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UNCLASSIFIED
III
PRESENT STATUS
(U)
A.
(U)
General
(U)
In order
to accomplish
the
goals
set out
in Section
II,
the
program has been designed
as
a joint effort between
SRI International
and
Time Research Institute
of Los Altos,
California, with
SRI
as
the prime
contractor.
Time Research Institute
is
a research organization
that
specializes
in temporal analysis
of geophysical variables and
their po-
tential correlation with phenomena
of interest,
such as weather patterns,
earthquakes,
and
so
forth.
(U)
With regard
to
the present effort,
Time Research Institute
is
responsible
for establishing
the appropriate hardware
and
software
systems
for collecting and analyzing data concerning environmental conditions
and
their correlation with RV performance.
The purpose
of
the correlation
study
is
to determine whether RV performance
is enhanced
or degraded
by
measurable changes occurring in
the geophysical
(including solar-
terrestrial)
environments.
The
specific
data bases under consideration
in
this effort are given
in Table
1.
(U)
Should correlations between geophysical variables
and
RV
performance
be
found,
the application potential of
the effort
is
twofold:
(1)
Time periods
in which enhanced RV performance might be
expected
could
be
identified,
resulting
in increased
quality and accuracy of information obtained
through
such channels;
similarly,
time periods
in which degraded
RV performance might be expected
could
be avoided.
Thus,
optimum performance windows would
be
identified.
(2)
An increased understanding
of
the
types
of environmental
changes
that correlate with RV performance
could provide
clues
as
to
the mechanisms
involved
in RV functioning.
Such knowledge would
lead
to more
focussed research on
factors
that could enhance RV performance,
and would
also provide
information critical
to
the development
of
defensive countermeasures against
RV.
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Table
(U)
GEOPHYSICAL DATA BASES
•
Solar-Terrestrial
— Geomagnetic
Ground-measured
indices Ap,
K,
etc.
Satellite-measured
intensities
— Solar flux
(MHz)
15,400
1,415
8,800
606
4,995
410
2,800
245
2,695
— Sunspot number
— Solar flares
— Interplanetary magnetic
field
— Solar wind
(Pioneer
XII)
— Protons
Cosmic ray
indices
(neutron monitor)
•
Ionospheric Measurements
— Sudden ionospheric disturbances
(SIDS)
— Auroral electrojet
— Radio propagation quality indices
•
ULF/ELF
— 30
frequencies
(from
to 30
Hz)
UNCLASSIFIED
(U)
The
tasks
listed
in Section
II
(literature
search,
real-time
ELF measurements,
real-time
geophysical data acquisition via
satellite
downlink,
and correlation studies
of
RV performance versus geophysical
variables
of interest)
have been prioritized with
the
g^>al
of producing
the
longest possible ELF data
base during
the period
of
this contract.
Therefore,
while
all
of
the
tasks are being pursued
in parallel,
ELF-
related
tasks have been
the
focus
of attention
to date.
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UNCLASSIFIED
B.
(U)
Literature
Search
(U)
The purpose
of
the
literature
search
is
to acquire
and
integrate information from recent work done
in
the
field
of biological
response
to ELF
and
geophysical conditions.
Approximately 30 keywords
are
in use
as
input
to
a computerized
literature
search.
Forty manu-
scripts have been obtained
to date and
are
in
the process
of being
reviewed,
plus additional sources
of
literature have been identified
and
will be retrieved
as priorities permit.
C.
(U)
ELF Measurements
1.
(U)
Introduction
(U)
Although
the ELF
frequency range
(3
to
300 Hz)
has been
studied
in
some detail, many unknowns
remain.
For example,
although
it
is known
that ELF
frequencies
generated by geophysical means
(e.g.,
elec-
trical storm activity)
tend
to distribute
themselves globally,
little
information
is available on
the variation of
the ELF environment from
location
to
location.
Therefore,
local variations may exist
that are
caused by both manmade
sources,
and by
the geological
structure
of
the
area.
In
the
San Francisco
Bay Area, manmade
sources
that generate ELF
on
a
local
scale
include motors,
telephone
lines,
power
lines,
and
electrical
subways
[Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)],
and
it needs
to be
determined whether
the emission from such sources constitutes
a
signif-
icant contribution
to
the omnipresent global ELF
field.
(U)
In order
to address
the above
issue,
two ELF monitoring
stations are being
set up--one at
SRI Menlo Park (in
the
RV Laboratory),
the other
at
the Time Research Institute
field
station,
km distant.
It
is anticipated
that
the
SRI environment may be
a
"noisy"
one
due
to
the
large amount of electronics known
to be
in
the
area.
Data
from
the
two sites,
taking
the field
site as
a reference,
are
to be compared
in
order
to begin
to differentiate
the naturally-occurring ELF
from
the
manmade noise occurring at
the
location where RV
is being carried
out.
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2.
(U)
Los Altos
Site
(U)
Since May
1982,
Time
Research Institute has been operating
an ELF monitoring
site
in Los Altos,
collecting data
twice daily for
the
purpose
of correlating ELF disturbances with various phenomena
of
interest.
In
this period,
analysis
techniques were developed
that are directly
applicable
to
the present
task.
(U)
One
of
the
first
tasks was
the upgrading of
the Los Altos
ELF monitoring site
to provide coverage during power interrupts.
Research
was performed
to determine
the best power- interrupt
system,
including
generators.
The
selection criteria
chosen
for
the generator sought
to
optimize power output,
cost effectiveness,
and reputation
for reliability,
with
the consideration
that
this system might
serve
as
a model for addi-
tional
sites
in
the client community.
On
this basis,
a 3500-W Kubota
generator was bought
and
installed
at
the
site.
A PTI Industries
"Data-
shield" device was also purchased
and
installed,
for use
in conjunction
with
the generator (which must be started manually).
This device powers
the required electronics
for
a period
of twenty minutes on
its own while
awaiting generator startup.
Furthermore,
an automatic alarm telephone
dialing system dials up as many as
four
individuals
should
a power failure
occur while no
one
is
at
the
site.
The
two devices working together have
protected
the system on numerous occasions
from power interruptions--
including an 8-hr outage planned by Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
Thus,
since
installation of
the power- interrupt equipment,
there has been
no
loss
of data collection/storage.
3.
(U)
ELF Data Acquisition Systems
a.
(U)
Basic
System Design
(U)
With
the requirement that
two ELF monitoring sites
be
implemented
for
the program--one
at SRI and
one
at Time Research
Institute--it was decided
that
the
two
systems would
be made
identical.
In
this way,
differences between
the
two systems would
be minimized,
thus
reducing
the opportunity for artifactual differences between
the
two
sys-
tem outputs.
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(U)
Figure
is
a block diagram of
the basic ELF data
acquisition system.
The
ELF
signal
is collected
by an antenna,
amplified,
and
then digitized by an analog- to-digital
(A/D)
converter
so
that
the
signal can be
input into an IBM PC Jr.
computer
for
the purpose
of analy-
sis by
a
fast-fourier- transform
(FFT)
program on at
least
an hourly basis.
The recorded data
are
then
transferred
by floppy diskette
to an IBM XT
computer for further handling.
INCREASES SIGNAL STRENGTH
MAKES SIGNAL READABLE BY
COMPUTER
DETERMINES INTENSITY OF SIGNAL
FREQUENCY COMPONENTS
FLOPPY DISKETTES TRANSPORTED
TO
IBM XT COMPUTER
UNCLASSIFIED
FIGURE
(U)
ELF DATA-ACQUISITION SYSTEM
(U)
As
indicated
in
the above
system description,
an
integral part of
the data acquisition system
is computerized record
keeping, using IBM systems--both
the
IBM PC Jr.
and
the IBM XT.
The
software
is written and
compiled on
the XT, used
as
a master
system,
and
then run on
the
PC Jr.
(the
PC Jr.
is not itself
large enough
to run
a
compiler, nor are
there compilers written
for
it).
Beyond
this,
however,
in spite
of
the much publicized "compatibility" between
the various
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ELF
INPUT
DATA
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IBM PC
systems,
some development
time had
to be expended
to ensure
that
programs compiled
on
the XT (that were concerned with communication with
external devices)
could
be run on
the
PC Jr. --because
they handle
the
addressing of communication ports differently.
b.
(U)
FFT Program
(U)
A consultant was hired from the Radioscience Labora-
tory at Stanford University
to critique
the ELF system at Time Research
Institute
as
it stood at program start.
As part
of
that critique,
he
recommended changes
in
the FFT software
to increase
its accuracy and
running speed.
As
a
result, new FFT software was written in compiled
BASIC and
then debugged.
The program description
is given
in Appendix A.
This
task was completed
in mid-April.
c.
(U)
System Electronics
(U)
The prototype
system of Figure
1 was assembled and
installed
for our purposes at the Los Altos
site.
Early
tests
indicated
that modification of
the existing electronics was required because
(1)
the system was
sensitive
to ground-loop problems,
thus
the preamplifier
had
to be redesigned
to include an isolation amplifier,
and
(2) when
the
new system was
installed
in mid-June,
it was
found
that
a
slowly-varying
dc
level was
superimposed
on
the
incoming ELF
signal,
resulting
in ex-
cursions
that exceeded
the
limits
of
the A/D converter at amplification
levels required
for good signal analysis.
Therefore, hew circuitry was
designed
to eliminate
the
dc problem.
With these changes,
the ELF detec-
tion system is
scheduled
for completion
of
testing,
debugging,
and
calibration at
the Los Altos
site
in August,
before
it$
sister
system
is installed at
SRI.
ELF Electronics/ Software
Subtasks
(Status)
The
status of
the ELF electronics/sof tware
subtasks
d.
(U)
(U)
is
as
follows:
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(u)
•
Subject
to
the requirement
that
the basic microprocessor
units
to be used
in
the program would
(1)
be able
to com-
municate with an
IBM XT,
(2)
have at
least 64K of memory,
(3)
possess diskette
storage capability,
and
(4)
be cost
effective,
the
IBM PC Jr.
was
selected
from among
the
various alternatives,
and
two units were purchased.
•
Preamplifiers,
low bandpass
filters,
and amplifiers have
been designed,
and
one complete prototype
system has been
assembled.
Amplifiers
and filters have been assembled
for
the
second
system
to be installed
at
SRI.
•
Design specifications have been completed for
the ELF
antenna.
Assembly of
this antenna
is pending
the results
of
a calibration
task (described
in Section III.D.3.e).
•
A survey
of A/D converters
that would
be
compatible with
the other system components was completed,
and
the
selected units were purchased.
•
Communication between
the IBM PC Jr.
and
the A/D con-
verter has been established,
enabling
the computer
to
read
the
incoming signal.
•
Software has been developed
and debugged
that:
(1)
reads
the
communications RS
232 port of
the
PC Jr.
input from
the A/D converter,
(2)
performs FFT analysis
of
the
signal,
and
then
(3) writes half-hourly averages
of
19 different
frequencies
(from
to
Hz)
to
a computer diskette.
Further software refinements will continue
to be made,
such
as determining daily maximum values
for each
frequency.
This
software has been implemented and debugged.
The
sys-
tem is ready
to begin data acquisition upon implementation
of
the dc-level-controlling hardware.
Minor enhancements
of
the
software will continue.
•
The Los Altos
system is now
in operation and
is being
tested.
It
is anticipated
that
the
SRI system will
be
implemented
in August.
e
-
(U)
ELF System Calibration
(U)
System calibration
is proceeding.
The
Stanford
University consultant mentioned earlier
is an expert
in
the areas
of ELF
and VLF measurement,
antenna
design,
and
spectral analysis.
His cali-
bration program
is being carried
out at
the present Los Altos
site using
specialized,
sophisticated
instruments
from
the Stanford Radioscience
Labora tory
.
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(U)
As part
of
the calibration process,
certain power-
line and power-supply "noise"
sources were
identified
that could have
produced artifacts
in
the historical and ongoing data.
; Therefore,
in-
creased electronic-filtering measures are being incorporated
into
the
system,
including software
changes
to recalibrate past idata already
in
storage.
(U)
Finally,
as part of
the
calibration) process,
three
systems are
to be monitored
simultaneously:
(1)
the original unmodified
Los Altos
system on which
the historical ELF data have been acquired;
(2)
a new system (described
in
this
report) using an
EljF wire-coil
antenna designed by and
on
loan from the Radioscience laboratory at
Stanford University;
(3)
the new system,
but with
a
biojantenna
(oak
tree)
as
an antenna, which is
a procedure recommended by
Stanford
(see Na ture
reprint, Appendix
B)
.
The results
from the calibration tests will be
used
to calibrate
the historical data base,
and
to fix
the
final antenna
design.
D.
(U)
Satellite Downlink Geophysical Data-Acquisitijon System
(U)
A near real-time
satellite downlink system
fc^r
solar- terrestrial
data has recently become available from NOAA (National Oceanic
and Atmo-
spheric Administration).
With
this unit,
it
is possible
to provide
immediate
feedback and/or analysis
in conjunction with RV
sessions.
(Normally,
there are
long delays
in procuring solar- terrestrial data;
without
the downlink,
delays
of
10 days
to
6 months are
standard.)
The
downlink system provides
for accumulation of
a detailed data
base directly
on computer diskettes.
(See Appendix
C
for an item-by-item description.)
(U)
A satellite controller and
a dish antenna
for
the downlink
system were ordered and
installed at
the Los Altos
site early
in
the
project
(see Figure
2).
At
the
time
of
this writing,
specifications
for
da ta-acquisition software
for
the IBM PC Jr.
have been completed,
and
first-order software has been written
that captures
the data
to computer
diskettes.
Because
of
the
large volume
of data
transmitted
each minute,
a double-density,
double-sided diskette
fills
in about
21 hours.
Disk-
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UNCLASSIFIED
FIGURE
(U)
REAL-TIME GEOPHYSICAL DATA
ACQUISITION VIA WESTAR IV
DOWNLINK
(U)
ettes have been changed
on an almost daily basis
since
early April
in
order
to begin
to acquire
a
long-term data base.
(U)
To increase
the amount
of data
that can be
stored
on
a
diskette,
it
is necessary
to
separate numerical data
of
interest.
The
necessary software
is now being written
that will be able
to
identify
the various data
types
as
they are
transmitted,
so
that only
the
data
of
interest will be
transferred
to an appropriate
data
file
on
the diskette.
Statistical analysis can
then be done
on
the data
in
this
form.
(U)
Other data bases are continuing
to be maintained
for
this
project by Time Research Institute.
Files
of
2800-MHz
solar
flux,
the
planetary magnetic activity index
(Ap)
,
the Anchorage magnetic
index,
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