DNA double strand break production and rejoining in V79 cells irradiated with light ions.

Low energy protons and other densely ionizing light ions are known to have RBE>1 for cellular end points relevant for stochastic and deterministic effects. The occurrence of a close relationship between them and induction of DNA dsb is still a matter of debate. We studied the production of DNA dsb in V79 cells irradiated with low energy protons having LET values ranging from 11 to 31 keV/micrometer, i.e. in the energy range characteristic of the Bragg peak, using the sedimentation technique. We found that the initial yield of dsb is quite insensitive to proton LET and not significantly higher than that observed with X-rays, in agreement with recent data on V79 cells irradiated with alpha particles of various LET up to 120 keV/micrometer. By contrast, RBE for cell inactivation and for mutation induction rises with the proton LET. In experiments aimed at evaluating the rejoining of dsb after proton irradiation we found that the amount of dsb left unrepaired after 120 min incubation is higher for protons than for sparsely ionizing radiation. These results indicate that dsb are not homogeneous with respect to repair and give support to the hypothesis that increasing LET leads to an increase in the complexity of DNA lesions with a consequent decrease in their repairability.     

Double-zone model with diffusive mixing and the mass and helium discrepancies in OB-stars

A model for massive main sequence (MS) stars is proposed that quantitatively accounts for the mass and helium discrepancies in luminous OB stars. The radiative envelope of the model consists of two zones being mixed by rotationally induced turbulent diffusion during the star's evolution on the MS. The rate of the mixing in the outer zone is assumed to be substantially lower than that in the inner zone. Both, the mass and helium discrepancy, are shown to be due to helium enrichment in the envelope produced by turbulent diffusion. Some arguments to support this double-zone stellar model are given.Alexander von Humboldt Fellow     

Possible contribution of different energy sources to the production of organics in Titan's atmosphere.

A quantitative comparison of the products arising from the irradiation of a Titan's simulated atmosphere is presented. The energy sources used represent some of the main events that occur in the satellite's atmosphere. All of the compounds identified are classified in the hydrocarbon and nitrile chemical families. Almost all of the detected compounds in Titan's atmosphere are produced by one or more energy sources. The compounds with the highest energy yields include the C2 hydrocarbons, methanonitrile and ethanonitrile. The possibility of using some of the produced organics as tracer compounds during the Huygens descend to identify the leading energy form in the different atmospheric levels remains open.     

Infrared spectrometer PFS for the Mars 94 orbiter

Thin films containing a mixture of aliphatic (glycine) and aromatic (tryptophan or tyrosine) amino acids were exposed to a vacuum ultraviolet radiation (VUV) with wavelenghts 100–200 nm. Dipeptides (glycyl-tryptophan and glycyl-tyrosine) were synthesized in these conditions. We compared the actions of VUV and γ-radiation. Polymerization is an essential step in prebiological evolution and we have shown that this stage probably occured over an early Solar system history.     

Long-term modulation of Galactic Cosmic Radiation and its model for space exploration.

As the human exploration of space has received new attention in the United States, studies find that exposure to space radiation could adversely impact the mission design. Galactic Cosmic Radiation (GCR), with its very wide range of charges and energies, is particularly important for a mission to Mars, because it imposes a stiff mass penalty for spacecraft shielding. Dose equivalent versus shielding thickness calculations, show a rapid initial drop in exposure with thickness, but an asymptotic behavior at a higher shielding thickness. Uncertainties in the radiobiology are largely unknown. For a fixed radiation risk, this leads to large uncertain ties in shielding thickness for small uncertainties in estimated dose. In this paper we investigate the application of steady-state, spherically-symmetric diffusion-convection theory of solar modulation to individual measurements of differential energy spectra from 1954 to 1989 in order to estimate the diffusion coefficient, kappa (r,t), as a function of time. We have correlated the diffusion coefficient to the Climax neutron monitor rates and show that, if the diffusion coefficient can be separated into independent functions of space and time: kappa (-r,t)=K(t)kappa 0 beta P kappa 1(r), where beta is the particle velocity and P the rigidity, then (i) The time dependent quantity 1/K(t), which is proportional to the deceleration potential, phi(r,t), is linearly related to the Climax neutron monitor counting rate. (ii) The coefficients obtained from hydrogen or helium intensity measurements are the same. (iii) There are different correlation functions for odd and even solar cycles. (iv) The correlation function for the Climax neutron monitor counting rate for given time, t, can be used to estimate mean deceleration parameter phi(t) to within +/- 15% with 90% confidence. We have shown that kappa(r,t) determined from hydrogen and/or helium data, can be used to fit the oxygen and iron differential energy spectra with a root mean square error of about +/- 10%, and essentially independent of the particle charge or energy. We have also examined the ion chamber and 14C measurements which allow the analysis to be extended from the year 1906 to 1990. Using this model we have defined reference GCR spectra at solar minimum and solar maximum. These can be used for space exploration studies and provide a quantitative estimate of the error in dose due to changes in GCR intensities.     

Local Radiation Belts of the Sun (Quasi-Stationary Coronal and Heliospheric Giant Traps for Solar Cosmic Rays)

The local radiation belts of the Sun are defined as giant quasi-stationary coronal and heliospheric traps for solar cosmic rays. These traps are formed by loop magnetic fields, both solar and interplanetary. Using observational data, some experimental examples of the local radiation belts of the Sun are considered. The hypotheses on the origin of energetic particles in the outer heliosphere and on the local radiation belts of the Sun are discussed.     

Evolution of the sun''s near-surface asphericities over the activity cycle

Solar oscillations provide the most accurate measures of cycle dependent changes in the sun, and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory/Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) data are the most precise of all. They give us the opportunity to address the real challenge — connecting the MDI seismic measures to observed characteristics of the dynamic sun. From inversions of the evolving MDI data, one expects to determine the nature of the evolution, through the solar cycle, of the layers just beneath the sun's surface. Such inversions require one to guess the form of the causal perturbation — usually beginning with asking whether it is thermal or magnetic. Matters here are complicated because the inversion kernels for these two are quite similar, which means that we don't have much chance of disentangling them by inversion. However, since the perturbation lies very close to the solar surface, one can use synoptic data as an outer boundary condition to fix the choice. It turns out that magnetic and thermal synoptic signals are also quite similar. Thus, the most precise measure of the surface is required.

We argue that the most precise synoptic data come from the Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO) Solar Disk Photometer (SDP). A preliminary analysis of these data implies a magnetic origin of the cycle-dependent sub-surface perturbation. However, we still need to do a more careful removal of the facular signal to determine the true thermal signal.     

Monitoring the thermal condition of permanent-magnet synchronousmotors

This paper describes a novel approach to monitoring the condition of small permanent-magnet synchronous motors (PMSM) operating under thermal stress. The approach begins with the estimation of temperature-dependent motor parameters from measurements of line voltages and currents. The parameters are then used to derive estimates of motor temperatures. Next, the electrically estimated temperatures are combined with a surface measurement of motor temperature and a dynamic thermal model of the motor to yield an observer that is a Kalman filter. The temperatures estimated by the observer are used for failure prevention. Finally, by modifying the observer, it is tuned to use the geometric properties of its innovation for failure detection. The innovation, that is, the difference between the thermally and electrically estimated temperatures, is monitored and compared against appropriate thresholds to detect failures. Failure detection is demonstrated experimentally, and shown to be capable of distinguishing the conditions of normal operation, and operation with obstructed cooling     

Forward error correction for radiobeacon broadcast of differentialGPS data

Marine radiobeacon networks are being used to broadcast differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) corrections to marine users. The correction data digitally modulate signals from some of the existing marine radiobeacons, which operate in the 285 to 325 kHz band, creating DGPS/radiobeacons. The corrections improve the accuracy of the GPS fix from 100 m to 5-10 m, and provide position fixing service for many marine applications which are too demanding for the normal GPS service. Forward error correction can be used to improve the reliability or range of the DGPS/radiobeacon signal. The improvements made possible by channel coding are analyzed, and a code for DGPS/radiobeacons is recommended     

Energy storage solutions for premium power

Most utility power quality problems are caused by sags, surges, and momentary outages which last from several cycles to several seconds. Modern loads are very sensitive to these short duration glitches resulting in major losses in revenue through system down-time and loss of product from work in process. Many of these problems are caused by normal transients as equipment and factories go on-line or shut down. Others are caused by lightening strikes and faults on the distribution system. Although power utility companies attempt to minimize the interruptions through filtering and system management, power quality problems continue to cost American industry billions of dollars a year. Batteries have been used for many years in uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) to protect critical loads. However, because many new facilities have a network of broadly distributed critical loads, a UPS on the order of one to several megawatts is needed to support the total plant rather than several small kilowatt installations. This paper reports on the implementation of such a utility scale power quality management system