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Delta 2 Explosion Plume Analysis ReportA Delta II rocket exploded seconds after liftoff from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) on 17 January 1997. The cloud produced by the explosion provided an opportunity to evaluate the models which are used to track potentially toxic dispersing plumes and clouds at CCAFS. The primary goal of this project was to conduct a case study of the dispersing cloud and the models used to predict the dispersion resulting from the explosion. The case study was conducted by comparing mesoscale and dispersion model results with available meteorological and plume observations. This study was funded by KSC under Applied Meteorology Unit (AMU) option hours. The models used in the study are part of the Eastern Range Dispersion Assessment System (ERDAS) and include the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS), HYbrid Particle And Concentration Transport (HYPACT), and Rocket Exhaust Effluent Dispersion Model (REEDM). The primary observations used for explosion cloud verification of the study were from the National Weather Service's Weather Surveillance Radar 1988-Doppler (WSR-88D). Radar reflectivity measurements of the resulting cloud provided good estimates of the location and dimensions of the cloud over a four-hour period after the explosion. The results indicated that RAMS and HYPACT models performed reasonably well. Future upgrades to ERDAS are recommended.
Document ID
20000094557
Acquisition Source
Kennedy Space Center
Document Type
Contractor Report (CR)
Authors
Evans, Randolph J.
(ENSCO, Inc. Cocoa Beach, FL United States)
Date Acquired
September 7, 2013
Publication Date
July 1, 2000
Subject Category
Meteorology And Climatology
Report/Patent Number
NAS 1.26:208582
Rept-00-004
NASA/CR-2000-208582
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAS10-96018
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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