The Solar Electron and Proton Telescope for the STEREO Mission

The Solar Electron and Proton Telescope (SEPT), one of four instruments of the Solar Energetic Particle (SEP) suite for the IMPACT investigation, is designed to provide the three-dimensional distribution of energetic electrons and protons with good energy and time resolution. This knowledge is essential for characterizing the dynamic behaviour of CME associated and solar flare associated events. SEPT consists of two dual double-ended magnet/foil particle telescopes which cleanly separate and measure electrons in the energy range from 30–400 keV and protons from 60–7?000 keV. Anisotropy information on a non-spinning spacecraft is provided by the two separate telescopes: SEPT-E looking in the ecliptic plane along the Parker spiral magnetic field both towards and away from the Sun, and SEPT-NS looking vertical to the ecliptic plane towards North and South. The dual set-up refers to two adjacent sensor apertures for each of the four view directions: one for protons, one for electrons. The double-ended set-up refers to the detector stack with view cones in two opposite directions: one side (electron side) is covered by a thin foil, the other side (proton side) is surrounded by a magnet. The thin foil leaves the electron spectrum essentially unchanged but stops low energy protons. The magnet sweeps away electrons but lets ions pass. The total geometry factor for electrons and protons is 0.52 cm²?sr and 0.68 cm²?sr, respectively. This paper describes the design and calibration of SEPT as well as the scientific objectives that the instrument will address.     

Rosetta Radio Science Investigations (RSI)

The Rosetta spacecraft has been successfully launched on 2nd March 2004 to its new target comet 67 P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The science objectives of the Rosetta Radio Science Investigations (RSI) experiment address fundamental aspects of cometary physics such as the mass and bulk density of the nucleus, its gravity field, its interplanetary orbit perturbed by nongravitational forces, its size and shape, its internal structure, the composition and roughness of the nucleus surface, the abundance of large dust grains, the plasma content in the coma and the combined dust and gas mass flux. The masses of two asteroids, Steins and Lutetia, shall be determined during flybys in 2008 and 2010, respectively. Secondary objectives are the radio sounding of the solar corona during the superior conjunctions of the spacecraft with the Sun during the cruise phase. The radio carrier links of the spacecraft Telemetry, Tracking and Command (TT&C) subsystem between the orbiter and the Earth will be used for these investigations. An Ultrastable oscillator (USO) connected to both transponders of the radio subsystem serves as a stable frequency reference source for both radio downlinks at X-band (8.4 GHz) and S-band (2.3 GHz) in the one-way mode. The simultaneous and coherent dual-frequency downlinks via the High Gain Antenna (HGA) permit separation of contributions from the classical Doppler shift and the dispersive media effects caused by the motion of the spacecraft with respect to the Earth and the propagation of the signals through the dispersive media, respectively. The investigation relies on the observation of the phase, amplitude, polarization and propagation times of radio signals transmitted from the spacecraft and received with ground station antennas on Earth. The radio signals are affected by the medium through which the signals propagate (atmospheres, ionospheres, interplanetary medium, solar corona), by the gravitational influence of the planet on the spacecraft and finally by the performance of the various systems involved both on the spacecraft and on ground.     

基于功率谱密度法飞机地面变速滑跑动力学分析

提出了飞机地面变速滑跑的非稳态响应分析的新方法,该方法基于频域的功率谱密度法.建立了飞机地面滑跑的起落架分析模型;引入了概率平均意义上的当量线性化方法,用该方法处理了起落架缓冲器空气弹簧、油液阻尼和库仑摩擦力以及轮胎刚度和阻尼等非线性参数.利用变量代换和傅里叶变换导出了非稳态激励下的跑道不平度的功率谱密度函数.导出并分析了具有代表性的飞机重心过载的频率响应函数.工程算例表明,在达到相同的滑跑速度条件下,飞机加速滑跑引起的飞机重心过载响应比飞机地面匀速滑跑引起的飞机重心过载响应小;并且加速度越大,在达到相同的滑跑速度条件下所产生的飞机重心过载响应越小.     

航空定向技术在地下水流速流向中的应用研究

将高科技的航空定向技术与同位素稀释测井技术相结合,研制出一种智能化的地下水动态参数测量仪。在天然流场下的单井中测量了地下渗透流速、流向;垂向流速、流向,并对仪器的结构、原理、工作过程作了详细的讨论,该测量仪可广泛地应用于堤坝渗漏路径的探测、水源地的地下水勘察、煤矿涌水预测、环境保护、农田地下水溶质运移等。     

Evaluating the Wind-Induced Mechanical Noise on the InSight Seismometers

The SEIS (Seismic Experiment for Interior Structures) instrument onboard the InSight mission to Mars is the critical instrument for determining the interior structure of Mars, the current level of tectonic activity and the meteorite flux. Meeting the performance requirements of the SEIS instrument is vital to successfully achieve these mission objectives. Here we analyse in-situ wind measurements from previous Mars space missions to understand the wind environment that we are likely to encounter on Mars, and then we use an elastic ground deformation model to evaluate the mechanical noise contributions on the SEIS instrument due to the interaction between the Martian winds and the InSight lander. Lander mechanical noise maps that will be used to select the best deployment site for SEIS once the InSight lander arrives on Mars are also presented. We find the lander mechanical noise may be a detectable signal on the InSight seismometers. However, for the baseline SEIS deployment position, the noise is expected to be below the total noise requirement \(>97~\%\) of the time and is, therefore, not expected to endanger the InSight mission objectives.     

The Theory of Gamma-Ray Bursts

This chapter gives a brief review on the theory of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), including the models of multi-messengers (e.g., prompt multiwavelength electromagnetic emissions, high-energy neutrinos, ultra-high-energy cosmic rays, and gravitational waves) and central engines (in particular, mergers of binary neutron stars for short GRBs). For detailed reviews, please see (Piran in Phys. Rep. 314:575, 1999; Rev. Mod. Phys. 76:1143, 2004; Mészáros in Annu. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 40:137, 2002; Rep. Prog. Phys. 69:2259, 2006; Zhang and Mészáros in Int. J. Mod. Phys. A 19:2385, 2004; Zhang in Chin. J. Astron. Astrophys. 7:1, 2007; Nakar in Phys. Rep. 442:166, 2007; Kumar and Zhang in Phys. Rep. 561:1, 2015).     

Coronal Hole Properties Observed with Sumer

We analyze SUMER spectra of 14 lines belonging to 12 ions, obtained on both sides of the boundary of polar coronal holes as well as at other locations along the limb. We compare line intensities, shifts and widths in coronal holes with values obtained in the quiet Sun. We find that with increasing formation temperature, spectral lines show an increasingly stronger blueshift in coronal holes relative to the quiet Sun at an equal heliospheric angle. The width of the lines is generally larger (by a few km/s) inside the coronal hole. Intensity measurements show the presence of the coronal hole in Ne VIII lines as well as in Fe XII, with evidence for a slightly enhanced emission in polar coronal holes for lines formed below 10⁵ K. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Fractionation of SI, NE, and MG Isotopes in the Solar Wind as Measured by Soho/Celias/MTOF

Using the high-resolution mass spectrometer CELIAS/MTOF on board SOHO we have measured the solar wind isotope abundance ratios of Si, Ne, and Mg and their variations in different solar wind regimes with bulk velocities ranging from 330 km/s to 650 km/s. Data indicate a small systematic depletion of the heavier isotopes in the slow solar wind on the order of (1.4±1.3)% per amu (2σ-error) compared to their abundances in the fast solar wind from coronal holes. These variations in the solar wind isotopic composition represent a pure mass-dependent effect because the different isotopes of an element pass the inner corona with the same charge state distribution. The influence of particle mass on the acceleration of minor solar wind ions is discussed in the context of theoretical models and recent optical observations with other SOHO instruments. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Thermal radiation from a radio pulsar PSR 1055-52

Conclusion The EXOSAT observation of PSR 1055-52 supports strongly the idea of a thermally radiating neutron star, either still cooling from its initially high temperature or reheated by unpinning of vortex lines in its superfluid interior. The data do not confirm the Cheng & Helfand conclusions about a synchrotron nebula with a power law spectrum. The discrepancy in the data is, nevertheless, only a 3.5 effect, as no ME data could be used to get a firm upper limit of the flux above 1 keV. With regard to the outstanding theoretical interest in the structure of neutron stars we hope for further observations to clarify this question.     

Structural assessment of a solid propellant rocket motor: Effects of aging and damage

The aim of this study is to perform structural analysis of a solid propellant rocket motor using the finite element method and to determine the effects of aging on the analysis results. Thermal and pressure loadings occurring during the shipping, storing and firing are considered to be the most critical in determining long-term behavior of the motor. Stress and strain distribution in the rocket motor under these loading conditions are determined. Maximum hoop strain at the surface of the propellant and bond stresses at the interface between the liner and the insulator are evaluated as indicators of cracking in the propellant grain and debonding at the liner–insulator interface. The analyses are performed for both unaged and aged propellants. The results can be used to estimate the service life of the motor.