Session:Environmental&EarthSciencesAmberWalterUniversityofMontana‐Western‐EnvironmentalSciencesHistoricClimateChangeatEnnis,MontanaIamreportingmypartofalargerclassresearchprojectintotemperatureandprecipitationchangeinSouthwestMontana,usinghistoricclimatedataavailableonlinefromtheWesternRegionalClimateCenter.TheresearchwasconductedinaclasstaughtbyDrs.SheilaRobertsandCraigZaspel,atUniversityofMontanaWestern,infall,2010,withNASASpaceGrantfunding.Westudiedaveragemonthlytemperatureandtotalmonthlyprecipitationfor12sitesinsouthwesternMontana,rangingoveraboutthepast100years.Thedatawerereviewedandmonthsoryearswithsignificantmissingdatawereomittedfromanalyses.Annualandseasonaltemperatureandprecipitationchangeweregraphedastimeseries.IchoseEnnis,MTasmyresearchsite.The92yearsofEnnistemperaturedataindicatearateofincreaseof2.2°F/100years,withthegreatestincreaseoccurringinwinter;Januarytemperatureincreasedat5.7°F/100years.Summermonthshadthelowestincrease,at0.74°F/100years.Springandfallincreasedatratesof2.8°F/100yearsand1.1°F/100years.Thisamountoftemperatureincreaseisconsistentwithchangesinglobalandregionalclimate.TotalannualprecipitationatEnnisincreasedatarateof5.6inches/100years,withseasonalvariabilitysimilartothetemperaturerecord.Allseasonswerewarmer,butwinterandspringhadthelargestincrease,at0.73inches/100years.Summershowedthesmallestincrease,with0.19inches/100years.AtEnnis,althoughthereislargeyearlyvariationinaverageannualtemperatureandtotalannualprecipitation,overtheentireperiodofrecord,bothhaveincreased.ThegeneraltrendandrateoftemperatureincreaseforEnnisweresimilartomanyoftheotherstationsinthisstudy.PrecipitationtrendsaremorevariableacrossSWMontana.Overallsitesstudied,precipitationhasdecreasedby0.9inches/100years.

Session:Environmental&EarthSciencesJeremiahHillUniversityofMontanaWestern‐EnvironmentalScienceHistoricClimateChangeinNorthwesternMontana:TrendsinAverageTemperatureandTotalPrecipitationNorthwesternMontanaisexperiencingsignificantclimatechange,withimportantvariationslocally.ThisstudyisananalysisofaverageannualormonthlytemperatureandtotalannualormonthlyprecipitationattensitesinnorthwestMontana,overaboutthelast100years,usinghistoricclimatedataavailableonlinefromtheWesternRegionalClimateCenter.Studysitesinclude:Fortine,Hamilton,Kalispell,Libby,Missoula,Polson,SeeleyLake,St.Ignatius,Superior,andTroutCreek.SiteswerechosentoprovidegoodspatialdistributionacrossnorthwestMontanaandtoobtainthelongestpossiblerecords.Theperiodsofrecordrangefrom115to72years,withanaverageof101years.Aworkingfilewascreatedfromtheoriginaldatasets;monthsoryearswithsignificantmissingdatawereomittedfromanalysis.Time‐seriesgraphsofannualtemperatureandprecipitationwerecreated.Change,normalizedtoratesper100years,wasobtainedbyregressionanalysisforeachsiteforbothtemperatureandprecipitation.Ineightofthetensites,averageannualtemperatureappearstoberisingatratesof0.59°Fto4.40°Fper100years.Twoofthesitesshowednosignificantchange.Totalannualprecipitationincreasedatfoursites,atratesof1.03to3.52inches/100years,withonesiteunchanged.Atthreesites,precipitationdecreasedatratesof0.25to3.41inches/100years.Anaverageofthetensitesshowsatemperatureincreaseof2.28°F/100yearsandaverysmallprecipitationdecrease.SuperiorandTroutCreekhadthehighesttemperatureincreases,atratesofover4°F/100years.FortineandTroutCreekshowthehighestdropinprecipitation,atratesofover3inches/100years.Allsitesareexperiencingstaticorrisingtemperatures,butthecombinationoftemperaturerisegreaterthan2°F/100yearsandprecipitationdecreasegreaterthan1inch/100yearsatthreesitesisofparticularconcern.

Session:Environmental&EarthSciencesDouglasBrinkerhoffUniversityofMontana‐ComputerScienceTobyMeierbachtol,JesseJohnson,JoelHarperSensitivityofthefrozen­meltedbasalboundarytoperturbationsofbasaltractionandgeothermalheatflux:IsunnguataSermia,westernGreenlandAfull‐stress,thermo‐mechanicallycoupled,numericalmodelisusedtoexploretheinteractionbetweenbasalthermalconditionsandmotionofaterrestriallyterminatingsectionofthewestGreenlandicesheet.Themodeldomainisatwo‐dimensionalflow‐lineprofileextendingfromtheicedividetothemargin.Weusedataassimilationtechniquesbasedontheadjointmodelinordertooptimizethebasaltractionfield,minimizingthedifferencebetweenmodelledandobservedsurfacevelocities.Wemonitorthesensitivityofthefrozen‐meltedboundary(FMB)tochangesinprescribedgeothermalheatfluxandslidingspeedbyapplyingperturbationstoeachoftheseparameters.TheFMBshowssensitivitytotheprescribedgeothermalheatfluxbelowanupperthresholdwhereamaximumportionofthebedisalreadymelted.ThepositionoftheFMBisinsensitivetoperturbationsappliedtothebasaltractionfield.Thisinsensitivityisduetotheshortdistancesoverwhichlongitudinalstressesactinanicesheet.

Session:Environmental&EarthSciencesAdamGundersonMontanaStateUniversity–ElectricalEngineeringMarkChodasAnInvestigationofCloudCoverProbabilityfortheHyspIRIMissionUsingMODISCloudMaskDataCloudcoverhasanoverallnegativeimpactonhyperspectralandmultispectralEarthobservingsensors;theHyperspectralInfraredImagingorHyspIRImissioncarriessuchinstruments.AkeyfeatureofHyspIRIisitsabilitytorevisitthesamepointontheequatorevery19days.Thisallowsforbetterknowledgeoftheplanet’sseasonalecosystemchanges.UnderstandingthelikelihoodandfrequencyinwhichcloudswillcoverthescenesimagedisnecessarytobetterquantifythesciencereturnofHyspIRIandotherrelatedmissions.Currentcloudpredictionmodelsaretooconservativeandonlysamplesmalltimeframesoftheavailablesatellitedata.Thisresultsinalowdegreeofaccuracywithrespecttocloud‐sensorobscurationandpredictsfarlessofasciencereturnthanactual.Thisstudyusesa2007‐2009datasetfromtheModerateResolutionImagingSpectrometer(MODIS)on‐boardtheTerrasatellitetoproduceamoreaccuratepredictionoftheeffectscloudcoverhasonHyspIRI.TheNASAGoddardSpaceflightCenterdevelopedGiovanniapplicationwasusedtoextractMODISdataatone‐degreespatialresolution.Thisdatacreatedamonthlycloudmaskthatwasaveragedintothreemonthblockstorepresentseasons.ResultsshowtheseasonaldatacollectionprobabilityforHyspIRI’sVisualShortwaveInfraredImagingSpectrometer.

Session:Environmental&EarthSciencesJonathanFourColorsStoneChildCollege–NaturalResourcesRecordingandcalibratingsoilmoisturecontentsusingGypsumsoilmoistureprobesReportonthecalibrationofaseriesofwatermarkGypsumsoilmoistureprobesatthreedifferentdepths.Correlatinggravimetricsoilmoisturedatawithmeterreadingsattwolocations,locatedattheStoneChildCollegeAgriculturalresearchstationduringthesummerof2010.

Session:RemoteSensingLukeHumphreyMontanaStateUniversity–MechanicalEngineeringCHAOS:Mechanicaldesignofacontrollable,high­altitudeexperimentplatformThispresentationexaminestheworkdonesofarindesigningandbuildingacontrollable,high‐altitudeexperimentplatformforuseintheBOREALIShigh‐altitudeballoonprogramortheMSI/GroundRemoteSensingProject.Duringascent,balloonpayloadsaresubjectedtosignificantrotationduetorotationoftheballoonitself.Therefore,inordertoobserveastationarypointonthegroundorinthesky,itisnecessaryforthepayloadtocompensatebyrotatingoppositethedirectionoftheballoon.Duetotheunpredictabilityoftherotation,thecontrolsystemalsomustbeabletoself‐orient.Severalmechanicaldesigniterationsarepresentedaswellaspreliminaryworkonthecommandandcontrolcapabilitiesunderdevelopment.Possibleapplicationsofthedesignincludesolarphysicsandearthobservationexperiments.

Session:RemoteSensingSamSorensenandNathanLittleMontanaStateUniversity–ComputerScienceBOREALISWeatherStationBOREALIS'newweatherstationwillbeacentralplatformformonitoringandrecordingvariousatmosphericqualitiessuchashumidity,pressure,andtemperature.ByutilizingaGPSreceiver,thestationwillbeabletologwhenandwheremeasurementsweretaken,allowingforeasierandmoreaccurateanalysisofdata.Inaddition,severalexpansionportsareavailableforadditionalsensorstoutilizethepositionalanddataloggingcapabilitiesoftheweatherstation.Thegoalofthisprojectistomakeareliableandaccurateplatformthatisadaptabletotheneedsoftheenduser.

Session:RemoteSensingEdJonesandWayneRoundstoneChiefDullKnifeCollege‐ScienceSoaringtoNewHeights:TetheredBlimpTechnologyatChiefDullKnifeCollegeWewillsharetheprojectsthatwehaveworkedonanddiscussotheravenuesofinterestforfutureprojects.WewilldiscussthedifferenthardwarethattheCDKCtetheredblimpcarriesaloft,it'susagesandfunctions.Wewillalsotalkaboutsomeoftheotherhardwarethatweusesuchasthewinchandpayloadplatform.Lastlywewilltouchonsomeoftheuniqueproblemsthatweencounteredandhowweresolvedthem.

Session:PhysicsNickChildsMontanaStateUniversity–PhysicsRichardSmith,StephenSofieElectronicCurrentDistributioninaNi­YSZSolidOxideFuelCellAnodeAsimulationofaNickel‐YttriumsupportedZirconiumOxidesolidoxidefuelcellanodewasusedtodeterminetheelectroniccurrentdistributionwithinthepercolatingclustersofnickelparticleswithintheanode.TheanodeissimulatedviaaMonte‐Carlopercolationmodelandcurrentdistributioniscalculatedviaarelaxationalgorithm.Thecurrentisthenrelatedtotypicalreportedcurrentdensities.Insomesimulationscurrentdensitiesofnickelparticlesexceededexperimentallyfoundfailurevalues.

Session:PhysicsStevenBarton,RichardShular,MatthewBarton,BryanPeterson,FrankKestnerMontanaStateUniversityBillings–PhysicsStuartSnyderTwo­PhotonLaserInducedFluorescenceofAtomicSodiumTwo‐photonlaserinducedfluorescence(LIF)wasusedtodeterminetheconcentrationofsodiuminwateraspiratedintoaflame.Aforbiddentransitionbetweenthe2S1/2groundstateandthe2D3/2,5/2excitedstateofsodiumatomsvaporizedbytheflamewasinducedbytwo‐photonabsorptionoflaserlightgeneratedbyapulseddyelasertunedto578.89nm.The2D3/2,5/2statedecayedtothe2Po3/2,1/2stateemittingaphotonwithatawavelengthof568.26nm.Theintensityofthisfluorescencesignalisproportionaltotheconcentrationofsodiumatomsinthewater.Becausethelowerenergylevelofthefluorescencetransitionisabovethegroundstate,self‐absorptionwasnotsignificant.LIFsignalintensityasafunctionofsodiumconcentrationwasfoundtobelinearoverawideconcentrationrange.Furtherapplicationofthistechniquetodetermineflametemperatureisdiscussed.

Session:PhysicsKevinLalli,PageBailey,GeoffreyWhitt,TylerHuffmanMontanaStateUniversity–Physics,ElectricalEngineering,MechanicalEngineering,ComputerScienceStudentFeedbackontheIRISStudentSpectrographCompetition2010­11PilotRunThisyear'spilotrunoftheIRISStudentSpectrographCompetitionwillconcludewithacompetitionattheendofApril.Thecompetitionprovidesinterdisciplinaryteamsofundergraduatestheopportunitytodesign,build,andoperateadevicethatobtainsspectraldatausingthesunasalightsource.Currentlytwoteams‐onefromMontanaStateUniversityandonefromSalishKootenaiCollege‐arecompletingworkontheirdevices.TheMSUteamwillpresentanoverviewoftheirworkthisyearaswellprovidefeedbackonthegoalsandcriteriaofthecompetition.Thishasbeenauniqueandchallengingexperienceforus,whichwehopewillbetrueformanyotherparticipantsinthefuture.

Session:BallooningAbbyThaneUniversityofMontana–PhysicsandAstronomyJenniferFowlerTheImplicationsofIncreasedSoundingDataintheAmazonBasinforGlobalClimateModelsCorrectpredictionsofchangesinglobalatmospherictemperatureareofcriticalimportancetothevalidityofclimatemodels.However,thereexistsanextensiveandongoingdebate,startedintheearly1990s,onwhetherradiosondedatacanbetreatedasreliableornotsinceobservationshavenotshownwarmingofthetroposphereasmodelspredict(Hansenetal.,1995;SpencerandChristyScience,1990;Seideletal.,2009).Ofparticularfocusisthedistinctsignaturemodelsshowofamoreintensewarmingofthetroposphereoverthetropicscomparedtootherlocations(Hansenetal.JGR,2002).Thesedifferenceshavebeenattributedtoavarietyofcausesovertheyearsandhaverecentlybeennarroweddowntothetemporalinhomogeneityofobservedradiosondedata(Gaen,1994;ParkerandCox,1995).Thesetime‐varyingbiasesaregenerallyinducedbythechangeofinstrumentation,thescarcequantificationofrelateduncertaintiesandthelackofdocumentation.Mostrecentworkssupportthecurrentconclusionthatthereisnostrongevidenceoftheexistenceofdiscrepanciesbetweenobservedandmodeledtropospherictrendswithincomprehensive,overlappinguncertaintyintervals(Thorneetal.,2011;Trenberthetal.,2007).Wepresentasummaryoftheevolvingquesttoobtainbetterballoonsoundingdataasadirectmeasurementofatmospherictrendsandcharacterizeballoon‐borneradiosondeuncertainties.ThisisthemotivationforourfieldresearchinLeticia,Colombia,asweassessedthefeasibilityofincreasingavailablesoundingdataintheAmazonBasin.Ourfocusincharacterizingradiosondeuncertaintiesrestsontheuseofverticalprofilesoftheenvironmentallapseratetrendstofacilitatehigherresolutioninthenext‐generationofclimatemodels.WehadsixradiosondeflightsoverfivedaysinaninitialattempttounderstandtheconstraintstoperformingflightsovertheAmazonjungle.Aftereachflightweanalyzedthedatafortheenvironmentallapserateanddebriefedparticipantsonflightproceduresinordertodefineparametersforfutureconsistency.Ourresultsshowsomeinfrastructureconstraintstoregularandconsistentballoon‐bornesoundings,althoughrealisticsolutionsarepossible.Wehavealsoidentifiedadefinitiveneedforanincreasedconcentrationoflong‐termandhomogeneousradiosondedataintheAmazonBasin.

Session:BallooningDrewMoenMontanaStateUniversity‐ElectricalEngineeringTransformerofEnergyfromAtmosphericResistanceThe"TEAR"experimentinvolveslookingintoanalternateformofenergyforhighaltitudeballoonexperimentstofindoutifanythingcanbemadetooutperformlithiumbatteries.Thissystemutilizestheresistanceoftheatmosphereastheballoontravelsupwardstogenerateitsenergy.ThefinalsetuptestedthespecificationsoffourdifferentDCmotorsperflightandrecordedthevoltageinformationwithadatalogger.

Session:BallooningGeorgeCouncilMontanaStateUniversity–ElectricalandComputerEngineeringReal­TimeRemoteControlofBOREALISSystemswithaFocusonImplementingaCutdownMethodTheBOREALIShaveadesiretocontrolballoon‐basedassetsinreal‐time,specificallywithafocusonseveringthepayloadfromtheballoon.Aradio‐externalcontrolcircuitisindevelopmenttocontrolawiderangeofsystemswithanHCS08micro‐controllerviadual‐tonemulti‐frequencysampling(DTMF)signalingfromagroundstationtoactivateaspecificsubsystem,andrespondtoreal‐timecommands.Thedesiretocorrelatewithacutdownsystemisnecessaryasnoreal‐timecutdownsystemcurrentlyexistsfortheBOREALISplatform.

Session:BallooningDavidRieslandandJoeLutgenMontanaStateUniversity–ElectricalandComputerEngineeringZeroPressureBallooning:CutdownZeropressureballoonsarehighaltitudeballoonsthatcanstayatacertainaltitudeforadiscriminateperiodoftime.Aconsistentcutdownsystemisaprerequisiteforthisflight,sinceonemustbeabletoterminatetheflightreliably.Thispresentationwillshowacutdownsystemusingatimingsystemandnichromewire.

Session:Biology&ChemistryKristenCrandellUniversityofMontana‐BiologicalSciences,OrganismalBiology&EcologyBretTobalskeUnsteadyAerodynamicsinAvianFlightTheseeminglyeffortlessflightofanimalshaslongheldhumanfascination,yetmuchremainstobeunderstoodaboutthemorphologicalandaerodynamicmechanismsthatanimalsusetoremainairborne.Althoughbirdwingsinitiallyinspiredthedevelopmentofhumanaircraft,engineeringinterestinimprovingmanmadeaircraftquicklydivergedfromdirectemulationofflappinganimals.OnlyrecentlyhaveengineersreturnedtoanimalstogaininsightintothedesignprinciplesthatalloweffectiveflappingflightatlowReynoldsnumbers(i.e.,Re<1,000,000).AttheselowRe,insectsareknowntoexhibitsignificantwingdeformationduringflappingflightduetoinertialoraerodynamicloading.Unlikeaircraft,theseorganismsuseavarietyof“unsteady”aerodynamicmechanismstocapitalizeontheconstantlymorphingwingshape.Thesemechanismsincludedelayedstall(leading‐edgevortexproduction),rotationalcirculation,andclap‐and‐fling.Recentstudiesofthesmallestflyingvertebrates,hummingbirdsandnectar‐feedingbats(Re~7,000),demonstratesimilaruseofunsteadyeffects.However,almostnothingisknownabouttherelativeimportanceofunsteadyeffectsinlargeranimals.Here,Ipresentaerodynamicandkinematicdataduringtake‐offandacceleratingflightontwospeciesofbird,theDiamondDoveandBudgerigar,anddirectlylinkwingmotiontoaerodynamicforceproduction.MyresultssuggestthatbirdsatmuchhigherReynoldsnumbers(15,000<Re<100,000)arecapableofutilizingasimilarsuiteofunsteadyeffectstotheiradvantage.

Session:Biology&ChemistryJoshuaBeaulaurierUniversityofGreatFalls–BiologyPaulHershberger,NateBickfordCommerciallymadefishfeedscouldpotentiallycontainpathogensandhavedifferentgrowthratesonP.HerringViralHemorrhagingSepticemiaVirus(VHSV)isaseriousproblemwithmarineandfreshwaterfish.Inordertostudythesepathogensinthelaboratorysetting,apathogenfreeenvironmentisrequiredforexperimentalpurposeswithfishandpathogensbeforethestudystarts.ThisstudywasdevelopedtoidentifyanypossibleexposuresofVHSVpathogenparticlesthatareincommerciallymadefishfeedssuchasBio‐dietfeeds,Bio‐Vita,andWashingtonFishWildlifeParksfeedsoveratwoyearsspan.Inaddition,agrowthstudywasinitiatedtofindoutwhichfeedsincreasesgrowthinherringthegreatest.P.HerringeggswerecollectedonmacrophytesbytheWashingtonDepartmentofFishandWildlife.Herringwereraisedtometamorphosisstagethenswitchedtothedifferentfeedtypes.Thefishwerefedtocessationdailyuntiltherewasavisibledifferenceinthesizeofthefish.ThefishwerethenexposedtoVHSVinacontrolledenvironmentandallresultswererecorded.Thefeedscouldpotentiallybeexposingthefishtothepathogen.ThefeedtypesfedtoP.herringcauseddifferentgrowthratesinthefish.

Session:Biology&ChemistryTristaVickMontanaStateUniversity‐LandResourcesandEnvironmentalSciencesJohnPriscuLifeinthecoldanddark:carboncyclinginice­coveredAntarcticlakesPhotosyntheticallydrivencarbonfixationistheprimarymechanismthroughwhichorganiccarbonentersmostecosystems;however,carbonfixationintheabsenceoflight(darkC‐fixation)hasalsobeenobservedinaquaticecosystems,includingthepermanentlyice‐coveredlakesoftheTaylorValley,Antarctica(FryxellandBonney).DarkC‐fixationistypicallyconsideredtobenegligiblewhencomparedtocarbonfixationviaphotosynthesis,andiscommonlysubtractedoutasbackground.DarkC‐fixationrateswerebetween9and>100%oflightcarbonfixationratesinthephoticzoneofLakeFryxell,andbetween2and78%oflightcarbonfixationratesintheLakeBonneyphoticzone.AmajorityofthedarkC‐fixationoccurredinthebacterialsize‐fraction,implyingthatchemolithoautotrophicmicroorganismsareresponsible.ThegeochemicalenvironmentofLakeFryxell,whichincludesasulfidegradientandoxic‐anoxicinterface,isparticularlysuitedtosupportchemolithoautotrophicbacteria.ResultsshowthatdarkC‐fixationinLakeFryxellisreducedbyasmuchas94%byaddingnitrapyrin,whichblockssomechemolithoautotrophicmetabolismsbyinhibitingtheoxidationofammoniatonitrite.DarkC‐fixationbychemolithoautotrophicmicroorganismsmaybeimportantinsupplyingorganiccarbontoTaylorValleylakesduringthedarkAntarcticwinter.

Session:Biology&ChemistryShaneNowackMontanaStateUniversity–MathematicsIsaacClapper,DavidWard,EricBecraftModelingNichePartitioningofSynechococcusSpeciesinYellowstoneHotSpringMicrobialMatsWearedevelopingatheoryofnichestructureforSynechococcusspeciesinhabitingmicrobialmatsintheeffluentchannelsofYellowstonealkalinesiliceoushotsprings,basingbothmodelingandmicrobiologicalapproachesonthephysical,chemicalandbiologicalrealitiesofthiscommunity.MostmathematicalspeciationmodelsassumethatapredeterminedGaussiancurvedescribeshowfitnessrelatestoanenvironmentalparameter.Incontrast,wedevelopedaprocedurethatoptimizestheshapeofthefitnesscurvesubjecttogivenenvironmentalparameters(e.g.,temperaturefluctuation).Ourmodeloutputforoneparameter(e.g,temperature)wasnotaGaussiancurvewithmeanvalueattheparameteraverage.Rather,itwasaflattenedu‐shapedcurvewithmaximaattheparameterextremes,possiblyresultingfromlongerexposuretimesattheextremesthanattheaverage.Giventheimprobabilityofbimodaltemperatureoptimainasingleorganism,theseresultssuggestthattwospeciesmaybebetterthanoneinafluctuatingenvironment,i.e.,fluctuationsinenvironmentalconditionsmayleadtonichepartitioning.WehaveusedourmodeltoperformcompetitionexperimentsbetweentwohypotheticalspecieswherethefirstspecieshasGaussianfitnessandthesecondspecieshasfitnessrepresentedbyasumoftwoGaussiancurves.Wehaveobservedcombinationsofcurvewidthandseparationthatallowthesecondspeciestooutcompetethefirst,furthersupportingournichepartitioningtheory.Wearecurrentlyconsideringtwofluctuatingenvironmentalparametersandincorporatingtemperatureandlightdatawehaveempiricallymeasuredinsituintoourmodel.Inaddition,wehavecultivatednumerousSynechococcusisolatesandhavecharacterizedthemastospecies,usingpsaAsequencevariationandanevolutionarysimulation,EcotypeSimulation.Studiesoftheisolates’temperatureandlightadaptationswillallowustotesttheaccuracyofourmodelresults.

Session:Biology&ChemistryNathanielWindyBoyStoneChildCollegeTashinaRussetteFieldBindweedandCanadianThistleExperimentReportontheefficacyofmechanicalversusHerbicidalcontrolofthetwomostcommonnoxiousweedsoftheRockyBoyReservation,FieldBindweedandCanadianThistle.

Session:Education&OutreachKathrynWilliamsonMontanaStateUniversity–PhysicsShannonWilloughbyIntroductoryAstronomyStudentUnderstandingofGravityUnderstandinggravityisfoundationalforastronomystudentstounderstandplanetaryandstarformation,themotionofsatellites,andthegeneralbehaviorofbodiesinspace.Investigationsofstudentunderstandingofgravityhavemainlyfocusedonyoungchildren,andthefewstudiesofcollegestudentsarelimitedtooneortwoquestionsinPhysics‐specificcontexts.Thepresentstudyisthefirstcomprehensivestudytailoredspecificallytointroductorycollegeastronomystudents’understandingofgravity.Twenty‐fourfree‐responsequestionsand14studentinterviewsexplorestudentunderstandingofgravityinavarietyofcontexts,includingthestrengthofgravityinandaroundEarth,throughoutthesolarsystem,andinotherhypotheticalsituations.Theexploratory,open‐responseformatallowedthemestoemergenaturally,andinadditiontothetypicaldocumentedmisconceptionsaboutgravity,previouslyundocumentedmisconceptionswereobserved.Thebreadthofquestionsallowedcompletementalframeworkstobedefinedforthefirsttime.Alternativementalmodelswillprovidedistractorchoicesinthefuturedevelopmentofamultiple‐choiceGravityConceptInventory.

Session:Education&OutreachLucasJonesUniversityofMontana‐PhysicsandAstronomyNateMcCradyCapturingtheProbabilisticNatureofLightforUndergraduateAstronomersInAutumn2010theDepartmentofPhysicsandAstronomyattheUniversityofMontanaintroducedanewadvancedundergraduatelaboratorycourseinmodernobservationalastronomy.Atpresent,thiscourseistheonlyadvancedastronomylabofferedtoundergraduatesinMontana.Thecourseisdesignedtogivephysicsmajorswithaconcentrationinastronomyexperienceworkingwithmoderninstrumentation,includingcharge‐coupleddevice(CCD)cameras,fiber‐fedspectrometersandhighspectralresolutionechellespectrometers.Thestatisticalbehavioroflightisofparticularimportanceinastronomy,andisthebasisforthefirsttwolabunits.TheseexperimentsonthePoissonstatisticsofphotoncountinganddetectionoffaintsourcesinthepresenceofnoiserequireaphotondetectionapparatusandaGraphicalUserInterface(GUI)tooperatedataacquisition.InthistalkIpresentmymethodsincompletingtheapparatusanddesigningtheprogrammingneededfortheGUI.Isuccessfullyintegratedaphotomultipliertubeandlight‐emittingdiodesinconjunctionwithadataacquisitiondevice,andfrequencycounter.IdevelopedLabViewprogrammingsoftwaretohandleboththegraphicalanddatainterfaces.UndergraduatestudentsthatcompletedthesefirsttwolabunitssuccessfullyobtaineddatausingtheexperimentalsetupanddemonstratedintheiranalysisthePoissonbehavioroflightaswellastheabilitytodetectveryfaint(<1%)signalsinthepresenceofhighbackgroundnoise.

Session:Education&OutreachKatherineKalachevUniversityofMontana–PhysicsandAstronomyNateMcCradyMontana'snewadvancedobservationalastronomylabcourseObservationalastronomyreliesheavilyondigitalimaging,andthecalibrationandinterpretationofdata.Thepracticalskillsrelatedtochargecoupleddevice(CCD)operationandtheknowledgeofhowtoreduceandanalyzedataobtainedfromCCDsisessentialforanastronomertoday.ThenewadvancedobservationalastronomylabcourseASTR362attheUniversityofMontanaDepartmentofPhysicsandAstronomyprovidesstudentswiththefundamentalskillsnecessaryforin‐depthresearch.Ourclassreceivedhands‐onexperienceinplanningandconductingfull‐nightobservations,operatingatelescopeandacquiringimageswithCCDs.InthistalkIwillpresentthree‐colorBVRmosaicimagesoftheGalacticstarclusterNGC884andacolor‐magnitudediagrambasedonaperturephotometrycalibratedwithphotometricstandardstars.IwillalsopresentpreliminaryresultsfrommyongoingresearchonstarformationinthestarburstgalaxyM82,whereIamapplyingnewskillsthatIlearnedinASTR362toanalyzeHubbleSpaceTelescopeimages.ThiscoursewasfundedbyanEducationalEnhancementGrantfromtheMontanaSpaceGrantConsortium(MSGC).

Session:Education&OutreachCaseyKanodeandKateWebbinkMontanaStateUniversity–ScienceandNaturalHistoryFilmMakingSPOT,TheGadgetGeneration,andPicturingScience­OhMy!Itisfortunatethatsciencecommunicationfocusesonasubjectinherentlyfascinatingtoabroadaudience,butwemustconstantlyaskhowtomaintainthatfascinationandmakecomplexideasaccessibletothepublic.Furthermore,atatimewhennewresearchandtechnologyseemtobeaccumulatingatanoverwhelmingrate(orperhapsthat'sthestoryofhumanity),howdoweovercomegenerationalbarrierstospeakthelanguageofincreasinglytech‐savvychildren?WewilladdressoneapproachofferedbyMSGC'sSpacePublicOutreachTeam(SPOT),andsimilarvisualmediaandpresentationtechniques.

Session:Astronomy&SpacePhysicsSofiaTanbergUniversityofMontana‐PhysicsandAstronomyTheTerrestrialMagnetopauseandBowShock:AComparisonofNewDatatoExistingModelsAschargedparticlesfromtheSun(solarwind)encounterEarth’smagneticfield,theyareimpededbyit,formingtheregioninspaceknownasthemagnetosheath.Here,theseionsinthesolarwindareslowedanddeflectedaroundtheEarth.Themagnetosheathsharesitsinnerboundary,themagnetopause,withtheedgeoftheEarth’smagneticfield.Itsouterboundary,calledthebowshock,representstheregionwherethesolarwindabruptlydeceleratesfrombeingsupersonictosubsonic.Thepositionandshapeofthesetwoboundarieshavebeenstudiedsincethe1950s,mostlyinaregionwithin20Earth‐radii(R⊕)oftheplanet,orinthedistanttailregion(about200R⊕downstreamoftheEarthwithrespecttotheflowdirectionofthesolarwind).ThedatasetIusedwascollectedbytheInterstellarBoundaryEXplorer(IBEX)andencompassestheareabetween15and55R⊕ofEarth.Thisdatasetisuniqueinthatthestructureoftheseboundariesinspacehasnotbeenextensivelystudiedbetween20and55R⊕,theregionwhereIBEXisobserving.Therefore,Ihaveexploredhowwelltheleadingpublishedmodelsmatchtheshapeoftheseboundariesinthisunexploredregion.

Session:Astronomy&SpacePhysicsCourtneyPeckMontanaStateUniversity–PhysicsDeterminingtheRelationshipBetweenCosmicRaysandOurAtmosphereCosmicraysdetectedonEarthoriginatefromtheSunandtheuniverse.ThesecosmicraysconstantlybombardEarthandinteractwithouratmosphere.TheinteractionofthecosmicrayswiththeatmospherecausesthecosmicrayfluxseenonEarth’ssurfacetovarybasedontheatmosphericconditions.TherelationshipbetweencosmicrayfluxandouratmospherecanbemonitoredusingasimpleGeigercounterset‐up.Thepurposeofthisprojectistocomparecosmicrayfluxtoatmosphericpressuretomeasureaquantityknownasthebarometriccoefficient.

Session:Astronomy&SpacePhysicsJudyHudgins,RyanYoungSalishKootenaiCollege–ComputerEngineeringTashinaRussetteStoneChildCollege–ScienceTylerHuffmanMontanaStateUniversity‐ComputerScienceandElectricalEngineeringAuroraBorealistriptoPokerFlatResearchRangeinAlaskaStudentsfromtribalcollegesweregiventheopportunitybytheMontanaSpaceGrantConsortium(MSGC)toparticipateinanexcitingtriptoPokerFlatResearchRangeinAlaskatolearnabouttheNorthernLights.Whiletherestudentstouredthefacilitiesontherangeandlearnedaboutthedifferentsensorsusedtodetectaurora.StudentsalsobecameslightlyacquaintedwiththeMSU‐builtOpticalAuroraDetectors.ThesedetectorswillbegiventothetribalcollegesacrossMontanatohelpstarttheirownAuroraBorealisresearchprogram.ThistriphasprovidedtribalstudentswithwonderfullearningexperiencesabouttheNorthernLightsonbothascientificandculturallevel.

Session:Computing&AerospaceTechnologyCelenaByersMontanaStateUniversity‐SpaceScienceandEngineeringLaboratoryExplorer­1[PRIME]:Montana'sFirstSatelliteOriginallydesignedtocommemoratethe50thanniversaryofthefirstUSsatellite,Explorer‐1,theSpaceScienceandEngineeringLaboratoryhasdesignedandbuiltaCubeSatclasssatellitethatwassettolaunchon04March2011.Althoughthisfirstflightunitwaslostduealaunchfailure,thescientificpayloadhasbeendesignedtorepeatthescienceofExplorer‐1whichinvolvestakingmeasurementsfromtheVanAllenRadiationBeltsneartheNorthandSouthPolesofEarth.Thepayload,consistingofahighenergycosmicraydetector,wasdesignedandbuiltbyMontanaStateUniversitystudentstorepeatthescienceofExplorer‐1.Thedesign,testandcompositionofthepayloadaboardthesatellitehasbeenahandsonlearningexperiencetoseveralstudentsoverthemissiondevelopmentlifetime.IwilldiscussthebackgroundandhistoryoftheExplorer‐1[PRIME]satelliteaswellasthedesignandtestinginvolvedforthispayloadofthesatelliteasthestudentsintheSpaceScienceandEngineeringLaboratorypreparetodeliverasecondflightunitinJuneof2011fora25October2011launch.

Session:Computing&AerospaceTechnologyClintonHadwinMontanaStateUniversity–ElectricalEngineeringCubeSatelliteFabrication,Integration,andSystemsTestingThefundamentalsofExplorer1Prime's(E1P)fabrication,integration,andsystemstestingproceduresarekeycomponentstoitssuccessandlaunch.FabricationproceduresareadoptedunderstrictguidelinessetforthandadoptedbyNASAandotherindustryleaders’protocol.Severaldifferentassemblymethodsweredeveloped,attempted,andreanalyzedinhouseduringtheprocessofthemultiplebuildsthatthesatellitewentthroughbeforeitscompletion,particularlyintermsofsolarcellfabrication.Componentselection,contaminantprotection,andESDsafetyarealsosomeofthemeasuresthathavebeenoutlinedinthisstudy.Integrationproceduresfallundersimilarscrutiny,aseachpopulatedprintedcircuitboard(PCB)ismethodicallytestedbeforematingthemwithoneanother.Eachindividualboardisasysteminitself,andmustmeetpredeterminedcriteriabeforebecomingapartofthesystemasawhole.Lengthytestingoftheseindividualsystemsmustbeperformed,toassurethatthesystemisoperatingasexpectedasastandalonecomponentofthesatellite,beforeitsabilitytooperateintandemwiththeothersystemscanbeverified.Onceeachsystemhasbeenqualifiedforintegration,theentiresystemistestedusingthegroundstationequipment(GSE).Softwareandhardwaretestsareperformed,tosimulateeveryfunctionthatthesatellitewillbeexpectedtoexecutewhileinorbit.Troubleshootingandreworkingofthesatelliteinthisstageoftestingbecomesasignificantcomponenttothetimeittakestogetasatellitepreparedforflight.Manyoftheproceduresoutlinedinthisstudyhaveroomforimprovement,howevereverystepofthelearningprocessthatE1PofferedtheSSELteamintermsofefficienttestinghasbeen,andwillcontinuetobeimplementedinfuturesatellitemissions.

Session:Computing&AerospaceTechnologyJenniferHaneMontanaStateUniversity‐ElectricalandComputerEngineeringJylissaWhisenhuntRedundantBinaryCounterSystemwithScrubberThispresentationwilldescribethecreationofasimplecomputingsystem,implementedonanFPGA,thatachievesradiationtolerancethroughredundancyandscrubbing.Thissystemconsistsofsixty‐fourbinarycountertiles,threeofwhichareactiveatanygiventimeandconfiguredintriplemoduloredundancy(TMR).TheTMRsystemcanautomaticallydetectafaultinoneoftheactivecountersandbringaspareonline.Ablindscrubberperiodicallyrefreshestheconfigurationdatatocorrectfaultsinthesparetiles.

Session:Computing&AerospaceTechnologyMattVollMontanaStateUniversity–ElectricalEngineeringPowerSystemDesignConsiderationsforSmallSatellitesForanyspace‐basedmission,thepowersystemisthebeatingheartofthespacecraft.Itmustharvest,store,anddistributeenergytoallotherelectricalsystemson‐board,andmonitorvitalsystemhealthdataatthesametime.Inthesmall‐satelliteapplication,thepowersystemmustbeveryefficientwithitsuseofenergyandspacesinceeverywattandeveryinchcounts.Also,therearemanyfactorstobeconsideredinthedesignofapowersystemforasmallsatellite.Thesefactorsincludethepoweravailabletobeused,powerrequiredbyothersystems,circuitprotection,requiredhealthdata,andoperatingmodesofthespacecraft.Ifdesignedwell,apowersystemcanbeusedformanydifferentsmall‐satellitemissionsandmaximizetheefficiencyofthespacecraftwhileminimizingitscost.Keycomponentsofapowersystemincludesolarpanels,peak‐powertracking,batteriesandchargeregulation,DC/DCconversions,distributionandprotectioncircuitry,systemcontrol,andsystemtelemetry.Thedesignofeachofthesecomponentscanrangeincomplexity,dependingontheneedsofthemission.Asthesatellitegrowsincomplexity,thefunctionalityofitspowersystemmustalsomature.Thistalkwilldescribewhythedesignofthepowersystemisanimportantpartofsmall‐satellitemissions.TheCubeSatdevelopedattheSpaceScience&EngineeringLab,Explorer‐1Prime,willbeusedasanapplicationexample.Thepowerneedsofthisparticularmissionandhowtheyweremetwillbediscussed.Then,thetalkwillconcludewithalookatpresentresearchinpowersystemdesign.Infall2010,anECEdepartmentseniordesigngroupproposedamodulardesignapproachforanewpowersystemdesign(“SmartPowerSystemDesignforSmall‐SatelliteApplications”).Thisapproachtopowersystemdesignwillbeoutlined.

Session:Computing&AerospaceTechnologyDanSchwendtnerMontanaStateUniversity–MechanicalEngineeringDevelopmentofaThermalVacuumSystemforSpacecraftEnvironmentalTestingSince2001theSpaceScienceandEngineeringLab(SSEL)atMontanaStateUniversityhasbeendesigningandbuildingavarietyofspacehardware,aswellasdevelopingthefacilitiesnecessaryforenvironmentaltestingofflighthardware.Inlate2005theSSELbegandevelopingasystemtosimulatethevacuumenvironmentofnear‐spacewhichwouldallowforoutgassingmeasurementandrudimentarythermaltestingofelectronicsandspacecraftcomponents.Totrulytesthardwareandvalidatehardwareanalysisanddesign,theabilitytocyclebetweentheexpectedtemperatureextremesinasimilarenvironmentisessential.Usageandoperationofthermalvacuumsystemsisinvestigated,requirementsforSSEL’sThermalVacuumSystemaredefined,andpossibledesignoptionsareconsidered.AFiniteElementAnalysis(FEA)isperformedtopredicttheheatloadonthesystemwhena40kgnanosatellite(50x50x60cm)iscycledbetween‐40°Cand+80°C.Basedontheresults,adesignisselectedforthesystemBasePlateonwhichthenanosatelliterests,andtestingisperformedtovalidateboththeFEAmodelandthephysicalhardware.Additionalresearch,analysis,anddesignisperformedonathermalshroudsurroundingthenanosatellite.Radiationheattransferbetweenthesatelliteontheshroud'sinsideandthevacuumchamberontheshroud'soutsideiscalculatedusingtheradiationnetworkapproach.TheLUDecompositionmethodisusedtosolvetheresultingsetofsimultaneousequations.TemperaturemeasurementsaretakenduringsystemtestingtovalidatethedesignandcomparedtotheFEAmodel.OngoingtestsindicatethatthesystemfunctionsasdesignedandthatitiscapableofcompletelyandsafelytestingsatellitesandotherspacehardwaredevelopedatSSEL.

Session:EngineeringAdamGundersonMontanaStateUniversity–ElectricalEngineeringDesigningaUniversityCubeSatRadioUsingCommercialOfftheShelfPartsDesigningaradioforuseinCubeSatscanpresentquiteachallenge.DuringthelongdesignprocessofMontanaStateUniversity(MSU)SpaceScienceandEngineeringLab’s(SSEL)Explorer1Prime(E1P)radio,manyhurdleswereencounteredthatareoutlinedinthispresentation.TheobjectiveofthispresentationistoprovideareferenceforfurtherdevelopmentsconcerningCubeSatradiosbyhamradioamateursoruniversities.AlargelessonlearnedbySSELconcerningthisprojectwasthenecessityforcompletedocumentationandimplementationthereof.Otherrealizationsrelatetothepartsselectionprocessandtheneedformoreresearchintochoosingthecomponentmakeupoftheradio.IncontrasttotheE1P’sradio,today’stechnologyallowsforthedevelopmentanon‐motherboarddesign.Manyaspectsofthedesignprocessoutlinedinthispresentationwillberelatedtosuchadvances.Ashortstudyoftimeconstraintsontheprojectwillbediscussed;manytime‐consumingerrorsweremadeduetorushingdesignstomeetcertaindeadlines.Properdocumentationistiedtothistopicaswell.TheprocessthathasbeenoutlinedinthisdocumentwillbeusedasareferenceinfutureCubeSatradiodesignsbySSELandotherorganizations.Muchofthisprocessisbeingimproveduponandthegreatestimportanceistorecognizethemajorproblemsduringsuchadevelopment,sotheymaybeavoided.

Session:EngineeringDavidDriscollMontanaStateUniversity–MechanicalEngineeringAdamWeisenstein,StephenSofieInvestigationofEngineeredPoreStructuresinPowderedMetalsbyMeansofFreezeTapeCastingEngineeredmetalfoamshavestrongpotentialinapplicationssuchasfuelcellelectrodes,sensors,differentialsprings,filteringmedia,andcompositescaffolds.Inthisstudythevariationbasedondirectionofmechanicalandelectricalpropertieswerecharacterizedinengineeredporousmetalfoamswithalignedporositypreparedbyfreezetapecastingofferriticstainlesssteel.Afterdirectionalsolidification,thesolventwassublimedfrom~1mmthicktapes,yieldingporousgreenmetalcompactswhichweresinteredinavacuumfurnacefrom900–1100°C.Densificationwasshowntobeginat1000°C,yieldingshrinkagevariationsrelativetoporealignment.Theresultingdisksexhibithighlyorderedacicularporeswithsubstantialanisotropyinthemechanicalandelectricalproperties.DCconductivitytestingrevealedupto62%variationdependingondirectionofmeasurementrelativetothealignmentofpores.Examinationofflexuralrigidityshoweddirectionalvariationsofupto89%.

Session:EngineeringAllenReamMontanaStateUniversity–MechanicalandIndustrialEngineeringStatisticalQualificationofStereopsisandColorCorrectionforStereo­EndoscopyAninnovativetechniqueforcapturingthree‐dimensionalimageswithasinglelenshasbeendevelopedusingamultispectrallightsourcepairedwithmultipleband‐passopticalfilters.Unlikeconventional3Dsystemsthatusetwocameraspairedtogether,thismethodestablishesdisparitybyblockinghalfoftheilluminationwavelengthsfromenteringeithersideofthelenssystem.However,thismethoddecreasestheinter‐pupillarydistancesubstantiallywhilealsodeviatingfromstandardcolorschemes.Twostudieshavebeenproposedinwhichhumansubjectswillbeaskedtoperformsimpletaskstocreateacorrelationbetweenthepsychophysicalaspectsofdepthandcolorperceptionwhileintheregimeofthissystem.Thefirsttestseekstofindthelimitofthehumanbraintoresolvedepthinasceneasafunctionofviewingdistance,whilethesecondwillattempttocorrecttheviewedcolorsbasedonthesensitivitiesoftheeyescolorreceptorcells.Theseresultswillaidinoptimizingworkingdistancesaswellascreatingatruecolorimageforapplicationswherecoloridentificationisnecessary.

Session:EngineeringJustinKrohn,CharlieFerguson,ChadWillett,DonovanFerrin,TerrellThomason,JoeStack,SteveLobst,KrisBengtsonMontanaStateUniversity–CollegeofEngineeringBrockLaMeresDesignofaRoboticLunarRegolithExcavatorTheMontanaStateUniversitylunarregolithexcavator(namedMULE2.0)isaninterdisciplinarydesignprojectthatistailoredtocompeteintheLunaboticsMiningCompetitionatKennedySpaceCenterinMayof2011.Theoverallgoalofthecompetitionistocollectasmuchregolithaspossibleusingawirelessrobotasdefinedbythecompetitionrulebook.TomeetNASA’ssystemsengineeringgoals,theMSUexcavatorisaninterdisciplinaryeffortthatincludesfourcollaboratingmajors,resultingintheestablishmentofthreemajorsubsystems:Mechanical(frameandstructure),Electrical(motorcontrolandsensors)andComputer(wirelesscommunicationsandbasiccontrols).Allofthestudentsinvolvedusedthisprojectaspartoftheirseniorcapstone.Theprojectisintendedtohelpdevelopinterestinspaceactivitiesaswellasscience,technology,engineering,andmathematicsingeneral.

Session:PosterStevenBarton,RichardShular,MatthewBarton,BryanPeterson,FrankKestnerMontanaStateUniversityBillings–PhysicsStuartSnyderTwo­PhotonLaserInducedFluorescenceofAtomicSodiumTwo‐photonlaserinducedfluorescence(LIF)wasusedtodeterminetheconcentrationofsodiuminwateraspiratedintoaflame.Aforbiddentransitionbetweenthe2S1/2groundstateandthe2D3/2,5/2excitedstateofsodiumatomsvaporizedbytheflamewasinducedbytwo‐photonabsorptionoflaserlightgeneratedbyapulseddyelasertunedto578.89nm.The2D3/2,5/2statedecayedtothe2Po3/2,1/2stateemittingaphotonwithatawavelengthof568.26nm.Theintensityofthisfluorescencesignalisproportionaltotheconcentrationofsodiumatomsinthewater.Becausethelowerenergylevelofthefluorescencetransitionisabovethegroundstate,self‐absorptionwasnotsignificant.LIFsignalintensityasafunctionofsodiumconcentrationwasfoundtobelinearoverawideconcentrationrange.Furtherapplicationofthistechniquetodetermineflametemperatureisdiscussed.

Session:PosterTimothyBroxMontanaStateUniversity–PhysicsNuclearmagneticresonancestudyofpolycrystallineiceRecentworkhasdemonstratedthatmicroorganismscanoccupytheliquidfilledinter‐crystallineveinsiniceandmaintaintheirmetabolicactivityundertheseconditions.Whilethesediscoverieshaveincreasedtheextentofthebiosphere,toincludethelargecontinentalicesheetsofAntarcticaandGreenlandasbiomes,thehabitatofthemicroorganismswithintheinter‐crystallineliquidveinsispoorlyunderstood.Additionally,certaincoldtolerantorganismsproduceextracellularproteins(i.e.,ice‐bindingproteins)thathavetheabilitytobindtotheprismfaceofanicecrystalandinhibiticerecrystallization.Thisphenotypeaffectsthephysicalicestructureandtheliquidveinnetwork,potentiallyprovidingice‐inhabitingspeciesaprotectivemechanismwithwhichtocontroltheirhabitat.OnesuchmicroorganismisChryseobacteriumsp.V3519‐10,abacteriumisolatedfromadepthof3519mintheVostokIceCore.Thisstudyexaminestheimpactofextracellularproteinsfromthisice‐adaptedbacteriumontheformationoficecrystalsandcharacterizestheinter‐crystallineliquidfilledveinnetworkusingnuclearmagneticresonance(NMR)spectroscopyandmagneticresonanceimaging(MRI).

Session:PosterBenjaminGilboeUniversityofMontana,Western–BiologyMichaelA.GilbertCharacterizationoftheBorreliaburgdorferiBb0769ORFBorreliaburgdorferi,thecausativeagentofLymedisease,hasanenzooticlifecyclealternatingbetweenIxodesticksandmammalianhosts,typicallysmallrodents.Althoughhumansareonlyinadvertentlyinfected,Lymediseaseremainsthemostcommonarthropod‐bornediseaseintheUnitedStatesandcombatingthisdiseaserequiresathoroughunderstandingofthemolecularmechanismsofpathogenesisusedbythisorganism.CompletesequencingoftheB.burgdorferigenomedidnotrevealanyobviousvirulencefactors,butdidrevealasingleORF(bb0769)withsignificantsequencesimilaritytoavarietyofbacterialglycoproteases.Sincetheseenzymesoftenfunctionasvirulencefactorsinpathogenicbacteria,wehypothesizedthatBB0769mayserveasimilarfunctioninB.burgdorferi.Therefore,wetookonthechallengeofcloning,expressingandpurifyingtheBB0769proteinwiththehopeofconfirmingitsproteolyticactivity.ThisinformationwillprovidefurtherinsightintothepossibleroleofthisproteinintheenzooticlifecycleofB.burgdorferi.Weamplifiedthebb0769ORFfromB.burgdorferiusingVentDNAPolymerase,cloneditintotheexpressionvectorandthentransformedinducibleE.colicells.WeassessedBB0769expressionbySDS‐PAGEandCoomassiestaining.WeareabletotestBB0769fornon‐specificproteolyticactivitybyzymography.Finally,wemadeaninitialattempttopurifyBB0769usingaffinitychromatography.PCRamplificationofbb0769resultedinasingleproductwiththeexpectedsizeof1071bp.Restrictiondigestsoftheconstructindicatedthattheconstructcontainedthebb0769ORFinthecorrectorientationforexpression.Thecellsexpresseda41kDproteinwhengrowninthepresenceofIPTG.BB0769hasapredictedmolecularmassof37kD,butadditionalrecognitionsitesadd4kD.InourinitialattempttopurifyBB0769,aproteinofthecorrectsizewaselutedbuttheyieldwastoolow.BB0769canbeexpressedinE.coliBL‐21cellsatlevelssufficientforfuturepurificationandanalysis.

Session:PosterAdamGundersonMontanaStateUniversity‐ElectricalandComputerEngineeringVSWIRSolarCalibrationTheHyperspectralInfraredImager(HyspIRI)Mission,outlinedintheEarthScienceDecadalsurvey,providessciencedatathatwillassistintheassessmentofseasonalecosystemtrends,helpingmonitorclimatechangesonaglobalscale.Themissionutilizestwoopticalinstruments:theVisibleShortwaveInfrared(VSWIR)andThermalInfraredImager(TIR).VSWIRisahyperspectralinstrumentthatwillprovideglobalecosystemmonitoringthrougha19‐dayrevisittimeattheequator.VSWIRcollectsimagesbymeasuringthespectraproducedbysolarradianceoftheEarth’sterrestrialandcoastalregions.Theinstrumentistilted4°off‐nadirtominimizesun‐glintandhas145kmswathwidth.HyspIRI’sVSWIRinstrumentrequiresmanyseparatecalibrationcycles;theseperiodsarecompletedbythescheduledviewingoftargetsthathaveaspectralresponsewhichcanbeverifiedthroughothersources.Thisisdonetoassurethesensorsmeasurementscontaintheleastamountoferror;weeklysolarcalibrationisoneofthesecycles.Calibrationwillbecompletedthroughtheuseofasolarreflectancepanelwhichdoesnotrequiresatelliteperturbationsformeasurements.Anidealsolar‐calibrationoccurswhenthevectorfromthecenterofsunispreciselyperpendiculartotheplaneofthereflectivepanel.Thecalibrationpanelwilldeployfromitshousingduringacalibrationwindow;definedwhenthesolarvectorisat90°elevation(vectornormaltoplane).SincethepanelwillblockVSWIR’sviewduringacyclecalibrationalsocannotoccurduringsciencedatacollection.Currentmissiondesigncallsforthecalibrationpaneltobeoffsetby45‐pitchand4‐roll,withrespecttothesatellitesaxis(negativezbeingnadir).Theobjectiveofthisstudywastobetterunderstandwhenasolarcalibrationcyclewouldoccuraswellasquantizethedynamicsofthesolarvectors’azimuthandelevationwithrespecttothereflectivepanel.

Session:PosterRyanHannahoeMontanaStateUniversity–DepartmentofEducationTurningEyestotheBigSkyProjectTheTurningEyestotheBigSkyProject(TEBSP)focusesonstrengthening4ththrough9thgradescienceinstructioninlightandoptics.Itwasimplementedin15classroomsinsouthwesternMontana,reaching380students.TEBSPimplementedanationallyestablishedinformalsciencecurriculumonlightandoptics,theTerrificTelescopesCurriculum(TTC),intotheformalclassroomsetting.Theproject’srationaleaddressesthefollowingresearchquestions:(1)howdidparticipatingteachersrespondtothecurriculumandwhatwouldtheychangeaboutit,(2)whatwastherelationshipbetweenstudentlearningoutcomesandtheirteachers’knowledgeandexperienceinteachingscience,and(3)howwelldidstudentslearnandwhatscienceconceptsandprinciplesdidtheygraspbestthroughTTC?InOctober2010,15public‐schoolteachersweretrainedtoimplementthecurriculumintheirclassrooms.Theimplementationiscurrentlyunderwayandwillbecompletedbytheendoftheacademicyear.Wearecollectingstudentandteacherdataonthecurriculumimplementationandstudentlearning.TEBSPwillcontributetoourunderstandingofhowstudentslearnkeylightandoptics‐relatedprinciples,aswellasdocumentthelearningoutcomesoftheTTC.

Session:PosterTravisHarrerMontanaStateUniversity‐ChemicalEngineeringRobinGerlach,AlCunninghamMicrobiallyInducedCalciumCarbonatePrecipitationUnderRadialFlowConditionsBiologicallyinducedcarbonatemineralizationisaprocessbywhichmicroorganismsreducethesolubilityofcarbonates,causingthemtoprecipitate.Thegoalofthisprojectistoapplypulseflowstrategiestodepositcalciumcarbonateinaradialflowsysteminordertobetterunderstandhowbiomineralizationcouldbecontrolledaroundinjectionwellsatgeologiccarbonsequestrationsites.Therockimmediatelyaroundaninjectionwellmaybecompromisedduetodrillingresultinginanincreasedriskofinjectedcarbondioxidepotentiallyleakingbacktothesurface.Bypromotingthelocalizeddepositionofcalciumcarbonatearoundinjectionwells,leakscanpotentiallybesealedandcarbondioxideleakagecanbereduced.Thelaboratory‐basedstudyshowedsignificantcalciumdepositionwithintheradialreactoralongwithcompleteeffluentplugginginsomeoftheeffluentports.Destructivesamplingfurtherrevealedthedegreeofcalciumprecipitationthroughoutthereactor.

Session:PosterSaiichiHashimotoMontanaStateUniversity‐ComputerScienceRoutingandAdaptivePowerControlforGreenNetworkingNetworkpowerconsumptioncanbereducedconsiderablybyadaptinglinkdateratestotheirofferedtrafficloads,turningoffunusednodes(routers)andcarefullyroutingtrafficflows.Inthispaper,weexaminehowtoperformroutingandadaptnetworkpowercontrolinordertoreducetheenergyuseinwirednetworks:Givenasetofend‐to‐endcommunicationsessions,determinehowtoroutetheflow(datatraffic)throughthenetworksuchthatpowerconsumptionisminimized,subjecttotheconstraintthatthetrafficdemandofeachsessionissatisfied.Weadoptasimplepowerusagemodel:eachnetworklinke=(u,v)containsNebundlelinksthatcanbeturnedonoroffselectively.ThepowerusageofasinglebundlelinkisassumedtobeaconstantPl.Nodescanalsobeturnedonoroff;thepowerusageofanonnodeisafixedconstantPn.Inorderforanetworklinktobeoperational,bothofitsendpointnodesmustbeturnedon.ThecapacityofanoperationalnetworklinkeisxeCe,wherexeisthenumberofbundlelinksNeturnedonandCeisthemaximumcapacityofthelinke.Weformulatetheproblemasanoptimizationproblem,theMulti‐sessionFlowAllocationwithPowerAdaptionProblem(MF‐PAP).WefirstpresentaMixedIntegerLinearProgramming(MILP)formulationfortheMF‐PAPtoprovideoptimalsolutions.Thenwepresentasimpleshortestpathbasedalgorithmandamoresophisticatedtreeroutingalgorithmthathasimprovedandnear‐optimalperformanceinoursimulationresults.

Session:PosterJosiHerronUniversityofGreatFalls–BiologyRobynHannigan,AlanChristianWaterQualityAnalysisofHeavyMetalsAs,Cd,Cu,Pb,andHgfromEtangSaumatrelakeinHaitiEtangSaumtre(LacAzuie)inHaitiisasalinelakeontheborderbetweenHaitiandtheDominicanRepublic.ThislakewillsoonbyfacingapopulationincreaseofthousandsofpeopleasaresultoftherecentJanuary2010earthquake.ThesepeoplewillbeusingthewellssurroundingtheEtangSaumatrefordrinkingwateranddomesticpurposes.EtangSaumatreisalsoanimportantresourceforsubsistencefishers,feeding25,111peopleannually.Itisimportantthatwaterqualityinthelakeandgroundwaterbeinvestigatedinordertoensurethattheresourcesaresufficientforhumanconsumption.Moreoverweneedtobetterunderstandtheconnectionsbetweenthelakeandgroundwatersystemtopotentiallymitigateanypossiblehealthconcerns.WatersamplesweretakenfromEtangSaumatreandsurroundingwellsandthedissolvedconcentrationsofarsenic,cadmium,copper,lead,andmercuryweredeterminedbyICP‐MS.Theseheavymetals,knowntobemosthazardoustohumanhealth,areconsideredtoxicatcertainconcentrationsaccordingtoWorldHealthOrganization’sDrinkingWaterQualityStandards(2008).Theresultsshowedthattheconcentrationsofthesemetalswereabovethetoxiclevelinmostofthesamplingsites.Theresultsforcadmium,lead,andmercuryalsoshowedthatthereweresimilarconcentrationsbetweenthegroundwaterwellsandthelowerdepthsofthelakewhichwouldprovideevidenceforgroundwaterflowintothelake.

Session:PosterKendraKaiserMontanaStateUniversity‐LandResourcesandEnvironmentalSciencesBrianMcGlynn,RyanEmanuel,FabianNippgen,JohnMallardEcohydrology:DisturbanceandtheintersectionofvegetationpatternandlandscapestructureWatershedecohydrologyisafunctionoftheintersectionofvegetationpatternandlandscapestructure.Thehydrologicimplicationsofvegetationdisturbancedependonthespatialextentandpatternofchangeonthisecohydrologictemplate.Hereweinvestigatethisintersectionwithafocusonarecentmountainpinebeetle(Dendroctonusponderosae)epidemicthatisincreasinglyaffectingareasintheRockyMountains.OurresearchareawastheTenderfootCreekExperimentalForest(TCEF),Montana,USA.WecalibratedQuickBirdremotesensingimagerywithleaflevelmeasuresbydevelopingaspectrallibraryforTCEFvegetation.Thespectrallibrarywasusedtodeterminewhichvegetationindiceswereoptimalfordifferentiatingbetweenstagesofinfestation;therebymaximizingtheinformationobtainedfromtheQuickBirdimage.TheseindiceswereappliedtotheQuickBirdimagerytoestablishbaselinemortality,andtheextentandmagnitudeofinfestationacrossthewatershed.Inaddition,wecalculatedLiDARbasedtopographyandvegetationstructureindicesforjointtopographic,vegetation,anddisturbanceanalyses.Weseektodeterminewhichforeststandsaremostsusceptibletobeetleinfestation,andhowtheseinfestationpatternsarerelatedtohydrologic,topographic,andforestecosystemcompositionalcharacteristics.Oureffortstomonitorvegetationmortalityacrossspaceandtimeprovideacontextforassessingthedriversofmountainpinebeetleinfestationandhowoutbreakpatternsmayaffectwatershedecohydrologyviaenergy,water,andbiogeochemicalcycles.

Session:PosterAmandaKortumUniversityofMontanaWestern–DepartmentofBiologyMichaelMorrowCharacterizationoftheCandidaalbicansSec63ProteinCandidaalbicansisoneofthemostcommonfungalpathogens,whichcausesmanyhumaninfections.Inordertoswitchtoapathogenicform,thisyeastundergoesanumberofphysiologicalchanges,whichrequirethesecretionofvariousproteins.Thefirststepofthesecretorypathwayisthetranslocationofsecretoryproteinsintotheendoplasmicreticulum(ER)fromthecytosol.InSaccharomycescerevisiae,theessentialSec63proteinplayscrucialrolesduringERtranslocation,andis56%similartoC.albicansSec63p.ThefocusofthisstudyistodetermineifC.albicansSec63pisalsoessential,andifitisinvolvedduringthetranslocationofsecretoryproteinsintotheER.AstrainwasconstructedinwhichoneSEC63allelewasdisruptedandtheendogenouspromoteroftheotherallelewasreplacedbythetightlyregulatedMET3promoterwhichrepressesSEC63expressionwhencellsaregrowninthepresenceofmethionine.Whenthisstrainwasplatedonmediumlackingmethionine,Sec63pwasexpressedandgrowthwasobserved.However,thisstraindidnotgrowwhenthecellswereplatedonmediumcontainingmethionine,suggestingthattheC.albicansSEC63geneisessential.InvitrotranslocationassayswereperformedtodetermineifC.albicansSec63pisinvolvedduringthetranslocationofproteinsintotheER.ERmicrosomeswereisolatedfromcellsgrownunderinducingorrepressingconditions.Thesewerecombinedwithradiolabeledpre‐proalphafactor,ppαf,asecretedyeastproteinthatservesasatranslocationsubstrate,andanATPregeneratingsystem.WhentranslocatedintotheER,thesignalsequenceofppαfiscleaved,resultinginpαf.Todetermineifppαftranslocatedintothemicrosomes,trypsinwasaddedtodegradeproteinsoutsideofthemicrosomes,andthepresenceofpreservedpαfwasdetermined.MicrosomesisolatedfromcellsexpressingSec63ptranslocatedanaverageof31.7%oftheppαf,whilemicrosomesisolatedfromcellsdepletedofSec63paveragedtranslocationefficienciesof10.7%.ThesedatasupportthehypothesisthattheC.albicansSec63proteinplaysaroleduringthetranslocationofsecretoryproteinsintotheERofthishumanpathogen.ThisworkwassupportedbyNIHgrantnumberP20RR‐16455‐11fromtheINBRE‐BRINprogramoftheNCRRandtheMontanaSpaceGrantConsortiumARESprogram.

Session:PosterChandraMacauleyMontanaStateUniversity‐ChemicalandBiologicalEngineeringKathrynHoyt,PaulGannon,PrestonWhiteTheinfluenceofCrxOymicrostructureontheoxidationbehaviorofCoMncoatingsonSOFC/SOECinterconnectsCobaltmanganese(CoMn)coatingsarepromisingcandidatestoinhibithigh‐temperaturesurfaceoxidationofstainlesssteel(SS)interconnectsinsolidoxidefuelcells(SOFCs)andsolidoxideelectrolytecells(SOECs).Thisstudyinvestigatestheinfluenceofthepre‐oxidationlayermicrostructureontheoxidationbehaviorofCoMninterconnectcoatings.SS441sampleswereeitherpre‐oxidizedfor3hin800°ClaboratoryairtodevelopathermallygrownchromiumoxidelayerorwerecoatedwithCrxOyviaradiofrequency(RF)magnetronsputtering.Usingthesemethods,chromiumoxidelayerswithdifferingmicrostructureswereproduced.ThesampleswerethencoatedwithmetallicCoMnviadirectcurrent(DC)magnetronsputtering.Fieldemissionscanningelectronmicroscopy(FE‐SEM),energydispersivex‐rayspectroscopy(EDX),profilometry,andx‐rayphotoelectronspectroscopy(XPS)wereusedtoanalyzethesamplesbeforeandafter10and100hofoxidationin800°Claboratoryair.Significantdifferencesinoxidationbehaviorwereobserved.Possiblemechanismsfortheobservedoxidationbehaviorarepresentedanddiscussed.

Session:PosterRebeccaMillsapUniversityofMontana‐PhysicsandAstronomyDeborahRossUniversityofMontana‐GeosciencesRIMM­CAPP(RippleMarkMapping–CamasPrairieProject)Asourimagingcapabilitiesstretchfurtherintospacetheuseofdigitalelevationmodels(DEM)asacomparisonmodeltothemappingofotherplanets,particularlyMars,hasbecomeanecessity.AnareainCamasPrairie,Montana,justsouthofHotSprings,haslongbeenacknowledgedasoneoftheprimeexamplesofpreservedripplemarksproducedbyprehistoricGlacialLakeMissoula.Thesetopographicalfeaturesprovideawealthofinformationforgeologistsandgeomorphologistsinterestedinfluidflowandhowitcarvesandaffectslandscapesaswellasreconstructingprehistoriclandformsandclimatehistory.Thedepthandexpanseofthereconstructedlakemodelisascenariocompletelyunmatchedonthefaceofourearthtodaywhichholdsinvaluableinformationfortheoreticalfacetsofsuchsciencesasgeomorphology.ThisprojectfocusesontheintegrationofathreedimensionalcamerasystemandatetheredballoontoattainstereoscopicphotographsoftheprominentglacialripplesinCamasPrairieMontana.Theseimageswillinturnbepairedwithlightdetectionandradar(LIDAR)imagestogivethebasisforadigitalelevationmodel.Thissystemwillbereplicableatafairlylow‐cost,minimalproductionlevel,lendingtothepossibilityofusebyotherlearninginstitutionsorscientificfacilities.

Session:PosterLarsOsborneMontanaStateUniversity–MechanicalEngineeringArmandoHernandez,RobertRucker,KatherineBlackburnDistributedSwarmingRoboticSystemTherobotsbuiltbythisteamwillprovideaframeworkforcombatingKesslersyndrome.Apsuedo‐swarmofsmallsatelliteswiththisframeworkwillinterceptanddeorbitspacedebrisinordertocleanupLowEarthOrbit.TheroboticsystemusesseveralmodifiediRobotCreatescapableofmovingincoordinatedpatterns.TheCreateshavebeenmodifiedwithamicrocontroller,voltageregulator,andawirelessadaptertocommunicatewithacentralcomputerviaawirelessTCPconnection.Thelocationoftherobotswillbedeterminedusinginformationgatheredfromtworotatinginfraredemittersatfixedlocations.UsingC++withQt,agraphicaluserinterface(GUI)wasdevelopedtocontroltherobotsandtheinfraredemitter.Inadditiontoremovingandextractingspacedebris,thisprojectwillprovideaframeworkforfutureexplorationandresearchofpracticalapplicationsincluding,butnotlimitedto,militaryorgeographicalreconnaissance,transportationofsupplies,formationflyingormovement,ormultiplesatellitecoordination.

Session:PosterBrianaPeckUniversityofMontana–PhysicsandAstronomyMichaelSchneiderMeasurementofthePulseDurationofanUltrafastLaserUltrafastlasersemitelectromagneticradiationwithpulsedurationsasshortasafewfemtoseconds(10‐15seconds).Thefastestphotodiodedetectorscanonlyresolvepulsewidthsontheorderof10picoseconds(10‐12seconds);thereforewemustuseothermethodsalongwithelectronicsensorstodeterminethedurationofultrafastpulses.Thepulsesfromultrafastlaserscoverarangeofwavelengthsthatissubjecttodispersionfromopticalcomponentsinthebeampath,whichlengthenthepulseduration.Forthisreason,differentexperimentalsetupscanhavedifferentpulsedurationseveniftheyusethesameultrafastlaser.Tomeasurethepulsedurationweusedapump‐probesetupwithaTi:sapphirelaseroperatingat90MHz.UsingaBetaBariumBorate(BBO)crystal,aphotodetector,andalinearstagetochangethepathlengthoftheprobepulse,thefullwidthathalfmaximum(FWHM)ofthepulseisdeterminedusingtheautocorrelationofsecondharmonicgeneration(SHG)betweenthepumpandprobepulseswithinthecrystal.Weareinthefinalstagesofpulsedurationdatacollectionandanalysis.Afterthepulsedurationiswellcharacterized,thesetupwillbeusedtostudytheinfluenceofspin‐orbitcouplingontheultrafastmagneticresponseinferromagneticmetals.

Session:PosterMeredithRaineyMontanaStateUniversity–EcologyAndrewHansenExploringtheuseofMODISdatatoimprovepredictionofwildlifecorridorsandenablepredictionunderclimatechangeAdvancesinremotesensingtechnologyandGISsoftwarehaveenableddevelopmentofmodelscapableofpredictinglocationsofwildlifecorridorsinlarge,complexlandscapes.Thesecorridormodelsarenowconsideredintegraltoolsforplanningconnectedreservenetworks.However,theirperformancehasneverbeencomprehensivelyassessed,andtheyhavenevertakenintoaccounthabitatvariablesexpectedtobesensitivetoclimatechangesuchasvegetationindicesandsnowcover.Theseoversightsseverelylimitconfidenceintheapplicationofcorridormodelsaswellastheirutilityforpredictingtheeffectsofclimatechangeonreservenetworkconnectivity.InthepastyearasaMSGCFellowshiprecipient,IhaveworkedtoaddresstheseissuesbyfirstusingthetwocorridormodelsmostcommonlyappliedinconservationpracticetopredictmigrationcorridorsforelkintheMadisonValley,thenevaluatingthemodels’performanceusingGPScollardatadepictingactualmigrationroutes.Ifirstbuiltmodelsusingonlystandardhabitatvariablessuchaslandcoverandelevation,thencomparedtheirperformancetothosebasedonmoreadvancedmethodstoincludetime‐varyingMODISphenologydata.Thisallowedmetoquantifymodelperformanceaswellasdeterminewhethertheuseofclimate‐relevantNASAdataproductsimprovedpredictivesuccess.Ifso,thiswouldindicatethatprojectionsofthesedatasetsunderclimatechangemaybeusefulforpredictingfutureclimate‐drivenshiftsincorridorlocations.Ifoundthatmodelsthatdidnotincludeclimatevariablesoutperformedthosethatdid,mostlikelyduetoMODISdatabeingquitenoisyatthescaleofelkmigrationmovements.Workiscurrentlyunderwaytotestsimilarmethodsinwolverines,whichdisperseoverlargerareasandareknowntorespondstronglytosnowcover,andupcomingworkwilltesttheutilityofmoresophisticatedMODIS‐derivedphenologymetricsforcorridorprediction.

Session:PosterRusselRickerMontanaStateUniversity‐PhysicsInvestigationintotheGrowthofCalciumSulfateCrystalsResonantopticalmaterialsareofinterestformanyapplicationssuchashigh‐bandwidthopticalsignalprocessingandquantuminformationapplications.Rare‐earthdopedanhydrouscalciumsulfatehasbeenidentifiedasaprimecandidatefortheseapplicationsduetoitslowconcentrationsofnuclearspinincalcium,sulfur,andoxygen.Foruseinopticalapplications,large(5mm3),transparent,andhigh‐puritycrystalsmustbegrown.Withthismotivation,wereportonourinvestigationintoeffectivegrowthtechniquestoobtainoptical‐qualitycrystals.Inthisprojectweinvestigatedtechniquestogrowlargesinglecrystalsofcalciumsulfateanhydrateforopticalapplicationsinthe1.5microntelecomband.Weadoptedthemethodofdissolvingcalciumnitratetetrahydratecrystalsinto98%sulfuricacidathightemperaturesuntilthesolutionissaturated.Thesolutionisthenevaporatedoveralongperiodtoinducenucleationofcalciumsulfate.Resultsofgrowthapparatusandsolutionswillbediscussedontheposter,aswellasimplicationsforopticalapplications.

Session:PosterJeremySchwendMontanaStateUniversity–PhysicsLauraSampson,NeilCornishFindingdeviationsfromGeneralRelativityusinggravitationalwavesTodate,numeroustestshavebeenperformedonGeneralRelativityinregimeswheregravityisweak,likethesolarsystem.However,intheareaofstronggravitationalfields,thetheoryremainsvirtuallyuntested.TheapproachingdetectionofgravitationalwavespromisestoopenanewdoorfortestingGeneralRelativityinthestrong‐fieldregime.Wehavemodeledthegravitationalwavescomingfromtheinspiralofnon‐spinningbinaryblackholesusingtheperturbativeBCVtemplates(Buananno‐Chen‐Vallisneritemplates)[1],tofirstorderinthePost‐Newtonianperturbativeexpansionofgravitationalwaves.WebeganbyanalyzingaspecifictypeofdeviationfromGRbyaddinganextratermoforder0.5intheexpansion,withanewunfixedparameterthatwelabeledbeta.Thesignalresponsewasmodeledforvarioussignal‐to‐noiseratiosandbetavalues.ThroughaBayesianstatisticalanalysisoftheinstrumentresponse,thetruesizeofbetarequiredforadeviationfromGeneralRelativitytobeclearlydetectablewasthenanalyzedatvarioussignal‐to‐noiseratios.TheanalysiswasdoneassumingthedetectionwasmadebytheupcominggravitationalwavedetectorAdvancedLIGO.[1]AlessandraBuananno,YanbeiChen,andMicheleVallisneri,Phys.Rev.104025(2003)pp.20,22.

Session:PosterNicholasSilvermanUniversityofMontana–GeosciencesMarcoManetaCalibrationofVegetationParameterswithinanEcohydrologicModelusingRemoteSensingTechniquesEcohydrologicmodelsexplorethedynamicfeedbacksbetweenplantsandwater.Byincorporatingthesefeedbacksintowatershedmodelingweareabletoidentifyrelationshipswithincomplexsystemsthatcanbechallengingtoexplorethroughexperimentalworkalone.Connectionbetweenthereal‐worldandthemodelisaccomplishedthroughparametersthatarespecifictothesitelocationbeingstudied.Oftentheseparametersareevaluatednumericallythroughtheprocessofcalibration.Inthisworkwepresentthecalibrationofanewlydevelopedecohydrologicmodelusingidentifiablespatiotemporalpatternsofleafareaindex(LAI)calculatedfromLandsatThematicMapper(TM)imagery.Thisinformationisthenusedtoidentifytheecologicparametersinthemodelthatmostadequatelyrepresentourresearcharea.Specifically,wepresentananalysisoftheLAIusingLandsatimagesfromtheUpperYubaRiverWatershedinCaliforniafora6‐yeartimeperiod.LAIiscalculatedusingamid‐infraredcorrectednormalizeddifferencevegetationindex(NDVI).ThisdataisusedinaninversemodelingproblemtoidentifythevalueofselectedparameterswhichminimizethedifferencebetweenthemodeledLAIandtheLAIderivedfromthesatelliteimagery.Selectedparameterstocalibrateincludeleafturnoverratio,carbonallocationcoefficients,andspecificleafareafordifferentspeciesintheresearcharea.Reliablecalibrationoftheseecologicparametersisnecessaryforfutureresearchexaminingplant‐waterinteractionsatthewatershedscaleunderclimatechangescenarios.

Session:PosterMatthewUrschelMontanaStateUniversity–MicrobiologyMarkSkidmore,GillGeeseyDissimilatoryironreductioninsubzerobrinesFerriciron(Fe3+)mineralsarepotentialelectronacceptorsincoldandicyenvironments,suchasthoseintheice‐hostedsedimentsinicebergsandglaciers[1].Microbialdissimilatoryironreducershavebeenfoundinmanyicyenvironments,suchassubglacialsediments[2],Arcticmarinesediments[3],permafrost[4]andAntarcticseaice[5].Theoreticalandlaboratorystudieshavereportedthatsupercooled,solute‐richveinswithinicesamplesareviablehabitatsformicroorganisms[6,7].Further,ithasbeensuggestedthatdissimilatoryironreducersmayreduceironattemperaturesaslowas‐9°Cinthesolute‐richveinnetworkwithinbasalice[8],however,nodirectevidenceofmicrobialironreductionatsubzerotemperatureshasbeenreportedtodate.ThegammaproteobacteriaShewanellafrigidimarinawasoriginallyisolatedfromseaiceineasternAntarctica[5].Thisorganismcanrespireonferriciron,andhasbeendemonstratedtogrowattemperaturesfrom0to28°C,andsalinitiesupto8%NaCl[5].WequantifiedtheeffectoftemperatureandsalinityonthegrowthandironreductionratesofS.frigidimarinaatsubzerotemperatures.Cultureswereincubatedat15°C,4°Cand‐5°C,overarangeofsalinitesfrom0‐8%NaCl.OurresultsindicatethatS.frigidimarinaiscapableofgrowthattemperaturesaslowas‐5°Cat2%and4%NaClinthepresenceofferriccitrateassoleelectronacceptorandlactateassoleelectrondonor.Nogrowthwasobservedat8%NaCloverthetemperaturerangetested.Totheauthors’knowledge,theseresultsrepresentthefirstdirectevidenceofanorganismrespiringandgrowingonferricironatsubzerotemperatureandincreasedsalinity.[1]RaiswellR.,etal.(2008)Min.Mag.72,345–348.[2]FoghtJ.,etal.(2004)Microb.Ecol.47,329–340.[3]VandiekenV.,etal.(2006).Mar.Ecol.Prog.Ser.322,29‐41.[4]ZhangC.,etal.(1999)FEMSMicrobEcol30,371.[5]Bowman,J.etal.(1997)IntJofSyst.Bact.47,1040‐1047.[6]PriceB.(2000)PNAS97,1247‐1251.[7]MaderH.,etal.(2006)Geology34,3,169–172.[8]TungH.,etal.(2006)Astrobiology,6,1,69‐86.

Session:PosterGeoffreyWicksMontanaStateUniversity–PhysicsBenjaminSoukup,KevinRepasky,JohnCarlsten,JamieBarr,LauraDobeckSub­SurfaceCarbonDioxideConcentrationMeasurementUsingaFiber­BasedSensorinaCall/ReturnGeometryforCarbonSequestrationSiteMonitoringGeologiccarbonsequestrationisameanstomitigatetheincreasingatmosphericconcentrationofcarbondioxide(CO2)bycapturingtheCO2atasourcesuchasapowergenerationfacilityandstoringthecapturedCO2ingeologicformations.Manytechnologicadvanceswillneedtooccurforsuccessfulcarbonsequestrationincludingnearsurfacemonitoringtoolsandtechniquestoensuresiteintegrityandpublicsafety.ResearchersatMontanaStateUniversity(MSU)aredevelopingascalablefibersensorarrayinacall/returnconfigurationformonitoringnearsub‐surfaceCO2concentrations.ThelowcostfibersensorarraybeingdevelopedatMSUforsub‐surfaceCO2detectionformonitoringcarbonsequestrationsiteswillutilizeaseriesoffiberprobesconnectedtoadetectoranda1xNfiberswitchthatcandirectthelighttooneoftheNfiberprobes.Thefibersensorarraywillutilizeasingletunabledistributedfeedback(DFB)diodelaserwithacenterwavelengthof2.004µmtoaccessCO2absorptionfeatures.Thefibersensorarraycaneasilybereconfiguredbysimplymovingthefiberprobes.LowcostisachievedbyusinginexpensivepassivecomponentsinthefiberprobeswhilelimitingthenumberofthemoreexpensivecomponentsincludingtheDFBlaser,thedetector,andthe1XNfiberswitch.AsingleprobefibersensorsystemwastestedoverathirtydayperiodattheZeroEmissionResearchTechnology(ZERT)facilitythatwasdevelopedfortestingsurfaceandnearsurfacecarbonsequestrationmonitoringinstrumentationusingacontrolledundergroundCO2release.Inthispresentation,thedesignofthesingleprobefibersensorsystemwillbepresented,alongwiththesystemperformanceduringthethirtydaycontrolledundergroundCO2release.