The THEMIS Array of Ground-based Observatories for the Study of Auroral Substorms

The NASA Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) project is intended to investigate magnetospheric substorm phenomena, which are the manifestations of a basic instability of the magnetosphere and a dominant mechanism of plasma transport and explosive energy release. The major controversy in substorm science is the uncertainty as to whether the instability is initiated near the Earth, or in the more distant >20 Re magnetic tail. THEMIS will discriminate between the two possibilities by using five in-situ satellites and ground-based all-sky imagers and magnetometers, and inferring the propagation direction by timing the observation of the substorm initiation at multiple locations in the magnetosphere. An array of stations, consisting of 20 all-sky imagers (ASIs) and 30-plus magnetometers, has been developed and deployed in the North American continent, from Alaska to Labrador, for the broad coverage of the nightside magnetosphere. Each ground-based observatory (GBO) contains a white light imager that takes auroral images at a 3-second repetition rate (“cadence”) and a magnetometer that records the 3 axis variation of the magnetic field at 2 Hz frequency. The stations return compressed images, “thumbnails,” to two central databases: one located at UC Berkeley and the other at the University of Calgary, Canada. The full images are recorded at each station on hard drives, and these devices are physically returned to the two data centers for data copying. All data are made available for public use by scientists in “browse products,” accessible by using internet browsers or in the form of downloadable CDF data files (the “browse products” are described in detail in a later section). Twenty all-sky imager stations are installed and running at the time of this publication. An example of a substorm was observed on the 23rd of December 2006, and from the THEMIS GBO data, we found that the substorm onset brightening of the equatorward arc was a gradual process (>27 seconds), with minimal morphology changes until the arc breaks up. The breakup was timed to the nearest frame (<3 s) and located to the nearest latitude degree at about ±3^oE in longitude. The data also showed that a similar breakup occurred in Alaska ～10 minutes later, highlighting the need for an array to distinguish prime onset.     

New Horizons: Anticipated Scientific Investigations at the Pluto System

The New Horizons spacecraft will achieve a wide range of measurement objectives at the Pluto system, including color and panchromatic maps, 1.25–2.50 micron spectral images for studying surface compositions, and measurements of Pluto’s atmosphere (temperatures, composition, hazes, and the escape rate). Additional measurement objectives include topography, surface temperatures, and the solar wind interaction. The fulfillment of these measurement objectives will broaden our understanding of the Pluto system, such as the origin of the Pluto system, the processes operating on the surface, the volatile transport cycle, and the energetics and chemistry of the atmosphere. The mission, payload, and strawman observing sequences have been designed to achieve the NASA-specified measurement objectives and maximize the science return. The planned observations at the Pluto system will extend our knowledge of other objects formed by giant impact (such as the Earth–moon), other objects formed in the outer solar system (such as comets and other icy dwarf planets), other bodies with surfaces in vapor-pressure equilibrium (such as Triton and Mars), and other bodies with N₂:CH₄ atmospheres (such as Titan, Triton, and the early Earth).     

德国机床工业的创新和趋势

机床是一个复杂的机电一体化系统.机床的创新离不开新结构、新材料、新的功能部件、新刀具和新的外围设备.加工工艺的发展以及加工过程的仿真和监控也日益受到重视.     

最新高性能中速走丝电火花数控线切割机床

<正>秉承苏州三光精心制造的传统,苏州三光科技股份有限公司的产品始终将产品性能、可靠性放在首位。随着高品质产品所带来的市场高认可度,苏州三光的产品走进了越来越多的工厂和车间。同时,市场对高性     

小展弦比飞翼布局新型嵌入面航向控制特性研究

在小展弦比飞翼布局机翼外侧上/下表面分别设计了一组中等后掠角嵌入面,并对其跨声速时的航向控制效果及其流动机理进行了风洞试验和数值模拟研究。计算和试验结果表明,上嵌入面可在小迎角范围通过轴向力和侧向力的共同作用提供稳定的偏航力矩,实现航向控制;当α6°时,由于嵌入面逐渐处于前缘涡的影响范围内,在前缘涡的吸力作用下,嵌入面航向控制效果迅速下降,直至失效,且进行航向控制时存在不利的滚转耦合;下嵌入面可在全迎角范围内提供稳定的偏航力矩,实现航向控制;通过在小迎角范围内使用上嵌入面,α6°时使用下嵌入面,不仅可在全迎角实现航向控制,且不影响飞机的隐身性能。     

小展弦比飞翼跨声速典型流动特性研究

小展弦比飞翼标模为国内自主设计的融合体飞翼通用研究模型,前缘后掠角为65°,展弦比为1.54。风洞试验结果表明小展弦比飞翼标模在跨声速迎角4°开始出现非线性升力,在迎角12°至16°范围内会出现升力突然下降、俯仰力矩突然上扬的现象。为了分析该现象的机理,通过数值模拟的方法研究了小展弦比飞翼标模在马赫0.9时的流动特性,分析了前缘涡的产生、发展直至破裂的整个过程,结果表明:小展弦比飞翼标模在迎角4°开始出现涡升力;随着迎角增加,前缘涡逐渐向内侧移动,涡强和背风面激波的强度也逐渐增加,前缘涡与激波发生交叉干扰并达到一个平衡流态;当前缘涡与激波无法维持既有平衡时则会发生涡破裂,流场急剧变化以达到新的平衡,从而导致升力突然下降并产生抬头力矩增量。     

Ionospheric response of equatorial and low latitude F-region during the intense geomagnetic storm on 24–25 August 2005

In this investigation, we present and discuss the response of the ionospheric F-region in the South American and East Asian sectors during an intense geomagnetic storm in August 2005. The geomagnetic storm studied reached a minimum Dst of −216 nT at 12:00 UT on 24 August. In this work ionospheric sounding data obtained of 24, 25, and 26 August 2005 at Palmas (PAL; 10.2° S, 48.2° W; dip latitude 6.6° S), São José dos Campos (SJC, 23.2° S, 45.9° W; dip latitude 17.6° S), Brazil, Ho Chi Minh City, (HCM; 10.5° N, 106.3° E; dip latitude 2.9° N), Vietnam, Okinawa (OKI; 26.3° N, 127.8° E; dip latitude 21.2° N), Japan, are presented. Also, the GPS observations obtained at different stations in the equatorial and low-latitude regions in the Brazilian sector are presented. On the night of 24–25 August 2005, the h′F variations show traveling ionospheric disturbances associated with Joule heating in the auroral zone from SJC to PAL. The foF2 variations show a positive storm phase on the night of 24–25 August at PAL and SJC during the recovery phase. Also, the GPS-VTEC observations at several stations in the Brazilian sector show a fairly similar positive storm phase on 24 August. During the fast decrease of Dst (between 10:00 and 11:00 UT) on 24 August, there is a prompt penetration of electric field of magnetospheric origin that result in abrupt increase (∼12:00 UT) in foF2 at PAL, SJC (Brazil) and OKI (Japan) and in VTEC at IMPZ, BOMJ, PARA and SMAR (Brazil). OKI showed strong oscillations of the F-region on the night 24 August resulted to the propagation of traveling atmospheric disturbances (TADs) by Joule heating in the auroral region. These effects result a strong positive observed at OKI station. During the daytime on 25 August, in the recovery phase, the foF2 observations showed positive ionospheric storm at HCM station. Some differences in the latitudinal response of the F-region is also observed in the South American and East Asian sectors.     

Modelling of galactic Carbon in an asymmetrical heliosphere: Effects of asymmetrical modulation conditions

Observations of galactic cosmic rays (GCRs) from the two Voyager spacecraft inside the heliosheath indicate significant differences between them, suggesting that in addition to a possible global asymmetry in the north–south dimensions (meridional plane) of the heliosphere, it is also possible that different modulation (turbulence) conditions could exist between the two hemispheres of the heliosphere. We focus on illustrating the effects on GCR Carbon of asymmetrical modulation conditions combined with a heliosheath thickness that has a significant dependence on heliolatitude. To reflect different modulation conditions between the two heliospheric hemispheres in our numerical model, the enhancement of both polar and radial perpendicular diffusion off the ecliptic plane is assumed to differ from heliographic pole to pole. The computed radial GCR intensities at polar angles of 55° (approximating the Voyager 1 direction) and 125° (approximating the Voyager 2 direction) are compared at different energies and for both particle drift cycles. This is done in the context of illustrating how different values of the enhancement of both polar and radial perpendicular diffusion between the two hemispheres contribute to causing differences in radial intensities during solar minimum and moderate maximum conditions. We find that in the A > 0 cycle these differences between 55° and 125° change both quantitatively and qualitatively for the assumed asymmetrical modulation condition as reflected by polar diffusion, while in the A < 0 cycle, minute quantitative differences are obtained. However, when both polar and radial perpendicular diffusion have significant latitude dependences, major differences in radial intensities between the two polar angles are obtained in both polarity cycles. Furthermore, significant differences in radial intensity gradients obtained in the heliosheath at lower energies may suggest that the solar wind turbulence at and beyond the solar wind termination shock must have a larger latitudinal dependence.