastructures, not accessible in their home countries, EUFAR also provides technical support and training in the field of airborne research for the environmental and geo-sciences. Today, EUFAR2 (2014-2018) coordinates and facilitates transnational access to 18 instrumented aircraft and 3 remote-sensing instruments through the 13 operators who are part of EUFAR's current 24-partner European consortium. In addition, the current project supports networking and research activities focused on providing an enabling environment for and promoting airborne research. The EUFAR2 activities cover three objectives, supported by the internet website www.eufar.net: (I - Institutional) improvement of the access to the research infrastructures and development of the future fleet according to the strategic advisory committee (SAC) recommendations; (ii - Innovation) improvement of the scientific knowledge and promotion of innovating instruments, processes and services for the emergence of new industrial technologies, with an identification of industrial needs by the SAC; (iii - Service) optimisation and harmonisation of the use of the research infrastructures through the development of the community of young researches in airborne science, of the standards and protocols and of the airborne central database. With the launch of a brand new website (www.eufar.net) in mid-November 2015, EUFAR aims to improve user experience on the website, which serves as a source of information and a hub where users are able to collaborate, learn, share expertise and best practices, and apply for transnational access, and education and training funded opportunities within the network. With its newly designed eye-catching interface

Exposure level and distribution characteristics of airborne bacteria and fungi in Seoul metropolitan subway stations.

PubMed

Kim, Ki Youn; Kim, Yoon Shin; Kim, Daekeun; Kim, Hyeon Tae

2011-01-01

The exposure level and distribution characteristics of airborne bacteria and fungi were assessed in the workers' activity areas (station office, bedroom, ticket office and driver's seat) and passengers' activity areas (station precinct, inside the passenger carriage, and platform) of the Seoul metropolitan subway. Among investigated areas, the levels of airborne bacteria and fungi in the workers' bedroom and station precincts were relatively high. No significant difference was found in the concentration of airborne bacteria and fungi between the underground and above ground activity areas of the subway. The genera identified in all subway activity areas with a 5% or greater detection rate were Staphylococcus, Micrococcus, Bacillus and Corynebacterium for airborne bacteria and Penicillium, Cladosporium, Chrysosporium, Aspergillus for airborne fungi. Staphylococcus and Micrococcus comprised over 50% of the total airborne bacteria and Penicillium and Cladosporium comprised over 60% of the total airborne fungi, thus these four genera are the predominant genera in the subway station.

SOFIA's Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors: An External Evaluation of Cycle 1

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phillips, Michelle

2015-01-01

The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) represents a partnership between NASA and the German Aerospace Center (DLR). The observatory itself is a Boeing 747 SP that has been modified to serve as the world's largest airborne research observatory. The SOFIA Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors (AAA) program is a component of SOFIA's…

78 FR 33894 - Proposed Information Collection (Open Burn Pit Registry Airborne Hazard Self-Assessment...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-06-05

... Burn Pit Registry Airborne Hazard Self-Assessment Questionnaire) Activity: Comment Request AGENCY... ascertain and monitor the health effects of the exposure of members of the Armed Forces to toxic airborne... to ``OMB Control No. 2900-NEW, Open Burn Pit Registry Airborne Hazard Self-Assessment Questionnaire...

Measurements of Ultra-fine and Fine Aerosol Particles over Siberia: Large-scale Airborne Campaigns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arshinov, Mikhail; Paris, Jean-Daniel; Stohl, Andreas; Belan, Boris; Ciais, Philippe; Nédélec, Philippe

2010-05-01

In this paper we discuss the results of in-situ measurements of ultra-fine and fine aerosol particles carried out in the troposphere from 500 to 7000 m in the framework of several International and Russian State Projects. Number concentrations of ultra-fine and fine aerosol particles measured during intensive airborne campaigns are presented. Measurements carried over a great part of Siberia were focused on particles with diameters from 3 to 21 nm to study new particle formation in the free/upper troposphere over middle and high latitudes of Asia, which is the most unexplored region of the Northern Hemisphere. Joint International airborne surveys were performed along the following routes: Novosibirsk-Salekhard-Khatanga-Chokurdakh-Pevek-Yakutsk-Mirny-Novosibirsk (YAK-AEROSIB/PLARCAT2008 Project) and Novosibirsk-Mirny-Yakutsk-Lensk-Bratsk-Novosibirsk (YAK-AEROSIB Project). The flights over Lake Baikal was conducted under Russian State contract. Concentrations of ultra-fine and fine particles were measured with automated diffusion battery (ADB, designed by ICKC SB RAS, Novosibirsk, Russia) modified for airborne applications. The airborne ADB coupled with CPC has an additional aspiration unit to compensate ambient pressure and changing flow rate. It enabled to classify nanoparticles in three size ranges: 3-6 nm, 6-21 nm, and 21-200 nm. To identify new particle formation events we used similar specific criteria as Young et al. (2007): (1) N3-6nm >10 cm-3, (2) R1=N3-6/N621 >1 and R2=N321/N21200 >0.5. So when one of the ratios R1 or R2 tends to decrease to the above limits the new particle formation is weakened. It is very important to notice that space scale where new particle formation was observed is rather large. All the events revealed in the FT occurred under clean air conditions (low CO mixing ratios). Measurements carried out in the atmospheric boundary layer over Baikal Lake did not reveal any event of new particle formation. Concentrations of ultra

RADIO-ACTIVE TRANSDUCER

DOEpatents

Wanetick, S.

1962-03-01

ABS>ure the change in velocity of a moving object. The transducer includes a radioactive source having a collimated beam of radioactive particles, a shield which can block the passage of the radioactive beam, and a scintillation detector to measure the number of radioactive particles in the beam which are not blocked by the shield. The shield is operatively placed across the radioactive beam so that any motion normal to the beam will cause the shield to move in the opposite direction thereby allowing more radioactive particles to reach the detector. The number of particles detected indicates the acceleration. (AEC)

Peat Depth Assessment Using Airborne Geophysical Data for Carbon Stock Modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keaney, Antoinette; McKinley, Jennifer; Ruffell, Alastair; Robinson, Martin; Graham, Conor; Hodgson, Jim; Desissa, Mohammednur

2013-04-01

The Kyoto Agreement demands that all signatory countries have an inventory of their carbon stock, plus possible future changes to this store. This is particularly important for Ireland, where some 16% of the surface is covered by peat bog. Estimates of soil carbon stores are a key component of the required annual returns made by the Irish and UK governments to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Saturated peat attenuates gamma-radiation from underlying rocks. This effect can be used to estimate the thickness of peat, within certain limits. This project examines this relationship between peat depth and gamma-radiation using airborne geophysical data generated by the Tellus Survey and newly acquired data collected as part of the EU-funded Tellus Border project, together encompassing Northern Ireland and the border area of the Republic of Ireland. Selected peat bog sites are used to ground truth and evaluate the use of airborne geophysical (radiometric and electromagnetic) data and validate modelled estimates of soil carbon, peat volume and depth to bedrock. Data from two test line sites are presented: one in Bundoran, County Donegal and a second line in Sliabh Beagh, County Monaghan. The plane flew over these areas at different times of the year and at a series of different elevations allowing the data to be assessed temporally with different soil/peat saturation levels. On the ground these flight test lines cover varying surface land use zones allowing future extrapolation of data from the sites. This research applies spatial statistical techniques, including uncertainty estimation in geostatistical prediction and simulation, to investigate and model the use of airborne geophysical data to examine the relationship between reduced radioactivity and peat depth. Ground truthing at test line locations and selected peat bog sites involves use of ground penetrating radar, terrestrial LiDAR, peat depth probing, magnetometry, resistivity, handheld gamma

307TH Engineer Battalion Prop Blast - An Airborne Tradition

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-04-24

American servicemen and women have trained and fought gallantly as airborne soldiers . Most officers who have been honored to serve with the airborne...distribution is unlimited. 4. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER (S) 5. MONITORING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER (S) 6a. NAME OF PERFORMING ORGANIZATION 6b...and ZIP Code) Carlisle Barracks, PA 17013-5002 Ba. NAME OF FUNDING/SPONSORING 8b. OFFICE SYMBOL 9. PROCUREMENT INSTRUMENT IDENTIFICATION NUMBER

PtSi gimbal-based FLIR for airborne applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wallace, Joseph; Ornstein, Itzhak; Nezri, M.; Fryd, Y.; Bloomberg, Steve; Beem, S.; Bibi, B.; Hem, S.; Perna, Steve N.; Tower, John R.; Lang, Frank B.; Villani, Thomas S.; McCarthy, D. R.; Stabile, Paul J.

1997-08-01

A new gimbal-based, FLIR camera for several types of airborne platforms has been developed. The FLIR is based on a PtSi on silicon technology: developed for high volume and minimum cost. The gimbal scans an area of 360 degrees in azimuth and an elevation range of plus 15 degrees to minus 105 degrees. It is stabilized to 25 (mu) Rad-rms. A combination of uniformity correction, defect substitution, and compact optics results in a long range, low cost FLIR for all low-speed airborne platforms.

The Impact of Conflicting Spatial Representations in Airborne Unmanned Aerial System Sensor Control

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-02-01

Spatial Discordance 1 Running head: SPATIAL DISCORDANCE IN AIRBORNE UAS OPERATIONS The impact of conflicting spatial...representations in airborne unmanned aerial system sensor control Joseph W Geeseman, James E Patrey, Caroline Davy, Katherine Peditto, & Christine Zernickow...system (UAS) simulation while riding in the fuselage of an airborne Lockheed P-3 Orion. The P-3 flew a flight profile of intermittent ascending

Airborne multispectral detection of regrowth cotton fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Westbrook, John K.; Suh, Charles P.-C.; Yang, Chenghai; Lan, Yubin; Eyster, Ritchie S.

2015-01-01

Effective methods are needed for timely areawide detection of regrowth cotton plants because boll weevils (a quarantine pest) can feed and reproduce on these plants beyond the cotton production season. Airborne multispectral images of regrowth cotton plots were acquired on several dates after three shredding (i.e., stalk destruction) dates. Linear spectral unmixing (LSU) classification was applied to high-resolution airborne multispectral images of regrowth cotton plots to estimate the minimum detectable size and subsequent growth of plants. We found that regrowth cotton fields can be identified when the mean plant width is ˜0.2 m for an image resolution of 0.1 m. LSU estimates of canopy cover of regrowth cotton plots correlated well (r2=0.81) with the ratio of mean plant width to row spacing, a surrogate measure of plant canopy cover. The height and width of regrowth plants were both well correlated (r2=0.94) with accumulated degree-days after shredding. The results will help boll weevil eradication program managers use airborne multispectral images to detect and monitor the regrowth of cotton plants after stalk destruction, and identify fields that may require further inspection and mitigation of boll weevil infestations.

NASA's Student Airborne Research Program (2009-2013)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schaller, E. L.; Shetter, R. E.

2013-12-01

The NASA Student Airborne Research Program (SARP) is a unique summer internship program for rising senior undergraduates majoring in any of the STEM disciplines. SARP participants acquire hands-on research experience in all aspects of an airborne research campaign, including flying onboard an major NASA resource used for studying Earth system processes. In summer 2013, thirty-two participants worked in four interdisciplinary teams to study surface, atmospheric, and oceanographic processes. Participants assisted in the operation of instruments onboard the NASA DC-8 aircraft where they sampled and measured atmospheric gases and imaged land and water surfaces in multiple spectral bands. Along with airborne data collection, students participated in taking measurements at field sites. Mission faculty and research mentors helped to guide participants through instrument operation, sample analysis, and data reduction. Over the eight-week program, each student developed an individual research project from the data collected and delivered a conference-style final presentation on his/her results. Several students will present the results of their research in science sessions at this meeting. We will discuss the results and effectiveness of the program over the past five summers and plans for the future.

47 CFR 22.925 - Prohibition on airborne operation of cellular telephones.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 2 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Prohibition on airborne operation of cellular telephones. 22.925 Section 22.925 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES PUBLIC MOBILE SERVICES Cellular Radiotelephone Service § 22.925 Prohibition on airborne...

47 CFR 22.925 - Prohibition on airborne operation of cellular telephones.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Prohibition on airborne operation of cellular telephones. 22.925 Section 22.925 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES PUBLIC MOBILE SERVICES Cellular Radiotelephone Service § 22.925 Prohibition on airborne...

Airborne Turbulence Detection System Certification Tool Set

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hamilton, David W.; Proctor, Fred H.

2006-01-01

A methodology and a corresponding set of simulation tools for testing and evaluating turbulence detection sensors has been presented. The tool set is available to industry and the FAA for certification of radar based airborne turbulence detection systems. The tool set consists of simulated data sets representing convectively induced turbulence, an airborne radar simulation system, hazard tables to convert the radar observable to an aircraft load, documentation, a hazard metric "truth" algorithm, and criteria for scoring the predictions. Analysis indicates that flight test data supports spatial buffers for scoring detections. Also, flight data and demonstrations with the tool set suggest the need for a magnitude buffer.

Airborne multispectral data collection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hasell, P. G., Jr.

1974-01-01

Multispectral mapping accomplishments using the M7 airborne scanner are summarized. The M7 system is described and overall results of specific data collection flight operations since June 1971 are reviewed. A major advantage of the M7 system is that all spectral bands of the scanner are in common spatial registration, whereas in the M5 they were not.

A Quantitative Dynamic Simulation of Bremia lactucae Airborne Conidia Concentration above a Lettuce Canopy.

PubMed

Fall, Mamadou Lamine; Van der Heyden, Hervé; Carisse, Odile

2016-01-01

Lettuce downy mildew, caused by the oomycete Bremia lactucae Regel, is a major threat to lettuce production worldwide. Lettuce downy mildew is a polycyclic disease driven by airborne spores. A weather-based dynamic simulation model for B. lactucae airborne spores was developed to simulate the aerobiological characteristics of the pathogen. The model was built using the STELLA platform by following the system dynamics methodology. The model was developed using published equations describing disease subprocesses (e.g., sporulation) and assembled knowledge of the interactions among pathogen, host, and weather. The model was evaluated with four years of independent data by comparing model simulations with observations of hourly and daily airborne spore concentrations. The results show an accurate simulation of the trend and shape of B. lactucae temporal dynamics of airborne spore concentration. The model simulated hourly and daily peaks in airborne spore concentrations. More than 95% of the simulation runs, the daily-simulated airborne conidia concentration was 0 when airborne conidia were not observed. Also, the relationship between the simulated and the observed airborne spores was linear. In more than 94% of the simulation runs, the proportion of the linear variation in the hourly-observed values explained by the variation in the hourly-simulated values was greater than 0.7 in all years except one. Most of the errors came from the deviation from the 1:1 line, and the proportion of errors due to the model bias was low. This model is the only dynamic model developed to mimic the dynamics of airborne inoculum and represents an initial step towards improved lettuce downy mildew understanding, forecasting and management.

A Quantitative Dynamic Simulation of Bremia lactucae Airborne Conidia Concentration above a Lettuce Canopy

PubMed Central

Fall, Mamadou Lamine; Van der Heyden, Hervé; Carisse, Odile

2016-01-01

Lettuce downy mildew, caused by the oomycete Bremia lactucae Regel, is a major threat to lettuce production worldwide. Lettuce downy mildew is a polycyclic disease driven by airborne spores. A weather-based dynamic simulation model for B. lactucae airborne spores was developed to simulate the aerobiological characteristics of the pathogen. The model was built using the STELLA platform by following the system dynamics methodology. The model was developed using published equations describing disease subprocesses (e.g., sporulation) and assembled knowledge of the interactions among pathogen, host, and weather. The model was evaluated with four years of independent data by comparing model simulations with observations of hourly and daily airborne spore concentrations. The results show an accurate simulation of the trend and shape of B. lactucae temporal dynamics of airborne spore concentration. The model simulated hourly and daily peaks in airborne spore concentrations. More than 95% of the simulation runs, the daily-simulated airborne conidia concentration was 0 when airborne conidia were not observed. Also, the relationship between the simulated and the observed airborne spores was linear. In more than 94% of the simulation runs, the proportion of the linear variation in the hourly-observed values explained by the variation in the hourly-simulated values was greater than 0.7 in all years except one. Most of the errors came from the deviation from the 1:1 line, and the proportion of errors due to the model bias was low. This model is the only dynamic model developed to mimic the dynamics of airborne inoculum and represents an initial step towards improved lettuce downy mildew understanding, forecasting and management. PMID:26953691

Airborne Remote Sensing of River Flow and Morphology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zuckerman, S.; Anderson, S. P.; McLean, J.; Redford, R.

2014-12-01

River morphology, surface slope and flow are some of the fundamental measurements required for surface water monitoring and hydrodynamic research. This paper describes a method of combining bathymetric lidar with space-time processing of mid-wave infrared (MWIR) imagery to simultaneously measure bathymetry, currents and surface slope from an airborne platform. In May 2014, Areté installed a Pushbroom Imaging Lidar for Littoral Surveillance (PILLS) and a FLIR SC8000 MWIR imaging system sampling at 2 Hz in a small twin-engine aircraft. Data was collected over the lower Colorado River between Picacho Park and Parker. PILLS is a compact bathymetric lidar based on streak-tube sensor technology. It provides channel and bank topography and water surface elevation at 1 meter horizontal scales and 25 cm vertical accuracy. Surface currents are derived from the MWIR imagery by tracking surface features using a cross correlation algorithm. This approach enables the retrieval of currents along extended reaches at the forward speed of the aircraft with spatial resolutions down to 5 m with accuracy better than 10 cm/s. The fused airborne data captures current and depth variability on scales of meters over 10's of kilometers collected in just a few minutes. The airborne MWIR current retrievals are combined with the bathymetric lidar data to calculate river discharge which is then compared with real-time streamflow stations. The results highlight the potential for improving our understanding of complex river environments with simultaneous collections from multiple airborne sensors.

Airborne Hyperspectral Imaging of Seagrass and Coral Reef

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merrill, J.; Pan, Z.; Mewes, T.; Herwitz, S.

2013-12-01

This talk presents the process of project preparation, airborne data collection, data pre-processing and comparative analysis of a series of airborne hyperspectral projects focused on the mapping of seagrass and coral reef communities in the Florida Keys. As part of a series of large collaborative projects funded by the NASA ROSES program and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and administered by the NASA UAV Collaborative, a series of airborne hyperspectral datasets were collected over six sites in the Florida Keys in May 2012, October 2012 and May 2013 by Galileo Group, Inc. using a manned Cessna 172 and NASA's SIERRA Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. Precise solar and tidal data were used to calculate airborne collection parameters and develop flight plans designed to optimize data quality. Two independent Visible and Near-Infrared (VNIR) hyperspectral imaging systems covering 400-100nm were used to collect imagery over six Areas of Interest (AOIs). Multiple collections were performed over all sites across strict solar windows in the mornings and afternoons. Independently developed pre-processing algorithms were employed to radiometrically correct, synchronize and georectify individual flight lines which were then combined into color balanced mosaics for each Area of Interest. The use of two different hyperspectral sensor as well as environmental variations between each collection allow for the comparative analysis of data quality as well as the iterative refinement of flight planning and collection parameters.

Distribution and identification of airborne fungi in railway stations in Tokyo, Japan.

PubMed

Kawasaki, Tamami; Kyotani, Takashi; Ushiogi, Tomoyoshi; Izumi, Yasuhiko; Lee, Hunjun; Hayakawa, Toshio

2010-01-01

The current study was performed to (1) understand the distribution of airborne fungi culturable on dichloran-glycerol agar (DG18) media over a one-year monitoring period, (2) identify the types of airborne fungi collected, and (3) compare and contrast under- and above-ground spaces, in two railway stations in Tokyo, Japan. Measurements of airborne fungi were taken at stations A and B located in Tokyo. Station A had under- and above-ground concourses and platforms whereas station B had spaces only above-ground. Airborne fungi at each measurement position were collected with an air sampler on DG18 media. After cultivation of the sample plates, the number of fungi colonies was counted on each agar plate. In station A, the underground platform was characterized as (1) having the highest humidity and (2) a high concentration of airborne fungi, with (3) a high proportion of non-sporulating fungi (NSF) and Aspergillus versicolor. There was a strong positive correlation between the concentrations of airborne particles and fungi in station A. Common aspects of the two stations were (1) that fungi were mostly detected in autumn, and (2) there was no correlation between the humidity and concentration of fungi throughout the year. The results of this study indicate that the distribution and composition of fungi differ depending on the structure of the station.

ESA airborne campaigns in support of Earth Explorers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Casal, Tania; Davidson, Malcolm; Schuettemeyer, Dirk; Perrera, Andrea; Bianchi, Remo

2013-04-01

In the framework of its Earth Observation Programmes the European Space Agency (ESA) carries out ground based and airborne campaigns to support geophysical algorithm development, calibration/validation, simulation of future spaceborne earth observation missions, and applications development related to land, oceans and atmosphere. ESA has been conducting airborne and ground measurements campaigns since 1981 by deploying a broad range of active and passive instrumentation in both the optical and microwave regions of the electromagnetic spectrum such as lidars, limb/nadir sounding interferometers/spectrometers, high-resolution spectral imagers, advanced synthetic aperture radars, altimeters and radiometers. These campaigns take place inside and outside Europe in collaboration with national research organisations in the ESA member states as well as with international organisations harmonising European campaign activities. ESA campaigns address all phases of a spaceborne missions, from the very beginning of the design phase during which exploratory or proof-of-concept campaigns are carried out to the post-launch exploitation phase for calibration and validation. We present four recent campaigns illustrating the objectives and implementation of such campaigns. Wavemill Proof Of Concept, an exploratory campaign to demonstrate feasibility of a future Earth Explorer (EE) mission, took place in October 2011 in the Liverpool Bay area in the UK. The main objectives, successfully achieved, were to test Astrium UKs new airborne X-band SAR instrument capability to obtain high resolution ocean current and topology retrievals. Results showed that new airborne instrument is able to retrieve ocean currents to an accuracy of ± 10 cms-1. The IceSAR2012 campaign was set up to support of ESA's EE Candidate 7,BIOMASS. Its main objective was to document P-band radiometric signatures over ice-sheets, by upgrading ESA's airborne POLARIS P-band radar ice sounder with SAR capability. Campaign

ISMAR: an airborne submillimetre radiometer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fox, Stuart; Lee, Clare; Moyna, Brian; Philipp, Martin; Rule, Ian; Rogers, Stuart; King, Robert; Oldfield, Matthew; Rea, Simon; Henry, Manju; Wang, Hui; Chawn Harlow, R.

2017-02-01

The International Submillimetre Airborne Radiometer (ISMAR) has been developed as an airborne demonstrator for the Ice Cloud Imager (ICI) that will be launched on board the next generation of European polar-orbiting weather satellites in the 2020s. It currently has 15 channels at frequencies between 118 and 664 GHz which are sensitive to scattering by cloud ice, and additional channels at 874 GHz are being developed. This paper presents an overview of ISMAR and describes the algorithms used for calibration. The main sources of bias in the measurements are evaluated, as well as the radiometric sensitivity in different measurement scenarios. It is shown that for downward views from high altitude, representative of a satellite viewing geometry, the bias in most channels is less than ±1 K and the NEΔT is less than 2 K, with many channels having an NEΔT less than 1 K. In-flight calibration accuracy is also evaluated by comparison of high-altitude zenith views with radiative-transfer simulations.

Airborne soil particulates as vehicles for Salmonella contamination of tomatoes.

PubMed

Kumar, Govindaraj Dev; Williams, Robert C; Al Qublan, Hamzeh M; Sriranganathan, Nammalwar; Boyer, Renee R; Eifert, Joseph D

2017-02-21

The presence of dust is ubiquitous in the produce growing environment and its deposition on edible crops could occur. The potential of wind-distributed soil particulate to serve as a vehicle for S. Newport transfer to tomato blossoms and consequently, to fruits, was explored. Blossoms were challenged with previously autoclaved soil containing S. Newport (9.39log CFU/g) by brushing and airborne transfer. One hundred percent of blossoms brushed with S. Newport-contaminated soil tested positive for presence of the pathogen one week after contact (P<0.0001). Compressed air was used to simulate wind currents and direct soil particulates towards blossoms. Airborne soil particulates resulted in contamination of 29% of the blossoms with S. Newport one week after contact. Biophotonic imaging of blossoms post-contact with bioluminescent S. Newport-contaminated airborne soil particulates revealed transfer of the pathogen on petal, stamen and pedicel structures. Both fruits and calyxes that developed from blossoms contaminated with airborne soil particulates were positive for presence of S. Newport in both fruit (66.6%) and calyx (77.7%). Presence of S. Newport in surface-sterilized fruit and calyx tissue tested indicated internalization of the pathogen. These results show that airborne soil particulates could serve as a vehicle for Salmonella. Hence, Salmonella contaminated dust and soil particulate dispersion could contribute to pathogen contamination of fruit, indicating an omnipresent yet relatively unexplored contamination route. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Airborne Particulate Matter Induces Nonallergic Eosinophilic Sinonasal Inflammation in Mice.

PubMed

Ramanathan, Murugappan; London, Nyall R; Tharakan, Anuj; Surya, Nitya; Sussan, Thomas E; Rao, Xiaoquan; Lin, Sandra Y; Toskala, Elina; Rajagopalan, Sanjay; Biswal, Shyam

2017-07-01

Exposure to airborne particulate matter (PM) has been linked to aggravation of respiratory symptoms, increased risk of cardiovascular disease, and all-cause mortality. Although the health effects of PM on the lower pulmonary airway have been extensively studied, little is known regarding the impact of chronic PM exposure on the upper sinonasal airway. We sought to test the impact of chronic airborne PM exposure on the upper respiratory system in vivo. Mice were subjected, by inhalation, to concentrated fine (2.5 μm) PM 6 h/d, 5 d/wk, for 16 weeks. Mean airborne fine PM concentration was 60.92 μm/m 3 , a concentration of fine PM lower than that reported in some major global cities. Mice were then killed and analyzed for evidence of inflammation and barrier breakdown compared with control mice. Evidence of the destructive effects of chronic airborne PM on sinonasal health in vivo, including proinflammatory cytokine release, and macrophage and neutrophil inflammatory cell accumulation was observed. A significant increase in epithelial barrier dysfunction was observed, as assessed by serum albumin accumulation in nasal airway lavage fluid, as well as decreased expression of adhesion molecules, including claudin-1 and epithelial cadherin. A significant increase in eosinophilic inflammation, including increased IL-13, eotaxin-1, and eosinophil accumulation, was also observed. Collectively, although largely observational, these studies demonstrate the destructive effects of chronic airborne PM exposure on the sinonasal airway barrier disruption and nonallergic eosinophilic inflammation in mice.

Occurrence of airborne vancomycin- and gentamicin-resistant bacteria in various hospital wards in Isfahan, Iran

PubMed Central

Mirhoseini, Seyed Hamed; Nikaeen, Mahnaz; Khanahmad, Hossein; Hassanzadeh, Akbar

2016-01-01

Background: Airborne transmission of pathogenic resistant bacteria is well recognized as an important route for the acquisition of a wide range of nosocomial infections in hospitals. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of airborne vancomycin and gentamicin (VM and GM) resistant bacteria in different wards of four educational hospitals. Materials and Methods: A total of 64 air samples were collected from operating theater (OT), Intensive Care Unit (ICU), surgery ward, and internal medicine ward of four educational hospitals in Isfahan, Iran. Airborne culturable bacteria were collected using all glass impingers. Samples were analyzed for the detection of VM- and GM-resistant bacteria. Results: The average level of bacteria ranged from 99 to 1079 CFU/m3. The highest level of airborne bacteria was observed in hospital 4 (628 CFU/m3) and the highest average concentration of GM- and VM-resistant airborne bacteria were found in hospital 3 (22 CFU/m3). The mean concentration of airborne bacteria was the lowest in OT wards and GM- and VM-resistant airborne bacteria were not detected in this ward of hospitals. The highest prevalence of antibiotic-resistant airborne bacteria was observed in ICU ward. There was a statistically significant difference for the prevalence of VM-resistant bacteria between hospital wards (P = 0.012). Conclusion: Our finding showed that the relatively high prevalence of VM- and GM-resistant airborne bacteria in ICUs could be a great concern from the point of view of patients' health. These results confirm the necessity of application of effective control measures which significantly decrease the exposure of high-risk patients to potentially airborne nosocomial infections. PMID:27656612

Occurrence of airborne vancomycin- and gentamicin-resistant bacteria in various hospital wards in Isfahan, Iran.

PubMed

Mirhoseini, Seyed Hamed; Nikaeen, Mahnaz; Khanahmad, Hossein; Hassanzadeh, Akbar

2016-01-01

Airborne transmission of pathogenic resistant bacteria is well recognized as an important route for the acquisition of a wide range of nosocomial infections in hospitals. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of airborne vancomycin and gentamicin (VM and GM) resistant bacteria in different wards of four educational hospitals. A total of 64 air samples were collected from operating theater (OT), Intensive Care Unit (ICU), surgery ward, and internal medicine ward of four educational hospitals in Isfahan, Iran. Airborne culturable bacteria were collected using all glass impingers. Samples were analyzed for the detection of VM- and GM-resistant bacteria. The average level of bacteria ranged from 99 to 1079 CFU/m(3). The highest level of airborne bacteria was observed in hospital 4 (628 CFU/m(3)) and the highest average concentration of GM- and VM-resistant airborne bacteria were found in hospital 3 (22 CFU/m(3)). The mean concentration of airborne bacteria was the lowest in OT wards and GM- and VM-resistant airborne bacteria were not detected in this ward of hospitals. The highest prevalence of antibiotic-resistant airborne bacteria was observed in ICU ward. There was a statistically significant difference for the prevalence of VM-resistant bacteria between hospital wards (P = 0.012). Our finding showed that the relatively high prevalence of VM- and GM-resistant airborne bacteria in ICUs could be a great concern from the point of view of patients' health. These results confirm the necessity of application of effective control measures which significantly decrease the exposure of high-risk patients to potentially airborne nosocomial infections.

Using Radial Basis Functions in Airborne Gravimetry for Local Geoid Improvement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Xiaopeng

2017-04-01

Radial basis functions (RBF, Schmidt et al 2007, Klees and Wittwer 2007, Klees et al 2008) have been extensively used in satellite geodetic applications (Eicker 2008, Wittwer 2009, Naeimi 2013, among others). However, to date, to the author's knowledge, their roles in processing and modeling airborne gravity data have not been fully advocated or extensively investigated in detail, though compared with satellite missions, the airborne data is more suitable for this kind of localized basis functions especially considering the following facts: (1) Unlike the satellite missions that can provide global or near global data coverage, airborne gravity data is usually geographically limited. (2) It is also band limited in the frequency domain, considering that various filter banks and/or de-noising techniques (Li 2007) have to be applied to overcome the low signal-to-noise ratio problem that is present in airborne gravimetric systems. This is mainly due to the mechanical and mathematical limitations in computing the accelerations (both the kinematic and dynamic accelerations, Jekeli 2000). (3) It is much easier to formulate the RBF observation equations from an airborne gravimetric system (either a scalar one (Forsberg and Olesen 2010) or a vector one (Kwon and Jekeli 2001)) than from any satellite mission, especially compared with Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites (GRACE, Tapley et al. 2004) where many accurate background environmental models have to be used in order to separate out the gravity related functionals. As a result, in this study, a set of band-limited RBF is developed to model and downward continue the airborne gravity data for local geoid improvement. First, the algorithm is tested with synthesized data from global coefficient models such as EIGEN6c4 (Försteet al. 2014), during which the RBF not only successfully recovers a harmonic field but also presents filtering properties due to its particular design in the frequency domain. Then, the

A Brief History of Airborne Self-Spacing Concepts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abbott, Terence S.

2009-01-01

This paper presents a history of seven of the more significant airborne and airborne-assisted aircraft spacing concepts that have been developed and evaluated during the past 40 years. The primary focus of the earlier concepts was on enhancing airport terminal area productivity and reducing air traffic controller workload. The more recent efforts were designed to increase runway throughput through improved aircraft spacing precision at landing. The latest concepts are aimed at supporting more fuel efficient and lower community noise operations while maintaining or increasing runway throughput efficiency.

Soil moisture mapping by ground and airborne microwave radiometry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poe, G.; Edgerton, A. T.

1972-01-01

Extensive ground-based and airborne investigations were undertaken in conjunction with laboratory dielectric measurements of soils and analytical modeling. Radiometric measurements were made in the vicinity of Phoenix, Arizona at observational wavelengths ranging from 0.81 to 21 cm. Ground experiments were conducted with a microwave field laboratory and airborne measurements were obtained from a CV-990 aircraft. Research activities were focused on establishing basic relationships between microwave emission and the distribution of moisture.

Studies on Inhibition of Intestinal Absorption of Radioactive Strontium

PubMed Central

Paul, T. M.; Edward, Deirdre Waldron; Skoryna, Stanley C.

1964-01-01

A method is reported that enables selective suppression of absorption of radioactive strontium from ingested food material, permitting calcium to remain available to the body. Studies were carried out by measuring blood levels and bone uptake of Sr89 and Ca45 at different time intervals after orogastric intubation of rats. The addition of sodium alginate, derived from brown marine algae, to the radioactive isotopes increased the overall physiological discrimination against strontium by amounts up to 60% after 24 hours. This discrimination was further increased by feeding sodium alginate mixed with standard diet in the proportions of 20:80 and 30:70. The observed ratio was reduced by administration of sodium alginate from 0.25 to 0.09. Determination of the limiting dosage in rats is restricted to the amounts which rats will consume. In the event of an inadvertent release of radioactive strontium, human subjects probably could increase their intake of alginate at will, permitting a greater effectiveness of sodium alginate than could be obtained in experimental animals. PMID:14176062

Airborne spread of foot-and-mouth disease - model intercomparison

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gloster, J; Jones, A; Redington, A

2008-09-04

Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly infectious vesicular disease of cloven-hoofed animals caused by foot-and-mouth disease virus. It spreads by direct contact between animals, by animal products (milk, meat and semen), by mechanical transfer on people or fomites and by the airborne route - with the relative importance of each mechanism depending on the particular outbreak characteristics. Over the years a number of workers have developed or adapted atmospheric dispersion models to assess the risk of foot-and-mouth disease virus spread through the air. Six of these models were compared at a workshop hosted by the Institute for Animal Health/Met Office duringmore » 2008. A number of key issues emerged from the workshop and subsequent modelling work: (1) in general all of the models predicted similar directions for 'at risk' livestock with much of the remaining differences strongly related to differences in the meteorological data used; (2) determination of an accurate sequence of events is highly important, especially if the meteorological conditions vary substantially during the virus emission period; and (3) differences in assumptions made about virus release, environmental fate, and subsequent infection can substantially modify the size and location of the downwind risk area. Close relationships have now been established between participants, which in the event of an outbreak of disease could be readily activated to supply advice or modelling support.« less

Study of Natural Radioactivity, Radon Exhalation Rate and Radiation Doses in Coal and Flyash Samples from Thermal Power Plants, India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh, Lalit Mohan; Kumar, Mukesh; Sahoo, B. K.; Sapra, B. K.; Kumar, Rajesh

Coal is one of the most important source used for electrical power generation. Its combustion part known as fly ash is used in the manufacturing of bricks, sheets, cement, land filling etc. Coal and its by-products have significant amounts of radionuclide's including uranium, thorium which is the ultimate source of the radioactive gas radon and thoron respectively. Radiation hazard from airborne emissions of coal-fired power plants have been cited as possible causes of health in environmental. Assessment of the radiation exposure from coal burning is critically dependent on the concentration of radioactive elements in coal and in the fly ash. In the present study, samples of coal and flyash were collected from Rajghat Power Plant and Badarpur Thermal Power Plant, New Delhi, India. Radon exhalation is important parameter for the estimation of radiation risk from various materials. Solis State Nuclear Track Detector based sealed Can Technique (using LR-115 type II) has been used for measurement radon exhalation rate. Also accumulation chamber based Continuous Radon Monitor and Continuous Thoron Monitor have been used for radon masss exhalation and thoron surface exhalation rate respectively. Natural radioactivity has been measured using a low level NaI(Tl) detector based on gamma ray spectrometry.

Occupational airborne exposure of the general population of a Norwegian county.

PubMed

Bakke, P; Baste, V; Hanoa, R; Gulsvik, A

1992-02-01

Occupational airborne exposure was examined for a stratified sample (N = 1275) of the general population aged 18-73 years in Hordaland County, Norway. The subjects identified all jobs of more than six months since leaving school and stated whether they had been occupationally exposed to specific agents and work processes potentially harmful to the lungs. The prevalence in the population ever having been exposed was 18% for asbestos, 9% for quartz, 5% for aluminum dust, 6% for wood dust, 12% for metal gases, 12% for welding, 9% for soldering, and 1% for hairdressing. According to occupational title (last job), 3% of the population had held a job with a high degree of airborne exposure, 26% a job with moderate exposure, and 70% a job with no airborne exposure. During their worklife both the men and the women tended to leave polluted jobs more often than unpolluted jobs. Occupational exposure to airborne pollutants potentially harmful to the lungs is widespread in this Norwegian general population.

Initial Retrieval Validation from the Joint Airborne IASI Validation Experiment (JAIVEx)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhou, Daniel K.; Liu, Xu; Smith, WIlliam L.; Larar, Allen M.; Taylor, Jonathan P.; Revercomb, Henry E.; Mango, Stephen A.; Schluessel, Peter; Calbet, Xavier

2007-01-01

The Joint Airborne IASI Validation Experiment (JAIVEx) was conducted during April 2007 mainly for validation of the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) on the MetOp satellite, but also included a strong component focusing on validation of the Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS) aboard the AQUA satellite. The cross validation of IASI and AIRS is important for the joint use of their data in the global Numerical Weather Prediction process. Initial inter-comparisons of geophysical products have been conducted from different aspects, such as using different measurements from airborne ultraspectral Fourier transform spectrometers (specifically, the NPOESS Airborne Sounder Testbed Interferometer (NAST-I) and the Scanning-High resolution Interferometer Sounder (S-HIS) aboard the NASA WB-57 aircraft), UK Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM) BAe146-301 aircraft insitu instruments, dedicated dropsondes, radiosondes, and ground based Raman Lidar. An overview of the JAIVEx retrieval validation plan and some initial results of this field campaign are presented.

Assessing Inhalation Exposures Associated with Contamination Events in Water Distribution Systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Davis, Michael J.; Janke, Robert; Taxon, Thomas N.

When a water distribution system (WDS) is contaminated, short-term inhalation exposures to airborne contaminants could occur as the result of domestic water use. The most important domestic sources of such exposures are likely to be showering and the use of aerosol-producing humidifiers, i.e., ultrasonic and impeller (cool-mist) units. A framework is presented for assessing the potential effects of short-term, system-wide inhalation exposures that could result from such activities during a contamination event. This framework utilizes available statistical models for showering frequency and duration, available exposure models for showering and humidifier use, and experimental results on both aerosol generation and themore » volatilization of chemicals during showering. New models for the times when showering occurs are developed using time-use data for the United States. Given a lack of similar models for how humidifiers are used, or the information needed to develop them, an analysis of the sensitivity of results to assumptions concerning humidifier use is presented. The framework is applied using network models for three actual WDSs. Simple models are developed for estimating upper bounds on the potential effects of system-wide inhalation exposures associated with showering and humidifier use. From a system-wide, population perspective, showering could result in significant inhalation doses of volatile chemical contaminants, and humidifier use could result in significant inhalation doses of microbial contaminants during a contamination event. From a system-wide perspective, showering is unlikely to be associated with significant doses of microbial contaminants. In conclusion, given the potential importance of humidifiers as a source of airborne contaminants during a contamination event, an improved understanding of the nature of humidifier use is warranted.« less

Assessing Inhalation Exposures Associated with Contamination Events in Water Distribution Systems

DOE PAGES

Davis, Michael J.; Janke, Robert; Taxon, Thomas N.

2016-12-08

When a water distribution system (WDS) is contaminated, short-term inhalation exposures to airborne contaminants could occur as the result of domestic water use. The most important domestic sources of such exposures are likely to be showering and the use of aerosol-producing humidifiers, i.e., ultrasonic and impeller (cool-mist) units. A framework is presented for assessing the potential effects of short-term, system-wide inhalation exposures that could result from such activities during a contamination event. This framework utilizes available statistical models for showering frequency and duration, available exposure models for showering and humidifier use, and experimental results on both aerosol generation and themore » volatilization of chemicals during showering. New models for the times when showering occurs are developed using time-use data for the United States. Given a lack of similar models for how humidifiers are used, or the information needed to develop them, an analysis of the sensitivity of results to assumptions concerning humidifier use is presented. The framework is applied using network models for three actual WDSs. Simple models are developed for estimating upper bounds on the potential effects of system-wide inhalation exposures associated with showering and humidifier use. From a system-wide, population perspective, showering could result in significant inhalation doses of volatile chemical contaminants, and humidifier use could result in significant inhalation doses of microbial contaminants during a contamination event. From a system-wide perspective, showering is unlikely to be associated with significant doses of microbial contaminants. In conclusion, given the potential importance of humidifiers as a source of airborne contaminants during a contamination event, an improved understanding of the nature of humidifier use is warranted.« less

Assessing Inhalation Exposures Associated with Contamination Events in Water Distribution Systems

PubMed Central

Davis, Michael J.; Janke, Robert; Taxon, Thomas N.

2016-01-01

When a water distribution system (WDS) is contaminated, short-term inhalation exposures to airborne contaminants could occur as the result of domestic water use. The most important domestic sources of such exposures are likely to be showering and the use of aerosol-producing humidifiers, i.e., ultrasonic and impeller (cool-mist) units. A framework is presented for assessing the potential effects of short-term, system-wide inhalation exposures that could result from such activities during a contamination event. This framework utilizes available statistical models for showering frequency and duration, available exposure models for showering and humidifier use, and experimental results on both aerosol generation and the volatilization of chemicals during showering. New models for the times when showering occurs are developed using time-use data for the United States. Given a lack of similar models for how humidifiers are used, or the information needed to develop them, an analysis of the sensitivity of results to assumptions concerning humidifier use is presented. The framework is applied using network models for three actual WDSs. Simple models are developed for estimating upper bounds on the potential effects of system-wide inhalation exposures associated with showering and humidifier use. From a system-wide, population perspective, showering could result in significant inhalation doses of volatile chemical contaminants, and humidifier use could result in significant inhalation doses of microbial contaminants during a contamination event. From a system-wide perspective, showering is unlikely to be associated with significant doses of microbial contaminants. Given the potential importance of humidifiers as a source of airborne contaminants during a contamination event, an improved understanding of the nature of humidifier use is warranted. PMID:27930709

Aerosol Optical Depth Measurements by Airborne Sun Photometer in SOLVE II: Comparisons to SAGE III, POAM III and Airborne Spectrometer Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Russell, P.; Livingston, J.; Schmid, B.; Eilers, J.; Kolyer, R.; Redemann, J.; Ramirez, S.; Yee, J-H.; Swartz, W.; Shetter, R.

2004-01-01

The 14-channel NASA Ames Airborne Tracking Sunphotometer (AATS-14) measured solar-beam transmission on the NASA DC-8 during the Second SAGE III Ozone Loss and Validation Experiment (SOLVE II). This paper presents AATS-14 results for multiwavelength aerosol optical depth (AOD), including its spatial structure and comparisons to results from two satellite sensors and another DC-8 instrument. These are the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment III (SAGE III), the Polar Ozone and Aerosol Measurement III (POAM III) and the Direct beam Irradiance Airborne Spectrometer (DIAS).

Real-time simulation of an airborne radar for overwater approaches

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Karmarkar, J.; Clark, D.

1982-01-01

Software developed to provide a real time simulation of an airborne radar for overwater approaches to oil rig platforms is documented. The simulation is used to study advanced concepts for enhancement of airborne radar approaches (ARA) in order to reduce crew workload, improve approach tracking precision, and reduce weather minimums. ARA's are currently used for offshore helicopter operations to and from oil rigs.

Airborne incidents : an econometric analysis of severity, December 31, 2014 : technical summary

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-12-31

This is a technical summary of the Airborne Incidents: An Econometric Analysis of Severity main report. : Airborne loss of separation incidents occur when an aircraft breaches the defined separation limit (vertical and/or horizontal) with anoth...

The 2011 June 23 Stellar Occultation by Pluto: Airborne and Ground Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Person, M. J.; Dunham, E. W.; Bosh, A. S.; Levine, S. E.; Gulbis, A. A. S.; Zangari, A. M.; Zuluaga, C. A.; Pasachoff, J. M.; Babcock, B. A.; Pandey, S.; Amrhein, D.; Sallum, S.; Tholen, D. J.; Collins, P.; Bida, T.; Taylor, B.; Bright, L.; Wolf, J.; Meyer, A.; Pfueller, E.; Wiedemann, M.; Roeser, H.-P.; Lucas, R.; Kakkala, M.; Ciotti, J.; Plunkett, S.; Hiraoka, N.; Best, W.; Pilger, E. J.; Micheli, M.; Springmann, A.; Hicks, M.; Thackeray, B.; Emery, J. P.; Tilleman, T.; Harris, H.; Sheppard, S.; Rapoport, S.; Ritchie, I.; Pearson, M.; Mattingly, A.; Brimacombe, J.; Gault, D.; Jones, R.; Nolthenius, R.; Broughton, J.; Barry, T.

2013-10-01

On 2011 June 23, stellar occultations by both Pluto (this work) and Charon (future analysis) were observed from numerous ground stations as well as the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). This first airborne occultation observation since 1995 with the Kuiper Airborne Observatory resulted in the best occultation chords recorded for the event, in three visible wavelength bands. The data obtained from SOFIA are combined with chords obtained from the ground at the IRTF, the U.S. Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station, and Leeward Community College to give the detailed state of the Pluto-Charon system at the time of the event with a focus on Pluto's atmosphere. The data show a return to the distinct upper and lower atmospheric regions with a knee or kink in the light curve separating them as was observed in 1988, rather than the smoothly transitioning bowl-shaped light curves of recent years. The upper atmosphere is analyzed by fitting a model to all of the light curves, resulting in a half-light radius of 1288 ± 1 km. The lower atmosphere is analyzed using two different methods to provide results under the differing assumptions of particulate haze and a strong thermal gradient as causes for the lower atmospheric diminution of flux. These results are compared with those from past occultations to provide a picture of Pluto's evolving atmosphere. Regardless of which lower atmospheric structure is assumed, results indicate that this part of the atmosphere evolves on short timescales with results changing the light curve structures between 1988 and 2006, and then reverting these changes in 2011 though at significantly higher pressures. Throughout these changes, the upper atmosphere remains remarkably stable in structure, again except for the overall pressure changes. No evidence of onset of atmospheric collapse predicted by frost migration models is seen, and the atmosphere appears to be remaining at a stable pressure level, suggesting it should persist

THE 2011 JUNE 23 STELLAR OCCULTATION BY PLUTO: AIRBORNE AND GROUND OBSERVATIONS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Person, M. J.; Bosh, A. S.; Levine, S. E.

On 2011 June 23, stellar occultations by both Pluto (this work) and Charon (future analysis) were observed from numerous ground stations as well as the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). This first airborne occultation observation since 1995 with the Kuiper Airborne Observatory resulted in the best occultation chords recorded for the event, in three visible wavelength bands. The data obtained from SOFIA are combined with chords obtained from the ground at the IRTF, the U.S. Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station, and Leeward Community College to give the detailed state of the Pluto-Charon system at the time of the event withmore » a focus on Pluto's atmosphere. The data show a return to the distinct upper and lower atmospheric regions with a knee or kink in the light curve separating them as was observed in 1988, rather than the smoothly transitioning bowl-shaped light curves of recent years. The upper atmosphere is analyzed by fitting a model to all of the light curves, resulting in a half-light radius of 1288 {+-} 1 km. The lower atmosphere is analyzed using two different methods to provide results under the differing assumptions of particulate haze and a strong thermal gradient as causes for the lower atmospheric diminution of flux. These results are compared with those from past occultations to provide a picture of Pluto's evolving atmosphere. Regardless of which lower atmospheric structure is assumed, results indicate that this part of the atmosphere evolves on short timescales with results changing the light curve structures between 1988 and 2006, and then reverting these changes in 2011 though at significantly higher pressures. Throughout these changes, the upper atmosphere remains remarkably stable in structure, again except for the overall pressure changes. No evidence of onset of atmospheric collapse predicted by frost migration models is seen, and the atmosphere appears to be remaining at a stable pressure level, suggesting it

Airborne forest fire research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mattingly, G. S.

1974-01-01

The research relating to airborne fire fighting systems is reviewed to provide NASA/Langley Research Center with current information on the use of aircraft in forest fire operations, and to identify research requirements for future operations. A literature survey, interview of forest fire service personnel, analysis and synthesis of data from research reports and independent conclusions, and recommendations for future NASA-LRC programs are included.

NASA's Airborne Astronomy Program - Lessons For SOFIA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erickson, Edwin F.

2007-07-01

Airborne astronomy was pioneered and has evolved at NASA Ames Research Center near San Francisco, California, since 1965. Nowhere else in the world has a similar program been implemented. Its many unique features deserve description, especially for the benefit of planning the operation of SOFIA, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, and in particular since NASA Headquarters’ recent decision to base SOFIA operations at Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards, California instead of at Ames. The history of Ames’ airborne astronomy program is briefly summarized. Discussed in more detail are the operations and organization of the 21-year Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO) program, which provide important lessons for SOFIA. The KAO program is our best prototype for planning effective SOFIA operations. Principal features of the KAO program which should be retained on SOFIA are: unique science, innovative new science instruments and technologies, training of young scientists, an effective education and public outreach program, flexibility, continuous improvement, and efficient operations with a lean, well integrated team. KAO program features which should be improved upon with SOFIA are: (1) a management structure that is dedicated primarily to safely maximizing scientific productivity for the resources available, headed by a scientist who is the observatory director, and (2) stimuli to assure prompt distribution and accessibility of data to the scientific community. These and other recommendations were recorded by the SOFIA Science Working Group in 1995, when the KAO was decommissioned to start work on SOFIA. Further operational and organizational factors contributing to the success of the KAO program are described. Their incorporation into SOFIA operations will help assure the success of this new airborne observatory. SOFIA is supported by NASA in the U.S. and DLR (the German Aerospace Center) in Germany.

MIDWEST PROGRAM ON AIRBORNE TELEVISION INSTRUCTION -- A REGIONAL EXPLORATION IN EDUCATION.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

IVEY, JOHN E.; AND OTHERS

STARTING IN FEBRUARY 1961, THE MIDWEST PROGRAM ON AIRBORNE TELEVISION INSTRUCTION (MPATI) TRANSMITTED COURSES IN FOREIGN LANGUAGES, SCIENCE, ARITHMETIC, ART, THE HUMANITIES, MUSIC, SOCIAL STUDIES, AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS TO 18 SCHOOLS IN THE MIDWEST. THE AIRBORNE TELECAST OPERATED OVER NORTH CENTRAL INDIANA AND TRANSMITTED COURSES OVER AN AREA…

Feasibility of airborne detection of laser-induced fluorescence emissions from green terrestrial plants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoge, F. E.; Swift, R. N.; Yungel, J. K.

1983-01-01

The present investigation provides a demonstration of the feasibility of the airborne detection of the laser-induced fluorescence spectral emissions from living terrestrial grasses, shrubs, and trees using existing levels of lidar technology. Airborne studies were performed to ascertain system requirements necessary to detect laser-induced fluorescence from living terrestrial plants, to assess the practical acquisition of useful single-shot laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) waveforms over vegetative canopies, and to determine the comparative suitability of laser system, airborne platform, and terrestrial environmental parameters. The field experiment was conducted on May 3, 1982, over the northern portion of Wallops Island, VA. Attention is given to airborne lidar results and the description of laboratory investigations.

Can airborne ultrasound monitor bubble size in chocolate?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watson, N.; Hazlehurst, T.; Povey, M.; Vieira, J.; Sundara, R.; Sandoz, J.-P.

2014-04-01

Aerated chocolate products consist of solid chocolate with the inclusion of bubbles and are a popular consumer product in many countries. The volume fraction and size distribution of the bubbles has an effect on their sensory properties and manufacturing cost. For these reasons it is important to have an online real time process monitoring system capable of measuring their bubble size distribution. As these products are eaten by consumers it is desirable that the monitoring system is non contact to avoid food contaminations. In this work we assess the feasibility of using an airborne ultrasound system to monitor the bubble size distribution in aerated chocolate bars. The experimental results from the airborne acoustic experiments were compared with theoretical results for known bubble size distributions using COMSOL Multiphysics. This combined experimental and theoretical approach is used to develop a greater understanding of how ultrasound propagates through aerated chocolate and to assess the feasibility of using airborne ultrasound to monitor bubble size distribution in these systems. The results indicated that a smaller bubble size distribution would result in an increase in attenuation through the product.

Airborne trace contaminants of possible interest in CELSS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garavelli, J. S.

1986-01-01

One design goal of Closed Ecological Life Support Systems (CELSS) for long duration space missions is to maintain an atmosphere which is healthy for all the desirable biological species and not deleterious to any of the mechanical components in that atmosphere. CELESS design must take into account the interactions of at least six major components; (1) humans and animals, (2) higher plants, (3) microalgae, (4) bacteria and fungi, (5) the waste processing system, and (6) other mechanical systems. Each of these major components can be both a source and a target of airborne trace contaminants in a CELSS. A range of possible airborne trace contaminants is discussed within a chemical classification scheme. These contaminants are analyzed with respect to their probable sources among the six major components and their potential effects on those components. Data on airborne chemical contaminants detected in shuttle missions is presented along with this analysis. The observed concentrations of several classes of compounds, including hydrocarbons, halocarbons, halosilanes, amines and nitrogen oxides, are considered with respect to the problems which they present to CELSS.

Microbial Transformation of Dicarboxylic Acids by Airborne Bacteria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cote, V.; Ariya, P.

2004-05-01

Organic aerosols are assumed to be key players in driving climatic changes and can cause health problems for human. Dicarboxylic acids (DCA) include a large fraction of identified important class of organic aerosols. In addition to direct sources, DCA are partly formed as the result of ozonolysis of terpenes and cyclic alkenes. Previous works in our laboratory show that airborne fungi collected from urban and suburban air play an important role in the transformation of severals organic aerosols such as DCA. Our present study focuses on understanding the potential chemical transformation induced by airborne bacteria and on identification of the transformation products. Airborne bacteria have been collected using a biosampler and cultivated on a solid media. Each bacterial colony is being tested by HPLC for their ability to transform DCA in liquid cultures. Also, GC-MS, SPME and NMR are being used to identify the metabolites generated from the transformation. We will present our preliminary results and we will discuss the application of bacterial activities on the chemical transformation of organics in atmosphere.

Airborne Proximity Warning Instrument Laboratory Tests

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1977-01-01

An Airborne Proximity Warning Instrument (APWI) designed and manufactured by Rock Avionics, New York, was subjected to a short laboratory test at the Transportation Systems Center to determine the suitability of this product for further evaluation as...

Airborne laser scanning for high-resolution mapping of Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Csatho, Bea; Schenk, Toni; Krabill, William; Wilson, Terry; Lyons, William; McKenzie, Garry; Hallam, Cheryl; Manizade, Serdar; Paulsen, Timothy

In order to evaluate the potential of airborne laser scanning for topographic mapping in Antarctica and to establish calibration/validation sites for NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) altimeter mission, NASA, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) joined forces to collect high-resolution airborne laser scanning data.In a two-week campaign during the 2001-2002 austral summer, NASA's Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) system was used to collect data over several sites in the McMurdo Sound area of Antarctica (Figure 1a). From the recorded signals, NASA computed laser points and The Ohio State University (OSU) completed the elaborate computation/verification of high-resolution Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) in 2003. This article reports about the DEM generation and some exemplary results from scientists using the geomorphologic information from the DEMs during the 2003-2004 field season.

Tropospheric and Airborne Emission Spectrometers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glavich, Thomas; Beer, Reinhard

1996-01-01

X This paper describes the development of two related instruments, the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) and the Airborne Emission Spectrometer (AES). Both instruments are infrared imaging Fourier Transform Spectrometers, used for measuring the state of the lower atmosphere, and in particular the measurement of ozone and ozone sources and sinks.

Airborne organophosphate pesticides drift in Mediterranean climate: The importance of secondary drift

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zivan, Ohad; Segal-Rosenheimer, Michal; Dubowski, Yael

2016-02-01

Pesticide application is a short-term air-pollution episode with near and far field effects due to atmospheric drift. In order to better evaluate resulting air concentrations in nearby communities following pesticide application, measurements of airborne pesticides were conducted at ∼70 m from field edge. This was done following three different application events of the organophosphate pesticide Chlorpyrifos in a persimmon orchard. Complementary information on larger spatial scale was obtained using CALPUFF modeling in which application and meteorological data was used to better evaluate dispersion patterns. Measurements indicated high airborne concentrations during application hours (few μg m-3 for 8 h average), which dropped to tens of ng m-3 in the following days. Measured atmospheric concentrations show that secondary drift (i.e., post-application drift) involves significant loads of pesticides and hence should not be ignored in exposure considerations. Furthermore, CALPUFF modeling revealed the complex dispersion pattern when weak winds prevailed, and showed that during the 24 h after application air concentrations reached levels above the hourly Texas effect screening level (0.1 μg m-3). Interestingly, weak winds on the night after application resulted in a secondary peak in measured and modeled air concentrations. Long exposure time (when secondary drift is considered) and concentrations measured following such common air-assisted orchard application, suggest pesticide drift may have health repercussions that are currently unknown, and emphasize the need for further epidemiological studies.

Airborne Astronomy Symposium. A symposium commemorating the tenth anniversary of operations of the Kuiper Airborne Observatory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thronson, H. A., Jr. (Editor); Erickson, E. F. (Editor)

1984-01-01

Airborne infrared astronomy is discussed with respect to observations of the solar system, stars, star formation, and the interstellar medium. Far infrared characteristics of the Milky Way, its center, and other galaxies are considered. The instrumentation associated with IR astronomy is addressed.

All-Fiber Airborne Coherent Doppler Lidar to Measure Wind Profiles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Jiqiao; Zhu, Xiaopeng; Diao, Weifeng; Zhang, Xin; Liu, Yuan; Bi, Decang; Jiang, Liyuan; Shi, Wei; Zhu, Xiaolei; Chen, Weibiao

2016-06-01

An all-fiber airborne pulsed coherent Doppler lidar (CDL) prototype at 1.54μm is developed to measure wind profiles in the lower troposphere layer. The all-fiber single frequency pulsed laser is operated with pulse energy of 300μJ, pulse width of 400ns and pulse repetition rate of 10kHz. To the best of our knowledge, it is the highest pulse energy of all-fiber eye-safe single frequency laser that is used in airborne coherent wind lidar. The telescope optical diameter of monostatic lidar is 100 mm. Velocity-Azimuth-Display (VAD) scanning is implemented with 20 degrees elevation angle in 8 different azimuths. Real-time signal processing board is developed to acquire and process the heterodyne mixing signal with 10000 pulses spectra accumulated every second. Wind profiles are obtained every 20 seconds. Several experiments are implemented to evaluate the performance of the lidar. We have carried out airborne wind lidar experiments successfully, and the wind profiles are compared with aerological theodolite and ground based wind lidar. Wind speed standard error of less than 0.4m/s is shown between airborne wind lidar and balloon aerological theodolite.

Mismatch in aeroallergens and airborne grass pollen concentrations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plaza, M. P.; Alcázar, P.; Hernández-Ceballos, M. A.; Galán, C.

2016-11-01

An accurate estimation of the allergen concentration in the atmosphere is essential for allergy sufferers. The major cause of pollinosis all over Europe is due to grass pollen and Phl p 5 has the highest rates of sensitization (>50%) in patients with grass pollen-induced allergy. However, recent research has shown that airborne pollen does not always offer a clear indicator of exposure to aeroallergens. This study aims to evaluate relations between airborne grass pollen and Phl p 5 concentrations in Córdoba (southern Spain) and to study how meteorological parameters influence these atmospheric records. Monitoring was carried out from 2012 to 2014. Hirst-type volumetric spore trap was used for pollen collection, following the protocol recommended by the Spanish Aerobiology Network (REA). Aeroallergen sampling was performed using a low-volume cyclone sampler, and allergenic particles were quantified by ELISA assay. Besides, the influence of main meteorological factors on local airborne pollen and allergen concentrations was surveyed. A significant correlation was observed between grass pollen and Phl p 5 allergen concentrations during the pollen season, but with some sporadic discrepancy episodes. The cumulative annual Pollen Index also varied considerably. A significant correlation has been obtained between airborne pollen and minimum temperature, relative humidity and precipitation, during the three studied years. However, there is no clear relationship between allergens and weather variables. Our findings suggest that the correlation between grass pollen and aeroallergen Phl p 5 concentrations varies from year-to-year probably related to a complex interplay of meteorological variables.

WHICH AIRBORNE CONTAMINANTS POSE THE GREATEST RISK TO WESTERN NATIONAL PARKS (USA)?

EPA Science Inventory

The Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment Project (WACAP) was initiated in 2002 by the National Park Service to determine if airborne contaminants where having an impact on remote western ecosystems. Multiple sample media (snow, water, sediment, fish and terrestrial vegetatio...

Relationship between airborne pollen count and treatment outcome in Japanese cedar pollinosis patients.

PubMed

Takasaki, Kenji; Enatsu, Kaori; Kumagami, Hidetaka; Takahashi, Haruo

2009-05-01

In Japan, information on daily Japanese cedar pollen counts is made public during pollen season. If symptom severity and treatment outcome are predictable according to these pollen counts, management of seasonal allergic rhinitis may become more precise. The aims of the study were to evaluate the relationship between airborne pollen counts, symptom severity and treatment outcome in Japanese cedar pollinosis patients. In the randomized study, patients with moderate to most severe Japanese pollinosis were treated with fexofenadine (60 mg BD) or fexofenadine and nasal corticosteroids for 2 weeks. During the same period daily airborne pollen counts were measured. A total of 105 adult patients were enrolled. No difference of treatment efficacy was seen among groups. Detailed results of efficacy and safety were previously described elsewhere. In univariate analysis, the mean cumulative amount of airborne pollen exposure for 4 days prior to the study tended to affect symptom severity (P = 0.053) and the mean cumulative amount of airborne pollen during the treatment period tended to show difference among five treatment outcome categories (P = 0.066). In multivariate analysis, the mean cumulative amount of airborne pollen exposure for 4 days prior to the study was identified as the only significant factor of symptom severity (P = 0.0327) and cumulative amount of airborne pollen during the treatment period (P = 0.027) and allergic history (P = 0.027) were significant factors of treatment outcomes. No serious adverse effect was reported during the study. The amount of airborne pollen may be predictive of both symptom severity and treatment outcome.

Airborne gravity measurement over sea-ice: The western Weddel Sea

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Brozena, J.; Peters, M.; LaBrecque, J.

1990-10-01

An airborne gravity study of the western Weddel Sea, east of the Antarctic Peninsula, has shown that floating pack-ice provides a useful radar altimetric reference surface for altitude and vertical acceleration corrections surface for alititude and vertical acceleration corrections to airborne gravimetry. Airborne gravimetry provides an important alternative to satellite altimetry for the sea-ice covered regions of the world since satellite alimeters are not designed or intended to provide accurate geoidal heights in areas where significant sea-ice is present within the radar footprint. Errors in radar corrected airborne gravimetry are primarily sensitive to the variations in the second derivative ofmore » the sea-ice reference surface in the frequency pass-band of interest. With the exception of imbedded icebergs the second derivative of the pack-ice surface closely approximates that of the mean sea-level surface at wavelengths > 10-20 km. With the airborne method the percentage of ice coverage, the mixture of first and multi-year ice and the existence of leads and pressure ridges prove to be unimportant in determining gravity anomalies at scales of geophysical and geodetic interest, provided that the ice is floating and not grounded. In the Weddell study an analysis of 85 crosstrack miss-ties distributed over 25 data tracks yields an rms error of 2.2 mGals. Significant structural anomalies including the continental shelf and offsets and lineations interpreted as fracture zones recording the early spreading directions within the Weddell Sea are observed in the gravity map.« less

Comparative performance of three sampling techniques to detect airborne Salmonella species in poultry farms.

PubMed

Adell, Elisa; Moset, Verónica; Zhao, Yang; Jiménez-Belenguer, Ana; Cerisuelo, Alba; Cambra-López, María

2014-01-01

Sampling techniques to detect airborne Salmonella species (spp.) in two pilot scale broiler houses were compared. Broilers were inoculated at seven days of age with a marked strain of Salmonella enteritidis. The rearing cycle lasted 42 days during the summer. Airborne Salmonella spp. were sampled weekly using impaction, gravitational settling, and impingement techniques. Additionally, Salmonella spp. were sampled on feeders, drinkers, walls, and in the litter. Environmental conditions (temperature, relative humidity, and airborne particulate matter (PM) concentration) were monitored during the rearing cycle. The presence of Salmonella spp. was determined by culture-dependent and molecular methods. No cultivable Salmonella spp. were recovered from the poultry houses' surfaces, the litter, or the air before inoculation. After inoculation, cultivable Salmonella spp. were recovered from the surfaces and in the litter. Airborne cultivable Salmonella spp. Were detected using impaction and gravitational settling one or two weeks after the detection of Salmonella spp. in the litter. No cultivable Salmonella spp. were recovered using impingement based on culture-dependent techniques. At low airborne concentrations, the use of impingement for the quantification or detection of cultivable airborne Salmonella spp. is not recommended. In these cases, a combination of culture-dependent and culture-independent methods is recommended. These data are valuable to improve current measures to control the transmission of pathogens in livestock environments and for optimising the sampling and detection of airborne Salmonella spp. in practical conditions.

Hardware Design for a Fixed-Wing Airborne Gravity Measurement System

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-12-22

worldwide navigation system currently available that is sufficiently accurate for deter- mining Eotvos correction in airborne gravimetry is the Global...better in defining the strength of precipitation . The radar display is compact enough to be mounted on the cockpit, thus giving the pilots better...of the proposed AGMS version 3 MISCELLANEOUS AIRCRAFT CONSIDERATIONS Autopilot One of the most important considerations in airborne gravimetry is

Development of unauthorized airborne emission source identification procedure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shtripling, L. O.; Bazhenov, V. V.; Varakina, N. S.; Kupriyanova, N. P.

2018-01-01

The paper presents the procedure for searching sources of unauthorized airborne emissions. To make reasonable regulation decisions on airborne pollutant emissions and to ensure the environmental safety of population, the procedure provides for the determination of a pollutant mass emission value from the source being the cause of high pollution level and the search of a previously unrecognized contamination source in a specified area. To determine the true value of mass emission from the source, the minimum of the mean-root-square mismatch criterion between the computed and measured pollutant concentration in the given location is used.

DETECTION AND IDENTIFICATION OF TOXIC AIR POLLUTANTS USING AIRBORNE LWIR HYPERSPECTRAL IMAGING

EPA Science Inventory

Airborne longwave infrared LWIR) hyperspectral imagery was utilized to detect and identify gaseous chemical release plumes at sites in sourthern Texzas. The Airborne Hysperspectral Imager (AHI), developed by the University of Hawaii was flown over a petrochemical facility and a ...

Wide-field airborne laser diode array illuminator: demonstration results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suiter, H. R.; Holloway, J. H., Jr.; Tinsley, K. R.; Pham, C. N.; Kloess, E. C., III; Witherspoon, N. H.; Stetson, S.; Crosby, F.; Nevis, A.; McCarley, K. A.; Seales, T. C.

2005-06-01

The Airborne Littoral Reconnaissance Technology (ALRT) program has successfully demonstrated the Wide-Field Airborne Laser Diode Array Illuminator (ALDAI-W). This illuminator is designed to illuminate a large area from the air with limited power, weight, and volume. A detection system, of which the ALDAI-W is a central portion, is capable of detecting surface-laid minefields in absolute darkness, extending the allowed mission times to night operations. This will be an overview report, giving processing results and suggested paths for additional development.

Sterilizing effects of high-intensity airborne sonic and ultrasonic waves.

PubMed

Pisano, M A; Boucher, M G; Alcamo, I E

1966-09-01

The lethal effects of high-intensity airborne sonic (9.9 kc/sec) and ultrasonic waves (30.4 kc/sec) on spores of Bacillus subtilis var. niger ATCC 9372 were determined. The spores, which were deposited on filter-paper strips, were exposed to sound waves for periods varying from 1 to 8 hr, at a temperature of 40 C and a relative humidity of 40%. Significant reductions in the viable counts of spores exposed to airborne sonic or ultrasonic irradiations were obtained. The antibacterial activity of airborne sound waves varied with the sound intensity level, the period of irradiation, and the distance of the sample from the sound source. At similar intensity levels, the amplitude of motion of the sound waves appeared to be a factor in acoustic sterilization.

DARTAB: a program to combine airborne radionuclide environmental exposure data with dosimetric and health effects data to generate tabulations of predicted health impacts

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Begovich, C.L.; Eckerman, K.F.; Schlatter, E.C.

1981-08-01

The DARTAB computer code combines radionuclide environmental exposure data with dosimetric and health effects data to generate tabulations of the predicted impact of radioactive airborne effluents. DARTAB is independent of the environmental transport code used to generate the environmental exposure data and the codes used to produce the dosimetric and health effects data. Therefore human dose and risk calculations need not be added to every environmental transport code. Options are included in DARTAB to permit the user to request tabulations by various topics (e.g., cancer site, exposure pathway, etc.) to facilitate characterization of the human health impacts of the effluents.more » The DARTAB code was written at ORNL for the US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Radiation Programs.« less

Global risk of radioactive fallout after nuclear reactor accidents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lelieveld, J.; Kunkel, D.; Lawrence, M. G.

2011-11-01

Reactor core meltdowns of nuclear power plants are rare, yet the consequences are catastrophic. But what is meant by "rare"? And what can be learned from the Chernobyl and Fukushima incidents? Here we assess the risk of exposure to radioactivity due to atmospheric dispersion of gases and particles following severe nuclear accidents, using particulate 137Cs and gaseous 131I as proxies for the fallout. It appears that previously the occurrence of major accidents and the risks of radioactive contamination have been underestimated. Using a global model of the atmosphere we compute that on average, in the event of a core melt of any nuclear power plant worldwide, more than 90% of emitted 137Cs would be transported beyond 50km and about 50% beyond 1000 km distance. This corroborates that such accidents have large-scale and trans-boundary impacts. Although the emission strengths and atmospheric removal processes of 137Cs and 131I are quite different, the radioactive contamination patterns over land and the human deposition exposure are computed to be similar. High human exposure risks occur around reactors in densely populated regions, notably in southern Asia where a core melt can subject 55 million people to radioactive contamination. The recent decision by Germany to phase out its nuclear reactors will reduce the national risk, though a large risk will still remain from the reactors in neighbouring countries.

Global risk of radioactive fallout after nuclear reactor accidents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kunkel, D.; Lelieveld, J.; Lawrence, M. G.

2012-04-01

Reactor core meltdowns of nuclear power plants are rare, yet the consequences are catastrophic. But what is meant by "rare"? And what can be learned from the Chernobyl and Fukushima incidents? Here we assess the risk of exposure to radioactivity due to atmospheric dispersion of gases and particles following severe nuclear accidents, using particulate 137Cs and gaseous 131I as proxies for the fallout. It appears that previously the occurrence of major accidents and the risks of radioactive contamination have been underestimated. Using a global model of the atmosphere we compute that on average, in the event of a core melt of any nuclear power plant worldwide, more than 90 % of emitted 137Cs would be transported beyond 50 km and about 50 % beyond 1000 km distance. This corroborates that such accidents have large-scale and trans-boundary impacts. Although the emission strengths and atmospheric removal processes of 137Cs and 131I are quite different, the radioactive contamination patterns over land and the human deposition exposure are computed to be similar. High human exposure risks occur around reactors in densely populated regions, notably in southern Asia where a core melt can subject 55 million people to radioactive contamination. The recent decision by Germany to phase out its nuclear reactors will reduce the national risk, though a large risk will still remain from the reactors in neighbouring countries.

Very-High-Frequency Aerosat Airborne Terminal

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1977-12-01

This report summarizes the result of a study aimed at defining the airborne VHF terminal for the experimental AEROSAT program. The system consists of a 22-channel VHF transceiver for full-duplex operation. Provisions are made for voice, data, and sur...

Radioactive waste management in France: safety demonstration fundamentals.

PubMed

Ouzounian, G; Voinis, S; Boissier, F

2012-01-01

The main challenge in development of the safety case for deep geological disposal is associated with the long periods of time over which high- and intermediate-level long-lived wastes remain hazardous. A wide range of events and processes may occur over hundreds of thousands of years. These events and processes are characterised by specific timescales. For example, the timescale for heat generation is much shorter than any geological timescale. Therefore, to reach a high level of reliability in the safety case, it is essential to have a thorough understanding of the sequence of events and processes likely to occur over the lifetime of the repository. It then becomes possible to assess the capability of the repository to fulfil its safety functions. However, due to the long periods of time and the complexity of the events and processes likely to occur, uncertainties related to all processes, data, and models need to be understood and addressed. Assessment is required over the lifetime of the radionuclides contained in the radioactive waste. Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Typical Applications of Airborne LIDAR Technolagy in Geological Investigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, X.; Xiao, C.

2018-05-01

The technology of airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR), also referred to as Airborne Laser Scanning, is widely used for high-resolution topographic data acquisition (even under forest cover) with sub-meter planimetric and vertical accuracy. This contribution constructs the real digital terrain model to provide the direct observation data for the landscape analysis in geological domains. Based on the advantage of LiDAR, the authors mainly deal with the applications of LiDAR data to such fields as surface land collapse, landslide and fault structure extraction. The review conclusion shows that airborne LiDAR technology is becoming an indispensable tool for above mentioned issues, especially in the local and large scale investigations of micro-topography. The technology not only can identify the surface collapse, landslide boundary and subtle faulted landform, but also be able to extract the filling parameters of collapsed surface, the geomorphic parameters of landslide stability evaluation and cracks. This technology has extensive prospect of applications in geological investigation.

NEON Airborne Remote Sensing of Terrestrial Ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kampe, T. U.; Leisso, N.; Krause, K.; Karpowicz, B. M.

2012-12-01

The National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) is the continental-scale research platform that will collect information on ecosystems across the United States to advance our understanding and ability to forecast environmental change at the continental scale. One of NEON's observing systems, the Airborne Observation Platform (AOP), will fly an instrument suite consisting of a high-fidelity visible-to-shortwave infrared imaging spectrometer, a full waveform small footprint LiDAR, and a high-resolution digital camera on a low-altitude aircraft platform. NEON AOP is focused on acquiring data on several terrestrial Essential Climate Variables including bioclimate, biodiversity, biogeochemistry, and land use products. These variables are collected throughout a network of 60 sites across the Continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico via ground-based and airborne measurements. Airborne remote sensing plays a critical role by providing measurements at the scale of individual shrubs and larger plants over hundreds of square kilometers. The NEON AOP plays the role of bridging the spatial scales from that of individual organisms and stands to the scale of satellite-based remote sensing. NEON is building 3 airborne systems to facilitate the routine coverage of NEON sites and provide the capacity to respond to investigator requests for specific projects. The first NEON imaging spectrometer, a next-generation VSWIR instrument, was recently delivered to NEON by JPL. This instrument has been integrated with a small-footprint waveform LiDAR on the first NEON airborne platform (AOP-1). A series of AOP-1 test flights were conducted during the first year of NEON's construction phase. The goal of these flights was to test out instrument functionality and performance, exercise remote sensing collection protocols, and provide provisional data for algorithm and data product validation. These test flights focused the following questions: What is the optimal remote

Subsetting Tools for Enabling Easy Access to International Airborne Chemistry Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Northup, E. A.; Chen, G.; Quam, B. M.; Beach, A. L., III; Silverman, M. L.; Early, A. B.

2017-12-01

In response to the Research Opportunities in Earth and Space Science (ROSES) 2015 release announcement for Advancing Collaborative Connections for Earth System Science (ACCESS), researchers at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) proposed to extend the capabilities of the existing Toolsets for Airborne Data (TAD) to include subsetting functionality to allow for easier access to international airborne field campaign data. Airborne field studies are commonly used to gain a detailed understanding of atmospheric processes for scientific research on international climate change and air quality issues. To accommodate the rigorous process for manipulating airborne field study chemistry data, and to lessen barriers for researchers, TAD was created with the ability to geolocate data from various sources measured on different time scales from a single flight. The analysis of airborne chemistry data typically requires data subsetting, which can be challenging and resource-intensive for end users. In an effort to streamline this process, new data subsetting features and updates to the current database model will be added to the TAD toolset. These will include two subsetters: temporal and spatial, and vertical profile. The temporal and spatial subsetter will allow users to both focus on data from a specific location and/or time period. The vertical profile subsetter will retrieve data collected during an individual aircraft ascent or descent spiral. These new web-based tools will allow for automation of the typically labor-intensive manual data subsetting process, which will provide users with data tailored to their specific research interests. The system has been designed to allow for new in-situ airborne missions to be added as they become available, with only minor pre-processing required. The development of these enhancements will be discussed in this presentation.

Integrated micro-optofluidic platform for real-time detection of airborne microorganisms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Jeongan; Kang, Miran; Jung, Jae Hee

2015-11-01

We demonstrate an integrated micro-optofluidic platform for real-time, continuous detection and quantification of airborne microorganisms. Measurements of the fluorescence and light scattering from single particles in a microfluidic channel are used to determine the total particle number concentration and the microorganism number concentration in real-time. The system performance is examined by evaluating standard particle measurements with various sample flow rates and the ratios of fluorescent to non-fluorescent particles. To apply this method to real-time detection of airborne microorganisms, airborne Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, and Staphylococcus epidermidis cells were introduced into the micro-optofluidic platform via bioaerosol generation, and a liquid-type particle collection setup was used. We demonstrate successful discrimination of SYTO82-dyed fluorescent bacterial cells from other residue particles in a continuous and real-time manner. In comparison with traditional microscopy cell counting and colony culture methods, this micro-optofluidic platform is not only more accurate in terms of the detection efficiency for airborne microorganisms but it also provides additional information on the total particle number concentration.

Integrated micro-optofluidic platform for real-time detection of airborne microorganisms

PubMed Central

Choi, Jeongan; Kang, Miran; Jung, Jae Hee

2015-01-01

We demonstrate an integrated micro-optofluidic platform for real-time, continuous detection and quantification of airborne microorganisms. Measurements of the fluorescence and light scattering from single particles in a microfluidic channel are used to determine the total particle number concentration and the microorganism number concentration in real-time. The system performance is examined by evaluating standard particle measurements with various sample flow rates and the ratios of fluorescent to non-fluorescent particles. To apply this method to real-time detection of airborne microorganisms, airborne Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, and Staphylococcus epidermidis cells were introduced into the micro-optofluidic platform via bioaerosol generation, and a liquid-type particle collection setup was used. We demonstrate successful discrimination of SYTO82-dyed fluorescent bacterial cells from other residue particles in a continuous and real-time manner. In comparison with traditional microscopy cell counting and colony culture methods, this micro-optofluidic platform is not only more accurate in terms of the detection efficiency for airborne microorganisms but it also provides additional information on the total particle number concentration. PMID:26522006

Airborne volcanic plume measurements using a FTIR spectrometer, Kilauea volcano, Hawaii

USGS Publications Warehouse

McGee, K.A.; Gerlach, T.M.

1998-01-01

A prototype closed-path Fourier transform infrared spectrometer system (FTIK), operating from battery power and with a Stirling engine microcooler for detector cooling, was successfully used for airborne measurements of sulfur dioxide at Kilauea volcano. Airborne profiles of the volcanic plume emanating from the erupting Pu'u 'O'o vent on the East Rift of Kilauea revealed levels of nearly 3 ppm SO2 in the core of the plume. An emission rate of 2,160 metric tons per day of sulfur dioxide was calculated from the FTIR data, which agrees closely with simultaneous measurements by a correlation spectrometer (COSPEC). The rapid spatial sampling possible from an airborne platform distinguishes the methodology described here from previous FTIR measurements.

Airborne Laser Hydrography II

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Philpot, W.; Wozencraft, J.

2016-02-01

In 1985, Dr. Gary Guenther assembled the text, "Airborne Laser Hydrography" which quickly became a heavily used manual and guide for any and all scientists and engineers involved with airborne lidar bathymetry (ALB). It was a remarkable book that captured a snapshot of the state of the art of ALB and included historical developments, theoretical and modeling efforts as well as design characteristics and constraints, ending with accuracy assessment and a discussion of design tradeoffs. Known familiarly as the "Blue Book" it served the community remarkably well for many years. At 30 years of age, it is still a valued reference, but unavoidably dated in a field that has developed rapidly and nonstop over the intervening years. It is time for an update. The new text is attempt by the ALB community to update and expand upon Guenther's text. Like the original, Blue Book II reviews the historical developments in ALB, extending them into the 21st century, considers basic environmental water optical properties, theoretical developments, data processing and performance evaluation. All have progressed dramatically in the past 30 years. This paper presents an outline of the new book, a description of the contents, with emphasis on the theoretical models of the lidar waveform and its propagation through, and interaction with the water.

Pig Farmers’ Homes Harbor More Diverse Airborne Bacterial Communities Than Pig Stables or Suburban Homes

PubMed Central

Vestergaard, Ditte V.; Holst, Gitte J.; Basinas, Ioannis; Elholm, Grethe; Schlünssen, Vivi; Linneberg, Allan; Šantl-Temkiv, Tina; Finster, Kai; Sigsgaard, Torben; Marshall, Ian P. G.

2018-01-01

Airborne bacterial communities are subject to conditions ill-suited to microbial activity and growth. In spite of this, air is an important transfer medium for bacteria, with the bacteria in indoor air having potentially major consequences for the health of a building’s occupants. A major example is the decreased diversity and altered composition of indoor airborne microbial communities as a proposed explanation for the increasing prevalence of asthma and allergies worldwide. Previous research has shown that living on a farm confers protection against development of asthma and allergies, with airborne bacteria suggested as playing a role in this protective effect. However, the composition of this beneficial microbial community has still not been identified. We sampled settled airborne dust using a passive dust sampler from Danish pig stables, associated farmers’ homes, and from suburban homes (267 samples in total) and carried out quantitative PCR measurements of bacterial abundance and MiSeq sequencing of the V3–V4 region of bacterial 16S rRNA genes found in these samples. Airborne bacteria had a greater diversity and were significantly more abundant in pig stables and farmers’ homes than suburban homes (Wilcoxon rank sum test P < 0.05). Moreover, bacterial taxa previously suggested to contribute to a protective effect had significantly higher relative and absolute abundance in pig stables and farmers’ homes than in suburban homes (ALDEx2 with P < 0.05), including Firmicutes, Peptostreptococcaceae, Prevotellaceae, Lachnospiraceae, Ruminococcaceae, Ruminiclostridium, and Lactobacillus. Pig stables had significantly lower airborne bacterial diversity than farmers’ homes, and there was no discernable direct transfer of airborne bacteria from stable to home. This study identifies differences in indoor airborne bacterial communities that may be an important component of this putative protective effect, while showing that pig stables themselves do not appear

Pig Farmers' Homes Harbor More Diverse Airborne Bacterial Communities Than Pig Stables or Suburban Homes.

PubMed

Vestergaard, Ditte V; Holst, Gitte J; Basinas, Ioannis; Elholm, Grethe; Schlünssen, Vivi; Linneberg, Allan; Šantl-Temkiv, Tina; Finster, Kai; Sigsgaard, Torben; Marshall, Ian P G

2018-01-01

Airborne bacterial communities are subject to conditions ill-suited to microbial activity and growth. In spite of this, air is an important transfer medium for bacteria, with the bacteria in indoor air having potentially major consequences for the health of a building's occupants. A major example is the decreased diversity and altered composition of indoor airborne microbial communities as a proposed explanation for the increasing prevalence of asthma and allergies worldwide. Previous research has shown that living on a farm confers protection against development of asthma and allergies, with airborne bacteria suggested as playing a role in this protective effect. However, the composition of this beneficial microbial community has still not been identified. We sampled settled airborne dust using a passive dust sampler from Danish pig stables, associated farmers' homes, and from suburban homes (267 samples in total) and carried out quantitative PCR measurements of bacterial abundance and MiSeq sequencing of the V3-V4 region of bacterial 16S rRNA genes found in these samples. Airborne bacteria had a greater diversity and were significantly more abundant in pig stables and farmers' homes than suburban homes (Wilcoxon rank sum test P < 0.05). Moreover, bacterial taxa previously suggested to contribute to a protective effect had significantly higher relative and absolute abundance in pig stables and farmers' homes than in suburban homes (ALDEx2 with P < 0.05), including Firmicutes, Peptostreptococcaceae, Prevotellaceae, Lachnospiraceae, Ruminococcaceae, Ruminiclostridium , and Lactobacillus . Pig stables had significantly lower airborne bacterial diversity than farmers' homes, and there was no discernable direct transfer of airborne bacteria from stable to home. This study identifies differences in indoor airborne bacterial communities that may be an important component of this putative protective effect, while showing that pig stables themselves do not appear to

Predictive models of control strategies involved in containing indoor airborne infections.

PubMed

Chen, S-C; Chang, C-F; Liao, C-M

2006-12-01

Recently developed control measure modeling approaches for containing airborne infections, including engineering controls with respiratory protection and public health interventions, are readily amenable to an integrated-scale analysis. Here we show that such models can be derived from an integrated-scale analysis generated from three different types of functional relationship: Wells-Riley mathematical model, competing-risks model, and Von Foerster equation, both of the key epidemiological determinants involved and of the functional connections between them. We examine mathematically the impact of engineering control measures such as enhanced air exchange and air filtration rates with personal masking combined with public health interventions such as vaccination, isolation, and contact tracing in containing the spread of indoor airborne infections including influenza, chickenpox, measles, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). If enhanced engineering controls could reduce the basic reproductive number (R0) below 1.60 for chickenpox and 3 for measles, our simulations show that in such a prepared response with public health interventions would have a high probability of containing the indoor airborne infections. Combinations of engineering control measures and public health interventions could moderately contain influenza strains with an R0 as high as 4. Our analysis indicates that effective isolation of symptomatic patients with low-efficacy contact tracing is sufficient to control a SARS outbreak. We suggest that a valuable added dimension to public health inventions could be provided by systematically quantifying transmissibility and proportion of asymptomatic infection of indoor airborne infection. Practical Implications We have developed a flexible mathematical model that can help determine the best intervention strategies for containing indoor airborne infections. The approach presented here is scalable and can be extended to include additional control

A Technique for Airborne Aerobiological Sampling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mill, R. A.; And Others

1972-01-01

Report of a study of airborne micro-organisms collected over the Oklahoma City Metropolitan area and immediate environments, to investigate the possibility that a cloud of such organisms might account for the prevalence of some respiratory diseases in and around urban areas. (LK)

Slightly acidic electrolyzed water for reducing airborne microorganisms in a layer breeding house.

PubMed

Hao, Xiaoxia; Cao, Wei; Li, Baoming; Zhang, Qiang; Wang, Chaoyuan; Ge, Liangpeng

2014-04-01

Reducing airborne microorganisms may potentially improve the environment in layer breeding houses. The effectiveness of slightly acidic electrolyzed water (SAEW; pH 5.29-6.30) in reducing airborne microorganisms was investigated in a commercial layer house in northern China. The building had a tunnel-ventilation system, with an evaporative cooling. The experimental area was divided into five zones along the length of the house, with zone 1 nearest to an evaporative cooling pad and zone 5 nearest to the fans. The air temperature, relative humidity, dust concentration, and microbial population were measured at the sampling points in the five zones during the study period. The SAEW was sprayed by workers in the whole house. A six-stage air microbial sampler was used to measure airborne microbial population. Results showed that the population of airborne bacteria and fungi were sharply reduced by 0.71 x 10(5) and 2.82 x 10(3) colony-forming units (CFU) m(-3) after 30 min exposure to SAEW, respectively. Compared with the benzalkonium chloride (BC) solution and povidone-iodine (PVP-I) solution treatments, the population reductions of airborne fungi treated by SAEW were significantly (P < 0.05) more, even though the three disinfectants can decrease both the airborne bacteria and fungi significantly (P < 0.05) 30 min after spraying. There are no effective methods for reducing airborne microbial levels in tunnel-ventilated layer breeding houses; additionally, there is limited information available on airborne microorganism distribution. This research investigated the spatial distribution of microbial population, and the effectiveness of spraying slightly acidic electrolyzed water in reducing microbial levels. The research revealed that slightly acidic electrolyzed water spray was a potential method for reducing microbial presence in layer houses. The knowledge gained in this research about the microbial population variations in the building may assist producers in managing

Airborne Dust Cloud Measurements at the INL National Security Test Range

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Michael L. Abbott; Norm Stanley; Larry Radke

2007-09-01

On July 11, 2007, a surface, high-explosive test (<20,000 lb TNT-equivalent) was carried out at the National Security Test Range (NSTR) on the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site. Aircraft-mounted rapid response (1-sec) particulate monitors were used to measure airborne PM-10 concentrations directly in the dust cloud and to develop a PM-10 emission factor that could be used for subsequent tests at the NSTR. The blast produced a mushroom-like dust cloud that rose approximately 2,500–3,000 ft above ground level, which quickly dissipated (within 5 miles of the source). In general, the cloud was smaller and less persistence than expected, or thatmore » might occur in other areas, likely due to the coarse sand and subsurface conditions that characterize the immediate NSTR area. Maximum short time-averaged (1-sec) PM-10 concentrations at the center of the cloud immediately after the event reached 421 µg m-3 but were rapidly reduced (by atmospheric dispersion and fallout) to near background levels (~10 µg m-3) after about 15 minutes. This occurred well within the INL Site boundary, about 8 km (5 miles) from the NSTR source. These findings demonstrate that maximum concentrations in ambient air beyond the INL Site boundary (closest is 11.2 km from NSTR) from these types of tests would be well within the 150 µg m-3 24-hour National Ambient Air Quality Standards for PM-10. Aircraft measurements and geostatistical techniques were used to successfully quantify the initial volume (1.64E+9 m3 or 1.64 km3) and mass (250 kg) of the PM-10 dust cloud, and a PM-10 emission factor (20 kg m-3 crater soil volume) was developed for this specific type of event at NSTR. The 250 kg of PM-10 mass estimated from this experiment is almost seven-times higher than the 36 kg estimated for the environmental assessment (DOE-ID 2007) using available Environmental Protection Agency (EPA 1995) emission factors. This experiment demonstrated that advanced aircraft-mounted instruments operated by

Assessing airborne aflatoxin B1 during on-farm grain handling activities.

PubMed

Selim, M I; Juchems, A M; Popendorf, W

1998-04-01

The presence of aflatoxin in corn and corn dust during relatively normal years and the increased risk of Aspergillus flavus infestation during drought conditions suggest that airborne agricultural exposures should be of considerable concern. Liquid extraction, thin layer chromatography, and high pressure liquid chromatography were used for the analysis of aflatoxin B1 in grain dust and bulk corn samples. A total of 24 samples of airborne dust were collected from 8 farms during harvest, 22 samples from 9 farms during animal feeding, and 14 sets of Andersen samples from 11 farms during bin cleaning. A total of 14 samples of settled dust and 18 samples of bulk corn were also collected and analyzed. The airborne concentration of aflatoxin B1 found in dust collected during harvest and grain unloading ranged from 0.04 to 92 ng/m3. Higher levels of aflatoxin B1 were found in the airborne dust samples collected from enclosed animal feeding buildings (5-421 ng/m3) and during bin cleaning (124-4849 ng/m3). Aflatoxin B1 up to 5100 ng/g were detected in settled dust collected from an enclosed animal feeding building; however, no apparent correlation was found between the airborne concentration of aflatoxin B1 and its concentration in settled dust or bulk corn. The data demonstrate that farmers and farm workers may be exposed to potentially hazardous concentrations of aflatoxin B1, particularly during bin cleaning and animal feeding in enclosed buildings.

Simulation and analysis of airborne antenna radiation patterns

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, J. J.; Burnside, Walter D.

1984-01-01

The objective is to develop an accurate and efficient analytic solution for predicting high frequency radiation patterns of fuselage-mounted airborne antennas. This is an analytic study of airborne antenna patterns using the Uniform Geometrical Theory of Diffraction (UTD). The aircraft is modeled in its most basic form so that the solution is applicable to general-type aircraft. The fuselage is modeled as a perfectly conducting composite ellipsoid; whereas, the wings, stabilizers, nose, fuel tanks, and engines, are simulated as perfectly conducting flat plates that can be attached to the fuselage and/or to each other. The composite-ellipsoid fuselage model is necessary to successfully simulate the wide variety of real world fuselage shapes. Since the antenna is mounted on the fuselage, it has a dominant effect on the resulting radiation pattern so it must be simulated accurately, especially near the antenna. Various radiation patterns are calculated for commercial, private, and military aircraft, and the Space Shuttle Orbiter. The application of this solution to numerous practical airborne antenna problems illustrates its versatility and design capability. In most cases, the solution accuracy is verified by the comparisons between the calculated and measured data.

Airborne UV DIAL Measurements of Ozone and Aerosols

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grant, William B.; Browell, Edward V.

2000-01-01

The NASA Langley Research Center's airborne UV Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) system measures vertical profiles of ozone and aerosols above and below the aircraft along its flight track. This system has been used in over 20 airborne field missions designed to study the troposphere and stratosphere since 1980. Four of these missions involved tropospheric measurement programs in the Pacific Ocean with two in the western North Pacific and two in the South Pacific. The UV DIAL system has been used in these missions to study such things as pollution outflow, long-range transport, and stratospheric intrusions; categorize the air masses encountered; and to guide the aircraft to altitudes where interesting features can be studied using the in situ instruments. This paper will highlight the findings with the UV DIAL system in the Pacific Ocean field programs and introduce the mission planned for the western North Pacific for February-April 2001. This will be an excellent opportunity for collaboration between the NASA airborne mission and those with ground-based War systems in Asia Pacific Rim countries to make a more complete determination of the transport of air from Asia to the western Pacific.

Airborne Bacterial Communities in Three East Asian Cities of China, South Korea, and Japan.

PubMed

Lee, Jae Young; Park, Eun Ha; Lee, Sunghee; Ko, GwangPyo; Honda, Yasushi; Hashizume, Masahiro; Deng, Furong; Yi, Seung-Muk; Kim, Ho

2017-07-17

The global diversity of airborne bacteria has not yet been studied, despite its importance in human health and climate change. Here, we focused on the diversity of airborne bacteria and their correlations with meteorological/environmental conditions in China, South Korea, and Japan. Beijing (China) had more diverse airborne bacteria, followed by Seoul (South Korea) and Nagasaki (Japan), and seasonal variations were observed. Beijing and Seoul had more diverse airborne bacteria during the winter, whereas Nagasaki showed greater diversity during the summer. According to principal component analysis and Bray-Curtis similarity, higher similarity was observed between Beijing and Seoul than between Seoul and Nagasaki during all seasons except summer. Among meteorological/environmental variables, temperature and humidity were highly correlated with the diversity of airborne bacteria on the measurement day, whereas wind speeds and the frequency of northwest winds were highly correlated for 2-3-day moving averages. Thus, proximity and resuspension could enhance bacterial diversity in East Asian cities.

Decreasing airborne contamination levels in high-risk hospital areas using a novel mobile air-treatment unit.

PubMed

Bergeron, V; Reboux, G; Poirot, J L; Laudinet, N

2007-10-01

To evaluate the performance of a new mobile air-treatment unit that uses nonthermal-plasma reactors for lowering the airborne bioburden in critical hospital environments and reducing the risk of nosocomial infection due to opportunistic airborne pathogens, such as Aspergillus fumigatus. Tests were conducted in 2 different high-risk hospital areas: an operating room under simulated conditions and rooms hosting patients in a pediatric hematology ward. Operating room testing provided performance evaluations of removal rates for airborne contamination (ie, particles larger than 0.5 microm) and overall lowering of the airborne bioburden (ie, colony-forming units of total mesophilic flora and fungal flora per cubic meter of air). In the hematology service, opportunistic and nonpathogenic airborne fungal levels in a patient's room equipped with an air-treatment unit were compared to those in a control room. In an operating room with a volume of 118 m(3), the time required to lower the concentration of airborne particles larger than 0.5 microm by 90% was decreased from 12 minutes with the existing high-efficiency particulate air filtration system to less than 2 minutes with the units tested, with a 2-log decrease in the steady-state levels of such particles (P<.01). Concurrently, total airborne mesophilic flora concentrations dropped by a factor of 2, and the concentrations of fungal species were reduced to undetectable levels (P<.01). The 12-day test period in the hematology ward revealed a significant reduction in airborne fungus levels (P<.01), with average reductions of 75% for opportunistic species and 82% for nonpathogenic species. Our data indicate that the mobile, nonthermal-plasma air treatment unit tested in this study can rapidly reduce the levels of airborne particles and significantly lower the airborne bioburden in high-risk hospital environments.

Research on Airborne SAR Imaging Based on Esc Algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, X. T.; Yue, X. J.; Zhao, Y. H.; Han, C. M.

2017-09-01

Due to the ability of flexible, accurate, and fast obtaining abundant information, airborne SAR is significant in the field of Earth Observation and many other applications. Optimally the flight paths are straight lines, but in reality it is not the case since some portion of deviation from the ideal path is impossible to avoid. A small disturbance from the ideal line will have a major effect on the signal phase, dramatically deteriorating the quality of SAR images and data. Therefore, to get accurate echo information and radar images, it is essential to measure and compensate for nonlinear motion of antenna trajectories. By means of compensating each flying trajectory to its reference track, MOCO method corrects linear phase error and quadratic phase error caused by nonlinear antenna trajectories. Position and Orientation System (POS) data is applied to acquiring accuracy motion attitudes and spatial positions of antenna phase centre (APC). In this paper, extend chirp scaling algorithm (ECS) is used to deal with echo data of airborne SAR. An experiment is done using VV-Polarization raw data of C-band airborne SAR. The quality evaluations of compensated SAR images and uncompensated SAR images are done in the experiment. The former always performs better than the latter. After MOCO processing, azimuth ambiguity is declined, peak side lobe ratio (PSLR) effectively improves and the resolution of images is improved obviously. The result shows the validity and operability of the imaging process for airborne SAR.

ISRO's dual frequency airborne SAR pre-cursor to NISAR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramanujam, V. Manavala; Suneela, T. J. V. D.; Bhan, Rakesh

2016-05-01

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have jointly embarked on NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) operating in L-band and S-band, which will map Earth's surface every 12 days. As a pre-cursor to the NISAR mission, ISRO is planning an airborne SAR (L&S band) which will deliver NISAR analogue data products to the science community. ISRO will develop all the hardware with the aim of adhering to system design aspects of NISAR to the maximum extent possible. It is a fully polarimetric stripmap SAR and can be operated in single, dual, compact, quasi-quad and full polarimetry modes. It has wide incidence angle coverage from 24°-77° with swath coverage from 5.5km to 15 km. Apart from simultaneous imaging operations, this system can also operate in standalone L/S SAR modes. This system is planned to operate from an aircraft platform with nominal altitude of 8000meters. Antenna for this SAR will be rigidly mounted to the aircraft, whereas, motion compensation will be implemented in the software processor to generate data products. Data products for this airborne SAR will be generated in slant & ground range azimuth dimension and geocoded in HDF5/Geotiff formats. This airborne SAR will help to prepare the Indian scientific community for optimum utilization of NISAR data. In-order to collect useful science data, airborne campaigns are planned from end of 2016 onwards.

Calibration and Validation of Airborne InSAR Geometric Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chunming, Han; huadong, Guo; Xijuan, Yue; Changyong, Dou; Mingming, Song; Yanbing, Zhang

2014-03-01

The image registration or geo-coding is a very important step for many applications of airborne interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR), especially for those involving Digital Surface Model (DSM) generation, which requires an accurate knowledge of the geometry of the InSAR system. While the trajectory and attitude instabilities of the aircraft introduce severe distortions in three dimensional (3-D) geometric model. The 3-D geometrical model of an airborne SAR image depends on the SAR processor itself. Working at squinted model, i.e., with an offset angle (squint angle) of the radar beam from broadside direction, the aircraft motion instabilities may produce distortions in airborne InSAR geometric relationship, which, if not properly being compensated for during SAR imaging, may damage the image registration. The determination of locations of the SAR image depends on the irradiated topography and the exact knowledge of all signal delays: range delay and chirp delay (being adjusted by the radar operator) and internal delays which are unknown a priori. Hence, in order to obtain reliable results, these parameters must be properly calibrated. An Airborne InSAR mapping system has been developed by the Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth (RADI), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) to acquire three-dimensional geo-spatial data with high resolution and accuracy. To test the performance of the InSAR system, the Validation/Calibration (Val/Cal) campaign has carried out in Sichun province, south-west China, whose results will be reported in this paper.

Implementing the ban on smoking in Israeli pubs: measuring airborne nicotine and enforcement by local authorities.

PubMed

Satran, Carmit; Drach-Zahavy, Anat; Hammond, S Katharine; Baron-Epel, Orna

2014-06-01

In 2007 an amendment to the law restricting smoking in pubs and bars (P&Bs) was enacted in Israel. However, a year after the ban only slight decreases in airborne smoke in P&Bs in one city have been reported. We aimed to assess levels of airborne nicotine in Israeli P&Bs and to measure ifself-reported enforcement of the law by local officials was associated with levels of airborne nicotine in P&Bs. Airborne nicotine levels were measured in 72 P&Bs in 29 towns in Israel; this consisted of 90% of eligible towns. In addition, 73 local authority officials were interviewed in 25 of these towns. The officials were asked to assess the local authority's level of enforcement of the law banning smoking in P&Bs. The association of levels of airborne nicotine with the levels of enforcement of the law was calculated. Data were collected during 2009-2010 and analyzed in 2010-2011. Levels of airborne nicotine were comparatively high in P&Bs. No association was detected between levels of nicotine and the P&Bs' characteristics. In the larger towns, levels of airborne nicotine were higher. In 16% of towns the local authority officials reported high levels of law enforcement. Generally, levels of reported enforcement by local authorities were low and did not predict levels of airborne nicotine in the P&Bs. Self-reported local authorities' law enforcement was not associated with levels of airborne nicotine in P&Bs in these towns. There is a need to develop ways to increase law enforcement by the local authorities or other agencies.

Proceedings of the 11th JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Green, Robert O.

2002-01-01

This publication contains the proceedings of the JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop forum held to report science research and applications results with spectral images measured by the NASA Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS). These papers were presented at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory from March 5-8, 2001. Electronic versions of these papers may be found at the A VIRIS Web http://popo.jpl.nasa.gov/pub/docs/workshops/aviris.proceedings.html

ICESat-2 simulated data from airborne altimetery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brunt, K. M.; Neumann, T.; Markus, T.; Brenner, A. C.; Barbieri, K.; Field, C.; Sirota, M.

2010-12-01

Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) is scheduled to launch in 2015 and will carry onboard the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS), which represents a new approach to spaceborne determination of surface elevations. Specifically, the current ATLAS design is for a micropulse, multibeam, photon-counting laser altimeter with lower energy, a shorter pulse width, and a higher repetition rate relative to the Geoscience Laser Altimeter (GLAS), the instrument that was onboard ICESat. Given the new and untested technology associated with ATLAS, airborne altimetry data is necessary (1) to test the proposed ATLAS instrument geometry, (2) to validate instrument models, and (3) to assess the atmospheric effects on multibeam altimeters. We present an overview of the airborne instruments and datasets intended to address the ATLAS instrument concept, including data collected over Greenland (July 2009) using an airborne SBIR prototype 100 channel, photon-counting, terrain mapping altimeter, which addresses the first of these 3 scientific concerns. Additionally, we present the plan for further simulator data collection over vegetated and ice covered regions using Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL), intended to address the latter two scientific concerns. As the ICESAT-2 project is in the design phase, the particular configuration of the ATLAS instrument may change. However, we expect this work to be relevant as long as ATLAS pursues a photon-counting approach.

Airborne Research Experience for Educators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costa, V. B.; Albertson, R.; Smith, S.; Stockman, S. A.

2009-12-01

The Airborne Research Experience for Educators (AREE) Program, conducted by the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center Office of Education in partnership with the AERO Institute, NASA Teaching From Space Program, and California State University Fullerton, is a complete end-to-end residential research experience in airborne remote sensing and atmospheric science. The 2009 program engaged ten secondary educators who specialize in science, technology, engineering or mathematics in a 6-week Student Airborne Research Program (SARP) offered through NSERC. Educators participated in collection of in-flight remote sensor data during flights aboard the NASA DC-8 as well as in-situ research on atmospheric chemistry (bovine emissions of methane); algal blooms (remote sensing to determine location and degree of blooms for further in-situ analysis); and crop classification (exploration of how drought conditions in Central California have impacted almond and cotton crops). AREE represents a unique model of the STEM teacher-as-researcher professional development experience because it asks educators to participate in a research experience and then translate their experiences into classroom practice through the design, implementation, and evaluation of instructional materials that emphasize the scientific research process, inquiry-based investigations, and manipulation of real data. Each AREE Master Educator drafted a Curriculum Brief, Teachers Guide, and accompanying resources for a topic in their teaching assignment Currently, most professional development programs offer either a research experience OR a curriculum development experience. The dual nature of the AREE model engaged educators in both experiences. Educators’ content and pedagogical knowledge of STEM was increased through the review of pertinent research articles during the first week, attendance at lectures and workshops during the second week, and participation in the airborne and in-situ research studies, data

An airborne FLIR detection and warning system for low altitude wind shear

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sinclair, Peter C.; Kuhn, Peter M.

1991-01-01

It is shown through some preliminary flight measurement research that a forward looking infrared radiometer (FLIR) system can be used to successfully detect the cool downdraft of downbursts (microbusts/macrobursts) and thunderstorm gust front outflows that are responsible for most of the low altitude wind shear (LAWS) events. The FLIR system provides a much greater safety margin for the pilot than that provided by reactive designs such as inertial air speed systems. Preliminary results indicate that an advanced airborne FLIR system could provide the pilot with remote indication of microburst (MB) hazards along the flight path ahead of the aircraft. Results of a flight test of a prototype FLIR system show that a minimum warning time of one to four minutes (5 to 10 km), depending on aircraft speed, is available to the pilot prior to the microburst encounter.

Detecting Airborne Mercury by Use of Polymer/Carbon Films

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shevade, Abhijit; Ryan, Margaret; Homer, Margie; Kisor, Adam; Jewell, April; Yen, Shiao-Pin; Manatt, Kenneth; Blanco, Mario; Goddard, William

2009-01-01

Films made of certain polymer/carbon composites have been found to be potentially useful as sensing films for detecting airborne elemental mercury at concentrations on the order of tens of parts per billion or more. That is to say, when the polymer/carbon composite films are exposed to air containing mercury vapor, their electrical resistances decrease by measurable amounts. Because airborne mercury is a health hazard, it is desirable to detect it with great sensitivity, especially in enclosed environments in which there is a risk of a mercury leak from lamps or other equipment. The present effort to develop polymerbased mercury-vapor sensors complements the work reported in NASA Tech Briefs Detecting Airborne Mercury by Use of Palladium Chloride (NPO- 44955), Vol. 33, No. 7 (July 2009), page 48 and De tecting Airborne Mer cury by Use of Gold Nanowires (NPO-44787), Vol. 33, No. 7 (July 2009), page 49. Like those previously reported efforts, the present effort is motivated partly by a need to enable operation and/or regeneration of sensors under relatively mild conditions more specifically, at temperatures closer to room temperature than to the elevated temperatures (greater than 100 C ) needed for regeneration of sensors based on noble-metal films. The present polymer/carbon films are made from two polymers, denoted EYN1 and EYN2 (see Figure 1), both of which are derivatives of poly-4-vinyl pyridine with amine functional groups. Composites of these polymers with 10 to 15 weight percent of carbon were prepared and solution-deposited onto the JPL ElectronicNose sensor substrates for testing. Preliminary test results showed that the resulting sensor films gave measurable indications of airborne mercury at concentrations on the order of tens of parts per billion (ppb) or more. The operating temperature range for the sensing films was 28 to 40 C and that the sensor films regenerated spontaneously, without heating above operating temperature (see Figure 2).

Development of a fibre size-specific job-exposure matrix for airborne asbestos fibres.

PubMed

Dement, J M; Kuempel, E D; Zumwalde, R D; Smith, R J; Stayner, L T; Loomis, D

2008-09-01

To develop a method for estimating fibre size-specific exposures to airborne asbestos dust for use in epidemiological investigations of exposure-response relations. Archived membrane filter samples collected at a Charleston, South Carolina asbestos textile plant during 1964-8 were analysed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to determine the bivariate diameter/length distribution of airborne fibres by plant operation. The protocol used for these analyses was based on the direct transfer method published by the International Standards Organization (ISO), modified to enhance fibre size determinations, especially for long fibres. Procedures to adjust standard phase contrast microscopy (PCM) fibre concentration measures using the TEM data in a job-exposure matrix (JEM) were developed in order to estimate fibre size-specific exposures. A total of 84 airborne dust samples were used to measure diameter and length for over 18,000 fibres or fibre bundles. Consistent with previous studies, a small proportion of airborne fibres were longer than >5 microm in length, but the proportion varied considerably by plant operation (range 6.9% to 20.8%). The bivariate diameter/length distribution of airborne fibres was expressed as the proportion of fibres in 20 size-specific cells and this distribution demonstrated a relatively high degree of variability by plant operation. PCM adjustment factors also varied substantially across plant operations. These data provide new information concerning the airborne fibre characteristics for a previously studied textile facility. The TEM data demonstrate that the vast majority of airborne fibres inhaled by the workers were shorter than 5 mum in length, and thus not included in the PCM-based fibre counts. The TEM data were used to develop a new fibre size-specific JEM for use in an updated cohort mortality study to investigate the role of fibre dimension in the development of asbestos-related lung diseases.

[Investigation of radioactivity measurement of medical radioactive waste].

PubMed

Koizumi, Kiyoshi; Masuda, Kazutaka; Kusakabe, Kiyoko; Kinoshita, Fujimi; Kobayashi, Kazumi; Yamamoto, Tetsuo; Kanaya, Shinichi; Kida, Tetsuo; Yanagisawa, Masamichi; Iwanaga, Tetsuo; Ikebuchi, Hideharu; Kusama, Keiji; Namiki, Nobuo; Okuma, Hiroshi; Fujimura, Yoko; Horikoshi, Akiko; Tanaka, Mamoru

2004-11-01

To explore the possibility of which medical radioactive wastes could be disposed as general wastes after keeping them a certain period of time and confirming that their radioactivity reach a background level (BGL), we made a survey of these wastes in several nuclear medicine facilities. The radioactive wastes were collected for one week, packed in a box according to its half-life, and measured its radioactivity by scintillation survey meter with time. Some wastes could reach a BGL within 10 times of half-life, but 19% of the short half-life group (group 1) including 99mTc and 123I, and 8% of the middle half-life group (group 2) including 67Ga, (111)In, and 201Tl did not reach a BGL within 20 times of half-life. A reason for delaying the time of reaching a BGL might be partially attributed to high initial radiation dose rate or heavy package weight. However, mixing with the nuclides of longer half-life was estimated to be the biggest factor affecting this result. When disposing medical radioactive wastes as general wastes, it is necessary to avoid mixing with radionuclide of longer half-life and confirm that it reaches a BGL by actual measurement.

Workflow with pitfalls to derive a regional airborne magnetic compilation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brönner, Marco; Baykiev, Eldar; Ebbing, Jörg

2017-04-01

Today, large scale magnetic maps are usually a patchwork of different airborne surveys from different size, different resolution and different years. Airborne magnetic acquisition is a fast and economic method to map and gain geological and tectonic information for large areas, onshore and offshore. Depending on the aim of a survey, acquisition parameters like altitude and profile distance are usually adjusted to match the purpose of investigation. The subsequent data processing commonly follows a standardized workflow comprising core-field subtraction and line leveling to yield a coherent crustal field magnetic grid for a survey area. The resulting data makes it possible to correlate with geological and tectonic features in the subsurface, which is of importance for e.g. oil and mineral exploration. Crustal scale magnetic interpretation and modeling demand regional compilation of magnetic data and the merger of adjacent magnetic surveys. These studies not only focus on shallower sources, reflected by short to intermediate magnetic wavelength anomalies, but also have a particular interest in the long wavelength deriving from deep seated sources. However, whilst the workflow to produce such a merger is supported by quite a few powerful routines, the resulting compilation contains several pitfalls and limitations, which were discussed before, but still are very little recognized. The maximum wavelength that can be resolved of each individual survey is directly related to the survey size and consequently a merger will contribute erroneous long-wavelength components in the magnetic data compilation. To minimize this problem and to homogenous the longer wavelengths, a first order approach is the combination of airborne and satellite magnetic data commonly combined with the compilation from airborne data, which is sufficient only under particular preconditions. A more advanced approach considers the gap in frequencies between airborne and satellite data, which motivated

Intercontinental air pollution transport from North America to Europe: Experimental evidence from airborne measurements and surface observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huntrieser, H.; Heland, J.; Schlager, H.; Forster, C.; Stohl, A.; Aufmhoff, H.; Arnold, F.; Scheel, H. E.; Campana, M.; Gilge, S.; Eixmann, R.; Cooper, O.

2005-01-01

During the airborne CONTRACE field experiment carried out in November 2001 a number of polluted layers of North American (NA) origin were observed in the free troposphere over Europe. For the first time, forecasts from a Lagrangian particle dispersion model were used to predict the NA pollution events and to direct a research aircraft very precisely into these polluted layers above Europe. Two of the NA pollution events are investigated here: one in detail (case 19 November) and a second more briefly (case 22 November). An exceptional result was that the first pollution plume could be traced with the model and trace gas measurements (airborne and surface) for a period of one week, from the source region over the eastern United States to its decay over the Alps. On 14-15 November a warm conveyor belt lifted the leading edge of the pollution plume over the eastern United States to the mid troposphere where it remained during the transport over the Atlantic. On 19 November the plume was intersected with the research aircraft over Scandinavia at an altitude between 2 and 4 km. Elevated CO (170), O3 (53), NOy (1.1), acetone (5.0), and SO2 (2.6) mixing ratios (nmol mol-1) were measured. A positive O3-CO correlation was observed in the plume. The observations indicate that the enhanced levels of ozone were already produced near the source region over the eastern United States and not during the transit. In the next days one branch of the plume then turned to the south and descended to ground level over the Alpine region. Elevated O3 (54 nmol mol-1) and CO (168 nmol mol-1) were observed at the mountain site Zugspitze (southern Germany) during two days. At the Arosa Alpine site in Switzerland the highest daily ozone means of November 2001 were observed during this event.

Airborne Infrared Spectroscopy of 1994 Western Wildfires

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Worden, Helen; Beer, Reinhard; Rinsland, Curtis P.

1997-01-01

In the summer of 1994 the 0.07/ cm resolution infrared Airborne Emission Spectrometer (AES) acquired spectral data over two wildfires, one in central Oregon on August 3 and the other near San Luis Obispo, California, on August 15. The spectrometer was on board a NASA DC-8 research aircraft, flying at an altitude of 12 km. The spectra from both fires clearly show features due to water vapor, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, ammonia, methanol, formic acid, and ethylene at significantly higher abundance and temperature than observed in downlooking spectra of normal atmospheric and ground conditions. Column densities are derived for several species, and molar ratios are compared with previous biomass fire measurements. We believe that this is the first time such data have been acquired by airborne spectral remote sensing.

Summaries of the Third Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop. Volume 1: AVIRIS Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Green, Robert O. (Editor)

1992-01-01

This publication contains the preliminary agenda and summaries for the Third Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop, held at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, on 1-5 June 1992. This main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: (1) the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on June 1 and 2; (2) the Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop, on June 3; and (3) the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on June 4 and 5. The summaries are contained in Volumes 1, 2, and 3, respectively.

10 CFR 72.75 - Reporting requirements for specific events and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... regulatory limits, to prevent exposures to radiation or radioactive materials that could exceed regulatory limits, or to mitigate the consequences of an accident; and (ii) No redundant equipment was available and... waste involved in the event; and (v) Any personnel radiation exposure data. (f) Follow-up notification...

10 CFR 72.75 - Reporting requirements for specific events and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... regulatory limits, to prevent exposures to radiation or radioactive materials that could exceed regulatory limits, or to mitigate the consequences of an accident; and (ii) No redundant equipment was available and... waste involved in the event; and (v) Any personnel radiation exposure data. (f) Follow-up notification...

10 CFR 72.75 - Reporting requirements for specific events and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... regulatory limits, to prevent exposures to radiation or radioactive materials that could exceed regulatory limits, or to mitigate the consequences of an accident; and (ii) No redundant equipment was available and... waste involved in the event; and (v) Any personnel radiation exposure data. (f) Follow-up notification...

10 CFR 72.75 - Reporting requirements for specific events and conditions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... regulatory limits, to prevent exposures to radiation or radioactive materials that could exceed regulatory limits, or to mitigate the consequences of an accident; and (ii) No redundant equipment was available and... waste involved in the event; and (v) Any personnel radiation exposure data. (f) Follow-up notification...

Use of Airborne Hyperspectral Data in the Simulation of Satellite Images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Miguel, Eduardo; Jimenez, Marcos; Ruiz, Elena; Salido, Elena; Gutierrez de la Camara, Oscar

2016-08-01

The simulation of future images is part of the development phase of most Earth Observation missions. This simulation uses frequently as starting point images acquired from airborne instruments. These instruments provide the required flexibility in acquisition parameters (time, date, illumination and observation geometry...) and high spectral and spatial resolution, well above the target values (as required by simulation tools). However, there are a number of important problems hampering the use of airborne imagery. One of these problems is that observation zenith angles (OZA), are far from those that the misisons to be simulated would use.We examine this problem by evaluating the difference in ground reflectance estimated from airborne images for different observation/illumination geometries. Next, we analyze a solution for simulation purposes, in which a Bi- directional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) model is attached to an image of the isotropic surface reflectance. The results obtained confirm the need for reflectance anisotropy correction when using airborne images for creating a reflectance map for simulation purposes. But this correction should not be used without providing the corresponding estimation of BRDF, in the form of model parameters, to the simulation teams.

SLAPex Freeze/Thaw 2015: The First Dedicated Soil Freeze/Thaw Airborne Campaign

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Edward; Wu, Albert; DeMarco, Eugenia; Powers, Jarrett; Berg, Aaron; Rowlandson, Tracy; Freeman, Jacqueline; Gottfried, Kurt; Toose, Peter; Roy, Alexandre;

Inspecting Composites with Airborne Ultrasound: Through Thick and Thin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsu, David K.; Barnard, Daniel J.

2006-03-01

The inspection of composite materials and structures with air-coupled ultrasound has the obvious advantage that it is non-contact, non-contaminating, and free from couplants. However, the transmission efficiency from air to solid is extremely low due to the enormous difference in acoustic impedance. The development of more efficient airborne ultrasonic transducers over the years has made it possible, and even practical, to inspect composites with airborne ultrasound. It is now possible to drive newer, more efficient transducers with a portable ultrasonic flaw detector to inspect 2-inch thick solid CFRP in air. In this paper we describe our experience in applying air-coupled ultrasound to the inspection of a variety of composite structures, from honeycomb with thin composite facesheet to very thick solid laminates. General considerations for making airborne ultrasonic measurement in composite are given, and mechanism of transmission through honeycomb core, and resonance effects in transmitting through thick laminates will be described. NDE results of defects and damage in various composite structures will be presented.

Meteorological effects on variation of airborne algae in Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosas, Irma; Roy-Ocotla, Guadalupe; Mosiño, Pedro

1989-09-01

Sixteen species of algae were collected from 73.8 m3 of air. Eleven were obtained in Minatitlán and eleven in México City. The data show that similar diversity occurred between the two localities, in spite of the difference in altitude. This suggests that cosmopolitan airborne microorganisms might have been released from different sources. Three major algal divisions (Chlorophyta, Cyanophyta and Chrysophyta) formed the airborne algal group. Also, a large concentration of 2220 algae m-3 was found near sea-level, while lower amounts were recorded at the high altitude of México City. The genera Scenedesmus, Chlorella and Chlorococcum dominated. Striking relationships were noted between the concentration of airborne green and blue-green algae, and meteorological conditions such as rain, vapour pressure, temperature and winds for different altitudes. In Minatitlán a linear relationship was established between concentration of algae and both vapour pressure (mbar) and temperature (° C), while in México City the wind (m s-1) was associated with variations in the algal count.

Semi-automated based ground-truthing GUI for airborne imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phan, Chung; Lydic, Rich; Moore, Tim; Trang, Anh; Agarwal, Sanjeev; Tiwari, Spandan

2005-06-01

Over the past several years, an enormous amount of airborne imagery consisting of various formats has been collected and will continue into the future to support airborne mine/minefield detection processes, improve algorithm development, and aid in imaging sensor development. The ground-truthing of imagery is a very essential part of the algorithm development process to help validate the detection performance of the sensor and improving algorithm techniques. The GUI (Graphical User Interface) called SemiTruth was developed using Matlab software incorporating signal processing, image processing, and statistics toolboxes to aid in ground-truthing imagery. The semi-automated ground-truthing GUI is made possible with the current data collection method, that is including UTM/GPS (Universal Transverse Mercator/Global Positioning System) coordinate measurements for the mine target and fiducial locations on the given minefield layout to support in identification of the targets on the raw imagery. This semi-automated ground-truthing effort has developed by the US Army RDECOM CERDEC Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate (NVESD), Countermine Division, Airborne Application Branch with some support by the University of Missouri-Rolla.

Assessing sources of airborne mineral dust and other aerosols, in Iraq

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Engelbrecht, Johann P.; Jayanty, R. K. M.

2013-06-01

Most airborne particulate matter in Iraq comes from mineral dust sources. This paper describes the statistics and modeling of chemical results, specifically those from Teflon® filter samples collected at Tikrit, Balad, Taji, Baghdad, Tallil and Al Asad, in Iraq, in 2006/2007. Methodologies applied to the analytical results include calculation of correlation coefficients, Principal Components Analysis (PCA), and Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) modeling. PCA provided a measure of the covariance within the data set, thereby identifying likely point sources and events. These include airborne mineral dusts of silicate and carbonate minerals, gypsum and salts, as well as anthropogenic sources of metallic fumes, possibly from battery smelting operations, and emissions of leaded gasoline vehicles. Five individual PMF factors (source categories) were modeled, four of which being assigned to components of geological dust, and the fifth to gasoline vehicle emissions together with battery smelting operations. The four modeled geological components, dust-siliceous, dust-calcic, dust-gypsum, and evaporate occur in variable ratios for each site and size fraction (TSP, PM10, and PM2.5), and also vary by season. In general, Tikrit and Taji have the largest and Al Asad the smallest percentages of siliceous dust. In contrast, Al Asad has the largest proportion of gypsum, in part representing the gypsiferous soils in that region. Baghdad has the highest proportions of evaporite in both size fractions, ascribed to the highly salinized agricultural soils, following millennia of irrigation along the Tigris River valley. Although dust storms along the Tigris and Euphrates River valleys originate from distal sources, the mineralogy bears signatures of local soils and air pollutants.

The concentration of no toxicologic concern (CoNTC) and airborne mycotoxins.

PubMed

Hardin, Bryan D; Robbins, Coreen A; Fallah, Payam; Kelman, Bruce J

2009-01-01

The threshold of toxicologic concern (TTC) concept was developed as a method to identify a chemical intake level that is predicted to be without adverse human health effects assuming daily intake over the course of a 70-yr life span. The TTC values are based on known structure-activity relationships and do not require chemical-specific toxicity data. This allows safety assessment (or prioritization for testing) of chemicals with known molecular structure but little or no toxicity data. Recently, the TTC concept was extended to inhaled substances by converting a TTC expressed in micrograms per person per day to an airborne concentration (ng/m(3)), making allowance for intake by routes in addition to inhalation and implicitly assuming 100% bioavailability of inhaled toxicants. The resulting concentration of no toxicologic concern (CoNTC), 30 ng/m(3), represents a generic airborne concentration that is expected to pose no hazard to humans exposed continuously throughout a 70-yr lifetime. Published data on the levels of mycotoxins in agricultural dusts or in fungal spores, along with measured levels of airborne mycotoxins, spores, or dust in various environments, were used to identify conditions under which mycotoxin exposures might reach the CoNTC. Data demonstrate that airborne concentrations of dusts and mold spores sometimes encountered in agricultural environments have the potential to produce mycotoxin concentrations greater than the CoNTC. On the other hand, these data suggest that common exposures to mycotoxins from airborne molds in daily life, including in the built indoor environment, are below the concentration of no toxicologic concern.

Medical support to military airborne training and operations.

PubMed

Starkey, Kerry J; Lyon, J; Sigman, E; Pynn, H J; Nordmann, G

2018-05-01

Airborne operations enable large numbers of military forces to deploy on the ground in the shortest possible time. This however must be balanced by an increased risk of injury. The aim of this paper is to review the current UK military drop zone medical estimate process, which may help to predict the risk of potential injury and assist in planning appropriate levels of medical support. In spring 2015, a British Airborne Battlegroup (UKBG) deployed on a 7-week overseas interoperability training exercise in the USA with their American counterparts (USBG). This culminated in a 7-day Combined Joint Operations Access Exercise, which began with an airborne Joint Forcible Entry (JFE) of approximately 2100 paratroopers.The predicted number of jump-related injuries was estimated using Parachute Order Number 8 (PO No 8). Such injuries were defined as injuries occurring from the time the paratrooper exited the aircraft until they released their parachute harness on the ground. Overall, a total of 53 (2.5%) casualties occurred in the JFE phase of the exercise, lower than the predicted number of 168 (8%) using the PO No 8 tool. There was a higher incidence of back (30% actual vs 20% estimated) and head injuries (21% actual vs 5% estimated) than predicted with PO No 8. The current method for predicting the incidence of medical injuries after a parachute drop using the PO No 8 tool is potentially not accurate enough for current requirements. Further research into injury rate, influencing factors and injury type are urgently required in order to provide an evidence base to ensure optimal medical logistical and clinical planning for airborne training and operations in the future. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

A Comparison between Airborne and Mountaintop Cloud Microphysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

David, R.; Lowenthal, D. H.; Hallar, A. G.; McCubbin, I.; Avallone, L. M.; Mace, G. G.; Wang, Z.

2014-12-01

Complex terrain has a large impact on cloud dynamics and microphysics. Several studies have examined the microphysical details of orographically-enhanced clouds from either an aircraft or from a mountain top location. However, further research is needed to characterize the relationships between mountain top and airborne microphysical properties. During the winter of 2011, an airborne study, the Colorado Airborne Mixed-Phase Cloud Study (CAMPS), and a ground-based field campaign, the Storm Peak Lab (SPL) Cloud Property Validation Experiment (StormVEx) were conducted in the Park Range of the Colorado Rockies. The CAMPS study utilized the University of Wyoming King Air (UWKA) to provide airborne cloud microphysical and meteorological data on 29 flights totaling 98 flight hours over the Park Range from December 15, 2010 to February 28, 2011. The UWKA was equipped with instruments that measured both cloud droplet and ice crystal size distributions, liquid water content, total water content (vapor, liquid, and ice), and 3-dimensional wind speed and direction. The Wyoming Cloud Radar and Lidar were also deployed during the campaign. These measurements are used to characterize cloud structure upwind and above the Park Range. StormVEx measured cloud droplet, ice crystal, and aerosol size distributions at SPL, located on the west summit of Mt. Werner at 3220m MSL. The observations from SPL are used to determine mountain top cloud microphysical properties at elevations lower than the UWKA was able to sample in-situ. Comparisons showed that cloud microphysics aloft and at the surface were consistent with respect to snow growth processes while small crystal concentrations were routinely higher at the surface, suggesting ice nucleation near cloud base. The effects of aerosol concentrations and upwind stability on mountain top and downwind microphysics are considered.

Detecting Airborne Mercury by Use of Palladium Chloride

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ryan, Margaret; Shevade, Abhijit; Kisor, Adam; Homer, Margie; Jewell, April; Manatt, Kenneth; Torres, Julia; Soler, Jessica; Taylor, Charles

2009-01-01

Palladium chloride films have been found to be useful as alternatives to the gold films heretofore used to detect airborne elemental mercury at concentrations of the order of parts per billion (ppb). Somewhat more specifically, when suitably prepared palladium chloride films are exposed to parts-per-billion or larger concentrations of airborne mercury, their electrical resistances change by amounts large enough to be easily measurable. Because airborne mercury adversely affects health, it is desirable to be able to detect it with high sensitivity, especially in enclosed environments in which there is a risk of leakage of mercury from lamps or other equipment. The detection of mercury by use of gold films involves the formation of gold/mercury amalgam. Gold films offer adequate sensitivity for detection of airborne mercury and could easily be integrated into an electronic-nose system designed to operate in the temperature range of 23 to 28 C. Unfortunately, in order to regenerate a gold-film mercury sensor, one must heat it to a temperature of 200 C for several minutes in clean flowing air. In preparation for an experiment to demonstrate the present sensor concept, palladium chloride was deposited from an aqueous solution onto sets of gold electrodes and sintered in air to form a film. Then while using the gold electrodes to measure the electrical resistance of the films, the films were exposed, at a temperature of 25 C, to humidified air containing mercury at various concentrations from 0 to 35 ppb (see figure). The results of this and other experiments have been interpreted as signifying that sensors of this type can detect mercury in room-temperature air at concentrations of at least 2.5 ppb and can readily be regenerated at temperatures <40 C.

Multi-center Airborne Coherent Atmospheric Wind Sensor (MACAWS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rhothermel, Jeffry; Jones, W. D.; Dunkin, J. A.; Mccaul, E. W., Jr.

1993-01-01

This effort involves development of a calibrated, pulsed coherent CO2 Doppler lidar, followed by a carefully-planned and -executed program of multi-dimensional wind velocity and aerosol backscatter measurements from the NASA DC-8 research aircraft. The lidar, designated as the Multi-center Airborne Coherent Atmospheric Wind Sensor (MACAWS), will be applicable to two research areas. First, MACAWS will enable specialized measurements of atmospheric dynamical processes in the planetary boundary layer and free troposphere in geographic locations and over scales of motion not routinely or easily accessible to conventional sensors. The proposed observations will contribute fundamentally to a greater understanding of the role of the mesoscale, helping to improve predictive capabilities for mesoscale phenomena and to provide insights into improving model parameterizations of sub-grid scale processes within large-scale circulation models. As such, it has the potential to contribute uniquely to major, multi-institutional field programs planned for the mid 1990's. Second, MACAWS measurements can be used to reduce the degree of uncertainty in performance assessments and algorithm development for NASA's prospective Laser Atmospheric Wind Sounder (LAWS), which has no space-based instrument heritage. Ground-based lidar measurements alone are insufficient to address all of the key issues. To minimize costs, MACAWS is being developed cooperatively by the lidar remote sensing groups of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NOAA Wave Propagation Laboratory, and MSFC using existing lidar hardware and manpower resources. Several lidar components have already been exercised in previous airborne lidar programs (for example, MSFC Airborne Doppler Lidar System (ADLS) used in 1981,4 Severe Storms Wind Measurement Program; JPL Airborne Backscatter Lidar Experiment (ABLE) used in 1989,90 Global Backscatter Experiment Survey Missions). MSFC has been given responsibility for directing the overall

Far-UVC light: A new tool to control the spread of airborne-mediated microbial diseases.

PubMed

Welch, David; Buonanno, Manuela; Grilj, Veljko; Shuryak, Igor; Crickmore, Connor; Bigelow, Alan W; Randers-Pehrson, Gerhard; Johnson, Gary W; Brenner, David J

2018-02-09

Airborne-mediated microbial diseases such as influenza and tuberculosis represent major public health challenges. A direct approach to prevent airborne transmission is inactivation of airborne pathogens, and the airborne antimicrobial potential of UVC ultraviolet light has long been established; however, its widespread use in public settings is limited because conventional UVC light sources are both carcinogenic and cataractogenic. By contrast, we have previously shown that far-UVC light (207-222 nm) efficiently inactivates bacteria without harm to exposed mammalian skin. This is because, due to its strong absorbance in biological materials, far-UVC light cannot penetrate even the outer (non living) layers of human skin or eye; however, because bacteria and viruses are of micrometer or smaller dimensions, far-UVC can penetrate and inactivate them. We show for the first time that far-UVC efficiently inactivates airborne aerosolized viruses, with a very low dose of 2 mJ/cm 2 of 222-nm light inactivating >95% of aerosolized H1N1 influenza virus. Continuous very low dose-rate far-UVC light in indoor public locations is a promising, safe and inexpensive tool to reduce the spread of airborne-mediated microbial diseases.

Summaries of the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop. Volume 1; AVIRIS Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Green, Robert O. (Editor)

1996-01-01

This publication contains the summaries for the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on March 4-8, 1996. The main workshop is divided into two smaller workshops as follows: (1) The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on March 4-6. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 1; (2) The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on March 6-8. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2.

From Mars to Greenland: Charting gravity with space and airborne instruments - Fields, tides, methods, results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Colombo, Oscar L. (Editor)

1992-01-01

This symposium on space and airborne techniques for measuring gravity fields, and related theory, contains papers on gravity modeling of Mars and Venus at NASA/GSFC, an integrated laser Doppler method for measuring planetary gravity fields, observed temporal variations in the earth's gravity field from 16-year Starlette orbit analysis, high-resolution gravity models combining terrestrial and satellite data, the effect of water vapor corrections for satellite altimeter measurements of the geoid, and laboratory demonstrations of superconducting gravity and inertial sensors for space and airborne gravity measurements. Other papers are on airborne gravity measurements over the Kelvin Seamount; the accuracy of GPS-derived acceleration from moving platform tests; airborne gravimetry, altimetry, and GPS navigation errors; controlling common mode stabilization errors in airborne gravity gradiometry, GPS/INS gravity measurements in space and on a balloon, and Walsh-Fourier series expansion of the earth's gravitational potential.

DC-8 Airborne Laboratory arrival at NASA Dryden

NASA Image and Video Library

1997-12-29

NASA's DC-8 Airborne Science platform landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, to join the fleet of aircraft at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center. The white aircraft with a blue stripe running horizontally from the nose to the tail is shown with its main landing gear just above the runway. The former airliner is a "dash-72" model and has a range of 5,400 miles. The craft can stay airborne for 12 hours and has an operational speed range between 300 and 500 knots. The research flights are made at between 500 and 41,000 feet. The aircraft can carry up to 30,000 lbs of research/science payload equipment installed in 15 mission-definable spaces.

Airborne Precision Spacing (APS) Dependent Parallel Arrivals (DPA)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Colin L.

2012-01-01

The Airborne Precision Spacing (APS) team at the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) has been developing a concept of operations to extend the current APS concept to support dependent approaches to parallel or converging runways along with the required pilot and controller procedures and pilot interfaces. A staggered operations capability for the Airborne Spacing for Terminal Arrival Routes (ASTAR) tool was developed and designated as ASTAR10. ASTAR10 has reached a sufficient level of maturity to be validated and tested through a fast-time simulation. The purpose of the experiment was to identify and resolve any remaining issues in the ASTAR10 algorithm, as well as put the concept of operations through a practical test.

Comprehensive analysis of airborne contaminants from recent Spacelab missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matney, M. L.; Boyd, J. F.; Covington, P. A.; Leano, H. J.; Pierson, D. L.; Limero, T. F.; James, J. T.

1993-01-01

The Shuttle experiences unique air contamination problems because of microgravity and the closed environment. Contaminant build-up in the closed atmosphere and the lack of a gravitational settling mechanism have produced some concern in previous missions about the amount of solid and volatile airborne contaminants in the Orbiter and Spacelab. Degradation of air quality in the Orbiter/Spacelab environment, through processes such as chemical contamination, high solid-particulate levels, and high microbial levels, may affect crew performance and health. A comprehensive assessment of the Shuttle air quality was undertaken during STS-40 and STS-42 missions, in which a variety of air sampling and monitoring techniques were employed to determine the contaminant load by characterizing and quantitating airborne contaminants. Data were collected on the airborne concentrations of volatile organic compounds, microorganisms, and particulate matter collected on Orbiter/Spacelab air filters. The results showed that STS-40/42 Orbiter/Spacelab air was toxicologically safe to breathe, except during STS-40 when the Orbiter Refrigerator/Freezer unit was releasing noxious gases in the middeck. On STS-40, the levels of airborne bacteria appeared to increase as the mission progressed; however, this trend was not observed for the STS-42 mission. Particulate matter in the Orbiter/Spacelab air filters was chemically analyzed in order to determine the source of particles. Only small amounts of rat hair and food bar (STS-40) and traces of soiless medium (STS-42) were detected in the Spacelab air filters, indicating that containment for Spacelab experiments was effective.

Incorporating radioactive decay into charging and coagulation of multicomponent radioactive aerosols

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kim, Yong-ha; Yiacoumi, Sotira; Nenes, Athanasios

Compositional changes by the decay of radionuclides in radioactive aerosols can influence their charging state, coagulation frequency and size distribution throughout their atmospheric lifetime. The importance of such effects is unknown as they have not been considered in microphysical and global radioactivity transport studies to date. Here, we explore the effects of compositional changes on the charging efficiency and coagulation rates of aerosols using a set of kinetic equations that couple all relevant processes (decay, charging and coagulation) and their evolution over time. Compared to a coupled aggregation-tracer model for the prediction of the radioactive composition of particulates undergoing coagulation,more » our kinetic approach can provide similar results using much less central processing unit time. Altogether with other considerations, our approach is computational efficient enough to allow implementation in 3D atmospheric transport models. The decay of radionuclides and the production of decay products within radioactive aerosols may significantly affect the aerosol charging rates, and either hinder or promote the coagulation of multicomponent radioactive aerosols. Our results suggest that radiological phenomena occurring within radioactive aerosols, as well as subsequent effects on aerosol microphysics, should be considered in regional and global models to more accurately predict radioactivity transport in the atmosphere in case of a nuclear plant accident.« less

Incorporating radioactive decay into charging and coagulation of multicomponent radioactive aerosols

DOE PAGES

Kim, Yong-ha; Yiacoumi, Sotira; Nenes, Athanasios; ...

2017-09-29

Compositional changes by the decay of radionuclides in radioactive aerosols can influence their charging state, coagulation frequency and size distribution throughout their atmospheric lifetime. The importance of such effects is unknown as they have not been considered in microphysical and global radioactivity transport studies to date. Here, we explore the effects of compositional changes on the charging efficiency and coagulation rates of aerosols using a set of kinetic equations that couple all relevant processes (decay, charging and coagulation) and their evolution over time. Compared to a coupled aggregation-tracer model for the prediction of the radioactive composition of particulates undergoing coagulation,more » our kinetic approach can provide similar results using much less central processing unit time. Altogether with other considerations, our approach is computational efficient enough to allow implementation in 3D atmospheric transport models. The decay of radionuclides and the production of decay products within radioactive aerosols may significantly affect the aerosol charging rates, and either hinder or promote the coagulation of multicomponent radioactive aerosols. Our results suggest that radiological phenomena occurring within radioactive aerosols, as well as subsequent effects on aerosol microphysics, should be considered in regional and global models to more accurately predict radioactivity transport in the atmosphere in case of a nuclear plant accident.« less

[Frequencies of airborne moulds in Zagreb].

PubMed

Segvić, Maja; Pepeljnjak, Stjepan

2004-06-01

Airborne fungi are sometimes associated with several respiratory diseases and allergies. This paper describes a study of qualitative and quantitative variations in the occurrence of airborne moulds in Zagreb area on three locations: centre of the city (C), Pharmaceutical Botanical Garden "Fran Kusan" (BG) and the mountain Medvednica (M) during autumn, winter, spring and summer 2002-03. Lower concentrations of airborne moulds were found in all three locations in autumn (up to 76.88 CFU/m3) and winter (31.46 CFU/m3), with significantly higher levels in C and BG than in M (P<0.001). In spring and summer, these concentrations were much higher in all sampling sites and were significantly higher in C (160.00 CFU/m3) and BG (134.00 CFU/m3) in spring than in M (90.07 CFU/m3) (P<0.001). In summer, significantly higher concentration was found in C (237.5 CFU/m3) than in BG (186.50 CFU/m3) (P<0.01), while concentrations in C and M (216.70 CFU/m3) were similar. Airspora belonging to 29 fungal genera were identified, and allergologicaly significant moulds, Cladosporium (up to 79.5%) and Alternaria (up to 59.4%) dominated in all sampling sites. Penicillium, Fusarium and Aspergillus were also constant fungal entities (43.0-70.5%), but in much lower concentrations than Cladosporium and Alternaria. Airsporas of Cladosporium and Alternaria were more frequent in spring and summer in all locations, with significantly higher concentrations in C and BG (P<0.05). The risk from allergies increases with higher airspora concentrations in spring and summer due to an increase in Cladosporium and Alternaria.

airborne data analysis/monitor system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stephison, D. B.

1981-01-01

An Airborne Data Analysis/Monitor System (ADAMS), a ROLM 1666 computer based system installed onboard test airplanes used during experimental testing is evaluated. In addition to the 1666 computer, the ADAMS hardware includes a DDC System 90 fixed head disk and a Miltape DD400 floppy disk. Boeing designed a DMA interface to the data acquisition system and an intelligent terminal to reduce system overhead and simplify operator commands. The ADAMS software includes RMX/RTOS and both ROLM FORTRAN and assembly language are used. The ADAMS provides real time displays that enable onboard test engineers to make rapid decisions about test conduct thus reducing the cost and time required to certify new model airplanes, and improved the quality of data derived from the test, leading to more rapid development of improvements resulting in quieter, safer, and more efficient airplanes. The availability of airborne data processing removes most of the weather and geographical restrictions imposed by telemetered flight test data systems. A data base is maintained to describe the airplane, the data acquisition system, the type of testing, and the conditions under which the test is performed.

Airborne observations of methane in Comet Kohoutek

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roche, A. E.; Wells, W. C.

1974-01-01

The experiment is described for airborne observations of Comet Kohoutek using an infrared tilting-filter photometer. Preliminary analysis of the data established an upper limit to the Comet's fluorescence radiation in methane lines at 3.3 microns.

SOURCES OF HUMAN EXPOSURE TO AIRBORNE PAH

EPA Science Inventory

Personal exposures to airborne particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were studied in several populations in the US, Japan, and Czech Republic. Personal exposure monitors, developed for human exposure biomonitoring studies were used to collect fine particles (<_ 1....

Impact of Pilot Delay and Non-Responsiveness on the Safety Performance of Airborne Separation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Consiglio, Maria; Hoadley, Sherwood; Wing, David; Baxley, Brian; Allen, Bonnie Danette

2008-01-01

Assessing the safety effects of prediction errors and uncertainty on automationsupported functions in the Next Generation Air Transportation System concept of operations is of foremost importance, particularly safety critical functions such as separation that involve human decision-making. Both ground-based and airborne, the automation of separation functions must be designed to account for, and mitigate the impact of, information uncertainty and varying human response. This paper describes an experiment that addresses the potential impact of operator delay when interacting with separation support systems. In this study, we evaluated an airborne separation capability operated by a simulated pilot. The experimental runs are part of the Safety Performance of Airborne Separation (SPAS) experiment suite that examines the safety implications of prediction errors and system uncertainties on airborne separation assistance systems. Pilot actions required by the airborne separation automation to resolve traffic conflicts were delayed within a wide range, varying from five to 240 seconds while a percentage of randomly selected pilots were programmed to completely miss the conflict alerts and therefore take no action. Results indicate that the strategicAirborne Separation Assistance System (ASAS) functions exercised in the experiment can sustain pilot response delays of up to 90 seconds and more, depending on the traffic density. However, when pilots or operators fail to respond to conflict alerts the safety effects are substantial, particularly at higher traffic densities.

User definition and mission requirements for unmanned airborne platforms, revised

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuhner, M. B.; Mcdowell, J. R.

1979-01-01

The airborne measurement requirements of the scientific and applications experiment user community were assessed with respect to the suitability of proposed strawman airborne platforms. These platforms provide a spectrum of measurement capabilities supporting associated mission tradeoffs such as payload weight, operating altitude, range, duration, flight profile control, deployment flexibility, quick response, and recoverability. The results of the survey are used to examine whether the development of platforms is warranted and to determine platform system requirements as well as research and technology needs.

Challenges associated with the behaviour of radioactive particles in the environment.

PubMed

Salbu, Brit; Kashparov, Valery; Lind, Ole Christian; Garcia-Tenorio, Rafael; Johansen, Mathew P; Child, David P; Roos, Per; Sancho, Carlos

2018-06-01

A series of different nuclear sources associated with the nuclear weapon and fuel cycles have contributed to the release of radioactive particles to the environment. Following nuclear weapon tests, safety tests, conventional destruction of weapons, reactor explosions and fires, a major fraction of released refractory radionuclides such as uranium (U) and plutonium (Pu) were present as entities ranging from sub microns to fragments. Furthermore, radioactive particles and colloids have been released from reprocessing facilities and civil reactors, from radioactive waste dumped at sea, and from NORM sites. Thus, whenever refractory radionuclides are released to the environment following nuclear events, radioactive particles should be expected. Results from many years of research have shown that particle characteristics such as elemental composition depend on the source, while characteristics such as particle size distribution, structure, and oxidation state influencing ecosystem transfer depend also on the release scenarios. When radioactive particles are deposited in the environment, weathering processes occur and associated radionuclides are subsequently mobilized, changing the apparent K d . Thus, particles retained in soils or sediments are unevenly distributed, and dissolution of radionuclides from particles may be partial. For areas affected by particle contamination, the inventories can therefore be underestimated, and impact and risk assessments may suffer from unacceptable large uncertainties if radioactive particles are ignored. To integrate radioactive particles into environmental impact assessments, key challenges include the linking of particle characteristics to specific sources, to ecosystem transfer, and to uptake and retention in biological systems. To elucidate these issues, the EC-funded COMET and RATE projects and the IAEA Coordinated Research Program on particles have revisited selected contaminated sites and archive samples. This COMET position

NASA's Student Airborne Research Program (SARP) 2009-2017

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schaller, E. L.

2017-12-01

The NASA Student Airborne Research Program (SARP) is a unique summer internship program for rising senior undergraduates majoring in any of the STEM disciplines. SARP participants acquire hands-on research experience in all aspects of a NASA airborne campaign, including flying onboard NASA research aircraft while studying Earth system processes. Approximately thirty-two students are competitively selected each summer from colleges and universities across the United States. Students work in four interdisciplinary teams to study surface, atmospheric, and oceanographic processes. Participants assist in the operation of instruments onboard NASA aircraft where they sample and measure atmospheric gases and image land and water surfaces in multiple spectral bands. Along with airborne data collection, students participate in taking measurements at field sites. Mission faculty and research mentors help to guide participants through instrument operation, sample analysis, and data reduction. Over the eight-week program, each student develops an individual research project from the data collected and delivers a conference-style final presentation on their results. Each year, several students present the results of their SARP research projects in scientific sessions at this meeting. We discuss the results and effectiveness of the program over the past nine summers and plans for the future.

High-Rate Data-Capture for an Airborne Lidar System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Valett, Susan; Hicks, Edward; Dabney, Philip; Harding, David

2012-01-01

A high-rate data system was required to capture the data for an airborne lidar system. A data system was developed that achieved up to 22 million (64-bit) events per second sustained data rate (1408 million bits per second), as well as short bursts (less than 4 s) at higher rates. All hardware used for the system was off the shelf, but carefully selected to achieve these rates. The system was used to capture laser fire, single-photon detection, and GPS data for the Slope Imaging Multi-polarization Photo-counting Lidar (SIMPL). However, the system has applications for other laser altimeter systems (waveform-recording), mass spectroscopy, xray radiometry imaging, high-background- rate ranging lidar, and other similar areas where very high-speed data capture is needed. The data capture software was used for the SIMPL instrument that employs a micropulse, single-photon ranging measurement approach and has 16 data channels. The detected single photons are from two sources those reflected from the target and solar background photons. The instrument is non-gated, so background photons are acquired for a range window of 13 km and can comprise many times the number of target photons. The highest background rate occurs when the atmosphere is clear, the Sun is high, and the target is a highly reflective surface such as snow. Under these conditions, the total data rate for the 16 channels combined is expected to be approximately 22 million events per second. For each photon detection event, the data capture software reads the relative time of receipt, with respect to a one-per-second absolute time pulse from a GPS receiver, from an event timer card with 0.1-ns precision, and records that information to a RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) storage device. The relative time of laser pulse firings must also be read and recorded with the same precision. Each of the four event timer cards handles the throughput from four of the channels. For each detection event, a flag is

DC-8 Airborne Laboratory in flight over Palmdale, CA

NASA Image and Video Library

1998-02-20

The DC-8 Airborne Laboratory in a left banking turn above the airport at Palmdale, California. The right wing is silhouetted against the blue sky, while the left wing contrasts with the desert terrain. The former airliner is a "dash-72" model and has a range of 5,400 miles. The craft can stay airborne for 12 hours and has an operational speed range between 300 and 500 knots. The research flights are made at between 500 and 41,000 feet. The aircraft can carry up to 30,000 lbs of research/science payload equipment installed in 15 mission-definable spaces.

76 FR 63714 - Technical Standard Order (TSO)-C129a, Airborne Supplemental Navigation Equipment Using the Global...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-10-13

..., Airborne Supplemental Navigation Equipment Using the Global Positioning System (GPS) AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT ACTION: Notice of cancellation of TSO-C129a, Airborne Supplemental... cancellation of TSO-C129a, Airborne Supplemental Navigation Equipment Using the Global Positioning System (GPS...

Towards a Multi-Mission, Airborne Science Data System Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crichton, D. J.; Hardman, S.; Law, E.; Freeborn, D.; Kay-Im, E.; Lau, G.; Oswald, J.

2011-12-01

NASA earth science instruments are increasingly relying on airborne missions. However, traditionally, there has been limited common infrastructure support available to principal investigators in the area of science data systems. As a result, each investigator has been required to develop their own computing infrastructures for the science data system. Typically there is little software reuse and many projects lack sufficient resources to provide a robust infrastructure to capture, process, distribute and archive the observations acquired from airborne flights. At NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), we have been developing a multi-mission data system infrastructure for airborne instruments called the Airborne Cloud Computing Environment (ACCE). ACCE encompasses the end-to-end lifecycle covering planning, provisioning of data system capabilities, and support for scientific analysis in order to improve the quality, cost effectiveness, and capabilities to enable new scientific discovery and research in earth observation. This includes improving data system interoperability across each instrument. A principal characteristic is being able to provide an agile infrastructure that is architected to allow for a variety of configurations of the infrastructure from locally installed compute and storage services to provisioning those services via the "cloud" from cloud computer vendors such as Amazon.com. Investigators often have different needs that require a flexible configuration. The data system infrastructure is built on the Apache's Object Oriented Data Technology (OODT) suite of components which has been used for a number of spaceborne missions and provides a rich set of open source software components and services for constructing science processing and data management systems. In 2010, a partnership was formed between the ACCE team and the Carbon in Arctic Reservoirs Vulnerability Experiment (CARVE) mission to support the data processing and data management needs

Effectiveness of bomber deployed autonomous airborne vehicles in finding rail mobile SS-24s

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Abey, A.E.; Erickson, S.A.; Norquist, P.D.

1990-08-01

Computer simulation predictions of the effectiveness of autonomous airborne vehicles in finding rail mobile SS-24s are presented. Effectiveness is discussed for several autonomous airborne vehicle endurances and survivabilities for the search area southwest of Moscow. The effect of where the Soviets place the SS-24s on the rail network was also investigated. The simulation predicts significant variations in the ability of a multi-autonomous airborne vehicle system to find SS-24s with these parameters. 12 figs., 1 tab.

Airborne myxomycete spores: detection using molecular techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kamono, Akiko; Kojima, Hisaya; Matsumoto, Jun; Kawamura, Kimitaka; Fukui, Manabu

2009-01-01

Myxomycetes are organisms characterized by a life cycle that includes a fruiting body stage. Myxomycete fruiting bodies contain spores, and wind dispersal of the spores is considered important for this organism to colonize new areas. In this study, the presence of airborne myxomycetes and the temporal changes in the myxomycete composition of atmospheric particles (aerosols) were investigated with a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based method for Didymiaceae and Physaraceae. Twenty-one aerosol samples were collected on the roof of a three-story building located in Sapporo, Hokkaido Island, northern Japan. PCR analysis of DNA extracts from the aerosol samples indicated the presence of airborne myxomycetes in all the samples, except for the one collected during the snowfall season. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis of the PCR products showed seasonally varying banding patterns. The detected DGGE bands were subjected to sequence analyses, and four out of nine obtained sequences were identical to those of fruiting body samples collected in Hokkaido Island. It appears that the difference in the fruiting period of each species was correlated with the seasonal changes in the myxomycete composition of the aerosols. Molecular evidence shows that newly formed spores are released and dispersed in the air, suggesting that wind-driven dispersal of spores is an important process in the life history of myxomycetes. This study is the first to detect airborne myxomycetes with the use of molecular ecological analyses and to characterize their seasonal distribution.

Water Mapping Using Multispectral Airborne LIDAR Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, W. Y.; Shaker, A.; LaRocque, P. E.

2018-04-01

This study investigates the use of the world's first multispectral airborne LiDAR sensor, Optech Titan, manufactured by Teledyne Optech to serve the purpose of automatic land-water classification with a particular focus on near shore region and river environment. Although there exist recent studies utilizing airborne LiDAR data for shoreline detection and water surface mapping, the majority of them only perform experimental testing on clipped data subset or rely on data fusion with aerial/satellite image. In addition, most of the existing approaches require manual intervention or existing tidal/datum data for sample collection of training data. To tackle the drawbacks of previous approaches, we propose and develop an automatic data processing workflow for land-water classification using multispectral airborne LiDAR data. Depending on the nature of the study scene, two methods are proposed for automatic training data selection. The first method utilizes the elevation/intensity histogram fitted with Gaussian mixture model (GMM) to preliminarily split the land and water bodies. The second method mainly relies on the use of a newly developed scan line elevation intensity ratio (SLIER) to estimate the water surface data points. Regardless of the training methods being used, feature spaces can be constructed using the multispectral LiDAR intensity, elevation and other features derived from these parameters. The comprehensive workflow was tested with two datasets collected for different near shore region and river environment, where the overall accuracy yielded better than 96 %.

Sun and aureole spectrometer for airborne measurements to derive aerosol optical properties.

PubMed

Asseng, Hagen; Ruhtz, Thomas; Fischer, Jürgen

2004-04-01

We have designed an airborne spectrometer system for the simultaneous measurement of the direct Sun irradiance and aureole radiance. The instrument is based on diffraction grating spectrometers with linear image sensors. It is robust, lightweight, compact, and reliable, characteristics that are important for airborne applications. The multispectral radiation measurements are used to derive optical properties of tropospheric aerosols. We extract the altitude dependence of the aerosol volume scattering function and of the aerosol optical depth by using flight patterns with descents and ascents ranging from the surface level to the top of the boundary layer. The extinction coefficient and the product of single scattering albedo and phase function of separate layers can be derived from the airborne measurements.

Airborne Multi-Spectral Minefield Survey

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-05-01

Swedish Defence Research Agency), GEOSPACE (Austria), GTD ( Ingenieria de Sistemas y Software Industrial, Spain), IMEC (Ineruniversity MicroElectronic...RTO-MP-SET-092 18 - 1 UNCLASSIFIED/UNLIMITED UNCLASSIFIED/UNLIMITED Airborne Multi-Spectral Minefield Survey Dirk-Jan de Lange, Eric den...actions is the severe lack of baseline information. To respond to this in a rapid way, cost-efficient data acquisition methods are a key issue. de

NASA UAV Airborne Science Capabilities in Support of Water Resource Management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fladeland, Matthew

2015-01-01

This workshop presentation focuses on potential uses of unmanned aircraft observations in support of water resource management and agriculture. The presentation will provide an overview of NASA Airborne Science capabilities with an emphasis on past UAV missions to provide context on accomplishments as well as technical challenges. I will also focus on recent NASA Ames efforts to assist in irrigation management and invasive species management using airborne and satellite datasets.

Satellite orbit determination from an airborne platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shepard, M. M.; Foshee, J. J.

This paper describes the requirements, approach, and problems associated with autonomous satellite orbit determination from an airborne platform. The ability to perform orbit determination from an airborne platform removes the reliance on ground control facilities. Aircraft orbit determination offers a more robust system in that it is less susceptible to direct attack, sabotage, or nuclear disaster. Ranging on a satellite and the processing of range/range-rate data along with INS inputs to produce a set of orbital parameters to be transmitted to user terminals are discussed. Several algorithms that could be utilized by the user terminal to recover the satellite position/velocity data from the transmitted message are presented. The ability to compress the ephemeris message to a small size while remaining autonomous for a long period of time, as would be needed in future military communication satellites, is discussed.

BOREAS RSS-12 Airborne Tracking Sunphotometer Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Forrest G. (Editor); Nickeson, Jaime (Editor); Lobitz, Brad; Spanner, Michael; Wrigley, Robert

2000-01-01

The BOREAS RSS-12 team collected both ground and airborne sunphotometer measurements for use in characterizing the aerosol optical properties of the atmosphere during the BOREAS data collection activities. These measurements are to be used to: 1) measure the magnitude and variability of the aerosol optical depth in both time and space; 2) determine the optical properties of the boreal aerosols; and 3) atmospherically correct remotely sensed data acquired during BOREAS. This data set contains airborne tracking sunphotometer data that were acquired from the C-130 aircraft during its flights over the BOREAS study areas. The data cover selected days and times from May to September 1994. The data are stored in tabular ASCII files. The data files are available on a CD-ROM (see document number 20010000884), or from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC).

ASPIRE - Airborne Spectro-Polarization InfraRed Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DeLuca, E.; Cheimets, P.; Golub, L.; Madsen, C. A.; Marquez, V.; Bryans, P.; Judge, P. G.; Lussier, L.; McIntosh, S. W.; Tomczyk, S.

2017-12-01

Direct measurements of coronal magnetic fields are critical for taking the next step in active region and solar wind modeling and for building the next generation of physics-based space-weather models. We are proposing a new airborne instrument to make these key observations. Building on the successful Airborne InfraRed Spectrograph (AIR-Spec) experiment for the 2017 eclipse, we will design and build a spectro-polarimeter to measure coronal magnetic field during the 2019 South Pacific eclipse. The new instrument will use the AIR-Spec optical bench and the proven pointing, tracking, and stabilization optics. A new cryogenic spectro-polarimeter will be built focusing on the strongest emission lines observed during the eclipse. The AIR-Spec IR camera, slit jaw camera and data acquisition system will all be reused. The poster will outline the optical design and the science goals for ASPIRE.

Results of airborne geophysical surveys in the Weser-Elbe area in Northern Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meyer, U.; Siemon, B.; Steuer, A.; Ibs-von Seht, M.; Voss, W.; Miensopust, M. P.; Wiederhold, H.

2012-12-01

Airborne geophysical surveys were carried out by the German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) in Northern Germany close to the estuaries of the Weser and Elbe rivers from 2000 to 2010. Two of the six helicopter-borne surveys were conducted in cooperation with the Leibniz Institute for Applied Geophysics (LIAG). The common aim was the acquisition of a reference data set for monitoring climate or man-made induced changes of the saltwater/freshwater interface at the German North Sea coast and to build up a data base containing all airborne geophysical data sets. Airborne frequency-domain electromagnetic, magnetic, and radiometric data were collected simultaneously with the helicopter-borne geophysical system operated at BGR. The airborne geophysical results show both geological and hydrogeological structures down to about 100 m depth. The electromagnetic results reveal several hydrogeological important features such as the distribution of sandy or clayey sediments, the extension of saltwater intrusion, and buried valleys. These results are supported by magnetic and radiometric data indicating lateral changes of weakly magnetized sediments or mineral compositions of the top soil. The airborne geophysical data sets provide serve as base-line data for a variety of applications and particularly for groundwater modeling and monitoring.

Concentration of airborne Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA and MSSA), total bacteria, and endotoxins in pig farms.

PubMed

Masclaux, Frederic G; Sakwinska, Olga; Charrière, Nicole; Semaani, Eulalia; Oppliger, Anne

2013-06-01

Pigs are very often colonized by Staphylococcus aureus and transmission of such pig-associated S. aureus to humans can cause serious medical, hygiene, and economic problems. The transmission route of zoonotic pathogens colonizing farm animals to humans is not well established and bioaerosols could play an important role. The aim of this study was to assess the potential occupational risk of working with S. aureus-colonized pigs in Switzerland. We estimated the airborne contamination by S. aureus in 37 pig farms (20 nursery and 17 fattening units; 25 in summer, 12 in winter). Quantification of total airborne bacterial DNA, airborne Staphylococcus sp. DNA, fungi, and airborne endotoxins was also performed. In this experiment, the presence of cultivable airborne methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) CC398 in a pig farm in Switzerland was reported for the first time. Airborne methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA) was found in ~30% of farms. The average airborne concentration of DNA copy number of total bacteria and Staphylococcus sp. measured by quantitative polymerase chain reaction was very high, respectively reaching values of 75 (± 28) × 10(7) and 35 (± 9.8) × 10(5) copy numbers m(-3) in summer and 96 (± 19) × 10(8) and 40 (± 12) × 10(6) copy numbers m(-3) in winter. Total mean airborne concentrations of endotoxins (1298 units of endotoxin m(-3)) and fungi (5707 colony-forming units m(-3)) exceeded the Swiss recommended values and were higher in winter than in summer. In conclusion, Swiss pig farmers will have to tackle a new emerging occupational risk, which could also have a strong impact on public health. The need to inform pig farmers about biological occupational risks is therefore crucial.

β-(1,3)-Glucan Exposure Assessment by Passive Airborne Dust Sampling and New Sensitive Immunoassays▿

PubMed Central

Noss, Ilka; Wouters, Inge M.; Bezemer, Gillina; Metwali, Nervana; Sander, Ingrid; Raulf-Heimsoth, Monika; Heederik, Dick J. J.; Thorne, Peter S.; Doekes, Gert

2010-01-01

Associations between house dust-associated β-(1,3)-glucan exposure and airway inflammatory reactions have been reported, while such exposures in early childhood have been suggested to protect against asthma and wheezing. Most epidemiological studies have used reservoir dust samples and an inhibition enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for β-(1,3)-glucan exposure assessment. The objective of this study was to develop inexpensive but highly sensitive enzyme immunoassays to measure airborne β-(1,3)-glucans in low-exposure environments, like homes. Specificities of available anti-β-(1,3)-glucan antibodies were defined by direct and inhibition experiments. Three suitable antibody combinations were selected for sandwich EIAs. β-(1,3)-Glucans in passive airborne dust collected with an electrostatic dust fall collector (EDC) and floor dust from seven homes were measured with the three EIAs. Floor dust samples were additionally analyzed in the inhibition EIA. The sandwich EIAs were sensitive enough for airborne glucan measurement and showed different specificities for commercial glucans, while the β-(1,3)-glucan levels in house dust samples correlated strongly. The feasibility of measuring glucans in airborne dust with the recently introduced EDC method was further investigated by selecting the most suitable of the three EIAs to measure and compare β-(1,3)-glucan levels in the EDC and in floor and actively collected airborne dust samples of the previously performed EDC validation study. The EDC β-(1,3)-glucan levels correlated moderately with β-(1,3)-glucans in actively collected airborne dust and floor dust samples, while the glucan levels in the airborne dust and floor dust samples did not correlate. The combination of the newly developed β-(1,3)-glucan sandwich EIA with EDC sampling now allows assessment in large-scale population studies of exposure to airborne β-(1,3)-glucans in homes or other low-exposure environments. PMID:20038709

The Orlando TDWR testbed and airborne wind shear date comparison results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, Steven; Berke, Anthony; Matthews, Michael

1992-01-01

The focus of this talk is on comparing terminal Doppler Weather Radar (TDWR) and airborne wind shear data in computing a microburst hazard index called the F factor. The TDWR is a ground-based system for detecting wind shear hazards to aviation in the terminal area. The Federal Aviation Administration will begin deploying TDWR units near 45 airports in late 1992. As part of this development effort, M.I.T. Lincoln Laboratory operates under F.A.A. support a TDWR testbed radar in Orlando, FL. During the past two years, a series of flight tests has been conducted with instrumented aircraft penetrating microburst events while under testbed radar surveillance. These tests were carried out with a Cessna Citation 2 aircraft operated by the University of North Dakota (UND) Center for Aerospace Sciences in 1990, and a Boeing 737 operated by NASA Langley Research Center in 1991. A large data base of approximately 60 instrumented microburst penetrations has been obtained from these flights.

Radioactive Wastes.

PubMed

Choudri, B S; Charabi, Yassine; Baawain, Mahad; Ahmed, Mushtaque

2017-10-01

Papers reviewed herein present a general overview of radioactive waste related activities around the world in 2016. The current reveiw include studies related to safety assessments, decommission and decontamination of nuclear facilities, fusion facilities, transportation. Further, the review highlights on management solutions for the final disposal of low and high level radioactive wastes (LLW and HLW), interim storage and final disposal options for spent fuel (SF), and tritiated wastes, with a focus on environmental impacts due to the mobility of radionuclides in ecosystem, water and soil alongwith other progress made in the management of radioactive wastes.

Assessing exergy of forest ecosystem using airborne and satellite data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brovkina, Olga; Fabianek, Tomas; Lukes, Petr; Zemek, Frantisek

2017-04-01

Interactions of the energy flows of forest ecosystem with environment are formed by a suite of forest structure, functions and pathways of self-control. According to recent thermodynamic theory for open systems, concept of exergy of solar radiation has been applied to estimate energy consumptions on evapotranspiration and biomass production in forest ecosystem or to indicate forest decline and human land use impact on ecosystem stability. However, most of the methods for exergy estimation in forest ecosystem is not stable and its physical meaning remains on the surface. This study was aimed to contribute to understanding the exergy of forest ecosystem using combination of remote sensing (RS) and eddy covariance technologies, specifically: 1/to explore exergy of solar radiation depending on structure of solar spectrum (number of spectral bands of RS data), and 2/to explore the relationship between exergy and flux tower eddy covariance measurements. Two study forest sites were located in Western Beskids in the Czech Republic. The first site was dominated by young Norway spruce, the second site was dominated by mature European beech. Airborne hyperspectral data in VNIR, SWIR and TIR spectral regions were acquired 9 times for study sites during a vegetation periods in 2015-2016. Radiometric, geometric and atmospheric corrections of airborne data were performed. Satellite multispectral Landsat-8 cloud-free 21 scenes were downloaded and atmospherically corrected for the period from April to November 2015-2016. Evapotranspiration and latent heat fluxes were collected from operating flux towers located on study sites according to date and time of remote sensing data acquisition. Exergy was calculated for each satellite and airborne scene using various combinations of spectral bands as: Ex=E^out (K+ln E^out/E^in )+R, where Ein is the incoming solar energy, Eout is the reflected solar energy, R = Ein-Eout is absorbed energy, Eout/Ein is albedo and K is the Kullback increment

Examination of water spray airborne coal dust capture with three wetting agents

PubMed Central

Organiscak, J.A.

2015-01-01

Water spray applications are one of the principal means of controlling airborne respirable dust in coal mines. Since many coals are hydrophobic and not easily wetted by water, wetting agents can be added to the spray water in an effort to improve coal wetting and assist with dust capture. In order to study wetting agent effects on coal dust capture, laboratory experiments were conducted with three wetting agents used by the coal industry on -325 mesh sized Pocahontas No. 3 coal dust. Significant differences in coal dust sink times were observed among the three wetting agents at water mixture concentrations of 0.05%, 0.1% and 0.2%. The best wetting agent as identified by the coal dust sink test was only tested at the lowest 0.05% water mixture concentration and was found to have a negligible effect on spray airborne dust capture. Water spray airborne dust capture results for all three wetting agents tested at a 0.2% water mixture concentration showed that all three wetting agents exhibit similar but small improvements in dust capture efficiency as compared with water. These results indicate that the coal dust sink test may not be a good predictor for the capture of airborne dust. Additional research is needed to examine if the coal dust sink test is a better predictor of wetting agent dust suppression effects during cutting, loading, conveying and dumping of coal products by comparison to airborne dust capture from sprays. PMID:26251565

Research on the error model of airborne celestial/inertial integrated navigation system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Xiaoqiang; Deng, Xiaoguo; Yang, Xiaoxu; Dong, Qiang

2015-02-01

Celestial navigation subsystem of airborne celestial/inertial integrated navigation system periodically correct the positioning error and heading drift of the inertial navigation system, by which the inertial navigation system can greatly improve the accuracy of long-endurance navigation. Thus the navigation accuracy of airborne celestial navigation subsystem directly decides the accuracy of the integrated navigation system if it works for long time. By building the mathematical model of the airborne celestial navigation system based on the inertial navigation system, using the method of linear coordinate transformation, we establish the error transfer equation for the positioning algorithm of airborne celestial system. Based on these we built the positioning error model of the celestial navigation. And then, based on the positioning error model we analyze and simulate the positioning error which are caused by the error of the star tracking platform with the MATLAB software. Finally, the positioning error model is verified by the information of the star obtained from the optical measurement device in range and the device whose location are known. The analysis and simulation results show that the level accuracy and north accuracy of tracking platform are important factors that limit airborne celestial navigation systems to improve the positioning accuracy, and the positioning error have an approximate linear relationship with the level error and north error of tracking platform. The error of the verification results are in 1000m, which shows that the model is correct.

Temporal change in the size distribution of airborne Radiocesium derived from the Fukushima accident

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaneyasu, Naoki; Ohashi, Hideo; Suzuki, Fumie; Okuda, Tomoaki; Ikemori, Fumikazu; Akata, Naofumi

2013-04-01

The accident of Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant discharged a large amount of radioactive materials into the environment. After 40 days of the accident, we started to collect the size-segregated aerosol at Tsukuba City, Japan, located 170 km south of the plant, by use of a low-pressure cascade impactor. The sampling continued from April 28, through October 26, 2011. The number of sample sets collected in total was 8. The radioactivity of 134Cs and 137Cs in aerosols collected at each stage were determined by gamma-ray with a high sensitivity Germanic detector. After the gamma-ray spectrometry analysis, the chemical species in the aerosols were analyzed. The analyses of first (April 28-May 12) and second (May 12-26) samples showed that the activity size distributions of 134Cs and 137Cs in aerosols reside mostly in the accumulation mode size range. These activity size distributions almost overlapped with the mass size distribution of non-sea-salt sulfate aerosol. From the results, we regarded that sulfate is the main transport medium of these radionuclides, and re-suspended soil particles that attached radionuclides were not the major airborne radioactive substances by the end of May, 2011 (Kaneyasu et al., 2012). We further conducted the successive extraction experiment of radiocesium from the aerosol deposits on the aluminum sheet substrate (8th stage of the first aerosol sample, 0.5-0.7 μm in aerodynamic diameter) with water and 0.1M HCl. In contrast to the relatively insoluble property of Chernobyl radionuclides, those in aerosols collected at Tsukuba in fine mode are completely water-soluble (100%). From the third aerosol sample, the activity size distributions started to change, i.e., the major peak in the accumulation mode size range seen in the first and second aerosol samples became smaller and an additional peak appeared in the coarse mode size range. The comparison of the activity size distributions of radiocesium and the mass size distributions of

Relationships among indoor, outdoor, and personal airborne Japanese cedar pollen counts.

PubMed

Yamamoto, Naomichi; Matsuki, Yuuki; Yokoyama, Hiromichi; Matsuki, Hideaki

2015-01-01

Japanese cedar pollinosis (JCP) is an important illness caused by the inhalation of airborne allergenic cedar pollens, which are dispersed in the early spring throughout the Japanese islands. However, associations between pollen exposures and the prevalence or severity of allergic symptoms are largely unknown, due to a lack of understanding regarding personal pollen exposures in relation to indoor and outdoor concentrations. This study aims to examine the relationships among indoor, outdoor, and personal airborne Japanese cedar pollen counts. We conducted a 4-year monitoring campaign to quantify indoor, outdoor, and personal airborne cedar pollen counts, where the personal passive settling sampler that has been previously validated against a volumetric sampler was used to count airborne pollen grains. A total of 256 sets of indoor, outdoor, and personal samples (768 samples) were collected from 9 subjects. Medians of the seasonally-integrated indoor-to-outdoor, personal-to-outdoor, and personal-to-indoor ratios of airborne pollen counts measured for 9 subjects were 0.08, 0.10, and 1.19, respectively. A greater correlation was observed between the personal and indoor counts (r = 0.89) than between the personal and outdoor counts (r = 0.71), suggesting a potential inaccuracy in the use of outdoor counts as a basis for estimating personal exposures. The personal pollen counts differed substantially among the human subjects (49% geometric coefficient of variation), in part due to the variability in the indoor counts that have been found as major determinants of the personal pollen counts. The findings of this study highlight the need for pollen monitoring in proximity to human subjects to better understand the relationships between pollen exposures and the prevalence or severity of pollen allergy.