Annual Report 2003
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National Aeronautics and Space Administration George C. Marshall Space Flight Center Marshall Space Flight Center, Alabama 35812 ANNUAL REPORT 2003 NASA PHYSICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH DIVISION 1 ON THE FRONT COVER By integrating bio- Biotechnology research Freed of buoyancy, Scientists are learning science and engineer- helps explain how flames in microgravity how to control the pas- ing disciplines, NASA microgravity and radia- take on a spherical sage of light through liq- can ensure the safety tion affect humans on shape that is easier for uid crystals, shown here of humans in space. a molecular level. scientists to study. as dried droplets. See page 4 See page 16 See page 40 See page 50 One quest of funda- Electrostatic levitation Vibrations from spacecraft The International Space mental physicists is a enables scientists to docking with the Inter- Station is a gold mine more precise under- study new alloys without national Space Station for researchers seeking standing of the physical the risk of contamina- can disrupt the microgravi- to conduct experiments laws that govern time. tion from containers. ty research environment. in microgravity. See page 64 See page 74 See page 88 See page 96 Editor’s Note: This report covers activity of the Physical Sciences Research Division October 1, NASA’s KC-135 is one NASA astronauts help 2002–September 30, of several ground-based inspire the next gener- 2003. facilities that provide ation to be scientists researchers with micro- and explorers. gravity conditions. See page 104 See page 106 i i ANNUAL REPORT 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 1 Cover Images pg ii 1 Table of Contents pg iii 1 For More Information pg iv 2 Introduction pg 1 3 Bioscience and Engineering pg 4 4 Biotechnology pg 16 5 Combustion Science pg 40 6 Fluid Physics pg 50 7 Fundamental Physics pg 64 8 Materials Science pg 74 9 Acceleration Measurement pg 88 10 International Space Station pg 96 11 Ground-Based Microgravity Facilities pg 104 12 Outreach and Education pg 106 13 Program Resources for FY 2003 pg 120 14 Appendix Microgravity Experiment Hardware pg 121 ANNUAL REPORT 2003 i i i 1 FOR MORE INFORMATION NASA’s goal is to improve the quality of life on Earth by using ground- and space-based research to promote new scientific and technological discoveries. The Physical Sciences Research (PSR) Division plays a vital role in ensuring our nation’s economic and general health by carefully selecting, funding, and supporting scientists across the country. It also serves as an important link in the international endeavors that are the hallmark of America’s space program. By disseminating knowledge and transferring technology among private industries, universi- ties, and other government agencies, PSR continues to build on a foundation of professional success, evidenced by the number of publications and conferences attended, while reaching out to the popu- lace at large. Educational outreach and technology transfer are among the program’s top goals, mak- ing the benefits of NASA’s research available to the American public. Space shuttle research missions as well as experiments performed in short-duration microgravity facilities are yielding new under- standings about our world and the universe around us, and long-duration microgravity research on the International Space Station is making possible advances in science that were not possible before. Under the direction of the Office of Biological and Physical Research (OBPR), PSR will con- tinue to advance cutting-edge research led by the best scientists in the nation. For more information about OBPR and ongoing microgravity research, contact NASA’s Physical Sciences Research Division: Physical Sciences Research Division NASA Headquarters 300 E Street, SW Washington, DC 20546–0001 Phone: (202) 358–1490 Fax: (202) 358–3091 http://spaceresearch.nasa.gov i v ANNUAL REPORT 2003 INTRODUCTION 2 The heightened anticipation of principal investiga- publication of these findings in such tors and their NASA collaborators at the launch of the long- diverse disciplines as combustion sci- awaited STS-107 mission was followed by tremendous excite- ence, fundamental condensed-matter ment when the entire complement of flight experiments was physics, granular-materials physics, successfully carried out and the return of Space Shuttle and cellular biotechnology serves as a Columbia promised to bring back a wealth of research data. permanent tribute to the hard work and This did not come to pass, however, as NASA’s oldest shuttle dedication of the lost Columbia crew. perished together with its entire gallant crew in the sky over Texas on February 1, 2003. This single sad event has cast a vast The PSR program was also shadow over the entire year as the NASA family and the an integral part of the Office of credit: NASA Physical Sciences Research (PSR) Division community grieved Biological and Physical Research and began to reassess its International Space Station (ISS) Enterprise Strategy published in 2003. Road maps guiding PSR research plans. activities — both in fundamental research to benefit people on Earth and in strategic research bent on devising unique new As the nation awaits the potential redirection of the technologies essential to the NASA mission of space explo- space program, PSR research activities aboard the ISS have ration — have been created to define the program between slowed to a minimal pace dictated by the temporary suspension 2003 and 2016. of the space shuttle program. On the other hand, plans for com- pleting the ISS pressurized research facilities for combustion As part of an innovative approach, a cross-discipli- science, materials science, and fluid physics are currently still nary research program has been created to better position PSR on track. for breakthroughs in human space exploration technology and new discoveries from space research. This new NASA In contrast to the temporarily down-scoped ISS flight Bioscience and Engineering Program teams researchers in research activities, ground-based investigators have been prodi- chemistry, biology, physics, materials science, and engineering giously productive. The grant awards for all the PSR disciplines to focus on understanding and controlling biological processes involved in the 2001 NASA Research Announcement were relevant to space-based technologies ensuring the health and issued, and resulted in the funding of 53 new investigations in safety of spaceflight. In addition, the program is applying fiscal year (FY) 2003. The work of PSR-funded researchers newly discovered molecular-scale methods and the theoretical was featured on the covers of three issues of Science magazine understanding of complex systems to target the molecular and a host of discipline-specific archival publications and processes involved in living systems and relevant to human received other prestigious recognition in 2003. Among numer- spaceflight. Active areas of research include transport phenom- ous highlights are two notable examples: The July issue of ena in biological systems and devices, tissue bioscience, molec- Physics Today featured the NASA-developed electrostatic levi- ular bioengineering, biomicroelectromechanical systems tation technology that has enabled PSR investigator Kenneth (bioMEMS), and cellular biomechanics. The NASA Bioscience Kelton to experimentally verify a 50-year-old theory describing and Engineering Institute at the University of Michigan, Ann the process of nucleation of the solid phase in a liquid metal Arbor, was recently selected to be the academic anchor of the melt, and PSR investigator Wolfgang Ketterle observed the program and will team with the existing John Glenn lowest temperature ever reached in any physical system — an Biomedical Engineering Consortium (Cleveland, Ohio), the astonishing half a nanokelvin — achieved in a cloud of sodium intramural NASA biomedical technology arm. atoms. All in all, 2003 was a year of multiple challenges and The first NASA Research Update sponsored by the will be forever marked by the loss of Columbia. At the same Office of Biological and Physical Research took place in 2003 time, it was a year of scientific achievements as well as pro- and featured the achievement of PSR investigator Richard grammatic innovation and redefinition. The PSR Division has Weber, the inventor of a patented glassy material composition emerged stronger and more flexible to accomplish the NASA enabled by the joint sponsorship of NASA and the National mission to “improve life here, extend life to there, and find life Science Foundation. This feat was noticed by the mainstream beyond.” press and was the subject of a technology development feature in Business Week. PSR flight research investigators have managed to retrieve 50 to 95 percent of the experimental results from STS- — Eugene Trinh 107 through downlinked digital data and video images. The Director, Physical Sciences Research Division ANNUAL REPORT 2003 1 2 INTRODUCTION A Tribute to the Columbia Crew The crew of Space Shuttle Columbia that flew in January 2003 knew, as everyone at NASA knows, that space research offers something never before achievable in the history of humankind: a glimpse of what life — and nature itself — is like in a world without the effects of gravity. They also knew that people like themselves must be directly involved in space research, because all research is rooted in the ability to observe, recognize something new and valuable, and then step out in a new direction, one that often cannot be anticipated or prepro- grammed into a machine. credit: NASA The crewmembers were thrilled with what they were The crew of Columbia, STS-107 (left to right): David doing. They put in extra time and effort to make sure that the Brown, Rick Husband, Laurel Clark, Kalpana Chawla, research would be successful. Working with NASA scientists Michael Anderson, William McCool, and Ilan Ramon. on Earth, they overcame just about every hurdle that could have credit: NASA upset the payloads’ operations during the mission. And because spacecraft fire safety. Among the achievements of the STS-107 of that dedication, valuable scientific information has been experiment were observing the weakest flames ever burned on gathered from their work.