Students' attitudes towards interdisciplinary education: a course on interdisciplinary aspects of science and engineering education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gero, Aharon

2017-05-01

A course entitled 'Science and Engineering Education: Interdisciplinary Aspects' was designed to expose undergraduate students of science and engineering education to the attributes of interdisciplinary education which integrates science and engineering. The core of the course is an interdisciplinary lesson, which each student is supposed to teach his/her peers. Sixteen students at advanced stages of their studies attended the course. The research presented here used qualitative instruments to characterise students' attitudes towards interdisciplinary learning and teaching of science and engineering. According to the findings, despite the significant challenge which characterises interdisciplinary teaching, a notable improvement was evident throughout the course in the percentage of students who expressed willingness to teach interdisciplinary classes in future.

Key Science Instrument Installed into Webb Structure

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Engineers Tom Huber (behind MIRI) and Mick Wilks (inside black ISIM Structure) check that MIRI is integrated precisely. The engineers have to make sure that MIRI, the only instrument on the Webb telescope that 'sees' mid-infrared light, is precisely positioned so that it and the other instruments can glimpse the formation of galaxies and see deeper into the universe than ever before. Photo Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn; Text Credit: NASA/Laura Betz ---- Engineers worked meticulously to implant the James Webb Space Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument into the ISIM, or Integrated Science Instrument Module, in the cleanroom at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. As the successor to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, the Webb telescope will be the most powerful space telescope ever built. It will observe the most distant objects in the universe, provide images of the first galaxies formed and see unexplored planets around distant stars. For more information, visit: www.jwst.nasa.gov NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

ICESat (GLAS) Science Processing Software Document Series. Volume 1; Science Software Management Plan; 3.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hancock, David W., III

1999-01-01

This document provides the Software Management Plan for the GLAS Standard Data Software (SDS) supporting the GLAS instrument of the EOS ICESat Spacecraft. The SDS encompasses the ICESat Science Investigator-led Processing System (I-SIPS) Software and the Instrument Support Terminal (IST) Software. For the I-SIPS Software, the SDS will produce Level 0, Level 1, and Level 2 data products as well as the associated product quality assessments and descriptive information. For the IST Software, the SDS will accommodate the GLAS instrument support areas of engineering status, command, performance assessment, and instrument health status.

Peer Mentoring among Doctoral Students of Science and Engineering in Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Yii-nii; Hsu, Angela Yi-ping

2012-01-01

This study describes the peer mentoring experience from doctoral student mentors' point of view. Twelve science and engineering doctoral students participated in this phenomenology study. The findings suggest doctoral peer mentors served instrumental, psychosocial, buffering, and liaison roles; they passed on their social, professional, and…

Development of a Compact, Deep-Penetrating Heat Flow Instrument for Lunar Landers: In-Situ Thermal Conductivity System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nagihara, S.; Zacny, K.; Hedlund, M.; Taylor, P. T.

2012-01-01

Geothermal heat flow is obtained as a product of the geothermal gradient and the thermal conductivity of the vertical soil/rock/regolith interval penetrated by the instrument. Heat flow measurements are a high priority for the geophysical network missions to the Moon recommended by the latest Decadal Survey and previously the International Lunar Network. One of the difficulties associated with lunar heat flow measurement on a robotic mission is that it requires excavation of a relatively deep (approx 3 m) hole in order to avoid the long-term temporal changes in lunar surface thermal environment affecting the subsurface temperature measurements. Such changes may be due to the 18.6-year-cylcle lunar precession, or may be initiated by presence of the lander itself. Therefore, a key science requirement for heat flow instruments for future lunar missions is to penetrate 3 m into the regolith and to measure both thermal gradient and thermal conductivity. Engineering requirements are that the instrument itself has minimal impact on the subsurface thermal regime and that it must be a low-mass and low-power system like any other science instrumentation on planetary landers. It would be very difficult to meet the engineering requirements, if the instrument utilizes a long (> 3 m) probe driven into the ground by a rotary or percussive drill. Here we report progress in our efforts to develop a new, compact lunar heat flow instrumentation that meets all of these science and engineering requirements.

Research and technology, 1984 report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1984-01-01

Research and technology projects in the following areas are described: cryogenic engineering, hypergolic engineering, hazardous warning instrumentation, structures and mechanics, sensors and controls, computer sciences, communications, material analysis, biomedicine, meteorology, engineering management, logistics, training and maintenance aids, and technology applications.

Academic Research Equipment and Equipment Needs in Selected Science and Engineering Fields: 1989-90.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Westat, Inc., Rockville, MD.

This monograph is one in a series of analytical reports presenting findings from the National Science Foundation's 1989-90 National Survey of Academic Research Instruments and Instrumentation Needs. This report documents current status and recent trends in the amounts, costs, and kinds of academic research equipment in seven major…

Technology Readiness Level Assessment Process as Applied to NASA Earth Science Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leete, Stephen J.; Romero, Raul A.; Dempsey, James A.; Carey, John P.; Cline, Helmut P.; Lively, Carey F.

2015-01-01

Technology assessments of fourteen science instruments were conducted within NASA using the NASA Technology Readiness Level (TRL) Metric. The instruments were part of three NASA Earth Science Decadal Survey missions in pre-formulation. The Earth Systematic Missions Program (ESMP) Systems Engineering Working Group (SEWG), composed of members of three NASA Centers, provided a newly modified electronic workbook to be completed, with instructions. Each instrument development team performed an internal assessment of its technology status, prepared an overview of its instrument, and completed the workbook with the results of its assessment. A team from the ESMP SEWG met with each instrument team and provided feedback. The instrument teams then reported through the Program Scientist for their respective missions to NASA's Earth Science Division (ESD) on technology readiness, taking the SEWG input into account. The instruments were found to have a range of TRL from 4 to 7. Lessons Learned are presented; however, due to the competition-sensitive nature of the assessments, the results for specific missions are not presented. The assessments were generally successful, and produced useful results for the agency. The SEWG team identified a number of potential improvements to the process. Particular focus was on ensuring traceability to guiding NASA documents, including the NASA Systems Engineering Handbook. The TRL Workbook has been substantially modified, and the revised workbook is described.

Materials and Fabrication Methods II. A Study Guide of the Science and Engineering Technician Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindberg, Andrew; Bay, Robert

This study guide is part of a program of studies entitled Science and Engineering Technician (SET) Curriculum. The SET Curriculum integrates elements from the disciplines of chemistry, physics, mathematics, mechanical technology, and electronic technology with the objective of training technicians in the use of electronic instruments and their…

Analog and Digital Electronics. A Study Guide of the Science and Engineering Technician Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavanaugh, Vince; Greer, Marlin

This study guide is part of an interdisciplinary curriculum entitled the Science and Engineering Technician (SET) Curriculum devised to provide basic information to train technicians in the use of electronic instruments and their application. The program of study integrates elements from the disciplines of chemistry, physics, mathematics,…

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO): A Systems Approach to a Complex Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ruffa, John A.; Ward, David K.; Bartusek, LIsa M.; Bay, Michael; Gonzales, Peter J.; Pesnell, William D.

2012-01-01

The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) includes three advanced instruments, massive science data volume, stringent science data completeness requirements, and a custom ground station to meet mission demands. The strict instrument science requirements imposed a number of challenging drivers on the overall mission system design, leading the SDO team to adopt an integrated systems engineering presence across all aspects of the mission to ensure that mission science requirements would be met. Key strategies were devised to address these system level drivers and mitigate identified threats to mission success. The global systems engineering team approach ensured that key drivers and risk areas were rigorously addressed through all phases of the mission, leading to the successful SDO launch and on-orbit operation. Since launch, SDO's on-orbit performance has met all mission science requirements and enabled groundbreaking science observations, expanding our understanding of the Sun and its dynamic processes.

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO): A Systems Approach to a Complex Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ruffa, John A.; Ward, David K.; Bartusek, Lisa M.; Bay, Michael; Gonzales, Peter J.; Pesnell, William D.

2012-01-01

The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) includes three advanced instruments, massive science data volume, stringent science data completeness requirements, and a custom ground station to meet mission demands. The strict instrument science requirements imposed a number of challenging drivers on the overall mission system design, leading the SDO team to adopt an integrated systems engineering presence across all aspects of the mission to ensure that mission science requirements would be met. Key strategies were devised to address these system level drivers and mitigate identified threats to mission success. The global systems engineering team approach ensured that key drivers and risk areas were rigorously addressed through all phases of the mission, leading to the successful SDO launch and on-orbit operation. Since launch, SDO s on-orbit performance has met all mission science requirements and enabled groundbreaking science observations, expanding our understanding of the Sun and its dynamic processes.

Artist Concept of Mars 2020 Rover

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-07-09

Planning for NASA 2020 Mars rover envisions a basic structure that capitalizes on existing design and engineering, but with new science instruments selected through competition for accomplishing different science objectives.

Artist Concept of Mars 2020 Rover, Annotated

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-07-09

Planning for NASA 2020 Mars rover envisions a basic structure that capitalizes on existing design and engineering, but with new science instruments selected through competition for accomplishing different science objectives.

Electronic Components, Transducers, and Basic Circuits. A Study Guide of the Science and Engineering Technician Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mowery, Donald R.

This study guide is part of a program of studies entitled the Science and Engineering Technician (SET) Curriculum developed for the purpose of training technicians in the use of electronic instruments and their applications. The program integrates elements from the disciplines of chemistry, physics, mathematics, mechanical technology, and…

Aeronautical engineering: A continuing bibliography with indexes (supplement 280)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

This bibliography lists 647 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in June, 1991. Subject coverage includes: aerodynamics, air transportation safety, aircraft communication and navigation, aircraft design and performance, aircraft instrumentation, aircraft propulsion, aircraft stability and control, research facilities, astronautics, chemistry and materials, engineering, geosciences, computer sciences, physics, and social sciences.

Designing an Optical Instrument: A Culminating STEM Activity for a Primary Science Light Unit

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Donna; English, Lyn

2016-01-01

Nationally and internationally there have been calls for a focus on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) teaching and learning in schools to prepare students for the many future careers in the STEM fields. One way to do this is through engineering activities that provide opportunities for integrating STEM to solve problems using…

Key Science Instrument Installed into Webb Structure

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-05-03

A technician is installing the bolts that will hold the MIRI, or Mid-Infrared Instrument, to the composite Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) structure, or the black frame. The MIRI is attached to a balance beam, called the Horizontal Integration Tool (HIT), hanging from a precision overhead crane. That's the same tool that Hubble engineers used to prepare hardware for its servicing missions. Photo Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn; Text Credit: NASA/Laura Betz ---- Engineers worked meticulously to implant the James Webb Space Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument into the ISIM, or Integrated Science Instrument Module, in the cleanroom at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. As the successor to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, the Webb telescope will be the most powerful space telescope ever built. It will observe the most distant objects in the universe, provide images of the first galaxies formed and see unexplored planets around distant stars. For more information, visit: www.jwst.nasa.gov NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Use of MicroMaps for Satellite Validation and Potential UAV Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Connors, V. S.; Sachse, G. W.; Hopkins, P. E.; Morrow, W.; McMillan, W. W.

2005-12-01

The MicroMAPS instrument is a nadir-viewing, gas filter-correlated radiometer which operates in the 4.67 micrometer fundamental band of carbon monoxide. Originally designed and built for a space mission, this CO remote sensor is being flown in support of satellite validation and science instrument demonstrations for potential UAV applications. The MicroMAPS CO instrument was flown for the first time during the Summer-Fall 2004 on-board the Proteus aircraft, which is owned and operated by Scaled Composites, in Mojave, CA. The insturment system, flown on Proteus, was designed by a student team as a senior design project in the Aerospace Engineering Department, Virginia Tech, in Blacksburg, VA. This proposed design was reviewed and revised by Systems Engineers at NASA Langley; the final instrument system was integrated and tested at NASA LaRC in partnership with Scaled Composites and Virginia Space Grant Consortium, which supervised the fabrication of the nacelle which housed the instrument system on the right rear tail boom of Proteus. Full system integration and flight testing was performed at Scaled Composites, in Mojave, in June 2004. Its successful performance enabled participation in three international science missions: INTEX -NA over eastern North America in July 2004, ADRIEX over the Mediterranean region and EAQUATE over the United Kingdom region in September 2004, piggy-backing with the IPO-sponsored payload flown on Proteus. These flights resulted in nearly 100 hours of science measurements and in-flight calibrations. In parallel with the engineering devlopments, theoretical radiative transfer models were developed specifically for the MicroMAPS instrument system at the University of Virginia, Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering Department by a combined undergraduate and graduate student team. With techical support from Resonance Ltd. In June 2005, in Barrie, Canada, the MicroMAPS instrument was calibrated for the conditions underwhich the Summer-Fall 2004 flights occurred. The analyses of the calibration data, combined with the theoretical radiative transfer models, will provide the first data reduction for the science flights. These early results and comparisons with profile data from the NASA DC-8 and the coincident AIRS CO retrievals will be presented.

75 FR 62763 - Application(s) for Duty-Free Entry of Scientific Instruments

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-13

... Technology, 771 Ferst Drive, NW., School of Materials Science and Engineering, Atlanta, GA 30332-0245...: The instrument will be used to study materials in the nanometer range such as catalyzer, tissues, and...

MicroMAPS CO Measurements over North America and Europe during Summer-Fall 2004

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Connors, V. S.; Hopkins, P. E.; Reichle, H. G.; Morrow, W. H.; McMillan, W. W.; Sandy, M.

2006-12-01

The MicroMAPS instrument is a nadir-viewing, gas filter-correlated radiometer which operating in the 4.67 micrometer fundamental band of carbon monoxide. Originally designed and built for a space mission, this CO remote sensor is being flown in support of satellite validation and science instrument demonstrations for potential UAV applications. The MicroMAPS instrument system, as flown on Proteus, was designed by a senior student design project in the Aerospace Engineering Department, Virginia Tech, in Blacksburg, VA. and then revised by Systems Engineers at NASA Langley. The final instrument system was integrated and tested at NASA LaRC, in partnership with Scaled Composites and Virginia Space Grant Consortium (VSGC). VSGC supervised the fabrication of the nacelle that houses the instrument system on the right rear tail boom of Proteus. Full system integration and flight testing was performed at Scaled Composites, in Mojave, in June 2004. Its successful performance enabled participation in four international science missions on Proteus: in 2004, INTEX -NA over eastern North America in July, ADRIEX over the Mediterranean region and EAQUATE over the United Kingdom region in September,and TWP-ICE over Darwin, Australia and the surrounding oceans in Jan-Feb 2006. These flights resulted in nearly 300 hours of data. In parallel with the engineering developments, theoretical radiative transfer models were developed specifically for the MicroMAPS instrument system at the University of Virginia, Mechanical Engineering Department by a combined undergraduate and graduate student team. With technical support from Resonance Ltd. in June 2005, the MicroMAPS instrument was calibrated for the conditions under which the Summer-Fall 2004 flights occurred. The analyses of the calibration data, combined with the theoretical radiative transfer models, provide the first data reduction for the science flights reported here. These early results and comparisons with profile data from the NASA DC-8, the coincident AIRS CO retrievals, and selected CO measurements from the MOZAIC program will be presented.

MicroMAPS CO Measurements over North America and Europe during Summer-Fall 2004

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Connors, Vickie S.; Hopkins, Patrick E.; Reichle, Henry G., Jr.; Morrow, William H.; McMillan, Wallace; Sandy, Mary L.

2006-01-01

The MicroMAPS instrument is a nadir-viewing, gas filter-correlated radiometer which operating in the 4.67 micrometer fundamental band of carbon monoxide. Originally designed and built for a space mission, this CO remote sensor is being flown in support of satellite validation and science instrument demonstrations for potential UAV applications. The MicroMAPS instrument system, as flown on Proteus, was designed by a senior student design project in the Aerospace Engineering Department, Virginia Tech, in Blacksburg, VA. and then revised by Systems Engineers at NASA Langley. The final instrument system was integrated and tested at NASA LaRC, in partnership with Scaled Composites and Virginia Space Grant Consortium (VSGC). VSGC supervised the fabrication of the nacelle that houses the instrument system on the right rear tail boom of Proteus. Full system integration and flight testing was performed at Scaled Composites, in Mojave, in June 2004. Its successful performance enabled participation in four international science missions on Proteus: in 2004, INTEX -NA over eastern North America in July, ADRIEX over the Mediterranean region and EAQUATE over the United Kingdom region in September,and TWP-ICE over Darwin, Australia and the surrounding oceans in Jan-Feb 2006. These flights resulted in nearly 300 hours of data. In parallel with the engineering developments, theoretical radiative transfer models were developed specifically for the MicroMAPS instrument system at the University of Virginia, Mechanical Engineering Department by a combined undergraduate and graduate student team. With technical support from Resonance Ltd. in June 2005, the MicroMAPS instrument was calibrated for the conditions under which the Summer-Fall 2004 flights occurred. The analyses of the calibration data, combined with the theoretical radiative transfer models, provide the first data reduction for the science flights reported here. These early results and comparisons with profile data from the NASA DC-8, the coincident AIRS CO retrievals, and selected CO measurements from the MOZAIC program will be presented.

Idaho Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Overview

ScienceCinema

None

2017-12-09

Idaho National Laboratory has been instrumental in establishing the Idaho Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics initiative -- i-STEM, which brings together industry, educators, government and other partners to provide K-12 teachers with support, materials and opportunities to improve STEM instruction and increase student interest in technical careers. You can learn more about INL's education programs at http://www.facebook.com/idahonationallaboratory.

Development of an Instrument to Assess Attitudes toward Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guzey, S. Selcen; Harwell, Michael; Moore, Tamara

2014-01-01

There is a need for more students to be interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers to advance U.S. competitiveness and economic growth. A consensus exists that improving STEM education is necessary for motivating more students to pursue STEM careers. In this study, a survey to measure student (grades 4-6)…

Idaho Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Overview

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

Hampton, Brandon; Shoushtarian, Joannah; Ledoux, P

2011-02-11

Idaho National Laboratory has been instrumental in establishing the Idaho Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics initiative -- i-STEM, which brings together industry, educators, government and other partners to provide K-12 teachers with support, materials and opportunities to improve STEM instruction and increase student interest in technical careers. You can learn more about INL's education programs at http://www.facebook.com/idahonationallaboratory.

Engineering for Life Sciences: A Fruitful Collaboration Enabled by Chemistry.

PubMed

Niemeyer, Christof M

2017-02-13

"… The interaction of engineering and life sciences has a long history that is characterized by a mutual dependency. The role of chemistry in these developments is to connect the engineers' instrumentation with the life scientists' specimens. This very successful partnership will further continue to produce essential and innovative solutions for future challenges …" Read more in the Guest Editorial by Christof M. Niemeyer. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Engineering design of the Regolith X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (REXIS) instrument: an OSIRIS-REx student collaboration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, Michael; Chodas, Mark; Smith, Matthew J.; Masterson, Rebecca A.

2014-07-01

OSIRIS-REx is a NASA New Frontiers mission scheduled for launch in 2016 that will travel to the asteroid Bennu and return a pristine sample of the asteroid to Earth. The REgolith X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (REXIS) is a student collaboration instrument on-board the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. REXIS is a NASA risk Class D instrument, and its design and development is largely student led. The engineering team consists of MIT graduate and undergraduate students and staff at the MIT Space Systems Laboratory. The primary goal of REXIS is the education of science and engineering students through participation in the development of light hardware. In light, REXIS will contribute to the mission by providing an elemental abundance map of the asteroid and by characterizing Bennu among the known meteorite groups. REXIS is sensitive to X-rays between 0.5 and 7 keV, and uses coded aperture imaging to map the distribution of iron with 50 m spatial resolution. This paper describes the science goals, concept of operations, and overall engineering design of the REXIS instrument. Each subsystem of the instrument is addressed with a high-level description of the design. Critical design elements such as the Thermal Isolation Layer (TIL), radiation cover, coded-aperture mask, and Detector Assembly Mount (DAM) are discussed in further detail.

Astrobiobound! Search for Life in the Solar System: Scientists and Engineers Bringing their Challenges to K-12 Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klug Boonstra, S. L.; Swann, J.; Manfredi, L.; Zippay, A.; Boonstra, D.

2014-12-01

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) brought many dynamic opportunities and capabilities to the K-12 science classroom - especially with the inclusion of engineering. Using science as a context to help students engage in the engineering practices and engineering disciplinary core ideas is an essential step to students' understanding of how science drives engineering and how engineering enables science. Real world examples and applications are critical for students to see how these disciplines are integrated. Furthermore, the interface of science and engineering raise the level of science understanding, and facilitate higher order thinking skills through relevant experiences. Astrobiobound! is designed for the NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards) and CCSS (Common Core State Standards). Students also practice and build 21st Century Skills. Astrobiobound! help students see how science and systems engineering are integrated to achieve a focused scientific goal. Students engage in the engineering design process to design a space mission which requires them to balance the return of their science data with engineering limitations such as power, mass and budget. Risk factors also play a role during this simulation and adds to the excitement and authenticity. Astrobiobound! presents the authentic first stages of NASA mission design process. This simulation mirrors the NASA process in which the science goals, type of mission, and instruments to return required data to meet mission goals are proposed within mission budget before any of the construction part of engineering can begin. NASA scientists and engineers were consulted in the development of this activity as an authentic simulation of their mission proposal process.

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission: From Launch to the Primary Science Orbit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnston, Martin D.; Graf, James E.; Zurek, Richard W.; Eisen, Howard J.; Jai, Benhan; Erickson, James K.

2007-01-01

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, USA, aboard an Atlas V-401 launch vehicle on August 12, 2005. The MRO spacecraft carries a very sophisticated scientific payload. Its primary science mission is to to provide global, regional survey, and targeted observations from a low altitude orbit for one Martian year (687 Earth days). After a seven month interplanetary transit, the spacecraft fired its six main engines and established a highly elliptical capture orbit at Mars. During the post-MOI early check-out period, four instruments acquired engineering-quality data. This was followed by five months of aerobraking operations. After aerobraking was terminated, a series of propulsive maneuvers were used to establish the desired low altitude science orbit. As the spacecraft is readied for its primary science mission, spacecraft and instrument checkout and deployment activities have continued.

The Development of the STEM Career Interest Survey (STEM-CIS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kier, Meredith W.; Blanchard, Margaret R.; Osborne, Jason W.; Albert, Jennifer L.

2014-06-01

Internationally, efforts to increase student interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers have been on the rise. It is often the goal of such efforts that increased interest in STEM careers should stimulate economic growth and enhance innovation. Scientific and educational organizations recommend that efforts to interest students in STEM majors and careers begin at the middle school level, a time when students are developing their own interests and recognizing their academic strengths. These factors have led scholars to call for instruments that effectively measure interest in STEM classes and careers, particularly for middle school students. In response, we leveraged the social cognitive career theory to develop a survey with subscales in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. In this manuscript, we detail the six stages of development of the STEM Career Interest Survey. To investigate the instrument's reliability and psychometric properties, we administered this 44-item survey to over 1,000 middle school students (grades 6-8) who primarily were in rural, high-poverty districts in the southeastern USA. Confirmatory factor analyses indicate that the STEM-CIS is a strong, single factor instrument and also has four strong, discipline-specific subscales, which allow for the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics subscales to be administered separately or in combination. This instrument should prove helpful in research, evaluation, and professional development to measure STEM career interest in secondary level students.

Using tailored methodical approaches to achieve optimal science outcomes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wingate, Lory M.

2016-08-01

The science community is actively engaged in research, development, and construction of instrumentation projects that they anticipate will lead to new science discoveries. There appears to be very strong link between the quality of the activities used to complete these projects, and having a fully functioning science instrument that will facilitate these investigations.[2] The combination of using internationally recognized standards within the disciplines of project management (PM) and systems engineering (SE) has been demonstrated to lead to achievement of positive net effects and optimal project outcomes. Conversely, unstructured, poorly managed projects will lead to unpredictable, suboptimal project outcomes ultimately affecting the quality of the science that can be done with the new instruments. The proposed application of these two specific methodical approaches, implemented as a tailorable suite of processes, are presented in this paper. Project management (PM) is accepted worldwide as an effective methodology used to control project cost, schedule, and scope. Systems engineering (SE) is an accepted method that is used to ensure that the outcomes of a project match the intent of the stakeholders, or if they diverge, that the changes are understood, captured, and controlled. An appropriate application, or tailoring, of these disciplines can be the foundation upon which success in projects that support science can be optimized.

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

NONE

This document comprises Pacific Northwest National Laboratory`s report for Fiscal Year 1996 on research and development programs. The document contains 161 project summaries in 16 areas of research and development. The 16 areas of research and development reported on are: atmospheric sciences, biotechnology, chemical instrumentation and analysis, computer and information science, ecological science, electronics and sensors, health protection and dosimetry, hydrological and geologic sciences, marine sciences, materials science and engineering, molecular science, process science and engineering, risk and safety analysis, socio-technical systems analysis, statistics and applied mathematics, and thermal and energy systems. In addition, this report provides an overview ofmore » the research and development program, program management, program funding, and Fiscal Year 1997 projects.« less

Application of the gas-discharge surge arresters in X-ray devices and low voltage instrumentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, V. A.; Gerasimov, V. A.; Kostrin, D. K.; Lisenkov, A. A.; Selivanov, L. M.; Uhov, A. A.

2018-02-01

Usage of the gas discharge in science and engineering is discussed. Application examples of the compact gas-discharge tubes in the X-ray devices and low voltage instrumentation appliances for the surge protection are presented.

STEM Teachers' Planned and Enacted Attempts at Implementing Engineering Design-Based Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Capobianco, Brenda M.; Rupp, Madeline

2014-01-01

This study investigates grades 5 and 6 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teachers' planned and actualized engineering design-based instruction, the instruments used to characterize their efforts, and the implications this work has for teachers' implementations of an integrated approach to STEM education.…

Using Quality Attributes to Bridge Systems Engineering Gaps : A Juno Ground Data Systems Case Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dubon, Lydia P.; Jackson, Maddalena M.; Thornton, Marla S.

2012-01-01

The Juno Mission to Jupiter is the second mission selected by the NASA New Frontiers Program. Juno launched August 2011 and will reach Jupiter July 2016. Juno's payload system is composed of nine instruments plus a gravity science experiment. One of the primary functions of the Juno Ground Data System (GDS) is the assembly and distribution of the CFDP (CCSDS File Delivery Protocol) product telemetry, also referred to as raw science data, for eight out of the nine instruments. The GDS accomplishes this with the Instrument Data Pipeline (IDP). During payload integration, the first attempt to exercise the IDP in a flight like manner revealed that although the functional requirements were well understood, the system was unable to meet latency requirements with the as-is heritage design. A systems engineering gap emerged between Juno instrument data delivery requirements and the assumptions behind the heritage flight-ground interactions. This paper describes the use of quality attributes to measure and overcome this gap by introducing a new systems engineering activity, and a new monitoring service architecture that successfully delivered the performance metrics needed to validate Juno IDP.

The Deep Space Network: A Radio Communications Instrument for Deep Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Renzetti, N. A.; Stelzried, C. T.; Noreen, G. K.; Slobin, S. D.; Petty, S. M.; Trowbridge, D. L.; Donnelly, H.; Kinman, P. W.; Armstrong, J. W.; Burow, N. A.

1983-01-01

The primary purpose of the Deep Space Network (DSN) is to serve as a communications instrument for deep space exploration, providing communications between the spacecraft and the ground facilities. The uplink communications channel provides instructions or commands to the spacecraft. The downlink communications channel provides command verification and spacecraft engineering and science instrument payload data.

ChemCam rock laser for Mars Science Laboratory "Curiosity"

ScienceCinema

Wiens, Roger

2018-02-06

Los Alamos has a long history of space-related instruments, tied primarily to its role in defense-related treaty verification. Space-based detectors have helped determine the differences between signals from lightning bolts and potential nuclear explosions. LANL-developed gamma-ray detection instruments first revealed the existence of what we now know as gamma-ray bursts, an exciting area of astrophysical research. And the use of LANL instruments on varied space missions continues with such products as the ChemCam rock laser for NASA, shown here. The Engineering Model of the ChemCam Mars Science Laboratory rover instrument arrived at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory on February 6, 2008. The Flight Model was shipped in August, 2010 for installation on the rover at JPL. ChemCam will use imaging and laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) to determine rock and soil compositions on Mars, up to 9 meters from the rover. The engineering model is being integrated into the rover test bed for the development and testing of the rover software. The actual flight model components were concurrently assembled at Los Alamos and in Toulouse, France. The Mars Science Laboratory is scheduled to launch in 2011. Animations courtesy of JPL/NASA.

ChemCam rock laser for Mars Science Laboratory "Curiosity"

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

Wiens, Roger

2010-09-03

Los Alamos has a long history of space-related instruments, tied primarily to its role in defense-related treaty verification. Space-based detectors have helped determine the differences between signals from lightning bolts and potential nuclear explosions. LANL-developed gamma-ray detection instruments first revealed the existence of what we now know as gamma-ray bursts, an exciting area of astrophysical research. And the use of LANL instruments on varied space missions continues with such products as the ChemCam rock laser for NASA, shown here. The Engineering Model of the ChemCam Mars Science Laboratory rover instrument arrived at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory on February 6, 2008.more » The Flight Model was shipped in August, 2010 for installation on the rover at JPL. ChemCam will use imaging and laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) to determine rock and soil compositions on Mars, up to 9 meters from the rover. The engineering model is being integrated into the rover test bed for the development and testing of the rover software. The actual flight model components were concurrently assembled at Los Alamos and in Toulouse, France. The Mars Science Laboratory is scheduled to launch in 2011. Animations courtesy of JPL/NASA.« less

ChemCam Rock Laser for the Mars Science Laboratory

ScienceCinema

LANL

2017-12-09

Los Alamos has a long history of space-related instr... Los Alamos has a long history of space-related instruments, tied primarily to its role in defense-related treaty verification. Space-based detectors have helped determine the differences between signals from lightning bolts and potential nuclear explosions. LANL-developed gamma-ray detection instruments first revealed the existence of what we now know as gamma-ray bursts, an exciting area of astrophysical research. And the use of LANL instruments on varied space missions continues with such products as the ChemCam rock laser for NASA, shown here. The Engineering Model of the ChemCam Mars Science Laboratory rover instrument arrived at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory on February 6, 2008. ChemCam will use imaging and laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) to determine rock and soil compositions on Mars, up to 9 meters from the rover. The engineering model is being integrated into the rover test bed for the development and testing of the rover software. The actual flight model components are concurrently being assembled at Los Alamos and in Toulouse, France, and will be delivered to JPL in July. The Mars Science Laboratory is scheduled to launch in 2009. Animations courtesy of JPL/NASA.

Planning and Processing Space Science Observations Using NASA's SPICE System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Acton, Charles H.

2000-01-01

The Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility (NAIF) team, acting under the directions of NASA's Office of Space Science, has built a data system-named SPICE, to assist scientists in planning and interpreting scientific observations from space-borne instruments. The principal objective of this data system is that it will provide geometric and other ancillary data used to plan space science missions and subsequently recover the full value of science instrument data returned from these missions, including correlation of individual instrument data sets with data from other instruments on the same or other spacecraft. SPICE is also used to support a host of mission engineering functions, such as telecommunications system analysis and operation of NASA's Deep Space Network antennas. This paper describes the SPICE system, including where and how it is used. It also touches on possibilities for further development and invites participation it this endeavor.

SODI-COLLOID (Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument - Colloid)

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-10-17

ISS029-E-027431 (17 Oct. 2011) --- In the International Space Station?s Destiny laboratory, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, Expedition 29 flight engineer, activates the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) in preparation for work with the Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument ? Colloid (SODI-COLLOID) hardware.

SODI-COLLOID (Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument - Colloid)

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-10-17

ISS029-E-027435 (17 Oct. 2011) --- In the International Space Station?s Destiny laboratory, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, Expedition 29 flight engineer, activates the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) in preparation for work with the Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument ? Colloid (SODI-COLLOID) hardware.

Scientific instrument engineering at Japanese congresses devoted to high-speed imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shchelev, Mikhail Ya

2011-06-01

The information about the congresses held in Japan and devoted to fast imaging processes and photonics is presented. Reports devoted to the technique and the results of applications of superhigh-speed recording instrumentation in different fields of science and technology are considered.

Nisar Spacecraft Concept Overview: Design Challenges for a Proposed Flagship Dual-Frequency SAR Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Xaypraseuth, Peter; Chatterjee, Alok; Satish, R.

2015-01-01

NISAR would be the inaugural collaboration between National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) on an Earth Science mission, which would feature an L-Band SAR instrument and an S-Band SAR instrument. As partners, NASA and ISRO would each contribute different engineering elements to help achieve the proposed scientific objectives of the mission. ISRO-Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre would provide the GSLV-Mark II launch vehicle, which would deliver the spacecraft into the desired orbit. ISRO-Satellite Centre would provide the spacecraft based on its I3K structural bus, a commonly used platform for ISRO's communication satellite missions, which would provide the resources necessary to operate the science payload. NASA would augment the spacecraft capabilities with engineering payload systems to help store, and transmit the large volume of science data.

Virtual laboratory learning media development to improve science literacy skills of mechanical engineering students on basic physics concept of material measurement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jannati, E. D.; Setiawan, A.; Siahaan, P.; Rochman, C.

2018-05-01

This study aims to determine the description of virtual laboratory learning media development to improve science literacy skills of Mechanical Engineering students on the concept of basic Physics. Quasi experimental method was employed in this research. The participants of this research were first semester students of mechanical engineering in Majalengka University. The research instrument was readability test of instructional media. The results of virtual laboratory learning media readability test show that the average score is 78.5%. It indicates that virtual laboratory learning media development are feasible to be used in improving science literacy skill of Mechanical Engineering students in Majalengka University, specifically on basic Physics concepts of material measurement.

Recent Science and Engineering Results with the Laser Guidestar Adaptive Optics System at Lick Observatory

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

Gavel, D T; Gates, E; Max, C

2002-10-17

The Lick Observatory laser guide star adaptive optics system has undergone continual improvement and testing as it is being integrated as a facility science instrument on the Shane 3 meter telescope. Both Natural Guide Star (NGS) and Laser Guide Star (LGS) modes are now used in science observing programs. We report on system performance results as derived from data taken on both science and engineering nights and also describe the newly developed on-line techniques for seeing and system performance characterization. We also describe the future enhancements to the Lick system that will enable additional science goals such as long-exposure spectroscopy.

Lessons Learned from Conducting a K-12 Project to Revitalize Achievement by Using Instrumentation in Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapila, Vikram; Iskander, Magued

2014-01-01

A student's first introduction to engineering and technology is typically through high school science labs. Unfortunately, in many high schools, science labs often make use of antiquated tools that fail to deliver exciting lab content. As a result, many students are turned off by science, fail to excel on standardized science exams, and do not…

Evaluation of Engineering and Technology Activities in Primary Schools in Terms of Learning Environment, Attitudes and Understanding

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koul, Rekha B.; Fraser, Barry J.; Maynard, Nicoleta; Tade, Moses

2018-01-01

Because the importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education continues to be recognised around the world, we developed and validated an instrument to assess the learning environment and student attitudes in STEM classrooms, with a specific focus on engineering and technology (E&T) activities in primary schools.…

Engineering Design in the Primary School: Applying STEM Concepts to Build an Optical Instrument

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Donna; English, Lyn D.

2016-01-01

Internationally there is a need for research that focuses on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education to equip students with the skills needed for a rapidly changing future. One way to do this is through designing engineering activities that reflect real-world problems and contextualise students' learning of STEM concepts.…

NASA Planetary Science Summer School: Preparing the Next Generation of Planetary Mission Leaders

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Budney, C. J.; Lowes, L. L.; Sohus, A.; Wheeler, T.; Wessen, A.; Scalice, D.

2010-12-01

Sponsored by NASA’s Planetary Science Division, and managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Planetary Science Summer School prepares the next generation of engineers and scientists to participate in future solar system exploration missions. Participants learn the mission life cycle, roles of scientists and engineers in a mission environment, mission design interconnectedness and trade-offs, and the importance of teamwork. For this professional development opportunity, applicants are sought who have a strong interest and experience in careers in planetary exploration, and who are science and engineering post-docs, recent PhDs, and doctoral students, and faculty teaching such students. Disciplines include planetary science, geoscience, geophysics, environmental science, aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, and materials science. Participants are selected through a competitive review process, with selections based on the strength of the application and advisor’s recommendation letter. Under the mentorship of a lead engineer (Dr. Charles Budney), students select, design, and develop a mission concept in response to the NASA New Frontiers Announcement of Opportunity. They develop their mission in the JPL Advanced Projects Design Team (Team X) environment, which is a cross-functional multidisciplinary team of professional engineers that utilizes concurrent engineering methodologies to complete rapid design, analysis and evaluation of mission concept designs. About 36 students participate each year, divided into two summer sessions. In advance of an intensive week-long session in the Project Design Center at JPL, students select the mission and science goals during a series of six weekly WebEx/telecons, and develop a preliminary suite of instrumentation and a science traceability matrix. Students assume both a science team and a mission development role with JPL Team X mentors. Once at JPL, students participate in a series of Team X project design sessions, during which their mentors aid them in finalizing their mission design and instrument suite, and in making the necessary trade-offs to stay within the cost cap. Tours of JPL facilities highlight the end-to-end life cycle of a mission. At week’s end, students present their Concept Study to a “proposal review board” of JPL scientists and engineers and NASA Headquarters executives, who feed back the strengths and weaknesses of their proposal and mission design. The majority of students come from top US universities with planetary science or engineering programs, such as Brown University, MIT, Georgia Tech, University of Colorado, Caltech, Stanford, University of Arizona, UCLA, and University of Michigan. Almost a third of Planetary Science Summer School alumni from the last 10 years of the program are currently employed by NASA or JPL. The Planetary Science Summer School is implemented by the JPL Education Office in partnership with JPL’s Team X Project Design Center.

75 FR 34095 - Application(s) for Duty-Free Entry of Scientific Instruments

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-16

...: University of Minnesota (Dept. of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science), 151 Amundson Hall, 421... Scientific Instruments Pursuant to Section 6(c) of the Educational, Scientific and Cultural Materials... coatings, of very high crystalline quality materials known as complex oxides. A pertinent characteristic of...

Biomedical research, development, and engineering at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. Annual report 1 October 1978-30 September 1979

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

Not Available

The Medical Institutions of The Johns Hopkins University and The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory have developed a vigorous collaborative program of biomedical research, development, and systems engineering. An important objective of the program is to apply the expertise in engineering, the physical sciences, and systems analysis acquired by APL in defense and space research and development to problems of medical research and health care delivery. This program has grown to include collaboration with many of the clinical and basic science departments of the medical divisions. Active collaborative projects exist in ophthalmology, neurosensory research and instrumentation development, cardiovascular systems,more » patient monitoring, therapeutic and rehabilitation systems, clinical information systems, and clinical engineering. This application of state-of-the-art technology has contributed to advances in many areas of basic medical research and in clinical diagnosis and therapy through improvement of instrumentation, techniques, and basic understanding.« less

A layered approach to technology transfer of AVIRIS between Earth Search Sciences, Inc. and the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferguson, James S.; Ferguson, Joanne E.; Peel, John, III; Vance, Larry

1995-01-01

Since initial contact between Earth Search Sciences, Inc. (ESSI) and the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) in February, 1994, at least seven proposals have been submitted in response to a variety of solicitations to commercialize and improve the AVIRIS instrument. These proposals, matching ESSI's unique position with respect to agreements with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to utilize, miniaturize, and commercialize the AVIRIS instrument and platform, are combined with the applied engineering of the INEL. Teaming ESSI, NASA/JPL, and INEL with diverse industrial partners has strengthened the respective proposals. These efforts carefully structure the overall project plans to ensure the development, demonstration, and deployment of this concept to the national and international arenas. The objectives of these efforts include: (1) developing a miniaturized commercial, real-time, cost effective version of the AVIRIS instrument; (2) identifying multiple users for AVIRIS; (3) integrating the AVIRIS technology with other technologies; (4) gaining the confidence/acceptance of other government agencies and private industry in AVIRIS; and (5) increasing the technology base of U.S. industry.

NASA Planetary Science Summer School: Preparing the Next Generation of Planetary Mission Leaders

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lowes, L. L.; Budney, C. J.; Sohus, A.; Wheeler, T.; Urban, A.; NASA Planetary Science Summer School Team

2011-12-01

Sponsored by NASA's Planetary Science Division, and managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Planetary Science Summer School prepares the next generation of engineers and scientists to participate in future solar system exploration missions. Participants learn the mission life cycle, roles of scientists and engineers in a mission environment, mission design interconnectedness and trade-offs, and the importance of teamwork. For this professional development opportunity, applicants are sought who have a strong interest and experience in careers in planetary exploration, and who are science and engineering post-docs, recent PhDs, and doctoral students, and faculty teaching such students. Disciplines include planetary science, geoscience, geophysics, environmental science, aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, and materials science. Participants are selected through a competitive review process, with selections based on the strength of the application and advisor's recommendation letter. Under the mentorship of a lead engineer (Dr. Charles Budney), students select, design, and develop a mission concept in response to the NASA New Frontiers Announcement of Opportunity. They develop their mission in the JPL Advanced Projects Design Team (Team X) environment, which is a cross-functional multidisciplinary team of professional engineers that utilizes concurrent engineering methodologies to complete rapid design, analysis and evaluation of mission concept designs. About 36 students participate each year, divided into two summer sessions. In advance of an intensive week-long session in the Project Design Center at JPL, students select the mission and science goals during a series of six weekly WebEx/telecons, and develop a preliminary suite of instrumentation and a science traceability matrix. Students assume both a science team and a mission development role with JPL Team X mentors. Once at JPL, students participate in a series of Team X project design sessions, during which their mentors aid them in finalizing their mission design and instrument suite, and in making the necessary trade-offs to stay within the cost cap. Tours of JPL facilities highlight the end-to-end life cycle of a mission. At week's end, students present their Concept Study to a "proposal review board" of JPL scientists and engineers and NASA Headquarters executives, who feed back the strengths and weaknesses of their proposal and mission design. A survey of Planetary Science Summer School alumni administered in summer of 2011 provides information on the program's impact on students' career choices and leadership roles as they pursue their employment in planetary science and related fields. Preliminary results will be discussed during the session. Almost a third of the approximately 450 Planetary Science Summer School alumni from the last 10 years of the program are currently employed by NASA or JPL. The Planetary Science Summer School is implemented by the JPL Education Office in partnership with JPL's Team X Project Design Center.

NASA Testing the Webb Telescope's MIRI Thermal Shield

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NASA engineer Acey Herrera recently checked out copper test wires inside the thermal shield of the Mid-Infrared Instrument, known as MIRI, that will fly aboard NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. The shield is designed to protect the vital MIRI instrument from excess heat. At the time of the photo, the thermal shield was about to go through rigorous environmental testing to ensure it can perform properly in the extreme cold temperatures that it will encounter in space. Herrera is working in a thermal vacuum chamber at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. As the MIRI shield lead, Herrera along with a thermal engineer and cryo-engineer verify that the shield is ready for testing. On the Webb telescope, the pioneering camera and spectrometer that comprise the MIRI instrument sit inside the Integrated Science Instrument Module flight structure, that holds Webb's four instruments and their electronic systems during launch and operations. Read more: 1.usa.gov/15I0wrS Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Development of an Undergraduate Course--Internet-Based Instrumentation and Control

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhuang, Hanqi; Morgera, Salvatore D.

2007-01-01

The objective, strategy, and implementation details of a new undergraduate course, Internet-based Instrumentation and Control, are presented. The course has a companion laboratory that is supported by the National Science Foundation and industry. The combination is offered to senior-level undergraduate engineering students interested in sensing,…

JPRS Report, Science & Technology, USSR: Engineering & Equipment

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-08-05

working successfully in the " Veda " PO and at the analytical instruments plant. Characteristically, it was these very enterprises which were on top in...the 1985 review: the analytical instruments plant collective came in first, the " Veda " PO collective came in second, and the "Elektronmash" PO

Education by Robot!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cobb, Cheryl

2004-01-01

This article describes BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology), a hands-on robotics program founded by Texas Instruments engineers Ted Mahler and Steve Marum. BEST links educators with industry to provide middle and high school students with a peek into the exciting world of robotics, with the goal of inspiring and interesting…

The Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document for Level 1A Processing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jester, Peggy L.; Hancock, David W., III

2012-01-01

The first process of the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) Science Algorithm Software converts the Level 0 data into the Level 1A Data Products. The Level 1A Data Products are the time ordered instrument data converted from counts to engineering units. This document defines the equations that convert the raw instrument data into engineering units. Required scale factors, bias values, and coefficients are defined in this document. Additionally, required quality assurance and browse products are defined in this document.

Hubble Space Telescope on-line telemetry archive for monitoring scientific instruments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miebach, Manfred P.

2002-12-01

A major milestone in an effort to update the aging Hubble Space Telescope (HST) ground system was completed when HST operations were switched to a new ground system, a project called "Vision 2000 Control Center System CCS)", at the time of the third Servicing Mission in December 1999. A major CCS subsystem is the Space Telescope Engineering Data Store, the design of which is based on modern Data Warehousing technology. In fact, the Data Warehouse (DW) as implemented in the CCS Ground System that operates and monitors the Hubble Space Telescope represents, the first use of a commercial Data Warehouse to manage engineering data. By the end of February 2002, the process of populating the Data Warehouse with HST historical telemetry data had been completed, providing access to HST engineering data for a period of over 12 years with a current data volume of 2.8 Terabytes. This paper describes hands-on experience from an end user perspective, using the CCS system capabilities, including the Data Warehouse as an HST engineering telemetry archive. The Engineering Team at the Space Telescope Science Institute is using HST telemetry extensively for monitoring the Scientific Instruments, in particular for · Spacecraft anomaly resolutions · Scientific Instrument trending · Improvements of Instrument operational efficiency The overall idea is to maximize science output of the space observatory. Furthermore, the CCS provides a powerful feature to build, save, and recall real-time display pages customized to specific subsystems and operational scenarios. Engineering teams are using the real-time monitoring capabilities intensively during Servicing Missions and real time commanding to handle anomaly situations, while the Flight Operations Team (FOT) monitors the spacecraft around the clock.

Team Problem Solving Strategies with a Survey of These Methods Used by Faculty Members in Engineering Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marcus, Michael L.; Winters, Dixie L.

2004-01-01

Students from science, engineering, and technology programs should be able to work together as members of project teams to find solutions to technical problems. The exercise in this paper describes the methods actually used by a project team from a Biomedical Instrumentation Corporation in which scientists, technicians, and engineers from various…

Design of Electronic Experiments Using Computer Generated Virtual Instruments

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-03-01

work associated with the classical electronics laboratory experiments required in a tpical Electrical Engineering program. This thesis reports the...requiremnents for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE IN ELECITRICAL ENGINEERING from the NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL March 1994 Aufhfi_...Thcdore Joseph SerbinskI Approved by: Sherif Michael, Thesis Advisor Department of Electrical and Comte Engineering ii ABSIRACT The recent availability

DSCOVR_NISTAR_L1A

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2018-05-05

... Raw and calibrated radiometer science and engineering data. Project Title:  DSCOVR Discipline:  ... Level:  L1 Platform:  DEEP SPACE CLIMATE OBSERVATORY Instrument:  PHOTODIODE RADIOMETER ...

Electro-optic and holographic measurement techniques for the atmospheric sciences. [considering spacecraft simulation applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moore, W. W., Jr.; Lemons, J. F.; Kurtz, R. L.; Liu, H.-K.

1977-01-01

A comprehensive examination is made of recent advanced research directions in the applications of electro-optical and holographic instrumentations and methods to atmospheric sciences problems. In addition, an overview is given of the in-house research program for environmental and atmospheric measurements with emphasis on particulates systems. Special treatment is made of the instrument methods and applications work in the areas of laser scattering spectrometers and pulsed holography sizing systems. Selected engineering tests data on space simulation chamber programs are discussed.

On the structural logic of curriculum system for the optical instrument major

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Yufeng; Yan, Juncen; Li, Yang; Shi, Lixia

2017-08-01

The theories of optical instrument are the Interdisciplinary of Optical Engineering and Instrument Science and Technology. The undergraduates should study the knowledge about the optics, precision machine and electronics. The courses such as Theory of Machine, Engineering Optics, even include some courses about Accuracy Analysis of Instrument are offered in the college. There are a lot of correlatives among these courses. This paper focuses on the structural logic of these courses. The order of these courses is researched, The aims of all the courses are clear completely to avoid the same topics to be taught twice in different courses. Therefore, the undergraduates would get the main line of the knowledge, and the professors would teach efficiently.

NASA's Planetary Science Summer School: Training Future Mission Leaders in a Concurrent Engineering Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mitchell, K. L.; Lowes, L. L.; Budney, C. J.; Sohus, A.

2014-12-01

NASA's Planetary Science Summer School (PSSS) is an intensive program for postdocs and advanced graduate students in science and engineering fields with a keen interest in planetary exploration. The goal is to train the next generation of planetary science mission leaders in a hands-on environment involving a wide range of engineers and scientists. It was established in 1989, and has undergone several incarnations. Initially a series of seminars, it became a more formal mission design experience in 1999. Admission is competitive, with participants given financial support. The competitively selected trainees develop an early mission concept study in teams of 15-17, responsive to a typical NASA Science Mission Directorate Announcement of Opportunity. They select the mission concept from options presented by the course sponsors, based on high-priority missions as defined by the Decadal Survey, prepare a presentation for a proposal authorization review, present it to a senior review board and receive critical feedback. Each participant assumes multiple roles, on science, instrument and project teams. They develop an understanding of top-level science requirements and instrument priorities in advance through a series of reading assignments and webinars help trainees. Then, during the five day session at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, they work closely with concurrent engineers including JPL's Advanced Projects Design Team ("Team X"), a cross-functional multidisciplinary team of engineers that utilizes concurrent engineering methodologies to complete rapid design, analysis and evaluation of mission concept designs. All are mentored and assisted directly by Team X members and course tutors in their assigned project roles. There is a strong emphasis on making difficult trades, simulating a real mission design process as accurately as possible. The process is intense and at times dramatic, with fast-paced design sessions and late evening study sessions. A survey of PSSS alumni administered in 2013 provides information on the program's impact on trainees' career choices and leadership roles as they pursue their employment in planetary science and related fields. Results will be presented during the session, along with highlights of topics and missions covered since the program's inception.

WFIRST: Coronagraph Systems Engineering and Performance Budgets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poberezhskiy, Ilya; cady, eric; Frerking, Margaret A.; Kern, Brian; Nemati, Bijan; Noecker, Martin; Seo, Byoung-Joon; Zhao, Feng; Zhou, Hanying

2018-01-01

The WFIRST coronagraph instrument (CGI) will be the first in-space coronagraph using active wavefront control to directly image and characterize mature exoplanets and zodiacal disks in reflected starlight. For CGI systems engineering, including requirements development, CGI performance is predicted using a hierarchy of performance budgets to estimate various noise components — spatial and temporal flux variations — that obscure exoplanet signals in direct imaging and spectroscopy configurations. These performance budgets are validated through a robust integrated modeling and testbed model validation efforts.We present the performance budgeting framework used by WFIRST for the flow-down of coronagraph science requirements, mission constraints, and observatory interfaces to measurable instrument engineering parameters.

Cryo Testing of tbe James Webb Space Telescope's Integrated Science Instrument Module

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

VanCampen, Julie

2004-01-01

The Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) of the James Webb Space Telescope will be integrated and tested at the Environmental Test Facilities at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). The cryogenic thermal vacuum testing of the ISIM will be the most difficult and problematic portion of the GSFC Integration and Test flow. The test is to validate the coupled interface of the science instruments and the ISIM structure and to sufficiently stress that interface while validating image quality of the science instruments. The instruments and the structure are not made from the same materials and have different CTE. Test objectives and verification rationale are currently being evaluated in Phase B of the project plan. The test program will encounter engineering challenges and limitations, which are derived by cost and technology many of which can be mitigated by facility upgrades, creative GSE, and thorough forethought. The cryogenic testing of the ISIM will involve a number of risks such as the implementation of unique metrology techniques, mechanical, electrical and optical simulators housed within the cryogenic vacuum environment. These potential risks are investigated and possible solutions are proposed.

Applications of Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT): A Short Review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kanti Bera, Tushar

2018-03-01

Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) is a tomographic imaging method which solves an ill posed inverse problem using the boundary voltage-current data collected from the surface of the object under test. Though the spatial resolution is comparatively low compared to conventional tomographic imaging modalities, due to several advantages EIT has been studied for a number of applications such as medical imaging, material engineering, civil engineering, biotechnology, chemical engineering, MEMS and other fields of engineering and applied sciences. In this paper, the applications of EIT have been reviewed and presented as a short summary. The working principal, instrumentation and advantages are briefly discussed followed by a detail discussion on the applications of EIT technology in different areas of engineering, technology and applied sciences.

A Cabled, High Bandwidth Instrument Platform for Continuous Scanning of the Upper Ocean Water Column

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McRae, E.; Delaney, J. R.; Kelly, D.; Daly, K. L.; Luther, D. S.; Harkins, G.; Harrington, M.; McGuire, C.; Tilley, J.; Dosher, J.; Waite, P.; Cram, G.; Kawka, O. E.

2016-02-01

The Cabled Array portion of the National Science Foundation funded Ocean Observatories Initiative is a large scale, high bandwidth and high power subsea science network designed by the University of Washington Applied Physics Laboratory. Part of that system is a set of winched profilers which continuously scan the upper 200m of the ocean at their deployment sites. The custom built profilers leverage the Cabled Array's technology for interfacing collections of science instruments and add the ability to run predefined missions and to switch missions or mission parameters on the fly via command from shore. The profilers were designed to operate continuously for up to two years after deployment after which certain wearing components must be replaced. The data from the profiler's science and engineering sensors are streamed to shore via the seafloor network in real time. Data channel capacity from the profilers exceeds 40 Mbps. For profiler safety, mission execution is controlled within the platform. Inputs such as 3D gyro, pressure depth and deployed cable calculations are monitored to assure safe operation during any sea state. The profilers never surface but are designed to approach within 5m of the surface if conditions allow. Substantial engineering effort was focused on reliable cable handling under all ocean conditions. The profilers are currently operated from subsea moorings which also contain sets of fixed science and engineering sensors. The profilers and their associated mooring instrument assemblies are designed for rapid replacement using ROVs. We have operated this system for two years, including one annual maintenance turn and information relative to that experience will be included in the paper.[Image Caption] Cabled Array Shallow Profiler shown in its parking position.

My Attitudes toward Science (MATS): The Development of a Multidimensional Instrument Measuring Students' Science Attitudes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hillman, Susan J.; Zeeman, Stephan I.; Tilburg, Charles E.; List, Henrietta E.

2016-01-01

The number of students in the United States choosing science, technology, engineering or mathematics careers is declining at a time when demand for these occupations is rapidly increasing. Numerous efforts have been undertaken to reverse this trend, yet results are uncertain. One's attitude is key to many choices one makes, and this includes, for…

TMT in the Astronomical Landscape of the 2020s

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dickinson, Mark; Inami, Hanae

2014-07-01

Thirty Meter Telescope Observatory and NOAO will host the second TMT Science Forum at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Arizona. The TMT Science Forum is an an annual gathering of astronomers, educators, and observatory staff, who meet to explore TMT science, instrumentation, observatory operations, archiving and data processing, astronomy education, and science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) issues. It is an opportunity for astronomers from the international TMT partners and from the US-at-large community to learn about the observatory status, discuss and plan cutting-edge science, establish collaborations, and to help shape the future of TMT. One important theme for this year's Forum will be the synergy between TMT and other facilities in the post-2020 astronomical landscape. There will be plenary sessions, an instrumentation workshop, topical science sessions and meetings of the TMT International Science Development Teams (ISDTs).

Teaching Heliophysics Science to Undergraduates in an Engineering Context

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baker, J. B.; Sweeney, D. G.; Ruohoniemi, J.

2013-12-01

In recent years, space research at Virginia Tech has experienced rapid growth since the initiation of the Center for Space Science and Engineering Research (Space@VT) during the summer of 2007. The Space@VT center resides in the College of Engineering and currently comprises approximately 30-40 faculty and students. Space@VT research encompasses a wide spectrum of science and engineering activities including: magnetosphere-ionosphere data analysis; ground- and space-based instrument development; spacecraft design and environmental interactions; and numerical space plasma simulations. In this presentation, we describe how Space@VT research is being integrated into the Virginia Tech undergraduate engineering curriculum via classroom instruction and hands-on group project work. In particular, we describe our experiences teaching a new sophomore course titled 'Exploration of the Space Environment' which covers a broad range of scientific, engineering, and societal aspects associated with the exploration and technological exploitation of space. Topics covered include: science of the space environment; space weather hazards and societal impacts; elementary orbital mechanics and rocket propulsion; spacecraft engineering subsystems; and applications of space-based technologies. We also describe a high-altitude weather balloon project which has been offered as a 'hands-on' option for fulfilling the course project requirements of the course.

A Surface Science Paradigm for a Post-Huygens Titan Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimmerman, Wayne; Lunine, Jonathan; Lorenz, Ralph

2004-01-01

With the Cassini-Huygens atmospheric probe drop-off mission fast approaching, it is essential that scientists and engineers start scoping potential follow-on surface science missions. This paper provides a summary of the first year of a two year design study which examines in detail the desired surface science measurements and resolution, potential instrument suite, and complete payload delivery system. Also provided are design concepts for both an aerial inflatable mobility platform and deployable instrument sonde. The tethered deployable sonde provides the capability to sample nearsurface atmosphere, sub-surface liquid (if it exists), and surface solid material. Actual laboratory tests of the amphibious sonde prototype are also presented.

A Surface Science Paradigm for a Post-Huygens Titan Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimmerman, Wayne F.; Lunine, Jonathan; Lorenz, Ralph

2005-01-01

With the Cassini-Huygens atmospheric probe drop-off mission fast approaching, it is essential that scientists and engineers start scoping potential follow-on surface science missions. This paper provides a summary of the first year of a two year design study which examines in detail the desired surface science measurements and resolution, potential instrument suite, and complete payload delivery system. Also provided are design concepts for both an aerial inflatable mobility platform and deployable instrument sonde. The tethered deployable sonde provides the capability to sample near surface atmosphere, sub-surface liquid (if it exists), and surface solid material. Actual laboratory tests of the amphibious sonde prototype are also presented.

Key Science Instrument Installed into Webb Structure

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

The MIRI itself weighs 181 pounds (82 kg) and is being held by a special balance beam (on the left of the photo), which is being maneuvered using a precision overhead crane by the engineer at the base of the ladder. Photo Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn; Text Credit: NASA/Laura Betz ---- Engineers worked meticulously to implant the James Webb Space Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument into the ISIM, or Integrated Science Instrument Module, in the cleanroom at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. As the successor to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, the Webb telescope will be the most powerful space telescope ever built. It will observe the most distant objects in the universe, provide images of the first galaxies formed and see unexplored planets around distant stars. For more information, visit: www.jwst.nasa.gov NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Smart Payload Development for High Data Rate Instrument Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pingree, Paula J.; Norton, Charles D.

2007-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the development of smart payloads instruments systems with high data rates. On-board computation has become a bottleneck for advanced science instrument and engineering capabilities. In order to improve the computation capability on board, smart payloads have been proposed. A smart payload is a Localized instrument, that can offload the flight processor of extensive computing cycles, simplify the interfaces, and minimize the dependency of the instrument on the flight system. This has been proposed for the Mars mission, Mars Atmospheric Trace Molecule Spectroscopy (MATMOS). The design of this system is discussed; the features of the Virtex-4, are discussed, and the technical approach is reviewed. The proposed Hybrid Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) technology has been shown to deliver breakthrough performance by tightly coupling hardware and software. Smart Payload designs for instruments such as MATMOS can meet science data return requirements with more competitive use of available on-board resources and can provide algorithm acceleration in hardware leading to implementation of better (more advanced) algorithms in on-board systems for improved science data return

78 FR 59916 - Application(s) for Duty-Free Entry of Scientific Instruments

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-30

... Minnesota, Dept. of Chemical Engineering & Material Science, 421 Washington Avenue SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455... microelectronics, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) as well as nanotechnology materials and devices...

Engine Damage to a NASA DC-8-72 Airplane From a High-Altitude Encounter With a Diffuse Volcanic Ash Cloud

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grindle, Thomas J.; Burcham, Frank W., Jr.

2003-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) DC-8 airborne sciences research airplane inadvertently flew through a diffuse volcanic ash cloud of the Mt. Hekla volcano in February 2000 during a flight from Edwards Air Force Base (Edwards, California) to Kiruna, Sweden. Although the ash plume was not visible to the flight crew, sensitive research experiments and instruments detected it. In-flight performance checks and postflight visual inspections revealed no damage to the airplane or engine first-stage fan blades; subsequent detailed examination of the engines revealed clogged turbine cooling air passages. The engines were removed and overhauled. This paper presents volcanic ash plume analysis, trajectory from satellites, analysis of ash particles collected in cabin air heat exchanger filters and removed from the engines, and data from onboard instruments and engine conditions.

The Role of Project Science in the Chandra X-Ray Observatory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

O'Dell, Stephen L.; Weisskopf, Martin C.

2006-01-01

The Chandra X-Ray Observatory, one of NASA's Great Observatories, has an outstanding record of scientific and technical success. This success results from the efforts of a team comprising NASA, its contractors, the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, the instrument groups, and other elements of the scientific community, including thousands of scientists who utilize this powerful facility for astrophysical research. We discuss the role of NASA Project Science in the formulation, development, calibration, and operation of the Chandra X-ray Observatory. In addition to representing the scientific community within the Project, Project Science performed what we term "science systems engineering". This activity encompasses translation of science requirements into technical requirements and assessment of the scientific impact of programmatic and technical trades. We briefly describe several examples of science systems engineering conducted by Chandra Project Science.

FY 1984 Science Budget overview

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Astronomy, engineering, and the physical sciences as a whole were among the best funded programs in the fiscal 1984 budget that President Ronald Reagan sent to Congress last week. In addition, science education got a shot in the arm: The Reagan proposal includes plans for the nation's universities to upgrade scientific instrumentation and to attract and support high caliber scientists and engineers.Reagan proposes that federal funding for research and development, including R&D facilities, total $47 billion in fiscal 1984, up 17% from the fiscal 1983 level. Defense research and development programs would be increased 29%; nondefense R&D would be increased 0.4%. Total basic research would be boosted 10%.

Sofia Observatory Performance and Characterization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Temi, Pasquale; Miller, Walter; Dunham, Edward; McLean, Ian; Wolf, Jurgen; Becklin, Eric; Bida, Tom; Brewster, Rick; Casey, Sean; Collins, Peter;

Wayne School of Engineering: Case Study of a Rural Inclusive STEM-Focused High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peters Burton, Erin; Kaminsky, Samuel E.; Lynch, Sharon; Behrend, Tara; Han, Edmund; Ross, Kathleen; House, Ann

2014-01-01

Rural schools face challenges that are often different than nonrural schools. Resource constraints are particularly acute in rural schools, and they struggle to offer advanced courses and extracurricular programs. The purpose of this paper is to present a descriptive, instrumental case study of an inclusive rural science, technology, engineering,…

Diving Deep: A Comparative Study of Educator Undergraduate and Graduate Backgrounds and Their Effect on Student Understanding of Engineering and Engineering Careers, Utilizing an Underwater Robotics Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scribner, J. Adam

Numerous studies have demonstrated that educators having degrees in their subjects significantly enhances student achievement, particularly in secondary mathematics and science (Chaney, 1995; Goe, 2007; Rowan, Chiang, & Miller, 1997; Wenglinsky, 2000). Yet, science teachers in states that adopt the Next Generation Science Standards will be facilitating classroom engineering activities despite the fact that few have backgrounds in engineering. This quantitative study analyzed ex-post facto WaterBotics (an innovative underwater robotics curriculum for middle and high school students) data to determine if educators having backgrounds in engineering (i.e., undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering) positively affected student learning on two engineering outcomes: 1) the engineering design process, and 2) understanding of careers in engineering (who engineers are and what engineers do). The results indicated that educators having backgrounds in engineering did not significantly affect student understanding of the engineering design process or careers in engineering when compared to educators having backgrounds in science, mathematics, technology education, or other disciplines. There were, however, statistically significant differences between the groups of educators. Students of educators with backgrounds in technology education had the highest mean score on assessments pertaining to the engineering design process while students of educators with disciplines outside of STEM had the highest mean scores on instruments that assess for student understanding of careers in engineering. This might be due to the fact that educators who lack degrees in engineering but who teach engineering do a better job of "sticking to the script" of engineering curricula.

WFIRST CGI Adjutant Scientist

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kasdin, N.

One of the most exciting developments in exoplanet science is the inclusion of a coronagraph instrument on WFIRST. After more than 20 years of research and development on coronagraphy and wavefront control, the technology is ready for a demonstration in space and to be used for revolutionary science. Good progress has already been made at JPL and partner institutions on the coronagraph technology and instrument design and test. The next five years as we enter Phase A will be critical for raising the TRL of the coronagraph to the needed level for flight and for converging on a design that is robust, low risk, and meets the science requirements. In addition, there is growing excitement over the possibility of rendezvousing an occulter with WFIRST/AFTA as a separate mission; this would both demonstrate that important technology and potentially dramatically enhance the science reach, introducing the possibility of imaging Earth-like planets in the habitable zone of nearby stars. In this proposal I will be applying for the Coronagraph Adjutant Scientist (CAS) position. I bring to the position the background and skills needed to be an effective liaison between the project office, the instrument team, and the Science Investigation Team (SIT). My background in systems engineering before coming to Princeton (I was Chief Systems Engineer for the Gravity Probe-B mission) and my 15 years of working closely with NASA on both coronagraph and occulter technology make me well-suited to the role. I have been a lead coronagraph scientist for the WFIRST mission from the beginning, including as a member of the SDT. Together with JPL and NASA HQ, I helped organize the process for selecting the coronagraphs for the CGI, one of which, the shaped pupil, has been developed in my lab. All of the key algorithms for wavefront control (including EFC and Stroke Minimization) were originally developed by students or post-docs in my lab at Princeton. I am thus in a unique position to work with both the scientists and engineers to coordinate the performance requirements and calibration metrics and to optimize the instrument to achieve the maximal scientific output. I am also one of the few engineers/scientists in the community to research both coronagraph and occulter technology. I have been PI on all of the leading Technology Development for Exoplanet Missions (TDEM) for occulters as well as being a member of the Exo-S study. This puts me in a unique position to be able to fulfill the role of CGI adjutant scientist as well as ensure that the WFIRST/AFTA spacecraft is â€oeocculter ready― in anticipation of a decadal review. For much of my career I have straddled the boundary between science and engineering, working closely with astronomers and physicists on key technology to enable world-class science. I am enthusiastic about bringing that experience to the CAS position. I also have proven communication and leadership skills that will allow me to fulfill the duties associated with enhancing the communication between the SIT andFSWG and the instrument team, to coordinate and lead the FSWG meetings, and to interact with the astronomical community and the WFIRST Science Center. Bold part of below is in the spreadsheet but not the pdf

Developing an Instrument to Characterise Peer-Led Groups in Collaborative Learning Environments: Assessing Problem-Solving Approach and Group Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pazos, Pilar; Micari, Marina; Light, Gregory

2010-01-01

Collaborative learning is being used extensively by educators at all levels. Peer-led team learning in a version of collaborative learning that has shown consistent success in science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines. Using a multi-phase research study we describe the development of an observation instrument that can be used to…

Feasibility of Optical Instruments Based on Multiaperture Optics.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-10-16

system may be configured. The optical elements may be nonimaging concentrators (light horns), the field of view (FOV) of which may be controlled by a...RD-RI58 868 FEASIBILITY OF OPTICAL INSTRUMENTS BASED ON i/I MULTIAPERTURE OPTICS (U) FLORIDA UNIV GAINESVILLE DEPT OF NUCLEAR ENGINEERING SCIENCES J D...d Subtitle) 5. TYPE OF REPORT & PERIOD COVERED ’ 0 Feasibility of Optical Instruments Based on Final Report * CD Multiaperature Optics 615/83 to 9/30

MSG in the Columbus Laboratory during Expedition 22

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-01-28

ISS022-E-041766 (28 Jan. 2010) --- Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi, Expedition 22 flight engineer, works with the European Space Agency (ESA) science payload Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument / Influence of Vibration on Diffusion in Liquids (SODI/IVIDIL) hardware in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) facility located in the Columbus laboratory of the International Space Station.

MSG in the Columbus Laboratory during Expedition 22

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-01-28

ISS022-E-041767 (28 Jan. 2010) --- Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi, Expedition 22 flight engineer, works with the European Space Agency (ESA) science payload Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument / Influence of Vibration on Diffusion in Liquids (SODI/IVIDIL) hardware in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) facility located in the Columbus laboratory of the International Space Station.

MSG in the Columbus Laboratory during Expedition 22

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-01-28

ISS022-E-041769 (28 Jan. 2010) --- Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi, Expedition 22 flight engineer, works with the European Space Agency (ESA) science payload Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument / Influence of Vibration on Diffusion in Liquids (SODI/IVIDIL) hardware in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) facility located in the Columbus laboratory of the International Space Station.

Virtual Engineering and Science Team - Reusable Autonomy for Spacecraft Subsystems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bailin, Sidney C.; Johnson, Michael A.; Rilee, Michael L.; Truszkowski, Walt; Thompson, Bryan; Day, John H. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

In this paper we address the design, development, and evaluation of the Virtual Engineering and Science Team (VEST) tool - a revolutionary way to achieve onboard subsystem/instrument autonomy. VEST directly addresses the technology needed for advanced autonomy enablers for spacecraft subsystems. It will significantly support the efficient and cost effective realization of on-board autonomy and contribute directly to realizing the concept of an intelligent autonomous spacecraft. VEST will support the evolution of a subsystem/instrument model that is probably correct and from that model the automatic generation of the code needed to support the autonomous operation of what was modeled. VEST will directly support the integration of the efforts of engineers, scientists, and software technologists. This integration of efforts will be a significant advancement over the way things are currently accomplished. The model, developed through the use of VEST, will be the basis for the physical construction of the subsystem/instrument and the generated code will support its autonomous operation once in space. The close coupling between the model and the code, in the same tool environment, will help ensure that correct and reliable operational control of the subsystem/instrument is achieved.VEST will provide a thoroughly modern interface that will allow users to easily and intuitively input subsystem/instrument requirements and visually get back the system's reaction to the correctness and compatibility of the inputs as the model evolves. User interface/interaction, logic, theorem proving, rule-based and model-based reasoning, and automatic code generation are some of the basic technologies that will be brought into play in realizing VEST.

PICASSO VISION instrument design, engineering model test results, and flight model development status

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Näsilä, Antti; Holmlund, Christer; Mannila, Rami; Näkki, Ismo; Ojanen, Harri J.; Akujärvi, Altti; Saari, Heikki; Fussen, Didier; Pieroux, Didier; Demoulin, Philippe

2016-10-01

PICASSO - A PICo-satellite for Atmospheric and Space Science Observations is an ESA project led by the Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy, in collaboration with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, Clyde Space Ltd. (UK) and Centre Spatial de Liège (BE). The test campaign for the engineering model of the PICASSO VISION instrument, a miniaturized nanosatellite spectral imager, has been successfully completed. The test results look very promising. The proto-flight model of VISION has also been successfully integrated and it is waiting for the final integration to the satellite platform.

Cometary Coma Chemical Composition (C4) Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carle, Glenn C.; Clark, Benton C.; Knocke, Philip C.; OHara, Bonnie J.; Adams, Larry; Niemann, Hasso B.; Alexander, Merle; Veverka, Joseph; Goldstein, Raymond; Huebner, Walter;

Thermal vacuum chamber repressurization with instrument purging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woronowicz, Michael S.

2016-09-01

At the conclusion of cryogenic vacuum testing of the James Webb Space Telescope Optical Telescope Element Integrated Science Instrument Module (JWST-OTIS) in NASA Johnson Space Center's (JSCs) thermal vacuum (TV) Chamber A, contamination control (CC) engineers are postulating that chamber particulate material stirred up by the repressurization process may be kept from falling into the Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) interior to some degree by activating instrument purge flows over some initial period before opening the chamber valves. This manuscript describes development of a series of models designed to describe this process. The models are strung together in tandem with a fictitious set of conditions to estimate overpressure evolution from which net outflow velocity behavior may be obtained. Creeping flow assumptions are then used to determine the maximum particle size that may be kept suspended above the ISIM aperture, keeping smaller particles from settling within the instrument module.

MSL Chemistry and Mineralogy X-Ray Diffraction X-Ray Fluorescence (CheMin) Instrument

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimmerman, Wayne; Blake, Dave; Harris, William; Morookian, John Michael; Randall, Dave; Reder, Leonard J.; Sarrazin, Phillipe

2013-01-01

This paper provides an overview of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Chemistry and Mineralogy Xray Diffraction (XRD), X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) (CheMin) Instrument, an element of the landed Curiosity rover payload, which landed on Mars in August of 2012. The scientific goal of the MSL mission is to explore and quantitatively assess regions in Gale Crater as a potential habitat for life - past or present. The CheMin instrument will receive Martian rock and soil samples from the MSL Sample Acquisition/Sample Processing and Handling (SA/SPaH) system, and process it utilizing X-Ray spectroscopy methods to determine mineral composition. The Chemin instrument will analyze Martian soil and rocks to enable scientists to investigate geophysical processes occurring on Mars. The CheMin science objectives and proposed surface operations are described along with the CheMin hardware with an emphasis on the system engineering challenges associated with developing such a complex instrument.

Thermal Vacuum Chamber Repressurization with Instrument Purging

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Woronowicz, Michael S.

2014-01-01

At the conclusion of cryogenic vacuum testing of the James Webb Space Telescope Optical Telescope Element Integrated Science Instrument Module (JWST-OTIS) in NASA Johnson Space Center’s (JSCs) thermal vacuum (TV) Chamber A, contamination control (CC) engineers are postulating that chamber particulate material stirred up by the repressurization process may be kept from falling into the Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) interior to some degree by activating instrument purge flows over some initial period before opening the chamber valves. This manuscript describes development of a series of models designed to describe this process. The models are strung together in tandem with a fictitious set of conditions to estimate overpressure evolution from which net outflow velocity behavior may be obtained. Creeping flow assumptions are then used to determine the maximum particle size that may be kept suspended above the ISIM aperture, keeping smaller particles from settling within the instrument module.

Testing of Environmental Satellite Bus-Instrument Interfaces Using Engineering Models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gagnier, Don; Hayner, Rick; Roza, Michael; Nosek, Thomas; Razzaghi, Andrea

2004-01-01

This paper discusses the formulation and execution of a laboratory test of the electrical interfaces between multiple atmospheric science instruments and the spacecraft bus that carries them. The testing, performed in 2002, used engineering models of the instruments that will be flown on the Aura s p a c m and of the Aura spacecraft bus electronics. Aura is one of NASA's Earth Observing System @OS) Program missions managed by the Goddard Space Flight Center. The test was designed to evaluate the complex interfaces in the spacecraft and instrument command and data handling (C&DH) subsystems prior to integration of the complete flight instruments on the spacecraft. A problem discovered during (and not before) the flight hardware integration phase can cause significant cost and schedule impacts. The testing successfully surfaced problems and led to their resolution before the full-up integration phase, saving significant cost and schedule time. This approach could be used on future environmental satellite programs involving multiple, complex scientific instruments being integrated onto a bus.

A Grid Infrastructure for Supporting Space-based Science Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradford, Robert N.; Redman, Sandra H.; McNair, Ann R. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Emerging technologies for computational grid infrastructures have the potential for revolutionizing the way computers are used in all aspects of our lives. Computational grids are currently being implemented to provide a large-scale, dynamic, and secure research and engineering environments based on standards and next-generation reusable software, enabling greater science and engineering productivity through shared resources and distributed computing for less cost than traditional architectures. Combined with the emerging technologies of high-performance networks, grids provide researchers, scientists and engineers the first real opportunity for an effective distributed collaborative environment with access to resources such as computational and storage systems, instruments, and software tools and services for the most computationally challenging applications.

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

Ekkebus, Allen E

Oak Ridge National Laboratory hosted two workshops in April 2007 relevant to nuclear engineering education. In the Neutron Stress, Texture, and Phase Transformation for Industry workshop [http://neutrons.ornl.gov/workshops/nst2/], several invited speakers gave examples of neutron stress mapping for nuclear engineering applications. These included John Root of National Research Council of Canada, Mike Fitzpatrick of the UK's Open University, and Yan Gao of GE Global Research on their experiences with industrial and academic uses of neutron diffraction. Xun-Li Wang and Camden Hubbard described the new instruments at ORNL that can be used for such studies. This was preceded by the Neutrons formore » Materials Science and Engineering educational symposium [http://neutrons.ornl.gov/workshops/edsym2007]. It was directed to the broad materials science and engineering community based in universities, industry and laboratories who wish to learn what the neutron sources in the US can provide for enhancing the understanding of materials behavior, processing and joining. Of particular interest was the presentation of Donald Brown of Los Alamos about using 'Neutron diffraction measurements of strain and texture to study mechanical behavior of structural materials.' At both workshops, the ORNL neutron scattering instruments relevant to nuclear engineering studies were described. The Neutron Residual Stress Mapping Facility (NRSF2) is currently in operation at the High Flux Isotope Reactor; the VULCAN Engineering Materials Diffractometer will begin commissioning in 2008 at the Spallation Neutron Source. For characteristics of these instruments, as well as details of other workshops, meetings, capabilities, and research proposal submissions, please visit http://neutrons.ornl.gov. To submit user proposals for time on NRSF2 contact Hubbard at hubbardcr@ornl.gov.« less

Science Goals to Requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reuter, Dennis

2015-01-01

The presentation will be given at the 26th Annual Thermal Fluids Analysis Workshop (TFAWS 2015) hosted by the Goddard SpaceFlight Center (GSFC) Thermal Engineering Branch (Code 545): This short course will present the science goals for a variety of types of imaging and spectral measurements, the thermal requirements that these goals impose on the instruments designed to obtain the measurements, and some of the types of trades that can be made among instrument subsystems to ensure the required performance is maintained. Examples of thermal system evolution from initial concept to final implementation will be given for several actual systems.

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Nuclear Science Symposium, 18th, and Nuclear Power Systems Symposium, 3rd, San Francisco, Calif., November 3-5, 1971, Proceedings.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

Potential advantages of fusion power reactors are discussed together with the protection of the public from radioactivity produced in nuclear power reactors, and the significance of tritium releases to the environment. Other subjects considered are biomedical instrumentation, radiation damage problems, low level environmental radionuclide analysis systems, nuclear techniques in environmental research, nuclear instrumentation, and space and plasma instrumentation. Individual items are abstracted in this issue.

Freezing Hydrogen

NASA Image and Video Library

2009-11-17

An engineer loads hydrogen gas into the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer in a clean room at the Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. The hydrogen is cooled and frozen inside a Thermos-like bottle, called the cryostat, which keeps the science instrument

Voyager: Vibration Acoustics and Pyro Shock Testing

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-07-05

An engineer works on vibration acoustics and pyro shock testing for one of NASA's Voyager spacecraft on November 18, 1976. Several of the spacecraft's science instruments are visible at left. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21733

2nd International Planetary Probe Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Venkatapathy, Ethiraj; Martinez, Ed; Arcadi, Marla

2005-01-01

Included are presentations from the 2nd International Planetary Probe Workshop. The purpose of the second workshop was to continue to unite the community of planetary scientists, spacecraft engineers and mission designers and planners; whose expertise, experience and interests are in the areas of entry probe trajectory and attitude determination, and the aerodynamics/aerothermodynamics of planetary entry vehicles. Mars lander missions and the first probe mission to Titan made 2004 an exciting year for planetary exploration. The Workshop addressed entry probe science, engineering challenges, mission design and instruments, along with the challenges of reconstruction of the entry, descent and landing or the aerocapture phases. Topics addressed included methods, technologies, and algorithms currently employed; techniques and results from the rich history of entry probe science such as PAET, Venera/Vega, Pioneer Venus, Viking, Galileo, Mars Pathfinder and Mars MER; upcoming missions such as the imminent entry of Huygens and future Mars entry probes; and new and novel instrumentation and methodologies.

Optimization of Instrument Requirements for NASAs GEO-CAPE Coastal Mission Concept Based On Sensor Capability And Cost Studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mannino, Antonio

2015-01-01

NASA's GEOstationary Coastal and Air Pollution Events (GEOCAPE) mission concept recommended by the U.S. National Research Council (2007) focuses on measurements of atmospheric trace gases and aerosols and aquatic coastal ecology and biogeochemistry from geostationary orbit (35,786 km altitude). GEO-CAPE is currently in pre-formulation (pre- Phase) A with no established launch date. NASA continues to support science and engineering studies to reduce mission risk. Instrument design lab (IDL) studies were commissioned in 2014 to design and cost two implementations for geostationary ocean color instruments (1) Wide-Angle Spectrometer (WAS) and (2) Filter Radiometer (FR) and (3) a cost scaling study to compare the costs for implementing different science performance requirements.

Standards in nuclear science and technology. A bibliography

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

None

1973-09-01

Abstracts of 1803 U. S. and non-U. S. publications concerning a broad range of standards used in nuclear science and technology are included. The publication dates span the period 1962 through 1972, inclusive. Abstracts are arranged chronologically within four categories entitled Reactors and Engineering, Instruments and Calibration, Radiation and Radiation Protection, and Miscellaneous. A subject index is also included. (auth)

Validating an Assessment for Tracking Students' Growth in Understanding of Energy from Elementary School to High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hardcastle, Joseph; Herrmann-Abell, Cari F.; DeBoer, George E.

2017-01-01

Energy is a critically important topic in the K-12 science curriculum, with many applications in the earth, physical, and life sciences and in engineering and technology. To meet the challenges associated with teaching energy, new tools and assessment instruments are needed. In this work we describe the development of a three-tier assessment…

Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor (TSIS) Project Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carlisle, Candace

2018-01-01

TSIS-1 studies the Sun's energy input to Earth and how solar variability affects climate. TSIS-1 will measure both the total amount of light that falls on Earth, known as the total solar irradiance (TSI), and how that light is distributed among ultraviolet, visible and infrared wavelengths, called solar spectral irradiance (SSI). TSIS-1 will provide the most accurate measurements of sunlight and continue the long-term climate data record. TSIS-1 includes two instruments: the Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM) and the Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM), integrated into a single payload on the International Space Station (ISS). The TSIS-1 TIM and SIM instruments are upgraded versions of the two instruments that are flying on the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) mission launched in January 2003. NASA Goddard's TSIS project responsibilities include project management, system engineering, safety and mission assurance, and engineering oversight for TSIS-1. TSIS-1 was installed on the International Space Station in December 2017. At the end of the 90-day commissioning phase, responsibility for TSIS-1 operations transitions to the Earth Science Mission Operations (ESMO) project at Goddard for its 5-year operations. NASA contracts with the University of Colorado Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) for the design, development and testing of TSIS-1, support for ISS integration, science operations of the TSIS-1 instrument, data processing, data evaluation, calibration and delivery to the Goddard Earth Science Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC).

Workshop on Aerosols and Particulates from Aircraft Gas Turbine Engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wey, Chown Chou (Compiler)

1999-01-01

In response to the National Research Council (NRC) recommendations, the Workshop on Aerosols and Particulates from Aircraft Gas Turbine Engines was organized by the NASA Lewis Research Center and held on July 29-30, 1997 at the Ohio Aerospace Institute in Cleveland, Ohio. The objective is to develop consensus among experts in the field of aerosols from gas turbine combustors and engines as to important issues and venues to be considered. Workshop participants' expertise included engine and aircraft design, combustion processes and kinetics, atmospheric science, fuels, and flight operations and instrumentation.

Candidate Landing Site for the Mars Science Laboratory: Vernal Crater, S.W. ARabia Terra

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Paris, K. N.; Allen, C. C.; Oehler, D. Z.

2007-01-01

In the fall of 2009, the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) will be launched to Mars. The purpose of this mission is to assess biologic potential and geology and to investigate planetary processes of relevance to past habitability. MSL will be able to provide visual, chemical, radiation, and environmental data with its suite of instruments [1]. In order to be selected for the MSL landing site, certain engineering requirements must be met [1] and the area should contain geologic features suggestive of past habitability, so that the overriding science goal of the mission will be attained. There are a total of 33 proposed landing sites as of the first MSL Landing Site Workshop held in Pasadena, CA from May 31st to June 2nd, 2006 [1]. There will be an opportunity to gather high resolution visual and hyperspectral data on all proposed landing sites from the now-orbiting Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) which entered martian orbit and began its main science phase in November of 2006 [2]. The data being gathered are from: the high resolution imaging science experiment (HiRISE), the context (CTX) camera and the compact reconnaissance imaging spectrometer (CRISM) onboard the spacecraft. The footprints of these instruments are centered on a single point, and each proposer must submit these coordinates, along with the coordinates of the proposed landing ellipse. Data from these instruments, along with new MOC images and THEMIS mosaics, will be used to enhance our understanding of the geologic and engineering parameters of each site.

The risk concept and its application in natural hazard risk management in Switzerland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bründl, M.; Romang, H. E.; Bischof, N.; Rheinberger, C. M.

2009-05-01

Over the last ten years, a risk-based approach to manage natural hazards - termed the risk concept - has been introduced to the management of natural hazards in Switzerland. Large natural hazard events, new political initiatives and limited financial resources have led to the development and introduction of new planning instruments and software tools that should support natural hazard engineers and planners to effectively and efficiently deal with natural hazards. Our experience with these new instruments suggests an improved integration of the risk concept into the community of natural hazard engineers and planners. Important factors for the acceptance of these new instruments are the integration of end-users during the development process, the knowledge exchange between science, developers and end-users as well as training and education courses for users. Further improvements require the maintenance of this knowledge exchange and a mindful adaptation of the instruments to case-specific circumstances.

Mercury Orbiter: Report of the Science Working Team

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Belcher, John W.; Slavin, James A.; Armstrong, Thomas P.; Farquhar, Robert W.; Akasofu, Syun I.; Baker, Daniel N.; Cattell, Cynthia A.; Cheng, Andrew F.; Chupp, Edward L.; Clark, Pamela E.

1991-01-01

The results are presented of the Mercury Orbiter Science Working Team which held three workshops in 1988 to 1989 under the auspices of the Space Physics and Planetary Exploration Divisions of NASA Headquarters. Spacecraft engineering and mission design studies at the Jet Propulsion Lab were conducted in parallel with this effort and are detailed elsewhere. The findings of the engineering study, summarized herein, indicate that spin stabilized spacecraft carrying comprehensive particles and fields experiments and key planetology instruments in high elliptical orbits can survive and function in Mercury orbit without costly sun shields and active cooling systems.

UNLV’s environmentally friendly Science and Engineering Building is monitored for earthquake shaking

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kalkan, Erol; Savage, Woody; Reza, Shahneam; Knight, Eric; Tian, Ying

2013-01-01

The University of Nevada Las Vegas’ (UNLV) Science and Engineering Building is at the cutting edge of environmentally friendly design. As the result of a recent effort by the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Strong Motion Project in cooperation with UNLV, the building is now also in the forefront of buildings installed with structural monitoring systems to measure response during earthquakes. This is particularly important because this is the first such building in Las Vegas. The seismic instrumentation will provide essential data to better understand the structural performance of buildings, especially in this seismically active region.

The NGST Yardstick Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) Feasibility Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greenhouse, M. A.; NGST ISIM Team

1999-05-01

The Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST) Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) is a distributed system consisting of a cryogenic instrument module that is integrated with the Optical Telescope Assembly (OTA) and science processors, software, and other electronics located in the Space Support Module (SSM). The ISIM system provides structure, environment, and data handling for several modular science instruments as well as several components of the OTA optics train. An ISIM baseline design and feasibility study is ongoing at GSFC. This pre-Phase A design was developed for integration with the Yardstick NGST architecture and packaging in a 5 m class EELV fairing. The goals of this study are to: [1] demonstrate mission science feasibility, [2] assess ISIM engineering and cost feasibility, [3] identify ISIM technology challenge areas,and [4] enable smart customer procurement of the NGST. In depth results from this work beyond those displayed here can be found at: http://www701.gsfc.nasa.gov/isim/isim.htm The flight ISIM will be developed by a GSFC led IPT that includes members from the STScI and, during Phase A/B, will grow to include the NGST Prime Contractor, and science instrument development teams from European, Canadian , and US science communities. Science instruments will be competitively procured from the science community, and will be integrated into the ISIM by GSFC. The flight qualified ISIM will then be delivered by GSFC to the NGST Prime Contractor for observatory level integration. At the start of NGST Phase A (Spring 1999), two competing prime contractors will begin development of separate NGST architectures, and the ISIM IPT will develop two ISIM designs corresponding to these architectures. Down selection to a single design will occur during mid 2001. The ISIM team welcomes science community feedback. Contact the IPT lead: Matt Greenhouse: matt@stars.gsfc.nasa.gov.

System engineering and management in a large and diverse multinational consortium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wright, David; O'Sullivan, Brian; Thatcher, John; Renouf, Ian; Wright, Gillian; Wells, Martyn; Glasse, Alistair; Grozinger, Ulrich; Sykes, Jon; Smith, Dave; Eccleston, Paul; Shaughnessy, Bryan

2008-07-01

This paper elaborates the system engineering methods that are being successfully employed within the European Consortium (EC) to deliver the Optical System of the Mid Infa-Red Instrument (MIRI) to the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The EC is a Consortium of 21 institutes located in 10 European countries and, at instrument level, it works in a 50/50 partnership with JPL who are providing the instrument cooler, software and detector systems. The paper will describe how the system engineering approach has been based upon proven principles used in the space industry but applied in a tailored way that best accommodates the differences in international practices and standards with a primary aim of ensuring a cost-effective solution which supports all science requirements for the mission. The paper will recall how the system engineering has been managed from the definition of the system requirements in early phase B, through the successful Critical Design Review at the end of phase C and up to the test and flight build activities that are presently in progress. Communication and coordination approaches will also be discussed.

Using Student Video Cases to Assess Pre-service Elementary Teachers' Engineering Teaching Responsiveness

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dalvi, Tejaswini; Wendell, Kristen

2017-10-01

Our study addresses the need for new approaches to prepare novice elementary teachers to teach both science and engineering, and for new tools to measure how well those approaches are working. This in particular would inform the teacher educators of the extent to which novice teachers are developing expertise in facilitating their students' engineering design work. One important dimension to measure is novice teachers' abilities to notice the substance of student thinking and to respond in productive ways. This teacher noticing is particularly important in science and engineering education, where students' initial, idiosyncratic ideas and practices influence the likelihood that particular instructional strategies will help them learn. This paper describes evidence of validity and reliability for the Video Case Diagnosis (VCD) task, a new instrument for measuring pre-service elementary teachers' engineering teaching responsiveness. To complete the VCD, participants view a 6-min video episode of children solving an engineering design problem, describe in writing what they notice about the students' science ideas and engineering practices, and propose how a teacher could productively respond to the students. The rubric for scoring VCD responses allowed two independent scorers to achieve inter-rater reliability. Content analysis of the video episode, systematic review of literature on science and engineering practices, and solicitation of external expert educator responses establish content validity for VCD. Field test results with three different participant groups who have different levels of engineering education experience offer evidence of construct validity.

Instrumentation Needs of Academic Departments of Chemistry: A Survey Study. Report of a Joint Task Force of the Committee on Science and Committee on Chemistry and Public Affairs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Chemical Society, Washington, DC.

A questionnaire was mailed to 50 major chemistry departments, 112 smaller chemistry departments, and 25 chemical engineering (CE) departments. The survey (included in an appendix) consists of a series of questions on two broad subjects--the current inventory at the surveyed institutions and the needs for instrumentation. Responses were received…

New optical engineering and instrument design programs at the University of California, Irvine Extension

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silberman, Donn M.; Doushkina, Valentina V.

2010-08-01

Three years ago we reported on a new optics education program established at the Irvine Center for Applied Competitive Technologies (CACT) at the Advanced Technology and Education Park (ATEP) operated by the South Orange County Community College District (SOCCCD). This paper reports on new Optical Engineering and Instrument Design Programs now being offered through the University of California, Irvine Extension. While there are some similarities between the two programs, the differences are mainly the students' level. The community college level programs were targeted primarily at technicians and junior level engineers. The university level programs are targeted at senior level engineering and physical sciences university students, graduate and post graduate students and designers in industry. This paper reviews the reasons for establishing these certificate programs and their content, the students' motivations for taking them and their employers' incentives for encouraging the students.

Improving the Research Infrastructure at U.S. Universities and Colleges. Hearing before the Committee on Science and Technology. U.S. House of Representatives, Ninety-Eighth Congress, Second Session.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Congress of the U.S., Washington, DC. House Committee on Science and Technology.

The state of university science and engineering research capabilities is considered. Attention is directed to the need for improving and enhancing the research infrastructure, including support for instrumentation, buildings, and other related research facilities. U.S. universities and colleges are encountering severe facilities and…

Validating an Assessment for Tracking Students' Growth in Understanding of Energy from Elementary School to High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hardcastle, Joseph; Herrmann-Abell, Cari F.; DeBoer, George E.

2017-01-01

Energy is a critically important topic in the K-12 science curriculum, with many applications in the earth, physical, and life sciences and in engineering and technology. To meet the challenges associated with teaching energy, new tools and assessment instruments are needed. In this work we describe the development of a three-tier assessment…

Evolving a Method to Capture Science Stakeholder Inputs to Optimize Instrument, Payload, and Program Design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clark, P. E.; Rilee, M. L.; Curtis, S. A.; Bailin, S.

2012-03-01

We are developing Frontier, a highly adaptable, stably reconfigurable, web-accessible intelligent decision engine capable of optimizing design as well as the simulating operation of complex systems in response to evolving needs and environment.

Mineralogy and Elemental Composition of Wind Drift Soil at Rocknest, Gale Crater

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blake, D. F.; Bish, D. L.; Morris, R. V.; Downs, R. T.; Trieman, A. H.; Morrison, S. M.; Chipera, S. J.; Ming, D. W.; Yen, A. S.; Vaniman, D. T.;

The IFS for WFIRST CGI: Science Requirements to Design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Groff, Tyler; Gong, Qian; Mandell, Avi M.; Zimmerman, Neil; Rizzo, Maxime; McElwain, Michael; harvey, david; Saxena, Prabal; cady, eric; mejia prada, camilo

2018-01-01

Direct Imaging of exoplanets using a coronagraph has become a major field of research both on the ground and in space. Key to the science of direct imaging is the spectroscopic capabilities of the instrument, our ability to extract spectra, and measure the abundance of molecular species such as Methane. To take these spectra, the WFIRST coronagraph instrument (CGI) uses an integral field spectrograph (IFS), which encodes the spectrum into a two-dimensional image on the detector. This results in more efficient detection and characterization of targets, and the spectral information is critical to achieving detection limits below the speckle floor of the imager. The CGI IFS operates in three 18% bands spanning 600nm to 970nm at a nominal spectral resolution of R50. We present the current science and engineering requirements for the IFS design, the instrument design, anticipated performance, and how the calibration is integrated into the focal plane wavefront control algorithms. We also highlight the role of the Prototype Imaging Spectrograph for Coronagraphic Exoplanet Studies (PISCES) at the JPL High Contrast Imaging Testbed to demonstrate performance and validate calibration methodologies for the flight instrument.

Basic Wind Tech Course - Lesson Plans and Activities

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

Swapp, Andy

2011-07-01

The funds from this project were used to purchase tools and instrumentation to help replicate actual on-the-job wind energy scenarios which provided the students with the practical or applied components of wind energy jobs. This project enhanced the educational experiences provided for the students in terms of engineering and science components of wind energy by using electronics, control systems, and electro-mechanical instrumentation to help students learn standardized wind-specific craftsman skills. In addition the tools and instrumentation helped the students learn the safety necessary to work in the wind industry.

A 20-Year Survey of Scientific Literacy and Attitudes Toward Science_An Overview

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Impey, Chris David; Antonellis, J.; Johnson, E.; King, C.; CATS

2009-01-01

This poster presents the results of a long-term investigation into the science literacy and attitudes toward science of University of Arizona non-science major undergraduates. The survey instrument utilized in this study was derived from measures of adults’ science literacy, as defined and assessed by the National Science Foundation in its biannual Science and Engineering Indicators reports to the National Science Board. In addition, the survey instrument measures attitudes toward science and technology and toward pseudoscience. Quantitative data from over 9000 questionnaires have been into a database, and qualitative data from four open-ended questions has been coded thematically (see Antonellis et al., this meeting). The data will be used to address a number of research questions in the area of science education and science policy, including (1) how the level of science literacy of undergraduates compares to the adult population; (2) how science literacy and attitudes towards science have changed since 1987; (3) the relationship between science knowledge and attitudes towards science; and (4) the extent to which General Education science requirements at a large State university affect science knowledge and attitudes. The data will also be used to critically examine the concept of science literacy. The results of this study are being used by CATS to develop a survey instrument designed specifically for use with Astro 101 students to diagnose the effect our instruction has on their scientific attitudes and beliefs. We acknowledge the NSF for funding under Award No. 0715517, a CCLI Phase III Grant for the Collaboration of Astronomy Teaching Scholars (CATS).

Innovative research on the group teaching mode based on the LabVIEW virtual environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Pei; Huang, Jie; Gong, Hua-ping; Dong, Qian-min; Dong, Yan-yan; Sun, Cai-xia

2017-08-01

This paper discusses the widely existing problems of increasing demand of professional engineer in electronic science major and the backward of the teaching mode at present. From one specialized course "Virtual Instrument technique and LABVIEW programming", we explore the new group-teaching mode based on the Virtual Instrument technique, and then the Specific measures and implementation procedures and effect of this teaching mode summarized in the end.

Laboratory Directed Research and Development FY2010 Annual Report

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

Jackson, K J

2011-03-22

A premier applied-science laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has at its core a primary national security mission - to ensure the safety, security, and reliability of the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear testing, and to prevent and counter the spread and use of weapons of mass destruction: nuclear, chemical, and biological. The Laboratory uses the scientific and engineering expertise and facilities developed for its primary mission to pursue advanced technologies to meet other important national security needs - homeland defense, military operations, and missile defense, for example - that evolve in response to emerging threats. For broader nationalmore » needs, LLNL executes programs in energy security, climate change and long-term energy needs, environmental assessment and management, bioscience and technology to improve human health, and for breakthroughs in fundamental science and technology. With this multidisciplinary expertise, the Laboratory serves as a science and technology resource to the U.S. government and as a partner with industry and academia. This annual report discusses the following topics: (1) Advanced Sensors and Instrumentation; (2) Biological Sciences; (3) Chemistry; (4) Earth and Space Sciences; (5) Energy Supply and Use; (6) Engineering and Manufacturing Processes; (7) Materials Science and Technology; Mathematics and Computing Science; (8) Nuclear Science and Engineering; and (9) Physics.« less

NGST Yardstick Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) Feasibility Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greenhouse, M. A.; Dipirro, M.; Federline, B.; Gardner, Jonathan P.; Guy, P.; Hagopian, J.; Hein, J.; Jurotich, M.; Lawrence, J.; Martineau, B.; Mather, J. C.; Mentzell, E.; Satyapal, S.; Stanley, D.; Teplitz, H. I.; Travis, J.; Bely, P.; Petro, L. D.; Stockman, P.; Burg, R.; Bitzel, R.

1998-12-01

We display portions of the baseline design concept for the NGST Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM). This ISIM design is under ongoing development for integration with the "Yardstick" and other NGST 8 m architectures that are intended for packaging in an EELV or Ariane 5 meter class fairing. The goals of this activity are to: [1] demonstrate mission science feasibility, [2] identify ISIM technology challenge areas, [3] assess ISIM engineering and cost feasibility, [5] identify ISIM/NGST interface constraints, and [6] enable smart customer procurement of the ISIM. In this poster, we display a snap shot of work in progress including: optical design, opto-mechanical layout, thermal modeling, focal plane array design, and electronics design. Ongoing progress can be monitored via ISIM team web site: http://ngst.gsfc.nasa.gov/

Theseus Engine Being Unloaded

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

Crew members are seen here unloading an engine of the Theseus prototype research aircraft at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, in May of 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Geodesy and the UNAVCO Consortium: Three Decades of Innovations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rowan, L. R.; Miller, M. M.; Meertens, C. M.; Mattioli, G. S.

2015-12-01

UNAVCO, a non-profit, university consortium that supports geoscience research using geodesy, began with the ingenious recognition that the nascent Global Positioning System constellation (GPS) could be used to investigate earth processes. The consortium purchased one of the first commercially available GPS receivers, Texas Instrument's TI-4100 NAVSTAR Navigator, in 1984 to measure plate deformation. This early work was highlighted in a technology magazine, GPSWorld, in 1990. Over a 30-year period, UNAVCO and the community have helped advance instrument design for mobility, flexibility, efficiency and interoperability, so research could proceed with higher precision and under ever challenging conditions. Other innovations have been made in data collection, processing, analysis, management and archiving. These innovations in tools, methods and data have had broader impacts as they have found greater utility beyond research for timing, precise positioning, safety, communication, navigation, surveying, engineering and recreation. Innovations in research have expanded the utility of geodetic tools beyond the solid earth science through creative analysis of the data and the methods. For example, GPS sounding of the atmosphere is now used for atmospheric and space sciences. GPS reflectrometry, another critical advance, supports soil science, snow science and ecological research. Some research advances have had broader impacts for society by driving innovations in hazards risk reduction, hazards response, resource management, land use planning, surveying, engineering and other uses. Furthermore, the geodetic data is vital for the design of space missions, testing and advancing communications, and testing and dealing with interference and GPS jamming. We will discuss three decades (and counting) of advances by the National Science Foundation's premiere geodetic facility, consortium and some of the many geoscience principal investigators that have driven innovations in research, instrumentation, data management, cyberinfrastructure and other applications.

Planetary Science with Balloon-Borne Telescopes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kremic, Tibor; Cheng, Andy; Hibbitts, Karl; Young, Eliot

2015-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the planetary science community have recently been exploring the potential contributions of stratospheric balloons to the planetary science field. A study that was recently concluded explored the roughly 200 or so science questions raised in the Planetary Decadal Survey report and found that about 45 of those questions are suited to stratospheric balloon based observations. In September of 2014, a stratospheric balloon mission called BOPPS (which stands for Balloon Observation Platform for Planetary Science) was flown out of Fort Sumner, New Mexico. The mission had two main objectives, first, to observe a number of planetary targets including one or more Oort cloud comets and second, to demonstrate the applicability and performance of the platform, instruments, and subsystems for making scientific measurements in support planetary science objectives. BOPPS carried two science instruments, BIRC and UVVis. BIRC is a cryogenic infrared multispectral imager which can image in the.6-5 m range using an HgCdTe detector. Narrow band filters were used to allow detection of water and CO2 emission features of the observed targets. The UVVis is an imager with the science range of 300 to 600 nm. A main feature of the UVVis instrument is the incorporation of a guide camera and a Fine Steering Mirror (FSM) system to reduce image jitter to less than 100 milliarcseconds. The BIRC instrument was used to image targets including Oort cloud comets Siding Spring and Jacques, and the dwarf planet 1 Ceres. BOPPS achieved the first ever earth based CO2 observation of a comet and the first images of water and CO2 of an Oort cloud comet (Jacques). It also made the first ever measurement of 1Ceres at 2.73 m to refine the shape of the infrared water absorption feature on that body. The UVVis instrument, mounted on its own optics bench, demonstrated the capability for image correction both from atmospheric disturbances as well as some of the residual motion from the gondola that was not addressed by the gondolas coarse pointing systems. The mission met its primary science and engineering objectives. The results of the BOPPS mission will feed into the body of science knowledge but also feed into future planning for more science from balloon-borne platforms. A notional platform called Gondola for High-Altitude Planetary Science (GHAPS) has been explored and this concept platform can address a number of important decadal questions. This paper provides a summary of the assessment of potential balloon borne observations for planetary science purposes including where potential science contributions can be expected, the necessary performance characteristics of the platform, and other features required or desired. The BOPPS mission is summarized including descriptions of the main elements and key science and engineering results. The paper then briefly describes GHAPS, and the salient features that can make it a valuable tool for future planetary observations.

Real Time Conference 2016 Overview

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luchetta, Adriano

2017-06-01

This is a special issue of the IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science containing papers from the invited, oral, and poster presentation of the 20th Real Time Conference (RT2016). The conference was held June 6-10, 2016, at Centro Congressi Padova “A. Luciani,” Padova, Italy, and was organized by Consorzio RFX (CNR, ENEA, INFN, Università di Padova, Acciaierie Venete SpA) and the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare. The Real Time Conference is multidisciplinary and focuses on the latest developments in real-time techniques in high-energy physics, nuclear physics, astrophysics and astroparticle physics, nuclear fusion, medical physics, space instrumentation, nuclear power instrumentation, general radiation instrumentation, and real-time security and safety. Taking place every second year, it is sponsored by the Computer Application in Nuclear and Plasma Sciences technical committee of the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society. RT2016 attracted more than 240 registrants, with a large proportion of young researchers and engineers. It had an attendance of 67 students from many countries.

A single instrument: engineering and engineering technology students demonstrating competence in ethics and professional standards.

PubMed

Feldhaus, Charles R; Wolter, Robert M; Hundley, Stephen P; Diemer, Tim

2006-04-01

This paper details efforts by the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) to create a single instrument for honors science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) students wishing to demonstrate competence in the IUPUI Principles of Undergraduate Learning (PUL's) and Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) Engineering Accreditation Criterion (EAC) and Technology Accreditation Criterion (TAC) 2, a through k. Honors courses in Human Behavior, Ethical Decision-Making, Applied Leadership, International Issues and Leadership Theories and Processes were created along with a specific menu of activities and an assessment rubric based on PUL's and ABET criteria to evaluate student performance in the aforementioned courses. Students who complete the series of 18 Honors Credit hours are eligible for an Honors Certificate in Leadership Studies from the Department of Organizational Leadership and Supervision. Finally, an accounting of how various university assessment criteria, in this case the IUPUI Principles of Undergraduate Learning, can be linked to ABET outcomes and prove student competence in both, using the aforementioned courses, menu of items, and assessment rubrics; these will be analyzed and discussed.

Meteorological Instrumentation and Measurements Open Resource Training Modules for Undergraduate and Graduate Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rockwell, A.; Clark, R. D.; Stevermer, A.

2017-12-01

The National Center for Atmospheric Research Earth Observing Laboratory, Millersville University and The COMET Program are collaborating to produce a series of nine online modules on the the topic of meteorological instrumentation and measurements. These interactive, multimedia educational modules can be integrated into undergraduate and graduate meteorology courses on instrumentation, measurement science, and observing systems to supplement traditional pedagogies and enhance blended instruction. These freely available and open-source training tools are designed to supplement traditional pedagogies and enhance blended instruction. Three of the modules are now available and address the theory and application of Instrument Performance Characteristics, Meteorological Temperature Instrumentation and Measurements, and Meteorological Pressure Instrumentation and Measurements. The content of these modules is of the highest caliber as it has been developed by scientists and engineers who are at the forefront of the field of observational science. Communicating the availability of these unique and influential educational resources with the community is of high priority. These modules will have a profound effect on the atmospheric observational sciences community by fulfilling a need for contemporary, interactive, multimedia guided education and training modules integrating the latest instructional design and assessment tools in observational science. Thousands of undergraduate and graduate students will benefit, while course instructors will value a set of high quality modules to use as supplements to their courses. The modules can serve as an alternative to observational research training and fill the void between field projects or assist those schools that lack the resources to stage a field- or laboratory-based instrumentation experience.

Catalog of lunar and Mars science payloads

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Budden, Nancy Ann (Editor)

1994-01-01

This catalog collects and describes science payloads considered for future robotic and human exploration missions to the Moon and Mars. The science disciplines included are geosciences, meteorology, space physics, astronomy and astrophysics, life sciences, in-situ resource utilization, and robotic science. Science payload data is helpful for mission scientists and engineers developing reference architectures and detailed descriptions of mission organizations. One early step in advanced planning is formulating the science questions for each mission and identifying the instrumentation required to address these questions. The next critical element is to establish and quantify the supporting infrastructure required to deliver, emplace, operate, and maintain the science experiments with human crews or robots. This requires a comprehensive collection of up-to-date science payload information--hence the birth of this catalog. Divided into lunar and Mars sections, the catalog describes the physical characteristics of science instruments in terms of mass, volume, power and data requirements, mode of deployment and operation, maintenance needs, and technological readiness. It includes descriptions of science payloads for specific missions that have been studied in the last two years: the Scout Program, the Artemis Program, the First Lunar Outpost, and the Mars Exploration Program.

How social networks influence female students' choices to major in engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weinland, Kathryn Ann

Scope and Method of Study: This study examined how social influence plays a part in female students' choices of college major, specifically engineering instead of science, technology, and math. Social influence may show itself through peers, family members, and teachers and may encompass resources under the umbrella of social capital. The purpose of this study was to examine how female students' social networks, through the lens of social capital, influence her major choice of whether or not to study engineering. The variables of peer influence, parental influence, teacher/counselor influence, perception of engineering, and academic background were addressed in a 52 question, Likert scale survey. This survey has been modified from an instrument previously used by Reyer (2007) at Bradley University. Data collection was completed using the Dillman (2009) tailored design model. Responses were grouped into four main scales of the dependent variables of social influence, encouragement, perceptions of engineering and career motivation. A factor analysis was completed on the four factors as a whole, and individual questions were not be analyzed. Findings and Conclusions: This study addressed the differences in social network support for female freshmen majoring in engineering versus female freshmen majoring in science, technology, or math. Social network support, when working together from all angles of peers, teachers, parents, and teachers/counselors, transforms itself into a new force that is more powerful than the summation of the individual parts. Math and science preparation also contributed to female freshmen choosing to major in engineering instead of choosing to major in science, technology, or math. The STEM pipeline is still weak and ways in which to reinforce it should be examined. Social network support is crucial for female freshmen who are majoring in science, technology, engineering, and math.

The Wisconsin Snow and Cloud-Terra 2000 Experiment (WISC-T2000)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

Atmospheric scientists take to the skies this winter for the Wisconsin Snow and Cloud-Terra 2000 experiment, Feb. 25 through March 13. Scientists in WISC-T2000 will use instruments on board NASA's ER-2, a high-altitude research plane, to validate new science products from NASA's earth-observing satellite Terra, which began its five-year mission on Dec. 18, 1999. Contact Terri Gregory Public Information Coordinator Space Science and Engineering Center University of Wisconsin-Madison (608) 263-3373; fax (608) 262-5974 terri.gregory@ssec.wisc.edu Science Goals: WISC-T2000 is the third in a series of field experiments sponsored by the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Space Science and Engineering Center. The center helped develop one of the five science instruments on Terra, the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). MODIS will make global measurements of clouds, oceans, land, and atmospheric properties in an effort to monitor and predict global climate change. Infrastructure: The ER-2 will be based at Madison's Truax Field and will fly over the upper Midwest and Oklahoma. ER-2 measurements will be coordinated with observations at the Department of Energy's Cloud and Radiation Testbed site in Oklahoma (http://www.arm.gov/), which will be engaged in a complementary cloud experiment. The center will work closely with NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, which will collect and distribute MODIS data and science products. Additional information on the WISC-T2000 field campaign is available at the project's Web site http://cimss.ssec.wisc.edu/wisct2000/

Research and Technology at the John F. Kennedy Space Center 1993

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1993-01-01

As the NASA Center responsible for assembly, checkout, servicing, launch, recovery, and operational support of Space Transportation System elements and payloads, the John F. Kennedy Space Center is placing increasing emphasis on its advanced technology development program. This program encompasses the efforts of the Engineering Development Directorate laboratories, most of the KSC operations contractors, academia, and selected commercial industries - all working in a team effort within their own areas of expertise. This edition of the Kennedy Space Center Research and Technology 1993 Annual Report covers efforts of all these contributors to the KSC advanced technology development program, as well as our technology transfer activities. Major areas of research include material science, advanced software, industrial engineering, nondestructive evaluation, life sciences, atmospheric sciences, environmental technology, robotics, and electronics and instrumentation.

Aqua Satellite Mission Educational Outreach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parkinson, C. L.; Graham, S. M.

2003-12-01

An important component of the Aqua mission, launched into space on May 4, 2002 with a suite of six instruments from the U.S., Japan, and Brazil, is the effort to educate the public about the mission and the science topics that it addresses. This educational outreach includes printed products, web casts, other web-based materials, animations, presentations, and a student contest. The printed products include brochures for the mission as a whole and for the instruments, NASA Fact Sheets on the mission, the water cycle, and weather forecasting, an Aqua Science Writers' Guide, an Aqua lithograph, posters, and trading cards. Animations include animations of the launch, the orbit, instrument deployments, instrument sensing, and several of the data products. Each of these materials is available on the Aqua web site at http://aqua.nasa.gov, as are archived versions of the eight Aqua web casts. The web casts were done live on the internet and focused on the spacecraft, the science, the launch, and the validation efforts. All web casts had key Aqua personnel as live guests and had a web-based chat session allowing viewers to ask questions. Other web-based materials include a "Cool Science" section of the aqua.nasa.gov website, with videos of Aqua scientists and engineers speaking about Aqua and the science and engineering behind it, arranged in a framework organized for the convenience of teachers dealing with core curriculum requirements. The web casts and "Cool Science" site were produced by the Special Project Initiatives Office at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. Outreach presentations about Aqua have been given at schools, universities, and public forums at many locations around the world, especially in the U.S. A competition was held for high school students during the 2002-03 school year, culminating in April 2003, with five finalist teams competing for the top slots, followed by an awards ceremony. The competition had all the student teams analyzing an anomalous situation encountered by Aqua shortly after launch and the five finalist teams determining how best to handle a hypothetical degradation of the solid state recorder.

Graduate Student Program in Materials and Engineering Research and Development for Future Accelerators

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

Spentzouris, Linda

The objective of the proposal was to develop graduate student training in materials and engineering research relevant to the development of particle accelerators. Many components used in today's accelerators or storage rings are at the limit of performance. The path forward in many cases requires the development of new materials or fabrication techniques, or a novel engineering approach. Often, accelerator-based laboratories find it difficult to get top-level engineers or materials experts with the motivation to work on these problems. The three years of funding provided by this grant was used to support development of accelerator components through a multidisciplinary approachmore » that cut across the disciplinary boundaries of accelerator physics, materials science, and surface chemistry. The following results were achieved: (1) significant scientific results on fabrication of novel photocathodes, (2) application of surface science and superconducting materials expertise to accelerator problems through faculty involvement, (3) development of instrumentation for fabrication and characterization of materials for accelerator components, (4) student involvement with problems at the interface of material science and accelerator physics.« less

Experimental and analytical evaluation of ion thruster/spacecraft interactions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carruth, M. R., Jr. (Editor)

1981-01-01

Studies were conducted to both identify the environment produced by ion thrusters and to assess the interaction of this environment on a typical spacecraft and typical science instruments. Spacecraft charging and the charge exchange that accompanies it is discussed in detail. Electromagnetic interference was characterized for ion engines. The electromagnetic compatibility of ion thrusters with spacecraft instruments was determined. The effects of ion thruster plumes on spacecraft were studied with particular emphasis on external surface currents.

Measuring Science Instructional Practice: A Survey Tool for the Age of NGSS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hayes, Kathryn N.; Lee, Christine S.; DiStefano, Rachelle; O'Connor, Dawn; Seitz, Jeffery C.

2016-03-01

Ambitious efforts are taking place to implement a new vision for science education in the United States, in both Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)-adopted states and those states creating their own, often related, standards. In-service and pre-service teacher educators are involved in supporting teacher shifts in practice toward the new standards. With these efforts, it will be important to document shifts in science instruction toward the goals of NGSS and broader science education reform. Survey instruments are often used to capture instructional practices; however, existing surveys primarily measure inquiry based on previous definitions and standards and with a few exceptions, disregard key instructional practices considered outside the scope of inquiry. A comprehensive survey and a clearly defined set of items do not exist. Moreover, items specific to the NGSS Science and Engineering practices have not yet been tested. To address this need, we developed and validated a Science Instructional Practices survey instrument that is appropriate for NGSS and other related science standards. Survey construction was based on a literature review establishing key areas of science instruction, followed by a systematic process for identifying and creating items. Instrument validity and reliability were then tested through a procedure that included cognitive interviews, expert review, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (using independent samples), and analysis of criterion validity. Based on these analyses, final subscales include: Instigating an Investigation, Data Collection and Analysis, Critique, Explanation and Argumentation, Modeling, Traditional Instruction, Prior Knowledge, Science Communication, and Discourse.

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Entry, Descent And Landing Instrumentation (MEDLI): Hardware Performance and Data Reconstruction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Little, Alan; Bose, Deepak; Karlgaard, Chris; Munk, Michelle; Kuhl, Chris; Schoenenberger, Mark; Antill, Chuck; Verhappen, Ron; Kutty, Prasad; White, Todd

2013-01-01

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Entry, Descent and Landing Instrumentation (MEDLI) hardware was a first-of-its-kind sensor system that gathered temperature and pressure readings on the MSL heatshield during Mars entry on August 6, 2012. MEDLI began as challenging instrumentation problem, and has been a model of collaboration across multiple NASA organizations. After the culmination of almost 6 years of effort, the sensors performed extremely well, collecting data from before atmospheric interface through parachute deploy. This paper will summarize the history of the MEDLI project and hardware development, including key lessons learned that can apply to future instrumentation efforts. MEDLI returned an unprecedented amount of high-quality engineering data from a Mars entry vehicle. We will present the performance of the 3 sensor types: pressure, temperature, and isotherm tracking, as well as the performance of the custom-built sensor support electronics. A key component throughout the MEDLI project has been the ground testing and analysis effort required to understand the returned flight data. Although data analysis is ongoing through 2013, this paper will reveal some of the early findings on the aerothermodynamic environment that MSL encountered at Mars, the response of the heatshield material to that heating environment, and the aerodynamic performance of the entry vehicle. The MEDLI data results promise to challenge our engineering assumptions and revolutionize the way we account for margins in entry vehicle design.

NASA-JPL overview, space technology and relevance to medicine (Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Zyl, Jakob

2017-05-01

There is special synergy between NASA space instruments and medical devices, especially those that may be implanted in the human body. For example, in both cases instruments have to be small, typically have to consume little power and often have to operate in harsh environments. JPL has a long history in using this synergy to leverage from the technology developed for space missions for application in medical fields. In this talk, we discuss the general overlap of technological requirements in the medical field and space science. We will highlight some examples where JPL instrumentation and engineering has been transferred successfully.

Optical instrumentation engineering in science, technology and society; Proceedings of the Sixteenth Annual Technical Meeting, San Mateo, Calif., October 16-18, 1972

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Katz, Y. H.

1973-01-01

Visual tracking performance in instrumentation is discussed together with photographic pyrometry in an aeroballistic range, optical characteristics of spherical vapor bubbles in liquids, and the automatic detection and control of surface roughness by coherent diffraction patterns. Other subjects explored are related to instruments, sensors, systems, holography, and pattern recognition. Questions of data handling are also investigated, taking into account minicomputer image storage for holographic interferometry analysis, the design of a video amplifier for a 90 MHz bandwidth, and autostereoscopic screens. Individual items are announced in this issue.

Cultivation mode research of practical application talents for optical engineering major

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zhiying

2017-08-01

The requirements on science and technology graduates are more and higher with modern science progress and society market economy development. Because optical engineering major is with very long practicality, practice should be paid more attention from analysis of optical engineering major and students' foundation. To play role of practice to a large amount, the practice need be systemic and correlation. It should be combination of foundation and profundity. Modern foundation professional knowledge is studied with traditional optical concept and technology at the same time. Systemic regularity and correlation should be embodied in the contents. Start from basic geometrical optics concept, the optical parameter of optical instrument is analyzed, the optical module is built and ray tracing is completed during geometrical optics practice. With foundation of primary aberration calculation, the optical system is further designed and evaluated during optical design practice course. With the optical model and given instrument functions and requirements, the optical-mechanism is matched. The accuracy is calculated, analyzed and distributed in every motion segment. And the mechanism should guarantee the alignment and adjustment. The optical mechanism is designed during the instrument and element design practice. When the optical and mechanism drawings are completed, the system is ready to be fabricated. Students can complete grinding, polishing and coating process by themselves through optical fabricating practice. With the optical and mechanical elements, the system can be assembled and aligned during the thesis practice. With a set of correlated and logical practices, the students can acquire the whole process knowledge about optical instrument. All details are contained in every practice process. These practical experiences provide students working ability. They do not need much adaption anymore when they go to work after graduation. It is favorable to both student talents and employer.

Operations of Suborbital Research Platforms to Obtain Remote Sensing Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hines, Dennis O.

2014-01-01

The Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) operates six highly modified aircraft in support the NASA science mission.These include two ER-2 aircraft, a DC-8, a G-III, and two Global Hawks. The NASA science missions demands that these aircraft be deployed around the globe while carrying a variety of science instruments. The ER-2 reconnaissance aircraft provides routine access to altitudes over 70,000 ft (20km) for large payloads and with an endurance of over 10hours. Recently the ER-2s have conducted convective storm research missions in the mid-western United States and supported the development of new instruments. The DC-8 is a four-engine jetliner that operates for up to 12 hours ataltitudes that range from the surface to 42,000 ft (13 km). Although its flight envelope is equivalent to conventional.

Five Years of NASA Science and Engineering in the Classroom: The Integrated Product Team/NASA Space Missions Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hakkila, Jon; Runyon, Cassndra; Benfield, M. P. J.; Turner, Matthew W.; Farrington, Phillip A.

2015-08-01

We report on five years of an exciting and successful educational collaboration in which science undergraduates at the College of Charleston work with engineering seniors at the University of Alabama in Huntsville to design a planetary science mission in response to a mock announcement of opportunity. Alabama high schools are also heavily involved in the project, and other colleges and universities have also participated. During the two-semester course students learn about scientific goals, past missions, methods of observation, instrumentation, and component integration, proposal writing, and presentation. More importantly, students learn about real-world communication and teamwork, and go through a series of baseline reviews before presenting their results at a formal final review for a panel of NASA scientists and engineers. The project is competitive, with multiple mission designs competing with one another for the best review score. Past classes have involved missions to Venus, Europa, Titan, Mars, asteroids, comets, and even the Moon. Classroom successes and failures have both been on epic scales.

Aqua Education and Public Outreach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Graham, S. M.; Parkinson, C. L.; Chambers, L. H.; Ray, S. E.

2011-12-01

NASA's Aqua satellite was launched on May 4, 2002, with six instruments designed to collect data about the Earth's atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and cryosphere. Since the late 1990s, the Aqua mission has involved considerable education and public outreach (EPO) activities, including printed products, formal education, an engineering competition, webcasts, and high-profile multimedia efforts. The printed products include Aqua and instrument brochures, an Aqua lithograph, Aqua trading cards, NASA Fact Sheets on Aqua, the water cycle, and weather forecasting, and an Aqua science writers' guide. On-going formal education efforts include the Students' Cloud Observations On-Line (S'COOL) Project, the MY NASA DATA Project, the Earth System Science Education Alliance, and, in partnership with university professors, undergraduate student research modules. Each of these projects incorporates Aqua data into its inquiry-based framework. Additionally, high school and undergraduate students have participated in summer internship programs. An earlier formal education activity was the Aqua Engineering Competition, which was a high school program sponsored by the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Morgan State University, and the Baltimore Museum of Industry. The competition began with the posting of a Round 1 Aqua-related engineering problem in December 2002 and concluded in April 2003 with a final round of competition among the five finalist teams. The Aqua EPO efforts have also included a wide range of multimedia products. Prior to launch, the Aqua team worked closely with the Special Projects Initiative (SPI) Office to produce a series of live webcasts on Aqua science and the Cool Science website aqua.nasa.gov/coolscience, which displays short video clips of Aqua scientists and engineers explaining the many aspects of the Aqua mission. These video clips, the Aqua website, and numerous presentations have benefited from dynamic visualizations showing the Aqua launch, instrument deployments, instrument sensing, and the Aqua orbit. More recently, in 2008 the Aqua team worked with the ViewSpace production team from the Space Telescope Science Institute to create an 18-minute ViewSpace feature showcasing the science and applications of the Aqua mission. Then in 2010 and 2011, Aqua and other NASA Earth-observing missions partnered with National CineMedia on the "Know Your Earth" (KYE) project. During January and July 2010 and 2011, KYE ran 2-minute segments highlighting questions that promoted global climate literacy on lobby LCD screens in movie theaters throughout the U.S. Among the ongoing Aqua EPO efforts is the incorporation of Aqua data sets onto the Dynamic Planet, a large digital video globe that projects a wide variety of spherical data sets. Aqua also has a highly successful collaboration with EarthSky communications on the production of an Aqua/EarthSky radio show and podcast series. To date, eleven productions have been completed and distributed via the EarthSky network. In addition, a series of eight video podcasts (i.e., vodcasts) are under production by NASA Goddard TV in conjunction with Aqua personnel, highlighting various aspects of the Aqua mission.

Meteorological Instrumentation and Measurements Open Resource Training Modules for Undergraduate and Graduate Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rockwell, A.; Clark, R. D.; Stevermer, A.

2016-12-01

The study of observational science crosses all other subject areas and requires a new innovative paradigm: a collaboration of experts to create high quality, content-rich learning modules that will elevate the scientific literacy and technical competency of undergraduate and graduate students. This collaborative project will design, develop, and openly distribute a series of interactive, multimedia, online modules that can be effectively integrated into meteorology courses on instrumentation, measurement science, and observing systems to supplement traditional pedagogies and enhance blended instruction. The modules will address topics such as principles of instrumentation and measurement to the theory and practice of measuring a host of meteorological variables. The impact will have a profound effect on the atmospheric observational sciences community by fulfilling a need for contemporary, interactive, multimedia guided education and training modules integrating the latest instructional design and assessment tools in observational science. Thousands of undergraduate and graduate students will benefit, while course instructors will value a set of high quality modules to use as supplements to their courses. The modules can serve as an alternative to observational research training and fill the void between field projects or assist those schools that lack the resources to stage a field- or laboratory-based instrumentation experience. This project brings together the intellectual capital of the scientists and engineers of National Center for Atmospheric Research Earth Observing Laboratory as subject matter experts, the artistic talents and instructional design acumen of the COMET program, and the project leadership, vision, teaching expertise in instruments and observational science at Millersville University.

Key issues in the thermal design of spaceborne cryogenic infrared instruments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schember, Helene R.; Rapp, Donald

1992-12-01

Thermal design and analysis play an integral role in the development of spaceborne cryogenic infrared (IR) instruments. From conceptual sketches to final testing, both direct and derived thermal requirements place significant constraints on the instrument design. Although in practice these thermal requirements are interdependent, the sources of most thermal constraints may be grouped into six distinct categories. These are: (1) Detector temperatures, (2) Optics temperatures, (3) Pointing or alignment stability, (4) Mission lifetime, (5) Orbit, and (6) Test and Integration. In this paper, we discuss these six sources of thermal requirements with particular regard to development of instrument packages for low background infrared astronomical observatories. In the end, the thermal performance of these instruments must meet a set of thermal requirements. The development of these requirements is typically an ongoing and interactive process, however, and the thermal design must maintain flexibility and robustness throughout the process. The thermal (or cryogenic) engineer must understand the constraints imposed by the science requirements, the specific hardware, the observing environment, the mission design, and the testing program. By balancing these often competing factors, the system-oriented thermal engineer can work together with the experiment team to produce an effective overall design of the instrument.

Sandia technology engineering and science accomplishments

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

Not Available

1993-03-01

Sandia is a DOE multiprogram engineering and science laboratory with major facilities at Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Livermore, California, and a test range near Tonapah, Nevada. We have major research and development responsibilities for nuclear weapons, arms control, energy, the environment, economic competitiveness, and other areas of importance to the needs of the nation. Our principal mission is to support national defense policies by ensuring that the nuclear weapon stockpile meets the highest standards of safety, reliability, security, use control, and military performance. Selected unclassified technical activities and accomplishments are reported here. Topics include advanced manufacturing technologies, intelligent machines, computationalmore » simulation, sensors and instrumentation, information management, energy and environment, and weapons technology.« less

Key Science Instrument Installed into Webb Structure

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Engineers are checking to make sure that MIRI is precisely positioned with the ISIM as it slides into position. They have to make sure it's installed exactly where it needs to be within the width of a thin human hair. Visible is MIRI's pickoff mirror, which is the protrusion on the right side of the instrument that looks like a periscope on its side. This is where MIRI grabs light coming from the telescope optics. Also visible is the silver-colored base of MIRI's cryocooled shield, already installed on the ISIM structure and with a hole in it for MIRI's pickoff mirror. MIRI itself has special silver-colored blanketing around it as insulation to keep it at its proper cryogenic temperature during operation. Photo Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn; Text Credit: NASA/Laura Betz ---- Engineers worked meticulously to implant the James Webb Space Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument into the ISIM, or Integrated Science Instrument Module, in the cleanroom at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. As the successor to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, the Webb telescope will be the most powerful space telescope ever built. It will observe the most distant objects in the universe, provide images of the first galaxies formed and see unexplored planets around distant stars. For more information, visit: www.jwst.nasa.gov NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

NASA to Launch Mars Rover in 2020 Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-07-14

NASA's Mars 2020 Project will re-use the basic engineering of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory/Curiosity to send a different rover to Mars, with new objectives and instruments. This artist's concept depicts the top of the 2020 rover's mast. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20760

Supporting Sustained Adoption of Education Innovations: The Designing for Sustained Adoption Assessment Instrument

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stanford, Courtney; Cole, Renée; Froyd, Jeff; Friedrichsen, Debra; Khatri, Raina; Henderson, Charles

2015-01-01

Background: Every year, significant effort and resources are expended around the world to develop innovative instructional strategies and materials to improve undergraduate Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics education. Despite convincing evidence of efficacy with respect to student learning, most will struggle to become successfully…

Aerospace Engineering Space Mission Concept Feasibility Study: A Neptune Mission Design Example

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Esper, Jaime

2007-01-01

This viewgraph document reviews the feasibility study of a mission to Neptune. Included are discussions of the science instruments, the design methodology, the trajectory, the spacecraft design, the alternative propulsion systems, (chemical, solar electric (SEP)), the communications systems, the power systems, the thermal system.

The Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Malina, R. F.; Battel, S. J.

1989-01-01

The Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer (EUVE) mission will be the first user of NASA's new Explorer platform. The instrumentation included on this mission consists of three grazing incidence scanning telescopes, a deep survey instrument and an EUV spectrometer. The bandpass covered is 80 to 900 A. During the first six months of the mission, the scanning telescopes will be used to make all-sky maps in four bandpasses; astronomical sources wil be detected and their positions determined to an accuracy of 0.1 deg. The deep survey instrument will survey the sky with higher sensitivity along the ecliptic in two bandpasses between 80 and 500 A. Engineering and design aspects of the science payload and features of the instrument design are described.

Scanning Webb’s Surrogate Eye

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Engineer Erin Wilson adds aluminum tape to electrical cables to protect them from the cold during environmental testing of special optical equipment. These tests will verify the alignment of the actual flight instruments that will fly aboard NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. "Because the flight science instruments detect infrared light, they must be extremely cold to work, and so the environment we test them in must be extremely cold too," Wilson says. Wilson is working in the Space Environment Simulator thermal-vacuum chamber at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The subject of the testing is the Optical Telescope Element (OTE) Simulator, or OSIM. The hardware seen in the background is the Beam Image Analyzer, which will be used to measure OSIM. It sits above the OSIM, which is under the platform that Wilson is working on. The OSIM is about two stories tall and almost as wide as the whole test chamber. The job of the OSIM is to generate a beam of light just like the one that the real telescope optics will feed into the actual flight science instruments. Because the real flight science instruments will be used to test the real flight telescope, their alignment and performance have to be verified first, using OSIM, and before that can happen, the OSIM has to tested and verified. In space, the telescope optics act as Webb’s eye, and on the ground, the OSIM substitutes for the telescope optics, says Robert Rashford, manager for the OSIM as well as the Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) Electronics Compartment. This hardware is being tested in an environment that mimics the hard vacuum and cold temperatures that Webb will experience in space. After Erin and others were done setting things up in the test chamber, Goddard engineers sealed it up, evacuated all the air and lowered the temperature of the equipment being tested to 42 Kelvin (-384-point-1 Fahrenheit or -231-point-1 Celsius). "It has taken a little over a month to get temperatures cold enough to duplicate the temperatures that Webb will see in operation in space," Rashford says. In the next couple weeks Rashford and the team of Goddard engineers will measure the OSIM with the Beam Image Analyzer. This extremely cold or “cryogenic” optical testing and verification process will likely take 90 days to complete. Laura Betz NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Selecting and implementing scientific objectives. [for Voyager 1 and 2 planetary encounters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miner, E. D.; Stembridge, C. H.; Doms, P. E.

1985-01-01

The procedures used to select and implement scientific objectives for the Voyager 1 and 2 planetary encounters are described. Attention is given to the scientific tradeoffs and engineering considerations must be addressed at various stages in the mission planning process, including: the limitations of ground and spacecraft communications systems, ageing of instruments in flight, and instrument calibration over long distances. The contribution of planetary science workshops to the definition of scientific objectives for deep space missions is emphasized.

High spectral resolution lidar at the university of wisconsin-madison

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Razenkov, Ilya I.; Eloranta, Edwin W.

2018-04-01

This paper describes the modifications done on the University of Wisconsin-Madison High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) that improved the instrument's performance. The University of Wisconsin HSRL lidars designed by our group at the Space Science and Engineering Center were deployed in numerous field campaigns in various locations around the world. Over the years the instruments have undergone multiple modifications that improved the performance and added new measurement capabilities such as atmospheric temperature profile and extinction cross-section measurements.

Galileo - Ganymede Family Night

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

When the Galileo spacecraft flew by Ganymede, Jupiter's and the solar system's largest satellite, on June 26, 1996, the project scientists and engineers gather with their friends and family to view the photos as they are received and to celebrate the mission. This videotape presents that meeting. Representatives from the various instrument science teams discuss many of the instruments aboard Galileo and show videos and pictures of what they have seen so far. This video is continued on Videotape number NONP-NASA-VT-2000036028.

Hopkins during SODI-DCMIX 2 Experiment

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-11-30

ISS038-E-009255 (26 Nov. 2013) --- In the International Space Station?s Destiny laboratory, NASA astronaut Michael Hopkins, Expedition 38 flight engineer, prepares to install and activate the Selectable Optics Diagnostic Instrument (SODI) cell array two in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) for the Selectable Optics Diagnostic Instrument-Diffusion Coefficient in Mixtures 2 (SODI-DCMIX 2) experiment. SODI-DCMIX 2 is supporting research to determine diffusion coefficients in different petroleum field samples and refine petroleum reservoir models to help lead to more efficient extraction of oil resources.

Hopkins during SODI-DCMIX 2 Experiment

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-11-30

ISS038-E-009253 (26 Nov. 2013) --- In the International Space Station’s Destiny laboratory, NASA astronaut Michael Hopkins, Expedition 38 flight engineer, prepares to install and activate the Selectable Optics Diagnostic Instrument (SODI) cell array two in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) for the Selectable Optics Diagnostic Instrument-Diffusion Coefficient in Mixtures 2 (SODI-DCMIX 2) experiment. SODI-DCMIX 2 is supporting research to determine diffusion coefficients in different petroleum field samples and refine petroleum reservoir models to help lead to more efficient extraction of oil resources.

Shuttle Tethered Aerothermodynamics Research Facility (STARFAC) Instrumentation Requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wood, George M.; Siemers, Paul M.; Carlomagno, Giovanni M.; Hoffman, John

1986-01-01

The instrumentation requirements for the Shuttle Tethered Aerothermodynamic Research Facility (STARFAC) are presented. The typical physical properties of the terrestrial atmosphere are given along with representative atmospheric daytime ion concentrations and the equilibrium and nonequilibrium gas property comparison from a point away from a wall. STARFAC science and engineering measurements are given as are the TSS free stream gas analysis. The potential nonintrusive measurement techniques for hypersonic boundary layer research are outlined along with the quantitative physical measurement methods for aerothermodynamic studies.

On System Engineering a Barter-Based Re-allocation of Space System Key Development Resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kosmann, William J.

NASA has had a decades-long problem with cost growth during the development of space science missions. Numerous agency-sponsored studies have produced average mission level development cost growths ranging from 23 to 77%. A new study of 26 historical NASA science instrument set developments using expert judgment to re-allocate key development resources has an average cost growth of 73.77%. Twice in history, during the Cassini and EOS-Terra science instrument developments, a barter-based mechanism has been used to re-allocate key development resources. The mean instrument set development cost growth was -1.55%. Performing a bivariate inference on the means of these two distributions, there is statistical evidence to support the claim that using a barter-based mechanism to re-allocate key instrument development resources will result in a lower expected cost growth than using the expert judgment approach. Agent-based discrete event simulation is the natural way to model a trade environment. A NetLogo agent-based barter-based simulation of science instrument development was created. The agent-based model was validated against the Cassini historical example, as the starting and ending instrument development conditions are available. The resulting validated agent-based barter-based science instrument resource re-allocation simulation was used to perform 300 instrument development simulations, using barter to re-allocate development resources. The mean cost growth was -3.365%. A bivariate inference on the means was performed to determine that additional significant statistical evidence exists to support a claim that using barter-based resource re-allocation will result in lower expected cost growth, with respect to the historical expert judgment approach. Barter-based key development resource re-allocation should work on science spacecraft development as well as it has worked on science instrument development. A new study of 28 historical NASA science spacecraft developments has an average cost growth of 46.04%. As barter-based key development resource re-allocation has never been tried in a spacecraft development, no historical results exist, and an inference on the means test is not possible. A simulation of using barter-based resource re-allocation should be developed. The NetLogo instrument development simulation should be modified to account for spacecraft development market participant differences. The resulting agent-based barter-based spacecraft resource re-allocation simulation would then be used to determine if significant statistical evidence exists to prove a claim that using barter-based resource re-allocation will result in lower expected cost growth.

Bethune-Cookman University STEM Research Lab. DOE Renovation Project

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

Thompson, Herbert W.

DOE funding was used to renovate 4,500 square feet of aging laboratories and classrooms that support science, engineering, and mathematics disciplines (specifically environmental science, and computer engineering). The expansion of the labs was needed to support robotics and environmental science research, and to better accommodate a wide variety of teaching situations. The renovated space includes a robotics laboratory, two multi-use labs, safe spaces for the storage of instrumentation, modern ventilation equipment, and other “smart” learning venues. The renovated areas feature technologies that are environmentally friendly with reduced energy costs. A campus showcase, the laboratories are a reflection of the University’smore » commitment to the environment and research as a tool for teaching. As anticipated, the labs facilitate the exploration of emerging technologies that are compatible with local and regional economic plans.« less

Engineers Install Near Infrared Camera into the Heart of Webb Telescope

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-03-31

nside the world's largest clean room at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., engineers worked tirelessly to install another essential part of the James Webb Space Telescope - the Near Infrared Camera into the heart of the telescope. To complete this installation, the engineers needed to carefully move NIRCam inside the heart or ISIM, or Integrated Science Instrument Module that will house all of the science instruments. "Installing NIRCam into the center of the structure is nerve wracking because of the tight clearances," said Marcia J. Rieke, Professor of Astronomy at the University of Arizona, and principal investigator for the NIRCam. "I'm glad nothing bumped, and all the bolts are in place." NIRCam is a unique machine because in addition to being one of the four science instruments on the Webb, it also serves as the wavefront sensor, which means it will provide vital information for shaping the telescope mirrors and aligning its optics so that they can function properly and see into the distant universe. The NIRCam instrument will operate at very cold temperatures, and will be tested to ensure that it will be able to withstand the environment of space. The NIRCam is Webb's primary imager that will cover the infrared wavelength range 0.6 to 5 microns. It will detect light from the earliest stars and galaxies in the process of formation, the population of stars in nearby galaxies, as well as young stars and exoplanets in the Milky Way. NIRCam is provided by the University of Arizona and Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center. Webb is an international project led by NASA with its partners the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency. The James Webb Space Telescope is the successor to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. It will be the most powerful space telescope ever built. For more information about the Webb telescope, visit: www.jwst.nasa.gov or www.nasa.gov/webb Credit: NASA/Goddard/Chris Gunn NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Gas Phase Nanoparticle Synthesis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Granqvist, Claes; Kish, Laszlo; Marlow, William

This book deals with gas-phase nanoparticle synthesis and is intended for researchers and research students in nanomaterials science and engineering, condensed matter physics and chemistry, and aerosol science. Gas-phase nanoparticle synthesis is instrumental to nanotechnology - a field in current focus that raises hopes for environmentally benign, resource-lean manufacturing. Nanoparticles can be produced by many physical, chemical, and even biological routes. Gas-phase synthesis is particularly interesting since one can achieve accurate manufacturing control and hence industrial viability.

Advances in cryogenic engineering. Vols. 37A & 37B - Proceedings of the 1991 Cryogenic Engineering Conference, Univ. of Alabama, Huntsville, June 11-14, 1991

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fast, Ronald W. (Editor)

1991-01-01

The present volume on advances in cryogenic engineering discusses heat and mass transfer in helium, heat transfer in cryogenic fluids, thermoacoustic oscillations, and insulation. Attention is given to applications of superconductivity with reference to magnetic stability and coil protection, cryogenic techniques, and refrigeration for electronics and superconducting systems. Topics addressed include compressors, expanders, and pumps for liquid helium, magnetic refrigerators, pulse tube refrigerators, and cryocoolers. Also examined are properties of cryogenic fluids, cryogenic applications in transportion and space science and technology, and cryogenic instrumentation.

Theseus in Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The twin pusher engines of the prototype Theseus research aircraft can be clearly seen in this photo of the aircraft during a 1996 research flight from the Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus in Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The twin pusher propeller-driven engines of the Theseus research aircraft can be clearly seen in this photo, taken during a 1996 research flight at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

NCAR Earth Observing Laboratory - An End-to-End Observational Science Enterprise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rockwell, A.; Baeuerle, B.; Grubišić, V.; Hock, T. F.; Lee, W. C.; Ranson, J.; Stith, J. L.; Stossmeister, G.

2017-12-01

Researchers who want to understand and describe the Earth System require high-quality observations of the atmosphere, ocean, and biosphere. Making these observations not only requires capable research platforms and state-of-the-art instrumentation but also benefits from comprehensive in-field project management and data services. NCAR's Earth Observing Laboratory (EOL) is an end-to-end observational science enterprise that provides leadership in observational research to scientists from universities, U.S. government agencies, and NCAR. Deployment: EOL manages the majority of the NSF Lower Atmosphere Observing Facilities, which includes research aircraft, radars, lidars, profilers, and surface and sounding systems. This suite is designed to address a wide range of Earth system science - from microscale to climate process studies and from the planet's surface into the Upper Troposphere/Lower Stratosphere. EOL offers scientific, technical, operational, and logistics support to small and large field campaigns across the globe. Development: By working closely with the scientific community, EOL's engineering and scientific staff actively develop the next generation of observing facilities, staying abreast of emerging trends, technologies, and applications in order to improve our measurement capabilities. Through our Design and Fabrication Services, we also offer high-level engineering and technical expertise, mechanical design, and fabrication to the atmospheric research community. Data Services: EOL's platforms and instruments collect unique datasets that must be validated, archived, and made available to the research community. EOL's Data Management and Services deliver high-quality datasets and metadata in ways that are transparent, secure, and easily accessible. We are committed to the highest standard of data stewardship from collection to validation to archival. Discovery: EOL promotes curiosity about Earth science, and fosters advanced understanding of the processes involved in observational research. Through EOL's Education and Outreach Program, we strive to inspire and develop the next generation of observational scientists and engineers by offering a range of educational, experiential, and outreach opportunities, including engineering internships.

Theseus in Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus research aircraft in flight over Rogers Dry Lake, Edwards, California, during a 1996 research flight. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus Assembly Sequence #1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype research aircraft being assembled at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, in May of 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus Assembly Sequence #3

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype research aircraft being assembled at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, in May of 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Using UAVs to Conduct Student-led Research Projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olds, S. E.; Lewis, P. M., Jr.

2016-12-01

Recreational drones can inspire students to initiate research projects. These "toys" have a low cost (<$100), low weight (< 250 g, so do not require FAA registration), and an ability to carry small instrument packages, making them an ideal platform for conducting innovative investigations. This session describes an initiative by the Federation of Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) Education Committee to compile and distribute a free e-book that will encourage learners to use drones for science investigations. Our goal is to inspire learners to use UAVs to carry scientific instruments and/or capture imagery to conduct local-scale investigations. Experiments such as discovering their vehicle's maximum payload help learners understand what sensors they can use (or build) to conduct research. The e-book will encourage learners to practice UAV civility and safety through a pre-flight checklist and flying guidelines, and to consider science objectives and flight team roles in performing investigations. Activities also advocate for robust data and metadata-collection practices. Suggested activities encompass repeat photography investigations as well as engineering design skills such as designing a camera mount to obtain nadir or oblique imagery. Learners can also move to more sophisticated research using photogrammetric skills such as taking overlapping photographs to create 3D structure from motion (SfM) models. To encourage the use of onboard sensors, the team worked with an engineer to build a 33-gram prototype environmental logger called SABEL (Shelley [Olds] and Bob [Ellis]'s Environmental Logger). Assembled on an Arduino board, SABEL collects temperature, humidity, and GPS position. This presentation will provide examples of student-led investigations, instructions for building the SABEL sensor package, and the status of the new e-book compilation of student-focused activities using recreational drones to pursue science, math, engineering, and technology research investigations.

Bright THz Instrument and Nonlinear THz Science

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-10-30

darkness” Princeton International School of Math and Sciences, Princeton, NY, May 12, 2017. 7. “THz: Imaging Beyond Light” Open Readings 2017, 60th...June  19,  2017.   6.   “Let  light  shine  out  of  darkness”  Princeton  International  School  of   Math  and  Sciences,  Princeton,   NY,  May...a  graduate   of  Ph.D.  in  science,   math ,  engineering,  or  technology  fields   0   Number  who  achieved  a  3.5  GPA  to  4.0  (4.0  max

Collaborative Science Using Web Services and the SciFlo Grid Dataflow Engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilson, B. D.; Manipon, G.; Xing, Z.; Yunck, T.

2006-12-01

The General Earth Science Investigation Suite (GENESIS) project is a NASA-sponsored partnership between the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, academia, and NASA data centers to develop a new suite of Web Services tools to facilitate multi-sensor investigations in Earth System Science. The goal of GENESIS is to enable large-scale, multi-instrument atmospheric science using combined datasets from the AIRS, MODIS, MISR, and GPS sensors. Investigations include cross-comparison of spaceborne climate sensors, cloud spectral analysis, study of upper troposphere-stratosphere water transport, study of the aerosol indirect cloud effect, and global climate model validation. The challenges are to bring together very large datasets, reformat and understand the individual instrument retrievals, co-register or re-grid the retrieved physical parameters, perform computationally-intensive data fusion and data mining operations, and accumulate complex statistics over months to years of data. To meet these challenges, we have developed a Grid computing and dataflow framework, named SciFlo, in which we are deploying a set of versatile and reusable operators for data access, subsetting, registration, mining, fusion, compression, and advanced statistical analysis. SciFlo leverages remote Web Services, called via Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) or REST (one-line) URLs, and the Grid Computing standards (WS-* &Globus Alliance toolkits), and enables scientists to do multi-instrument Earth Science by assembling reusable Web Services and native executables into a distributed computing flow (tree of operators). The SciFlo client &server engines optimize the execution of such distributed data flows and allow the user to transparently find and use datasets and operators without worrying about the actual location of the Grid resources. In particular, SciFlo exploits the wealth of datasets accessible by OpenGIS Consortium (OGC) Web Mapping Servers & Web Coverage Servers (WMS/WCS), and by Open Data Access Protocol (OpenDAP) servers. The scientist injects a distributed computation into the Grid by simply filling out an HTML form or directly authoring the underlying XML dataflow document, and results are returned directly to the scientist's desktop. Once an analysis has been specified for a chunk or day of data, it can be easily repeated with different control parameters or over months of data. Recently, the Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) Federation sponsored a collaborative activity in which several ESIP members advertised their respective WMS/WCS and SOAP services, developed some collaborative science scenarios for atmospheric and aerosol science, and then choreographed services from multiple groups into demonstration workflows using the SciFlo engine and a Business Process Execution Language (BPEL) workflow engine. For several scenarios, the same collaborative workflow was executed in three ways: using hand-coded scripts, by executing a SciFlo document, and by executing a BPEL workflow document. We will discuss the lessons learned from this activity, the need for standardized interfaces (like WMS/WCS), the difficulty in agreeing on even simple XML formats and interfaces, and further collaborations that are being pursued.

A review of instrumentation kinematics of engine-driven nickel-titanium instruments.

PubMed

Çapar, I D; Arslan, H

2016-02-01

Over the years, NiTi alloys have become indispensable materials in endodontic treatment. With technological advancements in metallurgy, manufacturers have attempted to produce instruments with enhanced features. In parallel with these developments, endodontic motors have undergone improvements in terms of torque control and kinematics that are adjustable in different directions. This review presents an overview of the advancements in instrumentation kinematics and the effect of instrumentation kinematics on root canal shaping procedures and instrument performance. The literature search for this narrative review was conducted in Google Scholar, Scopus, PubMed and Web of Science using the keywords 'kinematics and endodontics' and 'reciprocation and endodontics'. In addition, historical literature was searched using the keyword 'nickel-titanium and endodontics'. Overall, 143 articles were included up to 2015. © 2015 International Endodontic Journal. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

AVIRIS onboard data handling and control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Steinkraus, Ronald E.; Hickok, Roger W.

1987-01-01

The timing and flow of detector and ancillary data for the Airborne Visible/Infrared imaging spectrometer (AVIRIS) are controlled within the instrument by its digital electronics assembly. In addition to providing detector and signal chain timing, the digital electronics receives, formats, and rate-buffers digitized science data; collects and formats ancillary (calibration and engineering) data; and merges both into a single tape record. Overall AVIRIS data handling is effected by a combination of dedicated digital electronics to control instrument timing, image data flow, and data rate buffering and a microcomputer programmed to handle real-time control of instrument mechanisms and the coordinated preparation of ancillary data.

Students' Attitudes towards the Use of Poetry in Second Language Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ardeshir, Danesh; Shirkhani, Servat

2015-01-01

This study investigates learners' attitudes towards poetry in foreign language learning. 63 Engineering Students at Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch attended the study. The instrument used in the study was a questionnaire designed by the researchers for the purpose of this study. The questionnaire consisted of 12 questions…

Administering Spatial and Cognitive Instruments In-Class and On-Line: Are These Equivalent?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williamson, Kenneth C.; Williamson, Vickie M.; Hinze, Scott R.

2017-01-01

Standardized, well-established paper-and-pencil tests, which measure spatial abilities or which measure reasoning abilities, have long been found to be predictive of success in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. Instructors can use these tests for prediction of success and to inform instruction. A comparative…

Jordanian twelfth-grade science teachers' self-reported usage of science and engineering practices in the next generation science standards

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malkawi, Amal Reda; Rababah, Ebtesam Qassim

2018-06-01

This study investigated the degree that Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs) criteria from the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) were included in self-reported teaching practices of twelfth-grade science teachers in Jordan. This study sampled (n = 315) science teachers recruited from eight different public school directorates. The sample was surveyed using an instrument adapted from Kawasaki (2015). Results found that Jordanian science teachers incorporate (SEPs) in their classroom teaching at only a moderate level. SEPs applied most frequently included 'using the diagram, table or graphic through instructions to clarify the subject of a new science,' and to 'discuss with the students how to interpret the quantitative data from the experiment or investigation'. The practice with the lowest frequency was 'teach a lesson on interpreting statistics or quantitative data,' which was moderately applied. No statistically significant differences at (α = 0.05) were found among these Jordanian science teachers' self-estimations of (SEP) application into their own teaching according to the study's demographic variables (specialisation, educational qualification, teaching experience). However, a statistically significant difference at (α = 0.05) was found among Jordanian high school science teachers' practice means based on gender, with female teachers using SEPs at a higher rate than male teachers.

Federal Technology Catalog 1982: Summaries of practical technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

The catalog presents summaries of practical technology selected for commercial potential and/or promising applications to the fields of computer technology, electrotechnology, energy, engineering, life sciences, machinery and tools, manufacturing, materials, physical sciences, and testing and instrumentation. Each summary not only describes a technology, but gives a source for further information. This publication describes some 1,100 new processes, inventions, equipment, software, and techniques developed by and for dozens of Federal agencies during 1982. Included is coverage of NASA Tech Briefs, DOE Energygrams, and Army Manufacturing Notes.

Characteristics of photonic nanojets from two-layer dielectric hemisphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Yunyue; Liu, Xianchao; Li, Ling; Chen, Weidong; Chen, Yan; Huang, Yuerong; Xie, Zhengwei

2017-10-01

Not Available Project supported by State Key Laboratory of Optical Technologies on Nano-Fabrication and Micro-Engineering, Institute of Optics and Electronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Sichuan Provincial Department of Education, China (Grant No. 16ZA0047); the State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Yansan University, China (Grant No. 201509); and the Large Precision Instruments Open Project Foundation of Sichuan Normal University, China (Grant Nos. DJ2015-57, DJ2015-58, DJ2015-60, DJ2016-58, and DJ2016-59).

Requirements and Design Reference Mission for the WFIRST-AFTA Coronagraph Instrument

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Demers, Richard T.; Dekens, Frank; Calvet, Rob; Chang, Zensheu; Effinger, Robert; Ek, Eric; Hovland, Larry; Jones, Laura; Loc, Anthony; Nemati, Bijan;

Development of a global education environment to study the Equatorial Ionosphere with Cognitive Radars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Urbina, J. V.

2011-12-01

The author has recently been awarded the NSF Career award to develop a radar with cognitive sensing capabilities to study Equatorial plasma instabilities in the Peruvian Andes. Educational research has shown that a rich learning environment contributes tremendously toward improvement in learning achievements and also attitudes toward studies. One of the benefits of this project is that it provides such an environment and a global platform to involve several students at both graduate and undergraduate levels from the US, Puerto Rico, and Peru, and who will benefit from designing, installing, and deploying a radar in multi-instrument science campaigns. In addition to working in the laboratories, students will gain invaluable real world experience building this complex instrument and making it work under challenging conditions at remote sites. The PI will describe how these components are being developed in a Freshman Seminar course and Graduate courses in the Department of Electrical Engineering at Penn State University, and how they are aligned well with the department's and university's strategy for greater global engagement through a network of Global Engagement Nodes in South America (GENSA). The issues of mentoring, recruitment, and retention become particularly important in consideration of the educational objective of this career project to involve underrepresented students with diverse backgrounds and interest them in research projects. The author is working very closely with the Office of Engineering Diversity to leverage existing programs at Penn State designed to increase the participation of women and minority students in science and engineering research: (a) WISER (Women In Science and Engineering Research), and (b) MURE (Minority Undergraduate Research Experience). The Electrical Engineering Department at Penn State is also currently an NSF REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) site. The PI will also present his efforts in connecting his career project in providing research experiences during summer to underrepresented groups as well as students from schools without extensive research environments.

STEM-based science learning implementation to identify student’s personal intelligences profiles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiguna, B. J. P. K.; Suwarma, I. R.; Liliawati, W.

2018-05-01

Science and technology are rapidly developing needs to be balanced with the human resources that have the qualified ability. Not only cognitive ability, but also have the soft skills that support 21st century skills. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education is a solution to improve the quality of learning and prepare students may be able to trained 21st century skills. This study aims to analyse the implementation of STEM-based science learning on Newton’s law of motion by identifying the personal intelligences profile junior high school students. The method used in this research is pre experiment with the design of the study one group pre-test post-test. Samples in this study were 26 junior high school students taken using Convenience Sampling. Students personal intelligences profile after learning STEM-based science uses two instruments, self-assessment and peer assessment. Intrapersonal intelligence profile based self-assessment and peer assessment are respectively 69.38; and 64.08. As for interpersonal intelligence for self-assessment instrument is 73 and the peer assessment is 60.23.

Design definition of the Laser Atmospheric Wind Sounder (LAWS), phase 2. Volume 2: Final report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, D. J.

1992-01-01

Lockheed personnel, along with team member subcontractors and consultants, have performed a preliminary design for the LAWS Instrument. Breadboarding and testing of a LAWS class laser have also been performed. These efforts have demonstrated that LAWS is a feasible Instrument and can be developed with existing state-of-the-art technology. Only a commitment to fund the instrument development and deployment is required to place LAWS in orbit and obtain the anticipated science and operational forecasting benefits. The LAWS Science Team was selected in 1988-89 as were the competing LAWS phase 1/2 contractor teams. The LAWS Science Team developed requirements for the LAWS Instrument, and the NASA/LAWS project office defined launch vehicle and platform design constraints. From these requirements and constraints, the lockheed team developed LAWS Instrument concepts and configurations. A system designed to meet these requirements and constraints is outlined. The LAWS primary subsystem and interfaces - laser, optical, and receiver/processor - required to assemble a lidar are identified. Also identified are the support subsystems required for the lidar to function from space: structures and mechanical, thermal, electrical, and command and data management. The Lockheed team has developed a preliminary design of a LAWS Instrument System consisting of these subsystems and interfaces which will meet the requirements and objectives of the Science Team. This final report provides a summary of the systems engineering analyses and trades of the LAWS. Summaries of the configuration, preliminary designs of the subsystems, testing recommendations, and performance analysis are presented. Environmental considerations associated with deployment of LAWS are discussed. Finally, the successful LAWS laser breadboard effort is discussed along with the requirements and test results.

Implementation of STEAM Education to Improve Mastery Concept

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liliawati, W.; Rusnayati, H.; Purwanto; Aristantia, G.

2018-01-01

Science Technology Engineering, Art, Mathematics (STEAM) is an integration of art into Science Technology Engineering, Mathematics (STEM). Connecting art to science makes learning more effective and innovative. This study aims to determine the increase in mastery of the concept of high school students after the application of STEAM education in learning with the theme of Water and Us. The research method used is one group Pretest-posttest design with students of class VII (n = 37) junior high school. The instrument used in the form of question of mastery of concepts in the form of multiple choices amounted to 20 questions and observation sheet of learning implementation. The results of the study show that there is an increase in conceptualization on the theme of Water and Us which is categorized as medium (=0, 46) after the application of the STEAM approach. The conclusion obtained that by applying STEAM approach in learning can improve the mastery of concept

Merging science, engineering, and data with FUN: Recreational Drones in STEaM Education Activities and Science Fair Projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olds, S. E.; Mooney, M. E.; Dahlman, L. E.

2016-12-01

Recreational drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), provide an ideal platform for engaging students in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) investigations for science fair projects, after-school clubs, and in-class activities. UAVs are very popular (estimate of >1 million received as gifts this past year), relatively inexpensive (<$100), weigh less than 250g (don't require FAA registration), are modifiable, and can carry small instrument packages. Seeing the world from above can stimulate curiosity and give students a reason to engage in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) process of science and engineering practices by designing and carrying out their own investigations. Using drones to facilitate experiments, students also participate in engineering design: they may choose off-the-shelf sensors or build DIY sensors to carry on their UAVs. Leveraging the learning potential of UAVs, the Federation of Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) Education Committee has been developing an e-book of learning activities and investigation suggestions for secondary education students. The freely available download incorporates UAV civility and safety through a pre-flight checklist and flying guidelines, suggests science and flight team roles, and advocates robust data and metadata-collection practices. The ESIP team also worked with an engineer to build a 33-gram prototype environmental logger called SABEL (Shelley (Olds) and Bob's Environmental Logger). SABEL collects temperature, humidity, and GPS position assembled on an Arduino board. This presentation will elaborate upon the year-long process of working with educators via webinars and a 1-day workshop at the 2016 ESIP summer meeting and beyond. It will also provide examples of student-led investigations, instructions for building the SABEL sensor package, insights gleaned from workshop feedback - and - the status of the new e-book compilation of student-focused activities using recreational drones to pursue STEM investigations!

ASK Talks with Alex McCool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

As a charter member at Marshall, McCool was instrumental in the design of the propulsion systems for the Saturn launch vehicles that propelled Apollo to the Moon and directed project engineering for Skylab, the first space science laboratory. Alex McCool's 48-year career includes exceptional contributions to the vehicles that launched America into orbit and carried human beings to the moon. Presently, he is the manager of the Space Shuttle Projects Office at Marshall. Among his many honors he recently received the National Space Club's 2002 Astronautics Engineer Award. The award recognizes those who have made outstanding contributions in engineering management to the national space program.

First Results of the Juno Magnetometer Investigation in Jupiter's Magnetosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Connerney, J. E. P.; Oliversen, R. J.; Espley, J. R.; Schnurr, R.; Sheppard, D.; Odom, J.; Lawton, P.; Murphy, S.; Joergensen, J. L.; Joergensen, P. S.; Merayo, J. M. G.; Denver, T.; Benn, M.; Bjarno, J. B.; Malinnikova Bang, A.; Bloxham, J.; Smith, E. J.; Bolton, S. J.

2016-12-01

The Juno spacecraft entered polar orbit about Jupiter on July 4, 2016, after a picture perfect Jupiter Orbit Insertion (JOI) main engine burn lasting 35 minutes. Juno's science instruments were not powered during the critical maneuver sequence ( 5 days) but were fully operational shortly afterward. The 53.5-day capture orbit provides Juno's science instruments with the first opportunity to sample the Jovian environment close up and in polar orbit on August 27, 2016 (PJ1). Following a successful PJ1, a period reduction maneuver (PRM) will drop the spacecraft into its 14-day science orbit to begin the science phase of the mission. During this phase, the gravity and magnetic fields will be mapped with unprecedented accuracy as Juno conducts a study of Jupiter's interior structure and composition, in addition to the first comprehensive exploration of the polar magnetosphere. The magnetic field investigation onboard Juno is equipped with two magnetometer sensor suites, located at 10 and 12 m from the spacecraft body at the end of one of the three solar panel wings. Each contains a vector fluxgate magnetometer (FGM) sensor and a pair of co-located non-magnetic star tracker camera heads which provide accurate attitude determination for the FGM sensors. This very capable magnetic observatory samples the Jovian magnetic field at a rate of up to 64 vector samples/second. We present the first observations of Jupiter's magnetic field obtained in polar orbit and in context with prior observations and those acquired by Juno's other science instruments (waves and particles instruments, and remote-sensing infrared and ultraviolet imaging spectrographs).

Low-Pressure Testing of the Mars Science Laboratory’s Solid Sampling System: Test Methods and Preliminary Results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mukherjee, S.; von der Heydt, M.; Hanson, C.; Jandura, L.

2009-12-01

The Mars Science Laboratory mission is scheduled to launch in 2011 with an extensive suite of in situ science instruments. Acquiring, processing and delivering appropriate samples of rock and martian regolith to the instruments is a critical component in realizing the science capability of these payload elements. However, there are a number of challenges in validating the design of these systems. In particular, differences in the environment (atmospheric pressure and composition, temperature, gravity), target materials (variation in rock and soil properties), and state of the hardware (electrical potential, particulate coatings) may effect sampling performance. To better understand the end-to-end system and allow development of mitigation strategies if necessary, early testing of high-fidelity engineering models of the hardware in the solid sample chain is being conducted. The components of the sample acquisition, processing & delivery chain that will be tested are the drill, scoop, sieves, portioners, and instrument inlet funnels. An evaluation of the environmental parameter space was conducted to identify a subset that may have significant effects on sampling performance and cannot be well bounded by analysis. Accordingly, support equipment to enable testing at Mars surface pressures (5-10 Torr), with carbon dioxide was designed and built. A description of the testing set-up, investigations, and preliminary results will be presented.

Advanced Methodologies for NASA Science Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurlburt, N. E.; Feigelson, E.; Mentzel, C.

2017-12-01

Most of NASA's commitment to computational space science involves the organization and processing of Big Data from space-based satellites, and the calculations of advanced physical models based on these datasets. But considerable thought is also needed on what computations are needed. The science questions addressed by space data are so diverse and complex that traditional analysis procedures are often inadequate. The knowledge and skills of the statistician, applied mathematician, and algorithmic computer scientist must be incorporated into programs that currently emphasize engineering and physical science. NASA's culture and administrative mechanisms take full cognizance that major advances in space science are driven by improvements in instrumentation. But it is less well recognized that new instruments and science questions give rise to new challenges in the treatment of satellite data after it is telemetered to the ground. These issues might be divided into two stages: data reduction through software pipelines developed within NASA mission centers; and science analysis that is performed by hundreds of space scientists dispersed through NASA, U.S. universities, and abroad. Both stages benefit from the latest statistical and computational methods; in some cases, the science result is completely inaccessible using traditional procedures. This paper will review the current state of NASA and present example applications using modern methodologies.

Meanings and Policy Implications of "Transformative Research": Frontiers, Hot Science, Evolution, and Investment Risk

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dietz, James S.; Rogers, Juan D.

2012-01-01

In recent times there has been a surge in interest on policy instruments to stimulate scientific and engineering research that is of greater consequence, advancing our knowledge in leaps rather than steps and is therefore more "creative" or, in the language of recent reports, "transformative." Associated with the language of "transformative…

Visualizing Time: How Linguistic Metaphors Are Incorporated into Displaying Instruments in the Process of Interpreting Time-Varying Signals

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garcia-Belmonte, Germà

2017-01-01

Spatial visualization is a well-established topic of education research that has allowed improving science and engineering students' skills on spatial relations. Connections have been established between visualization as a comprehension tool and instruction in several scientific fields. Learning about dynamic processes mainly relies upon static…

The Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate STEM (COPUS): A New Instrument to Characterize University STEM Classroom Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Michelle K.; Jones, Francis H. M.; Gilbert, Sarah L.; Wieman, Carl E.

2013-01-01

Instructors and the teaching practices they employ play a critical role in improving student learning in college science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses. Consequently, there is increasing interest in collecting information on the range and frequency of teaching practices at department-wide and institution-wide scales. To…

Rheology of Soft Materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Daniel T. N.; Wen, Qi; Janmey, Paul A.; Crocker, John C.; Yodh, Arjun G.

2010-04-01

Research on soft materials, including colloidal suspensions, glasses, pastes, emulsions, foams, polymer networks, liquid crystals, granular materials, and cells, has captured the interest of scientists and engineers in fields ranging from physics and chemical engineering to materials science and cell biology. Recent advances in rheological methods to probe mechanical responses of these complex media have been instrumental for producing new understanding of soft matter and for generating novel technological applications. This review surveys these technical developments and current work in the field, with partial aim to illustrate open questions for future research.

Measuring the Ways Significant Persons Influence Attitudes Towards Science and Mathematics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sjaastad, Jørgen

2013-01-01

Young people's attitudes towards science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are subject to interpersonal influence of significant persons-defined as those who influence a person's attitudes. This article presents the development of an instrument designed to measure different modes of significant persons' influence on attitudes towards STEM. The questionnaire used in the pilot study was compiled based on Woelfel and Haller's theoretical perspectives on interpersonal influence, Nauta and Kokaly's instrument Influence of Others on Academic and Career Decisions Scale, and focus group interviews with Norwegian adolescents in an STEM mentoring programme. Drawing on Rasch analyses of data material from the 114 participants in the pilot study, the final instrument-Significant Person Influence on Attitudes towards STEM (SPIAS)-is presented. Based on results from the piloting and development of SPIAS, a conceptual discussion of significant persons and the ways they influence attitudes towards STEM is given, and it is suggested that SPIAS may be used in the process of evaluating and improving interventions aimed at changing adolescents' attitudes towards STEM.

ICESat (GLAS) Science Processing Software Document Series. Volume 3; GLAS Science Software Requirements Document; Ver 2.1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jester, Peggy L.; Lee, Jeffrey; Zukor, Dorothy J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

This document addresses the software requirements of the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) Standard Data Software (SDS) supporting the GLAS instrument on the EOS ICESat Spacecraft. This Software Requirements Document represents the initial collection of the technical engineering information for the GLAS SDS. This information is detailed within the second of four main volumes of the Standard documentation, the Product Specification volume. This document is a "roll-out" from the governing volume outline containing the Concept and Requirements sections.

Workshop on advanced technologies for planetary instruments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Appleby, J. (Editor)

1993-01-01

NASA's robotic solar system exploration program requires a new generation of science instruments. Design concepts are now judged against stringent mass, power, and size constraints--yet future instruments must be highly capable, reliable, and, in some applications, they must operate for many years. The most important single constraint, however, is cost: new instruments must be developed in a tightly controlled design-to-cost environment. Technical innovation is the key to success and will enable the sophisticated measurements needed for future scientific exploration. As a fundamental benefit, the incorporation of breakthrough technologies in planetary flight hardware will contribute to U.S. industrial competitiveness and will strengthen the U.S. technology base. The Workshop on Advanced Technologies for Planetary Instruments was conceived to address these challenges, to provide an open forum in which the NASA and DoD space communities could become better acquainted at the working level, and to assess future collaborative efforts. Over 300 space scientists and engineers participated in the two-and-a-half-day meeting held April 28-30, 1993, in Fairfax, Virginia. It was jointly sponsored by NASA's Solar System Exploration Division (SSED), within the Office of Space Science (OSS); NASA's Office of Advanced Concepts and Technology (OACT); DoD's Strategic Defense Initiative Organization (SDIO), now called the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO); and the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI). The meeting included invited oral and contributed poster presentations, working group sessions in four sub-disciplines, and a wrap-up panel discussion. On the first day, the planetary science community described instrumentation needed for missions that may go into development during the next 5 to 10 years. Most of the second day was set aside for the DoD community to inform their counterparts in planetary science about their interests and capabilities, and to describe the BMDO technology base, flight programs, and future directions. The working group sessions and the panel discussion synthesized technical and programmatic issues from all the presentations, with a specific goal of assessing the applicability of BMDO technologies to science instrumentation for planetary exploration.

Status report on the activities of National Balloon Facility at Hyderabad

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shankarnarayan, Sreenivasan; S, Sreenivasan; Shankarnarayan, Sreenivasan; Manchanda, R. K.; Subba Rao Jonnalagadda, Venkata; Buduru, Suneelkumar

National balloon facility at Hyderabad has been mandated to provide launch support for Indian and International scientific balloon experiments and also perform the necessary research and development in the design and fabrication of plastic balloons. In the last 4 years, since our last report, NBF has launched many successful balloon flights for the astronomy payloads and a large number of high altitude GPS Sonde flights at different places in the country. We have also continued our efforts on qualification of raw materials for zero-failure performance of our balloons and major focus on upgrading of various facilities and load-line instrumentation for launching from remote sites. We foresee a surge of balloon based experimental activity for in-situ measurements in atmospheric sciences and concept validation payloads for future space based instruments. A new centre for research in Environmental Sciences and Payload Engineering (ESPE) has also been set up at the National Balloon Facility campus to develop and conduct research in various aspects of Environmental sciences in collaboration with other groups, with a specific goal to identify, development of advanced technologies leading to an improved understanding of the earth system. The Payload Engineering facility is geared to the Design and Fabrication of Micro and Nano Satellites and will act as Inter -University Centre for payload fabrication. In this paper we present an overview of the present and planned activities in scientific ballooning at National Balloon Facility Hyderabad.

14 CFR 121.307 - Engine instruments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Engine instruments. 121.307 Section 121.307..., FLAG, AND SUPPLEMENTAL OPERATIONS Instrument and Equipment Requirements § 121.307 Engine instruments. Unless the Administrator allows or requires different instrumentation for turbine engine powered...

14 CFR 121.307 - Engine instruments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Engine instruments. 121.307 Section 121.307..., FLAG, AND SUPPLEMENTAL OPERATIONS Instrument and Equipment Requirements § 121.307 Engine instruments. Unless the Administrator allows or requires different instrumentation for turbine engine powered...

14 CFR 121.307 - Engine instruments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Engine instruments. 121.307 Section 121.307..., FLAG, AND SUPPLEMENTAL OPERATIONS Instrument and Equipment Requirements § 121.307 Engine instruments. Unless the Administrator allows or requires different instrumentation for turbine engine powered...

14 CFR 121.307 - Engine instruments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Engine instruments. 121.307 Section 121.307..., FLAG, AND SUPPLEMENTAL OPERATIONS Instrument and Equipment Requirements § 121.307 Engine instruments. Unless the Administrator allows or requires different instrumentation for turbine engine powered...

14 CFR 121.307 - Engine instruments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Engine instruments. 121.307 Section 121.307..., FLAG, AND SUPPLEMENTAL OPERATIONS Instrument and Equipment Requirements § 121.307 Engine instruments. Unless the Administrator allows or requires different instrumentation for turbine engine powered...

Europa Explorer Operational Scenarios Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lock, Robert E.; Pappalardo, Robert T.; Clark, Karla B.

2008-01-01

In 2007, NASA conducted four advanced mission concept studies for outer planets targets: Europa, Ganymede, Titan and Enceladus. The studies were conducted in close cooperation with the planetary science community. Of the four, the Europa Explorer Concept Study focused on refining mission options, science trades and implementation details for a potential flagship mission to Europa in the 2015 timeframe. A science definition team (SDT) was appointed by NASA to guide the study. A JPL-led engineering team worked closely with the science team to address 3 major focus areas: 1) credible cost estimates, 2) rationale and logical discussion of radiation risk and mitigation approaches, and 3) better definition and exploration of science operational scenario trade space. This paper will address the methods and results of the collaborative process used to develop Europa Explorer operations scenarios. Working in concert with the SDT, and in parallel with the SDT's development of a science value matrix, key mission capabilities and constraints were challenged by the science and engineering members of the team. Science goals were advanced and options were considered for observation scenarios. Data collection and return strategies were tested via simulation, and mission performance was estimated and balanced with flight and ground system resources and science priorities. The key to this successful collaboration was a concurrent development environment in which all stakeholders could rapidly assess the feasibility of strategies for their success in the full system context. Issues of science and instrument compatibility, system constraints, and mission opportunities were treated analytically and objectively leading to complementary strategies for observation and data return. Current plans are that this approach, as part of the system engineering process, will continue as the Europa Explorer Concept Study moves toward becoming a development project.

Enabling Arctic Research Through Science and Engineering Partnerships

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kendall, E. A.; Valentic, T. A.; Stehle, R. H.

2014-12-01

Under an Arctic Research Support and Logistics contract from NSF (GEO/PLR), SRI International, as part of the CH2M HILL Polar Services (CPS) program, forms partnerships with Arctic research teams to provide data transfer, remote operations, and safety/operations communications. This teamwork is integral to the success of real-time science results and often allows for unmanned operations which are both cost-effective and safer. The CPS program utilizes a variety of communications networks, services and technologies to support researchers and instruments throughout the Arctic, including Iridium, VSAT, Inmarsat BGAN, HughesNet, TeleGreenland, radios, and personal locator beacons. Program-wide IT and communications limitations are due to the broad categories of bandwidth, availability, and power. At these sites it is essential to conserve bandwidth and power through using efficient software, coding and scheduling techniques. There are interesting new products and services on the horizon that the program may be able to take advantage of in the future such as Iridium NEXT, Inmarsat Xpress, and Omnispace mobile satellite services. Additionally, there are engineering and computer software opportunities to develop more efficient products. We will present an overview of science/engineering partnerships formed by the CPS program, discuss current limitations and identify future technological possibilities that could further advance Arctic science goals.

A preliminary design for the GMT-Consortium Large Earth Finder (G-CLEF)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szentgyorgyi, Andrew; Barnes, Stuart; Bean, Jacob; Bigelow, Bruce; Bouchez, Antonin; Chun, Moo-Young; Crane, Jeffrey D.; Epps, Harland; Evans, Ian; Evans, Janet; Frebel, Anna; Furesz, Gabor; Glenday, Alex; Guzman, Dani; Hare, Tyson; Jang, Bi-Ho; Jang, Jeong-Gyun; Jeong, Ueejong; Jordan, Andres; Kim, Kang-Min; Kim, Jihun; Li, Chih-Hao; Lopez-Morales, Mercedes; McCracken, Kenneth; McLeod, Brian; Mueller, Mark; Nah, Jakyung; Norton, Timothy; Oh, Heeyoung; Oh, Jae Sok; Ordway, Mark; Park, Byeong-Gon; Park, Chan; Park, Sung-Joon; Phillips, David; Plummer, David; Podgorski, William; Rodler, Florian; Seifahrt, Andreas; Tak, Kyung-Mo; Uomoto, Alan; Van Dam, Marcos A.; Walsworth, Ronald; Yu, Young Sam; Yuk, In-Soo

2014-08-01

The GMT-Consortium Large Earth Finder (G-CLEF) is an optical-band echelle spectrograph that has been selected as the first light instrument for the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT). G-CLEF is a general-purpose, high dispersion spectrograph that is fiber fed and capable of extremely precise radial velocity measurements. The G-CLEF Concept Design (CoD) was selected in Spring 2013. Since then, G-CLEF has undergone science requirements and instrument requirements reviews and will be the subject of a preliminary design review (PDR) in March 2015. Since CoD review (CoDR), the overall G-CLEF design has evolved significantly as we have optimized the constituent designs of the major subsystems, i.e. the fiber system, the telescope interface, the calibration system and the spectrograph itself. These modifications have been made to enhance G-CLEF's capability to address frontier science problems, as well as to respond to the evolution of the GMT itself and developments in the technical landscape. G-CLEF has been designed by applying rigorous systems engineering methodology to flow Level 1 Scientific Objectives to Level 2 Observational Requirements and thence to Level 3 and Level 4. The rigorous systems approach applied to G-CLEF establishes a well defined science requirements framework for the engineering design. By adopting this formalism, we may flexibly update and analyze the capability of G-CLEF to respond to new scientific discoveries as we move toward first light. G-CLEF will exploit numerous technological advances and features of the GMT itself to deliver an efficient, high performance instrument, e.g. exploiting the adaptive optics secondary system to increase both throughput and radial velocity measurement precision.

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope Science Instruments Begin Final Super Cold Test at Goddard

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

At NASA's James Webb Space Telescope's final destination in space, one million miles away from Earth, it will operate at incredibly cold temperatures of -387 degrees Fahrenheit, or 40 degrees Kelvin. This is 260 degrees Fahrenheit colder than any place on the Earth’s surface has ever been. So first, this final super cold test at Goddard will prepare the Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM), or the “heart” of the telescope, for space. Read more: go.nasa.gov/1KFPwJG Contamination Control Engineer Alan Abeel conducts final inspections and places contamination foils before the start of the test. Credit: NASA/Goddard/Chris Gunn NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Execution of the Spitzer In-orbit Checkout and Science Verification Plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miles, John W.; Linick, Susan H.; Long, Stacia; Gilbert, John; Garcia, Mark; Boyles, Carole; Werner, Michael; Wilson, Robert K.

2004-01-01

The Spitzer Space Telescope is an 85-cm telescope with three cryogenically cooled instruments. Following launch, the observatory was initialized and commissioned for science operations during the in-orbit checkout (IOC) and science verification (SV) phases, carried out over a total of 98.3 days. The execution of the IOC/SV mission plan progressively established Spitzer capabilities taking into consideration thermal, cryogenic, optical, pointing, communications, and operational designs and constraints. The plan was carried out with high efficiency, making effective use of cryogen-limited flight time. One key component to the success of the plan was the pre-launch allocation of schedule reserve in the timeline of IOC/SV activities, and how it was used in flight both to cover activity redesign and growth due to continually improving spacecraft and instrument knowledge, and to recover from anomalies. This paper describes the adaptive system design and evolution, implementation, and lessons learned from IOC/SV operations. It is hoped that this information will provide guidance to future missions with similar engineering challenges

Remote Measurements of Carbon Monoxide over North America and Europe during Summer- Fall 2004 and Southern Hemisphere 2006

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Connors, V. S.; Chen, G.; Pierce, B.; Hopkins, P. E.; Meriwether, T.; Reichle, H. G.; Sachse, Nia, G.; McMillan, W.; Sandy, M.; Companion, J.

2007-05-01

The MicroMAPS instrument is a nadir-viewing, gas filter-correlated radiometer which operating in the 4.67 micrometer fundamental band of carbon monoxide. Originally designed and built for a space mission, this CO remote sensor is being flown in support of satellite validation and science instrument demonstrations for potential UAV applications. The MicroMAPS instrument system was integrated and tested at NASA LaRC, in partnership with Scaled Composites and Virginia Space Grant Consortium (VSGC). Full system integration and flight testing was performed at Scaled Composites, in Mojave, in June 2004. Its successful performance enabled participation in four international science missions on Proteus: in 2004, INTEX -NA over eastern North America in July, ADRIEX over the Mediterranean region and EAQUATE over the United Kingdom region in September,and TWP-ICE over Darwin, Australia and the surrounding oceans in Jan-Feb 2006. These flights resulted in nearly 300 hours of data. In parallel with the engineering developments, theoretical radiative transfer models were developed specifically for the MicroMAPS instrument system at the University of Virginia, Mechanical Engineering Department by a combined undergraduate and graduate student team. With technical support from Resonance Ltd. in June 2005, the MicroMAPS instrument was calibrated for the conditions under which the Summer-Fall 2004 flights occurred. The analyses of the calibration data, combined with the theoretical radiative transfer models, provide the first data reduction for the science flights reported here. The influence on widespread fires in Alaska and Canada, coupled with the influence of stratospheric intrusions over the eastern portion of North America during Summer 2004, provides the opportunity to examine the evolution of the tropospheric column and to examine how the transport histories of the air resulted in the CO columns sampled from the Proteus aircraft. These early results and comparisons with profile data from the NASA DC-8, the coincident AIRS CO retrievals, and selected measurements from the MOZAIC program and RAQMS model runs will be presented. Preliminary retrievals for the TWP-ICE transit flights and comparison with the coincident AIRS CO retrievals will also be presented.

Australian DefenceScience. Volume 15, Number 3, Spring

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-01-01

ignition, high pressure sealing, ignitor and propellent design, and ballistics instrumentation . Validation of simulation models of internal ballistics...supplementing visual information obtained by sources such as radiography and scanning electron microscopy, revealing details about features that are not...otherwise visible. Hence, it can assist with the inspection of vital component parts that are subject to high stresses, like aircraft engine turbine

Evaluating Psychosocial Mechanisms Underlying STEM Persistence in Undergraduates: Evidence of Impact from a Six-Day Pre-College Engagement STEM Academy Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Findley-Van Nostrand, Danielle; Pollenz, Richard S.

2017-01-01

The persistence of undergraduate students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines is a national issue based on STEM workforce projections. We implemented a weeklong pre-college engagement STEM Academy (SA) program aimed at addressing several areas related to STEM retention. We validated an instrument that was…

Exploring the relationship between the engineering and physical sciences and the health and life sciences by advanced bibliometric methods.

PubMed

Waltman, Ludo; van Raan, Anthony F J; Smart, Sue

2014-01-01

We investigate the extent to which advances in the health and life sciences (HLS) are dependent on research in the engineering and physical sciences (EPS), particularly physics, chemistry, mathematics, and engineering. The analysis combines two different bibliometric approaches. The first approach to analyze the 'EPS-HLS interface' is based on term map visualizations of HLS research fields. We consider 16 clinical fields and five life science fields. On the basis of expert judgment, EPS research in these fields is studied by identifying EPS-related terms in the term maps. In the second approach, a large-scale citation-based network analysis is applied to publications from all fields of science. We work with about 22,000 clusters of publications, each representing a topic in the scientific literature. Citation relations are used to identify topics at the EPS-HLS interface. The two approaches complement each other. The advantages of working with textual data compensate for the limitations of working with citation relations and the other way around. An important advantage of working with textual data is in the in-depth qualitative insights it provides. Working with citation relations, on the other hand, yields many relevant quantitative statistics. We find that EPS research contributes to HLS developments mainly in the following five ways: new materials and their properties; chemical methods for analysis and molecular synthesis; imaging of parts of the body as well as of biomaterial surfaces; medical engineering mainly related to imaging, radiation therapy, signal processing technology, and other medical instrumentation; mathematical and statistical methods for data analysis. In our analysis, about 10% of all EPS and HLS publications are classified as being at the EPS-HLS interface. This percentage has remained more or less constant during the past decade.

Exploring the Relationship between the Engineering and Physical Sciences and the Health and Life Sciences by Advanced Bibliometric Methods

PubMed Central

Waltman, Ludo; van Raan, Anthony F. J.; Smart, Sue

2014-01-01

We investigate the extent to which advances in the health and life sciences (HLS) are dependent on research in the engineering and physical sciences (EPS), particularly physics, chemistry, mathematics, and engineering. The analysis combines two different bibliometric approaches. The first approach to analyze the ‘EPS-HLS interface’ is based on term map visualizations of HLS research fields. We consider 16 clinical fields and five life science fields. On the basis of expert judgment, EPS research in these fields is studied by identifying EPS-related terms in the term maps. In the second approach, a large-scale citation-based network analysis is applied to publications from all fields of science. We work with about 22,000 clusters of publications, each representing a topic in the scientific literature. Citation relations are used to identify topics at the EPS-HLS interface. The two approaches complement each other. The advantages of working with textual data compensate for the limitations of working with citation relations and the other way around. An important advantage of working with textual data is in the in-depth qualitative insights it provides. Working with citation relations, on the other hand, yields many relevant quantitative statistics. We find that EPS research contributes to HLS developments mainly in the following five ways: new materials and their properties; chemical methods for analysis and molecular synthesis; imaging of parts of the body as well as of biomaterial surfaces; medical engineering mainly related to imaging, radiation therapy, signal processing technology, and other medical instrumentation; mathematical and statistical methods for data analysis. In our analysis, about 10% of all EPS and HLS publications are classified as being at the EPS-HLS interface. This percentage has remained more or less constant during the past decade. PMID:25360616

SMAP Instrument Mechanical System Engineering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Slimko, Eric; French, Richard; Riggs, Benjamin

2013-01-01

The Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) mission, scheduled for launch by the end of 2014, is being developed to measure the soil moisture and soil freeze/thaw state on a global scale over a three-year period. The accuracy, resolution, and global coverage of SMAP measurements are invaluable across many science and applications disciplines including hydrology, climate, carbon cycle, and the meteorological, environment, and ecology applications communities. The SMAP observatory is composed of a despun bus and a spinning instrument platform that includes both a deployable 6 meter aperture low structural frequency Astromesh reflector and a spin control system. The instrument section has engendered challenging mechanical system issues associated with the antenna deployment, flexible antenna pointing in the context of a multitude of disturbances, spun section mass properties, spin control system development, and overall integration with the flight system on both mechanical and control system levels. Moreover, the multitude of organizations involved, including two major vendors providing the spin subsystem and reflector boom assembly plus the flight system mechanical and guidance, navigation, and control teams, has led to several unique system engineering challenges. Capturing the key physics associated with the function of the flight system has been challenging due to the many different domains that are applicable. Key interfaces and operational concepts have led to complex negotiations because of the large number of organizations that integrate with the instrument mechanical system. Additionally, the verification and validation concerns associated with the mechanical system have had required far-reaching involvement from both the flight system and other subsystems. The SMAP instrument mechanical systems engineering issues and their solutions are described in this paper.

Two Dual Ion Spectrometer Flight Units of the Fast Plasma Instrument Suite (FPI) for the Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission (MMS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adams, Mitzi

2014-01-01

Two Dual Ion Spectrometer flight units of the Fast Plasma Instrument Suite (FPI) for the Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission (MMS) have returned to MSFC for flight testing. Anticipated to begin on June 30, tests will ensue in the Low Energy Electron and Ion Facility of the Heliophysics and Planetary Science Office (ZP13), managed by Dr. Victoria Coffey of the Natural Environments Branch of the Engineering Directorate (EV44). The MMS mission consists of four identical spacecraft, whose purpose is to study magnetic reconnection in the boundary regions of Earth's magnetosphere.

The Planned Europa Clipper Mission: Exploring Europa to Investigate its Habitability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pappalardo, Robert T.; Senske, David A.; Korth, Haje; Blaney, Diana L.; Blankenship, Donald D.; Christensen, Philip R.; Kempf, Sascha; Raymond, Carol Anne; Retherford, Kurt D.; Turtle, Elizabeth P.; Waite, J. Hunter; Westlake, Joseph H.; Collins, Geoffrey; Gudipati, Murthy; Lunine, Jonathan I.; Paty, Carol; Rathbun, Julie A.; Roberts, James; E Schmidt, Britney; Soderblom, Jason M.; Europa Clipper Science Team

2017-10-01

A key driver of planetary exploration is to understand the processes that lead to habitability across the solar system. In this context, the science goal of the planned Europa Clipper mission is: Explore Europa to investigate its habitability. Following from this goal are three Mission Objectives: 1) Characterize the ice shell and any subsurface water, including their heterogeneity, ocean properties, and the nature of surface-ice-ocean exchange; 2) Understand the habitability of Europa's ocean through composition and chemistry; and 3) Understand the formation of surface features, including sites of recent or current activity, and characterize localities of high science interest. Folded into these three objectives is the desire to search for and characterize any current activity.To address the Europa science objectives, a highly capable and synergistic suite of nine instruments comprise the mission's scientific payload. This payload includes five remote-sensing instruments that observe the wavelength range from ultraviolet through radar, specifically: Europa UltraViolet Spectrograph (Europa-UVS), Europa Imaging System (EIS), Mapping Imaging Spectrometer for Europa (MISE), Europa THErMal Imaging System (E-THEMIS), and Radar for Europa Assessment and Sounding: Ocean to Near-surface (REASON). In addition, four in-situ instruments measure fields and particles: Interior Characterization of Europa using MAGnetometry (ICEMAG), Plasma Instrument for Magnetic Sounding (PIMS), MAss Spectrometer for Planetary EXploration (MASPEX), and SUrface Dust Analyzer (SUDA). Moreover, gravity science can be addressed via the spacecraft's telecommunication system, and scientifically valuable engineering data from the radiation monitoring system would augment the plasma dataset. Working together, the planned Europa mission’s science payload would allow testing of hypotheses relevant to the composition, interior, and geology of Europa, to address the potential habitability of this intriguing moon.

What can Citizen Science do for Ocean Science and Ocean Scientists?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Best, M.; Hoeberechts, M.; Mangin, A.; Oggioni, A.; Orcutt, J. A.; Parrish, J.; Pearlman, J.; Piera, J.; Tagliolato, P.

2016-12-01

The ocean represents over 70% of our planet's surface area, over 90% of the living space. Humans are not marine creatures, we therefore have fundamentally not built up knowledge of the ocean in the same way we have on land. The more we learn about the ocean, the more we understand it is the regulatory engine of our planet…How do we catch up? Answers to this question will need to come from many quarters; A powerful and strategic option to complement existing observation programs and infrastructure is Citizen Science. There has been significant and relevant discussion of the importance of Citizen Science to citizens and stakeholders. The missing effective question is sometimes what is the potential of citizen science for scientists? The answers for both scientists and society are: spatial coverage, remote locations, temporal coverage, event response, early detection of harmful processes, sufficient data volume for statistical analysis and identification of outliers, integrating local knowledge, data access in exchange for analysis (e.g. with industry) and cost-effective monitoring systems. Citizens can be involved in: instrument manufacture and maintenance, instrument deployment/sample collection, data collection and transmission, data analysis, data validation/verification, and proposals of new topics of research. Such opportunities are balanced by concern on the part of scientists about the quality, the consistency and the reliability of citizen observations and analyses. Experience working with citizen science groups continues to suggest that with proper training and mentoring, these issues can be addressed, understanding both benefits and limitations. How to do it- implementation and maintenance of citizen science: How to recruit, engage, train, and maintain Citizen Scientists. Data systems for acquisition, assessment, access, analysis, and visualisation of distributed data sources. Tools/methods for acquiring observations: Simple instruments, Smartphone Apps, DIY-Instruments Community Online Platforms: websites, social networks, discussion forums. Crowdsourcing Tools: image acquisition, web and smartphone applications, surveys/questionnaires. Information, Engagement, and Training Resources: webinars, public lectures, websites, public/museum displays.

Curiosity: How to Boldly Go...

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pyrzak, Guy

2013-01-01

Operating a one-ton rover on the surface of Mars requires more than just a joystick and an experiment. With 10 science instruments, 17 cameras, a radioisotope thermoelectric generator and lasers, Curiosity is the largest and most complex rover NASA has sent to Mars. Combined with a 1 way light time of 4 to 20 minutes and a distributed international science and engineering team, it takes a lot of work to operate this mega-rover. The Mars Science Lab's operations team has developed an organization and process that maximizes science return and safety of the spacecraft. These are the voyages of the rover Curiosity, its 2 year mission, to determine the habitability of Gale Crater, to understand the role of water, to study the climate and geology of Mars.

1999 LDRD Laboratory Directed Research and Development

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

Rita Spencer; Kyle Wheeler

This is the FY 1999 Progress Report for the Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program at Los Alamos National Laboratory. It gives an overview of the LDRD Program, summarizes work done on individual research projects, relates the projects to major Laboratory program sponsors, and provides an index to the principal investigators. Project summaries are grouped by their LDRD component: Competency Development, Program Development, and Individual Projects. Within each component, they are further grouped into nine technical categories: (1) materials science, (2) chemistry, (3) mathematics and computational science, (4) atomic, molecular, optical, and plasma physics, fluids, and particle beams, (5)more » engineering science, (6) instrumentation and diagnostics, (7) geoscience, space science, and astrophysics, (8) nuclear and particle physics, and (9) bioscience.« less

Laboratory Directed Research and Development FY 1998 Progress Report

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

John Vigil; Kyle Wheeler

This is the FY 1998 Progress Report for the Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program at Los Alamos National Laboratory. It gives an overview of the LDRD Program, summarizes work done on individual research projects, relates the projects to major Laboratory program sponsors, and provides an index to the principle investigators. Project summaries are grouped by their LDRD component: Competency Development, Program Development, and Individual Projects. Within each component, they are further grouped into nine technical categories: (1) materials science, (2) chemistry, (3) mathematics and computational science, (4) atomic, molecular, optical, and plasma physics, fluids, and particle beams, (5)more » engineering science, (6) instrumentation and diagnostics, (7) geoscience, space science, and astrophysics, (8) nuclear and particle physics, and (9) bioscience.« less

Laboratory directed research and development: FY 1997 progress report

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

Vigil, J.; Prono, J.

1998-05-01

This is the FY 1997 Progress Report for the Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) program at Los Alamos National Laboratory. It gives an overview of the LDRD program, summarizes work done on individual research projects, relates the projects to major Laboratory program sponsors, and provides an index to the principal investigators. Project summaries are grouped by their LDRD component: Competency Development, Program Development, and Individual Projects. Within each component, they are further grouped into nine technical categories: (1) materials science, (2) chemistry, (3) mathematics and computational science, (4) atomic and molecular physics and plasmas, fluids, and particle beams, (5)more » engineering science, (6) instrumentation and diagnostics, (7) geoscience, space science, and astrophysics, (8) nuclear and particle physics, and (9) bioscience.« less

Science at the Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

White, Nicholas E.

2012-01-01

The Sciences and Exploration Directorate of the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is the largest Earth and space science research organization in the world. Its scientists advance understanding of the Earth and its life-sustaining environment, the Sun, the solar system, and the wider universe beyond. Researchers in the Sciences and Exploration Directorate work with engineers, computer programmers, technologists, and other team members to develop the cutting-edge technology needed for space-based research. Instruments are also deployed on aircraft, balloons, and Earth's surface. I will give an overview of the current research activities and programs at GSFC including the James Web Space Telescope (JWST), future Earth Observing programs, experiments that are exploring our solar system and studying the interaction of the Sun with the Earth's magnetosphere.

Theseus Nose and Pod Cones Being Unloaded

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

Crew members are seen here unloading the nose and pod cones of the Theseus prototype research aircraft at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, in May of 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus in Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype research aircraft shows off its unique design as it flies low over Rogers Dry Lake during a 1996 test flight from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus Take-off from Rogers Dry Lake

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype research aircraft shows off its high aspect-ratio wing in this rear view of the aircraft as it takes off on its first test flight from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, on May 24, 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus Waits on Lakebed for First Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype research aircraft waits on the lakebed before its first test flight from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, on May 24, 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus Tail Being Unloaded

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The tail of the Theseus prototype research aircraft is seen here being unloaded at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, in May of 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus on Take-off for First Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype research aircraft takes off for its first test flight from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, on May 24, 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus Waits on Lakebed for First Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype remotely-piloted aircraft (RPA) waits on the lakebed before its first test flight from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, on May 24, 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus Landing Following Maiden Flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype research aircraft shows off its high aspect-ratio wing as it comes in for a landing on Rogers Dry Lake after its first test flight from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, on May 24, 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus Assembly Sequence #2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

Crew members are seen here assembling the tail of the Theseus prototype research aircraft at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, in May of 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Theseus First Flight - May 24, 1996

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The Theseus prototype research aircraft shows off its high aspect-ratio wing as it lifts off from Rogers Dry Lake during its first test flight from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, on May 24, 1996. The Theseus aircraft, built and operated by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation, Manassas, Virginia, was a unique aircraft flown at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, under a cooperative agreement between NASA and Aurora. Dryden hosted the Theseus program, providing hangar space and range safety for flight testing. Aurora Flight Sciences was responsible for the actual flight testing, vehicle flight safety, and operation of the aircraft. The Theseus remotely piloted aircraft flew its maiden flight on May 24, 1996, at Dryden. During its sixth flight on November 12, 1996, Theseus experienced an in-flight structural failure that resulted in the loss of the aircraft. As of the beginning of the year 2000, Aurora had not rebuilt the aircraft. Theseus was built for NASA under an innovative, $4.9 million fixed-price contract by Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and its partners, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, and Fairmont State College, Fairmont, West Virginia. The twin-engine, unpiloted vehicle had a 140-foot wingspan, and was constructed largely of composite materials. Powered by two 80-horsepower, turbocharged piston engines that drove twin 9-foot-diameter propellers, Theseus was designed to fly autonomously at high altitudes, with takeoff and landing under the active control of a ground-based pilot in a ground control station 'cockpit.' With the potential ability to carry 700 pounds of science instruments to altitudes above 60,000 feet for durations of greater than 24 hours, Theseus was intended to support research in areas such as stratospheric ozone depletion and the atmospheric effects of future high-speed civil transport aircraft engines. Instruments carried aboard Theseus also would be able to validate satellite-based global environmental change measurements. Dryden's Project Manager was John Del Frate.

Thermal Vacuum Chamber Repressurization with Instrument Purging

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Woronowicz, Michael

2016-01-01

At the end of James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) OTIS (Optical Telescope Element-OTE-Integrated Science Instrument Module-ISIM) cryogenic vacuum testing in NASA Johnson Space Centers (JSCs) thermal vacuum (TV) Chamber A, contamination control (CC) engineers are mooting the idea that chamber particulate material stirred up by the repressurization process may be kept from falling into the ISIM interior to some degree by activating instrument purge flows over some initial period before opening the chamber valves. This memo describes development of a series of models designed to describe this process. These are strung together in tandem to estimate overpressure evolution from which net outflow velocity behavior may be obtained. Creeping flow assumptions are then used to determine the maximum particle size that may be kept suspended above the ISIM aperture, keeping smaller particles from settling within the instrument module.

Thermal Vacuum Chamber Repressurization with Instrument Purging

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Woronowicz, Michael

2017-01-01

At the end of James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) OTIS (Optical Telescope Element-OTE-Integrated Science Instrument Module-ISIM) cryogenic vacuum testing in NASA Johnson Space Centers (JSCs) thermal vacuum (TV) Chamber A, contamination control (CC) engineers are mooting the idea that chamber particulate material stirred up by the repressurization process may be kept from falling into the ISIM interior to some degree by activating instrument purge flows over some initial period before opening the chamber valves. This memo describes development of a series of models designed to describe this process. These are strung together in tandem to estimate overpressure evolution from which net outflow velocity behavior may be obtained. Creeping flow assumptions are then used to determine the maximum particle size that may be kept suspended above the ISIM aperture, keeping smaller particles from settling within the instrument module.

Systems approach to the design of the CCD sensors and camera electronics for the AIA and HMI instruments on solar dynamics observatory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waltham, N.; Beardsley, S.; Clapp, M.; Lang, J.; Jerram, P.; Pool, P.; Auker, G.; Morris, D.; Duncan, D.

2017-11-01

Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) is imaging the Sun in many wavelengths near simultaneously and with a resolution ten times higher than the average high-definition television. In this paper we describe our innovative systems approach to the design of the CCD cameras for two of SDO's remote sensing instruments, the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) and the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI). Both instruments share use of a custom-designed 16 million pixel science-grade CCD and common camera readout electronics. A prime requirement was for the CCD to operate with significantly lower drive voltages than before, motivated by our wish to simplify the design of the camera readout electronics. Here, the challenge lies in the design of circuitry to drive the CCD's highly capacitive electrodes and to digitize its analogue video output signal with low noise and to high precision. The challenge is greatly exacerbated when forced to work with only fully space-qualified, radiation-tolerant components. We describe our systems approach to the design of the AIA and HMI CCD and camera electronics, and the engineering solutions that enabled us to comply with both mission and instrument science requirements.

Multi-University Southeast INIE Consortium

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

Ayman Hawari; Nolan Hertel; Mohamed Al-Sheikhly

2 Project Summary: The Multi-University Southeast INIE Consortium (MUSIC) was established in response to the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Innovations in Nuclear Infrastructure and Education (INIE) program. MUSIC was established as a consortium composed of academic members and national laboratory partners. The members of MUSIC are the nuclear engineering programs and research reactors of Georgia Institute of Technology (GIT), North Carolina State University (NCSU), University of Maryland (UMD), University of South Carolina (USC), and University of Tennessee (UTK). The University of Florida (UF), and South Carolina State University (SCSU) were added to the MUSIC membership in the second year.more » In addition, to ensure proper coordination between the academic community and the nation’s premier research and development centers in the fields of nuclear science and engineering, MUSIC created strategic partnerships with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) including the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) project and the Joint Institute for Neutron Scattering (JINS), and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). A partnership was also created with the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI) with the aim of utilizing their reactor in research if funding becomes available. Consequently, there are three university research reactors (URRs) within MUSIC, which are located at NCSU (1-MW PULSTAR), UMD (0.25-MW TRIGA) and UF (0.10-MW Argonaut), and the AFRRI reactor (1-MW TRIGA MARK F). The overall objectives of MUSIC are: a) Demonstrate that University Research Reactors (URR) can be used as modern and innovative instruments of research in the basic and applied sciences, which include applications in fundamental physics, materials science and engineering, nondestructive examination, elemental analysis, and contributions to research in the health and medical sciences, b) Establish a strong technical collaboration between the nuclear engineering faculty and the MUSIC URRs. This will be achieved by involving the faculty in the development of state-of-the-art research facilities at the URRs and subsequently, in the utilization of these facilities, c) Facilitate the use of the URRs by the science and engineering faculty within the individual institutions and by the general community of science and engineering, d) Develop a far-reaching educational component that is capable of addressing the needs of the nuclear science and engineering community. Specifically, the aim of this component will be to perform public outreach activities, contribute to the active recruitment of the next generation of nuclear professionals, strengthen the education of nuclear engineering students, and promote nuclear engineering education for minority students.« less

Optical Fiber Assemblies for Space Flight from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Photonics Group

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ott, Melanie N.; Thoma, William Joe; LaRocca, Frank; Chuska, Richard; Switzer, Robert; Day, Lance

2009-01-01

The Photonics Group at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in the Electrical Engineering Division of the Advanced Engineering and Technologies Directorate has been involved in the design, development, characterization, qualification, manufacturing, integration and anomaly analysis of optical fiber subsystems for over a decade. The group supports a variety of instrumentation across NASA and outside entities that build flight systems. Among the projects currently supported are: The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, the Mars Science Laboratory, the James Webb Space Telescope, the Express Logistics Carrier for the International Space Station and the NASA Electronic Parts. and Packaging Program. A collection of the most pertinent information gathered during project support over the past year in regards to space flight performance of optical fiber components is presented here. The objective is to provide guidance for future space flight designs of instrumentation and communication systems.

Advances in cryogenic engineering. Volume 27 - Proceedings of the Cryogenic Engineering Conference, San Diego, CA, August 11-14, 1981

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fast, R. W. (Editor)

1982-01-01

Applications of superconductivity are considered, taking into account MHD and fusion, generators, transformers, transmission lines, magnets for physics, cryogenic techniques, electrtronics, and aspects of magnet stability. Advances related to heat transfer in He I are discussed along with subjects related to theat transfer in He II, refrigeration of superconducting systems, refrigeration and liquefaction, dilution and magnetic refrigerators, refrigerators for space applications, mass transfer and flow phenomena, and the properties of fluids. Developments related to cryogenic applications are also explored, giving attention to bulk storage and transfer of cryogenic fluids, liquefied natural gas operations, space science and technology, and cryopumping. Topics related to cryogenic instrumentation and controls include the production and use of high grade silicon diode temperature sensors, the choice of strain gages for use in a large superconducting alternator, microprocessor control of cryogenic pressure, and instrumentation, data acquisition and reduction for a large spaceborne helium dewar.

The Goldstone solar system radar: A science instrument for planetary research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dvorsky, J. D.; Renzetti, N. A.; Fulton, D. E.

1992-01-01

The Goldstone Solar System Radar (GSSR) station at NASA's Deep Space Communications Complex in California's Mojave Desert is described. A short chronological account of the GSSR's technical development and scientific discoveries is given. This is followed by a basic discussion of how information is derived from the radar echo and how the raw information can be used to increase understanding of the solar system. A moderately detailed description of the radar system is given, and the engineering performance of the radar is discussed. The operating characteristics of the Arcibo Observatory in Puerto Rico are briefly described and compared with those of the GSSR. Planned and in-process improvements to the existing radar, as well as the performance of a hypothetical 128-m diameter antenna radar station, are described. A comprehensive bibliography of referred scientific and engineering articles presenting results that depended on data gathered by the instrument is provided.

Orbital Observatory for Planetary Science on Low Cost Autonomous Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tavrov, Alexander; Bisikalo, Dmitry; Vedenkin, Nikolay; Korablev, Oleg; Markov, Alexander; Kiselev, Alexander; Kokorich, Mikhail

The Space Research Institute of Russian Academy of Science (IKI RAS) and Dauria Aerospace are currently developing the middle class space telescope project aiming to observe Solar system planets by a long term spectroscopy and polarimetry monitoring, as well aiming to extra solar planets (exoplanets) engineering and scientific goals. The spacecraft is scheduled to be launched in 2017. It is planned first to be delivered on board of the ISS by the Progress spacecraft, then it will be released to the desired orbit approx. 550 km by the Progress in the way to its final destination. The “Planetary monitoring” telescope has a 0.6 meter primary mirror diameter Telescope currently includes 5 science instruments: NIR: 1000..4000 nm high-resolution spectrometer with the spectral resolution of R>10000; Visible Field camera with filters wheel; UV-VIS field resolved Fourier spectrometer; UV-VIS spectropolarimeter; Stellar coronagraph linked with a low-resolution spectrometer. The scientific goals of the “Planetary monitoring” telescope are devoted to explore not yet well studied questions on Mars (methane, ozone, dust and clouds, isotope ratio of HDO/H2O), on Venus (UV absorber, night glow, atmosphere dynamics), icy and gaseous Solar system planets, Jovian moons, Lunar exosphere, comets, meteorites. This telescope aims also for engineering development of exoplanet study by stellar coronagraphy linked with a low-resolution spectrometry. This Orbital Observatory mission uses the first low cost small satellite platform developed by the Dauria Aerospace® - Russian private company and reuses the Progress to elevate the observatory orbit. The Progress launches four times per year to provide supplies and scientific instruments to the ISS. The Progress is capable of raising the height of the orbit for the piggyback scientific missions; therefore, the implementation of the Orbital Observatory mission is considered not just as a development of a successful science mission so it is most importantly developing an affordable and frequent flight opportunities for space sciences research in Russia and worldwide. The paper describes the scientific objectives and corresponding instruments, and introduces the low cost satellite platform and launch opportunities.

MEDA, The New Instrument for Mars Environment Analysis for the Mars 2020 Mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moreno-Alvarez, Jose F.; Pena-Godino, Antonio; Rodriguez-Manfredi, Jose Antonio; Cordoba, Elizabeth; MEDA Team

2016-08-01

The Mars 2020 rover mission is part of NASA's Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration of the red planet. Designed to advance high-priority science goals for Mars exploration, the mission will address key questions about the potential for life on Mars. The mission will also provide opportunities to gather knowledge and demonstrate technologies that address the challenges of future human expeditions to Mars.The Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) is an integrated full suite of sensors designed to address the Mars 2020 mission objectives of characterization of dust size and morphology and surface weather measurements.MEDA system consists of one control unit and 10 separated sensor enclosures distributed in different positions along the Mars 2020 rover. MEDA is composed of an ARM-based control computer with its flight software application, two wind sensors including mixed ASICs inside, five air temperature sensors, one sky pointing camera complemented with 16 photo- detectors looking up and around, one thermal infrared sensor using five measurement bands, one relative humidity sensor, one pressure sensor and the harness that interconnects all of them. It is a complex system intended to operate in one of the harshest environments possible, the Mars surface, for many years to come.This will become a short term reality thanks to the combination of a strong international science team driving the science and system requirements working together with a powerful industrial organization to design and build the instrument. The instrument is being built right now, with its Critical Design Review at the end of 2016, and the flight model to be provided in 2018.This paper summarizes the main scientific objective of the MEDA instrument, the links between the Mission and the MEDA science objectives, and the challenging environmental Mars requirements. It will then focus on the engineered definition of the instrument, showing the overall architecture of the instrument and its sensors, including a discussion of the heritage from REMS.

The Huygens Descent Trajectory Working Group and the Reconstruction of the Huygens Probe Entry and Descent Trajectory at Titan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Atkinson, David H.; Kazeminejad, Bobby; Lebreton, Jean-Pierre

2015-04-01

Cassini/Huygens, a flagship mission to explore the rings, atmosphere, magnetic field, and moons that make up the Saturn system, is a joint endeavor of NASA, the European Space Agency, and Agenzia Spaziale Italiana. Comprising two spacecraft - a Saturn orbiter built by NASA and a Titan entry/descent probe built by the European Space Agency - Cassini/Huygens was launched in October 1997 and arrived at Saturn in 2004. The Huygens probe parachuted to the surface of Titan in January 2005. During the descent, six science instruments provided measurements of Titan's atmosphere, clouds, and winds, and photographed Titan's surface. It was recognized early in the Huygens program that to correctly interpret and correlate results from the probe science experiments and to provide a reference set of data for ground truth calibration of the Cassini orbiter remote sensing observations, an accurate reconstruction of the probe entry and descent trajectory and surface landing location would be necessary. The Huygens Descent Trajectory Working Group (DTWG) was chartered in 1996 as a subgroup of the Huygens Science Working Team. With membership comprising representatives from all the probe engineering and instrument teams as well as representatives of industry and the Cassini and Huygens Project Scientists, the DTWG presented an organizational framework within which instrument data was shared, the entry and descent trajectory reconstruction implemented, and the trajectory reconstruction efficiently disseminated. The primary goal of the Descent Trajectory Working Group was to develop retrieval methodologies for the probe descent trajectory reconstruction from the entry interface altitude of 1270 km to the surface using navigation data, and engineering and science data acquired by the instruments on the Huygens Probe, and to provide a reconstruction of the Huygens probe trajectory from entry to the surface of Titan that is maximally consistent with all available engineering and science data sets. The official project entry and descent trajectory reconstruction effort was published by the DTWG in 2007. A revised descent trajectory was released in 2010 that accounts for updated measurements of Titan's pole coordinates derived from radar images of Titan taken during Cassini flybys after 2007. The effect of the updated pole positions on Huygens is a southward shift of the trajectory by about 0.3 degrees with a much smaller effect of less than 0.01 degree in the zonal (west to east) direction. The revised Huygens landing coordinates of 192.335 degrees West and 10.573 degrees South with longitude and latitude residuals of respectively 0.035 degrees and 0.007 degrees, respectively, are in excellent agreement with results of recent landing site investigations using visual and radar images from the Cassini VIMS instrument. Acknowledgements *J.-P.L's work was performed while at ESA/ESTEC. DA and BK would like to express appreciation to the European Space Agency's Research and Scientific Support Department for funding the Descent Trajectory Working Group. The work of the Descent Trajectory Working Group would not have been possible without the dedicated efforts of all the Huygens principal investigators and their teams, and the science and engineering data provided from each experiment team, including M. Fulchignoni and the HASI Team, H. Niemann and the GCMS Team, J. Zarnecki and the SSP Team, M. Tomasko and the DISR Team, M. Bird and the DWE Team, and G. Israel and the ACP Team. Additionally, special thanks for many years of support to D.L. Matson, R.T. Mitchell, M. Pérez-Ayúcar, O. Witasse; J. Jones, D. Roth, N. Strange on the Cassini Navigation Team at JPL; A.-M. Schipper and P. Couzin at Thales Alenia; C. Sollazzo, D. Salt, J. Wheadon and S. Standley from the Huygens Ops Team; and R. Trautner and H. Svedhem on the Radar Team at ESTEC.

Trends in Performance and Characteristics of Ultra-Stable Oscillators for Deep Space Radio Science Experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Asmar, Sami

1997-01-01

Telecommunication systems of spacecraft on deep space missions also function as instruments for Radio Science experiments. Radio scientists utilize the telecommunication links between spacecraft and Earth to examine very small changes in the phase/frequency, amplitude, and/or polarization of radio signals to investigate a host of physical phenomena in the solar system. Several missions augmented the radio communication system with an Ultra-Stable Oscillator (USO) in order to provide a highly stable reference signal for oneway downlink. This configuration is used in order to enable better investigations of the atmospheres of the planets occulting the line-of-sight to the spacecraft; one-way communication was required and the transponders' built-in auxiliary oscillators were neither sufficiently stable nor spectrally pure for the occultation experiments. Since Radio Science instrumentation is distributed between the spacecraft and the ground stations, the Deep Space Network (DSN) is also equipped to function as a world-class instrument for Radio Science research. For a detailed account of Radio Science experiments, methodology, key discoveries, and the DSN's historical contribution to the field, see Asmar and Renzetti (1993). The tools of Radio Science can be and have also been utilized in addressing several mission engineering challenges; e.g., characterization of spacecraft nutation and anomalous motion, antenna calibrations, and communications during surface landing phases. Since the first quartz USO was flown on Voyager, the technology has advanced significantly, affording future missions higher sensitivity in reconstructing the temperature pressure profiles of the atmospheres under study as well as other physical phenomena of interest to Radio Science. This paper surveys the trends in stability and spectral purity performance, design characteristics including size and mass, as well as cost and history of these clocks in space.

FOOT experiment (Foot/Ground Reaction Forces during Space Flight)

NASA Image and Video Library

2005-06-29

ISS011-E-09831 (29 June 2005) --- Astronaut John L. Phillips, Expedition 11 NASA Space Station science officer and flight engineer, works at the Canadarm2 controls while participating in the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Spaceflight (FOOT) experiment in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station. Phillips wore the specially instrumented Lower Extremity Monitoring Suit (LEMS), cycling tights outfitted with sensors, during the experiment.

The status, recent progress and promise of superconducting materials for practical applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rowell, J. M.

1989-03-01

The author summarizes the progress in materials science and engineering that created today's superconducting technology. He reviews the state of the technology with conventional materials by looking at two particular applications: large-scale applications involving conductors, for example, magnets; and electronics and instrumentation applications. The state-of-the art is contrasted with the present understanding of the high-Tc oxide materials.

FOOT experiment (Foot/Ground Reaction Forces during Space Flight)

NASA Image and Video Library

2005-06-29

ISS011-E-09825 (29 June 2005) --- Astronaut John L. Phillips, Expedition 11 NASA Space Station science officer and flight engineer, enters data into a computer while participating in the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Spaceflight (FOOT) experiment in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station. Phillips wore the specially instrumented Lower Extremity Monitoring Suit (LEMS), cycling tights outfitted with sensors, during the experiment.

Computer sciences

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Paul H.

1988-01-01

The Computer Science Program provides advanced concepts, techniques, system architectures, algorithms, and software for both space and aeronautics information sciences and computer systems. The overall goal is to provide the technical foundation within NASA for the advancement of computing technology in aerospace applications. The research program is improving the state of knowledge of fundamental aerospace computing principles and advancing computing technology in space applications such as software engineering and information extraction from data collected by scientific instruments in space. The program includes the development of special algorithms and techniques to exploit the computing power provided by high performance parallel processors and special purpose architectures. Research is being conducted in the fundamentals of data base logic and improvement techniques for producing reliable computing systems.

Ames Engineering Directorate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Phillips, Veronica J.

2017-01-01

The Ames Engineering Directorate is the principal engineering organization supporting aerospace systems and spaceflight projects at NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley. The Directorate supports all phases of engineering and project management for flight and mission projects-from R&D to Close-out-by leveraging the capabilities of multiple divisions and facilities.The Mission Design Center (MDC) has full end-to-end mission design capability with sophisticated analysis and simulation tools in a collaborative concurrent design environment. Services include concept maturity level (CML) maturation, spacecraft design and trades, scientific instruments selection, feasibility assessments, and proposal support and partnerships. The Engineering Systems Division provides robust project management support as well as systems engineering, mechanical and electrical analysis and design, technical authority and project integration support to a variety of programs and projects across NASA centers. The Applied Manufacturing Division turns abstract ideas into tangible hardware for aeronautics, spaceflight and science applications, specializing in fabrication methods and management of complex fabrication projects. The Engineering Evaluation Lab (EEL) provides full satellite or payload environmental testing services including vibration, temperature, humidity, immersion, pressure/altitude, vacuum, high G centrifuge, shock impact testing and the Flight Processing Center (FPC), which includes cleanrooms, bonded stores and flight preparation resources. The Multi-Mission Operations Center (MMOC) is composed of the facilities, networks, IT equipment, software and support services needed by flight projects to effectively and efficiently perform all mission functions, including planning, scheduling, command, telemetry processing and science analysis.

Comparison of defects in ProTaper hand-operated and engine-driven instruments after clinical use.

PubMed

Cheung, G S P; Bian, Z; Shen, Y; Peng, B; Darvell, B W

2007-03-01

To compare the type of defects and mode of material failure of engine-driven and hand-operated ProTaper instruments after clinical use. A total of 401 hand-operated and 325 engine-driven ProTaper instruments were discarded from an endodontic clinic over 17 months. Those that had fractured were examined for plastic deformation in lateral view and remounted for fractographical examination in scanning electron microscope. The mode of fracture was classified as 'fatigue' or 'shear' failure. The lengths of fractured segments in both instruments were recorded. Any distortion in hand instrument was noted. Data were analysed using chi-square, Fisher's exact or Student's t-test, where appropriate. Approximately 14% of all discarded hand-operated instruments and 14% of engine-driven instruments were fractured. About 62% of hand instruments failed because of shear fracture, compared with approximately 66% of engine-driven instruments as a result of fatigue (P < 0.05). Approximately 16% of hand instruments were affected by shear, and either remained intact or was fractured, compared with 5% of engine-driven instruments (P < 0.05). The length of the broken fragment was significantly shorter in hand versus engine-driven group (P < 0.05). Approximately 7% of hand instruments were discarded intact but distorted (rarely for engine-driven instruments); all were in the form of unscrewing of the flutes. The location of defects in hand Finishing instruments was significantly closer to the tip than that for Shaping instruments (P < 0.05). Under the conditions of this study (possibly high usage), the failure mode of ProTaper engine-driven and hand-operated instruments appeared to be different, with shear failure being more prevalent in the latter.

Work on Planetary Atmospheres and Planetary Atmosphere Probes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seiff, Alvin; Lester, Peter

1999-01-01

A major objective of the grant was to complete the fabrication, test, and evaluation of the atmosphere structure experiment on the Galileo Probe, and to receive, analyze, and interpret data received from the spacecraft. The grantee was competitively selected to be Principal Investigator of Jupiter's atmosphere structure on the Galileo Probe. His primary motivation was to learn as much as possible about Jupiter's atmosphere by means of a successful atmosphere structure experiment, and to support the needs and schedule of the Galileo Project. After a number of launch delays, the Flight instrument was shipped to Kennedy Space Center 2 years after the start of this collaboration, on April 14, 1989, at which time it was determined from System level tests of the ASI on the Probe that the instrument was in good working order and ready for flight. The spacecraft was launched on October 18, 1989. Data analysis of test and calibration data taken over a period of years of instrument testing was continued in preparation for the encounter. The initial instrument checkout in space was performed on October 26, 1989. The data set received by telemetry was thoroughly analyzed, and a report of the findings was transmitted to the Probe Operations Office on Feb. 28, 1990. Key findings reported were that the accelerometer biases had shifted by less than 1 mg through launch and since calibration at Bell Aerospace in 1983; accelerometer scale factors, evaluated by means of calibration currents, fell on lines of variation with temperature established in laboratory calibrations; pressure sensor offsets, correlated as a function of temperature, fell generally within the limits of several years of ground test data; atmospheric and engineering temperature sensor data were internally consistent within a few tenths of a degree; and the instrument electronics performed all expected functions without any observable fault. Altogether, this checkout was highly encouraging of the prospects of instrument performance, although performed greater than 5 years prior to Jupiter encounter. Capability of decoding the science data from the Experiment Data Record to be provided at encounter was developed and exercised using the tape recording of the first Cruise Checkout data. A team effort was organized to program the selection and combination of data words defining pressure, temperature, acceleration, turbulence, and engineering quantities; to apply decalibration algorithms to convert readings from digital numbers to physical quantities; and to organize the data into a suitable printout. A paper on the Galileo Atmosphere Structure Instrument was written and submitted for publication in a special issue of Space Science Reviews. At the Journal editor's request, the grantee reviewed other Probe instrument papers submitted for this special issue. Calibration data were carefully taken for all experiment sensors and accumulated over a period of 10 years. The data were analyzed, fitted with algorithms, and summarized in a calibration report for use in analyzing and interpreting data returned from Jupiter's atmosphere. The sensors included were the primary science pressure, temperature, and acceleration sensors, and the supporting engineering temperature sensors. This report was distributed to experiment coinvestigators and the Probe Project Office.

NASA Technology Protects Webb Telescope from Contamination

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-06-25

Contamination from organic molecules can harm delicate instruments and engineers are taking special care at NASA to prevent that from affecting the James Webb Space Telescope (and all satellites and instruments). Recently, Nithin Abraham, a Thermal Coatings Engineer placed Molecular Adsorber Coating or "MAC" panels in the giant chamber where the Webb telescope will be tested. This contamination can occur through a process when a vapor or odor is emitted by a substance. This is called "outgassing." The "new car smell" is an example of that, and is unhealthy for people and sensitive satellite instruments. So, NASA engineers have created a new way to protect those instruments from the damaging effects of contamination coming from outgassing. "The Molecular Adsorber Coating (MAC) is a NASA Goddard coatings technology that was developed to adsorb or entrap outgassed molecular contaminants for spaceflight applications," said Nithin Abraham, Thermal Coatings Engineer at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. MAC is currently serving as an innovative contamination mitigation tool for Chamber A operations at NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. MAC can be used to keep outgassing from coming in from outside areas or to capture outgassing directly from hardware, components, and within instrument cavities. In this case, MAC is helping by capturing outgassed contaminants outside the test chamber from affecting the Webb components. MAC is expected to capture the outgassed contaminants that exist in the space of the vacuum chamber (not from the Webb components). Credit: NASA/GoddardChris Gunn Read more: www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/nasa-technology-protects-web... NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Solar Polar ORbit Telescope (SPORT): A Potential Heliophysics Mission of China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Ying

We describe a spacecraft mission, named Solar Polar ORbit Telescope (SPORT), which is currently under a scientific and engineering background study in China. SPORT was originally proposed in 2004 by the National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences. It will carry a suite of remote-sensing and in-situ instruments to observe coronal mass ejections (CMEs), solar high-latitude magnetism, and the fast solar wind from a polar orbit around the Sun. It is intended to be the first mission that carries remote-sensing instruments from a high-latitude orbit around the Sun and the first mission that could measure solar high-latitude magnetism. The first extended view of the polar region of the Sun and the ecliptic plane enabled by SPORT will provide a unique opportunity to study CME propagation through the inner heliosphere and solar high-latitude magnetism giving rise to eruptions and the fast solar wind.

Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Entry, Descent, and Landing Instrumentation (MEDLI): Complete Flight Data Set

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cheatwood, F. McNeil; Bose, Deepak; Karlgaard, Christopher D.; Kuhl, Christopher A.; Santos, Jose A.; Wright, Michael J.

2014-01-01

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) entry vehicle (EV) successfully entered the Mars atmosphere and landed the Curiosity rover safely on the surface of the planet in Gale crater on August 6, 2012. MSL carried the MSL Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) Instrumentation (MEDLI). MEDLI delivered the first in-depth understanding of the Mars entry environments and the response of the entry vehicle to those environments. MEDLI was comprised of three major subsystems: the Mars Entry Atmospheric Data System (MEADS), the MEDLI Integrated Sensor Plugs (MISP), and the Sensor Support Electronics (SSE). Ultimately, the entire MEDLI sensor suite consisting of both MEADS and MISP provided measurements that were used for trajectory reconstruction and engineering validation of aerodynamic, atmospheric, and thermal protection system (TPS) models in addition to Earth-based systems testing procedures. This report contains in-depth hardware descriptions, performance evaluation, and data information of the three MEDLI subsystems.

KSC-2011-8009

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-26

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Smoke and steam billow from the main engine of the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket as it launches with NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft. MSL lifted off from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 10:02 a.m. EST Nov. 26. MSL's components include a car-sized rover, Curiosity, which has 10 science instruments designed to search for signs of life, including methane, and help determine if the gas is from a biological or geological source. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/msl. Photo credit: NASA/Tony Gray and Rick Wetherington

Bringing Space Science to the Undergraduate Classroom: NASA's USIP Mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vassiliadis, D.; Christian, J. A.; Keesee, A. M.; Spencer, E. A.; Gross, J.; Lusk, G. D.

2015-12-01

As part of its participation in NASA's Undergraduate Student Instrument Project (USIP), a team of engineering and physics students at West Virginia University (WVU) built a series of sounding rocket and balloon missions. The first rocket and balloon missions were flown near-simultaneously in a campaign on June 26, 2014 (image). The second sounding rocket mission is scheduled for October 5, 2015. Students took a course on space science in spring 2014, and followup courses in physics and aerospace engineering departments have been developed since then. Guest payloads were flown from students affiliated with WV Wesleyan College, NASA's IV&V Facility, and the University of South Alabama. Students specialized in electrical and aerospace engineering, and space physics topics. They interacted regularly with NASA engineers, presented at telecons, and prepared reports. A number of students decided to pursue internships and/or jobs related to space science and technology. Outreach to the campus and broader community included demos and flight projects. The physics payload includes plasma density and temperature measurements using a Langmuir and a triple probe; plasma frequency measurements using a radio sounder (WVU) and an impedance probe (U.S.A); and a magnetometer (WVWC). The aerospace payload includes an IMU swarm, a GPS experiment (with TEC capability); a cubesat communications module (NASA IV&V), and basic flight dynamics. Acknowledgments: staff members at NASA Wallops Flight Facility, and at the Orbital-ATK Rocket Center, WV.

EnLightenment: High resolution smartphone microscopy as an educational and public engagement platform.

PubMed

Wicks, Laura C; Cairns, Gemma S; Melnyk, Jacob; Bryce, Scott; Duncan, Rory R; Dalgarno, Paul A

2017-01-01

We developed a simple, cost-effective smartphone microscopy platform for use in educational and public engagement programs. We demonstrated its effectiveness, and potential for citizen science through a national imaging initiative, EnLightenment . The cost effectiveness of the instrument allowed for the program to deliver over 500 microscopes to more than 100 secondary schools throughout Scotland, targeting 1000's of 12-14 year olds. Through careful, quantified, selection of a high power, low-cost objective lens, our smartphone microscope has an imaging resolution of microns, with a working distance of 3 mm. It is therefore capable of imaging single cells and sub-cellular features, and retains usability for young children. The microscopes were designed in kit form and provided an interdisciplinary educational tool. By providing full lesson plans and support material, we developed a framework to explore optical design, microscope performance, engineering challenges on construction and real-world applications in life sciences, biological imaging, marine biology, art, and technology. A national online imaging competition framed EnLightenment ; with over 500 high quality images submitted of diverse content, spanning multiple disciplines. With examples of cellular and sub-cellular features clearly identifiable in some submissions, we show how young public can use these instruments for research-level imaging applications, and the potential of the instrument for citizen science programs.

Mentoring the Next Generation of Science Gateway Developers and Users

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hayden, L. B.; Jackson-Ward, F.

2016-12-01

The Science Gateway Institute (SGW-I) for the Democratization and Acceleration of Science was a SI2-SSE Collaborative Research conceptualization award funded by NSF in 2012. From 2012 through 2015, we engaged interested members of the science and engineering community in a planning process for a Science Gateway Community Institute (SGCI). Science Gateways provide Web interfaces to some of the most sophisticated cyberinfrastructure resources. They interact with remotely executing science applications on supercomputers, they connect to remote scientific data collections, instruments and sensor streams, and support large collaborations. Gateways allow scientists to concentrate on the most challenging science problems while underlying components such as computing architectures and interfaces to data collection changes. The goal of our institute was to provide coordinating activities across the National Science Foundation, eventually providing services more broadly to projects funded by other agencies. SGW-I has succeeded in identifying two underrepresented communities of future gateway designers and users. The Association of Computer and Information Science/Engineering Departments at Minority Institutions (ADMI) was identified as a source of future gateway designers. The National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE) was identified as a community of future science gateway users. SGW-I efforts to engage NOBCChE and ADMI faculty and students in SGW-I are now woven into the workforce development component of SGCI. SGCI (ScienceGateways.org ) is a collaboration of six universities, led by San Diego Supercomputer Center. The workforce development component is led by Elizabeth City State University (ECSU). ECSU efforts focus is on: Produce a model of engagement; Integration of research into education; and Mentoring of students while aggressively addressing diversity. This paper documents the outcome of the SGW-I conceptualization project and describes the extensive Workforce Development effort going forward into the 5-year SGCI project recently funded by NSF.

Comprehensive Glossary of Nuclear Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Langlands, Tracy; Stone, Craig; Meyer, Richard

2001-10-01

We have developed a comprehensive glossary of terms covering the broad fields of nuclear and related areas of science. The glossary has been constructed with two sections. A primary section consists of over 6,000 terms covering the fields of nuclear and high energy physics, nuclear chemistry, radiochemistry, health physics, astrophysics, materials science, analytical science, environmental science, nuclear medicine, nuclear engineering, nuclear instrumentation, nuclear weapons, and nuclear safeguards. Approximately 1,500 terms of specific focus on military and nuclear weapons testing define the second section. The glossary is currently larger than many published glossaries and dictionaries covering the entire field of physics. Glossary terms have been defined using an extensive collection of current and historical publications. Historical texts extend back into the 1800's, the early days of atomic physics. The glossary has been developed both as a software application and as a hard copy document.

The College Science Learning Cycle: An Instructional Model for Reformed Teaching

PubMed Central

Withers, Michelle

2016-01-01

Finding the time for developing or locating new class materials is one of the biggest barriers for instructors reforming their teaching approaches. Even instructors who have taken part in training workshops may feel overwhelmed by the task of transforming passive lecture content to engaging learning activities. Learning cycles have been instrumental in helping K–12 science teachers design effective instruction for decades. This paper introduces the College Science Learning Cycle adapted from the popular Biological Sciences Curriculum Study 5E to help science, technology, engineering, and mathematics faculty develop course materials to support active, student-centered teaching approaches in their classrooms. The learning cycle is embedded in backward design, a learning outcomes–oriented instructional design approach, and is accompanied by resources and examples to help faculty transform their teaching in a time-efficient manner. PMID:27909030

KAPAO-Alpha: An On-The-Sky Testbed for Adaptive Optics on Small Aperture Telescopes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morrison, Will; Choi, P. I.; Severson, S. A.; Spjut, E.; Contreras, D. S.; Gilbreth, B. N.; McGonigle, L. P.; Rudy, A. R.; Xue, A.; Baranec, C.; Riddle, R.

2012-05-01

We present initial in-lab and on-sky results of a natural guide star adaptive optics instrument, KAPAO-Alpha, being deployed on Pomona College’s 1-meter telescope at Table Mountain Observatory. The instrument is an engineering prototype designed to help us identify and solve design and integration issues before building KAPAO, a low-cost, dual-band, natural guide star AO system currently in active development and scheduled for first light in 2013. The Alpha system operates at visible wavelengths, employs Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensing, and is assembled entirely from commercially available components that include: off-the-shelf optics, a 140-actuator BMC deformable mirror, a high speed SciMeasure Lil’ Joe camera, and an EMCCD for science image acquisition. Wavefront reconstruction operating at 1-kHz speeds is handled with a consumer-grade computer running custom software adopted from the Robo-AO project. The assembly and integration of the Alpha instrument has been undertaken as a Pomona College undergraduate thesis. As part of the larger KAPAO project, it is supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0960343.

Student Participation in Rover Field Trials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bowman, C. D.; Arvidson, R. E.; Nelson, S. V.; Sherman, D. M.; Squyres, S. W.

2001-12-01

The LAPIS program was developed in 1999 as part of the Athena Science Payload education and public outreach, funded by the JPL Mars Program Office. For the past three years, the Athena Science Team has been preparing for 2003 Mars Exploration Rover Mission operations using the JPL prototype Field Integrated Design and Operations (FIDO) rover in extended rover field trials. Students and teachers participating in LAPIS work with them each year to develop a complementary mission plan and implement an actual portion of the annual tests using FIDO and its instruments. LAPIS is designed to mirror an end-to-end mission: Small, geographically distributed groups of students form an integrated mission team, working together with Athena Science Team members and FIDO engineers to plan, implement, and archive a two-day test mission, controlling FIDO remotely over the Internet using the Web Interface for Telescience (WITS) and communicating with each other by email, the web, and teleconferences. The overarching goal of LAPIS is to get students excited about science and related fields. The program provides students with the opportunity to apply knowledge learned in school, such as geometry and geology, to a "real world" situation and to explore careers in science and engineering through continuous one-on-one interactions with teachers, Athena Science Team mentors, and FIDO engineers. A secondary goal is to help students develop improved communication skills and appreciation of teamwork, enhanced problem-solving skills, and increased self-confidence. The LAPIS program will provide a model for outreach associated with future FIDO field trials and the 2003 Mars mission operations. The base of participation will be broadened beyond the original four sites by taking advantage of the wide geographic distribution of Athena team member locations. This will provide greater numbers of students with the opportunity to actively engage in rover testing and to explore the possibilities of science, engineering, and technology.

Noyce SWARMS Scholars and Two Professional Development Models (LASSI and RAMPED): Summer 2015, 2016, and 2017

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burrows, Andrea C.; Myers, Adam D.; Borowczak, Mike

2018-06-01

This poster showcases an astronomy professional development (PD) for 41 K-12 teachers. The project was entitled Launching Astronomy Standards and STEM Integration (LASSI). A project description (activities in the 18 months - Summer 2015 and 2016) for the astronomy, authentic science, and pre-service teacher opportunities is included. The PD team utilized real-world problems, participant-generated questions, science instruments, technology, evidence, communication, dissemination, and collaboration in the LASSI PD model. Computer science was a feature of the PD and the K-12 teacher participants showcased various methods of its use. Embracing an engineering process with an authentic astronomy PD allowed participants to make connections to current topics and create shareable projects. The PD team highlights teacher work from LASSI entitled - A Model for Determining Size of Objects in an Artificial Solar System. The Sustaining Wyoming's Advancing Reach in Mathematics and Science (SWARMS) Scholars (NSF Noyce funded) interacted with and used the materials from the LASSI PD. The poster highlights PD use from the LASSI participants and SWARMS Scholars as well as explains lessons learned to date as a follow-up PD Robotics, Applied Mathematics, Physics, and Engineering Design (RAMPED) was implemented in Summer 2017 and carried methods from LASSI. The LASSI and RAMPED PD teams included faculty from the College of Education, College of Engineering and Applied Science, College of Arts and Sciences, graduate students, and the teachers themselves. The PD teams created a website with these and other PD materials - UWpd.org - for others to view and change to meet their needs.

ESO Reflex: A Graphical Workflow Engine for Data Reduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hook, R.; Romaniello, M.; Péron, M.; Ballester, P.; Gabasch, A.; Izzo, C.; Ullgrén, M.; Maisala, S.; Oittinen, T.; Solin, O.; Savolainen, V.; Järveläinen, P.; Tyynelä, J.

2008-08-01

Sampo {http://www.eso.org/sampo} (Hook et al. 2005) is a project led by ESO and conducted by a software development team from Finland as an in-kind contribution to joining ESO. The goal is to assess the needs of the ESO community in the area of data reduction environments and to create pilot software products that illustrate critical steps along the road to a new system. Those prototypes will not only be used to validate concepts and understand requirements but will also be tools of immediate value for the community. Most of the raw data produced by ESO instruments can be reduced using CPL {http://www.eso.org/cpl} recipes: compiled C programs following an ESO standard and utilizing routines provided by the Common Pipeline Library. Currently reduction recipes are run in batch mode as part of the data flow system to generate the input to the ESO VLT/VLTI quality control process and are also made public for external users. Sampo has developed a prototype application called ESO Reflex {http://www.eso.org/sampo/reflex/} that integrates a graphical user interface and existing data reduction algorithms. ESO Reflex can invoke CPL-based recipes in a flexible way through a dedicated interface. ESO Reflex is based on the graphical workflow engine Taverna {http://taverna.sourceforge.net} that was originally developed by the UK eScience community, mostly for work in the life sciences. Workflows have been created so far for three VLT/VLTI instrument modes ( VIMOS/IFU {http://www.eso.org/instruments/vimos/}, FORS spectroscopy {http://www.eso.org/instruments/fors/} and AMBER {http://www.eso.org/instruments/amber/}), and the easy-to-use GUI allows the user to make changes to these or create workflows of their own. Python scripts and IDL procedures can be easily brought into workflows and a variety of visualisation and display options, including custom product inspection and validation steps, are available.

Selection of the Mars Science Laboratory landing site

USGS Publications Warehouse

Golombek, M.; Grant, J.; Kipp, D.; Vasavada, A.; Kirk, Randolph L.; Fergason, Robin L.; Bellutta, P.; Calef, F.; Larsen, K.; Katayama, Y.; Huertas, A.; Beyer, R.; Chen, A.; Parker, T.; Pollard, B.; Lee, S.; Hoover, R.; Sladek, H.; Grotzinger, J.; Welch, R.; Dobrea, E. Noe; Michalski, J.; Watkins, M.

2012-01-01

The selection of Gale crater as the Mars Science Laboratory landing site took over five years, involved broad participation of the science community via five open workshops, and narrowed an initial >50 sites (25 by 20 km) to four finalists (Eberswalde, Gale, Holden and Mawrth) based on science and safety. Engineering constraints important to the selection included: (1) latitude (±30°) for thermal management of the rover and instruments, (2) elevation (<-1 km) for sufficient atmosphere to slow the spacecraft, (3) relief of <100-130 m at baselines of 1-1000 m for control authority and sufficient fuel during powered descent, (4) slopes of <30° at baselines of 2-5 m for rover stability at touchdown, (5) moderate rock abundance to avoid impacting the belly pan during touchdown, and (6) a radar-reflective, load-bearing, and trafficable surface that is safe for landing and roving and not dominated by fine-grained dust. Science criteria important for the selection include the ability to assess past habitable environments, which include diversity, context, and biosignature (including organics) preservation. Sites were evaluated in detail using targeted data from instruments on all active orbiters, and especially Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. All of the final four sites have layered sedimentary rocks with spectral evidence for phyllosilicates that clearly address the science objectives of the mission. Sophisticated entry, descent and landing simulations that include detailed information on all of the engineering constraints indicate all of the final four sites are safe for landing. Evaluation of the traversabilty of the landing sites and target “go to” areas outside of the ellipse using slope and material properties information indicates that all are trafficable and “go to” sites can be accessed within the lifetime of the mission. In the final selection, Gale crater was favored over Eberswalde based on its greater diversity and potential habitability.

Preparation of severely curved simulated root canals using engine-driven rotary and conventional hand instruments.

PubMed

Szep, S; Gerhardt, T; Leitzbach, C; Lüder, W; Heidemann, D

2001-03-01

This in vitro study evaluated the efficacy and safety of six different nickel-titanium engine-driven instruments used with a torque-controlled engine device and nickel-titanium hand and stainless steel hand instruments in preparation of curved canals. A total of 80 curved (36 degrees) simulated root canals were prepared. Images before and after were superimposed, and instrumentation areas were observed. Time of instrumentation, instrument failure, change in working length and weight loss were also recorded. Results show that stainless steel hand instruments cause significantly less transportation towards the inner wall of the canal than do nickel-titanium hand instruments. No instrument fracture occurred with hand instruments, but 30-60% breakage of instruments was recorded during instrumentation with the engine-driven devices. The working length was maintained by all types of instruments. Newly developed nickel-titanium rotary files were not able to prevent straightening of the severely curved canals when a torque-controlled engine-driven device was used.

MESUR Pathfinder Science Investigations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Golombek, M.

1993-01-01

The MESUR (Mars Environmental Survey) Pathfinder mission is the first Discovery mission planned for launch in 1996. MESUR Pathfinder is designed as an engineering demonstration of the entry, descent and landing approach to be employed by the follow-on MESUR Network mission, which will land of order 10 small stations on the surface of Mars to investigate interior, atmospheric and surface properties. Pathfinder is a small Mars lander, equipped with a microrover to deploy instruments and explore the local landing site. Instruments selected for Pathfinder include a surface imager on a 1 m pop-up mast (stereo with spectral filters), an atmospheric structure instrument/surface meteorology package, and an alpha proton x-ray spectrometer. The microrover will carry the alpha proton x-ray spectrometer to a number of different rocks and surface materials and provide close-up imaging...

CEOS SEO and GISS Meeting

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Killough, Brian; Stover, Shelley

2008-01-01

The Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) provides a brief to the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) regarding the CEOS Systems Engineering Office (SEO) and current work on climate requirements and analysis. A "system framework" is provided for the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS). SEO climate-related tasks are outlined including the assessment of essential climate variable (ECV) parameters, use of the "systems framework" to determine relevant informational products and science models and the performance of assessments and gap analyses of measurements and missions for each ECV. Climate requirements, including instruments and missions, measurements, knowledge and models, and decision makers, are also outlined. These requirements would establish traceability from instruments to products and services allowing for benefit evaluation of instruments and measurements. Additionally, traceable climate requirements would provide a better understanding of global climate models.

NASA's Information Power Grid: Large Scale Distributed Computing and Data Management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnston, William E.; Vaziri, Arsi; Hinke, Tom; Tanner, Leigh Ann; Feiereisen, William J.; Thigpen, William; Tang, Harry (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Large-scale science and engineering are done through the interaction of people, heterogeneous computing resources, information systems, and instruments, all of which are geographically and organizationally dispersed. The overall motivation for Grids is to facilitate the routine interactions of these resources in order to support large-scale science and engineering. Multi-disciplinary simulations provide a good example of a class of applications that are very likely to require aggregation of widely distributed computing, data, and intellectual resources. Such simulations - e.g. whole system aircraft simulation and whole system living cell simulation - require integrating applications and data that are developed by different teams of researchers frequently in different locations. The research team's are the only ones that have the expertise to maintain and improve the simulation code and/or the body of experimental data that drives the simulations. This results in an inherently distributed computing and data management environment.

Publications of LASL research, 1972--1976

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

Petersen, L.

1977-04-01

This bibliography is a compilation of unclassified work done at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory and published during the years 1972 to 1976. Publications too late for inclusion in earlier compilations are also listed. Declassification of previously classified reports is considered to constitute publication. The bibliography includes LASL reports, journal articles, books, conference papers, papers published in congressional hearings, theses, patents, etc. The following subject areas are included: aerospace studies; analytical technology; astrophysics; atomic and molecular physics, equation of state, opacity; biology and medicine; chemical dynamics and kinetics; chemistry; cryogenics; crystallography; CTR and plasma physics; earth science and engineering; energymore » (nonnuclear); engineering and equipment; EPR, ESR, NMR studies; explosives and detonations; fission physics; health and safety; hydrodynamics and radiation transport; instruments; lasers; mathematics and computers; medium-energy physics; metallurgy and ceramics technology; neutronics and criticality studies; nuclear physics; nuclear safeguards; physics; reactor technology; solid state science; and miscellaneous (including Project Rover). (RWR)« less

FOOT experiment (Foot/Ground Reaction Forces during Space Flight)

NASA Image and Video Library

2005-06-29

ISS011-E-09822 (29 June 2005) --- Astronaut John L. Phillips, Expedition 11 NASA Space Station science officer and flight engineer, uses the Cycle Ergometer with Vibration Isolation System (CEVIS) while participating in the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Spaceflight (FOOT) experiment in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station. Phillips wore the specially instrumented Lower Extremity Monitoring Suit (LEMS), cycling tights outfitted with sensors, during the experiment.

Evaluating the Development of Chemistry Undergraduate Researchers' Scientific Thinking Skills Using Performance-Data: First Findings from the Performance Assessment of Undergraduate Research (PURE) Instrument

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harsh, Joseph; Esteb, John J.; Maltese, Adam V.

2017-01-01

National calls in science, technology, engineering, and technology education reform efforts have advanced the wide-scale engagement of students in undergraduate research for the preparation of a workforce and citizenry able to attend to the challenges of the 21st century. Awareness of the potential benefits and costs of these experiences has led…

JPRS Report, Science & Technology, Japan.

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-08-03

SHIMBUN, 4 Feb 88] 72 Advanced Reactor Design System To Be Developed [GENSHIRYOKU SANGYO SHIMBUN, 4 Feb 88] 73 Functional Testing on " Mutsu ...new types of reactors. 13008 74 NUCLEAR ENGINEERING FUNCTIONAL TESTING ON " MUTSU " SCHEDULED 43062060c Tokyo GENSHIRYOKU SANGYO SHIMBUN in Japanese...and to rebuild the power supply rectifiers used in the instrumentation controls on the nuclear powered ship, the " Mutsu ," which was launched on 27

Flight Testing of the TWiLiTE Airborne Molecular Doppler Lidar

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gentry, Bruce; McGill, Matthew; Machan, Roman; Reed, Daniel; Cargo, Ryan; Wilkens, David J.; Hart, William; Yorks, John; Scott, Stan; Wake, Shane;

Is diversity good? Six possible conceptions of diversity and six possible answers.

PubMed

Bouville, Mathieu

2008-03-01

Prominent ethical and policy issues such as affirmative action and female enrollment in science and engineering revolve around the idea that diversity is good. However, a precise definition is seldom provided. I show that diversity may be construed as a factual description, a craving for symmetry, an intrinsic good, an instrumental good, a symptom, or a side effect. These acceptions differ vastly in their nature and properties. Some are deeply mistaken and some others cannot lead to concrete policies. It is thus necessary to clarify what one means by 'diversity.' It may be a neutral description of a given state; but this is insufficient to act. The idea that there should be the same representation in a specific context as in the overall population is both puzzling and arbitrary. Diversity as intrinsic good is a mere opinion, which cannot be concretely applied; moreover, the most commonly invoked forms of diversity (sexual and racial) are not intrinsically good. On the other hand, diversity as instrumental good can be evaluated empirically and can give rise to policies, but these may be very weak. Finally, symptoms and side effects are not actually about diversity. I consider the example of female enrollment in science and engineering, interpreting the various arguments found in the literature in light of this polysemy.

Mapping the level of scientific reasoning skills to instructional methodologies among Malaysian science-mathematics-engineering undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tajudin, Nor'ain Mohd.; Saad, Noor Shah; Rahman, Nurulhuda Abd; Yahaya, Asmayati; Alimon, Hasimah; Dollah, Mohd. Uzi; Abd Karim, Mohd. Mustaman

2012-05-01

The objectives of this quantitative survey research were (1) to establish the level of scientific reasoning (SR) skills among science, mathematics and engineering (SME) undergraduates in Malaysian Institute of Higher Learning (IHL); (b) to identify the types of instructional methods in teaching SME at universities; and (c) to map instructional methods employed to the level of SR skills among the undergraduates. There were six universities according to zone involved in this study using the stratification random sampling technique. For each university, the faculties that involved were faculties which have degree students in science, mathematics and engineering programme. A total of 975 students were participated in this study. There were two instruments used in this study namely, the Lawson Scientific Reasoning Skills Test and the Lecturers' Teaching Style Survey. The descriptive statistics and the inferential statistics such as mean, t-test and Pearson correlation were used to analyze the data. Findings of the study showed that most students had concrete level of scientific reasoning skills where the overall mean was 3.23. The expert and delegator were dominant lecturers' teaching styles according to students' perception. In addition, there was no correlation between lecturers' teaching style and the level of scientific reasoning skills. Thus, this study cannot map the dominant lecturers' teaching style to the level of scientific reasoning skills of Science, Mathematics and Engineering undergraduates in Malaysian Public Institute of Higher Learning. Nevertheless, this study gave some indications that the expert and delegator teaching styles were not contributed to the development of students' scientific reasoning skills. This study can be used as a baseline for Science, Mathematics and Engineering undergraduates' level of scientific reasoning skills in Malaysian Public Institute of Higher Learning. Overall, this study also opens an endless source of other researchers to investigate more areas on scientific reasoning skills so that the potential instructional model can be developed to enhance students' level of scientific reasoning skills in Malaysian Public Institute of Higher Learning.

The Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cline, J. Donald; Castelaz, M.

2009-01-01

Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute is a not-for-profit foundation located at a former NASA tracking station in the Pisgah National Forest in western North Carolina. PARI is celebrating its 10th year. During its ten years, PARI has developed and implemented innovative science education programs. The science education programs are hands-on experimentally based, mixing disciplines in astronomy, computer science, earth and atmospheric science, engineering, and multimedia. The basic tools for the educational programs include a 4.6-m radio telescope accessible via the Internet, a StarLab planetarium, the Astronomical Photographic Data Archive (APDA), a distributed computing online environment to classify stars called SCOPE, and remotely accessible optical telescopes. The PARI 200 acre campus has a 4.6-m, a 12-m and two 26-m radio telescopes, optical solar telescopes, a Polaris monitoring telescope, 0.4-m and 0.35-m optical research telescopes, and earth and atmospheric science instruments. PARI is also the home of APDA, a repository for astronomical photographic plate collections which will eventually be digitized and made available online. PARI has collaborated with visiting scientists who have developed their research with PARI telescopes and lab facilities. Current experiments include: the Dedicated Interferometer for Rapid Variability (Dennison et al. 2007, Astronomical and Astrophysical Transactions, 26, 557); the Plate Boundary Observatory operated by UNAVCO; the Clemson University Fabry-Perot Interferometers (Meriwether 2008, Journal of Geophysical Research, submitted) measuring high velocity winds and temperatures in the Thermosphere, and the Western Carolina University - PARI variable star program. Current status of the education and research programs and instruments will be presented. Also, development plans will be reviewed. Development plans include the greening of PARI with the installation of solar panels to power the optical telescopes, a new distance learning center, and enhancements to the atmospheric and earth science suite of instrumentation.

NIRCam: Development and Testing of the JWST Near-Infrared Camera

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Greene, Thomas; Beichman, Charles; Gully-Santiago, Michael; Jaffe, Daniel; Kelly, Douglas; Krist, John; Rieke, Marcia; Smith, Eric H.

2011-01-01

The Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam) is one of the four science instruments of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Its high sensitivity, high spatial resolution images over the 0.6 - 5 microns wavelength region will be essential for making significant findings in many science areas as well as for aligning the JWST primary mirror segments and telescope. The NIRCam engineering test unit was recently assembled and has undergone successful cryogenic testing. The NIRCam collimator and camera optics and their mountings are also progressing, with a brass-board system demonstrating relatively low wavefront error across a wide field of view. The flight model?s long-wavelength Si grisms have been fabricated, and its coronagraph masks are now being made. Both the short (0.6 - 2.3 microns) and long (2.4 - 5.0 microns) wavelength flight detectors show good performance and are undergoing final assembly and testing. The flight model subsystems should all be completed later this year through early 2011, and NIRCam will be cryogenically tested in the first half of 2011 before delivery to the JWST integrated science instrument module (ISIM).

Nuclear science abstracts (NSA) database 1948--1974 (on the Internet)

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

NONE

Nuclear Science Abstracts (NSA) is a comprehensive abstract and index collection of the International Nuclear Science and Technology literature for the period 1948 through 1976. Included are scientific and technical reports of the US Atomic Energy Commission, US Energy Research and Development Administration and its contractors, other agencies, universities, and industrial and research organizations. Coverage of the literature since 1976 is provided by Energy Science and Technology Database. Approximately 25% of the records in the file contain abstracts. These are from the following volumes of the print Nuclear Science Abstracts: Volumes 12--18, Volume 29, and Volume 33. The database containsmore » over 900,000 bibliographic records. All aspects of nuclear science and technology are covered, including: Biomedical Sciences; Metals, Ceramics, and Other Materials; Chemistry; Nuclear Materials and Waste Management; Environmental and Earth Sciences; Particle Accelerators; Engineering; Physics; Fusion Energy; Radiation Effects; Instrumentation; Reactor Technology; Isotope and Radiation Source Technology. The database includes all records contained in Volume 1 (1948) through Volume 33 (1976) of the printed version of Nuclear Science Abstracts (NSA). This worldwide coverage includes books, conference proceedings, papers, patents, dissertations, engineering drawings, and journal literature. This database is now available for searching through the GOV. Research Center (GRC) service. GRC is a single online web-based search service to well known Government databases. Featuring powerful search and retrieval software, GRC is an important research tool. The GRC web site is at http://grc.ntis.gov.« less

UNH Project SMART 2017: Space Science for High School Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, C. W.; Broad, L.; Goelzer, S.; Levergood, R.; Lugaz, N.; Moebius, E.

2017-12-01

Every summer for the past 26 years the University of New Hampshire (UNH) has run a month-long, residential outreach program for high school students considering careers in mathematics, science, or engineering. Space science is one of the modules. Students work directly with UNH faculty performing original work with real spacecraft data and hardware and present the results of that effort at the end of the program. This year the student research projects used data from the Messenger, STEREO, and Triana missions. In addition, the students build and fly a high-altitude balloon payload with instruments of their own construction. Students learn circuit design and construction, microcontroller programming, and core atmospheric and space science along with fundamental concepts in space physics and engineering. Our payload design has evolved significantly since the first flight of a simple rectangular box and now involves a stable descent vehicle that does not require a parachute. Our flight hardware includes an on-board flight control computer, in-flight autonomous control and data acquisition of multiple student-built instruments, and real-time camera images sent to ground. This year we developed, built and flew a successful line cutter based on GPS location information that prevents our payload from falling into the ocean while also separating the payload from the balloon remains for a cleaner descent. We will describe that new line cutter design and implementation along with the shielded Geiger counters that we flew as part of our cosmic ray air shower experiment. This is a program that can be used as a model for other schools to follow and that high schools can initiate. More information can be found at .

Measuring Changes in Interest in Science and Technology at the College Level in Response to Two Instructional Interventions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Romine, William L.; Sadler, Troy D.

2016-06-01

Improving interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is crucial to widening participation and success in STEM studies at the college level. To understand how classroom and extracurricular interventions affect interest, it is necessary to have appropriate measurement tools. We describe the adaptation and revalidation of a previously existing multidimensional instrument to the end of measuring interest in environmental science and technology in college nonscience majors. We demonstrate the revised instrument's ability to detect change in this group over an 8-week time period. While collection of demographic information was not part of the study design, participating students were similar in that they hailed from three environmental science nonmajor classes sharing a common syllabus and instructional delivery method. Change in interest was measured in response to two types of scientific literature-based learning approaches: a scientific practice approach and a traditional, quiz-driven approach. We found that both approaches led to moderate gains in interest in learning environmental science and careers in environmental science across an 8-week time period. Interest in using technology for learning increased among students using the scientific practice approach; in contrast, the same measure decreased among students using the reading/quiz approach. This result invites the possibility that interest in using technology as a learning tool may relate to technological literacy, which must be taught explicitly in the context of authentic inquiry experiences.

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.

1st International Nuclear Science and Technology Conference 2014 (INST2014)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2015-04-01

Nuclear technology has played an important role in many aspects of our lives, including agriculture, energy, materials, medicine, environment, forensics, healthcare, and frontier research. The International Nuclear Science and Technology Conference (INST) aims to bring together scientists, engineers, academics, and students to share knowledge and experiences about all aspects of nuclear sciences. INST has evolved from a series of national conferences in Thailand called Nuclear Science and Technology (NST) Conference, which has been held for 11 times, the first being in 1986. INST2014 was held in August 2014 and hosted by Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology (TINT). The theme was "Driving the future with nuclear technology". The conference working language was English. The proceedings were peer reviewed and considered for publication. The topics covered in the conference were: • Agricultural and food applications [AGR] • Environmental applications [ENV] • Radiation processing and industrial applications [IND] • Medical and nutritional applications [MED] • Nuclear physics and engineering [PHY] • Nuclear and radiation safety [SAF] • Other related topics [OTH] • Device and instrument presentation [DEV] Awards for outstanding oral and poster presentations will be given to qualified students who present their work during the conference.

The Faculty Self-Reported Assessment Survey (FRAS): Differentiating Faculty Knowledge and Experience in Assessment

PubMed Central

Hanauer, David I.; Bauerle, Cynthia

2015-01-01

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education reform efforts have called for widespread adoption of evidence-based teaching in which faculty members attend to student outcomes through assessment practice. Awareness about the importance of assessment has illuminated the need to understand what faculty members know and how they engage with assessment knowledge and practice. The Faculty Self-Reported Assessment Survey (FRAS) is a new instrument for evaluating science faculty assessment knowledge and experience. Instrument validation was composed of two distinct studies: an empirical evaluation of the psychometric properties of the FRAS and a comparative known-groups validation to explore the ability of the FRAS to differentiate levels of faculty assessment experience. The FRAS was found to be highly reliable (α = 0.96). The dimensionality of the instrument enabled distinction of assessment knowledge into categories of program design, instrumentation, and validation. In the known-groups validation, the FRAS distinguished between faculty groups with differing levels of assessment experience. Faculty members with formal assessment experience self-reported higher levels of familiarity with assessment terms, higher frequencies of assessment activity, increased confidence in conducting assessment, and more positive attitudes toward assessment than faculty members who were novices in assessment. These results suggest that the FRAS can reliably and validly differentiate levels of expertise in faculty knowledge of assessment. PMID:25976653

NASA's Gravitational - Wave Mission Concept Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stebbins, Robin; Jennrich, Oliver; McNamara, Paul

2012-01-01

With the conclusion of the NASA/ESA partnership on the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) Project, NASA initiated a study to explore mission concepts that will accomplish some or all of the LISA science objectives at lower cost. The Gravitational-Wave Mission Concept Study consisted of a public Request for Information (RFI), a Core Team of NASA engineers and scientists, a Community Science Team, a Science Task Force, and an open workshop. The RFI yielded were 12 mission concepts, 3 instrument concepts and 2 technologies. The responses ranged from concepts that eliminated the drag-free test mass of LISA to concepts that replace the test mass with an atom interferometer. The Core Team reviewed the noise budgets and sensitivity curves, the payload and spacecraft designs and requirements, orbits and trajectories and technical readiness and risk. The Science Task Force assessed the science performance by calculating the horizons. the detection rates and the accuracy of astrophysical parameter estimation for massive black hole mergers, stellar-mass compact objects inspiraling into central engines. and close compact binary systems. Three mission concepts have been studied by Team-X, JPL's concurrent design facility. to define a conceptual design evaluate kt,y performance parameters. assess risk and estimate cost and schedule. The Study results are summarized.

Software systems for operation, control, and monitoring of the EBEX instrument

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Milligan, Michael; Ade, Peter; Aubin, François; Baccigalupi, Carlo; Bao, Chaoyun; Borrill, Julian; Cantalupo, Christopher; Chapman, Daniel; Didier, Joy; Dobbs, Matt; Grainger, Will; Hanany, Shaul; Hillbrand, Seth; Hubmayr, Johannes; Hyland, Peter; Jaffe, Andrew; Johnson, Bradley; Kisner, Theodore; Klein, Jeff; Korotkov, Andrei; Leach, Sam; Lee, Adrian; Levinson, Lorne; Limon, Michele; MacDermid, Kevin; Matsumura, Tomotake; Miller, Amber; Pascale, Enzo; Polsgrove, Daniel; Ponthieu, Nicolas; Raach, Kate; Reichborn-Kjennerud, Britt; Sagiv, Ilan; Tran, Huan; Tucker, Gregory S.; Vinokurov, Yury; Yadav, Amit; Zaldarriaga, Matias; Zilic, Kyle

2010-07-01

We present the hardware and software systems implementing autonomous operation, distributed real-time monitoring, and control for the EBEX instrument. EBEX is a NASA-funded balloon-borne microwave polarimeter designed for a 14 day Antarctic flight that circumnavigates the pole. To meet its science goals the EBEX instrument autonomously executes several tasks in parallel: it collects attitude data and maintains pointing control in order to adhere to an observing schedule; tunes and operates up to 1920 TES bolometers and 120 SQUID amplifiers controlled by as many as 30 embedded computers; coordinates and dispatches jobs across an onboard computer network to manage this detector readout system; logs over 3 GiB/hour of science and housekeeping data to an onboard disk storage array; responds to a variety of commands and exogenous events; and downlinks multiple heterogeneous data streams representing a selected subset of the total logged data. Most of the systems implementing these functions have been tested during a recent engineering flight of the payload, and have proven to meet the target requirements. The EBEX ground segment couples uplink and downlink hardware to a client-server software stack, enabling real-time monitoring and command responsibility to be distributed across the public internet or other standard computer networks. Using the emerging dirfile standard as a uniform intermediate data format, a variety of front end programs provide access to different components and views of the downlinked data products. This distributed architecture was demonstrated operating across multiple widely dispersed sites prior to and during the EBEX engineering flight.

MITEE-B: A Compact Ultra Lightweight Bi-Modal Nuclear Propulsion Engine for Robotic Planetary Science Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Powell, James; Maise, George; Paniagua, John; Borowski, Stanley

2003-01-01

Nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) enables unique new robotic planetary science missions that are impossible with chemical or nuclear electric propulsion systems. A compact and ultra lightweight bi-modal nuclear engine, termed MITEE-B (MInature ReacTor EnginE - Bi-Modal) can deliver 1000's of kilograms of propulsive thrust when it operates in the NTP mode, and many kilowatts of continuous electric power when it operates in the electric generation mode. The high propulsive thrust NTP mode enables spacecraft to land and takeoff from the surface of a planet or moon, to hop to multiple widely separated sites on the surface, and virtually unlimited flight in planetary atmospheres. The continuous electric generation mode enables a spacecraft to replenish its propellant by processing in-situ resources, provide power for controls, instruments, and communications while in space and on the surface, and operate electric propulsion units. Six examples of unique and important missions enabled by the MITEE-B engine are described, including: (1) Pluto lander and sample return; (2) Europa lander and ocean explorer; (3) Mars Hopper; (4) Jupiter atmospheric flyer; (5) SunBurn hypervelocity spacecraft; and (6) He3 mining from Uranus. Many additional important missions are enabled by MITEE-B. A strong technology base for MITEE-B already exists. With a vigorous development program, it could be ready for initial robotic science and exploration missions by 2010 AD. Potential mission benefits include much shorter in-space times, reduced IMLEO requirements, and replenishment of supplies from in-situ resources.

Materials Advance Chemical Propulsion Technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2012-01-01

In the future, the Planetary Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate hopes to use better-performing and lower-cost propulsion systems to send rovers, probes, and observers to places like Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. For such purposes, a new propulsion technology called the Advanced Materials Bipropellant Rocket (AMBR) was developed under NASA's In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) project, located at Glenn Research Center. As an advanced chemical propulsion system, AMBR uses nitrogen tetroxide oxidizer and hydrazine fuel to propel a spacecraft. Based on current research and development efforts, the technology shows great promise for increasing engine operation and engine lifespan, as well as lowering manufacturing costs. In developing AMBR, ISPT has several goals: to decrease the time it takes for a spacecraft to travel to its destination, reduce the cost of making the propulsion system, and lessen the weight of the propulsion system. If goals like these are met, it could result in greater capabilities for in-space science investigations. For example, if the amount (and weight) of propellant required on a spacecraft is reduced, more scientific instruments (and weight) could be added to the spacecraft. To achieve AMBR s maximum potential performance, the engine needed to be capable of operating at extremely high temperatures and pressure. To this end, ISPT required engine chambers made of iridium-coated rhenium (strong, high-temperature metallic elements) that allowed operation at temperatures close to 4,000 F. In addition, ISPT needed an advanced manufacturing technique for better coating methods to increase the strength of the engine chamber without increasing the costs of fabricating the chamber.

The Optical Profiling of the Atmospheric Limb (OPAL) CubeSat Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeppesen, M.; Miller, J.; Cox, W.; Taylor, M. J.; Swenson, C.; Neilsen, T. L.; Fish, C. S.; Scherliess, L.; Christensen, A. B.; Cleave, M.

2015-12-01

The Earth's lower thermosphere is an important interface region between the neutral atmosphere and the "space weather" environment. While the high-latitude region of the thermosphere responds promptly to energy inputs, relatively little is known about the global/regional response to these energy inputs. Global temperatures are predicted to respond within 3-6 hours, but the details of the thermal response of the atmosphere as energy transports away from high-latitude source regions is not well understood. The Optical Profiling of the Atmospheric Limb (OPAL) mission aims to characterize this thermal response through observation of the temperature structure of the lower thermosphere at mid- and low-latitudes. The OPAL instrument is designed to map global thermospheric temperature variability over the critical "thermospheric gap" region (~100-140 km altitude) by spectroscopic analysis of molecular oxygen A-band emission (758 - 768 nm). The OPAL instrument is a grating-based imaging spectrometer with refractive optics and a high-efficiency volume holographic grating (VHG). The scene is sampled by 7 parallel slits that form non-overlapping spectral profiles at the focal plane with resolution of 0.5 nm (spectral), 1.5 km (limb profiling), and 60 km (horizontal sampling). A CCD camera at the instrument focal plane delivers low noise and high sensitivity. The instrument is designed to strongly reject stray light from daylight regions of the earth. The OPAL mission is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) CubeSat-based Science Missions for Geospace and Atmospheric Research program. The OPAL instrument, CubeSat bus and mission are being designed, built and executed by a team comprised of students and professors from Utah State University, Dixie State University and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, with support from professional scientists and engineers from the Space Dynamics Laboratory and Hawk Institute for Space Science.

Optical Profiling of the Atmospheric Limb CubeSat Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeppesen, M.; Taylor, M. J.; Swenson, C.; Marchant, A.

2014-12-01

The Earth's lower thermosphere is an important interface region between the neutral atmosphere and the "space weather" environment. While the high-latitude region of the thermosphere responds promptly to energy inputs, relatively little is known about the global/regional response to these energy inputs. Global temperatures are predicted to respond within 3-6 hours, but the details of the thermal response of the atmosphere as energy transports away from high-latitude source regions is not well understood. The Optical Profiling of the Atmospheric Limb (OPAL) mission aims to characterize this thermal response through observation of the temperature structure of the lower thermosphere at mid- and low-latitudes. The OPAL instrument is designed to map global thermospheric temperature variability over the critical "thermospheric gap" region (~100-140 km altitude) by spectroscopic analysis of molecular oxygen A-band emission (758 - 768 nm). The OPAL instrument is a grating-based imaging spectrometer with refractive optics and a high-efficiency volume holographic grating (VHG). The scene is sampled by 7 parallel slits that form non-overlapping spectral profiles at the focal plane with resolution of 0.5 nm (spectral), 1.5 km (limb profiling), and 60 km (horizontal sampling). A CCD camera at the instrument focal plane delivers low noise and high sensitivity. The instrument is designed to strongly reject stray light from daylight regions of the earth. The OPAL mission is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) CubeSat-based Science Missions for Geospace and Atmospheric Research program. The OPAL instrument and mission will be designed, built and executed by a team comprised of students and professors from Utah State University, Dixie State University and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, with support from professional scientists and engineers from the Space Dynamics Laboratory and Hawk Institute for Space Science.

The Effectiveness of Contextual Learning on Physics Achievement in Career Technical Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arcand, Scott Andrew

The purpose of this casual-comparative study was to determine if students being taught the Minnesota Science Physics Standards via contextual learning methods in Project Lead the Way (PLTW) Principles of Engineering or the PLTW Aerospace Engineering courses, taught by a Career Technical Education (CTE) teacher, achieve at the same rate as students in a physics course taught by a science teacher. The PLTW courses only cover the standards taught in the first trimester of physics. The PLTW courses are two periods long for one trimester. Students who successfully pass the PLTW Principles of Engineering course or the PLTW Engineering Aerospace course earn one-half credit in physics and one-half elective credit. The instrument used to measure student achievement was the district common summative assessment for physics. The Common Summative Assessment scores were pulled from the data warehouse from the first trimester of the 2013-2014 school year. Implications of the research address concepts of contextual learning especially in the Career Technical Education space. The mean score for Physics students (30.916) and PLTW Principles of Engineering students (32.333) was not statistically significantly different. Students in PLTW Principles of Engineering achieved at the same rate as students in physics. Due to the low rate of students participating in the Common Summative Assessment in PTLW Aerospace (four out of seven students), there is not enough data to determine if there is a significant difference in the Physics A scores and PLTW Aerospace Engineering scores.

A Centaur Reconnaissance Mission: a NASA JPL Planetary Science Summer Seminar mission design experience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chou, L.; Howell, S. M.; Bhattaru, S.; Blalock, J. J.; Bouchard, M.; Brueshaber, S.; Cusson, S.; Eggl, S.; Jawin, E.; Marcus, M.; Miller, K.; Rizzo, M.; Smith, H. B.; Steakley, K.; Thomas, N. H.; Thompson, M.; Trent, K.; Ugelow, M.; Budney, C. J.; Mitchell, K. L.

2017-12-01

The NASA Planetary Science Summer Seminar (PSSS), sponsored by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), offers advanced graduate students and recent doctoral graduates the unique opportunity to develop a robotic planetary exploration mission that answers NASA's Science Mission Directorate's Announcement of Opportunity for the New Frontiers Program. Preceded by a series of 10 weekly webinars, the seminar is an intensive one-week exercise at JPL, where students work directly with JPL's project design team "TeamX" on the process behind developing mission concepts through concurrent engineering, project design sessions, instrument selection, science traceability matrix development, and risks and cost management. The 2017 NASA PSSS team included 18 participants from various U.S. institutions with a diverse background in science and engineering. We proposed a Centaur Reconnaissance Mission, named CAMILLA, designed to investigate the geologic state, surface evolution, composition, and ring systems through a flyby and impact of Chariklo. Centaurs are defined as minor planets with semi-major axis that lies between Jupiter and Neptune's orbit. Chariklo is both the largest Centaur and the only known minor planet with rings. CAMILLA was designed to address high priority cross-cutting themes defined in National Research Council's Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022. At the end of the seminar, a final presentation was given by the participants to a review board of JPL scientists and engineers as well as NASA headquarters executives. The feedback received on the strengths and weaknesses of our proposal provided a rich and valuable learning experience in how to design a successful NASA planetary exploration mission and generate a successful New Frontiers proposal. The NASA PSSS is an educational experience that trains the next generation of NASA's planetary explorers by bridging the gap between scientists and engineers, allowing for participants to learn how to design a mission and build a spacecraft in a collaborative and fast-pace environment.

Strategic Approaches to Trading Science Objectives Against Measurements and Mission Design: Mission Architecture and Concept Maturation at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Case, K. E.; Nash, A. E., III

2017-12-01

Earth Science missions are increasingly challenged to improve our state of the art through more sophisticated hypotheses and inclusion of advanced technologies. However, science return needs to be constrained to the cost environment. Selectable mission concepts are the result of an overlapping Venn diagram of compelling science, feasible engineering solutions, and programmatic acceptable costs, regardless of whether the science investigation is Earth Venture or Decadal class. Since the last Earth Science and Applications Decadal Survey released in 2007, many new advanced technologies have emerged, in instrument, SmallSat flight systems, and launch service capabilities, enabling new mission architectures. These mission architectures may result in new thinking about how we achieve and collect science measurements, e.g., how to improve time-series measurements. We will describe how the JPL Formulation Office is structured to integrate methods, tools, and subject matter experts to span the mission concept development lifecycle, and assist Principal Investigators in maturing their mission ideas into realizable concepts.

The Clinimetric Properties of Instruments Measuring Home Hazards for Older People at Risk of Falling: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Romli, Muhammad Hibatullah; Mackenzie, Lynette; Lovarini, Meryl; Tan, Maw Pin; Clemson, Lindy

2018-03-01

Home hazards are associated with falls among older people living in the community. However, evaluating home hazards is a complex process as environmental factors vary according to geography, culture, and architectural design. As a result, many health practitioners commonly use nonstandardized assessment methods that may lead to inaccurate findings. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to identify standardized instruments for evaluating home hazards related to falls and evaluate the clinimetric properties of these instruments for use by health practitioners. A systematic search was conducted in the Medline, CINAHL, AgeLine, Web of Science databases, and the University of Sydney Library CrossSearch Engine. Study screening, assessment, and quality ratings were conducted independently. Thirty-six studies were identified describing 19 instruments and three assessment techniques. The clinimetric properties varied between instruments. The Home Falls and Accidents Screening Tool, Home Safety Self-Assessment Tool, In-Home Occupational Performance Evaluation, and Westmead Home Safety Assessment were the instruments with high potential for evaluating home hazards associated with falls. Health practitioners can choose the most appropriate instruments for their practice, as a range of standardized instruments with established clinimetric properties are available.

Usability-driven evolution of a space instrument

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCalden, Alec

2012-09-01

The use of resources in the cradle-to-grave timeline of a space instrument might be significantly improved by considering the concept of usability from the start of the mission. The methodology proposed here includes giving early priority in a programme to the iterative development of a simulator that models instrument operation, and allowing this to evolve ahead of the actual instrument specification and fabrication. The advantages include reduction of risk in software development by shifting much of it to earlier in a programme than is typical, plus a test programme that uses and thereby proves the same support systems that may be used for flight. A new development flow for an instrument is suggested, showing how the system engineering phases used by the space agencies could be reworked in line with these ideas. This methodology is also likely to contribute to a better understanding between the various disciplines involved in the creation of a new instrument. The result should better capture the science needs, implement them more accurately with less wasted effort, and more fully allow the best ideas from all team members to be considered.

Computational Earth Science: Big Data Transformed Into Insight

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sellars, Scott; Nguyen, Phu; Chu, Wei; Gao, Xiaogang; Hsu, Kuo-lin; Sorooshian, Soroosh

2013-08-01

More than ever in the history of science, researchers have at their fingertips an unprecedented wealth of data from continuously orbiting satellites, weather monitoring instruments, ecological observatories, seismic stations, moored buoys, floats, and even model simulations and forecasts. With just an internet connection, scientists and engineers can access atmospheric and oceanic gridded data and time series observations, seismographs from around the world, minute-by-minute conditions of the near-Earth space environment, and other data streams that provide information on events across local, regional, and global scales. These data sets have become essential for monitoring and understanding the associated impacts of geological and environmental phenomena on society.

Enough Is Enough

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barrowman, James

2003-01-01

The spacecraft was nearly integrated and had passed some of its early mechanical and electrical testing. One of its instruments, the Proportional Counter Array (PCA), had a gas leak in one of the five proportional counter modules that made up the array. The science division where the instrument was being developed wanted a gas replenishment system added to assure the PCA would last for the entire mission. Adding a gas replenishment system would mean interrupting spacecraft integration and testing; developing a new subsystem and integrating it onto the spacecraft; modifying all the PCA modules; including a complex integration of the instrument onto the spacecraft; and implementing a more complex performance and environmental test process. It was the wrong answer because it made a simple design more complex and added little value to the mission at a major cost in time and dollars. Our mission couldn't afford the additional budget and schedule risks. XTE was the latest of a long line of projects being managed by my Explorer Program Office, but it was unique in being the first project we had agreed to do for a fixed price. NASA HQ agreed, in return, to provide us with the funding profile we needed to make it happen. We were both trying to break the unhealthy spiral in the Explorer program that saw current missions overrunning and pushing subsequent missions downstream to the point where their science was becoming marginal. The science community was upset and wanted better performance from NASA. I summarized my arguments to the director. The Engineering Directorate had taken responsibility for the spacecraft development when we established XTE as an in-house project at Goddard Space Flight Center, and also was supporting the PCA development. "It adds complexity," I reiterated. "It's a significant cost impact for only a marginal reliability increase". His response was music to my ears, "Jim, I won't stand in your way, but you'll have to convince the scientists and engineers."

Advances in cryogenic engineering. Volume 27 - Proceedings of the Cryogenic Engineering Conference, San Diego, CA, August 11-14, 1981

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fast, R. W.

Applications of superconductivity are considered, taking into account MHD and fusion, generators, transformers, transmission lines, magnets for physics, cryogenic techniques, electrtronics, and aspects of magnet stability. Advances related to heat transfer in He I are discussed along with subjects related to theat transfer in He II, refrigeration of superconducting systems, refrigeration and liquefaction, dilution and magnetic refrigerators, refrigerators for space applications, mass transfer and flow phenomena, and the properties of fluids. Developments related to cryogenic applications are also explored, giving attention to bulk storage and transfer of cryogenic fluids, liquefied natural gas operations, space science and technology, and cryopumping. Topics related to cryogenic instrumentation and controls include the production and use of high grade silicon diode temperature sensors, the choice of strain gages for use in a large superconducting alternator, microprocessor control of cryogenic pressure, and instrumentation, data acquisition and reduction for a large spaceborne helium dewar. For individual items see A83-43221 to A83-43250

EnLightenment: High resolution smartphone microscopy as an educational and public engagement platform

PubMed Central

Wicks, Laura C.; Cairns, Gemma S.; Melnyk, Jacob; Bryce, Scott; Duncan, Rory R.; Dalgarno, Paul A.

2018-01-01

We developed a simple, cost-effective smartphone microscopy platform for use in educational and public engagement programs. We demonstrated its effectiveness, and potential for citizen science through a national imaging initiative, EnLightenment. The cost effectiveness of the instrument allowed for the program to deliver over 500 microscopes to more than 100 secondary schools throughout Scotland, targeting 1000’s of 12-14 year olds. Through careful, quantified, selection of a high power, low-cost objective lens, our smartphone microscope has an imaging resolution of microns, with a working distance of 3 mm. It is therefore capable of imaging single cells and sub-cellular features, and retains usability for young children. The microscopes were designed in kit form and provided an interdisciplinary educational tool. By providing full lesson plans and support material, we developed a framework to explore optical design, microscope performance, engineering challenges on construction and real-world applications in life sciences, biological imaging, marine biology, art, and technology. A national online imaging competition framed EnLightenment ; with over 500 high quality images submitted of diverse content, spanning multiple disciplines. With examples of cellular and sub-cellular features clearly identifiable in some submissions, we show how young public can use these instruments for research-level imaging applications, and the potential of the instrument for citizen science programs. PMID:29623296

The creation and validation of an instrument to measure school STEM Culture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

White, Christopher

Although current research exists on school culture, there is a gap in the literature on specialized aspects of culture such as STEM Culture defined as the beliefs, values, practices, resources, and challenges in STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) within a school. The objective of this study was to create a valid and reliable instrument, the STEM Culture Assessment Tool (STEM-CAT), that measures this cultural aspect based on a survey of stakeholder groups within the school community and use empirical data to support the use of this instrument to measure STEM Culture. Items were created and face validity was determined through a focus group and expert review before a pilot study was conducted to determine reliability of the items. Once items were determined reliable, the survey was given to eight high schools and results were correlated to the percentage of seniors who self-reported whether they intend to pursue STEM fields upon graduation. The results of this study indicate further need for research to determine how the STEM-CAT correlates to STEM culture due to some inconsistencies with the dependent variable in this study. Future research could be done correlating the results of the STEM-CAT with participation in Advanced Placement science and mathematics, SAT/ACT scores in science and mathematics or the number of students who actually pursue STEM fields rather than a prediction halfway through the 12th grade.

The James Webb Telescope Instrument Suite Layout: Optical System Engineering Considerations for a Large, Deployable Space Telescope

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bos, Brent; Davila, Pam; Jurotich, Matthew; Hobbs, Gurnie; Lightsey, Paul; Contreras, Jim; Whitman, Tony

2003-01-01

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a space-based, infrared observatory designed to study the early stages of galaxy formation in the Universe. The telescope will be launched into an elliptical orbit about the second Lagrange point and passively cooled to 30-50 K to enable astronomical observations from 0.6 to 28 microns. A group from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and the Northrop Grumman Space Technology prime contractor team has developed an optical and mechanical layout for the science instruments within the JWST field of view that satisfies the telescope s high-level performance requirements. Four instruments required accommodation within the telescope's field of view: a Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) provided by the University of Arizona; a Near-Mared Spectrometer (NIRSpec) provided by the European Space Agency; a Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) provided by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and a European consortium; and a Fine Guidance Sensor (FGS) with a tunable filter module provided by the Canadian Space Agency. The size and position of each instrument's field of view allocation were developed through an iterative, concurrent engineering process involving the key observatory stakeholders. While some of the system design considerations were those typically encountered during the development of an infrared observatory, others were unique to the deployable and controllable nature of JWST. This paper describes the optical and mechanical issues considered during the field of view layout development, as well as the supporting modeling and analysis activities.

The 2010 ILSO-ISRU Field Test at Mauna Kea, Hawaii: Results from the Miniaturised Mossbauer Spectrometers Mimos II and Mimos IIA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Klingelhoefer, G.; Morris, R. V.; Blumers, M.; Bernhardt, B.; Graff, T.

2011-01-01

For the advanced Moessbauer instrument MIMOS IIA, the new detector technologies and electronic components increase sensitivity and performance significantly. In combination with the high energy resolution of the SDD it is possible to perform X-ray fluorescence analysis simultaneously to Moessbauer spectroscopy. In addition to the Fe-mineralogy, information on the sample's elemental composition will be gathered. The ISRU 2010 field campaign demonstrated that in-situ Moessbauer spectroscopy is an effective tool for both science and feedstock exploration and process monitoring. Engineering tests showed that a compact nickel metal hydride battery provided sufficient power for over 12 hr of continuous operation for the MIMOS instruments.

Scientific management of Space Telescope

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Odell, C. R.

1981-01-01

A historical summay is given on the science management of the Space Telescope, the inception of which began in 1962, when scientists and engineers first recommended the development of a nearly diffraction limited substantial-size optical telescope. Phase A, the feasibility requirements generation phase, began in 1971 and consisted largely of NASA scientists and a NASA design. Phase B, the preliminary design phase, established a tiered structure of scientists, led by the Large Space Telescope operations and Management Work Group. A Mission Operations Working Group headed six instrument definition teams to develop the essential instrument definitions. Many changes took place during Phase B, before design and development, which began in 1978 and still continues today.

Solar-A Prelaunch Mission Operation Report (MOR)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

The Solar-A mission is a Japanese-led program with the participation of the United States and the United Kingdom. The Japanese Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS) is providing the Solar-A spacecraft, two of the four science instruments, the launch vehicle and launch support, and the principal ground station with Operational Control Center. NASA is providing a science instrument, the Soft X-ray Telescope (SXT)and tracking support using the Deep Space Network (DSN) ground stations. The United Kingdom s Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) provides the Bragg Crystal Spectrometer. The Solar-A mission will study solar flares using a cluster of instruments on a satellite in a 600 km altitude, 31 degree inclination circular orbit. The emphasis of the mission is on imaging and spectroscopy of hard and soft X-rays. The principal instruments are a pair of X-ray imaging instruments, one for the hard X-ray range and one for the soft X-ray range. The Hard X-Ray Telescope (HXT), provided by ISAS, operates in the energy range of 10-100 keV and uses an array of modulation collimators to record Fourier transform images of the non-thermal and hot plasmas that are formed during the early phases of a flare. These images are thought to be intimately associated with the sites of primary energy release. The Soft X-Ray Telescope (SXT), jointly provided by NASA and ISAS, operates in the wavelength range of 3-50 Angstroms and uses a grazing incidence mirror to form direct images of the lower temperature (but still very hot) plasmas that form as the solar atmosphere responds to the injection of energy. The SXT instrument is a joint development effort between the Lockheed Palo Alto Research Laboratory and the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan. The U.S. effort also involves Stanford University, the University of California at Berkeley and the University of Hawaii, who provide support in the areas of theory, data analysis and interpretation, and ground-based observations. The hard and soft X-ray telescopes both have an alignment sensor, operating in the visual region of the spectrum, to provide co-alignment information.

Student Planetary Investigators: A Program to Engage Students in Authentic Research Using NASA Mission Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hallau, K.; Turney, D.; Beisser, K.; Edmonds, J.; Grigsby, B.

2015-12-01

The Student Planetary Investigator (PI) Program engages students in authentic scientific research using NASA mission data. This student-focused STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) program combines problem-based learning modules, Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) aligned curriculum, and live interactive webinars with mission scientists to create authentic research opportunities and career-ready experiences that prepare and inspire students to pursue STEM occupations. Primarily for high school students, the program employs distance-learning technologies to stream live presentations from mission scientists, archive those presentations to accommodate varied schedules, and collaborate with other student teams and scientists. Like its predecessor, the Mars Exploration Student Data Team (MESDT) program, the Student PI is free and open to teams across the country. To date, students have drafted research-based reports using data from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Mini-RF instrument and the MESSENGER Mercury orbiter, with plans to offer similar programs aligned with additional NASA missions in the future pending available funding. Overall, the program has reached about 600 students and their educators. Assessments based on qualitative and quantitative data gathered for each Student PI program have shown that students gain new understanding about the scientific process used by real-world scientists as well as gaining enthusiasm for STEM. Additionally, it is highly adaptable to other disciplines and fields. The Student PI program was created by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) Space Department Education and Public Outreach office with support from NASA mission and instrument science and engineering teams.

Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE) for the HyspIRI Spectrometer Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Turmon, Michael J.; Block, Gary L.; Green, Robert O.; Hua, Hook; Jacob, Joseph C.; Sobel, Harold R.; Springer, Paul L.; Zhang, Qingyuan

2010-01-01

The OSSE software provides an integrated end-to-end environment to simulate an Earth observing system by iteratively running a distributed modeling workflow based on the HyspIRI Mission, including atmospheric radiative transfer, surface albedo effects, detection, and retrieval for agile exploration of the mission design space. The software enables an Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE) and can be used for design trade space exploration of science return for proposed instruments by modeling the whole ground truth, sensing, and retrieval chain and to assess retrieval accuracy for a particular instrument and algorithm design. The OSSE in fra struc ture is extensible to future National Research Council (NRC) Decadal Survey concept missions where integrated modeling can improve the fidelity of coupled science and engineering analyses for systematic analysis and science return studies. This software has a distributed architecture that gives it a distinct advantage over other similar efforts. The workflow modeling components are typically legacy computer programs implemented in a variety of programming languages, including MATLAB, Excel, and FORTRAN. Integration of these diverse components is difficult and time-consuming. In order to hide this complexity, each modeling component is wrapped as a Web Service, and each component is able to pass analysis parameterizations, such as reflectance or radiance spectra, on to the next component downstream in the service workflow chain. In this way, the interface to each modeling component becomes uniform and the entire end-to-end workflow can be run using any existing or custom workflow processing engine. The architecture lets users extend workflows as new modeling components become available, chain together the components using any existing or custom workflow processing engine, and distribute them across any Internet-accessible Web Service endpoints. The workflow components can be hosted on any Internet-accessible machine. This has the advantages that the computations can be distributed to make best use of the available computing resources, and each workflow component can be hosted and maintained by their respective domain experts.

Space Science in Project SMART: A UNH High School Outreach Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, C. W.; Broad, L.; Goelzer, S.; Lessard, M.; Levergood, R.; Lugaz, N.; Moebius, E.; Schwadron, N.; Torbert, R. B.; Zhang, J.; Bloser, P. F.

2016-12-01

Every summer for the past 25 years the University of New Hampshire (UNH) has run a month-long, residential outreach program for high school students considering careers in mathematics, science, or engineering. Space science is one of the modules. Students work directly with UNH faculty performing original work with real spacecraft data and hardware and present the results of that effort at the end of the program. Recent research topics have included interplanetary waves and turbulence as recorded by the ACE and Voyager spacecraft, electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves seen by the RBSP spacecraft, interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICME) acceleration and interstellar pickup ions as seen by the STEREO spacecraft, and prototyping CubeSat hardware. Student research efforts can provide useful results for future research efforts by the faculty while the students gain unique exposure to space physics and a science career. In addition, the students complete a team project. Since 2006, that project has been the construction and flight of a high-altitude balloon payload and instruments. The students typically build the instruments they fly. In the process, students learn circuit design and construction, microcontroller programming, and core atmospheric and space science. Our payload design has evolved significantly since the first flight of a simple rectangular box and now involves a stable descent vehicle that does not require a parachute, an on-board flight control computer, in-flight autonomous control and data acquisition of multiple student-built instruments, and real-time camera images sent to ground. This is a program that can be used as a model for other schools to follow and that high schools can initiate. More information can be found at .

Integration of NASA Research into Undergraduate Education in Math, Science, Engineering and Technology at North Carolina A&T State University

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Monroe, Joseph; Kelkar, Ajit

2003-01-01

The NASA PAIR program incorporated the NASA-Sponsored research into the undergraduate environment at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. This program is designed to significantly improve undergraduate education in the areas of mathematics, science, engineering, and technology (MSET) by directly benefiting from the experiences of NASA field centers, affiliated industrial partners and academic institutions. The three basic goals of the program were enhancing core courses in MSET curriculum, upgrading core-engineering laboratories to compliment upgraded MSET curriculum, and conduct research training for undergraduates in MSET disciplines through a sophomore shadow program and through Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) programs. Since the inception of the program nine courses have been modified to include NASA related topics and research. These courses have impacted over 900 students in the first three years of the program. The Electrical Engineering circuit's lab is completely re-equipped to include Computer controlled and data acquisition equipment. The Physics lab is upgraded to implement better sensory data acquisition to enhance students understanding of course concepts. In addition a new instrumentation laboratory in the department of Mechanical Engineering is developed. Research training for A&T students was conducted through four different programs: Apprentice program, Developers program, Sophomore Shadow program and Independent Research program. These programs provided opportunities for an average of forty students per semester.

The Summer Undergraduate Research Internship Program at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cline, J. Donald; Castelaz, M.; Whitworth, C.; Clavier, D.; Owen, L.; Barker, T.

2012-01-01

Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) offers summer undergraduate research internships. PARI has received support for the internships from the NC Space Grant Consortium, NSF awards for public science education, private donations, private foundations, and through a collaboration with the Pisgah Astronomical Research and Education Center of the University of North Carolina - Asheville. The internship program began in 2001 with 4 students. This year 7 funded students participated in 2011. Mentors for the interns include PARI's Science, Education, and Information Technology Directors and visiting faculty who are members of the PARI Research Affiliate Faculty program. Students work with mentors on radio and optical astronomy research, electrical engineering for robotic control of instruments, software development for instrument control and software for citizen science projects, and science education by developing curricula and multimedia and teaching high school students in summer programs at PARI. At the end of the summer interns write a paper about their research which is published in the PARI Summer Student Proceedings. Several of the students have presented their results at AAS Meetings. We will present a summary of specific research conducted by the students with their mentors, the logistics for hosting the PARI undergraduate internship program, and plans for growth based on the impact of an NSF supported renovation to the Research Building on the PARI campus.

The Summer Undergraduate Research Internship Program at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castelaz, Michael W.; Cline, J.; Whitworth, C.; Clavier, D.

2011-01-01

Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) offers summer undergraduate research internships. PARI has received support for the internships from the NC Space Grant Consortium, NSF awards for public science education, private donations, private foundations, and through a collaboration with the Pisgah Astronomical Research and Education Center of the University of North Carolina - Asheville. The internship program began in 2001 with 4 students. This year 9 funded students participated in 2010. Mentors for the interns include PARI's Directors of Science, Education, and Information Technology and visiting faculty who are members of the PARI Research Affiliate Faculty program. Students work with mentors on radio and optical astronomy research, electrical engineering for robotic control of instruments, software development for instrument control and applets for citizen science projects, and science education by developing curricula and multimedia and teaching high school students in summer programs at PARI. At the end of the summer interns write a paper about their research which is published in the PARI Summer Student Proceedings. Several of the students have presented their results at AAS Meetings. We will present a summary of specific research conducted by the students with their mentors, the logistics for hosting the PARI undergraduate internship program, and plans for growth based on the impact of an NSF supported renovation to the Research Building on the PARI campus.

The Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment : A CubeSat for Space Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palo, Scott; Li, Xinlin; Gerhardt, David; Turner, Drew; Hoxie, V.; Kohnert, Rick; Batiste, Susan

Energetic particles, electrons and protons either directly associated with solar flares or trapped in the terrestrial radiation belt, have a profound space weather impact. A National Science Foundation supported 3U CubeSat mission with a single instrument, Relativistic Electrons and Proton Telescope integrated little experiment (REPTile), is proposed to address fundamental scientific questions relating to these high energy particles. Of key importance are the relation-ship between solar flares and energetic particles and the acceleration and loss mechanism of outer radiation belt electrons. REPTile, operating in a highly inclined low earth orbit, will measure differential fluxes of relativistic electrons in the energy range of 0.5-3.5 MeV and pro-tons in 10-40 MeV. The Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment cubesat will be designed, integrated and testing by students at the University of Colorado under the oversight of pro-fessional engineers with the Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics who have extensive space hardware experience. Our design philosophy is to use commercially off the shelf (COTS) parts where available and only engage in detailed designed where COTS parts cannot meet the system needs. The top level science requirements for the mission have driven the system and subsystem level performance requirements and the specific design choices such as a passive magnetic attitude system and instrument design. In this paper we will present details of the CSSWE design and management approach. Specifically we will discuss the top level science requirements for the mission and show that these measurements are novel and will address open questions in the scientific community. The overall system architecture resulting from a flow-down of these requirements will be presented with a focus on the novel aspects of the system including the instrument design. Finally we will discuss how this project is organized and man-aged as part of the Department of Aerospace Engineering graduate projects course sequence along with the integration of professional engineers in the program. It is often underappreciated that the management of a student project, given the transient nature of the students in the program, is more challenging than many of the technical aspects. We will discuss our process to managing this project risk along with our pedagological philosophy for student learning and its relationship to a small satellite program.

In Situ Water Vapor Measurements Using Coupled UV Fragment Fluorescence/Absorption Spectroscopy in Support of CRYSTAL-FACE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, James G.

2004-01-01

Understanding the coupling of dynamics, chemistry, and radiation within the context of the NASA Earth Science Enterprise (ESE) and the national Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) requires, as a first-order priority, high spatial resolution, high-accuracy observations of water in its various phases. Given the powerful diagnostic importance of the condensed phases of water for dynamics and the impact of phase changes in water on the radiation field, the accurate, in situ observation of water vapor is of central importance to CRYSTAL FACE (CF). This is clear both from the defined scientific objectives of the NRA and from developments in the coupled fields of stratosphere/troposphere exchange, cirrus cloud formation/removal and mechanisms for the distribution of water vapor in the middle/upper troposphere. Accordingly, we were funded under NASA Grant NAG5-11548 to perform the following tasks for the CF mission: 1. Prepare the water vapor instrument for integration into the WB57F and test flights scheduled for Spring 2002. 2. Calibrate and prepare the water vapor instrument for the Summer 2002 CF science flights based in Jacksonville, Florida. 3. Provide both science and engineering support for the above-mentioned efforts. 4. Analyze and interpret the CF data in collaboration with other mission scientists. 5. Attend the science workshop in Spring 2003. 6. Publish the data and analysis in peer-reviewed journals.

Radiation Beamline Testbeds for the Simulation of Planetary and Spacecraft Environments for Human and Robotic Mission Risk Assessment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilkins, Richard

2010-01-01

The Center for Radiation Engineering and Science for Space Exploration (CRESSE) at Prairie View A&M University, Prairie View, Texas, USA, is establishing an integrated, multi-disciplinary research program on the scientific and engineering challenges faced by NASA and the international space community caused by space radiation. CRESSE focuses on space radiation research directly applicable to astronaut health and safety during future long term, deep space missions, including Martian, lunar, and other planetary body missions beyond low earth orbit. The research approach will consist of experimental and theoretical radiation modeling studies utilizing particle accelerator facilities including: 1. NASA Space Radiation Laboratory (NSRL) at Brookhaven National Laboratory; 2. Proton Synchrotron at Loma Linda University Medical Center; and 3. Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Specifically, CRESSE investigators are designing, developing, and building experimental test beds that simulate the lunar and Martian radiation environments for experiments focused on risk assessment for astronauts and instrumentation. The testbeds have been designated the Bioastronautics Experimental Research Testbeds for Environmental Radiation Nostrum Investigations and Education (BERT and ERNIE). The designs of BERT and ERNIE will allow for a high degree of flexibility and adaptability to modify experimental configurations to simulate planetary surface environments, planetary habitats, and spacecraft interiors. In the nominal configuration, BERT and ERIE will consist of a set of experimental zones that will simulate the planetary atmosphere (Solid CO2 in the case of the Martian surface.), the planetary surface, and sub-surface regions. These experimental zones can be used for dosimetry, shielding, biological, and electronic effects radiation studies in support of space exploration missions. BERT and ERNIE are designed to be compatible with the experimental areas associated with the above facilities. CRESSE has broad expertise in space radiation in the areas of space radiation environment modeling, Monte-Carlo radiation transport modeling, space radiation instrumentation and dosimetry, radiation effects on electronics, and multi-functional composite shielding materials. The BERT and ERNIE testbeds will be utilized in individual and collaborative research incorporating this expertise. The research goal is to maximize the technical readiness level (TRL) of radiation instrumentation for human and robotic missions, optimizing the return value of CRESSE for NASA exploration and international co-operative missions. Outcomes and knowledge from research utilizing BERT and ERNIE will be applied to a variety of scientific and engineering disciplines vital for safe and reliable execution of future space exploration missions, which can be negatively impacted by the space radiation environment. The testbeds will be central to a variety of university educational activities and educational goals of NASA. Specifically, BERT and ERNIE will enhance educational opportunities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines for engineering and science students at PVAMU, a historically black college/university. Preliminary data on prototype testbed configurations, including simulated lunar regolith (JSC-1A stimulant based on Apollo 11 samples), regolith/polyethylene composites, and dry ice, will be presented to demonstrate the usefulness of BERT and ERNIE in radiation beam line experiments.

Radiation beamline testbeds for the simulation of planetary and spacecraft environments for human and robotic mission risk assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkins, Richard

The Center for Radiation Engineering and Science for Space Exploration (CRESSE) at Prairie View A&M University, Prairie View, Texas, USA, is establishing an integrated, multi-disciplinary research program on the scientific and engineering challenges faced by NASA and the inter-national space community caused by space radiation. CRESSE focuses on space radiation research directly applicable to astronaut health and safety during future long term, deep space missions, including Martian, lunar, and other planetary body missions beyond low earth orbit. The research approach will consist of experimental and theoretical radiation modeling studies utilizing particle accelerator facilities including: 1. NASA Space Radiation Laboratory (NSRL) at Brookhaven National Laboratory; 2. Proton Synchrotron at Loma Linda University Med-ical Center; and 3. Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Specifically, CRESSE investigators are designing, developing, and building experimental test beds that simulate the lunar and Martian radiation environments for experiments focused on risk assessment for astronauts and instrumentation. The testbeds have been designated the Bioastronautics Experimental Research Testbeds for Environmental Radiation Nostrum Investigations and Education (BERT and ERNIE). The designs of BERT and ERNIE will allow for a high degree of flexibility and adaptability to modify experimental configurations to simulate planetary surface environments, planetary habitats, and spacecraft interiors. In the nominal configuration, BERT and ERIE will consist of a set of experimental zones that will simulate the planetary atmosphere (Solid CO2 in the case of the Martian surface.), the planetary surface, and sub-surface regions. These experimental zones can be used for dosimetry, shielding, biological, and electronic effects radiation studies in support of space exploration missions. BERT and ERNIE are designed to be compatible with the experimental areas associated with the above facilities. CRESSE has broad expertise in space radiation in the areas of space radiation environment modeling, Monte-Carlo radiation transport modeling, space radiation instrumentation and dosimetry, radiation effects on electronics, and multi-functional composite shielding materi-als. The BERT and ERNIE testbeds will be utilized in individual and collaborative research incorporating this expertise. The research goal is to maximize the technical readiness level (TRL) of radiation instrumentation for human and robotic missions, optimizing the return value of CRESSE for NASA exploration and international co-operative missions. Outcomes and knowledge from research utilizing BERT and ERNIE will be applied to a variety of scien-tific and engineering disciplines vital for safe and reliable execution of future space exploration missions, which can be negatively impacted by the space radiation environment. The testbeds will be central to a variety of university educational activities and educational goals of NASA. Specifically, BERT and ERNIE will enhance educational opportunities in science, technol-ogy, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines for engineering and science students at PVAMU, a historically black college/university. Preliminary data on prototype testbed configurations, including simulated lunar regolith (JSC-1A stimulant based on Apollo 11 samples), regolith/polyethylene composites, and dry ice, will be presented to demonstrate the usefulness of BERT and ERNIE in radiation beam line experiments.

Design and Requirements Creep In A Build-To-Print Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peabody, Sharon A.; Otero, Veronica

2017-01-01

Build-to-Print designs, or rebuilds of flight proven designs, are attractive to mission stakeholders, as they give the appearance of minimal engineering development cost, risk, and schedule. The reality is that seldom is a project an exact duplicate of a predecessor. Mission reclassification, improvements in hardware, and science objective changes can all serve as a source of requirements and design creep and have ramifications often not fully anticipated during initial proposals. The Thermal Infrared Sensor Instrument (TIRS) was a late addition to the LandSat-8 program to provide infrared imaging to measure evapotranspiration for water cycle management. To meet the launch requirements for LandSat-8, instrument design life requirements were relaxed, the sensor development expedited, and technology development was minimized. Consequently, TIRS was designed as a higher risk instrument, with less redundancy than an instrument critical to mission success. After the successful LandSat-8 launch in 2013 and instrument performance, a rebuild of the instrument for the next LandSat spacecraft was included in the baseline mission success criteria. This paper discusses the technical challenges encountered during the rebuild of the TIRS-2 (Thermal Infrared Sensor 2) instrument and the resultant impacts on the thermal system design.

Interacting with Petabytes of Earth Science Data using Jupyter Notebooks, IPython Widgets and Google Earth Engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erickson, T. A.; Granger, B.; Grout, J.; Corlay, S.

2017-12-01

The volume of Earth science data gathered from satellites, aircraft, drones, and field instruments continues to increase. For many scientific questions in the Earth sciences, managing this large volume of data is a barrier to progress, as it is difficult to explore and analyze large volumes of data using the traditional paradigm of downloading datasets to a local computer for analysis. Furthermore, methods for communicating Earth science algorithms that operate on large datasets in an easily understandable and reproducible way are needed. Here we describe a system for developing, interacting, and sharing well-documented Earth Science algorithms that combines existing software components: Jupyter Notebook: An open-source, web-based environment that supports documents that combine code and computational results with text narrative, mathematics, images, and other media. These notebooks provide an environment for interactive exploration of data and development of well documented algorithms. Jupyter Widgets / ipyleaflet: An architecture for creating interactive user interface controls (such as sliders, text boxes, etc.) in Jupyter Notebooks that communicate with Python code. This architecture includes a default set of UI controls (sliders, dropboxes, etc.) as well as APIs for building custom UI controls. The ipyleaflet project is one example that offers a custom interactive map control that allows a user to display and manipulate geographic data within the Jupyter Notebook. Google Earth Engine: A cloud-based geospatial analysis platform that provides access to petabytes of Earth science data via a Python API. The combination of Jupyter Notebooks, Jupyter Widgets, ipyleaflet, and Google Earth Engine makes it possible to explore and analyze massive Earth science datasets via a web browser, in an environment suitable for interactive exploration, teaching, and sharing. Using these environments can make Earth science analyses easier to understand and reproducible, which may increase the rate of scientific discoveries and the transition of discoveries into real-world impacts.

Spacelab Life Sciences 1, development towards successive life sciences flights

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dalton, B. P.; Jahns, G.; Hogan, R.

1992-01-01

A general review is presented of flight data and related hardware developments for Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS) 1 with an eye toward applying this knowledge to projected flight planning. Specific attention is given to the Research Animal Holding Facility (RAHF), the General Purpose Work Station (GPWS), the Small Mass Measuring Instrument (SMMI), and the Animal Enclosure Module (AEM). Preflight and in-flight testing methods are detailed including biocompatibility tests, parametric engineering sensitivity analyses, measurements of environmental parameters, and studies of operational interfaces. Particulate containment is demonstrated for some of the equipment, and successful use of the GPWS, RAHF, AEM, and SMMI are reported. The in-flight data are useful for developing more advanced hardware such as the AEM for SLS flight 2 and the modified RAHF for SLS flight 3.

Light Echo

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

"Light Echo" Illuminates Dust Around Supergiant Star V838 Monocerotis (V838 Mon) Credit: NASA and The Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/STScI) The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute conducts Hubble science operations. Goddard is responsible for HST project management, including mission and science operations, servicing missions, and all associated development activities. To learn more about the Hubble Space Telescope go here: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/index.html NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is home to the nation's largest organization of combined scientists, engineers and technologists that build spacecraft, instruments and new technology to study the Earth, the sun, our solar system, and the universe. Follow us on Twitter Join us on Facebook

On the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM): Bringing NASA's Earth System Science Program to the Classroom

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shepherd, J. Marshall

1998-01-01

The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission is the first mission dedicated to measuring tropical and subtropical rainfall using a variety of remote sensing instrumentation, including the first spaceborne rain-measuring radar. Since the energy released when tropical rainfall occurs is a primary "fuel" supply for the weather and climate "engine"; improvements in computer models which predict future weather and climate states may depend on better measurements of global tropical rainfall and its energy. In support of the STANYS conference theme of Education and Space, this presentation focuses on one aspect of NASA's Earth Systems Science Program. We seek to present an overview of the TRMM mission. This overview will discuss the scientific motivation for TRMM, the TRMM instrument package, and recent images from tropical rainfall systems and hurricanes. The presentation also targets educational components of the TRMM mission in the areas of weather, mathematics, technology, and geography that can be used by secondary school/high school educators in the classroom.

Solar Polar ORbit Telescope (SPORT): A Potential Space Weather Mission of China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Y. D.; Xiong, M.; Wu, J.; Liu, H.; Zheng, J.; Li, B.; Zhang, C.; Sun, W.

2013-12-01

We describe a spacecraft mission, named Solar Polar ORbit Telescope (SPORT), which is currently under a scientific and engineering background study in China. SPORT was originally proposed in 2004 by the National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences. It will carry a suite of remote-sensing and in-situ instruments to observe coronal mass ejections (CMEs), solar high-latitude magnetism, and the fast solar wind from a polar orbit around the Sun. It is intended to be the first mission that carries remote-sensing instruments from a high-latitude orbit around the Sun, the first mission that could image interplanetary CMEs at radio wavelengths from space, and the first mission that could measure solar high-latitude magnetism leading to eruptions and the fast solar wind. The first extended view of the polar region of the Sun and the ecliptic plane enabled by SPORT will provide a unique opportunity to study CME propagation through the inner heliosphere and solar high-latitude magnetism giving rise to eruptions and the fast solar wind.

KSC-2015-1217

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-01-28

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Wendy Edelstein, instrument manager for NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive mission, or SMAP, discusses the science and engineering of the mission with the audience of a NASA Social held at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. This NASA Social brought together mission scientists and engineers with an audience of 70 students, educators, social media managers, bloggers, photographers and videographers who were selected from a pool of 325 applicants from 45 countries to participate in launch activities and communicate their experience with social media followers. The SMAP mission is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg on Jan. 29. To learn more about SMAP, visit http://www.nasa.gov/smap. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

COBE On-Orbit Engineering Performance, volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1990-01-01

The Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) was successfully launched on Nov. 18, 1989. The Delta Launch Vehicle performed flawlessly, and observatory deployments occurred as planned. The dewar cover successfully deployed on day 4, as planned, and the cryogen temperature is currently at 1.41 K. All three instruments are operating and acquiring science data, and the Payload Operational Control Center (POCC)/Network support has been excellent. Various performance aspects of the COBE are presented in view graph form.

The deep space network, volume 6

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1971-01-01

Progress on Deep Space Network (DSN) supporting research and technology is presented, together with advanced development and engineering, implementation, and DSN operations of flight projects. The DSN is described. Interplanetary and planetary flight projects and radio science experiments are discussed. Tracking and navigational accuracy analysis, communications systems and elements research, and supporting research are considered. Development of the ground communications and deep space instrumentation facilities is also presented. Network allocation schedules and angle tracking and test development are included.

Solar Eclipse (1979) Part I. Atmospheric Sciences Laboratory Field Program Summary

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-05-01

from a location approximately 30 km southeast of the small rocket sites. The large rocket launch site was separated from the instrumentation site by...Ord, CA 93941 San Diego, CA 92152 SRI International Commander 4 ATTN: K2060/Dr. Edward E. Uthe Naval Ocean Systems Center 333 Ravenswood Avenue ATTN...Engineering Experiment Station ATTN: Code 4473 (Tech Library) ATTN: Dr. James C. Wiltse San Diego, CA 92152 Atlanta, GA 30332 The RANJD Corporation

EOS MLS Level 1B Data Processing Software. Version 3

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perun, Vincent S.; Jarnot, Robert F.; Wagner, Paul A.; Cofield, Richard E., IV; Nguyen, Honghanh T.; Vuu, Christina

2011-01-01

This software is an improvement on Version 2, which was described in EOS MLS Level 1B Data Processing, Version 2.2, NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 33, No. 5 (May 2009), p. 34. It accepts the EOS MLS Level 0 science/engineering data, and the EOS Aura spacecraft ephemeris/attitude data, and produces calibrated instrument radiances and associated engineering and diagnostic data. This version makes the code more robust, improves calibration, provides more diagnostics outputs, defines the Galactic core more finely, and fixes the equator crossing. The Level 1 processing software manages several different tasks. It qualifies each data quantity using instrument configuration and checksum data, as well as data transmission quality flags. Statistical tests are applied for data quality and reasonableness. The instrument engineering data (e.g., voltages, currents, temperatures, and encoder angles) is calibrated by the software, and the filter channel space reference measurements are interpolated onto the times of each limb measurement with the interpolates being differenced from the measurements. Filter channel calibration target measurements are interpolated onto the times of each limb measurement, and are used to compute radiometric gain. The total signal power is determined and analyzed by each digital autocorrelator spectrometer (DACS) during each data integration. The software converts each DACS data integration from an autocorrelation measurement in the time domain into a spectral measurement in the frequency domain, and estimates separately the spectrally, smoothly varying and spectrally averaged components of the limb port signal arising from antenna emission and scattering effects. Limb radiances are also calibrated.

Development and Deployment of Unmanned Aircraft Instrumentation for Measuring Quantities Related to Land Surface-Atmosphere Interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Boer, G.; Lawrence, D.; Elston, J.; Argrow, B. M.; Palo, S. E.; Curry, N.; Finamore, W.; Mack, J.; LoDolce, G.; Schmid, B.; Long, C. N.; Bland, G.; Maslanik, J. A.; Gao, R. S.; Telg, H.; Semmer, S.; Maclean, G.; Ivey, M.; Hock, T. F.; Bartram, B.; Bendure, A.; Stachura, M.

2015-12-01

Use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) in evaluation of geophysical parameters is expanding at a rapid rate. Despite limitation imposed by necessary regulations related to operation of UAS in the federal airspace, several groups have developed and deployed a variety of UAS and the associated sensors to make measurements of the atmosphere, land surface, ocean and cryosphere. Included in this grouping is work completed at the University of Colorado - Boulder, which has an extended history of operating UAS and expanding their use in the earth sciences. Collaborative projects between the department of Aerospace Engineering, the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), the Research and Engineering Center for Unmanned Vehicles (RECUV), the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and National Centers for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) have resulted in deployment of UAS to a variety of environments, including the Arctic. In this presentation, I will give an overview of some recent efforts lead by the University of Colorado to develop and deploy a variety of UAS. Work presented will emphasize recent campaigns and instrument development and testing related to understanding the land-atmosphere interface. Specifically, information on systems established for evaluating surface radiation (including albedo), turbulent exchange of water vapor, heat and gasses, and aerosol processes will be presented, along with information on the use of terrestrial ecosystem sensing to provide critical measurments for the evaluation of lower atmospheric flux measurements.

Penetrator role in Mars sample strategy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Boynton, William; Dwornik, Steve; Eckstrom, William; Roalstad, David A.

1988-01-01

The application of the penetrator to a Mars Return Sample Mission (MRSM) has direct advantages to meet science objectives and mission safety. Based on engineering data and work currently conducted at Ball Aerospace Systems Division, the concept of penetrators as scientific instruments is entirely practical. The primary utilization of a penetrator for MRSM would be to optimize the selection of the sample site location and to help in selection of the actual sample to be returned to Earth. It is recognized that the amount of sample to be returned is very limited, therefore the selection of the sample site is critical to the success of the mission. The following mission scenario is proposed. The site selection of a sample to be acquired will be performed by science working groups. A decision will be reached and a set of target priorities established based on data to give geochemical, geophysical and geological information. The first task of a penetrator will be to collect data at up to 4 to 6 possible landing sites. The penetrator can include geophysical, geochemical, geological and engineering instruments to confirm that scientific data requirements at that site will be met. This in situ near real-time data, collected prior to final targeting of the lander, will insure that the sample site is both scientifically valuable and also that it is reachable within limits of the capability of the lander.

Earth Science Research at the Homestake Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roggenthen, W.; Wang, J.

2004-12-01

The Homestake Mine in South Dakota ceased gold production in 2002 and was sealed for entry in 2003. The announcement of mine closure triggered the revival of a national initiative to establish a deep underground facility, currently known as the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL). The National Science Foundation announced that solicitations were to be issued in 2004 and 2005, with the first one (known as S-1) issued in June, 2004. The focus of S-1 is on site non-specific technical requirements to define the scientific program at DUSEL. Earth scientists and physicists participated in an S-1 workshop at Berkeley in August, 2004. This abstract presents the prospects of the Homestake Mine to accommodate the earth science scientific programs defined at the S-1 workshop. The Homestake Mine has hundreds of kilometers of drifts over fifty levels accessible (upon mine reopening) for water evaluation, seepage quantification, seismic monitoring, geophysical imaging, geological mapping, mineral sampling, ecology and geo-microbiology. The extensive network of drifts, ramps, and vertical shafts allows installation of 10-kilometer-scale seismograph and electromagnetic networks. Ramps connecting different levels, typically separated by 150 ft, could be instrumented for flow and transport studies, prior to implementation of coupled thermal-hydro-chemical-mechanical-biological processes testing. Numerous large rooms are available for ecological and introduced-material evaluations. Ideas for installing instruments in cubic kilometers of rock mass can be realized over multiple levels. Environmental assessment, petroleum recovery, carbon sequestration were among the applications discussed in the S-1 workshop. If the Homestake Mine can be expediently reopened, earth scientists are ready to perform important tests with a phased approach. The drifts and ramps directly below the large open pit could be the first area for shallow testing. The 4,850 ft level is the next target area, which has a large lateral extent. Geophysical sensor stations could be installed at this level, together with stations along two main shafts accessing this level, and one winze below. After dewatering, rock mechanics and geotechnical engineering investigators could actively participate in room siting and excavation, at depths up to 8,000 ft. Geochemistry and geo-microbiology scientists would prefer additional drilling in deep zones beyond the mining and flooding perturbations. Additional earth science programs are being developed for the Homestake Mine, utilizing multiple levels and shafts. Many physics experiments require a site "as deep as possible" and special conditions to reduce background and cosmic rays. The Homestake Mine offers a very deep site and a vast amount of data and knowledge associated with its 125 years of mining operation. The cores from exploratory drilling into a mechanical strong unit, the Yates Formation, are available for scientific and engineering evaluations. A team from many institutions is being formed by Kevin Lesko, a neutrino scientist with experience in detecting neutrino oscillations with deep detectors in Canada and Japan. It is time for the United States to establish a DUSEL deep and large enough for next-generation physics and earth science long-term experiments. The Homestake Mine has these necessary attributes. The collaboration welcomes participation and contribution from scientists and engineers in the physics and earth science community for multi-disciplinary research during and after the restoration and conversion of the Homestake Mine.

The Geostationary Fourier Transform Spectrometer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Key, Richard; Sander, Stanley; Eldering, Annmarie; Miller, Charles; Frankenberg, Christian; Natra, Vijay; Rider, David; Blavier, Jean-Francois; Bekker, Dmitriy; Wu, Yen-Hung

2012-01-01

The Geostationary Fourier Transform Spectrometer (GeoFTS) is an imaging spectrometer designed for an earth science mission to measure key atmospheric trace gases and process tracers related to climate change and human activity. The GeoFTS instrument is a half meter cube size instrument designed to operate in geostationary orbit as a secondary "hosted" payload on a commercial geostationary satellite mission. The advantage of GEO is the ability to continuously stare at a region of the earth, enabling frequent sampling to capture the diurnal variability of biogenic fluxes and anthropogenic emissions from city to continental scales. The science goal is to obtain a process-based understanding of the carbon cycle from simultaneous high spatial resolution measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), carbon monoxide (CO), and chlorophyll fluorescence (CF) many times per day in the near infrared spectral region to capture their spatial and temporal variations on diurnal, synoptic, seasonal and interannual time scales. The GeoFTS instrument is based on a Michelson interferometer design with a number of advanced features incorporated. Two of the most important advanced features are the focal plane arrays and the optical path difference mechanism. A breadboard GeoFTS instrument has demonstrated functionality for simultaneous measurements in the visible and IR in the laboratory and subsequently in the field at the California Laboratory for Atmospheric Remote Sensing (CLARS) observatory on Mt. Wilson overlooking the Los Angeles basin. A GeoFTS engineering model instrument is being developed which will make simultaneous visible and IR measurements under space flight like environmental conditions (thermal-vacuum at 180 K). This will demonstrate critical instrument capabilities such as optical alignment stability, interferometer modulation efficiency, and high throughput FPA signal processing. This will reduce flight instrument development risk and show that the GeoFTS design is mature and flight ready.

Mars2020 Entry, Descent, and Landing Instrumentation (MEDLI2): Science Objectives and Instrument Requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bose, Deepak; White, Todd; Schoenenberger, Mark; Karlgaard, Chris; Wright, Henry

2015-01-01

NASAs exploration and technology roadmaps call for capability advancements in Mars entry, descent, and landing (EDL) systems to enable increased landed mass, a higher landing precision, and a wider planetary access. It is also recognized that these ambitious EDL performance goals must be met while maintaining a low mission risk in order to pave the way for future human missions. As NASA is engaged in developing new EDL systems and technologies via testing at Earth, instrumentation of existing Mars missions is providing valuable engineering data for performance improvement, risk reduction, and an improved definition of entry loads and environment. The most notable recent example is the Mars Entry, Descent and Landing Instrument (MEDLI) suite hosted by Mars Science Laboratory for its entry in Aug 2012. The MEDLI suite provided a comprehensive dataset for Mars entry aerodynamics, aerothermodynamics and thermal protection system (TPS) performance. MEDLI data has since been used for unprecedented reconstruction of aerodynamic drag, vehicle attitude, in-situ atmospheric density, aerothermal heating, and transition to turbulence, in-depth TPS performance and TPS ablation. [1,2] In addition to validating predictive models, MEDLI data has demonstrated extra margin available in the MSL forebody TPS, which can potentially be used to reduce vehicle parasitic mass. The presentation will introduce a follow-on MEDLI instrumentation suite (called MEDLI2) that is being developed for Mars-2020 mission. MEDLI2 has an enhanced scope that includes backshell instrumentation, a wider forebody coverage, and instruments that specifically target supersonic aerodynamics. Similar to MEDLI, MEDLI2 uses thermal plugs with embedded thermocouples and ports through the TPS to measure surface pressure. MEDLI2, however, also includes heat flux sensors in the backshell and a low range pressure transducer to measure afterbody pressure.

Students' Awareness and Perceptions of Learning Engineering: Content and Construct Validation of an Instrument

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duncan-Wiles, Daphne S.

2012-01-01

With the recent addition of engineering to most K-12 testable state standards, efficient and comprehensive instruments are needed to assess changes in student knowledge and perceptions of engineering. In this study, I developed the Students' Awareness and Perceptions of Learning Engineering (STAPLE) instrument to quantitatively measure fourth…

Intonation and compensation of fretted string instruments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Varieschi, Gabriele; Gower, Christina

2011-04-01

We discuss theoretical and physical models that are useful for analyzing the intonation of musical instruments such as guitars and mandolins and can be used to improve the tuning on these instruments. The placement of frets on the fingerboard is designed according to mathematical rules and the assumption of an ideal string. The analysis becomes more complicated when we include the effects of deformation of the string and inharmonicity due to other string characteristics. As a consequence, perfect intonation of all the notes on the instrument cannot be achieved, but complex compensation procedures can be introduced to minimize the problem. To test the validity of these procedures, we performed extensive measurements using standard monochord sonometers and other acoustical devices, confirming the correctness of our theoretical models. These experimental activities can be integrated into acoustics courses and laboratories and can become a more advanced version of basic experiments with monochords and sonometers. This work was supported by a grant from the Frank R. Seaver College of Science and Engineering, Loyola Marymount University.

Design of Mechanisms for Deployable, Optical Instruments: Guidelines for Reducing Hysteresis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lake, Mark S.; Hachkowski, M. Roman

2000-01-01

This paper is intended to facilitate the development of deployable, optical instruments by providing a rational approach for the design, testing, and qualification of high-precision (i.e., low-hysteresis) deployment mechanisms for these instruments. Many of the guidelines included herein come directly from the field of optomechanical engineering, and are, therefore, neither newly developed guidelines, nor are they uniquely applicable to the design of high-precision deployment mechanisms. This paper is to be regarded as a guide to design and not a set of NASA requirements, except as may be defined in formal project specifications. Furthermore, due to the rapid pace of advancement in the field of precision deployment, this paper should be regarded as a preliminary set of guidelines. However, it is expected that this paper, with revisions as experience may indicate to be desirable, might eventually form the basis for a set of uniform design requirements for high-precision deployment mechanisms on future NASA space-based science instruments.

PUCHEROS: a cost-effective solution for high-resolution spectroscopy with small telescopes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vanzi, L.; Chacon, J.; Helminiak, K. G.; Baffico, M.; Rivinius, T.; Štefl, S.; Baade, D.; Avila, G.; Guirao, C.

2012-08-01

We present PUCHEROS, the high-resolution echelle spectrograph, developed at the Center of Astro-Engineering of Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile to provide an effective tool for research and teaching of astronomy. The instrument is fed by a single-channel optical fibre and it covers the visible range from 390 to 730 nm in one shot, reaching a spectral resolution of about 20 000. In the era of extremely large telescopes our instrument aims to exploit the capabilities offered by small telescopes in a cost-effective way, covering the observing needs of a community of astronomers, in Chile and elsewhere, which do not necessarily need large collecting areas for their research. In particular the instrument is well suited for long-term spectroscopic monitoring of bright variable and transient targets down to a V magnitude of about 10. We describe the instrument and present a number of text case examples of observations obtained during commissioning and early science.

Student’s STEM Literacy in Biotechnology Learning at Junior High School

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nurlaely, N.; Permanasari, A.; Riandi, R.

2017-09-01

A considerable study to student’s STEM literacy achievement profile, especially in biotechnology learning, has been conducted to make the innovation of the STEM-based learning. The study aims to find out the STEM literacy. The sample is taken through purposive sampling technique to 45 students of 9th grade of a junior high school in Tasikmalaya district. The instruments are multiple choice questions. Data are analysed by calculating mean score of students’ STEM literacy achievement. The results show that student’s STEM literacy achievement was low. Science literacy aspect was the lowest, while mathematical literacy gained better than another aspect. The low achievement of students’ STEM literacy was because of learning activities that have not been able to integrate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in science learning. The literacy profile indicates the importance of applying STEM approach to science learning, and it is recommended to improve students’ STEM literacy achievement.

Precision engineering for astronomy: historical origins and the future revolution in ground-based astronomy.

PubMed

Cunningham, Colin; Russell, Adrian

2012-08-28

Since the dawn of civilization, the human race has pushed technology to the limit to study the heavens in ever-increasing detail. As astronomical instruments have evolved from those built by Tycho Brahe in the sixteenth century, through Galileo and Newton in the seventeenth, to the present day, astronomers have made ever more precise measurements. To do this, they have pushed the art and science of precision engineering to extremes. Some of the critical steps are described in the evolution of precision engineering from the first telescopes to the modern generation telescopes and ultra-sensitive instruments that need a combination of precision manufacturing, metrology and accurate positioning systems. In the future, precision-engineered technologies such as those emerging from the photonics industries may enable future progress in enhancing the capabilities of instruments, while potentially reducing the size and cost. In the modern era, there has been a revolution in astronomy leading to ever-increasing light-gathering capability. Today, the European Southern Observatory (ESO) is at the forefront of this revolution, building observatories on the ground that are set to transform our view of the universe. At an elevation of 5000 m in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile, the Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA) is nearing completion. The ALMA is the most powerful radio observatory ever and is being built by a global partnership from Europe, North America and East Asia. In the optical/infrared part of the spectrum, the latest project for ESO is even more ambitious: the European Extremely Large Telescope, a giant 40 m class telescope that will also be located in Chile and which will give the most detailed view of the universe so far.

Concept of Science Data Management for the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Joo Hyeon

2016-10-01

South Korea has a plan to explore the Moon in 2018 or 2019. For the plan, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute which is a government funded research institute kicked off the Korea Lunar Exploration Development Program in January, 2016 in support of Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning, South Korea.As the 1st stage mission of the program, named as the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter(KPLO), will perform acquisition of high resolution images and science data for investigation of lunar environment as well as the core technology demonstration and validation for space explorations. The scientific instruments consists of three Korean domestic developed science instruments except an imaging instrument and several foreign provided instruments. We are developing a science data management plan to encourage scientific activities using science data acquired by the science instruments.I introduce the Korean domestic developed science instruments and present concept of the science data management plan for data delivery, processing, and distribution for the science instruments.

Attitude Determination and Control Subsystem (ADCS) Preparations for the EPOXI Flyby of Comet Hartley 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luna, Michael E.; Collins, Steven M.

2011-01-01

On November 4, 2010 the former "Deep Impact" spacecraft, renamed "EPOXI" for its extended mission, flew within 700km of comet 103P/Hartley 2. In July 2005, the spacecraft had previously imaged a probe impact of comet Tempel 1. The EPOXI flyby was the fifth close encounter of a spacecraft with a comet nucleus and marked the first time in history that two comet nuclei were imaged at close range with the same suite of onboard science instruments. This challenging objective made the function of the attitude determination and control subsystem (ADCS) critical to the successful execution of the EPOXI flyby.As part of the spacecraft flyby preparations, the ADCS operations team had to perform meticulous sequence reviews, implement complex spacecraft engineering and science activities and perform numerous onboard calibrations. ADCS contributions included design and execution of 10 trajectory correction maneuvers, the science calibration of the two telescopic instruments, an in-flight demonstration of high-rate turns between Earth and comet point, and an ongoing assessment of reaction wheel health. The ADCS team was also responsible for command sequences that included updates to the onboard ephemeris and sun sensor coefficients and implementation of reaction wheel assembly (RWA) de-saturations.

2012 Summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates at Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castelaz, Michael W.; Cline, J. D.; Whitworth, C.; Clavier, D.; Owen, L.

2013-01-01

Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) offers research experiences for undergraduates (REU). PARI receives support for the internships from the NC Space Grant Consortium, NSF awards, private donations, and industry partner funding. The PARI REU program began in 2001 with 4 students and has averaged 6 students per year over the past 11 years. This year PARI hosted 8 funded REU students. Mentors for the interns include PARI’s Science, Education, and Information Technology staff and visiting faculty who are members of the PARI Research Faculty Affiliate program. Students work with mentors on radio and optical astronomy research, electrical engineering for robotic control of instruments, software development for instrument control and software for citizen science projects, and science education by developing curricula and multimedia and teaching high school students in summer programs at PARI. At the end of the summer interns write a paper about their research which is published in the annually published PARI Summer Student Proceedings. Several of the students have presented their results at AAS Meetings. We will present a summary of specific research conducted by the students with their mentors and the logistics for hosting the PARI undergraduate internship program.

Total Water Measurements Using In Situ UV Fragment Fluorescence Spectroscopy in Support of CRYSTAL-FACE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, James G.

2004-01-01

Given both the powerful diagnostic importance of the condensed phases of water for dynamics and the impact of phase changes in water on the radiation field, the accurate, in situ observation of total water is of central importance to CRYSTAL-FACE. This is clear both from the defined scientific objectives of the NRA and from developments in the coupled fields of stratosphere/troposphere exchange, cirrus cloud formation/removal and mechanisms for the distribution of water vapor in the middle/upper troposphere. Accordingly, we were funded under NASA Grant NAG5-115487 to perform the following tasks for the CRYSTAL-FACE mission that took place in Key West, Florida, during July 2001: 1) Prepare the Total Water instrument for integration into the WB57F and test flights scheduled for Spring 2002. 2) Calibrate and prepare the Total Water instrument for the Summer 2002 CRYSTAL-FACE science flights based in Jacksonville, Florida. 3) Provide both science and engineering support for the above-mentioned efforts. 4) Analyze and interpret the CRYSTAL-FACE data in collaboration with the other mission scientists. 5) Attend the proposed science workshop in Spring 2003. 6) Publish the data and analysis in peer-reviewed journals.

Engineering a Healthier Watershed: Middle School Students Use Engineering Design to Lessen the Impact of Their Campus' Impervious Surfaces on Their Local Watershed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, Elizabeth Claire

It is important that students understand not only how their local watershed functions, but also how it is being impacted by impervious surfaces. Additionally, students need experience exploring the scientific and engineering practices that are necessary for a strong STEM background. With this knowledge students can be empowered to tackle this real and local problem using engineering design, a powerful practice gaining momentum and clarity through its prominence in the recent Framework for K-12 Science Education. Twenty classes of suburban sixth-graders participated in a new five-week Watershed Engineering Design Unit taught by their regular science teachers. Students engaged in scientific inquiry to learn about the structure, function, and health of their local watersheds, focusing on the effects of impervious surfaces. In small groups, students used the engineering design process to propose solutions to lessen the impact of runoff from their school campuses. The goal of this evaluation was to determine the effectiveness of the curriculum in terms of student gains in understanding of (1) watershed function, (2) the impact of impervious surfaces, and (3) the engineering design process. To determine the impact of this curriculum on their learning, students took multiple-choice pre- and post-assessments made up of items covering the three categories above. This data was analyzed for statistical significance using a lower-tailed paired sample t-test. All three objectives showed statistically significant learning gains and the results were used to recommend improvements to the curriculum and the assessment instrument for future iterations.

NuSTAR: system engineering and modeling challenges in pointing reconstruction for a deployable x-ray telescope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harp, D. Isaiah; Liebe, Carl Christian; Craig, William; Harrison, Fiona; Kruse-Madsen, Kristin; Zoglauer, Andreas

2010-07-01

The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) is a NASA Small Explorer mission that will make the first sensitive images of the sky in the high energy X-ray band (6 - 80 keV). The NuSTAR observatory consists of two co-aligned grazing incidence hard X-ray telescopes with a ~10 meter focal length, achieved by the on-orbit extension of a deployable mast. A principal science objective of the mission is to locate previously unknown high-energy X-ray sources to an accuracy of 10 arcseconds (3-sigma), sufficient to uniquely identify counterparts at other wavelengths. In order to achieve this, a star tracker and laser metrology system are an integral part of the instrument; in conjunction, they will determine the orientation of the optics bench in celestial coordinates and also measure the flexures in the deployable mast as it responds to the varying on-orbit thermal environment, as well as aerodynamic and control torques. The architecture of the NuSTAR system for solving the attitude and aspect problems differs from that of previous X-ray telescopes, which did not require ex post facto reconstruction of the instantaneous observatory alignment on-orbit. In this paper we describe the NuSTAR instrument metrology system architecture and implementation, focusing on the systems engineering challenges associated with validating the instantaneous transformations between focal plane and celestial coordinates to within the required accuracy. We present a mathematical solution to photon source reconstruction, along with a detailed error budget that relates component errors to science performance. We also describe the architecture of the instrument simulation software being used to validate the end-to-end performance model.

TOPICAL REVIEW: Advances in traceable nanometrology at the National Physical Laboratory†Advances in traceable nanometrology at the National Physical Laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leach, Richard; Haycocks, Jane; Jackson, Keith; Lewis, Andrew; Oldfield, Simon; Yacoot, Andrew

2001-03-01

The only difference between nanotechnology and many other fields of science or engineering is that of size. Control in manufacturing at the nanometre scale still requires accurate and traceable measurements whether one is attempting to machine optical quality glass or write one's company name in single atoms. A number of instruments have been developed at the National Physical Laboratory that address the measurement requirements of the nanotechnology community and provide traceability to the definition of the metre. The instruments discussed in this paper are an atomic force microscope and a surface texture measuring instrument with traceable metrology in all their operational axes, a combined optical and x-ray interferometer system that can be used to calibrate displacement transducers to subnanometre accuracy and a co-ordinate measuring machine with a working volume of (50 mm)3 and 50 nm volumetric accuracy.

A Queriable Repository for HST Telemetry Data, a Case Study in using Data Warehousing for Science and Engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pollizzi, J. A.; Lezon, K.

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) generates on the order of 7,000 telemetry values, many of which are sampled at 1Hz, and with several hundred parameters being sampled at 40Hz. Such data volumes would quickly tax even the largest of processing facilities. Yet the ability to access the telemetry data in a variety of ways, and in particular, using ad hoc (i.e., no a priori fixed) queries, is essential to assuring the long term viability and usefulness of this instrument. As part of the recent NASA initiative to re-engineer HST's ground control systems, a concept arose to apply newly available data warehousing technologies to this problem. The Space Telescope Science Institute was engaged to develop a pilot to investigate the technology and to create a proof-of-concept testbed that could be demonstrated and evaluated for operational use. This paper describes this effort and its results.

The Webb Telescope's 'Golden Spider'

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NASA image release August 23, 2012 What looks like a giant golden spider weaving a web of cables and cords, is actually ground support equipment, including the Optical Telescope Simulator (OSIM), for the James Webb Space Telescope. OSIM's job is to generate a beam of light just like the one that the real telescope optics will feed into the actual flight instruments. Because the real flight instruments will be used to test the real flight telescope, their alignment and performance first have to be verified by using the OSIM. Engineers are thoroughly checking out OSIM now in preparation for using it to test the flight science instruments later. This photo was taken from inside a large thermal-vacuum chamber called the Space Environment Simulator (SES), at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. Engineers have blanketed the structure of the OSIM with special insulating material to help control its temperature while it goes into the deep freeze testing that mimics the chill of space that Webb will ultimately experience in its operational orbit over 1 million miles from Earth. The golden-colored thermal blankets are made of aluminized kapton, a polymer film that remains stable over a wide range of temperatures. The structure that looks like a silver and black cube underneath the "spider" is a set of cold panels that surround OSIM's optics. During testing, OSIM's temperature will drop to 100 Kelvin (-280 F or -173 C) as liquid nitrogen flows through tubes welded to the chamber walls and through tubes along the silver panels surrounding OSIM's optics. These cold panels will keep the OSIM optics very cold, but the parts covered by the aluminized kapton blankets will stay warm. "Some blankets have silver facing out and gold facing in, or inverted, or silver on both sides, etc.," says Erin Wilson, a Goddard engineer. "Depending on which side of the blanket your hardware is looking at, the blankets can help it get colder or stay warmer, in an environmental test." Another reason for thermal blankets is to shield the cold OSIM optics from unwanted stray infrared light. When the OSIM is pointing its calibrated light beam at Webb's science instruments, engineers don't want any stray infrared light, such as "warm photons" from warm structures, leaking into the instruments' field of view. Too much of this stray light would raise the background too much for the instruments to "see" light from the OSIM—it would be like trying to photograph a lightning bug flying in front of car headlights. To get OSIM's optics cold, the inside of the chamber has to get cold, and to do that, all the air has to be pumped out to create a vacuum. Then liquid nitrogen has to be run though the plumbing along the inner walls of the chamber. Wilson notes that's why the blankets have to have vents in them: "That way, the air between all the layers can be evacuated as the chamber pressure drops, otherwise the blankets could pop," says Wilson. The most powerful space telescope ever built, Webb is the successor to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Webb's four instruments will reveal how the universe evolved from the Big Bang to the formation of our solar system. Webb is a joint project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Chris Gunn NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Information Product Development: Data product life cycle links engineering, science, and applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stavros, E. N.; Owen, S. E.

2016-12-01

Information products are assimilated and used to: a) conduct scientific research and b) provide decision support for management and policy. For example, aboveground biomass (i.e. an information product) can be integrated into Earth system models to test hypotheses about the changing world, or used to inform decision-making with respect to natural resource management and policy. Production and dissemination of an information product is referred to as the data product life cycle, which includes: 1) identifying needed information from decision-makers and researchers, 2) engineering an instrument and collecting the raw physical measurements (e.g, number of photons returned), 3) the scientific algorithm(s) for processing the data into an observable (e.g., number of dying trees), and 4) the integration and utilization of that observables by researchers and decision-makers. In this talk, I will discuss the data product life cycle in detail and provide examples from the pre-Hyperspectral Infrared Imager (HyspIRI) airborne campaign and the upcoming NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission. Examples will focus on information products related to terrestrial ecosystems and natural resource management and will demonstrate that the key to providing information products for advancing scientific understanding and informing decision-makers, is the interdisciplinary integration of science, engineering and applied science - noting that applied science defines the wider impact and adoption of scientific principles by a wider community. As pre-HyspIRI airborne data is for research and development and NISAR is not yet launched, examples will include current plans for developing exemplar data products (from pre-HyspIRI) and the mission Applications Plan (for NISAR). Copyright 2016 California Institute of Technology. All Rights Reserved. We acknowledge support of the US Government, NASA, the Earth Science Division and Terrestrial Ecology program.

ViLLaGEs: opto-mechanical design of an on-sky visible-light MEMS-based AO system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grigsby, Bryant; Lockwood, Chris; Baumann, Brian; Gavel, Don; Johnson, Jess; Ammons, S. Mark; Dillon, Daren; Morzinski, Katie; Reinig, Marc; Palmer, Dave; Severson, Scott; Gates, Elinor

2008-07-01

Visible Light Laser Guidestar Experiments (ViLLaGEs) is a new Micro-Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) based visible-wavelength adaptive optics (AO) testbed on the Nickel 1-meter telescope at Lick Observatory. Closed loop Natural Guide Star (NGS) experiments were successfully carried out during engineering during the fall of 2007. This is a major evolutionary step, signaling the movement of AO technologies into visible light with a MEMS mirror. With on-sky Strehls in I-band of greater than 20% during second light tests, the science possibilities have become evident. Described here is the advanced engineering used in the design and construction of the ViLLaGEs system, comparing it to the LickAO infrared system, and a discussion of Nickel dome infrastructural improvements necessary for this system. A significant portion of the engineering discussion revolves around the sizable effort that went towards eliminating flexure. Then, we detail upgrades to ViLLaGEs to make it a facility class instrument. These upgrades will focus on Nyquist sampling the diffraction limited point spread function during open loop operations, motorization and automation for technician level alignments, adding dithering capabilities and changes for near infrared science.

Making objective decisions in mechanical engineering problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raicu, A.; Oanta, E.; Sabau, A.

2017-08-01

Decision making process has a great influence in the development of a given project, the goal being to select an optimal choice in a given context. Because of its great importance, the decision making was studied using various science methods, finally being conceived the game theory that is considered the background for the science of logical decision making in various fields. The paper presents some basic ideas regarding the game theory in order to offer the necessary information to understand the multiple-criteria decision making (MCDM) problems in engineering. The solution is to transform the multiple-criteria problem in a one-criterion decision problem, using the notion of utility, together with the weighting sum model or the weighting product model. The weighted importance of the criteria is computed using the so-called Step method applied to a relation of preferences between the criteria. Two relevant examples from engineering are also presented. The future directions of research consist of the use of other types of criteria, the development of computer based instruments for decision making general problems and to conceive a software module based on expert system principles to be included in the Wiki software applications for polymeric materials that are already operational.

How to Design a Spectrometer.

PubMed

Scheeline, Alexander

2017-10-01

Designing a spectrometer requires knowledge of the problem to be solved, the molecules whose properties will contribute to a solution of that problem and skill in many subfields of science and engineering. A seemingly simple problem, design of an ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared spectrometer, is used to show the reasoning behind the trade-offs in instrument design. Rather than reporting a fully optimized instrument, the Yin and Yang of design choices, leading to decisions about financial cost, materials choice, resolution, throughput, aperture, and layout are described. To limit scope, aspects such as grating blaze, electronics design, and light sources are not presented. The review illustrates the mixture of mathematical rigor, rule of thumb, esthetics, and availability of components that contribute to the art of spectrometer design.

Precision stellar radial velocity measurements with FIDEOS at the ESO 1-m telescope of La Silla

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vanzi, L.; Zapata, A.; Flores, M.; Brahm, R.; Tala Pinto, M.; Rukdee, S.; Jones, M.; Ropert, S.; Shen, T.; Ramirez, S.; Suc, V.; Jordán, A.; Espinoza, N.

2018-07-01

We present results from the commissioning and early science programs of FIbre Dual Echelle Optical Spectrograph (FIDEOS), the new high-resolution echelle spectrograph developed at the Centre of Astro Engineering of Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, and recently installed at the ESO 1-m telescope of La Silla. The instrument provides spectral resolution R ˜ 43 000 in the visible spectral range 420-800 nm, reaching a limiting magnitude of 11 in V band. Precision in the measurement of radial velocity is guaranteed by light feeding with an octagonal optical fibre, suitable mechanical isolation, thermal stabilization, and simultaneous wavelength calibration. Currently the instrument reaches radial velocity stability of ˜8 m s-1 over several consecutive nights of observation.

GENESIS SciFlo: Choreographing Interoperable Web Services on the Grid using a Semantically-Enabled Dataflow Execution Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilson, B. D.; Manipon, G.; Xing, Z.

2007-12-01

The General Earth Science Investigation Suite (GENESIS) project is a NASA-sponsored partnership between the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, academia, and NASA data centers to develop a new suite of Web Services tools to facilitate multi-sensor investigations in Earth System Science. The goal of GENESIS is to enable large-scale, multi-instrument atmospheric science using combined datasets from the AIRS, MODIS, MISR, and GPS sensors. Investigations include cross-comparison of spaceborne climate sensors, cloud spectral analysis, study of upper troposphere-stratosphere water transport, study of the aerosol indirect cloud effect, and global climate model validation. The challenges are to bring together very large datasets, reformat and understand the individual instrument retrievals, co-register or re-grid the retrieved physical parameters, perform computationally-intensive data fusion and data mining operations, and accumulate complex statistics over months to years of data. To meet these challenges, we have developed a Grid computing and dataflow framework, named SciFlo, in which we are deploying a set of versatile and reusable operators for data access, subsetting, registration, mining, fusion, compression, and advanced statistical analysis. SciFlo leverages remote Web Services, called via Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) or REST (one-line) URLs, and the Grid Computing standards (WS-* & Globus Alliance toolkits), and enables scientists to do multi- instrument Earth Science by assembling reusable Web Services and native executables into a distributed computing flow (tree of operators). The SciFlo client & server engines optimize the execution of such distributed data flows and allow the user to transparently find and use datasets and operators without worrying about the actual location of the Grid resources. In particular, SciFlo exploits the wealth of datasets accessible by OpenGIS Consortium (OGC) Web Mapping Servers & Web Coverage Servers (WMS/WCS), and by Open Data Access Protocol (OpenDAP) servers. SciFlo also publishes its own SOAP services for space/time query and subsetting of Earth Science datasets, and automated access to large datasets via lists of (FTP, HTTP, or DAP) URLs which point to on-line HDF or netCDF files. Typical distributed workflows obtain datasets by calling standard WMS/WCS servers or discovering and fetching data granules from ftp sites; invoke remote analysis operators available as SOAP services (interface described by a WSDL document); and merge results into binary containers (netCDF or HDF files) for further analysis using local executable operators. Naming conventions (HDFEOS and CF-1.0 for netCDF) are exploited to automatically understand and read on-line datasets. More interoperable conventions, and broader adoption of existing converntions, are vital if we are to "scale up" automated choreography of Web Services beyond toy applications. Recently, the ESIP Federation sponsored a collaborative activity in which several ESIP members developed some collaborative science scenarios for atmospheric and aerosol science, and then choreographed services from multiple groups into demonstration workflows using the SciFlo engine and a Business Process Execution Language (BPEL) workflow engine. We will discuss the lessons learned from this activity, the need for standardized interfaces (like WMS/WCS), the difficulty in agreeing on even simple XML formats and interfaces, the benefits of doing collaborative science analysis at the "touch of a button" once services are connected, and further collaborations that are being pursued.

Science teachers and docents as mentors to science and mathematics undergraduates in formal and information settings. Final report

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

Koran, J.J. Jr.

Twenty-four undergraduate science and mathematics majors who were juniors and seniors in the colleges of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Engineering were recruited, and paid, to participate in an orientation seminar and act as teacher aides in regional schools and the Florida Museum of Natural History. Aides worked with teachers in the schools one semester and as docents in the natural history museum a second semester. Mentoring took place by the principal investigator and participating teachers and docents throughout the program. Success of the program was measured by a specially prepared attitude instrument which was administered to participants before themore » mentoring started and when it ended each semester. Written logs (field notes) were also prepared and submitted by participants at the end of each semester. Further, a tally was kept of the number of participants who decided to go into science or mathematics teaching as a result of the experience.« less

Publications in biomedical and environmental sciences programs, 1981

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

Moody, J.B.

1982-07-01

This bibliography contains 698 references to articles in journals, books, and reports published in the subject area of biomedical and environmental sciences during 1981. There are 520 references to articles published in journals and books and 178 references to reports. Staff members in the Biomedical and Environmental Sciences divisions have other publications not included in this bibliography; for example, theses, book reviews, abstracts published in journals or symposia proceedings, pending journal publications and reports such as monthly, bimonthly, and quarterly progress reports, contractor reports, and reports for internal distribution. This document is sorted by the division, and then alphabetically bymore » author. The sorting by divisions separates the references by subject area in a simple way. The divisions represented in the order that they appear in the bibliography are Analytical Chemistry, Biology, Chemical Technology, Information R and D, Health and Safety Research, Instrumentation and Controls, Computer Sciences, Energy, Engineering Technology, Solid State, Central Management, Operations, and Environmental Sciences. Indexes are provided by author, title, and journal reference.« less

Lidar Technology at the Goddard Laser and Electro-Optics Branch

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heaps, William S.; Obenschain, Arthur F. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The Laser and Electro-Optics Branch at Goddard Space flight Center was established about three years ago to provide a focused center of engineering support and technology development in these disciplines with an emphasis on spaced based instruments for Earth and Space Science. The Branch has approximately 15 engineers and technicians with backgrounds in physics, optics, and electrical engineering. Members of the Branch are currently supporting a number of space based lidar efforts as well as several technology efforts aimed at enabling future missions. The largest effort within the Branch is support of the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESAT) carrying the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) instrument. The ICESAT/GLAS primary science objectives are: 1) To determine the mass balance of the polar ice sheets and their contributions to global sea level change; and 2) To obtain essential data for prediction of future changes in ice volume and sea-level. The secondary science objectives are: 1) To measure cloud heights and the vertical structure of clouds and aerosols in the atmosphere; 2) To map the topography of land surfaces; and 3) To measure roughness, reflectivity, vegetation heights, snow-cover, and sea-ice surface characteristics. Our efforts have concentrated on the GLAS receiver component development, the Laser Reference Sensor for the Stellar Reference System, the GLAS fiber optics subsystems, and the prelaunch calibration facilities. We will report on our efforts in the development of the space qualified interference filter [Allan], etalon filter, photon counting detectors, etalor/laser tracking system, and instrument fiber optics, as well as specification and selection of the star tracker and development of the calibration test bed. We are also engaged in development work on lidar sounders for chemical species. We are developing new lidar technology to enable a new class of miniature lidar instruments that are compatible with small Discovery-class orbiters now in the NASA planetary program. The purpose of the lidar is to continuously profile the water vapor and dust in the Mars atmosphere from orbit in order to quantify its dynamics, their relationship in the diurnal cycles, and to infer water vapor exchange with the Mars surface. To remotely measure the water-vapor height profiles, we will use the differential absorption lidar (DIAL) technique. We are also developing a laser sensor for measuring the total column content of CO2 in the atmosphere of the earth. CO2 is the principal greenhouse gas and has increased by roughly 80 ppm in the last century and a half. We will report our efforts in the development of the laser transmitter and photon counting detector components for a Mars Orbiting DIAL system and for the CO2 sounder.

CTIO Image of Carina Nebula

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NASA image release April 22, 2010 Object Names: Carina Nebula, NGC 3372 Image Type: Astronomical Credit: NASA/N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley) and NOAO/AURA/NSF To read learn more about this image go to: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/science/hubble20th-img.... NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is home to the nation's largest organization of combined scientists, engineers and technologists that build spacecraft, instruments and new technology to study the Earth, the sun, our solar system, and the universe.

Cygnus Orbital ATK OA-6 Liftoff

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-03-22

At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41, a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with a single-engine Centaur upper stage stands ready to boost an Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft on a resupply mission to the International Space Station. Science payloads include the second generation of a portable onboard printer to demonstrate three-dimensional printing, an instrument for first space-based observations of the chemical composition of meteors entering Earth’s atmosphere and an experiment to study how fires burn in microgravity.

Cygnus Orbital ATK OA-6 Rollout

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-03-21

At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41, a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with a single-engine Centaur upper stage stands ready to boost an Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft on a resupply mission to the International Space Station. Science payloads include the second generation of a portable onboard printer to demonstrate three-dimensional printing, an instrument for first space-based observations of the chemical composition of meteors entering Earth’s atmosphere and an experiment to study how fires burn in microgravity.

Cockpit Accommodation Assessment of the Bell 412CF Helicopter (Evaluation du Poste de Pilotage de l’Hellcoptere Bell 412CF)

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-12-01

Research, Ottawa , 1998 as issued jointly by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada...Flight Rules ) skills. Nine Bell 412CF helicopters were produced from existing CH-146 Griffons, which posed technical challenges. One such compromise was...IFR (Instrument Flight Rules ) skills. Nine Bell 412CF helicopters were produced from existing CH-146 Griffons, which posed technical challenges. One

An Engineering Trade Space Analysis for a Space-Based Hyperspectral Chromotomographic Scanner

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-03-26

The Hyperion’s EO-1 host satellite is in a polar, circular, sun -synchronous or- bit at 98.7 inclination . The orbit follows that of Landsat-7 by one...science orbit around Mars 13 months after launch. The orbit is a near circular (apogee of 320 km, perigee of 255 km), near polar, sun -synchronous orbit ...payload design, operating scheme and orbit to demonstrate this technology in low- earth orbit . This instrument promises the capability of adding a time

Neutron imaging data processing using the Mantid framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pouzols, Federico M.; Draper, Nicholas; Nagella, Sri; Yang, Erica; Sajid, Ahmed; Ross, Derek; Ritchie, Brian; Hill, John; Burca, Genoveva; Minniti, Triestino; Moreton-Smith, Christopher; Kockelmann, Winfried

2016-09-01

Several imaging instruments are currently being constructed at neutron sources around the world. The Mantid software project provides an extensible framework that supports high-performance computing for data manipulation, analysis and visualisation of scientific data. At ISIS, IMAT (Imaging and Materials Science & Engineering) will offer unique time-of-flight neutron imaging techniques which impose several software requirements to control the data reduction and analysis. Here we outline the extensions currently being added to Mantid to provide specific support for neutron imaging requirements.

Biomedical technology in Franconia.

PubMed

Efferth, T

2000-01-01

Medical instrumentation and biotechnology business is developing rapidly in Franconia. The universities of Bayreuth, Erlangen-Nürnberg, and Würzburg hold upper ranks in biomedical extramural funding research. They have a high competence in biomedical research, medical instrumentation, and biotechnology. The association "BioMedTec Franken e.V" has been founded at the beginning of 1999 both to foster the information exchange between universities, industry and politics and to facilitate the establishment of biomedical companies by means of science parks. In the IGZ (Innovation and Foundation Center Nürnberg-Fürth-Erlangen) 4,500 square meters of space are currently shared by 19 novel companies. Since 1985 60 companies in the IGZ had a total turnover of about 74 Mio Euro. The TGZ (Technologie- und Gründerzentrum) in Würzburg provides space for 11 companies. For the specific needs of biomedical technology companies further science parks will be set up in the near future. A science park for medical instrumentation will be founded in Erlangen (IZMP, Innovations- und Gründerzentrum für Medizintechnik und Pharma in der Region Nürnberg, Fürch, Erlangen). Furthermore, a Biomedical Technology Center and a Research Center for Bicompatible Materials are to be founded in Würzburg and Bayreuth, respectively. Several communication platforms (Bayern Innovativ, FORWISS, FTT, KIM, N-TEC-VISIT, TBU, WETTI etc.) allow the transfer of local academic research activities to industrial utilization and open new co-operation possibilities. International pharmaceutical companies (Novartis, Nürnberg; Pharmacia Upjohn, Erlangen) are located in Franconia. Central Franconia represents a national focus for medical instrumentation. The Erlangen settlement of the Medical Engineering Section of Siemens employs 4,500 people including approximately 1,000 employees in the Siemens research center.

The Faculty Self-Reported Assessment Survey (FRAS): differentiating faculty knowledge and experience in assessment.

PubMed

Hanauer, David I; Bauerle, Cynthia

2015-01-01

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education reform efforts have called for widespread adoption of evidence-based teaching in which faculty members attend to student outcomes through assessment practice. Awareness about the importance of assessment has illuminated the need to understand what faculty members know and how they engage with assessment knowledge and practice. The Faculty Self-Reported Assessment Survey (FRAS) is a new instrument for evaluating science faculty assessment knowledge and experience. Instrument validation was composed of two distinct studies: an empirical evaluation of the psychometric properties of the FRAS and a comparative known-groups validation to explore the ability of the FRAS to differentiate levels of faculty assessment experience. The FRAS was found to be highly reliable (α = 0.96). The dimensionality of the instrument enabled distinction of assessment knowledge into categories of program design, instrumentation, and validation. In the known-groups validation, the FRAS distinguished between faculty groups with differing levels of assessment experience. Faculty members with formal assessment experience self-reported higher levels of familiarity with assessment terms, higher frequencies of assessment activity, increased confidence in conducting assessment, and more positive attitudes toward assessment than faculty members who were novices in assessment. These results suggest that the FRAS can reliably and validly differentiate levels of expertise in faculty knowledge of assessment. © 2015 D. I. Hanauer and C. Bauerle. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2015 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS): The Effectiveness of an Afterschool Environmental Science Program for Increasing Female Students' Interest in Science Careers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tyler-Wood, Tandra; Ellison, Amber; Lim, Okyoung; Periathiruvadi, Sita

2012-02-01

Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS) was an afterschool program for 4th and 5th grade girls that provided authentic learning experiences in environmental science as well as valuable female mentoring opportunities in an effort to increase participants' academic achievement in science. BUGS participants demonstrated significantly greater amounts of gain in science knowledge as measured by the Iowa Test of Basic Skills in Science (ITBS-S). The original BUGS participants and contrasts have now completed high school and entered college, allowing researchers to assess the long-term impact of the BUGS program. Fourteen former BUGS participants completed two instruments to assess their perceptions of science and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. Their results were compared to four contrast groups composed entirely of females: 12 former BUGS contrasts, 10 college science majors, 10 non-science majors, and 9 current STEM professionals. Results indicate that BUGS participants have higher perceptions of science careers than BUGS contrasts. There were no significant differences between BUGS participants, Science Majors, and STEM professionals in their perceptions of science and STEM careers, whereas the BUGS contrast group was significantly lower than BUGS participants, Science Majors, and STEM Professionals. Additional results and implications are discussed within.

Instrumentation for In-Flight SSME Rocket Engine Plume Spectroscopy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Madzsar, George C.; Bickford, Randall L.; Duncan, David B.

1994-01-01

This paper describes instrumentation that is under development for an in-flight demonstration of a plume spectroscopy system on the space shuttle main engine. The instrumentation consists of a nozzle mounted optical probe for observation of the plume, and a spectrometer for identification and quantification of plume content. This instrumentation, which is intended for use as a diagnostic tool to detect wear and incipient failure in rocket engines, will be validated by a hardware demonstration on the Technology Test Bed engine at the Marshall Space Flight Center.

Big Computing in Astronomy: Perspectives and Challenges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pankratius, Victor

2014-06-01

Hardware progress in recent years has led to astronomical instruments gathering large volumes of data. In radio astronomy for instance, the current generation of antenna arrays produces data at Tbits per second, and forthcoming instruments will expand these rates much further. As instruments are increasingly becoming software-based, astronomers will get more exposed to computer science. This talk therefore outlines key challenges that arise at the intersection of computer science and astronomy and presents perspectives on how both communities can collaborate to overcome these challenges.Major problems are emerging due to increases in data rates that are much larger than in storage and transmission capacity, as well as humans being cognitively overwhelmed when attempting to opportunistically scan through Big Data. As a consequence, the generation of scientific insight will become more dependent on automation and algorithmic instrument control. Intelligent data reduction will have to be considered across the entire acquisition pipeline. In this context, the presentation will outline the enabling role of machine learning and parallel computing.BioVictor Pankratius is a computer scientist who joined MIT Haystack Observatory following his passion for astronomy. He is currently leading efforts to advance astronomy through cutting-edge computer science and parallel computing. Victor is also involved in projects such as ALMA Phasing to enhance the ALMA Observatory with Very-Long Baseline Interferometry capabilities, the Event Horizon Telescope, as well as in the Radio Array of Portable Interferometric Detectors (RAPID) to create an analysis environment using parallel computing in the cloud. He has an extensive track record of research in parallel multicore systems and software engineering, with contributions to auto-tuning, debugging, and empirical experiments studying programmers. Victor has worked with major industry partners such as Intel, Sun Labs, and Oracle. He holds a distinguished doctorate and a Habilitation degree in Computer Science from the University of Karlsruhe. Contact him at pankrat@mit.edu, victorpankratius.com, or Twitter @vpankratius.

A Computer-Based Instrument That Identifies Common Science Misconceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Larrabee, Timothy G.; Stein, Mary; Barman, Charles

2006-01-01

This article describes the rationale for and development of a computer-based instrument that helps identify commonly held science misconceptions. The instrument, known as the Science Beliefs Test, is a 47-item instrument that targets topics in chemistry, physics, biology, earth science, and astronomy. The use of an online data collection system…

Validation of an Adapted Instrument to Measure Students' Attitude towards Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chin, Sook Fui; Lim, Hooi Lian

2016-01-01

Attitude towards science (ATS) is a major concern in science education. Although many ATS instruments have been developed, they are based on different cultural systems and having some limitations. This study aims to validate an instrument for measuring students' ATS in Malaysia context. The instrument was adapted from Test of Science-Related…

Engine component instrumentation development facility at NASA Lewis Research Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bruckner, Robert J.; Buggele, Alvin E.; Lepicovsky, Jan

1992-01-01

The Engine Components Instrumentation Development Facility at NASA Lewis is a unique aeronautics facility dedicated to the development of innovative instrumentation for turbine engine component testing. Containing two separate wind tunnels, the facility is capable of simulating many flow conditions found in most turbine engine components. This facility's broad range of capabilities as well as its versatility provide an excellent location for the development of novel testing techniques. These capabilities thus allow a more efficient use of larger and more complex engine component test facilities.

Recycled material-based science instruments to support science education in rural area at Central Sulawesi District of Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ali, M.; Supriyatman; Saehana, S.

2018-03-01

It has been successfully designing low cost of science experiment from recycled materials. The science instruments were produced to explain expansion concept and hydrostatic pressure inside the liquid. Science instruments were calibrated and then validated. It was also implemented in science learning.

MarCO CubeSat Engineers 3

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-01-20

Engineers for NASA's MarCO (Mars Cube One) technology demonstration inspect one of the two MarCO CubeSats. Joel Steinkraus, MarCO lead mechanical engineer, left, and Andy Klesh, MarCO chief engineer, are on the team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, preparing twin MarCO CubeSats. The briefcase-size MarCO twins were designed to ride along with NASA's next Mars lander, InSight. Its planned March 2016 launch was suspended. InSight -- an acronym for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport -- will study the interior of Mars to improve understanding of the processes that formed and shaped rocky planets, including Earth. Note: After thorough examination, NASA managers have decided to suspend the planned March 2016 launch of the Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission. The decision follows unsuccessful attempts to repair a leak in a section of the prime instrument in the science payload. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20343

Monitoring the Health and Safety of the ACIS Instrument On-Board the Chandra X-ray Observatory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Virani, Shanil N.; Ford, Peter G.; DePasquale, Joseph M.; Plucinsky, Paul P.

2002-12-01

The Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO), NASA's latest "Great Observatory", was launched on July 23, 1999 and reached its final orbit on August 7, 1999. The CXO is in a highly elliptical orbit, approximately 140,000 km × 10,000 km, and has a period of approximately 63.5 hours (≍2.65 days). Communication with the CXO nominally consists of 1-hour contacts spaced 8-hours apart. Thus, once a communication link has been established, it is very important that the health and safety status of the scientific instruments as well as the Observatory itself be determined as quickly as possible. In this paper, we focus exclusively on the automated health and safety monitoring scripts developed for the Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer (ACIS) during those 1-hour contacts. ACIS is one of the two focal plane instruments on-board the CXO. We present an overview of the real-time ACIS Engineering Data Web Page and the alert schemes developed for monitoring the instrument status during each communication contact. A suite of HTML and PERL scripts monitors the instrument hardware house-keeping electronics (i.e., voltages and currents) and temperatures during each contact. If a particular instrument component is performing either above or below pre- established operating parameters, a sequence of email and alert pages are spawned to the Science Operations Team of the Chandra X-ray Observatory Center so that the anomaly can be quickly investigated and corrective actions taken if necessary. We also briefly discuss the tools used to monitor the real-time science telemetry reported by the ACIS flight software. The authors acknowledge support for this research from NASA contract NAS8-39073.

Russian contribution to the ExoMars project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zelenyi, L.; Korablev, O.; Rodionov, D.; Khartov, V.; Martynov, M.; Lukyanchikov, A.

2014-04-01

The ExoMars ESA-led mission is dedicated to study of Mars and in particular its habitability. It consists of two launches, one planned in 2016 to deliver to Mars a telecommunication and science orbiter Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) and a demonstrator of entry into the atmosphere and landing on the Mars surface, Entry, Descent and Landing Demonstrator Module (EDM). In 2018 a rover with drilling capability will be delivered to the surface of Mars. Since 2012 this mission, previously planned in cooperation with NASA is being developed in cooperation with Roscosmos. Both launches are planned with Proton-Breeze. In 2016 Russia contributes a significant part of the TGO science payload. In 2018 the landing will be provided by a joint effort capitalizing on the EDM technology. Russia contributes few science instruments for the rover, and leads the development of a long-living geophysical platform on the surface of Mars. Russian science instruments for TGO, the Atmospheric Chemistry Suite (ACS) and the Fine Resolution Epithermal Neutrons Detector (FREND) constituent a half of its scientific payload, European instrument being NOMAD for mapping and detection of trace species, and CASSIS camera for high-resolution mapping of target areas. The ACS package consists of three spectrometers covering spectral range from 0.7 to 17 μm with spectral resolving power reaching 50000. It is dedicated to studies of the composition of the Martian atmosphere and the Martian climate. FREND is a neutron detector with a collimation module, which significantly narrows the field of view of the instrument, allowing to create higher resolution maps of hydrogen-abundant regions on Mars. The spatial resolution of FREND will be ~40 km from the 400- km TGO orbit that is ~10 times better than HEND on Mars-Odyssey. Additionally, FREND includes a dosimeter module for monitoring radiation levels in orbit around Mars. In the 2018 mission, Russia takes the major responsibility of the descent module. The primary goal of the descent module consists of the delivery of the 300-kg rover on the surface. The full mass of the module should not exceed 2000 kg. An aerodynamic shield and a parachute system assure the entry phase. A descent scenario with integrated retro-propulsion engines and landing on feet is being developed. Subsystems of the descend module are supplied by both Roscosmos and ESA. On the rover, Russia contributes two science instruments. ADRON-RM is a passive neutron detector to assess water contents in the Mars surface along the rover track. ISEM is a pencil-beam infrared spectrometer mounted at the mast of the rover and is primarily dedicated for the assessment of mineralogical composition, operating in coordination with high-resolution channel of PANCAM. Both instruments will assist with planning rover traverse, rover targeting operations, and sample selection. A major effort of the Russian science is concentrated on the 2018 landing platform. This is the part of the descent module remaining immobile after the rover egress. The platform, or the longliving geophysical station shall have guaranteed lifetime of one Martian year, and will be able to accommodate up to 50 kg of science payload. The final list of science investigations, which is yet to be finalized, includes the meteorological station, instruments to analyse atmospheric composition, geophysical instruments. Other investigations will provide analyses of the surface/shallow subsurface material complimentary to these on the rover, and other experiments, if resources permit. Current status of the project and the developments will be presented

Three-dimensional printing physiology laboratory technology.

PubMed

Sulkin, Matthew S; Widder, Emily; Shao, Connie; Holzem, Katherine M; Gloschat, Christopher; Gutbrod, Sarah R; Efimov, Igor R

2013-12-01

Since its inception in 19th-century Germany, the physiology laboratory has been a complex and expensive research enterprise involving experts in various fields of science and engineering. Physiology research has been critically dependent on cutting-edge technological support of mechanical, electrical, optical, and more recently computer engineers. Evolution of modern experimental equipment is constrained by lack of direct communication between the physiological community and industry producing this equipment. Fortunately, recent advances in open source technologies, including three-dimensional printing, open source hardware and software, present an exciting opportunity to bring the design and development of research instrumentation to the end user, i.e., life scientists. Here we provide an overview on how to develop customized, cost-effective experimental equipment for physiology laboratories.

Designing natural and synthetic immune tissues

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gosselin, Emily A.; Eppler, Haleigh B.; Bromberg, Jonathan S.; Jewell, Christopher M.

2018-06-01

Vaccines and immunotherapies have provided enormous improvements for public health, but there are fundamental disconnects between where most studies are performed—in cell culture and animal models—and the ultimate application in humans. Engineering immune tissues and organs, such as bone marrow, thymus, lymph nodes and spleen, could be instrumental in overcoming these hurdles. Fundamentally, designed immune tissues could serve as in vitro tools to more accurately study human immune function and disease, while immune tissues engineered for implantation as next-generation vaccines or immunotherapies could enable direct, on-demand control over generation and regulation of immune function. In this Review, we discuss recent interdisciplinary strategies that are merging materials science and immunology to create engineered immune tissues in vitro and in vivo. We also highlight the hurdles facing these approaches and the need for comparison to existing clinical options, relevant animal models, and other emerging technologies.

Telemetry and Science Data Software System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bates, Lakesha; Hong, Liang

2011-01-01

The Telemetry and Science Data Software System (TSDSS) was designed to validate the operational health of a spacecraft, ease test verification, assist in debugging system anomalies, and provide trending data and advanced science analysis. In doing so, the system parses, processes, and organizes raw data from the Aquarius instrument both on the ground and while in space. In addition, it provides a user-friendly telemetry viewer, and an instant pushbutton test report generator. Existing ground data systems can parse and provide simple data processing, but have limitations in advanced science analysis and instant report generation. The TSDSS functions as an offline data analysis system during I&T (integration and test) and mission operations phases. After raw data are downloaded from an instrument, TSDSS ingests the data files, parses, converts telemetry to engineering units, and applies advanced algorithms to produce science level 0, 1, and 2 data products. Meanwhile, it automatically schedules upload of the raw data to a remote server and archives all intermediate and final values in a MySQL database in time order. All data saved in the system can be straightforwardly retrieved, exported, and migrated. Using TSDSS s interactive data visualization tool, a user can conveniently choose any combination and mathematical computation of interesting telemetry points from a large range of time periods (life cycle of mission ground data and mission operations testing), and display a graphical and statistical view of the data. With this graphical user interface (GUI), the data queried graphs can be exported and saved in multiple formats. This GUI is especially useful in trending data analysis, debugging anomalies, and advanced data analysis. At the request of the user, mission-specific instrument performance assessment reports can be generated with a simple click of a button on the GUI. From instrument level to observatory level, the TSDSS has been operating supporting functional and performance tests and refining system calibration algorithms and coefficients, in sync with the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft. At the time of this reporting, it was prepared and set up to perform anomaly investigation for mission operations preceding the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft launch on June 10, 2011.

The Effect of STEM Learning through the Project of Designing Boat Model toward Student STEM Literacy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tati, T.; Firman, H.; Riandi, R.

2017-09-01

STEM Learning focusses on development of STEM-literate society, the research about implementation of STEM learning to develope students’ STEM literacy is still limited. This study is aimed to examine the effect of implementation STEM learning through the project of designing boat model on students STEM literacy in energy topic. The method of this study was a quasi-experiment with non-randomized pretest-posttest control group design. There were two classes involved, the experiment class used Project Based Learning with STEM approach and control class used Project-Based Learning without STEM approach. A STEM Literacy test instrument was developed to measure students STEM literacy which consists of science literacy, mathematics literacy, and technology-engineering literacy. The analysis showed that there were significant differences on improvement science literacy, mathematics technology-engineering between experiment class and control class with effect size more than 0.8 (large effect). The difference of improvement of STEM literacy between experiment class and control class is caused by the existence of design engineering activity which required students to apply the knowledge from every field of STEM. The challenge that was faced in STEM learning through design engineering activity was how to give the students practice to integrate STEM field in solving the problems. In additional, most of the students gave positive response toward implementation of STEM learning through design boat model project.

SMART-1 celebrates its first year in space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2004-09-01

The ion engine went into action three days after launch and slowly placed SMART-1 safely above the radiation belts that surround the Earth. From there, SMART-1 started spiralling around our planet to eventually come closer, through ever wider orbits, to the so-called ‘Moon capture’ point. During this transfer phase, the ion engine fired its thrusters for periods of several days to progressively raise its apogee (the maximum altitude of its orbit) to the orbit of the Moon. So far, the SMART-1 ion engine has operated for about 3300 hours and covered a distance of some 78 million kilometres, with only 52 kilograms of propellant. With this successful demonstration, SMART-1 is paving the way for future deep-space missions, using a solar- electric engine as primary propulsion. It will be applied to long, energy-demanding interplanetary missions in the Solar System, reducing the size and cost of propulsion systems, while increasing manoeuvrability and the mass available for scientific instrumentation. ESA plans to use primary solar-electric propulsion for its future BepiColombo and Solar Orbiter missions. During its first year in space, SMART-1 has also successfully tested new space communication techniques. For the first time, SMART-1 has used very short radio waves (called Ka band at 32 Gigahertz, with the KaTE instrument) to communicate with Earth. These enable far more information to be transmitted over deep space than the commonly used frequencies and in a shorter period of time. Another SMART-1 achievement is the successful testing of a laser communication link experiment with ESA’s optical ground station in Tenerife, Canary Islands in February of this year. This laser technology, in which Europe is a leader, has already been applied to telecommunications satellites, but this was the first time a laser link had been used to communicate with a distant, rapidly moving spacecraft. Both techniques will be crucial for future science missions where huge amounts of scientific data have to be transferred back to Earth over large distances in space. During its cruise, SMART-1’s miniaturised payload, consisting of seven instruments weighing only 19 kilograms in total, has been tested. All instruments onboard SMART-1 were operated and performed successfully in a number of science experiments. This was excellent preparation for the next phase of the SMART-1 mission: an unprecedented scientific study of the Moon, exploring in-depth the mysteries of our Earth’s natural satellite. With all these achievements to celebrate after its first year in space, SMART-1 is now preparing for the next big milestone, the lunar capture which is expected to take place less than two months from now. Note for editors: SMART-1 was launched on 27 September 2003 from Kourou, Europe’s spaceport in French Guiana, onboard an Ariane-5 rocket. It is the first in a series of ‘Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology’, designed to demonstrate innovative and key technologies for future deep-space science missions. In addition to its technological objectives, SMART-1 is Europe’s first lunar mission and will perform a detailed scientific study of the Moon.

Preliminary Results From a Heavily Instrumented Engine Ice Crystal Icing Test in a Ground Based Altitude Test Facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Flegel, Ashlie B.; Oliver, Michael J.

2016-01-01

Preliminary results from the Heavily Instrumented ALF503R-5 Engine test conducted in the NASA Glenn Research Center Propulsion Systems Laboratory will be discussed. The effects of ice crystal icing on a full scale engine is examined and documented. This model engine, serial number LF01, was used during the inaugural icing test in the PSL facility. The reduction of thrust (rollback) events experienced by this engine in flight were replicated in the facility. Limited instrumentation was used to detect icing. Metal temperature on the exit guide vanes and outer shroud and the load measurement were the only indicators of ice formation. The current study features a similar engine, serial number LF11, which is instrumented to characterize the cloud entering the engine, detect characterize ice accretion, and visualize the ice accretion in the region of interest.

16 CFR 1000.29 - Directorate for Engineering Sciences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 16 Commercial Practices 2 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Directorate for Engineering Sciences. 1000... ORGANIZATION AND FUNCTIONS § 1000.29 Directorate for Engineering Sciences. The Directorate for Engineering Sciences, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Engineering Sciences, is responsible for...

16 CFR 1000.29 - Directorate for Engineering Sciences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 16 Commercial Practices 2 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Directorate for Engineering Sciences. 1000... ORGANIZATION AND FUNCTIONS § 1000.29 Directorate for Engineering Sciences. The Directorate for Engineering Sciences, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Engineering Sciences, is responsible for...

Measuring Primary Teachers' Attitudes Toward Teaching Science: Development of the Dimensions of Attitude Toward Science (DAS) Instrument

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Aalderen-Smeets, Sandra; Walma van der Molen, Juliette

2013-03-01

In this article, we present a valid and reliable instrument which measures the attitude of in-service and pre-service primary teachers toward teaching science, called the Dimensions of Attitude Toward Science (DAS) Instrument. Attention to the attitudes of primary teachers toward teaching science is of fundamental importance to the professionalization of these teachers in the field of primary science education. With the development of this instrument, we sought to fulfill the need for a statistically and theoretically valid and reliable instrument to measure pre-service and in-service teachers' attitudes. The DAS Instrument is based on a comprehensive theoretical framework for attitude toward (teaching) science. After pilot testing, the DAS was revised and subsequently validated using a large group of respondents (pre-service and in-service primary teachers) (N = 556). The theoretical underpinning of the DAS combined with the statistical data indicate that the DAS possesses good construct validity and that it proves to be a promising instrument that can be utilized for research purposes, and also as a teacher training and coaching tool. This instrument can therefore make a valuable contribution to progress within the field of science education.

16 CFR § 1000.29 - Directorate for Engineering Sciences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 16 Commercial Practices 2 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Directorate for Engineering Sciences. Â... ORGANIZATION AND FUNCTIONS § 1000.29 Directorate for Engineering Sciences. The Directorate for Engineering Sciences, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Engineering Sciences, is responsible for...

ISIM Lowered into Thermal Vacuum Chamber

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

An overhead glimpse inside the thermal vacuum chamber at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., as engineers ready the James Webb Space Telescope's Integrated Science Instrument Module, just lowered into the chamber for its first thermal vacuum test. The ISIM and the ISIM System Integration Fixture that holds the ISIM Electronics Compartment is completely covered in protective blankets to shield it from contamination. Image credit: NASA/Chris Gunn NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Electrochemistry of Silicon: Instrumentation, Science, Materials and Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lehmann, Volker

2002-04-01

Silicon has been and will most probably continue to be the dominant material in semiconductor technology. Although the defect-free silicon single crystal is one of the best understood systems in materails science, its electrochemistry to many people is still a kind of "alchemy". This view is partly due to the interdisciplinary aspects of the topic: Physics meets chemistry at the silicon-electrolyte interface. This book gives a comprehensive overview of this important aspect of silicon technology as well as examples of applications ranging from photonic crystals to biochips. It will serve materials scientists as well as engineers involved in silicon technology as a quick reference with its more than 150 technical tables and diagrams and ca. 1000 references cited for easy access of the original literature.

Recent Results and Near Term Outlook for the NASA Balloon Science Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, William Vernon

Long-duration and conventional balloon flights in the traditional Astrophysics, Solar and Heliophysics, and Earth Science disciplines have continued in both polar and non-polar regions since the 39th COSPAR Assembly in Mysore, India. One of these established a new flight record of 55 days over Antarctica during the 2012-2013 austral season. That Super-TIGER science flight broke both the 42-day record of the CREAM science flight during the 2004-2005 season and the 54-day super pressure balloon test flight in 2008-2009. With two comets approaching the sun in 2013-2014, the Planetary Science community has shown increased interest in remote observations of comets, planets, and other objects in the Solar System. All of the above science disciplines are interested in super pressure balloon (SPB) flights, which have been under development by NASA, and which were strongly supported by the Astro2010 Decadal Study. A 532,152 m3 (18.8 MCF) SPB with a major gamma ray astrophysics payload is planned for an ultra-long duration balloon (ULDB) test flight around and from Antarctica during the upcoming 2014-2015 season. Flights for SPB qualification to support 1000 kg science instruments to 33 km altitude have proceeded in parallel with planning for options to increase the altitude for less massive instruments that require less atmospheric overburden. The nearly constant SPB volume will provide stable altitude long-duration flights at non-polar latitudes, thereby supporting a much broader range of scientific investigations. Scientific ballooning continues to complement and enable space missions, while training young scientists and systems engineers for the workforce needed to conduct future missions. Highlights of results from past balloon-borne measurements and expected results from ongoing and planned balloon-borne experiments will be presented.

Earth, Meet Pluto: The New Horizons Education and Communications Partnership

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buckley, M.

2015-12-01

The unique partnership between the NASA New Horizons education/communications and public affairs programs tapped into the excitement of visiting an unexplored planet in a new region of the solar system - resulting in unprecedented public participation in and coverage of a planetary mission. With a range of hands-on learning experiences, Web materials and online , the program provided opportunities for students, educators, museums, science centers, the media, Web surfers and other members of the public to ride along on the first mission to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. The programs leveraged resources, materials and expertise to address a wide range of traditional and nontraditional audiences while providing consistent messages and information on this historic NASA endeavor. The E/C program included a variety of formal lesson plans and learning materials — based on New Horizons science and engineering goals, and aligned with National Research Council's National Science Education Standards — that continue to help students in grades K-12 learn more about science, technology, engineering and mathematics. College students designed and built an actual flight instrument on New Horizons and held internships with the spacecraft integration and test team. New Horizons E/C programs went well beyond the classroom, from a chance for people to send their names to Pluto on board the New Horizons spacecraft before launch, to opportunities for the public to access milestone events and the first-ever close-up views of Pluto in places such as museums, science centers and libraries, TV and the Web — as well as thousands who attended interactive "Plutopalooza" road shows across the country. Teamed with E/C was the public affairs strategy to communicate New Horizons news and messages to media, mission stakeholders, the scientific community and the public. These messages include various aspects of New Horizons, including the progress of the mission and key milestones and achievements; the unique, long-distance operation of the spacecraft and its instruments; and the release of scientific data and results from New Horizons' historic Pluto encounter. Through traditional and social media channels the mission reached billions of people worldwide - and likely inspired millions among the next generation of STEM professionals.

JPL Innovation Foundry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sherwood, Brent; McCleese, Daniel

2012-01-01

Space science missions are increasingly challenged today: in ambition, by increasingly sophisticated hypotheses tested; in development, by the increasing complexity of advanced technologies; in budgeting, by the decline of flagship-class mission opportunities; in management, by expectations for breakthrough science despite a risk-averse programmatic climate; and in planning, by increasing competition for scarce resources. How are the space-science missions of tomorrow being formulated? The paper describes the JPL Innovation Foundry, created in 2011, to respond to this evolving context. The Foundry integrates methods, tools, and experts that span the mission concept lifecycle. Grounded in JPL's heritage of missions, flight instruments, mission proposals, and concept innovation, the Foundry seeks to provide continuity of support and cost-effective, on-call access to the right domain experts at the right time, as science definition teams and Principal Investigators mature mission ideas from "cocktail napkin" to PDR. The Foundry blends JPL capabilities in proposal development and concurrent engineering, including Team X, with new approaches for open-ended concept exploration in earlier, cost-constrained phases, and with ongoing research and technology projects. It applies complexity and cost models, projectformulation lessons learned, and strategy analyses appropriate to each level of concept maturity. The Foundry is organizationally integrated with JPL formulation program offices; staffed by JPL's line organizations for engineering, science, and costing; and overseen by senior Laboratory leaders to assure experienced coordination and review. Incubation of each concept is tailored depending on its maturity and proposal history, and its highest leverage modeling and analysis needs.

Radiation effects on science instruments in Grand Tour type missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parker, R. H.

1972-01-01

The extent of the radiation effects problem is delineated, along with the status of protective designs for 15 representative science instruments. Designs for protecting science instruments from radiation damage is discussed for the various instruments to be employed in the Grand Tour type missions. A literature search effort was undertaken to collect science instrument components damage/interference effects data on the various sensitive components such as Si detectors, vidicon tubes, etc. A small experimental effort is underway to provide verification of the radiation effects predictions.

Analysis of Propagation Plans in NSF-Funded Education Development Projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanford, Courtney; Cole, Renee; Froyd, Jeff; Henderson, Charles; Friedrichsen, Debra; Khatri, Raina

2017-08-01

Increasing adoption and adaptation of promising instructional strategies and materials has been identified as a critical component needed to improve science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. This paper examines typical propagation practices and resulting outcomes of proposals written by developers of educational innovations. These proposals were analyzed using the Designing for Sustained Adoption Assessment Instrument (DSAAI), an instrument developed to evaluate propagation plans, and the results used to predict the likelihood that a successful project would result in adoption by others. We found that few education developers propose strong propagation plans. Afterwards, a follow-up analysis was conducted to see which propagation strategies developers actually used to help develop, disseminate, and support their innovations. A web search and interviews with principal investigators were used to determine the degree to which propagation plans were actually implemented and to estimate adoption of the innovations. In this study, we analyzed 71 education development proposals funded by the National Science Foundation and predicted that 80% would be unsuccessful in propagating their innovations. Follow-up data collection with a subset of these suggests that the predictions were reasonably accurate.

The 2013 Summer Undergraduate Research Internship Program at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castelaz, Michael W.; Cline, J. D.; Whitworth, C.; Clavier, D.; Barker, T.

2014-01-01

Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) offers summer undergraduate research internships. PARI has received support for the internships from the EMC Corporation, private donations, private foundations, and through a collaboration with the Pisgah Astronomical Research and Education Center of the University of North Carolina - Asheville. The internship program began in 2001 with 4 students. This year 10 funded students participated. Mentors for the interns include PARI’s Directors of Science, Education, and Information Technology and visiting faculty who are members of the PARI Research Faculty Affiliate program. Students work with mentors on radio and optical astronomy research, electrical engineering for robotic control of instruments, software development for instrument control and and science education by developing curricula and multimedia and teaching high school students in summer programs at PARI. At the end of the summer interns write a paper about their research which is published in the PARI Summer Student Proceedings. Students are encouraged to present their research at AAS Meetings. We will present a summary of specific research conducted by the students with their mentors.

Jwst from Below: An Overview of the Construction of the James Webb Space Telescope, Interesting Metrology, and Cryogenic-Vacuum Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ohl, R.

2016-01-01

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a 6.6m diameter, segmented, deployable telescope for cryogenic IR space astronomy (40K). The JWST Observatory includes the Optical Telescope Element (OTE) and the Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) that contains four science instruments (SI) and the guider. The SIs are mounted to a composite metering structure. The SI and guider units are integrated to the ISIM structure and optically tested at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center as a suite using a telescope simulator (Optical Telescope Element SIMulator; OSIM). OSIM is a full field, cryogenic JWST telescope simulator. SI performance, including alignment and wavefront error, is evaluated using OSIM. This is an overview presentation to undergraduate students and other personnel at the University of Richmond, planned for 12 Oct, 2016. It uses material previously released by NASA on the Internet (e.g., via Flickr) or at engineering conferences (e.g., SPIE). This presentation provides an overview of the status of the project, with an emphasis on optics and measurement.

The Lyman-alpha Imager onboard Solar Polar Orbit Telescope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Baoquan; Li, Haitao; Zhou, Sizhong; Jiang, Bo

2013-12-01

Solar Polar ORbit Telescope (SPORT) was originally proposed in 2004 by the National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, which is currently being under background engineering study phase in China. SPORT will carry a suite of remote-sensing and in-situ instruments to observe coronal mass ejections (CMEs), solar high-latitude magnetism, and the fast solar wind from a polar orbit around the Sun. The Lyman-alpha Imager (LMI) is one of the key remotesensing instruments onboard SPORT with 45arcmin FOV, 2000mm effective focal length and 1.4arcsec/pixel spatial resolution . The size of LMI is φ150×1000mm, and the weight is less than10kg, including the 7kg telescope tube and 3kg electronic box. There are three 121.6nm filters used in the LMI optical path, so the 98% spectral purity image of 121.6nm can be achieved. The 121.6nm solar Lyman-alpha line is produced in the chromosphere and very sensitive to plasma temperature, plasma velocity and magnetism variation in the chromosphere. Solar Lyman-alpha disk image is an ideal tracker for corona magnetism variation.

ExoMars Entry, Descent, and Landing Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karatekin, Özgür; Forget, Francois; Withers, Paul; Colombatti, Giacomo; Aboudan, Alessio; Lewis, Stephen; Ferri, Francesca; Van Hove, Bart; Gerbal, Nicolas

2016-07-01

Schiaparelli, the Entry Demonstrator Module (EDM) of the ESA ExoMars Program will to land on Mars on 19th October 2016. The ExoMars Atmospheric Mars Entry and Landing Investigations and Analysis (AMELIA) team seeks to exploit the Entry Descent and Landing (EDL) engineering measurements of Schiaparelli for scientific investigations of Mars' atmosphere and surface. ExoMars offers a rare opportunity to perform an in situ investigation of the martian environment over a wide altitude range. There has been only 7 successfully landing on the surface of Mars, from the Viking probes in the 1970's to the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) in 2012. ExoMars EDM is equipped with an instrumented heat shield like MSL. These novel flight sensors complement conventional accelerometer and gyroscope instrumentation, and provide additional information to reconstruct atmospheric conditions with. This abstract outlines general atmospheric reconstruction methodology using complementary set of sensors and in particular the use of surface pressure and radio data. In addition, we discuss the lessons learned from previous EDL and the plans for ExoMars AMELIA data analysis.

How to Assess Creative Thinking Skill in Making Products of Liquid Pressure?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chasanah, L.; Kaniawati, I.; Hernani, H.

2017-09-01

The primary skills that must be possessed in the 21st century curriculum are learning and innovation skills. One of the learning strategies that can train students to innovate and improve creative thinking skills is by applying Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in learning. Based on an interview to one of the science teachers that learning that aims to train learning and innovation skills has not been applied to learning in the classroom because there is not enough time, learning materials and assessment instruments used. This study aims to determine the results of the implementation of performance assessment of creative thinking skills on STEM-based learning in junior high school for the material of liquid pressure. This research uses descriptive method. Participants in this study were junior high school students 8th in Kudus area. The research instrument consists of observation sheet, performance assessment and documentation. The result showed that creative thinking skills performance assessment can assess student’s creativity in making products of STEM-based learning for junior high school.

Verner Suomi (1915-1995)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Menzel, Paul

Verner Edward Suomi passed away in Madison, Wisconsin, on Sunday, July 30, after a long battle with heart disease. Internationally recognized as the father of satellite meteorology, Suomi invented many satellite instruments that led to a better understanding of the Earth and its atmosphere. He succeeded in conducting the first American meteorological experiment ever from a satellite platform in 1959, in which he measured the Earth radiation budget with white and black heat sensing radiometers. This was followed by planetary investigations with similar instruments for Venus and Jupiter space probes. Suomi's most influential invention was the spin-scan camera, which enabled geostationary weather observations. This technology is still used worldwide today. He also founded the Space Science and Engineering Center, where many of his inventions were created and systems were established to process the data into information. In a eulogy, University of Wisconsin Provost John Wiley commented, “Verner Suomi was a giant of modern science. His inventions were simple and elegant, and their consequences are ubiquitous. Anyone looking at a satellite image of Earth on the evening weather is looking at the product of a rare mind.”

Instrument to average 100 data sets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tuma, G. B.; Birchenough, A. G.; Rice, W. J.

1977-01-01

An instrumentation system is currently under development which will measure many of the important parameters associated with the operation of an internal combustion engine. Some of these parameters include mass-fraction burn rate, ignition energy, and the indicated mean effective pressure. One of the characteristics of an internal combustion engine is the cycle-to-cycle variation of these parameters. A curve-averaging instrument has been produced which will generate the average curve, over 100 cycles, of any engine parameter. the average curve is described by 2048 discrete points which are displayed on an oscilloscope screen to facilitate recording and is available in real time. Input can be any parameter which is expressed as a + or - 10-volt signal. Operation of the curve-averaging instrument is defined between 100 and 6000 rpm. Provisions have also been made for averaging as many as four parameters simultaneously, with a subsequent decrease in resolution. This provides the means to correlate and perhaps interrelate the phenomena occurring in an internal combustion engine. This instrument has been used successfully on a 1975 Chevrolet V8 engine, and on a Continental 6-cylinder aircraft engine. While this instrument was designed for use on an internal combustion engine, with some modification it can be used to average any cyclically varying waveform.

Webb's MIRI Shield Dropping in on Dropping Temperatures

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-12-04

Goddard Technicians Tony Kiem (left) and George Mooney (right) guide the craned structure holding the Webb telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument or MIRI Shield Environmental Test Unit into place in a cryogenic (cooling) test chamber. This shield will be used to simulate the MIRI instrument during prelaunch testing to verify that the MIRI cooling system will function properly in space. Goddard Safety Engineer Richard Bowlan watches from above. Image Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Instruments for Planetary Exploration with CubeSats and SmallSats

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raymond, Carol; Jaumann, Ralf; Vane, Gregg; Baker, John; Castillo-Rogez, Julie; Yano, Hajime

2016-07-01

Planetary sensors and instruments are undergoing a revolutionary transformation as solid-state electronics and advanced detectors allow drastic reductions in size, mass and power relative to instruments flown in the past. Given their reduced resource needs, these capable new systems are potentially compatible with use on smallsats. New built-in processing techniques further enable increased science return in constrained resource environments. In the summer of 2014 an international group of scientists, engineers, and technologists started a study to define investigations to be carried out by nano-spacecraft, and instruments that would enable breakthrough science from these small platforms were identified. The possibilities include passive remote sensing instruments such as imagers, spectrometers, magnetometers, dust analyzers; active instruments such as radar, lidar, laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), muonography, projectiles; and landed packages and in-situ probes such as instrumented penetrators, seismometers, and in-situ sample analysis packages. Many of the passive and active instruments could be used in-situ for very high-resolution measurements over limited areas. Smallsats lend themselves to observing strategies that allow dense spatial and temporal sampling using multiple flight system elements, covering a range of observing conditions, and multi-scale measurements with concurrent surface and remote observations. The lower cost of smallsats allows visiting a large range of targets and provides an architecture for cooperating distributed networks of sensors. The current state-of-the-art in smallsat payloads includes instrument suites on the Philae lander (Rosetta), and the MINERVA-II rovers and MASCOT on Hayabusa-2. Many Cubesat form factor instruments are either built or in development, including impactors and penetrators, and several new technologies are making their debut in the smallsat arena. The Philae payload included the CONSERT active radar experiment, MUPUS hammer and heat flow probes, magnetometer, ROLIS cameras and ROSINA mass spectrometer. MASCOT carries MicrOmega (NIR spectrometer), magnetometer, camera, and radiometer. The INSPIRE Cubesat mission carries a 1/2U Vector Helium Magnetometer. An intelligent camera maturing for flight in 2018 on the NEA Scout Cubesat mission promises to deliver a low-cost dual-use navigation and science capability at Cubesat scale. Cubesat versions of VIS-IR imaging spectrometers, neutron and gamma-ray spectrometers, mass spectrometers, tunable laser diode spectrometer and active radar are under development. Acknowledgements: This study is sponsored by the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA). Part of this work is being carried out at the Jet Propulsion Lab, California Institute of Technology, under contract to NASA.

Science Data System Contribution to Calibrating and Validating SMAP Data Products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cuddy, D.

2015-12-01

NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) mission retrieves global surface soil moisture and freeze/thaw state using measurements acquired by a radiometer and a synthetic aperture radar that fly on an Earth orbiting satellite. The SMAP observatory launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on January 31, 2015 into a near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit. This paper describes the contribution of the SMAP Science Data System (SDS) to the calibration and on-going validation of the radar backscatter and radiometer brightness temperatures. The Science Data System designed, implemented and operated the software that generates data products that contain various geophysical parameters including soil moisture and freeze/thaw states, daily maps of these geophysical parameters, as well as modeled analyses of global soil moisture and carbon flux in Boreal regions. The SDS is a fully automated system that processes the incoming raw data from the instruments, incorporates spacecraft and instrument engineering data, and uses both dynamic and static ancillary products provided by the scientific community. The standard data products appear in Hierarchical Data Format-5 (HDF5) format. These products contain metadata that conform to the ISO 19115 standard. The Alaska Satellite Facility (ASF) hosts and distributes SMAP radar data products. The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) hosts and distributes all of the other SMAP data products.

Learning to teach effectively: Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics graduate teaching assistants' teaching self-efficacy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dechenne, Sue Ellen

Graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) from science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are important in the teaching of undergraduate students (Golde & Dore, 2001). However, they are often poorly prepared for teaching (Luft, Kurdziel, Roehrig, & Turner, 2004). This dissertation addresses teaching effectiveness in three related manuscripts: (1) A position paper that summarizes the current research on and develops a model of GTA teaching effectiveness. (2) An adaptation and validation of two instruments; GTA perception of teaching training and STEM GTA teaching self-efficacy. (3) A model test of factors that predict STEM GTA teaching self-efficacy. Together these three papers address key questions in the understanding of teaching effectiveness in STEM GTAs including: (a) What is our current knowledge of factors that affect the teaching effectiveness of GTAs? (b) Given that teaching self-efficacy is strongly linked to teaching performance, how can we measure STEM GTAs teaching self-efficacy? (c) Is there a better way to measure GTA teaching training than currently exists? (d) What factors predict STEM GTA teaching self-efficacy? An original model for GTA teaching effectiveness was developed from a thorough search of the GTA teaching literature. The two instruments---perception of training and teaching self-efficacy---were tested through self-report surveys using STEM GTAs from six different universities including Oregon State University (OSU). The data was analyzed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Using GTAs from the OSU colleges of science and engineering, the model of sources of STEM GTA teaching self-efficacy was tested by administering self-report surveys and analyzed by using OLS regression analysis. Language and cultural proficiency, departmental teaching climate, teaching self-efficacy, GTA training, and teaching experience affect GTA teaching effectiveness. GTA teaching self-efficacy is a second-order factor combined from self-efficacy for instructional strategies and a positive learning environment. It is correlated to GTA perception of teaching training and university GTA training. The K-12 teaching experience, GTA perception of teaching training, and facilitating factors in the departmental climate predict STEM GTA teaching self-efficacy. Hours of GTA training and supervision are fully mediated by perception of GTA training. Implications for research and training of STEM GTAs are discussed.

Monitoring Space Radiation Hazards with the Responsive Environmental Assessment Commercially Hosted (REACH) Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mazur, J. E.; Guild, T. B.; Crain, W.; Crain, S.; Holker, D.; Quintana, S.; O'Brien, T. P., III; Kelly, M. A.; Barnes, R. J.; Sotirelis, T.

2017-12-01

The Responsive Environmental Assessment Commercial Hosting (REACH) project uses radiation dosimeters on a commercial satellite constellation in low Earth orbit to provide unprecedented spatial and time sampling of space weather radiation hazards. The spatial and time scales of natural space radiation environments coupled with constraints for the hosting accommodation drove the instrumentation requirements and the plan for the final orbital constellation. The project has delivered a total of thirty two radiation dosimeter instruments for launch with each instrument containing two dosimeters with different passive shielding and electronic thresholds to address proton-induced single-event effects, vehicle charging, and total ionizing dose. There are two REACH instruments currently operating with four more planned for launch by the time of the 2017 meeting. Our aim is to field a long-lived system of highly-capable radiation detectors to monitor the hazards of single-event effects, total ionizing dose, and spacecraft charging with maximized spatial coverage and with minimal time latency. We combined a robust detection technology with a commercial satellite hosting to produce a new demonstration for satellite situational awareness and for other engineering and science applications.

Development of the Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE): An Advanced Airborne DIAL Instrument

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moore, Alvah S., Jr.; Brown, Kevin E.; Hall, William M.; Barnes, James C.; Edwards, William C.; Petway, Larry B.; Little, Alan D.; Luck, William S., Jr.; Jones, Irby W.; Antill, Charles W., Jr.

1997-01-01

The Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE) Instrument is the first fully-engineered, autonomous Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) System for the measurement of water vapor in the troposphere (aerosol and cloud measurements are included). LASE uses a double-pulsed Ti:Sapphire laser for the transmitter with a 30 ns pulse length and 150 mJ/pulse. The laser beam is "seeded" to operate on a selected water vapor absorption line in the 815-nm region using a laser diode and an onboard absorption reference cell. A 40 cm diameter telescope collects the backscattered signals and directs them onto two detectors. LASE collects DIAL data at 5 Hz while onboard a NASA/Ames ER-2 aircraft flying at altitudes from 16-21 km. LASE was designed to operate autonomously within the environment and physical constraints of the ER-2 aircraft and to make water vapor profile measurements across the troposphere to better than 10% accuracy. LASE has flown 19 times during the development of the instrument and the validation of the science data. This paper describes the design, operation, and reliability of the LASE Instrument.

Psychometric Principles in Measurement for Geoscience Education Research: A Climate Change Example

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Libarkin, J. C.; Gold, A. U.; Harris, S. E.; McNeal, K.; Bowles, R.

2015-12-01

Understanding learning in geoscience classrooms requires that we use valid and reliable instruments aligned with intended learning outcomes. Nearly one hundred instruments assessing conceptual understanding in undergraduate science and engineering classrooms (often called concept inventories) have been published and are actively being used to investigate learning. The techniques used to develop these instruments vary widely, often with little attention to psychometric principles of measurement. This paper will discuss the importance of using psychometric principles to design, evaluate, and revise research instruments, with particular attention to the validity and reliability steps that must be undertaken to ensure that research instruments are providing meaningful measurement. An example from a climate change inventory developed by the authors will be used to exemplify the importance of validity and reliability, including the value of item response theory for instrument development. A 24-item instrument was developed based on published items, conceptions research, and instructor experience. Rasch analysis of over 1000 responses provided evidence for the removal of 5 items for misfit and one item for potential bias as measured via differential item functioning. The resulting 18-item instrument can be considered a valid and reliable measure based on pre- and post-implementation metrics. Consideration of the relationship between respondent demographics and concept inventory scores provides unique insight into the relationship between gender, religiosity, values and climate change understanding.

Low-cost microwave radiometry for remote sensing of soil moisture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chikando, Eric Ndjoukwe

2007-12-01

Remote sensing is now widely regarded as a dominant means of studying the Earth and its surrounding atmosphere. This science is based on blackbody theory, which states that all objects emit broadband electromagnetic radiation proportional to their temperature. This thermal emission is detectable by radiometers---highly sensitive receivers capable of measuring extremely low power radiation across a continuum of frequencies. In the particular case of a soil surface, one important parameter affecting the emitted radiation is the amount of water content or, soil moisture. A high degree of precision is required when estimating soil moisture in order to yield accurate forecasting of precipitations and short-term climate variability such as storms and hurricanes. Rapid progress within the remote sensing community in tackling current limitations necessitates an awareness of the general public towards the benefits of the science. Information about remote sensing instrumentation and techniques remain inaccessible to many higher-education institutions due to the high cost of instrumentation and the current general inaccessibility of the science. In an effort to draw more talent within the field, more affordable and reliable scientific instrumentation are needed. This dissertation introduces the first low-cost handheld microwave instrumentation fully capable of surface soil moisture studies. The framework of this research is two-fold. First, the development of a low-cost handheld microwave radiometer using the well-known Dicke configuration is examined. The instrument features a super-heterodyne architecture and is designed following a microwave integrated circuit (MIC) system approach. Validation of the instrument is performed by applying it to various soil targets and comparing measurement results to gravimetric technique measured data; a proven scientific method for determining volumetric soil moisture content. Second, the development of a fully functional receiver RF front-end is presented. This receiver module is designed in support to a digital radiometer effort under development by the Center of Microwave Satellite and RF Engineering (COMSARE) at Morgan State University. The topology of the receiver includes a low-noise amplifier, bandpass filters and a three-stage gain amplifier. Design, characterization and evaluation of these system blocks are detailed within the framework of this dissertation.

Opportunities for Space Science Education Using Current and Future Solar System Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matiella Novak, M.; Beisser, K.; Butler, L.; Turney, D.

2010-12-01

The Education and Public Outreach (E/PO) office in The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) Space Department strives to excite and inspire the next generation of explorers by creating interactive education experiences. Since 1959, APL engineers and scientists have designed, built, and launched 61 spacecraft and over 150 instruments involved in space science. With the vast array of current and future Solar System exploration missions available, endless opportunities exist for education programs to incorporate the real-world science of these missions. APL currently has numerous education and outreach programs tailored for K-12 formal and informal education, higher education, and general outreach communities. Current programs focus on Solar System exploration missions such as the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM), Miniature Radio Frequency (Mini-RF) Moon explorer, the Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP), New Horizons mission to Pluto, and the Thermosphere Ionosphere Mesosphere Energetics and Dynamics (TIMED) Satellite, to name a few. Education and outreach programs focusing on K-12 formal education include visits to classrooms, summer programs for middle school students, and teacher workshops. APL hosts a Girl Power event and a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Day each year. Education and outreach specialists hold teacher workshops throughout the year to train educators in using NASA spacecraft science in their lesson plans. High school students from around the U.S. are able to engage in NASA spacecraft science directly by participating in the Mars Exploration Student Data Teams (MESDT) and the Student Principal Investigator Programs. An effort is also made to generate excitement for future missions by focusing on what mysteries will be solved. Higher education programs are used to recruit and train the next generation of scientists and engineers. The NASA/APL Summer Internship Program offers a unique glimpse into the Space Department’s “end-to-end” approach to mission design and execution. College students - both undergraduate and graduate - are recruited from around the U.S. to work with APL scientists and engineers who act as mentors to the students. Many students are put on summer projects that allow them to work with existing spacecraft systems, while others participate in projects that investigate the operational and science objectives of future planned spacecraft systems. In many cases these interns have returned to APL as full-time staff after graduation.

Coordinated Instruments for Source Detection and Characterization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilson, G. W.

2007-10-01

I describe two instruments designed for coordinated observations of the submillimeter galaxy population. AzTEC is a 144-element bolometer camera designed to survey fields and detect submillimeter galaxies in the 1.1 mm band. In June of 2005, AzTEC completed a successful engineering run at the JCMT. The instrument then returned to the JCMT in October for a series of science programs, which will result in a set of catalogs of the submillimeter galaxy population that span a wide range of environments. SPEED is a 4-pixel photometer that uses frequency selective bolometers to observe in four colors simultaneously in each pixel (for a total of 16 detectors). SPEED will be used for follow-up observations of sources found by AzTEC as well as for the measurement of the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect in clusters. SPEED's band centers are 2.1 mm, 1.4 mm, 1.1 mm, and 0.85 mm. Because each color is observed through the same optics, the relative calibration of the four bands will be excellent. SPEED is under construction now with a planned deployment to the SMT in 2006. These two instruments will eventually be installed at the LMT as facility instruments.

Science Identity in Informal Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schon, Jennifer A.

The national drive to increase the number of students pursuing Science Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) careers has brought science identity into focus for educators, with the need to determine what encourages students to pursue and persist in STEM careers. Science identity, the degree to which students think someone like them could be a scientist is a potential indicator of students pursuing and persisting in STEM related fields. Science identity, as defined by Carlone and Johnson (2007) consists of three constructs: competence, performance, and recognition. Students need to feel like they are good at science, can perform it well, and that others recognize them for these achievements in order to develop a science identity. These constructs can be bolstered by student visitation to informal education centers. Informal education centers, such as outdoor science schools, museums, and various learning centers can have a positive impact on how students view themselves as scientists by exposing them to novel and unique learning opportunities unavailable in their school. Specifically, the University of Idaho's McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS) focuses on providing K-12 students with the opportunity to learn about science with a place-based, hands-on, inquiry-based curriculum that hopes to foster science identity development. To understand the constructs that lead to science identity formation and the impact the MOSS program has on science identity development, several questions were explored examining how students define the constructs and if the MOSS program impacted how they rate themselves within each construct. A mixed-method research approach was used consisting of focus group interviews with students and pre, post, one-month posttests for visiting students to look at change in science identity over time. Results from confirmatory factor analysis indicate that the instrument created is a good fit for examining science identity and the associated constructs for students attending the MOSS residential program. Analysis of results from paired-samples t-test indicates that MOSS does contribute to a positive change in science identity and this change does persist one month following the visit to MOSS, although a slight decline is seen. The results from this research and creation of this instrument provide useful tools for educators interested in increasing their students' science identity.

Measuring Primary Teachers' Attitudes toward Teaching Science: Development of the Dimensions of Attitude toward Science (DAS) Instrument

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van Aalderen-Smeets, Sandra; Walma van der Molen, Juliette

2013-01-01

In this article, we present a valid and reliable instrument which measures the attitude of in-service and pre-service primary teachers toward teaching science, called the Dimensions of Attitude Toward Science (DAS) Instrument. Attention to the attitudes of primary teachers toward teaching science is of fundamental importance to the…

An Analysis of Several Instruments Measuring "Nature of Science" Objectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Doran, Rodney L.; And Others

1974-01-01

Reported is an investigation of the relationship among three selected instruments based on the responses of a sample of high school students. The instruments were the Nature of Science Scale (NOSS), the Science Support Scale (SSS), and the Test on the Social Aspects of Science (TSAS). All purport to measure "nature of science"…

Science Outside the Lab: Helping Graduate Students in Science and Engineering Understand the Complexities of Science Policy.

PubMed

Bernstein, Michael J; Reifschneider, Kiera; Bennett, Ira; Wetmore, Jameson M

2017-06-01

Helping scientists and engineers challenge received assumptions about how science, engineering, and society relate is a critical cornerstone for macroethics education. Scientific and engineering research are frequently framed as first steps of a value-free linear model that inexorably leads to societal benefit. Social studies of science and assessments of scientific and engineering research speak to the need for a more critical approach to the noble intentions underlying these assumptions. "Science Outside the Lab" is a program designed to help early-career scientists and engineers understand the complexities of science and engineering policy. Assessment of the program entailed a pre-, post-, and 1 year follow up survey to gauge student perspectives on relationships between science and society, as well as a pre-post concept map exercise to elicit student conceptualizations of science policy. Students leave Science Outside the Lab with greater humility about the role of scientific expertise in science and engineering policy; greater skepticism toward linear notions of scientific advances benefiting society; a deeper, more nuanced understanding of the actors involved in shaping science policy; and a continued appreciation of the contributions of science and engineering to society. The study presents an efficacious program that helps scientists and engineers make inroads into macroethical debates, reframe the ways in which they think about values of science and engineering in society, and more thoughtfully engage with critical mediators of science and society relationships: policy makers and policy processes.

Engineering design in the primary school: applying stem concepts to build an optical instrument

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

King, Donna; English, Lyn D.

2016-12-01

Internationally there is a need for research that focuses on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education to equip students with the skills needed for a rapidly changing future. One way to do this is through designing engineering activities that reflect real-world problems and contextualise students' learning of STEM concepts. As such, this study examined the learning that occurred when fifth-grade students completed an optical engineering activity using an iterative engineering design model. Through a qualitative methodology using a case study design, we analysed multiple data sources including students' design sketches from eight focus groups. Three key findings emerged: first, the collaborative process of the first design sketch enabled students to apply core STEM concepts to model construction; second, during the construction stage students used experimentation for the positioning of lenses, mirrors and tubes resulting in a simpler 'working' model; and third, the redesign process enabled students to apply structural changes to their design. The engineering design model was useful for structuring stages of design, construction and redesign; however, we suggest a more flexible approach for advanced applications of STEM concepts in the future.

Cassini NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-14

NASA Social attendees are seen during a science panel discussion with Cassini project scientist at JPL, Linda Spilker, Cassini interdisciplinary Titan scientist at Cornell University, Jonathan Lunine, Cassini Composite Infrared Spectrometer(CIRS) Instrument deputy principle investigator Connor Nixon, and Cassini assistant project science systems engineer Morgan Cable, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017 at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Since its arrival in 2004, the Cassini-Huygens mission has been a discovery machine, revolutionizing our knowledge of the Saturn system and captivating us with data and images never before obtained with such detail and clarity. On Sept. 15, 2017, operators will deliberately plunge the spacecraft into Saturn, as Cassini gathered science until the end. The “plunge” ensures Saturn’s moons will remain pristine for future exploration. During Cassini’s final days, mission team members from all around the world gathered at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, to celebrate the achievements of this historic mission. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Crab Nebula

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

The Crab Nebula is a supernova remnant, all that remains of a tremendous stellar explosion. Observers in China and Japan recorded the supernova nearly 1,000 years ago, in 1054. Credit: NASA, ESA, J. Hester and A. Loll (Arizona State University) The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute conducts Hubble science operations. Goddard is responsible for HST project management, including mission and science operations, servicing missions, and all associated development activities. To learn more about the Hubble Space Telescope go here: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/index.html NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is home to the nation's largest organization of combined scientists, engineers and technologists that build spacecraft, instruments and new technology to study the Earth, the sun, our solar system, and the universe. Follow us on Twitter Join us on Facebook

Carina Nebula Detail

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Carina Nebula Details: Great Clouds Credit for Hubble Image: NASA, ESA, N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley), and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) Credit for CTIO Image: N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley) and NOAO/AURA/NSF The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute conducts Hubble science operations. Goddard is responsible for HST project management, including mission and science operations, servicing missions, and all associated development activities. To learn more about the Hubble Space Telescope go here: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/index.html NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is home to the nation's largest organization of combined scientists, engineers and technologists that build spacecraft, instruments and new technology to study the Earth, the sun, our solar system, and the universe. Follow us on Twitter Join us on Facebook

The Two Cultures of Electricity: Between Entertainment and Edification in Victorian Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morus, Iwan Rhys

2007-06-01

Reviewing Fleeming Jenkin's Electricity and Magnetism in Nature in 1873 an anonymous reviewer (probably James Clerk Maxwell) remarked that "at the present time there are two sciences of electricity — one that of the lecture-room and the popular treatise; the other that of the testing-office and the engineer's specifications." In this paper I want to look behind Maxwell's remark and examine the relationship between the "two sciences" of electricity during the third quarter or so of the 19th century. In particular I want to look at them in terms of their instrumental technologies. How did apparatus travel between the lecture-room or exhibition-hall and the testing-office or the laboratory? How did skills cross between these different spaces? How did the earlier Victorian culture of electricity as "entertainment and edification" become transformed into late 19th century metrological culture? How did these cultures overlap and how did they differ?

Research instrumentation for hot section components of turbine engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Englund, D. R.

1986-01-01

Programs to develop research instrumentation for use on hot section components of turbine engines are discussed. These programs can be separated into two categories: one category includes instruments which can measure the environment within the combustor and turbine components, the other includes instruments which measure the response of engine components to the imposed environment. Included in the first category are instruments to measure total heat flux and fluctuating gas temperature. High temperature strain measuring systems, thin film sensors (e.g., turbine blade thermocouples) and a system to view the interior of a combustor during engine operation are programs which comprise the second category. The paper will describe the state of development of these sensors and measuring systems and, in some cases, show examples of measurements made with this instrumentation. The discussion will cover work done at NASA Lewis and at various contractor facilities.

High-speed noncontacting instrumentation for jet engine testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scotto, M. J.; Eismeier, M. E.

1980-03-01

This paper discusses high-speed, noncontacting instrumentation systems for measuring the operating characteristics of jet engines. The discussion includes optical pyrometers for measuring blade surface temperatures, capacitance clearanceometers for measuring blade tip clearance and vibration, and optoelectronic systems for measuring blade flex and torsion. In addition, engine characteristics that mandate the use of such unique instrumentation are pointed out as well as the shortcomings of conventional noncontacting devices. Experimental data taken during engine testing are presented and recommendations for future development discussed.

An automated performance budget estimator: a process for use in instrumentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laporte, Philippe; Schnetler, Hermine; Rees, Phil

2016-08-01

Current day astronomy projects continue to increase in size and are increasingly becoming more complex, regardless of the wavelength domain, while risks in terms of safety, cost and operability have to be reduced to ensure an affordable total cost of ownership. All of these drivers have to be considered carefully during the development process of an astronomy project at the same time as there is a big drive to shorten the development life-cycle. From the systems engineering point of view, this evolution is a significant challenge. Big instruments imply management of interfaces within large consortia and dealing with tight design phase schedules which necessitate efficient and rapid interactions between all the stakeholders to firstly ensure that the system is defined correctly and secondly that the designs will meet all the requirements. It is essential that team members respond quickly such that the time available for the design team is maximised. In this context, performance prediction tools can be very helpful during the concept phase of a project to help selecting the best design solution. In the first section of this paper we present the development of such a prediction tool that can be used by the system engineer to determine the overall performance of the system and to evaluate the impact on the science based on the proposed design. This tool can also be used in "what-if" design analysis to assess the impact on the overall performance of the system based on the simulated numbers calculated by the automated system performance prediction tool. Having such a tool available from the beginning of a project can allow firstly for a faster turn-around between the design engineers and the systems engineer and secondly, between the systems engineer and the instrument scientist. Following the first section we described the process for constructing a performance estimator tool, followed by describing three projects in which such a tool has been utilised to illustrate how such a tool have been used in astronomy projects. The three use-cases are; EAGLE, one of the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) instruments that was studied from 2007 to 2009, the Multi-Object Optical and Near-Infrared Spectrograph (MOONS) for the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT), currently under development and SST-GATE.

75 FR 62591 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE); Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-12

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE... Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (1173). Dates/Time: October 25, 2010, 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m... the National Science Foundation (NSF) concerning broadening participation in science and engineering...

PDS MSL Analyst's Notebook: Supporting Active Rover Missions and Adding Value to Planetary Data Archives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stein, Thomas

Planetary data archives of surface missions contain data from numerous hosted instruments. Because of the nondeterministic nature of surface missions, it is not possible to assess the data without understanding the context in which they were collected. The PDS Analyst’s Notebook (http://an.rsl.wustl.edu) provides access to Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) data archives by integrating sequence information, engineering and science data, observation planning and targeting, and documentation into web-accessible pages to facilitate “mission replay.” In addition, Mars Exploration Rover (MER), Mars Phoenix Lander, Lunar Apollo surface mission, and LCROSS mission data are available in the Analyst’s Notebook concept, and a Notebook is planned for the Insight mission. The MSL Analyst’s Notebook contains data, documentation, and support files for the Curiosity rovers. The inputs are incorporated on a daily basis into a science team version of the Notebook. The public version of the Analyst’s Notebook is comprised of peer-reviewed, released data and is updated coincident with PDS data releases as defined in mission archive plans. The data are provided by the instrument teams and are supported by documentation describing data format, content, and calibration. Both operations and science data products are included. The operations versions are generated to support mission planning and operations on a daily basis. They are geared toward researchers working on machine vision and engineering operations. Science versions of observations from some instruments are provided for those interested in radiometric and photometric analyses. Both data set documentation and sol (i.e., Mars day) documents are included in the Notebook. The sol documents are the mission manager and documentarian reports that provide a view into science operations—insight into why and how particular observations were made. Data set documents contain detailed information regarding the mission, spacecraft, instruments, and data formats. In addition, observation planning and targeting information is extracted from each sol’s tactical science plan. A number of methods allow user access to the Notebook contents. The mission summary provides a high level overview of science operations. The Sol Summaries are the primary interface to integrated data and documents contained within the Notebooks. Data, documents, and planned observations are grouped for easy scanning. Data products are displayed in order of acquisition, and are grouped into logical sequences, such as a series of image data. Sequences and the individual products that comprise them may be viewed in detail, manipulated, and downloaded. Color composites and anaglyph stereo images may be created on demand. Graphs of some non-image data, such as spectra, may be viewed. Data may be downloaded as zip or gzip files, or as multiband ENVI image files. The Notebook contains a map with the rover traverse plotted on a HiRISE basemap using the raw and corrected drive telemetry provided by the project. Users may zoom and pan the map. Clicking on a traverse location brings up links to corresponding data. Three types of searching through data and documents are available within the Notebook. Free text searching of data set and sol documents are supported. Data are searchable by instrument, acquisition time, data type, and product ID. Results may be downloaded in a single collection or selected individually for detailed viewing. Additional resources include data set documents, references to published mission, links to related web resources, and online help. Finally, feedback is handled through an online forum. Work continues to improve functionality, including locating features of interest and a spectral library search/view/download tool. A number of Notebook functions are based on previous user suggestions, and feedback continues to be sought. The Analyst’s Notebook is available at http://an.rsl.wustl.edu.

The Impact of Design-Based STEM Integration Curricula on Student Achievement in Engineering, Science, and Mathematics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selcen Guzey, S.; Harwell, Michael; Moreno, Mario; Peralta, Yadira; Moore, Tamara J.

2017-04-01

The new science education reform documents call for integration of engineering into K-12 science classes. Engineering design and practices are new to most science teachers, meaning that implementing effective engineering instruction is likely to be challenging. This quasi-experimental study explored the influence of teacher-developed, engineering design-based science curriculum units on learning and achievement among grade 4-8 students of different races, gender, special education status, and limited English proficiency (LEP) status. Treatment and control students ( n = 4450) completed pretest and posttest assessments in science, engineering, and mathematics as well as a state-mandated mathematics test. Single-level regression results for science outcomes favored the treatment for one science assessment (physical science, heat transfer), but multilevel analyses showed no significant treatment effect. We also found that engineering integration had different effects across race and gender and that teacher gender can reduce or exacerbate the gap in engineering achievement for student subgroups depending on the outcome. Other teacher factors such as the quality of engineering-focused science units and engineering instruction were predictive of student achievement in engineering. Implications for practice are discussed.

Development and Testing of Assessment Instruments for Multidisciplinary Engineering Capstone Design Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gerlick, Robert Edward

2010-01-01

The research presented in this manuscript was focused on the development of assessments for engineering design outcomes. The primary goal was to support efforts by the Transferrable Integrated Design Engineering Education (TIDEE) consortium in developing assessment instruments for multidisciplinary engineering capstone courses. Research conducted…

The Large UV/Optical/Infrared Surveyor (LUVOIR): Decadal Mission concept design update

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bolcar, Matthew R.; Aloezos, Steve; Bly, Vincent T.; Collins, Christine; Crooke, Julie; Dressing, Courtney D.; Fantano, Lou; Feinberg, Lee D.; France, Kevin; Gochar, Gene; Gong, Qian; Hylan, Jason E.; Jones, Andrew; Linares, Irving; Postman, Marc; Pueyo, Laurent; Roberge, Aki; Sacks, Lia; Tompkins, Steven; West, Garrett

2017-09-01

In preparation for the 2020 Astrophysics Decadal Survey, NASA has commissioned the study of four large mission concepts, including the Large Ultraviolet / Optical / Infrared (LUVOIR) Surveyor. The LUVOIR Science and Technology Definition Team (STDT) has identified a broad range of science objectives including the direct imaging and spectral characterization of habitable exoplanets around sun-like stars, the study of galaxy formation and evolution, the epoch of reionization, star and planet formation, and the remote sensing of Solar System bodies. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is providing the design and engineering support to develop executable and feasible mission concepts that are capable of the identified science objectives. We present an update on the first of two architectures being studied: a 15- meter-diameter segmented-aperture telescope with a suite of serviceable instruments operating over a range of wavelengths between 100 nm to 2.5 μm. Four instruments are being developed for this architecture: an optical / near-infrared coronagraph capable of 10-10 contrast at inner working angles as small as 2 λ/D the LUVOIR UV Multi-object Spectrograph (LUMOS), which will provide low- and medium-resolution UV (100 - 400 nm) multi-object imaging spectroscopy in addition to far-UV imaging; the High Definition Imager (HDI), a high-resolution wide-field-of-view NUV-Optical-IR imager; and a UV spectro-polarimeter being contributed by Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES). A fifth instrument, a multi-resolution optical-NIR spectrograph, is planned as part of a second architecture to be studied in late 2017.

Decision Analysis: Engineering Science or Clinical Art

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-11-01

TECHNICAL REPORT TR 79-2-97 DECISION ANALYSIS: ENGINEERING SCIENCE OR CLINICAL ART ? by Dennis M. Buede Prepared for Defense Advanced Research...APPLICATIONS OF THE ENGINEER- ING SCIENCE AND CLINICAL ART EXTREMES 9 3.1 Applications of the Engineering Science Approach 9 3.1.1 Mexican electrical...DISCUSSION 29 4.1 Engineering Science versus Clinical Art : A Characterization of When Each is Most Attractive 30 4.2 The Implications of the Engineering

The Impact of Engineering Integrated Science (EIS) Curricula on First-Year Technical High School Students' Attitudes toward Science and Perceptions of Engineering

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nam, Younkyeong; Lee, Sun-Ju; Paik, Seoung-Hey

2016-01-01

This study investigated how engineering integrated science (EIS) curricula affect first-year technical high school students' attitudes toward science and perceptions of engineering. The effect of the EIS participation period on students' attitudes toward science was also investigated via experimental study design. Two engineering integrated…

Science Teachers' Misconceptions in Science and Engineering Distinctions: Reflections on Modern Research Examples

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Antink-Meyer, Allison; Meyer, Daniel Z.

2016-10-01

The aim of this exploratory study was to learn about the misconceptions that may arise for elementary and high school science teachers in their reflections on science and engineering practice. Using readings and videos of real science and engineering work, teachers' reflections were used to uncover the underpinnings of their understandings. This knowledge ultimately provides information about supporting professional development (PD) for science teachers' knowledge of engineering. Six science teachers (two elementary and four high school teachers) participated in the study as part of an online PD experience. Cunningham and Carlsen's (Journal of Science Teacher Education 25:197-210, 2014) relative emphases of science and engineering practices were used to frame the design of PD activities and the analyses of teachers' views. Analyses suggest misconceptions within the eight practices of science and engineering from the US Next Generation Science Standards in four areas. These are that: (1) the nature of the practices in both science and engineering research is determined by the long-term implications of the research regardless of the nature of the immediate work, (2) engineering and science are hierarchical, (3) creativity is inappropriate, and (4) research outcomes cannot be processes. We discuss the nature of these understandings among participants and the implications for engineering education PD for science teachers.

Understanding women's choices to enroll in engineering: A case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, Eileen

The underrepresentation of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) college programs is a troublesome local, national and global phenomenon. The topic of this doctoral thesis specifically focused on the underrepresentation of women in the field of engineering and more specifically on the factors that women may perceive as chiefly motivating them to choose engineering as a college major. By not choosing to major in engineering, women forego intellectual opportunities and the financial rewards that engineering careers can provide. Their absence means that the field of engineering also suffers from the lack of contributions from a diverse workforce. Women who graduated from a specific community college's engineering program in the United States were the focus of this qualitative study. Grounded in achievement motivation theory, and in particular expectancy-value theory of academic and career choice, this research was guided by two questions: How do women perceive their academic self-efficacies and expectations for success as influencing their decisions to enroll in engineering? How do women perceive their subjective task values as influencing their decisions to enroll in engineering? This single, holistic case study with one main unit of analysis incorporated a written questionnaire, individual interviews and a focus group meeting as the three instruments used to collect data. The qualitative data, cyclically coded, shed light on the complex mechanisms of academic and career choice.

A new systems engineering approach to streamlined science and mission operations for the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Butler, Madeline J.; Sonneborn, George; Perkins, Dorothy C.

1994-01-01

The Mission Operations and Data Systems Directorate (MO&DSD, Code 500), the Space Sciences Directorate (Code 600), and the Flight Projects Directorate (Code 400) have developed a new approach to combine the science and mission operations for the FUSE mission. FUSE, the last of the Delta-class Explorer missions, will obtain high resolution far ultraviolet spectra (910 - 1220 A) of stellar and extragalactic sources to study the evolution of galaxies and conditions in the early universe. FUSE will be launched in 2000 into a 24-hour highly eccentric orbit. Science operations will be conducted in real time for 16-18 hours per day, in a manner similar to the operations performed today for the International Ultraviolet Explorer. In a radical departure from previous missions, the operations concept combines spacecraft and science operations and data processing functions in a single facility to be housed in the Laboratory for Astronomy and Solar Physics (Code 680). A small missions operations team will provide the spacecraft control, telescope operations and data handling functions in a facility designated as the Science and Mission Operations Center (SMOC). This approach will utilize the Transportable Payload Operations Control Center (TPOCC) architecture for both spacecraft and instrument commanding. Other concepts of integrated operations being developed by the Code 500 Renaissance Project will also be employed for the FUSE SMOC. The primary objective of this approach is to reduce development and mission operations costs. The operations concept, integration of mission and science operations, and extensive use of existing hardware and software tools will decrease both development and operations costs extensively. This paper describes the FUSE operations concept, discusses the systems engineering approach used for its development, and the software, hardware and management tools that will make its implementation feasible.

Planting local seed for growth to nationwide E/PO efforts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fox, N.; Beisser, K.; Mendez, F.; Cockrell, D.; Wilhide, B.

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) is the home to hundreds of scientists and engineers, all involved in research, design and implementation of space missions. Many of these people actively seek out ways to raise awareness and interest in the local community by visiting schools, giving public lectures and supporting events held at the laboratory. During the past few years, APL has begun to foster a number of firm partnerships with organizations to further these community opportunities and provide a test bed for both formal and informal education activities through the Space Department E/PO office One of our ongoing partnerships is with the Maryland Science Center in Baltimore. A continual challenge faced by museums is how to stay current and allow visitors to experience the immediacy and excitement of scientific discovery. To help meet these challenges, the Maryland Science Center houses "SpaceLink", the Nation's first space, science and astronomy update center. Part media center, part discovery room, and part newsroom, the exhibit is a multi-purpose Professional Development Site for educators and a "classroom of the future" for K 12 students. APL scientists and- engineers regularly support SpaceLink's flexible programming, including scientist in residence, monthly credited seminars for educators (Teachers' Thursdays), a menu of Classroom Programs on request, Distance Learning Teacher Presentations, and special Live Events to highlight mission milestones and space-related anniversaries. This allows the guest scientists and engineers to interact directly with the public. These events also compliment the APL exhibits housed at the Science Center. JHU/APL offers an exciting environment for the study of applications in space by hosting the annual Maryland Summer Center for Space Science sponsored by the Maryland State Department of Education. Rising 6t h and 7t h grade students learn to harness the power of technology and keep pace with the expanding knowledge of space science. They experience the process involved in planning/launching a simulated space mission, including design/fabrication of instrumentation for a spacecraft. They are part of a Mission Team that built a spacecraft scale model complete with instrumentation and even give a full mission overview oral presentation to their peers. During this 2 week experience, the students interact with the APL scientists and engineers directly responsible for the featured missions. Scientists and engineers team up with Comcast Cablevision of Maryland, Cable in the Classroom, and the Maryland State Department of Education to give Maryland middle school students a true outer space experience focusing on specific NASA missions. The students move from behind their desks to behind the scenes of a deep- space mission at JHU/APL. The students hear mission briefings and take part in a special student press conference with mission team members. They don clean-room suits and tour the Lab's space facilities, including the Mission Operations Center, the space environment simulation lab, the vibration test lab, and the satellite communications facility. These local programs for outreach opportunities have often served as the test bed for national programs and partnerships. In this presentation we will review the local programs to show how the organizations benefit from the partnership with APL and also how the APL outreach programs gain a much wider and more appreciative audience. We will also show how these programs are being expanded to a more nationwide focus.

Results from the Science Instrument Definition Team for the Gondola for High Altitude Planetary Science Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chanover, Nancy J.; Aslam, Shahid; DiSanti, Michael A.; Hibbitts, Charles A.; Honniball, Casey I.; Paganini, Lucas; Parker, Alex; Skrutskie, Michael F.; Young, Eliot F.

2016-10-01

The Gondola for High Altitude Planetary Science (GHAPS) is an observing asset under development by NASA's Planetary Science Division that will be hosted on stratospheric balloon missions intended for use by the broad planetary science community. GHAPS is being designed in a modular fashion to interface to a suite of instruments as called for by science needs. It will operate at an altitude of 30+ km and will include an optical telescope assembly with a 1-meter aperture and a pointing stability of approximately 1 arcsecond with a flight duration of ~100 days. The spectral grasp of the system is envisaged to include wavelengths spanning the near-ultraviolet to near/mid-infrared (~0.3-5 µm) and possibly to longer wavelengths.The GHAPS Science Instrument Definition Team (SIDT) was convened in May 2016 to define the scope of science investigations, derive the science requirements and instrument concepts for GHAPS, prioritize the instruments according to science priorities that address Planetary Science Decadal Survey questions, and generate a report that is broadly disseminated to the planetary science community. The SIDT examined a wide range of solar system targets and science questions, focusing on unique measurements that could be made from a balloon-borne platform to address high-priority planetary science questions for a fraction of the cost of space missions. The resulting instrument concepts reflect unique capabilities offered by a balloon-borne platform (e.g., observations at spectral regions inaccessible from the ground due to telluric absorption, diffraction-limited imaging, and long duration uninterrupted observations of a target). We discuss example science cases that can be addressed with GHAPS and describe a notional instrument suite that can be used by guest observers to pursue decadal-level science questions.

Developing Instruments to Assess and Compare the Quality of Engineering Education: The Case of China and Russia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kardanova, Elena; Loyalka, Prashant; Chirikov, Igor; Liu, Lydia; Li, Guirong; Wang, Huan; Enchikova, Ekaterina; Shi, Henry; Johnson, Natalie

2016-01-01

Relatively little is known about differences in the quality of engineering education within and across countries because of the lack of valid instruments that allow for the assessment and comparison of engineering students' skill gains. The purpose of our study is to develop and validate instruments that can be used to compare student skill gains…

AFE ion mass spectrometer design study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wright, Willie

1989-01-01

This final technical report covers the activities engaged in by the University of Texas at Dallas, Center for Space Sciences in conjunction with the NASA Langley Research Center, Systems Engineering Division in design studies directed towards defining a suitable ion mass spectrometer to determine the plasma parameter around the Aeroassisted Flight Experiment vehicle during passage through the earth's upper atmosphere. Additional studies relate to the use of a Langmuir probe to measure windward ion/electron concentrations and temperatures. Selected instrument inlet subsystems were tested in the NASA Ames Arc-Jet Facility.

The application and improvement of Fourier transform spectrometer experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zhi-min; Gao, En-duo; Zhou, Feng-qi; Wang, Lan-lan; Feng, Xiao-hua; Qi, Jin-quan; Ji, Cheng; Wang, Luning

2017-08-01

According to teaching and experimental requirements of Optoelectronic information science and Engineering, in order to consolidate theoretical knowledge and improve the students practical ability, the Fourier transform spectrometer ( FTS) experiment, its design, application and improvement are discussed in this paper. The measurement principle and instrument structure of Fourier transform spectrometer are introduced, and the spectrums of several common Laser devices are measured. Based on the analysis of spectrum and test, several possible improvement methods are proposed. It also helps students to understand the application of Fourier transform in physics.

Panel Speaker 3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Doering, Robert

2014-03-01

Profitable products are frequently enabled by innovations that prevent early commoditization. At its best, industrial physics research provides the key differentiators for such products. To fulfill this goal, it's necessary to establish effective working relationships between R&D staff with both physics and engineering backgrounds. In the semiconductor industry, the ``middle ground'' is often materials science, electromagnetics, or a wide range of phenomena useful for creating sensors. In this brief presentation, we will mention a few examples of such collaborative development at Texas Instruments, including MEMS devices, ferroelectric memory, and silicon-IC-based radar.

KSC-2011-7934

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-25

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Betina Pavri, systems engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), speaks to a group of Tweetup participants at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Press Site in Florida during prelaunch activities for the agency’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) launch as Allen Chen, also a systems engineer at JPL, looks on, at left. Following a series of briefings, participants will tour the center and get a close-up view of Space Launch Complex-41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The tweeters will share their experiences with followers through the social networking site Twitter. MSL's components include a car-sized rover, Curiosity, which has 10 science instruments designed to search for signs of life, including methane, and help determine if the gas is from a biological or geological source. Liftoff of MSL aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from pad 41 is planned during a launch window which extends from 10:02 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. EST on Nov. 26. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/msl. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

Publications of LASL research, 1974

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

Kerr, A.K.

1975-05-01

This bibliography includes Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory reports, papers released as non-Los Alamos reports, journal articles, books, chapters of books, conference papers (whether published separately or as part of conference proceedings issued as books or reports), papers published in congressional hearings, theses, and U. S. patents. Publications by LASL authors which are not records of Laboratory-sponsored work are included when the Library becomes aware of them. The entries are arranged in sections by broad subject categories; within each section they are alphabetical by title. The following subject categories are included: aerospace studies; analytical technology; astrophysics; atomic and molecular physics, equationmore » of state, opacity; biology and medicine; chemical dynamics and kinetics; chemistry; cryogenics; crystallography; CTR and plasma studies; earth science and engineering; energy (non-nuclear); engineering and equipment; EPR, ESR, NMR studies; explosives and detonations; fission physics; health and safety; hydrodynamics and radiation transport; instruments; lasers; mathematics and computers; medium-energy physics; metallurgy and ceramics technology; neutronic and criticality studies; nuclear physics; nuclear safeguards; physics; reactor technology; solid state science; and miscellaneous (including Project Rover). Author, numerical and KWIC indexes are included. (RWR)« less

76 FR 4138 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE); Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-01-24

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE... Opportunities in Science and Engineering (1173). Dates/Time: February 8, 2011, 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. February 9, 2011... National Science Foundation (NSF) concerning broadening participation in science and engineering. Agenda...

78 FR 13384 - Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering; Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-02-27

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering; Notice... Science and Engineering (25104). Date/Time: March 14, 2013 9:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. March 15, 2013 8:30 a.m.-12... of International Science and Engineering, National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Arlington...

Multimedia: Developing Creativity and Innovation in Engineering, Science,

Science.gov Websites

Find ScienceCinema Search Results Multimedia: Developing Creativity and Innovation in Engineering , Science, and Medicine Citation Details Title: Developing Creativity and Innovation in Engineering, Science , and Medicine Title: Developing Creativity and Innovation in Engineering, Science, and Medicine Authors

14 CFR 33.29 - Instrument connection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... must make provision for the installation of instrumentation necessary to ensure operation in compliance... assumed aircraft installation, then the applicant must specify this instrumentation in the engine installation instructions and declare it mandatory in the engine approval documentation. (f) As part of the...

Construction and Validation of an Instrument to Measure Taiwanese Elementary Students' Attitudes toward Their Science Class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Tzu-Ling; Berlin, Donna

2010-12-01

The main purpose of this study is to develop a valid and reliable instrument for measuring the attitudes toward science class of fourth- and fifth-grade students in an Asian school culture. Specifically, the development focused on three science attitude constructs-science enjoyment, science confidence, and importance of science as related to science class experiences. A total of 265 elementary school students in Taiwan responded to the instrument developed. Data analysis indicated that the instrument exhibited satisfactory validity and reliability with the Taiwan population used. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.93 for the entire instrument indicating a satisfactory level of internal consistency. However, both principal component analysis and parallel analysis showed that the three attitude scales were not unique and should be combined and used as a general "attitudes toward science class" scale. The analysis also showed that there were no gender or grade-level differences in students' overall attitudes toward science class.

NASA's Gravitational-Wave Mission Concept Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stebbins, Robin

2012-01-01

With the conclusion of the NASA/ESA partnership on the Laser interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) Project, NASA initiated a study to explore mission concepts that will accomplish some or all of the LISA science objectives at lower cost. The Gravitational-Wave Mission Concept Study consists of a public Request for Information (RFI), a Core Team of NASA engineers and scientists, a Community Science Team, a Science Task Force, and an open workshop. The RFI yielded 12 mission concepts, 3 instrument concepts and 2 technologies. The responses ranged from concepts that eliminated the drag-free test mass of LISA to concepts that replace the test mass with an atom interferometer. The Core Team reviewed the noise budgets and sensitivity curves, the payload and spacecraft designs and requirements, orbits and trajectories and technical readiness and risk. The Science Task Force assessed the science performance. Three mission concepts have been studied by Team-X, JPL's concurrent design facility, to refine the conceptual design, evaluate key performance parameters, assess risk and estimate cost and schedule. The status of the Study are reported.

Cassini Information Management System in Distributed Operations Collaboration and Cassini Science Planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Equils, Douglas J.

2008-01-01

Launched on October 15, 1997, the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft began its ambitious journey to the Saturnian system with a complex suite of 12 scientific instruments, and another 6 instruments aboard the European Space Agencies Huygens Probe. Over the next 6 1/2 years, Cassini would continue its relatively simplistic cruise phase operations, flying past Venus, Earth, and Jupiter. However, following Saturn Orbit Insertion (SOI), Cassini would become involved in a complex series of tasks that required detailed resource management, distributed operations collaboration, and a data base for capturing science objectives. Collectively, these needs were met through a web-based software tool designed to help with the Cassini uplink process and ultimately used to generate more robust sequences for spacecraft operations. In 2001, in conjunction with the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) and later Venustar Software and Engineering Inc., the Cassini Information Management System (CIMS) was released which enabled the Cassini spacecraft and science planning teams to perform complex information management and team collaboration between scientists and engineers in 17 countries. Originally tailored to help manage the science planning uplink process, CIMS has been actively evolving since its inception to meet the changing and growing needs of the Cassini uplink team and effectively reduce mission risk through a series of resource management validation algorithms. These algorithms have been implemented in the web-based software tool to identify potential sequence conflicts early in the science planning process. CIMS mitigates these sequence conflicts through identification of timing incongruities, pointing inconsistencies, flight rule violations, data volume issues, and by assisting in Deep Space Network (DSN) coverage analysis. In preparation for extended mission operations, CIMS has also evolved further to assist in the planning and coordination of the dual playback redundancy of highvalue data from targets such as Titan and Enceladus. This paper will outline the critical role that CIMS has played for Cassini in the distributed ops paradigm throughout operations. This paper will also examine the evolution that CIMS has undergone in the face of new science discoveries and fluctuating operational needs. And finally, this paper will conclude with theoretical adaptation of CIMS for other projects and the potential savings in cost and risk reduction that could potentially be tapped into by future missions.

Amor: Investigating The Triple Asteroid System 2001 SN263

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, T.; Bellerose, Julie; Lee, P.; Prettyman, T.; Lawrence, D.; Smith, P.; Gaffey, M.; Nolan, M.; Goldsten, J.; Thomas, P.; Veverka, J.; Farquhar, R.; Heldmann, J.; Reddy, V.; Williams, B.; Chartres, J.; DeRosee, R.; Dunham, D.

2010-10-01

The Amor mission will rendezvous and land at the triple Near-Earth Asteroid system (153591) 2001 SN263 and execute detailed, in-situ science investigations. The spacecraft reaches 2001 SN263 by using a two-year ΔVEGA (ΔV-Earth Gravity Assist) trajectory with a relatively low launch C3 of 33.5 km2/s2. Rendezvous will enable reconnaissance activities including global and regional imaging, shape modeling, system dynamics, and compositional mapping. After landing, Amor will conduct in-situ imaging (panoramic to microscopic scale) and compositional measurements to include elemental abundance. The main objectives are to 1) establish in-situ the long-hypothesized link between C-type asteroids and the primitive carbonaceous chondrite (CC) meteorites, 2) investigate the nature, origin and evolution of C-type asteroids, and 3) investigate the origin and evolution of a multiple asteroid system. The mission also addresses the distribution of volatiles and organic materials, impact hazards, and resources for future exploration. Amor is managed by NASA Ames Research Center in partnership with Orbital Sciences, KinetX, MDA, and Draper with heritage instruments provided by Ball Aerospace, JHU/APL, and Firestar Engineering. The science team brings experience from NEAR, Hayabusa, Deep Impact, Dawn, LCROSS, Kepler, and Mars missions. In this paper, we describe the science, mission design, and main operational challenges of performing in-situ science at this triple asteroid system. Challenges include landing on the asteroid components, thermal environment, short day-night cycles, and the operation of deployed instruments in a low gravity (10^-5 g) environment.

NASA's Earth Science Flight Program overview

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neeck, Steven P.; Volz, Stephen M.

2011-11-01

NASA's Earth Science Division (ESD) conducts pioneering work in Earth system science, the interdisciplinary view of Earth that explores the interaction among the atmosphere, oceans, ice sheets, land surface interior, and life itself that has enabled scientists to measure global and climate changes and to inform decisions by governments, organizations, and people in the United States and around the world. The ESD makes the data collected and results generated by its missions accessible to other agencies and organizations to improve the products and services they provide, including air quality indices, disaster management, agricultural yield projections, and aviation safety. In addition to four missions now in development and 14 currently operating on-orbit, the ESD is now developing the first tier of missions recommended by the 2007 Earth Science Decadal Survey and is conducting engineering studies and technology development for the second tier. Furthermore, NASA's ESD is planning implementation of a set of climate continuity missions to assure availability of key data sets needed for climate science and applications. These include a replacement for the Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO), OCO-2, planned for launch in 2013; refurbishment of the SAGE III atmospheric chemistry instrument to be hosted by the International Space Station (ISS) as early as 2014; and the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE FO) mission scheduled for launch in 2016. The new Earth Venture (EV) class of missions is a series of uncoupled, low to moderate cost, small to medium-sized, competitively selected, full orbital missions, instruments for orbital missions of opportunity, and sub-orbital projects.

Materials Science & Engineering | Classification | College of Engineering &

Science.gov Websites

ChairMaterials Science and Engineering(414) 229-2668nidal@uwm.eduEng & Math Sciences E351 profile photo (414) 229-2615jhchen@uwm.eduEng & Math Sciences 1225 profile photo Benjamin Church, Ph.D.Associate ProfessorMaterials Science & Engineering(414) 229-2825church@uwm.eduEng & Math Sciences EMS 1175 profile

78 FR 13743 - Requirements for the Recognizing Aviation and Aerospace Innovation in Science and Engineering...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-02-28

... Aerospace Innovation in Science and Engineering (RAISE) Award AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, U.S... demonstrate unique, innovative thinking in aerospace science and engineering. With this award, the Secretary... Science and Engineering) Award will recognize innovative scientific and engineering achievements that will...

Engineering Encounters: Engineer It, Learn It--Science and Engineering Practices in Action

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lachapelle, Cathy P.; Sargianis, Kristin; Cunningham, Christine M.

2013-01-01

Engineering is prominently included in the "Next Generation Science Standards" (Achieve Inc. 2013), as it was in "A Framework for K-12 Science Education" (NRC 2012). The National Research Council, authors of the "Framework," write, "Engineering and technology are featured alongside the natural sciences (physical…

Test results of the highly instrumented Space Shuttle Main Engine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mcconnaughey, H. V.; Leopard, J. L.; Lightfoot, R. M.

1992-01-01

Test results of a highly instrumented Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) are presented. The instrumented engine, when combined with instrumented high pressure turbopumps, contains over 750 special measurements, including flowrates, pressures, temperatures, and strains. To date, two different test series, accounting for a total of sixteen tests and 1,667 seconds, have been conducted with this engine. The first series, which utilized instrumented turbopumps, characterized the internal operating environment of the SSME for a variety of operating conditions. The second series provided system-level validation of a high pressure liquid oxygen turbopump that had been retrofitted with a fluid-film bearing in place of the usual pump-end ball bearings. Major findings from these two test series are highlighted in this paper. In addition, comparisons are made between model predictions and measured test data.

Earth Science Microwave Remote Sensing at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Edward; Busalacchi, Antonio J. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) was established as NASA's first space flight center in 1959. Its 12,000 personnel are active in the Earth and space sciences, astronomy, space physics, tracking and communications. GSFC's mission is to expand our knowledge of the Earth and its environment, the solar system, and the universe through observations from space. The main Goddard campus is located in Greenbelt, Maryland, USA, just north of Washington, D.C. The Wallops Flight Facility (operational since 1945), located on the Atlantic coast of Virginia was consolidated with the Goddard Space Flight Center in 1982. Wallops is now NASA's principal facility for management and implementation of suborbital research programs, and supports a wide variety of airborne science missions as well. As the lead Center for NASA's Earth Science Enterprise (ESE)--a long-term, coordinated research effort to study the Earth as a global environmental system--GSFC scientists and engineers are involved in a wide range of Earth Science remote sensing activities. Their activities range from basic geoscience research to the development of instruments and technology for space missions, as well as the associated Calibration/Validation (Cal/Val) work. The shear breadth of work in these areas precludes an exhaustive description here. Rather, this article presents selected brief overviews of microwave-related Earth Science applications and the ground-based, airborne, and space instruments that are in service, under development, or otherwise significantly involving GSFC. Likewise, contributing authors are acknowledged for each section, but the results and projects they describe represent the cumulative efforts of many persons at GSFC as well as at collaborating institutions. For further information, readers are encouraged to consult the listed websites and references.

At the Beginning of the STEM Pipeline: A Case Study Exploring Preadolescent Female Students' Attitudes Toward Science, Perceptions of Scientists, and Developing Career Aspirations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heacock, Lucy Vogel

The continuous underrepresentation of women in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), referred to as the leaky pipeline, has been examined from multiple perspectives internationally, while the attitudes and perceptions of preadolescent girls regarding STEM remain largely ignored. Employing a constructivist paradigm, this qualitative case study explored the perceptions and attitudes of 40 public elementary school female students across three grade levels regarding science, scientists, and career aspirations. Mixed-methods data collections included three survey instruments combined with semi-structured interviews. Self-efficacy, stereotype threat, and career choice theory provided the framework for the overarching research question: What are the attitudes and perceptions of female preadolescent students at the third, fourth, and fifth grade levels regarding science and scientists, and how might these dispositions affect their early development of STEM career aspirations and interests? The Three-Dimensions of Student Attitude Towards Science (TDSAS) instrument informed the exploration of self-efficacy; the modified Draw-A-Scientist Test (mDAST) and Rubric informed the exploration of stereotype threat; and the STEM-Career Interest Survey (CIS) informed the exploration of career aspirations. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six participants. Results from this study indicated that the majority of the preadolescent girls thought science was an important topic to study and displayed an attitude of self-confident ability to learn science and be successful in science class. They highly enjoyed scientific experimentation and deeply valued problem solving. While they inferred they did not experience gender bias, the girls did engage in stereotyping scientists. Over half the girls expected to use science in their future careers, while a minority had already determined they wanted to be scientists when they grow up. The study concludes with recommendations for education stakeholders and for future research.

Science & Engineering Indicators. National Science Board. NSB 14-01

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Science Foundation, 2014

2014-01-01

The "Science and Engineering Indicators" series was designed to provide a broad base of quantitative information about U.S. science, engineering, and technology for use by policymakers, researchers, and the general public. "Science and Engineering Indicators 2014" contains analyses of key aspects of the scope, quality, and…

77 FR 6143 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE); Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-07

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE... Opportunities in Science and Engineering (1173). Dates/Time: February 28, 2012, 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m., February 29... provide advice and recommendations concerning broadening participation in science and engineering. Agenda...

76 FR 4138 - Committee on Equal Opportunity in Science and Engineering Solicitation of Recommendations for...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-01-24

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunity in Science and Engineering Solicitation... recommendations for membership on the Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE) (1173... provides advice to NSF on the implementation of the provisions of the Science and Engineering Equal...

77 FR 30029 - Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering; Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-21

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering; Notice... Science and Engineering (25104). Date and Time: June 11, 2012, 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Place.... Contact Person for More Information: Robert Webber, Office of International Science and Engineering...

78 FR 60918 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering; Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-10-02

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering; Notice of... Engineering (1173). Dates/Time: October 30, 2013, 10:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Place: National Science Foundation... advice and recommendations concerning broadening participation in science and engineering. Agenda...

Practical Strategy on the Subject of “Science and Ethics” for Overcoming Hybrid Engineering Ethics Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yasui, Yoshiaki

The issue of economic globalization and JABEE (Japan Accreditation Board for Engineering Education) mean that education on engineering ethics has now become increasingly important for science-engineering students who will become the next generation of engineers. This is clearly indicated when engineers are made professionally responsible for various unfortunate accidents that happen during daily life in society. Learning hybrid engineering ethics is an essential part of the education of the humanities and sciences. This paper treats the contents for the subject of “Science and Ethics” drawing on several years of practice and the fruits of studying science and engineering ethics at the faculty of science-engineering in university. This paper can be considered to be a practical strategy to the formation of morality.

Effects of Engineering Design-Based Science on Elementary School Science Students' Engineering Identity Development across Gender and Grade

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Capobianco, Brenda M.; Yu, Ji H.; French, Brian F.

2015-04-01

The integration of engineering concepts and practices into elementary science education has become an emerging concern for science educators and practitioners, alike. Moreover, how children, specifically preadolescents (grades 1-5), engage in engineering design-based learning activities may help science educators and researchers learn more about children's earliest identification with engineering. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which engineering identity differed among preadolescents across gender and grade, when exposing students to engineering design-based science learning activities. Five hundred fifty preadolescent participants completed the Engineering Identity Development Scale (EIDS), a recently developed measure with validity evidence that characterizes children's conceptions of engineering and potential career aspirations. Data analyses of variance among four factors (i.e., gender, grade, and group) indicated that elementary school students who engaged in the engineering design-based science learning activities demonstrated greater improvements on the EIDS subscales compared to those in the comparison group. Specifically, students in the lower grade levels showed substantial increases, while students in the higher grade levels showed decreases. Girls, regardless of grade level and participation in the engineering learning activities, showed higher scores in the academic subscale compared to boys. These findings suggest that the integration of engineering practices in the science classroom as early as grade one shows potential in fostering and sustaining student interest, participation, and self-concept in engineering and science.

Design and validation of a standards-based science teacher efficacy instrument

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kerr, Patricia Reda

National standards for K--12 science education address all aspects of science education, with their main emphasis on curriculum---both science subject matter and the process involved in doing science. Standards for science teacher education programs have been developing along a parallel plane, as is self-efficacy research involving classroom teachers. Generally, studies about efficacy have been dichotomous---basing the theoretical underpinnings on the work of either Rotter's Locus of Control theory or on Bandura's explanations of efficacy beliefs and outcome expectancy. This study brings all three threads together---K--12 science standards, teacher education standards, and efficacy beliefs---in an instrument designed to measure science teacher efficacy with items based on identified critical attributes of standards-based science teaching and learning. Based on Bandura's explanation of efficacy being task-specific and having outcome expectancy, a developmental, systematic progression from standards-based strategies and activities to tasks to critical attributes was used to craft items for a standards-based science teacher efficacy instrument. Demographic questions related to school characteristics, teacher characteristics, preservice background, science teaching experience, and post-certification professional development were included in the instrument. The instrument was completed by 102 middle level science teachers, with complete data for 87 teachers. A principal components analysis of the science teachers' responses to the instrument resulted in two components: Standards-Based Science Teacher Efficacy: Beliefs About Teaching (BAT, reliability = .92) and Standards-Based Science Teacher Efficacy: Beliefs About Student Achievement (BASA, reliability = .82). Variables that were characteristic of professional development activities, science content preparation, and school environment were identified as members of the sets of variables predicting the BAT and BASA subscales. Correlations were computed for BAT, BASA, and demographic variables to identify relationships between teacher efficacy, teacher characteristics, and school characteristics. Further research is recommended to refine the instrument and apply its use to a larger sample of science teachers. Its further development also has significance for the enhancement of science teacher education programs.

A Framework for Orbital Performance Evaluation in Distributed Space Missions for Earth Observation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nag, Sreeja; LeMoigne-Stewart, Jacqueline; Miller, David W.; de Weck, Olivier

2015-01-01

Distributed Space Missions (DSMs) are gaining momentum in their application to earth science missions owing to their unique ability to increase observation sampling in spatial, spectral and temporal dimensions simultaneously. DSM architectures have a large number of design variables and since they are expected to increase mission flexibility, scalability, evolvability and robustness, their design is a complex problem with many variables and objectives affecting performance. There are very few open-access tools available to explore the tradespace of variables which allow performance assessment and are easy to plug into science goals, and therefore select the most optimal design. This paper presents a software tool developed on the MATLAB engine interfacing with STK, for DSM orbit design and selection. It is capable of generating thousands of homogeneous constellation or formation flight architectures based on pre-defined design variable ranges and sizing those architectures in terms of predefined performance metrics. The metrics can be input into observing system simulation experiments, as available from the science teams, allowing dynamic coupling of science and engineering designs. Design variables include but are not restricted to constellation type, formation flight type, FOV of instrument, altitude and inclination of chief orbits, differential orbital elements, leader satellites, latitudes or regions of interest, planes and satellite numbers. Intermediate performance metrics include angular coverage, number of accesses, revisit coverage, access deterioration over time at every point of the Earth's grid. The orbit design process can be streamlined and variables more bounded along the way, owing to the availability of low fidelity and low complexity models such as corrected HCW equations up to high precision STK models with J2 and drag. The tool can thus help any scientist or program manager select pre-Phase A, Pareto optimal DSM designs for a variety of science goals without having to delve into the details of the engineering design process.

Instrumentation for Scientific Computing in Neural Networks, Information Science, Artificial Intelligence, and Applied Mathematics.

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-10-01

include Security Classification) Instrumentation for scientific computing in neural networks, information science, artificial intelligence, and...instrumentation grant to purchase equipment for support of research in neural networks, information science, artificail intellignece , and applied mathematics...in Neural Networks, Information Science, Artificial Intelligence, and Applied Mathematics Contract AFOSR 86-0282 Principal Investigator: Stephen

34 CFR 637.1 - What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false What is the Minority Science and Engineering... ENGINEERING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM General § 637.1 What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)? The Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) is designed to effect...

34 CFR 637.1 - What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What is the Minority Science and Engineering... ENGINEERING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM General § 637.1 What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)? The Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) is designed to effect...

34 CFR 637.1 - What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false What is the Minority Science and Engineering... ENGINEERING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM General § 637.1 What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)? The Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) is designed to effect...

34 CFR 637.1 - What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false What is the Minority Science and Engineering... ENGINEERING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM General § 637.1 What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)? The Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) is designed to effect...

34 CFR 637.1 - What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false What is the Minority Science and Engineering... ENGINEERING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM General § 637.1 What is the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)? The Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) is designed to effect...

Apical extrusion of debris and irrigants using two hand and three engine-driven instrumentation techniques.

PubMed

Ferraz, C C; Gomes, N V; Gomes, B P; Zaia, A A; Teixeira, F B; Souza-Filho, F J

2001-07-01

To evaluate the weight of debris and irrigant volume extruded apically from extracted teeth in vitro after endodontic instrumentation using the balanced force technique, a hybrid hand instrumentation technique, and three engine-driven techniques utilizing nickel-titanium instruments (ProFile .04, Quantec 2000 and Pow-R). Five groups of 20 extracted human teeth with single canals were instrumented using one or other of five techniques: balanced force, hybrid, Quantec 2000, ProFile .04, or Pow-R. Debris extruded from the apical foramen during instrumentation were collected into preweighed 1.5 mL tubes. Following instrumentation, the volume of extruded irrigant fluid was determined by visual comparison to control centrifuge tubes filled with 0.25 mL increments of distilled water. The weight of dry extruded dentine debris was also established. Overall, the engine-driven techniques extruded less debris than the manual ones. However, there was no statistical difference between the balanced force technique and the engine-driven methods. The volume of irrigant extruded through the apex was directly associated with the weight of extruded debris, except within the ProFile group. The hybrid technique was associated with the greatest extrusion of both debris and irrigant. Overall, the engine-driven nickel-titanium systems were associated with less apical extrusion.

NASA Shines a Spotlight on a Webb Telescope Test

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-12-11

Dressed in a clean room suit, NASA photographer Desiree Stover shines a light on the Space Environment Simulator's Integration Frame inside the thermal vacuum chamber at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. Shortly after, the chamber was closed up and engineers used this frame to enclose and help cryogenic (cold) test the heart of the James Webb Space Telescope, the Integrated Science Instrument Module. Credit: NASA/Goddard/Chris Gunn NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Investigations of Moon Polar Regions from Luna-Resource and Luna-Glob Landers - Science Instruments and Operational Plan on Surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tretyakov, V.; Mitrofanov, I.; Litvak, M.; Malakhov, A.; Mokrousov, M.

2012-04-01

Scientific goals for Landers of Luna-Resource and Luna-Glob missions will be presented. Both project aimed on search for volatiles and water ice in upper layer of regolith, study structure and content of regolith and investigate of moon's surface exosphere in lunar polar regions. Science devices for payload, which were selected in accordance to the main goals of these missions, will be described. Criteria for potential landing sites selection will be considered: from engineering suitability (flatness and roughness of surface, radio visibility, solar irradiation and so on) and from scientific applicability for these missions. The detailed plan of surface operations during fist moon day will be presented and preliminary plans for sunset and for second and others days will be discussed.

77 FR 61790 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE); Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-10-11

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE... Opportunities in Science and Engineering (1173). Dates/Time: October 30, 2012, 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; October 31... science and engineering. Agenda Tuesday, October 30, 2012 Opening Statement by the CEOSE Chair...

77 FR 13367 - Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering; Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-03-06

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering; Notice... Science and Engineering (25104). Date and Time: March 19, 2012, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. March 20, 2012, 8:30 a.m.... Type of Meeting: Open. Contact Person: Robert Webber, Office of International Science and Engineering...

78 FR 8596 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering #1173; Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-02-06

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering 1173... Science and Engineering (CEOSE). Dates/Time: February 25, 2013, 9:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; February 26, 2013, 9... participation in science and engineering. Agenda: Opening Statement by the CEOSE Chair Discussions: Concurrence...

77 FR 61644 - Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering; Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-10-10

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering; Notice... Science and Engineering (25104). Date and Time: October 25, 2012 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. October 26, 2012 8:30 a...: Open. Contact Person: Robert Webber, NSF Office of International Science and Engineering, 4201 Wilson...

75 FR 33652 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE); Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-14

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE... Opportunities in Science and Engineering (1173). Dates/Time: June 29, 2010, 8:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m. June 30, 2010, 8... NSF concerning broadening participation in science and engineering. Agenda Monday, June 29, 2010...

77 FR 31893 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE); Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-30

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE... Opportunities in Science and Engineering (1173) Dates/Time: June 19, 2012, 1:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.; June 20, 2012, 9... advice and recommendations concerning broadening participation in science and engineering. Agenda Tuesday...

76 FR 55951 - Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE); Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-09

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE... Opportunities in Science and Engineering (1173). Dates/Time: October 17, 2011, 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. October 18, 2011... science and engineering. Agenda: Monday, Oct 17, 2011 Opening Statement by the CEOSE Chair Presentations...