The Relativistic Proton Spectrometer (RPS) for the Radiation Belt Storm Probes Mission

The Relativistic Proton Spectrometer (RPS) on the Radiation Belt Storm Probes spacecraft is a particle spectrometer designed to measure the flux, angular distribution, and energy spectrum of protons from ～60 MeV to ～2000 MeV. RPS will investigate decades-old questions about the inner Van Allen belt proton environment: a nearby region of space that is relatively unexplored because of the hazards of spacecraft operation there and the difficulties in obtaining accurate proton measurements in an intense penetrating background. RPS is designed to provide the accuracy needed to answer questions about the sources and losses of the inner belt protons and to obtain the measurements required for the next-generation models of trapped protons in the magnetosphere. In addition to detailed information for individual protons, RPS features count rates at a 1-second timescale, internal radiation dosimetry, and information about electrostatic discharge events on the RBSP spacecraft that together will provide new information about space environmental hazards in the Earth’s magnetosphere.     

The consequences of micropulsations on geomagnetically trapped particles

Non-adiabatic radiation belt dynamics is largely controlled by interactions between geomagnetically trapped particles and various modes of plasma turbulence. Long period electric field fluctuations act as a major source mechanism for the inner zone through the process of inward radial diffusion of particles injected into the convection dominated outer zone. Higher frequency turbulence provides a major loss mechanism by pitch-angle scattering into the atmospheric loss cone. The wave particle interactions may take the form of self induced instabilities or parasitic scattering. Examples of each will be given in this review.     

Dynamics of Radiation Belt Particles

This paper reviews basic concepts of particle dynamics underlying theoretical aspect of radiation belt modeling and data analysis. We outline the theory of adiabatic invariants of quasiperiodic Hamiltonian systems and derive the invariants of particle motion trapped in the radiation belts. We discuss how the nonlinearity of resonant interaction of particles with small-amplitude plasma waves, ubiquitous across the inner magnetosphere, can make particle motion stochastic. Long-term evolution of a stochastic system can be described by the Fokker-Plank (diffusion) equation. We derive the kinetic equation of particle diffusion in the invariant space and discuss its limitations and associated challenges which need to be addressed in forthcoming radiation belt models and data analysis.     

Solar Wind Models from the Sun to 1 AU: Constraints by in Situ and Remote Sensing Measurements

There are three major types of solar wind: The steady fast wind originating on open magnetic field lines in coronal holes, the unsteady slow wind coming probably from the temporarily open streamer belt and the transient wind in the form of large coronal mass ejections. The majority of the models is concerned with the fast wind, which is, at least during solar minimum, the normal mode of the wind and most easily modeled by multi-fluid equations involving waves. The in-situ constraints imposed on the models, mainly by the Helios (in ecliptic) and Ulysses (high-latitude) interplanetary measurements, are extensively discussed with respect to fluid and kinetic properties of the wind. The recent SOHO observations have brought a wealth of new information about the boundary conditions for the wind in the inner solar corona and about the plasma conditions prevailing in the transition region and chromospheric sources of the wind plasma. These results are presented, and then some key questions and scientific issues are identified. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Dust Near The Sun

We review the current knowledge and understanding of dust in the inner solar system. The major sources of the dust population in the inner solar system are comets and asteroids, but the relative contributions of these sources are not quantified. The production processes inward from 1 AU are: Poynting-Robertson deceleration of particles outside of 1 AU, fragmentation into dust due to particle-particle collisions, and direct dust production from comets. The loss processes are: dust collisional fragmentation, sublimation, radiation pressure acceleration, sputtering, and rotational bursting. These loss processes as well as dust surface processes release dust compounds in the ambient interplanetary medium. Between 1 and 0.1 AU the dust number densities and fluxes can be described by inward extrapolation of 1 AU measurements, assuming radial dependences that describe particles in close to circular orbits. Observations have confirmed the general accuracy of these assumptions for regions within 30° latitude of the ecliptic plane. The dust densities are considerably lower above the solar poles but Lorentz forces can lift particles of sizes < 5 μm to high latitudes and produce a random distribution of small grains that varies with the solar magnetic field. Also long-period comets are a source of out-of-ecliptic particles. Under present conditions no prominent dust ring exists near the Sun. We discuss the recent observations of sungrazing comets. Future in-situ experiments should measure the complex dynamics of small dust particles, identify the contribution of cometary dust to the inner-solar-system dust cloud, and determine dust interactions in the ambient interplanetary medium. The combination of in-situ dust measurements with particle and field measurements is recommended.     

Inner-belt Van Allen radiation

A survey of the present state of knowledge about the inner radiation zone is presented. This includes a historical review of empirical data and theoretical considerations concerning electrons, protons, and heavier particles. Included are results obtained from the various high-altitude nuclear tests. Recent experimental results are presented and some newer theoretical ideas, such as pitch-angle scattering and radial diffusion, are discussed as applied to the data. Comparisons of the measured fluxes, spectra, and time variations with the theoretical calculations are made where possible.Some conclusions are drawn pertaining to the sources and loss processes for the trapped particles, and some comments are made regarding future measurements in the inner zone.     

Nuclear processes and accelerated particles in solar flares

Nuclear processes and particle acceleration in solar flares are reviewed. The theory of gamma-ray and neutron production is discussed and results of calculations are compared to gamma-ray, neutron, and charged-particle observations from solar flares. The implications of these comparisons on particle energy spectra, total numbers, anisotropies, electron-to-proton ratios, as well as on acceleration mechanisms and the interaction site, are presented. The information on elemental and isotopic abundances derived from gamma-ray observations is compared to abundances obtained from escaping accelerated particles and other sources.NAS/NRC Resident Research Associate.     

An Introduction to CMEs and Energetic Particles

Energetic particle observations in the interplanetary medium provide fundamental information about the origin, development and structure of coronal mass ejections. This paper reviews the status of our understanding of the ways in which particles are energised at the Sun in association with CMEs. This understanding will remain incomplete until the relationship between CMEs and flares is determined and we know the topology of the associated magnetic fields. The paper also discusses the characteristics of interplanetary CMEs that may be probed using particle observations.     

Wave-particle diagnostics for plasma simulation

One important type of problem for particle simulation of plasmas, is one which is bounded and has external sources and sinks. For example, there are problems with antennas for studying RF heating or current drive in fusion plasmas, or problems in space simulation where particles are injected at one boundary with some specified energy or momentum distribution. In understanding such simulation results, it is useful to know how energy and momentum are flowing inside the plasma. This can be accomplished in electrostatic particle simulations on the basis of some theorems for energy and momentum flow. An important application of these theorems occurs when many waves are involved in producing some effect, e.g., generating a current by RF. One can then extract the contribution of each wave to the effect to identify which are most important. Examples of such wave-particle diagnostics will be given.     

Solid component of interplanetary matter from vehicle observations

This paper contains the data of meteoric particle investigations by means of piezoelectric detectors.The data obtained on the different Soviet vehicles at distances from about 100 km to about 100000000 km from the earth are given.Measurements have demonstrated that apart from fluxes there are individual aggregations of meteoric particles with very unequal spatial density of particles in them. Linear dimensions varied within wide limits.A concept of the mass spectrum of meteoric particles is presented.Very high concentrations of minute dust particles were observed near the earth at altitudes from 100–200 km by means of ground-based methods and rocket measurements.The increased density of interplanetary matter in the vicinity of the moon during April and May 1966 was recorded by means of satellite Luna-10. By means of Luna-12 it could not be discovered whether this aggregation is the moon halo or is the result of the moon passage through some dust particle aggregation, because the investigation on satellite Luna-12 was carried out mostly during meteor showers.     

航空发动机球轴承剥落故障模式分析

为研究航空发动机球轴承的剥落故障模式,利用原子发射光谱技术、自动磨粒分析技术、铁谱技术及能谱分析技术对球 轴承加速等效试验滑油中磨粒的数量、大小、形貌及成分等信息进行分析。结果表明：金属颗粒污染物导致轴承出现初始疲劳剥 落;球轴承剥落的特征磨粒为滚动疲劳磨粒和球形磨粒,内衬套微动磨损的特征磨粒为铁的黑色氧化物和红色氧化铁磨粒;临近 轴承失效时,滑油中Fe元素质量分数由7.49×10 -6 增大至21.74×10 -6 ,特征磨粒数量也由48.9个/mL急剧增加至1433.8个/mL,且特 征磨粒直径主要分布在25～50 μm。金属颗粒污染物的存在使轴承承力内半圈滚道加速出现接触疲劳剥落,滚道剥落到一定程 度后,在轴向力、摩擦力及预紧力等综合作用下在内衬套与承力内半圈接触处发生微动磨损,进一步加剧了滚道的疲劳剥落,最终 导致球轴承失效。     

Background in space-borne low-energy γ-ray telescopes

The scope of observational astronomy in the gamma-ray region of the spectrum is vast. The intimate relationship of these energetic photons with their parent particles and fields provides a direct probe of the high-energy physics phenomena which take place throughout the Universe. As an added bonus the gamma-ray domain contains a wealth of diagnostic information within discrete emission lines, which are derived from a variety of processes including nuclear de-excitation, cyclotron emission, and matter-antimatter annihilation. Consequently observational gamma-ray astronomy addresses directly some of the most fundamental problems in both physics and astrophysics. However, low-energy gamma-rays are the most penetrating photons encountered in nature, and, whilst this factor provides a deep probe of cosmic objects, it ensures that gamma-ray telescopes are massive, both in terms of the stopping power required in the detector systems as well as their shields. Furthermore, the intimate relationship of gamma-rays with nuclear de-excitations ensures that the telescope itself becomes a bright source of background noise, a factor which is aggravated by the necessity that gamma-ray telescopes are obliged to operate in regions pervaded by intense particle fluxes. The background noise experienced in gamma-ray telescopes is, therefore, both high and extremely complex in its origin, and due to the high-energy content of individual photons, their numbers which arrive from distant cosmic sources are necessarily low, even for those objects which radiate the bulk of their power at gamma-ray wavelengths. Current gamma-ray telescopes are thus obliged to operate under conditions of intrinsically low signal-to-noise ratio and it is vital that techniques are developed which reduce the background noise level to more acceptable levels, thus improving the sensitivity. To achieve such a goal, a thorough understanding of the sources of background noise is first required before effective measures can be taken for its reduction.In this paper the sources of background noise are reviewed with the aim to obtain a quantitative analysis of individual contributions, as derived from the various classes of irradiative particle fluxes. The estimated contributions from the individual sources are combined in order to evaluate the total background level of a given telescope in a specific radiation environment, which for practical considerations generally relates to the orbit choice and detailed design of the telescope. The published background noise spectra of a number of past missions are compared to the computed values so as to provide an assessment of the validity of the overall calculations. The level of agreement achieved indicates that a good understanding of the sources of background noise exists. Finally some possibilities for the improvement of the sensitivity of future gammaray telescopes, in terms of the reduction of the background noise, are discussed.     

Energetic Particle Observations

The characteristics of solar energetic particles (SEP) as observed in interplanetary space provide fundamental information about the origin of these particles, and the acceleration and propagation processes at the Sun and in interplanetary space. Furthermore, energetic particles provide information on the development and structure of coronal mass ejections as they propagate from the solar corona into the interplanetary medium. In this paper we review the measurements of energetic particles in interplanetary space and discuss their implication for our understanding of the sources, and of acceleration and propagation processes.     

Quantitative models of the magnetospheric magnetic field: Methods and results

The paper reviews various approaches to the problem of evaluation and numerical representation of the magnetic field distributions produced within the magnetosphere by the main electric current systems including internal Earth's sources, the magnetopause surface current, the tail plasma sheet, the large-scale systems of Birkeland current, the currents due to radiation belt particles, and the partial ring current circuit. Some basic physical principles as well as mathematical background for development of magnetospheric magnetic field models are discussed.A special emphasis is placed on empirical modeling based on datasets created from large bodies of spacecraft measurements. A review of model results on the average magnetospheric configurations and their dependence on the geomagnetic disturbance level and the state of interplanetary medium is given. Possibilities and perspectives for elaborating the instantaneous models capable of evaluating a current distribution of magnetic field and force line configuration based on a synoptic monitoring the intensity of the main magnetospheric electric current systems are also discussed. Some areas of practical use of magnetospheric models are reviewed in short. Magnetospheric plasma and energetic particle measurements are considered in the context of their use as an independent tool for testing and correcting the magnetic field models.     

Exact Bayesian and particle filtering of stochastic hybrid systems

The standard way of applying particle filtering to stochastic hybrid systems is to make use of hybrid particles, where each particle consists of two components, one assuming Euclidean values, and the other assuming discrete mode values. This paper develops a novel particle filter (PF) for a discrete-time stochastic hybrid system. The novelty lies in the use of the exact Bayesian equations for the conditional mode probabilities given the observations. Therefore particles are needed for the Euclidean valued state component only. The novel particle filter is referred to as the interacting multiple model (IMM) particle filter (IMMPF) because it incorporates a filter step which is of the same form as the interaction step of the IMM algorithm. Through Monte Carlo simulations, it is shown that the IMMPF has significant advantage over the standard PF, in particular for situations where conditional switching rate or conditional mode probabilities have small values     

Solar Energetic Particle Charge States: An Overview

The ionic charge distributions of solar energetic particles (SEP) as observed in interplanetary space provide fundamental information about the origin of these particles, and the acceleration and propagation processes at the Sun and in interplanetary space. In this paper we review the measurements of ionic charge states of energetic particles in interplanetary space and discuss their implication for our understanding of SEP sources, and acceleration and propagation processes.     

Corotating Interaction Regions at High Latitudes

Ulysses observed a stable strong CIR from early 1992 through 1994 during its first journey into the southern hemisphere. After the rapid latitude scan in early 1995, Ulysses observed a weaker CIR from early 1996 to mid-1997 in the northern hemisphere as it traveled back to the ecliptic at the orbit of Jupiter. These two CIRs are the observational basis of the investigation into the latitudinal structure of CIRs. The first CIR was caused by an extension of the northern coronal hole into the southern hemisphere during declining solar activity, whereas the second CIR near solar minimum activity was caused by small warps in the streamer belt. The latitudinal structure is described through the presentation of three 26-day periods during the southern CIR. The first at ∼24°S shows the full plasma interaction region including fast and slow wind streams, the compressed shocked flows with embedded stream interface and heliospheric current sheet (HCS), and the forward and reverse shocks with associated accelerated ions and electrons. The second at 40°S exhibits only the reverse shock, accelerated particles, and the 26-day modulation of cosmic rays. The third at 60°S shows only the accelerated particles and modulated cosmic rays. The possible mechanisms for the access of the accelerated particles and the CIR-modulated cosmic rays to high latitudes above the plasma interaction region are presented. They include direct magnetic field connection across latitude due to stochastic field line weaving or to systematic weaving caused by solar differential rotation combined with non-radial expansion of the fast wind. Another possible mechanism is particle diffusion across the average magnetic field, which includes stochastic field line weaving. A constraint on connection to a distant portion of the CIR is energy loss in the solar wind, which is substantial for the relatively slow-moving accelerated ions. Finally, the weaker northern CIR is compared with the southern CIR. It is weak because the inclination of the streamer belt and HCS decreased as Ulysses traveled to lower latitudes so that the spacecraft remained at about the maximum latitudinal extent of the HCS. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

固体火箭发动机中声场对凝聚相粒子的影响

为研究固体火箭发动机中声场对凝聚相粒子的影响,将连续相-离散元(CFD-DEM)耦合模型应用于固体火箭发动机中多物理场作用下的粒子行为研究,获得了发动机声场与凝聚相粒子的耦合作用规律.结果表明:CFD-DEM模型可以获得其他模型无法得到的颗粒微观信息,包括颗粒与颗粒间的碰撞、颗粒与壁面的碰撞以及颗粒与气相间的相互作用等...     

二维气固混合层中拟序结构对 固粒运动影响的研究＊

本文对固粒在混合层涡卷起和配对过程中的运动进行了研究。对流场用拟谱方法直接数值模拟,对固粒用颗粒－轨道模型。计算结果给出了涡卷起和涡配对过程中固粒的运动情况,说明本流场Ｂａｓｓｅｔ力对固粒运动的影响甚微;拟序结构演变过程的不同阶段造成不同的固粒分布,该结果与流场显示的实验结果相符;在相同流场条件下,Ｓｔｏｋｅｓ数是影响固粒在拟序结构流场中运动的控制参数。文中所得结论对工程应用具有指导意义。     

基于CFD-DEM算法的固体火箭发动机气-固两相流模拟

针对固体火箭发动机中含金属推进体系中颗粒冲刷烧蚀及推力两相流损失的难题,基于连续相-离散元(CFD-DEM)耦合模型,考虑颗粒间的碰撞力与非碰撞力以及颗粒-气流作用力等,对固体发动机中气-固两相流进行了数值模拟研究。研究结果表明,相比于传统的双流体模型及轨道法,CFD-DEM能提供更丰富的粒子尺度信息包括粒子的运动轨迹、颗粒间的碰撞、颗粒受力情况等等;以及粒子相与气相相互作用过程,粒子相与壁面相互作用等。粒子的碰撞在喷管收敛段壁面、喉部区域以及喷管扩张段中心区域发生,与壁面的碰撞在收敛段壁面位置,且颗粒在该区域角速度较大,气相-颗粒曳力最大值出现在气相加速区域。单个粒子尺度的流场数据为固体发动机气固两相流流场的认识提供了更加丰富的信息,并为粒子聚集聚合及对烧蚀层冲刷等提供研究基础。