Giant Magellan Telescope site testing seeing and turbulence statistics

Author(s):  
Gabriel Prieto ◽  
Joanna E. Thomas-Osip ◽  
Mark M. Phillips ◽  
Patrick McCarthy ◽  
Matt Johns
Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (7) ◽  
pp. 2499
Author(s):  
Michael Dillon ◽  
Maja A. Zaczek-Moczydlowska ◽  
Christine Edwards ◽  
Andrew D. Turner ◽  
Peter I. Miller ◽  
...  

In the past twenty years marine biotoxin analysis in routine regulatory monitoring has advanced significantly in Europe (EU) and other regions from the use of the mouse bioassay (MBA) towards the high-end analytical techniques such as high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with tandem mass spectrometry (MS). Previously, acceptance of these advanced methods, in progressing away from the MBA, was hindered by a lack of commercial certified analytical standards for method development and validation. This has now been addressed whereby the availability of a wide range of analytical standards from several companies in the EU, North America and Asia has enhanced the development and validation of methods to the required regulatory standards. However, the cost of the high-end analytical equipment, lengthy procedures and the need for qualified personnel to perform analysis can still be a challenge for routine monitoring laboratories. In developing regions, aquaculture production is increasing and alternative inexpensive Sensitive, Measurable, Accurate and Real-Time (SMART) rapid point-of-site testing (POST) methods suitable for novice end users that can be validated and internationally accepted remain an objective for both regulators and the industry. The range of commercial testing kits on the market for marine toxin analysis remains limited and even more so those meeting the requirements for use in regulatory control. Individual assays include enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) and lateral flow membrane-based immunoassays (LFIA) for EU-regulated toxins, such as okadaic acid (OA) and dinophysistoxins (DTXs), saxitoxin (STX) and its analogues and domoic acid (DA) in the form of three separate tests offering varying costs and benefits for the industry. It can be observed from the literature that not only are developments and improvements ongoing for these assays, but there are also novel assays being developed using upcoming state-of-the-art biosensor technology. This review focuses on both currently available methods and recent advances in innovative methods for marine biotoxin testing and the end-user practicalities that need to be observed. Furthermore, it highlights trends that are influencing assay developments such as multiplexing capabilities and rapid POST, indicating potential detection methods that will shape the future market.


Fluids ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 72
Author(s):  
Nadish Saini ◽  
Igor A. Bolotnov

In the dispersed flow film boiling regime (DFFB), which exists under post-LOCA (loss-of-coolant accident) conditions in pressurized water reactors (PWRs), there is a complex interplay between droplet dynamics and turbulence in the surrounding steam. Experiments have accredited particular significance to droplet collision with the spacer-grids and mixing vane structures and their consequent positive feedback to the heat transfer recorded in the immediate downstream vicinity. Enabled by high-performance computing (HPC) systems and a massively parallel finite element-based flow solver—PHASTA (Parallel Hierarchic Adaptive Stabilized Transient Analysis)—this work presents high fidelity interface capturing, two-phase, adiabatic simulations in a PWR sub-channel with spacer grids and mixing vanes. Selected flow conditions for the simulations are informed by the experimental data found in the literature, including the steam Reynolds number and collision Weber number (Wec={40,80}), and are characteristic of the DFFB regime. Data were collected from the simulations at an unprecedented resolution, which provides detailed insights into the continuous phase turbulence statistics, highlighting the effects of the presence of droplets and the comparative effect of different Weber numbers on turbulence in the surrounding steam. Further, axial evolution of droplet dynamics was analyzed through cross-sectionally averaged quantities, including droplet volume, surface area and Sauter mean diameter (SMD). The downstream SMD values agree well with the existing empirical correlations for the selected range of Wec. The high-resolution data repository from the simulations herein is expected to be of significance to guide model development for system-level thermal hydraulic codes.


Author(s):  
Xu Yang ◽  
Zhaohui Shang ◽  
Keliang Hu ◽  
Yi Hu ◽  
Bin Ma ◽  
...  

Abstract Dome A in Antarctica has many characteristics that make it an excellent site for astronomical observations, from the optical to the terahertz. Quantitative site testing is still needed to confirm the site’s properties. In this paper, we present a statistical analysis of cloud cover and aurora contamination from the Kunlun Cloud and Aurora Monitor (KLCAM). KLCAM is an automatic, unattended all-sky camera aiming for long-term monitoring of the usable observing time and optical sky background at Dome A. It was installed at Dome A in January 2017, worked through the austral winter, and collected over 47,000 images over 490 days. A semi-quantitative visual data analysis of cloud cover and auroral contamination was carried out by five individuals. The analysis shows that the night sky was free of clouds for 83 per cent of the time, which ranks Dome A highly in a comparison with other observatory sites. Although aurorae were detected somewhere on an image for nearly 45 per cent of the time, the chance of a point on the sky being affected by an aurora is small. The strongest auroral emission lines can be filtered out with customized filters.


Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 564
Author(s):  
Hong Shen ◽  
Longkun Yu ◽  
Xu Jing ◽  
Fengfu Tan

The turbulence moment of order m (μm) is defined as the refractive index structure constant Cn2 integrated over the whole path z with path-weighting function zm. Optical effects of atmospheric turbulence are directly related to turbulence moments. To evaluate the optical effects of atmospheric turbulence, it is necessary to measure the turbulence moment. It is well known that zero-order moments of turbulence (μ0) and five-thirds-order moments of turbulence (μ5/3), which correspond to the seeing and the isoplanatic angles, respectively, have been monitored as routine parameters in astronomical site testing. However, the direct measurement of second-order moments of turbulence (μ2) of the whole layer atmosphere has not been reported. Using a star as the light source, it has been found that μ2 can be measured through the covariance of the irradiance in two receiver apertures with suitable aperture size and aperture separation. Numerical results show that the theoretical error of this novel method is negligible in all the typical turbulence models. This method enabled us to monitor μ2 as a routine parameter in astronomical site testing, which is helpful to understand the characteristics of atmospheric turbulence better combined with μ0 and μ5/3.


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