The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), CHL, FRF, had a need for a remote real-time data collection system to control instruments and log and communicate data from five observing stations in the Currituck Sound Estuary, NC1. These stations, referred to as the Currituck Sound Array (CSA), collect a suite of meteorological and oceano-graphic data including wind, air temperature, humidity, incoming solar radiation (above and below water), waves, currents, water level, salinity, and water temperature, as well as turbidity and many other water quality parameters. This array of instruments has a variety of control commands, sample routines, and output data formats. Additionally, the CSA was designed to act as a natural laboratory for estuarine research and as an instrument and model test bed. These capabilities required a reliable and flexible system that would allow easy modification of sampling schemes, the ability to log as many as 15 instruments with a single logger, and allow the incorporation of additional and novel instrumentation with minimal effort and expense.

Method 522.2 of MIL-STD-810G CN1 defines ballistic shock as “a high-level shock that generally results from the impact of projectiles or ordnance on armored combat vehicles”. Typical engagements of interest also include Kinetic Energy projectiles, land mines, and improvised explosive devices. For the purposes of this TOP, ballistic shock is generally referred to as the sudden high-rate loading resulting from under body blast (UBB) testing designed to assess the crew-survivability of military vehicles. Historical testing conducted in both areas have proven the relative similarities between the two environments.

In multi-beam directional networks, nodes are able to simultaneously transmit to all neighbors or receive from all neighbors. This spatial reuse allows for high throughputs, but in dense networks can cause significant interference. Topology control (i.e., selecting a subset of neighbors to communicate with) is vital to reduce the interference. Good topology control balances the number of links utilized to achieve fewer collisions while maintaining robust network connectivity.

Argonne National Laboratory engineers are working to create high-fidelity computer simulations to determine how jet turbulence produces noise. Working on Argonne’s supercomputer Mira, the team is applying computational fluid dynamics to capture the physics of the turbulence that is making the noise.

NASA engineers tested a 3D-printed rocket engine prototype part made of two different metal alloys via an advanced manufacturing process. The part was low-pressure, hot-fire-tested more than 30 times to demonstrate the functionality of the igniter.

Plants Engineered to Replace Oil in Sugarcane and Sweet Sorghum (PETROSS), funded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E), has developed sugarcane that produces oil, called lipidcane, that can be converted into biodiesel or jet fuel in place of sugar that is currently used for ethanol production. With 20% oil – the theoretical limit – all of the sugar in the plant would be replaced by oil.

Modern avionics are highly dependent on reliable connectivity — and reliable interconnection systems. As data rates inevitably improve to address greater military requirements, how will the increase impact signal integrity?

In aerospace applications of materials, increasing strength often leads to a decrease in ductility. Engineers have developed a Super Steel that addresses this strength-ductility tradeoff. In addition to the substantial improvement of tensile properties, the steel has low raw-material cost and simple industrial processing.

When planes get caught in traffic, pilots have to keep flying until the backup clears and their runways become available for landing. This means that air traffic controllers must send them on less-direct paths to their final destination, using more fuel in the process.

Sandia National Laboratories has successfully demonstrated a new, more environmentally friendly method to test a rocket part to ensure its avionics can withstand the shock from stage separation during flight. The Alternative Pyroshock Test uses a nitrogen-powered gas gun to shoot a 100-pound steel projectile into a steel resonant beam, which then transfers energy through a resonant cone attached to the part being tested. The resulting energy transfer mimics the conditions of stage separation in space.