63,774 research outputs found

    Extension of the sun-synchronous Orbit

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    Through careful consideration of the orbit perturbation force due to the oblate nature of the primary body a secular variation of the ascending node angle of a near-polar orbit can be induced without expulsion of propellant. Resultantly, the orbit perturbations can be used to maintain the orbit plane in, for example, a near-perpendicular (or at any other angle) alignment to the Sun-line throughout the full year of the primary body; such orbits are normally termed Sun-synchronous orbits [1, 2]. Sun-synchronous orbits about the Earth are typically near-circular Low-Earth Orbits (LEOs), with an altitude of less than 1500 km. It is normal to design a LEO such that the orbit period is synchronised with the rotation of the Earth‟s surface over a given period, such that a repeating ground-track is established. A repeating ground-track, together with the near-constant illumination conditions of the ground-track when observed from a Sun-synchronous orbit, enables repeat observations of a target over an extended period under similar illumination conditions [1, 2]. For this reason, Sun-synchronous orbits are extensively used by Earth Observation (EO) platforms, including currently the Environmental Satellite (ENVISAT), the second European Remote Sensing satellite (ERS-2) and many more. By definition, a given Sun-synchronous orbit is a finite resource similar to a geostationary orbit. A typical characterising parameter of a Sun-synchronous orbit is the Mean Local Solar Time (MLST) at descending node, with a value of 1030 hours typical. Note that ERS-1 and ERS-2 used a MLST at descending node of 1030 hours ± 5 minutes, while ENVISAT uses a 1000 hours ± 5 minutes MLST at descending node [3]. Following selection of the MLST at descending node and for a given desired repeat ground-track, the orbit period and hence the semi-major axis are fixed, thereafter assuming a circular orbit is desired it is found that only a single orbit inclination will enable a Sun-synchronous orbit [2]. As such, only a few spacecraft can populate a given repeat ground-track Sun-synchronous orbit without compromise, for example on the MLST at descending node. Indeed a notable feature of on-going studies by the ENVISAT Post launch Support Office is the desire to ensure sufficient propellant remains at end-of-mission for re-orbiting to a graveyard orbit to ensure the orbital slot is available for future missions [4]. An extension to the Sun-synchronous orbit is considered using an undefined, non-orientation constrained, low-thrust propulsion system. Initially the low-thrust propulsion system will be considered for the free selection of orbit inclination and altitude while maintaining the Sun-synchronous condition. Subsequently the maintenance of a given Sun-synchronous repeat-ground track will be considered, using the low-thrust propulsion system to enable the free selection of orbit altitude. An analytical expression will be developed to describe these extensions prior to then validating the analytical expressions within a numerical simulation of a spacecraft orbit. Finally, an analysis will be presented on transfer and injection trajectories to these orbits

    SunSmart? Skin cancer knowledge and preventive behaviour in a British population representative sample

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    The incidence of skin cancer has risen rapidly in the UK over the last 20 years, prompting public health organizations to try and raise awareness of the dangers of sun exposure and the need to practice sun-safe behaviour. This study aimed to assess baseline levels of sun-safe knowledge and behaviour in a British population-representative sample, prior to the launch of Cancer Research UK's 'SunSmart' campaign. A face-to-face survey was conducted through the Office for National Statistics as part of their Omnibus survey. In total, 1848 men and women aged 18 and over were interviewed. Knowledge of what to do to reduce skin cancer risk was modest. Two-thirds mentioned avoiding the sun by seeking shade, 50% mentioned covering up and only 43% said to use high factor sunscreen. Practice of sun-safe behaviours was also poor, with only one-third saying they sought shade, covered up or used high factor sunscreen to protect themselves from the sun. Men and those from lower socioeconomic groups were least informed and least likely to report using sun-protective behaviours. Increases in both knowledge and use of appropriate sun-protective behaviours are needed if skin cancer incidence rates are to decrease

    A grounded theory of female adolescent behaviour in the sun: comfort matters.

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    The aim of the research was to generate a grounded theory to explain the behaviour of young women in the sun. The study sought to explore the sun-related experiences of young women in order to gain new insights into the influences upon them. The study was qualitative by design and utilised grounded theory method as developed by Glaser. Twenty female participants, aged 14 to 17 years old were included in the study. They formed six groups. Thirteen interviews were carried out with the groups and six one-to one interviews took place with individuals. All interviews were semi-structured and were based upon the participants' experiences of being in the sun. Data was analysed using the constant comparative method of data analysis, concordant with Glaserian grounded theory method. Five explanatory categories emerged from the data; Fitting In, Being Myself, Being Physically Comfortable, Slipping Up and a core category of Being Comfortable. One of the issues that emerged was that some young women believed their social acceptance depended on their appearance and they conformed to this end. The theory, derived from the categories, proposes that when in the sun, young women direct their activities toward meeting physical and psychosocial comfort needs. Comfort matters to them because it has implications for their wellbeing. This thesis contributes to the literature about the behaviours of young women in the sun. By increasing understanding of the factors that influence them, it also adds to the body of knowledge related to the primary prevention of skin cancer with teenage girls in the United Kingdom. The outcome of the research and its contribution to knowledge is a grounded theory, which explains the basis of the behaviours of young women in the sun. It appears that no other study has explored the experiences of UK adolescent females specifically, in a qualitative way and with the intention of producing a theory to explain them

    Perspectives on Identity, Migration, and Displacement

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    Perspectives on Identity, Migration, and Displacement -- edited by Steven Tötösy de Zepetnek, I-Chun Wang, and Hsiao-Yu Sun (Kaohsiung: National Sun Yat-sen University Press, 2010. ISBN 9789860235418 209 pages, bibliography, index) is a collection of articles about sociological and literary aspects of identity formation as a consequence of (im)migration. (Im)migration results in the problematics of assimilation and hybridity and in postcolonial scholarship, in particular, attention is paid to the concept of migration termed Creolization on the ground that cultural contact, cultural transmission, and cultural transformation result in the creation of new cultures. Copyright release by National Sun Yat-sen University to the authors 2013

    INNOVATIVE PILLAR[6]ARENE-BASED STATIONARY PHASES FOR HIGH-RESOLUTION GAS CHROMATOGRAPHIC ANALYSES

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    In this work, the synthesis, fabrication, and characterization of new stationary phases based on pillar[6]arene derivative modified by long alkyl chains (P6A-C10) for high-resolution gas chromatographic (GC) analyses are reported. Pillar[n]arenes are a new class of macrocyclic hosts that can accommodate specific guests due to their highly symmetrical and rigid pillar architectures with π-electron rich cavities. Quantum chemistry calculations have been performed, showing a difference in non-covalent interactions with the P6A-C10 pillar framework, which leads to specific selectivity for aromatic compounds. The GC columns prepared with these innovative stationary phases exhibited a medium polarity, and good reproducibility for run-to-run, day-to-day, and column-to-column analyses [1], demonstrating great potential as new stationary phases in separation science. Furthermore, peculiar advantages are achieved if compared with the commercial HP-5, HP-35, DB-17, and PEG-20M columns, showing unmatched resolving capabilities toward chloroaniline, bromoaniline, iodoaniline, toluidine, and xylene isomers [2]. References: 1. Sun, T., Chen, R., Huang, Q., Ba, M., Cai, Z., Hu, S., Liu, X., Nardiello, D., & Quinto, M., ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 14 (2022) 56132−56142. 2. Sun, T., Chen, R., Huang, Q., Ba, M., Cai, Z., Chen, H., Qi, Y., Chen, H., Liu, X., Nardiello, D., & Quinto, M., Anal. Chim. Acta 1251 (2023) 340979

    The Russian Cubo-Futurist Opera “Victory over the Sun”: Aleksei Kruchenykh’s Alogical Creation

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    In this essay the Author analyses the libretto of A. Kruchenykh's Futurist opera "Victory over the Sun, exploring the literary influences and the formal devices

    Neural adaptive fault-tolerant finite-time control for nonstrict feedback systems: An event-triggered mechanism

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    The problem of event-triggered neural adaptive fault-tolerant finite-time control is investigated for a class of nonstrict feedback nonlinear systems in the presence of nonaffine nonlinear faults. The event-triggered signal is designed by using a relative-threshold to reduce communication burden. The dynamic surface control method is used to relax the assumption of the reference signal and deal with the computational complexity issue. Based on the finite-time stability, a new neural adaptive backstepping design method is developed. The event-triggered neural adaptive fault-tolerant control law is developed for the closed-loop system so that not only the semi-global practical finite-time stability is ensured, but also the tracking performance with a small residual set is guaranteed. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed control law is verified via simulation results

    Finite-time fuzzy adaptive quantized output feedback control of triangular structural systems

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    This paper proposes a finite-time fuzzy adaptive quantized control scheme for a class of triangular structural nonlinear systems. Specifically, a smooth function with intermediate control law is introduced in the modified backstepping recursive process to eliminate the effect of quantization. The output constraints issue is solved by employing a barrier Lyapunov function. Then, a command filter is applied to avoid repeatedly differentiating virtual control signals and reduce the computational complexity. Moreover, the proposed method can guarantee that the tracking error converges to a small neighborhood of the origin in the finite time. Finally, the performance and the effectiveness of the proposed method are demonstrated via simulation results

    Heterostructured quantum dot architectures for efficient and stable photoelectrochemical hydrogen production

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    The long term stability of photoelectrochemical (PEC) devices based on colloidal quantum dots (QDs) for hydrogen production is a major challenge. The degradation is often caused by the self-oxidation of QDs induced by the excess accumulation of holes in the valance band. Here, we use heterostructured "giant" core/alloyed-shell CdSe/PbxCd1-xS/CdS QDs to sensitize TiO2 mesoporous films for PEC hydrogen production. Transient fluorescence analysis results show that the use of a PbxCd1-xS gradient layer leads to a three-fold increase in the hole transfer rate compared to a pure CdS shell with similar shell thickness. The as-prepared PEC cell using alloyed shell "giant" QDs exhibits an enhanced photocurrent density of 10.2 mA cm-2 (97 mL per cm2 per day) under one sun illumination (100 mW cm-2). The PEC cell based on alloyed shell "giant" QDs shows an enhanced PEC device stability, with retention of ∼94.9% of its initial photocurrent after 2 h under one sun illumination. This finding provides unique insights to improve the stability and functional performance of PEC devices in which the photoanode is sensitized using colloidal "giant" QDs
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