MESSENGER: Exploring Mercury’s Magnetosphere

The MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) mission to Mercury offers our first opportunity to explore this planet’s miniature magnetosphere since the brief flybys of Mariner 10. Mercury’s magnetosphere is unique in many respects. The magnetosphere of Mercury is among the smallest in the solar system; its magnetic field typically stands off the solar wind only ∼1000 to 2000 km above the surface. For this reason there are no closed drift paths for energetic particles and, hence, no radiation belts. Magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause may erode the subsolar magnetosphere, allowing solar wind ions to impact directly the regolith. Inductive currents in Mercury’s interior may act to modify the solar wind interaction by resisting changes due to solar wind pressure variations. Indeed, observations of these induction effects may be an important source of information on the state of Mercury’s interior. In addition, Mercury’s magnetosphere is the only one with its defining magnetic flux tubes rooted beneath the solid surface as opposed to an atmosphere with a conductive ionospheric layer. This lack of an ionosphere is probably the underlying reason for the brevity of the very intense, but short-lived, ∼1–2 min, substorm-like energetic particle events observed by Mariner 10 during its first traversal of Mercury’s magnetic tail. Because of Mercury’s proximity to the sun, 0.3–0.5 AU, this magnetosphere experiences the most extreme driving forces in the solar system. All of these factors are expected to produce complicated interactions involving the exchange and recycling of neutrals and ions among the solar wind, magnetosphere, and regolith. The electrodynamics of Mercury’s magnetosphere are expected to be equally complex, with strong forcing by the solar wind, magnetic reconnection, and pick-up of planetary ions all playing roles in the generation of field-aligned electric currents. However, these field-aligned currents do not close in an ionosphere, but in some other manner. In addition to the insights into magnetospheric physics offered by study of the solar wind–Mercury system, quantitative specification of the “external” magnetic field generated by magnetospheric currents is necessary for accurate determination of the strength and multi-polar decomposition of Mercury’s intrinsic magnetic field. MESSENGER’s highly capable instrumentation and broad orbital coverage will greatly advance our understanding of both the origin of Mercury’s magnetic field and the acceleration of charged particles in small magnetospheres. In this article, we review what is known about Mercury’s magnetosphere and describe the MESSENGER science team’s strategy for obtaining answers to the outstanding science questions surrounding the interaction of the solar wind with Mercury and its small, but dynamic, magnetosphere.     

数字摄像在脉冲推力器性能分析中的应用

为更详细地分析脉冲推力器的实际工作性能,弥补传统推力和压力曲线分析的不足,利用高速数字摄像仪拍摄了脉冲推力器尾焰图像,根据图像特征进行了推力器工作性能的辅助分析,结果表明:尾焰图像特征可以反映脉冲推力器的点火启动性能和实际推力特性以及推力器的工作效率,将图像分析与推力或压力分析相结合可以更全面地进行脉冲推力器性能分析,有利于推力器设计性能的进一步提高。     

用光束偏转层析迭代法重建三维位相物体

本文结合位相物体的先验知识，研究了用光束偏转层迭代法重建三维位物体的重建精度及算法，内插函数，采样方式，视角范围和数据噪声的影响，作为一个应用实例，诊断了气体温度场某一截面的温度分布，并与热电偶的测量值进行了比较。     

遗传算法设计梯度子实现优化的图象边界检测

计算机图象处理技术可广泛应用各种图象测试、模式识别和计算机视觉等领域，而图象边界检测是计算机图象处理的最基本和最低层的步骤之一。由于噪声的干扰和图象光照不均匀等因素的影响，目前的图象边界检测方法还不能有效地检测出各种不同模式的边界。本文提出了一种基于遗传算法和灰度梯试算子的图象边界检测法，通过对样本图象的训练，设计对训练样本模式最优的灰度梯度算子，增加了对噪声的抗干扰能力，并且使被检测出的边界更准确。     

利用平滑约束复原方法处理CCD相机遥感图像

重点研究了频域平滑约束复原方法以及该方法对遥感领域中的实际应用，文章先介绍了平滑约束复原方法的理论基础，然后用该方法对CCD相机的遥感图像进行了复原处理，讨论了遥感器系统调制传递函数（MTF）曲线的拟合，遥感器系统MTF矩阵的构造以及复原参数的选择。可以得出结论，在一定条件下，利用平滑约束复原方法可以有效地改善整个系统的调制传递函数，从而使图像变得清晰。     

含噪图像的处理方法与评价

接收机还原出来的显示器视频信号的电磁泄漏发射含有大量的噪声 ,导致图像模糊 ,视觉效果差。为了改善图像质量 ,提高图像的可识别度 ,需要进行图像处理 ,提取我们感兴趣的信息。介绍了几种针对含噪图像的数字信号处理方法 ,并且进行了对比分析和信噪比评价。     

Image restoration of the asymmetric point spread function of a high-resolution remote sensing satellite with time-delayed integration

The calibration and validation team of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute has calibrated and validated the image data of the KOMPSAT-2 since the launch of KOMPSAT-2 on July 28, 2006. The asymmetric phenomenon of the point spread function of the KOMPSAT-2 image data is evident in both the along and the across direction, most likely because KOMPSAT-2 has a 1 m ground sample distance high-resolution camera with time-delayed integration. Furthermore, because KOMPSAT-2 is in space, the KOMPSAT-2 image data has been corrected with good results by means of modulation transfer function compensation.     

视觉测振技术在柔性太阳翼模态试验中的应用

针对8 m×5 m的柔性太阳翼在倒立状态下进行模态试验，设计数字摄像视觉测振系统，基于图像特征跟踪法实现了从相机标定、图像采集、信息提取到三维振动数据获取的过程，通过工况模态辨识方法获取了柔性太阳翼模态频率及振型等动力学参数。并考虑空气和重力影响建立太阳翼有限元模型，通过与基于基恩士激光位移传感器的传统模态试验结果及仿真分析结果进行对比，验证了基于视觉测振工况模态试验方法的准确性，为柔性太阳翼在轨模态辨识奠定基础。     

数字全息测量超高速撞击碎片云实验研究

在中国空气动力研究与发展中心(CARDC)超高速碰撞中心(HIRC)7.6 mm超高速碰撞设备的基础上，搭建纳秒级脉冲激光数字全息系统。提出滤波片和衰减片组合布置，减弱超高速碰撞等离子体自发光、提高信噪比的方法。实验获得了2.25 mm铝球弹丸以4.0 km/s的速度撞击0.5 mm厚铝板形成碎片云的全息图。采用小波变换算法对碎片云全息图进行重建，得到超高速撞击碎片云的三维结构和碎片大小。碎片云的轮廓呈椭球型，分为碎片云的前端、核心和外壳，碎片主要分布在弹丸破碎形成的碎片云核心，存在大碎片，且分布较集中，对后板的损伤也严重     

一种基于系留无人机的图像遥测系统设计

针对海上船舶甲板的监控需求，本文提出了一种基于系留无人机的图像遥测系统设计方法，即通过系留无人机上的图像采集装置对被监控目标进行视频信号实时采集、压缩，再经过遥测装置的编码、调制、放大后由天线进行辐射，最后由数十公里外的遥测接收机完成接收、解调、解码，可实时显示船舶甲板图像信息。文中介绍了系统的软硬件组成、关键设备的设计方法、综合性能的分析，对相关图像遥测技术应用有一定参考意义。