Follow-on Project Research Articles

Hydrogen follow-on research project

Hydrogen follow-on research project

Numerical Aerodynamics at DLR

Some years ago the national CFD project MEGAFLOW was initiated in Germany to combine many of the CFD development activities from DLR, universities and aircraft industry. Its goal was the development and validation of a dependable and efficient numerical tool for the aerodynamic simulation of complete aircraft which met the requirements of industrial implementations. The MEGAFLOW software system includes the block-structured Navier-Stokes code FLOWer and the unstructured Navier-Stokes code TAU. Both codes have reached a high level of maturity and they are intensively used by DLR and the German aerospace industry in the design process of new aircraft. Recently, the follow-on project MEGADESIGN and MEGAOPT were set up which focus on the development and enhancement of efficient numerical methods for shape design and optimization. This article highlights recent improvements of the software and its capability to predict viscous flows for complex industrial aircraft applications.

Retrospective on Aurora

This experience paper summarizes the key lessons we learned throughout the design and implementation of the Aurora stream-processing engine. For the past 2 years, we have built five stream-based applications using Aurora. We first describe in detail these applications and their implementation in Aurora. We then reflect on the design of Aurora based on this experience. Finally, we discuss our initial ideas on a follow-on project, called Borealis, whose goal is to eliminate the limitations of Aurora as well as to address new key challenges and applications in the stream-processing domain.

Product Development and Market Expansion: a Real Options Model

This paper develops a model that values complementary and substitute projects, with potentially correlated revenues, that must be developed sequentially. The problem can be thought of as a sequential development of two simple projects with an option to exchange. The initial project has limited direct value because it is assumed that competition limits its direct cash flows. There is however an indirect benefit from the lead project in that its implementation is necessary before investment in a follow-on high value project can be undertaken. The follow-on project has significant value because there is a period of limited competition (ensured for instance by a patent). Whether the products are partial substitutes or complements, we find that the value of the combined projects and the time value of the option to invest in the initial project are increasing functions of correlation, and the probability of investing in the initial product is a decreasing function. If the products are substitutes, correlation can have a negative impact on the value of the combined projects and the time value of the option to invest in the initial project. The effect of correlation increases when the value of the initial product is relatively more uncertain. Moreover, the lower the correlation between the products, the higher the likelihood that the optimal timing for investing in the follow-on product is separated from that of the initial product. Regardless of the level of correlation, a higher degree of substitutability increases the value of the combined projects but reduces the time value of the option to invest in the initial one, thus increasing the probability of investing. Finally, we show that despite greater uncertainty during the phase of limited competition, the firm is more likely to invest earlier.

Atmospheric sounding using GPS radio occultation

This paper summarizes the radio occultation (RO) technique for remote sounding of the Earth’s atmosphere using the Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites and GPS receivers on low-Earth orbiting (LEO) satellites. As the LEO satellites rise and set with respect to the GPS satellites, the radio waves from the GPS satellites are refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere. Precise measurements of the bending angle of the radio waves are used to derive vertical profiles of atmospheric refractivity, which is a function of electron density in the ionosphere and temperature and water vapor in the stratosphere and troposphere.
 
 Results from the GPS/MET, CHAMP, and SAC-C RO missions are summarized, and examples of soundings are presented. Analysis of the CHAMP and SAC-C data indicates that approximately 45% of CHAMP and SAC-C retrieved radio occultation profiles reach below 1 km altitude, compared to only 35% for GPS/MET. All missions exhibit a negative refractivity bias in the lower troposphere of between 1% and 2% compared to NWP models. When constrained to the tropics, only about 20% of the CHAMP occultation profiles reach 1 km from the surface.
 
 Taiwan’s National Space Program Office (NSPO), the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), and many partners in the university community are developing COSMIC (Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate), a follow-on project for weather and climate, space weather, and geodetic science. COSMIC plans to launch six satellites in 2005. Each satellite will retrieve 400-500 daily profiles† of key ionospheric and atmospheric properties from the tracked GPS radio signals as they are occulted behind the Earth limb. The radio occultation sounding data from COSMIC will contribute significantly to atmospheric research, weather forecasting, and climate modeling.

Accuracy assessment of a large-scale forest cover map of central Siberia from synthetic aperture radar

Russia's boreal forests host 11% of the world's live forest biomass. They play a critical role in Russia's economy and in stabilizing the global climate. The boreal forests of central and western Siberia represent the largest unbroken tracts of forest in the world. The European Commission funded SIBERIA project aimed at producing a forest map covering an area of 1.2 million square kilometres. Three synthetic aperture radars (SAR) on board the European remote sensing satellites ERS-1 and ERS-2 and the Japanese Earth resources satellite JERS-1 were used to collect remote sensing data. Radar is the only sensor capable of penetrating cloud cover and imaging at night. An adaptive, model-based, contextual classification to derive ranked total growing stock volume classes suitable for large-scale mapping is described. The accuracy assessment of the Siberian forest cover map is presented. The weighted coefficient of agreement κw is calculated to quantify the agreement between the classified map and the reference data. First, the classified map is compared with Russian forest inventory data (κw = 0.72). The inherent uncertainty in the forest inventory data is simulated by allowing for fuzziness. The effect of uncertainty on the unweighted coefficient of agreement κ is stronger than that on the weighted coefficient of agreement κw. Second, the map is compared with a more reliable, independent posterior ground survey by Russian forestry experts (κw = 0.94). The follow-on project SIBERIA-II started in January 2002 and is striving to develop multisensor concepts for greenhouse gas accounting (www.siberia2.uni-jena.de).

NCEP–DOE AMIP-II Reanalysis (R-2)

The NCEP–DOE Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project (AMIP-II) reanalysis is a follow-on project to the “50-year” (1948–present) NCEP–NCAR Reanalysis Project. NCEP–DOE AMIP-II re-analysis covers the “20-year” satellite period of 1979 to the present and uses an updated forecast model, updated data assimilation system, improved diagnostic outputs, and fixes for the known processing problems of the NCEP–NCAR reanalysis. Only minor differences are found in the primary analysis variables such as free atmospheric geopotential height and winds in the Northern Hemisphere extratropics, while significant improvements upon NCEP–NCAR reanalysis are made in land surface parameters and land–ocean fluxes. This analysis can be used as a supplement to the NCEP–NCAR reanalysis especially where the original analysis has problems. The differences between the two analyses also provide a measure of uncertainty in current analyses.

The SOURDINE Project: developing environmentally friendly arrival and departure procedures

Abstract Next to other projects to reduce the aircraft source noise, SOURDINE has performed on initial study into the possibilities to reduce aircraft noise by modifications to current aircraft operational approach and departure procedures. A number of potential solutions have been identified in this area and an illustration of the obtainable benefits has been made. The project has been carried out in preparation of a follow-on project, which will further develop the most promising solutions that have been identified in this project.

Enhancing reliability in portfolio assessment: 'shaping' the portfolio

This paper reports a follow-on project that assessed a series of portfolios assembled by a cohort of participants attending a course for prospective general practice trainers. In an attempt to enhance reliability, a framework for defining and addressing problems using a reflective practice model was offered to participants. The reliability of the judgements made by a panel of assessors about individual 'components', together with an overall global judgement about performance were studied. The reliability of individual assessors' judgements (i.e. their consistency) was moderate, but inter-rater reliability did not reach a level that could support making a safe summative judgement. Despite offering a possible structure for demonstrating reflective processes, the levels of reliability reached were similar to the earlier work and other subjective assessments generally, and perhaps reflected individuality of personal agendas of both the assessed and the assessors, and variations in portfolio structure and content; even agreement among the assessors about evidence of the framework being used was poor. Suggestions for approaches in the future are made. The conclusion remains that while portfolios might be valuable as resources for learning, as assessment tools they should be treated as problematic.

Organizational aspects of the International GLONASS Service

The International GLONASS Service as a Pilot Project of the International GPS Service (IGS) is a follow-on project of the successful first global GLONASS campaign IGEX-98. Its major purpose is the full introduction of the GLONASS satellite system into the operation of IGS by a step-wise approach. This paper reviews some of the requirements needed and gives recommendations especially with respect to the data organization and data flow.

Applications of COSMIC to Meteorology and Climate

The GPSIMET (Global Positioning System/Meteorology, Ware et a1. 19996) project demonstrated atmospheric limb sounding from low-earth-orbit (LEO) with high vertical resolution, high accuracy, and global coverage in all weather. Based on the success and scientific results of GPS/MET, Taiwan’s National Space Program Office (NSPO), the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Arizona, Florida State University and other partners in the university community are developing COSMIC (Constellation observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate), a follow-on project for weather and climate research, climate monitoring, space weather, and geodetic science. COSMIC plans to launch eight LEO satellites in 2004. Each COSMIC satellite will retrieve about 500 daily profiles of key ionospheric and atmospheric properties from the tracked GPS radio-signals as they are occulted behind the Earth limb. The constellation will provide frequent global snapshots of the atmosphere and ionosphere with about 40000 daily soundings. This paper discusses some of the applications of COSMIC data for meteorology, including polar meteorology, numerical weather prediction (NWP), and climate. Applications to ionospheric research including space weather and geodesy are described elsewhere in this issue of TAO. In meteorology COSMIC will provide high vertical resolution temperature, pressure and water vapor information for a variety of atmospheric process studies and improve the forecast accuracy of numerical weather prediction models. The COSMIC data set will allow investigation of the global water vapor distribution and map the atmospheric flow of water vapor that is so crucial for understanding and predicting weather and climate. The data set will provide accurate geopotential heights, enable the detection of gravity waves from the upper troposphere to the stratosphere, reveal the height and shape of the tropopause globally with unprecedented accuracy, support the investigation of fronts and other baroclinic structures, and improve our understanding of tropopause-stratosphere exchange processes. COSMIC data will complement other observing systems and improve global weather analyses, particularly over the oceans and polar regions, and NWP forecasts made from these analyses. Through assimilation in numerical models, COSMIC data will improve the resolution and accuracy of the global temperature, pressure and water vapor fields, and through the model’s dynamical and physical adjustment mechanisms, the wind fields as well. These improved analyses and forecasts will provide significant benefits to aviation and other industries. For climate research and monitoring COSMIC will provide an accurate global thermometer that will monitor Earth’s atmosphere in all weather with unprecedented long-term stability, resolution, coverage, and accuracy. COSMIC will provide a data set for the detection of climate variability and change, the separation of natural and anthropogenic causes, the calibration of other satellite observing systems and the verification and improve events especially in remote oceanic regions, and it will enable scientists to monitor the response of the global atmosphere to regional events such as Volcanic eruptions, the Kuwait oil fires, or the recent Indonesian and Mexican forest fires. Upper-tropospheric refractivity data from COSMIC may shed new light on the controversy over the role that tropical convection of COSMIC data will provide new insights into the global hydrologic cycle.

The parallel logic programming system in the FGCS project and its future directions

In the fifth generation computer systems (FGCS) project, a parallel logic programming language, KL1, was adopted as the project's kernel language. It was not only used to determine architectures of highly parallel machines called parallel inference machines (PIMs) consisting of about 1000 element processors but also used as a system description language to develop basic software such as a parallel operating system (PIMOS), and symbolic processing and knowledge processing application systems such as knowledge description languages, a parallel theorem prover, and a protein sequence analysis program. It achieved great success in exploiting of parallelism involved in several important application systems. The prototype of the FGCS attained a linear speed-up that was proportional to the number of processing elements (PEs) for the application systems we had targeted. The MGTP parallel theorem prover was one of such application systems, and can prove theorems based on full first-order logic. Thus, it indicates the possibility of designing a new practical knowledge representation language whose expressive power will be much greater than that of conventional ones. In the FGCS follow-on project, KL1 and its programming system were ported to Unix-based stock parallel machines. This new system called KLIC is expected to greatly extend the use of highly parallel systems.

The MAGlC project: from vision to reality

In the MAGIC project, three major components-an ATM internetwork, a distributed, network-based storage system; and a terrain visualization application-were designed, implemented, and integrated to create a testbed for demonstrating real-time, interactive exchange of data at high speeds distributed resources. The MAGIC internetwork, depicted includes six high-speed local area networks (LANs) interconnected by a wide area network (WAN) backbone. The testbed was developed as a system, with special consideration to how performance was affected by interactions among the components. This article presents an overview of the project, with emphasis on the challenges associated with implementing complex distributed system, and with coordinating a multi-organization collaborative project that relied on distributed development. System level design issues and performance measurements are described, as it is a tool that was developed for analyzing performance and diagnosing problems in a distributed system. The management challenges that were encountered and some of the lessons learned during the course of the three-year project are discussed, and a brief summary of MAGIC-II, a follow-on project, is given.

Outline of the FGCS follow-on project

Outline of the FGCS follow-on project

Design characteristics of the HTR 500 reactor components

A survey is given of the design concepts of the main primary system components for the HTR 500, the follow-on project of the THTR. The objectives of the HTR 500 component design were: • - use of system-specific safety characteristics, • - adoption, simplification and optimization of the THTR components, • - short construction period, • - minimization of in-service inspections requiring shutdown of the reactor. Further objectives in view of obtaining a higher availability were: • - greatest possible adoption of design solutions used in the THTR to rule out construction and implementation risks, • - benefiting from the experience gained from the construction, licensing and commissioning of the THTR.

Processing of interferometric fringe scanner data for the AXAF/TMA x-ray telescope

An interferometric fringe scanner was used for the Technology Mirror Assembly (TMA) x-ray telescope, built by Perkin-Elmer as a technology demonstration for the Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF). We discuss advanced data processing features, implemented during a follow-on project to improve the mirror's midfrequency errors still further. Data processing techniques include interleaving of multiple scans, and optimal smoothing and interpolation of the interleaved data onto a uniform grid. We discuss the underlying mathematics behind the processes, the motivation in terms of recovering the highest possible spatial frequencies from the data, and some sample results.