Goodard Test Program Now Complete
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has successfully completed
thermal vacuum testing, which simulates the extreme hot, cold and
airless conditions of space LRO will experience after launch. This
milestone concludes the orbiter's environmental test program at
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD.
The orbiter will carry seven instruments to provide scientists
with detailed maps of the lunar surface and increase our
understanding of the moon's topography, lighting conditions,
mineralogical composition and natural resources. Data returned to
Earth from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will be used to select
safe landing sites, determine locations for future outposts and
help mitigate radiation dangers to astronauts. The spacecraft will
spend at least a year in a low, polar orbit approximately 30 miles
above the lunar surface while the instruments work together to
collect detailed information about the moon's environment.
The thermal vacuum testing on the spacecraft took about two
months. The orbiter, which was built at Goddard, was subjected to
the extreme temperature cycles of the lunar environment as
engineers conducted simulated flight operations.
"We have cooked LRO, frozen it, shaken it, and blasted it with
electromagnetic waves, and still it operates," said Dave Everett,
LRO mission system engineer at Goddard. "We have performed more
than 2,500 hours of powered testing since January, more than 600 of
that in vacuum."
The first two checks were the spin and vibration tests. The spin
test determined the spacecraft's center of gravity and measured
characteristics of its rotation. During vibration testing,
engineers checked the structural integrity of the spacecraft aboard
a large, shaking table that simulated the rigorous ride the orbiter
will encounter during liftoff aboard an Atlas rocket.
Next, the orbiter was subjected to acoustics testing. The bagged
spacecraft was placed near wall-sized speakers that simulate the
noise-induced vibrations of launch. Following acoustics testing,
LRO underwent tests that simulated the orbiter's separation from
the rocket during launch. The spacecraft also underwent
electromagnetic compatibility testing to ensure internal and
external electrical signals do not interfere with its critical
functions.
"It was less than one year ago that LRO was a myriad collection
of parts not yet delivered to our clean room," said Craig Tooley,
LRO project manager at Goddard. "This truly is a significant
accomplishment -- a hard earned milestone. It is a humbling and
awe-inspiring experience to work with the LRO team."
The LRO will be shipped to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in
Florida in early 2009 to be prepared for its April 24 launch aboard
an Atlas V rocket. Accompanying the spacecraft will be the Lunar
Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite, a mission that will
impact the moon's surface in its search for water ice.
Goddard is building and managing the Lunar Reconnaissance
Orbiter for NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate in
Washington.