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The net effect on the upwelling radiation caused by tropical cyclone clouds is calculated over a 20-year global data set, and the corresponding contribution to the earth energy balance is analyzed. Tropical cyclone clouds are shown on average to increase the upwelling radiation at the top of the atmosphere compared with the background non-tropical-cyclone-cloud climatology. This increase in upwelling radiation provides an overall cooling effect on the climate system because the increased reflected shortwave radiation (cooling) outweighs the decreased emitted longwave radiation (warming). While the effect neglects the (likely considerable) contribution due to tropical cyclone drying, the amount of cooling by clouds alone represents a considerable fraction of the excess warming energy in the climate system. Thus, any future change in tropical cyclone activity has the potential to impact the overall energy balance if it substantially alters this total. The seasonal and geographic distribution of warming and cooling effects, and the diurnal dynamics that impact whether any particular cyclone is net cooling or net warming are discussed in this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For high-power electromagnetic (HPEM) applications at high-repetition rate, conventional microwave inverters based on pulse transformers are not practical. At high-repetition rates, the magnetic materials used in the inductive coupling saturate. In this paper, we present an alternate concept for an inverter based on the technology used for ultrawideband baluns which provides isolation through capacitive coupling. Design of the device is discussed through numerical modeling, and two implementations are built and demonstrated: a circuit element version and a transmission line version. The devices are demonstrated at charge voltages of 6 kV and repetition rates up to 100 Hz, with excellent performance between 20 MHz and 2.5 GHz. The circuit element device has a rise time of 445 ps with an insertion loss of less than 3 dB, while the transmission line device has a rise time of 240 ps with an insertion loss of less than 2 dB for most frequencies. The inverter is demonstrated as part of the feed network for a hyperband HPEM antenna with a differential input. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the highlights of the summer meeting by the Administrative Committee (AdCom) of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society (AP-S) which was held on July 11, 2010 in Toronto, Ontario. Members of the AdCom and guests introduced themselves after the meeting was called to order. Consent agenda discussion and approval of reports were also done during the meeting.