Formation and Processing of Organics in the Early Solar System

Until pristine samples can be returned from cometary nuclei, primitive meteorites represent our best source of information about organic chemistry in the early solar system. However, this material has been affected by secondary processing on asteroidal parent bodies which probably did not affect the material now present in cometary nuclei. Production of meteoritic organic matter apparently involved the following sequence of events: Molecule formation by a variety of reaction pathways in dense interstellar clouds; Condensation of those molecules onto refractory interstellar grains; Irradiation of organic-rich interstellar-grain mantles producing a range of molecular fragments and free radicals; Inclusion of those interstellar grains into the protosolar nebula with probable heating of at least some grain mantles during passage through the shock wave bounding the solar accretion disc; Agglomeration of residual interstellar grains and locally produced nebular condensates into asteroid-sized planetesimals; Heating of planetesimals by decay of extinct radionuclides; Melting of ice to produce liquid water within asteroidal bodies; Reaction of interstellar molecules, fragments and radicals with each other and with the aqueous environment, possibly catalysed by mineral grains; Loss of water and other volatiles to space yielding a partially hydrated lithology containing a complex suite of organic molecules; Heating of some of this organic matter to generate a kerogen-like complex; Mixing of heated and unheated material to yield the meteoritic material now observed. Properties of meteoritic organic matter believed to be consistent with this scenario include: Systematic decrease of abundance with increasing C number in homologous series of characterisable molecules; Complete structural diversity within homologous series; Predominance of branched-chain isomers; Considerable isotopic variability among characterisable molecules and within kerogen-like material; Substantial deuterium enrichment in all organic fractions; Some fractions significantly enriched in nitrogen-15; Modest excesses of L-enantiomers in some racemisation-resistant molecules but no general enantiomeric preference. Despite much speculation about the possible role of Fischer-Tropsch catalytic hydrogenation of CO in production of organic molecules in the solar nebula, no convincing evidence for such material has been found in meteorites. A similarity between some meteoritic organics and those produced by Miller-Urey discharge synthesis may reflect involvement of common intermediates rather than the operation of electric discharges in the early solar system. Meteoritic organic matter constitutes a useful, but not exact, guide to what we shall find with in situ analytical and sample-return missions to cometary nuclei. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Streamer Evaporation

Streamer evaporation is the consequence of heating in ideal MHD models because plasma is weakly contained by the magnetic field. Heating causes inflation, opening of field lines, and release of solar wind. It was discovered in simulations and, due to the absence of loss mechanisms, the ultimate end point is the complete evaporation of the streamer. Of course streamers do not behave in this way because of losses by thermal conduction and radiation. Heating is also expected to depend on ambient conditions. We use a global MHD model with thermal conduction to examine the effect of changing the heating scale height. We also extend an analytic model of streamers developed by Pneuman (1968) to show that steady streamers are unable to contain plasma for temperatures near the cusp greater than ∼ 2 × 10⁶ K. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

2001 Mars Odyssey Mission Summary

The 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft, now in orbit at Mars, will observe the Martian surface at infrared and visible wavelengths to determine surface mineralogy and morphology, acquire global gamma ray and neutron observations for a full Martian year, and study the Mars radiation environment from orbit. The science objectives of this mission are to: (1) globally map the elemental composition of the surface, (2) determine the abundance of hydrogen in the shallow subsurface, (3) acquire high spatial and spectral resolution images of the surface mineralogy, (4) provide information on the morphology of the surface, and (5) characterize the Martian near-space radiation environment as related to radiation-induced risk to human explorers. To accomplish these objectives, the 2001 Mars Odyssey science payload includes a Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS), a multi-spectral Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS), and a radiation detector, the Martian Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE). THEMIS and MARIE are mounted on the spacecraft with THEMIS pointed at nadir. GRS is a suite of three instruments: a Gamma Subsystem (GSS), a Neutron Spectrometer (NS) and a High-Energy Neutron Detector (HEND). The HEND and NS instruments are mounted on the spacecraft body while the GSS is on a 6-m boom. Some science data were collected during the cruise and aerobraking phases of the mission before the prime mission started. THEMIS acquired infrared and visible images of the Earth-Moon system and of the southern hemisphere of Mars. MARIE monitored the radiation environment during cruise. The GRS collected calibration data during cruise and aerobraking. Early GRS observations in Mars orbit indicated a hydrogen-rich layer in the upper meter of the subsurface in the Southern Hemisphere. Also, atmospheric densities, scale heights, temperatures, and pressures were observed by spacecraft accelerometers during aerobraking as the spacecraft skimmed the upper portions of the Martian atmosphere. This provided the first in-situ evidence of winter polar warming in the Mars upper atmosphere. The prime mission for 2001 Mars Odyssey began in February 2002 and will continue until August 2004. During this prime mission, the 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft will also provide radio relays for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and European landers in early 2004. Science data from 2001 Mars Odyssey instruments will be provided to the science community via NASA’s Planetary Data System (PDS). The first PDS release of Odyssey data was in October 2002; subsequent releases occur every 3 months.     

Mars Global Surveyor Observations of Solar Wind Magnetic Field Draping Around Mars

We examine the magnetic field in the martian magnetosheath due to solar wind draping. Mars Global Surveyor provided 3-D vector magnetic field measurements at a large range of altitudes, local times, and solar zenith angles as the spacecraft orbit evolved. We choose orbits with very clean signatures of draping to establish the nominal morphology of the magnetic field lines at local times of near-subsolar and near-terminator. Next, using a compilation of data from Mars Global Surveyor, we determine the average magnetic field morphology in the martian magnetosheath due to the solar wind interaction. The topology of the field is as expected from previous observations and predictions. The magnetic field magnitude peaks at low altitude and noon magnetic local time and decreases away from that point. The magnetic field has an inclination from the local horizontal of 5.6° on average in the dayside magnetosheath and 12.5° on the nightside. The inclination angle is closest to zero at noon magnetic local time and low altitude. It increases both upward and to later local times. The magnetic field in the induced magnetotail flares out from the Mars—Sun direction by 21°. Finally, we compare the observations to gasdynamic model predictions and find that the shocked solar wind flow in the martian magnetosheath can be treated as a gasdynamic flow with the magnetic pileup boundary as the inner boundary to the flow.     

Near Infrared Spectrometer for the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous Mission

The Near-Infrared Spectrometer (NIS) instrument on the Near-Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) spacecraft is designed to map spectral properties of the mission target, the S-type asteroid 433 Eros, at near-infrared wavelengths diagnostic of the composition of minerals forming S asteroids. NIS is a grating spectrometer, in which light is directed by a dichroic beam-splitter onto a 32-element Ge detector (center wavelengths, 816–1486 nm) and a 32-element InGaAs detector (center wavelengths, 1371–2708 nm). Each detector reports a 32-channel spectrum at 12-bit quantization. The field-of-view is selectable using slits with dimensions calibrated at 0.37° × 0.76° (narrow slit) and 0.74° × 0.76° (wide slit). A shutter can be closed for dark current measurements. For the Ge detector, there is an option to command a 10x boost in gain. A scan mirror rotates the field-of-view over a 140° range, and a diffuse gold radiance calibration target is viewable at the sunward edge of the field of regard. Spectra are measured once per second, and up to 16 can be summed onboard. Hyperspectral image cubes are built up by a combination of down-track spacecraft motion and cross-track scanning of the mirror. Instrument software allows execution of data acquisition macros, which include selection of the slit width, number of spectra to sum, gain, mirror scanning, and an option to interleave dark spectra with the shutter closed among asteroid observations. The instrument was extensively characterized by on-ground calibration, and a comprehensive program of in-flight calibration was begun shortly after launch. NIS observations of Eros will largely be coordinated with multicolor imaging from the Multispectral Imager (MSI). NIS will begin observing Eros during approach to the asteroid, and the instrument will map Eros at successively higher spatial resolutions as NEAR's orbit around Eros is lowered incrementally to 25 km altitude. Ultimate products of the investigation will include composition maps of the entire illuminated surface of Eros at spatial resolutions as high as 300 m.     

Energetic Particles Investigation (EPI)

The Energetic Particles Investigation (EPI) instrument operates during the pre-entry phase of the Galileo Probe. The major science objective is to study the energetic particle population in the innermost regions of the Jovian magnetosphere — within 4 radii of the cloud tops — and into the upper atmosphere. To achieve these objectives the EPI instrument will make omnidirectional measurements of four different particle species — electrons, protons, alpha-particles, and heavy ions (Z > 2). Intensity profiles with a spatial resolution of about 0.02 Jupiter radii will be recorded. Three different energy range channels are allocated to both electrons and protons to provide a rough estimate of the spectral index of the energy spectra. In addition to the omnidirectional measurements, sectored data will be obtained for certain energy range electrons, protons, and alpha-particles to determine directional anisotropies and particle pitch angle distributions. The detector assembly is a two-element telescope using totally depleted, circular silicon surfacebarrier detectors surrounded by a cylindrical tungsten shielding with a wall thickness of 4.86 g cm^-2. The telescope axis is oriented normal to the spherical surface of the Probe's rear heat shield which is needed for heat protection of the scientific payload during the Probe's entry into the Jovian atmosphere. The material thickness of the heat shield determines the lower energy threshold of the particle species investigated during the Probe's pre-entry phase. The EPI instrument is combined with the Lightning and Radio Emission Detector (LRD) such that the EPI sensor is connected to the LRD/EPI electronic box. In this way, both instruments together only have one interface of the Probe's power, command, and data unit.     

Improved strapdown coning algorithms

Three improved algorithms for strapdown attitude computation utilizing accumulated gyro increments from the previous and current update are developed and evaluated analytically under classical coning motion. The error criterion of Miller is derived directly from the rotation vector concept. The accuracy of updating rotation vector estimation can be improved at least two orders of magnitude as compared with those of conventional algorithms. The proposed algorithm is equivalent to increasing the number of gyro samples used in the conventional method and it requires less computer loading     

The Magnetic Field of Mercury

The magnetic field strength of Mercury at the planet’s surface is approximately 1% that of Earth’s surface field. This comparatively low field strength presents a number of challenges, both theoretically to understand how it is generated and observationally to distinguish the internal field from that due to the solar wind interaction. Conversely, the small field also means that Mercury offers an important opportunity to advance our understanding both of planetary magnetic field generation and magnetosphere-solar wind interactions. The observations from the Mariner 10 magnetometer in 1974 and 1975, and the MESSENGER Magnetometer and plasma instruments during the probe’s first two flybys of Mercury on 14 January and 6 October 2008, provide the basis for our current knowledge of the internal field. The external field arising from the interaction of the magnetosphere with the solar wind is more prominent near Mercury than for any other magnetized planet in the Solar System, and particular attention is therefore paid to indications in the observations of deficiencies in our understanding of the external field. The second MESSENGER flyby occurred over the opposite hemisphere from the other flybys, and these newest data constrain the tilt of the planetary moment from the planet’s spin axis to be less than 5°. Considered as a dipole field, the moment is in the range 240 to 270 nT-R _M ³ , where R _M is Mercury’s radius. Multipole solutions for the planetary field yield a smaller dipole term, 180 to 220 nT-R _M ³ , and higher-order terms that together yield an equatorial surface field from 250 to 290 nT. From the spatial distribution of the fit residuals, the equatorial data are seen to reflect a weaker northward field and a strongly radial field, neither of which can be explained by a centered-dipole matched to the field measured near the pole by Mariner 10. This disparity is a major factor controlling the higher-order terms in the multipole solutions. The residuals are not largest close to the planet, and when considered in magnetospheric coordinates the residuals indicate the presence of a cross-tail current extending to within 0.5R _M altitude on the nightside. A near-tail current with a density of 0.1 μA/m² could account for the low field intensities recorded near the equator. In addition, the MESSENGER flybys include the first plasma observations from Mercury and demonstrate that solar wind plasma is present at low altitudes, below 500 km. Although we can be confident in the dipole-only moment estimates, the data in hand remain subject to ambiguities for distinguishing internal from external contributions. The anticipated observations from orbit at Mercury, first from MESSENGER beginning in March 2011 and later from the dual-spacecraft BepiColombo mission, will be essential to elucidate the higher-order structure in the magnetic field of Mercury that will reveal the telltale signatures of the physics responsible for its generation.     

喷流对飞机尾流涡影响的试验研究

飞机产生的尾流涡,特别是大尺度的翼尖涡,对尾随其后的飞行器是非常有害的,本文旨在探索利用飞机发动机产生的喷流加速尾流涡消亡的方法。试验采用简化的飞机模型(有尾翼),建立了包含一对翼尖涡及一对反向旋转的尾翼涡(通过以负迎角安装尾翼得到)的4涡尾流系统。在无外来扰动的情况下,不同的尾翼设置下得到的尾翼涡对翼尖涡的作用效果不同,有的能导致翼尖涡提前消亡,有的则不能。考察了不同强度的喷流对不同4涡尾流系统的影响,且作为对比,对无尾翼(2涡系统)及无喷流下的各种情况也分别作了观测。试验在拖曳水槽中进行,运用体视粒子图像测速(SPIV)技术,观测了与模型拖曳方向垂直的、从机翼后缘到下游约45翼展间均布的一系列切面。结果表明:当喷流直接作用于涡时,其效果主要取决于两者之间的初始距离及相对强度;而当喷流作用于整个4涡尾流系统时,其引入的扰动对不同的系统均能起到一定程度的改善作用,这种作用的关键在于利用喷流优化对翼尖涡进行扰动的机制,而不仅仅取决于喷流的强度。