SCIENCE TEAM II GRAND CHALLENGE INVESTIGATORS
Computational Technologies for Earth and Space Sciences (COMTESS)
A Grand Challenge is a fundamental problem in science and engineering, with broad scientific and economic impact, whose solution can be advanced by high-performance computing.
A collaboration among nine Grand Challenge Investigator teams, inhouse computational scientists, and SGI/Cray Research resulted in a 10-fold increase in applications performance. Their Cooperative Agreements began in 1996 and concluded in 2000. Project Scientist George Lake, then professor of astronomy at the University of Washington, coordinated research and reporting activities.
- Simulations of the Earth's Core and Mantle Dynamics
- Peter Olson, Johns Hopkins University
Simulate the chaotic processes that drive the evolution of the planet's interior, and in turn shape its surface, over timescales ranging from hundreds to millions of years.
- SAR Interferometry and Imaging Science
- David Curkendall, Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Use multiple supercomputers to process and visualize satellite-collected synthetic aperture radar data to allow close monitoring of regional changes in alpine glaciers, plate tectonics, and rain forests.
- Four Dimensional Data Assimilation
- Peter Lyster, University of Maryland
Meld observations and climate model prediction into a robust data analysis scheme for NASA's Earth Observing System, thereby providing the most accurate possible picture of the atmosphere through space and time.
- An Earth System Model: Atmosphere/Ocean Dynamics and Tracers Chemistry
- Roberto Mechoso, UCLA
Realistically portray Earth's climate with four coupled, highly complex models with high spatial resolutions: atmospheric general circulation, oceanic general circulation, atmospheric chemistry, and oceanic chemistry.
- Rayleigh-Benard-Marangoni Problems in a Microgravity Environment
- Graham Carey, University of Texas at Austin
Model fluid flows in low gravity environments to test the effectiveness of manufacturing higher quality thin films and coating processes in space and the functioning of the space station's life support and safety systems.
- Turbulent Convection and Dynamos in Stars
- Andrea Malagoli, University of Chicago
Study some of the most fundamental and least understood turbulent processes in the interior of stars like the Sun, whose dynamics are only beginning to be inferred from new space probe and Earth-based observations.
- Solar Activity and Heliospheric Dynamics
- John Gardner, Naval Research Laboratory
Model the tangled three-dimensional structures that develop in the magnetic field of the Sun's corona (outer atmosphere), which NASA observations show to have a key role in the physics of solar activity.
- Multiscale Modeling of the Heliosphere
- Tamas Gombosi, University of Michigan
From the corona to the free-streaming interstellar medium, use computational studies to understand the interaction of the solar wind with galactic gases and plasmas, as well as with magnetized and unmagnetized bodies in the solar system.
- Relativistic Astrophysics and Gravitational Wave Astronomy
- Paul Saylor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Combining fluid dynamics and general relativity, investigate the merger of two neutron stars, a process that encompasses many aspects of relativistic astrophysics and thus provides a basis for studying similar phenomena such as black holes and supernovae.
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