Antenna design and implementation for the future space Ultra-Long wavelength radio telescope

In radio astronomy, the Ultra-Long Wavelengths (ULW) regime of longer than 10 m (frequencies below 30 MHz), remains the last virtually unexplored window of the celestial electromagnetic spectrum. The strength of the science case for extending radio astronomy into the ULW window is growing. However, the opaqueness of the Earth’s ionosphere makes ULW observations by ground-based facilities practically impossible. Furthermore, the ULW spectrum is full of anthropogenic radio frequency interference (RFI). The only radical solution for both problems is in placing an ULW astronomy facility in space. We present a concept of a key element of a space-borne ULW array facility, an antenna that addresses radio astronomical specifications. A tripole–type antenna and amplifier are analysed as a solution for ULW implementation. A receiver system with a low power dissipation is discussed as well. The active antenna is optimized to operate at the noise level defined by the celestial emission in the frequency band 1 ? 30 MHz. Field experiments with a prototype tripole antenna enabled estimates of the system noise temperature. They indicated that the proposed concept meets the requirements of a space-borne ULW array facility.     

Readout Techniques for Drift and Low Frequency Noise Rejection in Infrared Arrays

Three different methods are presented to subtract thermal drifts and low-frequency noise from the signal of infrared array. The first is dead pixels with open Indium bumps, the second is reference output as implemented on the Hawaii2 multiplexer, and the third is dark pixels to emulate reference cells having a capacity connected to the gate of the unit cell field-effect transistor (FET). The third method is the most effective and yields a reduction in readout noise from15.4–9.4 erms. A novel method will be described to extend this readout technique to the Aladdin 1 K × 1 K InSb array. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

National ocean policy—new opportunities for Malaysian ocean development

Being a littoral state, Malaysian maritime sectors provide the basis for the growth and development of marine-related activities. As the country enters the new millennium along with the ‘2020 Vision’ which serves as the basic template against which the economic performance of these sectors should be judged, it poses a new challenge for Malaysia in developing these sectors. This paper attempts to address three basic issues: Firstly, is there any national ocean policy in place? Secondly, are the maritime sectors adequately organized to play an important role in achieving the objectives? Thirdly, what are the opportunities available in developing the ocean?It can be seen that existing policies to develop comprehensive ocean governance have not received the full attention they deserve. Organizational structures governing the ocean for implementing national policies are well in place but in a fragmented and uncoordinated fashion. As a result, sectoral and intersectoral management problems were created such as multiple-use conflicts, overlapping of jurisdiction and duplication of efforts. Environmental problems have also not been properly addressed. A few sectors have been identified as offering opportunities to further develop the Malaysian maritime areas. Among these are marine education and human resources development, marine tourism and the seafood industry.     

Finite-β effects on the radiative thermal instability in magnetized plasmas

The radiative thermal instability is investigated taking into account finite-, or electromagnetic, effects. The two-fluid model for magnetized plasmas together with the Maxwell equations are used to derive a general dispersion relation valid for compressional perturbations with frequency below the electron-cyclotron frequency. The growth rates of the radiative thermal instabilities involving fast magnetosonic flute-like and low-frequency hydromagnetic perturbations are presented.     

Analysis of red and infrared wide-band photometry of Algol

The basic physical picture of the Algol system is reviewed, and, using collected red and infrared observations, photometric curve fits are investigated by applying numerical quadratures to determine theoretical light curves appropriate to Roche model stars. The contact nature of Algol B appears to be confirmed, and effective temperatures of the three components areT _A=11 400°,T _B=5300°,T _C=7600°. In terms of a Lambert's law approach to the reflection effect, the effective heat-albedo is required to be reduced from unity to one half; and it is also found that the averaged gravity-darkening coefficient is close to a value appropriate for a diffusion type of heat-transfer mechanism operating in sub-photospheric layers.     

Economic analysis for the production of four grape cultivars using microcatchment water harvesting systems in Iran

An economic analysis was conducted for temporal yield variations of four local grape cultivars grown in rain-fed microcatchments in the Bajgah area of Fars province, in Islamic Republic of Iran. For this study, four local cultivars of grapes were considered. The cultivars examined were Black Rishbaba, Rotabi, Asgari and Black grapes. The soil type was a gravely loam with an average slope of 5–6%, in microcatchment systems, and in plots without microcatchments. Analysis of yield data with a multiple regression model indicated that a 9 m² (3×3 m) microcatchment area for each individual plant (vine) was the most appropriate area for vineyards in this region. The results also demonstrated that by using this area for each grapevine, yields (kg/ha) were 40% greater than yields obtained for vines in the standard vineyard (without microcatchments) in this area. Economic analysis was performed and the cost and income were compared for a depreciation period (life-span period) of 50 years and interest rate of 14%. The analysis showed that a microcatchment area of 9 m² is economically feasible. The Black Rishbaba rain-fed vines were the most suitable cultivar for this region. The benefit probabilities of rain-fed Black Rishbaba, Rotabi, Asgari and Black grapes with a microcatchment area of 9 m² and without such an area were 63.3% (i.e. two of 3 years), 52.4% (i.e. one of 2 years), 32.9% (i.e. one of 3 years), 13.3% (i.e. one of 8 years), and 59.5% (i.e. two of 3 years), 39.4% (i.e. two of 5 years), 31.8% (i.e. one of 3 years), and 10.7% (i.e. one of 9 years), respectively. Therefore, the Black Rishbaba and Rotabi cultivars are economically more stable in microcatchment system, while only the Black Rishbaba cultivar would be such in the standard vineyard system.     

Geochemical Prospectivity Mapping Through a Feature Extraction–Selection Classification Scheme

Natural Resources Research - Machine learning (ML) schemes can enhance success in geochemical prospectivity mapping. This study has examined the effectiveness of several feature extraction or...     

Improved spatial delineation of streambed properties and water fluxes using distributed temperature sensing

A new method was developed for analysing and delineating streambed water fluxes, flow conditions and hydraulic properties using coiled fibre‐optic distributed temperature sensing or closely spaced discrete temperature sensors. This method allows for a thorough treatment of the spatial information embedded in temperature data by creating a matrix visualization of all possible sensor pairs. Application of the method to a 5‐day field dataset reveals the complexity of shallow streambed thermal regimes. To understand how velocity estimates are affected by violations of assumptions of one‐dimensional, saturated, homogeneous flow and to aid in the interpretation of field observations, the method was also applied to temperature data generated by numerical models of common field conditions: horizontal layering, presence of lateral flow and variable streambed saturation. The results show that each condition creates a distinct signature visible in the triangular matrices. The matrices are used to perform a comparison of the behaviour of one‐dimensional analytical heat‐tracing models. The results show that the amplitude ratio‐based method of velocity calculation leads to the most reliable estimates. The minimum sensor spacing required to obtain reliable velocity estimates with discrete sensors is also investigated using field data. The developed method will aid future heat‐tracing studies by providing a technique for visualizing and comparing results from fibre‐optic distributed temperature sensing installations and testing the robustness of analytical heat‐tracing models. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ionic conductivity in gem-quality single-crystal alkali feldspar from the Eifel: temperature,orientation and composition dependence

We measured the ion conductivity of single-crystal alkali feldspar originating from two different locations in the Eifel/Germany, named Volkesfeld and Rockeskyller sanidine and having potassium site fractions \(C_\mathrm{K}\) of 0.83 and 0.71, respectively. The dc conductivities resulting from electrochemical impedance spectroscopy over the temperature range of 300–900 \(^{\circ }\hbox {C}\) show a weak composition dependence but pronounced differences between the b-direction [\(\perp (010)\)] and \(c^{*}\)-direction [\(\perp (001)\)] of the monoclinic feldspar structure. Conductivity activation energies obtained from the observed linear Arrhenius plots are close to 1.2 eV in all cases, which is closely similar to the activation energies of the \(^{22}\mathrm{Na}\) tracer diffusivity in the same crystals. Taking into account literature data on K tracer diffusion and diffusion correlation effects, the present results point to a predominance of the interstitialcy mechanism over the vacancy mechanism in mass and charge transport on the alkali sublattice in potassium-rich alkali feldspar.