Estimation of the elastic Earth parameters (h2, l2) using SLR data

We present results for the global elastic parameters h₂ and l₂ derived from the analysis of Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) data. SLR data for the two satellites LAGEOS 1 and LAGEOS 2 observed during 2.5 years from January 3, 2005 until July 1, 2007 with 18 globally distributed ground stations were analysed using different approaches. The analysis was done separately for the two satellites and approaches to estimate the two elastic parameters independently and together were performed. We do a sequential analysis and study the stability of the estimates as a function of length of the data set used. The adjusted final values for h₂ equal to 0.6151 ± 0.0008 and 0.6152 ± 0.0008, and those for l₂ equal to 0.0886 ± 0.0003 and 0.0881 ± 0.0003 for LAGEOS 1 and LAGEOS 2 tracking data are compared to other independently derived estimates. These parameters and their errors achieve stability at about the 24 and 27 month time interval for h₂ and l₂, respectively.     

Spin parameters of Low Earth Orbiting satellites Larets and Stella determined from Satellite Laser Ranging data

Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) measurements contain information about the spin parameters of the fully passive, geodetic satellites. In this paper we spectrally analyze the SLR data of 5 geodetic satellites placed on the Low Earth Orbits: GFZ-1, WESTPAC, Larets, Starlette, Stella, and successfully retrieve the frequency signal from Larets and Stella only. The obtained signals indicate an exponential increase of the spin period of Larets: T = 0.860499·exp(0.0197066·D) [s], and Stella: T = 13.5582·exp(0.00431232·D) [s], where D is in days since launch. The initial spin periods calculated from the first month of the SLR observations are: Larets: T_initial = 0.8239 s, Stella: T_initial = 13.2048 s. Analysis of the apparent effects indicates the counter-clockwise spin direction of the satellites. The twice more heavy Stella lost its rotational energy more than four times slower than Larets. Fitting the spin model to the observed spin trends allows determination of the spin axis orientation evolution for Larets and Stella before their rotational period becomes equal to the orbital period.     

Equatorial M(3000)F2 estimation of F2-layer models peak heights during low solar activity

M(3000)F2 estimation of h_mF2 based on four different formulated models viz: (1) Shimazaki (1955) (2) Bradley and Dudeney (1973), (3) Dudeney (1974) and (4) Bilitza et al. (1979) at an equatorial station in West Africa during low solar activity period (1995) are used to validate its conformity with observed and International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) model. Local time analyses of data from fifteen (15) selected days during the January and July solstices and April and October equinoxes are used. The results obtained show that the M(3000)F2 estimation of h_mF2 from the ionosonde-measured values using the Ionospheric Prediction Service (IPS-42) sounder compared to the observed values which were deduced using an algorithm from scaled virtual heights of quiet day ionograms are highly correlated with Bilitza model. International Reference Ionosphere (IRI 2007) model for the equatorial region also agrees with the formulation developed by Bilitza et al. (1979) for the four different seasons of the year. h_mF2 is highest (425 km) in summer (June solstice) season and lowest (386 km) in autumn (September equinox) season with daytimes peaks occurring at 1100–1200 LT during the solstices and at 1000 LT during the equinoxes respectively. Also, the post-sunset peaks are highest (362 km) at the spring (March equinox) and lowest (308 km) at the summer (June solstice) both occurring between 1800 and 2000 LT.     

Ionospheric reflection of the magnetic activity described by the index η

Differences in the external part of the vertical geomagnetic component point to the existence of local inhomogeneities in the magnetosphere or the ionosphere. Usually used magnetic indices are not sufficient to express the state of ionosphere, the common used global Kp index derived in the three-hour interval does not indicate much more rapidly changes appearing in ionosphere. Magnetic index η reflects ionospheric disturbances when other indices show very quiet conditions. Data of ionospheric characteristics (foE, foEs, h’E, h’F2) during 28-day long quiet day conditions (Kp = 0–2) in 2004 were analyzed. The correlations between strong local disturbances in ionosphere during very quiet days and high values of magnetic index η were found. The most sensitive to magnetic influence – ionospheric E layer data (foE characteristic) – reaches median deviations up to (+0.8 MHz and −0.8 MHz) during very low magnetic activity (Kp = 0–1). The high peaks (2–2.7) of the magnetic index η correlate in time with large local median deviations of foE. Such local deviations can suggest local inhomogeneities (vertical drifts) in the ionosphere. The correlation in space is not trivial. The strong peak of η is situated between the positive and negative deviations of foE. Additional observation is connected with correlation in time of the high η value with the negative median deviations of h’F2 (in some cases up to −90 km). The analysis was based on one-minute data recorded at each of 20 European Magnetic Observatories working in the INTERMAGNET network and from 19 ionosondes for 2004. Ionospheric data are sparse in time and in space in opposite to the magnetic data. The map of the magnetic indices can suggest the behavior of ionospheric characteristics in the areas where we have no data.     

Reconstruction of topside density profile by using the topside sounder model profiler and digisonde data

To improve the accuracy of the real time topside electron density profiles given by the Digisonde software a new model-assisted technique is used. This technique uses the Topside Sounder Model (TSM), which provides the plasma scale height (H_s), O⁺–H⁺ transition height (H_T), and their ratio Rt = H_s/H_T, derived from topside sounder data of Alouette and ISIS satellites. The Topside Sounder Model Profiler (TSMP) incorporates TSM and uses the model quantities as anchor points in construction of topside density (Ne) profiles. For any particular location, TSMP calculates topside Ne profiles by specifying the values of foF2 and hmF2. In the present version, TSMP takes the F2 peak characteristics – foF2, hmF2, and the scale height at hmF2 – from the Digisonde measurements. The paper shows results for the Digisonde stations Athens and Juliusruh. It is found that the topside scale height used in Digisonde reconstruction is less than that extracted from topside sounder profiles. Rough comparison of their bulk distributions showed that they differ by an average factor of 1.25 for locations of Athens and Juliusruh. When the Digisonde scale heights are adjusted by this factor, the reconstructed topside profiles are close to those provided by TSM. Compared with CHAMP reconstruction profiles in two cases, TSMP/Digisonde profiles show lower density between 400 and 2000 km.     

Spin rate and spin axis orientation of LARES spectrally determined from Satellite Laser Ranging data

Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) is a powerful technique able to measure spin rate and spin axis orientation of the fully passive, geodetic satellites. This work presents results of the spin determination of LARES – a new satellite for testing General Relativity. 529 SLR passes measured between February 17 and June 9, 2012, were spectrally analyzed. Our results indicate that the initial spin frequency of LARES is f₀ = 86.906 mHz (RMS = 0.539 mHz). A new method for spin axis determination, developed for this analysis, gives orientation of the axis at RA = 12^h22^m48^s (RMS = 49^m), Dec = −70.4° (RMS = 5.2°) (J2000.0 celestial reference frame), and the clockwise (CW) spin direction. The half-life period of the satellite’s spin is 214.924 days and indicates fast slowing down of the spacecraft.     

Investigation of GPS-TEC measurements using ANN method indicating seismo-ionospheric anomalies around the time of the Chile (Mw = 8.2) earthquake of 01 April 2014

In 94 km NW of Iquique in Chile (19.610°S, 70.776°W) a powerful earthquake of M_w = 8.2 took place at 23:46:47 UTC (20:46:47 LT) on April 01, 2014. Using GPS-TEC (Total Electron Content) measurements, potential unusual variations around the time and location of the Chile earthquake have been detected based on the median and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) methods. The indices D_st, K_p, A_p and F10.7 were used to distinguish pre-earthquake anomalies from the other anomalies related to the solar-geomagnetic activities. Using the median method, striking anomalies in time series of TEC data are observed 4 days before the earthquake at 14:00 and 16:00 UTC. The ANN method detected a number of anomalies, 4 (02:00 and 16:00 UTC) and 13 (24:00 UTC) days preceding the earthquake. The results indicate that the ANN method due to its capability of non linear learning is quite promising and deserves serious attention as a robust predictor tool for seismo-ionospheric anomalies detection.     

Spin parameters of High Earth Orbiting satellites Etalon-1 and Etalon-2 determined from kHz Satellite Laser Ranging data

The high repetition rate Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) system developed in Graz, Austria, measures ranges to the High Earth Orbiting satellites Etalon-1 and Etalon-2 with the millimeter accuracy. The 2 kHz repetition rate of the laser and the relatively high return rates allow to use the SLR data to calculate the spin parameters of the Etalon satellites. The analysis of the 10 years (October 2003–September 2013) of the SLR data gives trends of the spin axes orientation (J2000 Inertial Reference Frame):     

Plasma chemical reactions in C2H2/N2, C2H4/N2, and C2H6/N2 gas mixtures of a laboratory dielectric barrier discharge

Plasma chemical reactions in C₂H₂/N₂, C₂H₄/N₂, and C₂H₆/N₂ gas mixtures have been studied by means of mass spectrometry at a medium pressure of 300 mbar in a laboratory dielectric barrier discharge. A major reaction scheme is production of larger hydrocarbons like C_nH_m with n up to 12 including formation of functional CN groups.     

Contribution of satellite laser ranging to combined gravity field models

In the framework of satellite-only gravity field modeling, satellite laser ranging (SLR) data is typically exploited to recover long-wavelength features. This contribution provides a detailed discussion of the SLR component of GOCO02S, the latest release of combined models within the GOCO series. Over a period of five years (January 2006 to December 2010), observations to LAGEOS-1, LAGEOS-2, Ajisai, Stella, and Starlette were analyzed. We conducted a series of closed-loop simulations and found that estimating monthly sets of spherical harmonic coefficients beyond degree five leads to exceedingly ill-posed normal equation systems. Therefore, we adopted degree five as the spectral resolution for real data analysis. We compared our monthly coefficient estimates of degree two with SLR and Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) time series provided by the Center for Space Research (CSR) at Austin, Texas. Significant deviations in C₂₀ were noted between SLR and GRACE; the agreement is better for the non-zonal coefficients. Fitting sinusoids together with a linear trend to our C₂₀ time series yielded a rate of (−1.75 ± 0.6) × 10⁻¹¹/yr; this drift is equivalent to a geoid change from pole to equator of 0.35 ± 0.12 mm/yr or an apparent Greenland mass loss of 178.5 ± 61.2 km³/yr. The mean of all monthly solutions, averaged over the five-year period, served as input for the satellite-only model GOCO02S. The contribution of SLR to the combined gravity field model is highest for C₂₀, and hence is essential for the determination of the Earth’s oblateness.     

ETALON spin period determination from kHz SLR data

Using kHz Satellite LASER Ranging (SLR) data of the SLR station Graz only, we determined the spin periods of the two ETALON satellites – launched into high orbits of about 20,000 km – and their spin period increase during 3 years. The determined spin period values and spin period increase rates at 2004-01-01 are: T_ET1 = 63 s + 0.484 s/year, and T_ET2 = 65.5 s + 0.401 s/year.     

The accuracy of data from ionosondes for the estimation of hmF2 and the identification of global change in the ionosphere

A long temporal series of simulated ionograms was generated with a superimposed secular variation of −14 km/century on the h_mF2 parameter. These ionograms were interpreted by the automatic scaling program Autoscala. By applying four different empirical formulas, four artificial series of h_mF2 were generated and then processed with the same methods used by other authors for real data sets. Data analysis of the simulated ionograms revealed the artificially imposed long-term trend. These results lead to the conclusion, that regardless of the empirical formula used, the accuracy of h_mF2 from ionosonde measurements would be adequate to observe a long-term trend of −14 km/century.     

Towards a new reference model of hmF2 for IRI

A numerical model of the peak height of the F2 layer, hmF2_top, is derived from the topside sounding database of 90,000 electron density profiles for a representative set of conditions provided by ISIS1, ISIS2, IK19 and Cosmos-1809 satellites for the period of 1969–1987. The model of regular hmF2 variations is produced in terms of local time, season, geomagnetic latitude, geodetic longitude and solar radio flux. No geomagnetic activity trends were discernible in the topside sounding data. The nighttime peak of hmF2_top evident for mid-latitudes disappears near the geomagnetic equator where a maximum of hmF2_top occurs at sunset hours when it can exceed 500 km at solar maximum. The hmF2 given by the IRI exceeds hmF2_top at the low solar activities. The hmF2_top, obtained by extrapolation of the first derivative of the topside profile to zero shows saturation similar to foF2 the greater the solar activity. The proposed model differs from hmF2 given by IRI based on M(3000)F2 to hmF2 conversion by empirical relationships in terms of foF2, foE and R12 with these quantities mapped globally by the ITU-R (former CCIR) from ground-based ionosonde data. The differences can be attributed to the different techniques of the peak height derivation, different epochs and different global distribution of the source data as well as the different mathematical functions involved in the maps and the model presentation.     

Determination of station positions and velocities from laser ranging observations to Ajisai,Starlette and Stella satellites

The positions and velocities of the four Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) stations: Yarragadee (7090), Greenbelt (7105), Graz (7839) and Herstmonceux (7840) from 5-year (2001–2005) SLR data of low orbiting satellites (LEO): Ajisai, Starlette and Stella were determined. The orbits of these satellites were computed from the data provided by 20 SLR stations. All orbital computations were performed by means of NASA Goddard’s GEODYN-II program. The geocentric coordinates were transformed to the topocentric North–South, East–West and Vertical components in reference to ITRF2005. The influence of the number of normal points per orbital arc and the empirical acceleration coefficients on the quality of station coordinates was studied. To get standard deviation of the coordinates determination lower than 1 cm, the number of the normal points per site had to be greater than 50. The computed positions and velocities were compared to those derived from LAGEOS-1/LAGEOS-2 data. Three parameters were used for this comparison: station coordinates stability, differences from ITRF2005 positions and velocities. The stability of coordinates of LEO satellites is significantly worse (17.8 mm) than those of LAGEOS (7.6 mm), the better results are for Ajisai (15.4 mm) than for Starlette/Stella (20.4 mm). The difference in positions between the computed values and ITRF2005 were little bit worse for Starlette/Stella (6.6 mm) than for LAGEOS (4.6 mm), the results for Ajisai were five times worse (29.7 mm) probably due to center of mass correction of this satellite. The station velocities with some exceptions were on the same level (≈1 mm/year) for all satellites. The results presented in this work show that results from Starlette/Stella are better than those from Ajisai for station coordinates determination. We can applied the data from LEO satellites, especially Starlette and Stella for determination of the SLR station coordinates but with two times lower accuracy than when using LAGEOS data.     

Correction of B2bot for NeQuick during low solar activity at Hainan station

This work is a continuation of the previous article and it focuses on low solar activity and modeling effort. NeQuick model uses Epstein layer formalism to model each part of the profile. We study the diurnal and seasonal variations of B2_bot, ΔB2 (B2_best − B2_NeQuick2) and R (B2_best/B2_{NeQuick 2}) at Hainan station during low solar activity. The results show it is possible to improve the B2_bot parameter of the NeQuick model at that region during low solar activity. Then, we use a function ?(t) with LT in different seasons to correct the B2_bot formula of NeQuick 2. The correction shows that (1) By the correction formula, the B2_bot of NeQuick is improved. The maximum standard deviation is improved for 9 km. (2) The correction formula is more effective in summer than in equinox and winter and performs better during early morning hours than during the rest of the day.     

The effects of CO2 on growth and transpiration of radish (Raphanus sativus) in hypobaria

Plants grown on long-term space missions will likely be grown in low pressure environments (i.e., hypobaria). However, in hypobaria the transpiration rates of plants can increase and may result in wilting if the water is not readily replaced. It is possible to reduce transpiration by increasing the partial pressure of CO₂ (pCO₂), but the effects of pCO₂ at high levels (>120 Pa) on the growth and transpiration of plants in hypobaria are not known. Therefore, the effects of pCO₂ on the growth and transpiration of radish (Raphanus sativus var. Cherry Bomb II) in hypobaria were studied. The fresh weight (FW), leaf area, dry weight (DW), CO₂ assimilation rates (C_A), dark respiration rates (DR), and transpiration rates from 26 day-old radish plants that were grown for an additional seven days at different total pressures (33, 66 or 101 kPa) and pCO₂ (40 Pa, 100 Pa and 180 Pa) were measured. In general, the dry weight of plants increased with CO₂ enrichment and with lower total pressure. In limiting pCO₂ (40 Pa) conditions, the transpiration for plants grown at 33 kPa was approximately twice that of controls (101 kPa total pressure with 40 Pa pCO₂). Increasing the pCO₂ from 40 Pa to 180 Pa reduced the transpiration rates for plants grown in hypobaria and in standard atmospheric pressures. However, for plants grown in hypobaria and high pCO₂ (180 Pa) leaf damage was evident. Radish growth can be enhanced and transpiration reduced in hypobaria by enriching the gas phase with CO₂ although at high levels leaf damage may occur.     

The effect of geocenter motion on Jason-2 orbits and the mean sea level

We compute a series of Jason-2 GPS and SLR/DORIS-based orbits using ITRF2005 and the std0905 standards ( Lemoine et al., 2010). Our GPS and SLR/DORIS orbit data sets span a period of 2 years from cycle 3 (July 2008) to cycle 74 (July 2010). We extract the Jason-2 orbit frame translational parameters per cycle by the means of a Helmert transformation between a set of reference orbits and a set of test orbits. We compare the annual terms of these time-series to the annual terms of two different geocenter motion models where biases and trends have been removed. Subsequently, we include the annual terms of the modeled geocenter motion as a degree-1 loading displacement correction to the GPS and SLR/DORIS tracking network of the POD process. Although the annual geocenter motion correction would reflect a stationary signal in time, under ideal conditions, the whole geocenter motion is a non-stationary process that includes secular trends. Our results suggest that our GSFC Jason-2 GPS-based orbits are closely tied to the center of mass (CM) of the Earth consistent with our current force modeling, whereas GSFC’s SLR/DORIS-based orbits are tied to the origin of ITRF2005, which is the center of figure (CF) for sub-secular scales. We quantify the GPS and SLR/DORIS orbit centering and how this impacts the orbit radial error over the globe, which is assimilated into mean sea level (MSL) error, from the omission of the annual term of the geocenter correction. We find that for the SLR/DORIS std0905 orbits, currently used by the oceanographic community, only the negligence of the annual term of the geocenter motion correction results in a – 4.67 ± 3.40 mm error in the Z-component of the orbit frame which creates 1.06 ± 2.66 mm of systematic error in the MSL estimates, mainly due to the uneven distribution of the oceans between the North and South hemisphere.     

An icy mineralogy package (IMP) for in-situ studies of Titan’s surface

We describe the scientific case for and preliminary design of an instrument whose primary goal is to determine the chemistry (element abundance) and mineralogy (compound identity and abundance) of Titan’s surface using a combination of energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (EDXRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). XRD is capable of identifying any crystalline substance present on Titan’s surface at relative abundances greater than ∼1 wt%, allowing unambiguous identification of, for example, structure I and II clathrates (even in the presence of ice), and various organic solids, which may include C₂H₂, C₂H₄, C₄H₂, HCN, CH₃CN, HC₃N, and C₄N₂). The XRF component of the instrument will obtain elemental abundances for 16 < Z < 60 with minimum detection limits better than 10 ppm (including detection of atmospheric noble gas isotopes), and may achieve detection limits of 0.01–1% for lighter elements down to Z = 6 (carbon). The instrument is well suited to integration with other analytical tools as part of a light-weight surface chemistry and mineralogy package. Although considerably less sensitive to elemental abundance than GC–MS (10⁻² vs. 10⁻⁸) it is likely to be significantly lighter (<0.5 kg vs. 10 kg).     

Rotational constants of linear and/or bent Cn+1H and CnN(n = 1–6): A DFT study

The geometries, dipole moments, and rotational constants for the linear and/or bent cations, C_n+1H⁺ and C_nN⁺(n = 1–6), were studied by the B3LYP method with the modest basis sets. For C_nH⁺(n = odd; 3, 5, 7) and C_nN⁺(n = even; 2, 4, 6), the theoretical rotational constants (B_es) of closed-shell singlet C₃H⁺, C₅H⁺, C₇H⁺, CCN⁺, C₄N⁺, and C₆N⁺ were calculated to be about 11,244, 2420, 885.2, 11,970, 2439, and 880.8 MHz, respectively. By contrast, the triplets are stable than the corresponding singlets for C_nH⁺(n = odd; 2, 4, 6) and C_nN⁺(n = even; 3, 5) except CN⁺.