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/// AEROSPACE TESTING\\\


satellite starts testing


The spacecraft destined to explore the Psyche asteroid starts extensive assembly and test programme at NASA


S


cheduled for launch in 2022, NASA’s Psyche spacecraft will explore a metal- rich asteroid in the main asteroid belt


between Mars and Jupiter. A major compo- nent of the vehicle has now been delivered to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Cali- fornia, where the assembly, test, and launch operations phase is now under way. Over the next year, the spacecraft will finish assembly and undergo rigorous inspection and testing before it is shipped to Cape Canaveral, Florida, for an August 2022 launch to the main aster- oid belt. Maxar Technologies’ Solar Electric Propul-


sion (SEP) chassis is the size of a small van and represents more than 80 per cent by mass of the hardware that will ultimately make up the Psyche spacecraft. The large, box-shaped structure is now in the clean room of JPL’s Spacecraft Assembly Facility. Some of the chassis’ most visible features in- clude the 2m wide high-gain antenna, the frame that will hold the science in- struments and bright red protective covers to safeguard delicate hardware.


Psyche asteroid \\\ The target of the launch is a metal-rich


asteroid of the same name, which or- bits the Sun in the main asteroid belt and scientists think that Psyche is largely iron and nickel and could be the core of an early planet. Exploring the asteroid, Psy- che could lend valuable insight into how Earth and other planets formed. Over the next 12 months, the project team will be working against the clock to meet deadlines in the run up to launch. “This is a really intense phase with intricate


choreography. If one activity runs into a prob- lem, it can impact the whole process. Staying on schedule at this phase of the mission is ab- solutely critical,” says Psyche project man- ager Henry Stone of JPL The SEP chassis comes to JPL with most of the engineering hardware systems already in- tegrated. The Maxar team built the entire


8 /// Climatic & Vibration Testing \\\ 2021


structure and integrated the hardware for the high-power electrical system, the propulsion systems, the thermal system and the guidance and navigation system. The Psyche mission will take advantage of Maxar’s super efficient electric propulsion system to push Psyche through deep space. Maxar will also deliver the large, twin, five-panel solar arrays that provide power for the spacecraft systems.


Building and testing \\\ The assembly, test, and launch operations


phase kicked off on March 16, when engineers gathered at JPL to begin checking the sub- systems, the flight computer, the communi- cations system and the low-power distribution system to be sure they work to- gether. Now that the chassis has arrived, JPL and Maxar engineers will begin installing the remaining hardware, testing as they go.


The mission’s three science instruments will arrive at JPL over the next few months. The magnetometer will investigate the aster- oid’s potential magnetic field. The multispec- tral imager will capture pictures of its surface. And the spectrometer will analyse the neu- trons and gamma rays coming from the sur- face to determine the elements that make up the asteroid. JPL is also providing a technol- ogy demonstration instrument that will test high data-rate laser communications that could be used by future NASA missions. Once the full spacecraft is assembled, the


orbiter will move from the Spacecraft Assem- bly Facility to JPL’s large thermal vacuum chamber – a massive undertaking in itself – to simulate the harsh environment of deep space. The chamber is where JPL engineers will begin the heavy-duty testing to ensure the entire machine can survive deep space, thrust with the electric propulsion system, take science measurements and communi- cate with Earth. C&VT


Asteroid bound


The Psyche spacecraft has arrived at the JPL facility for a year-long cycle of assembly and environmental testing, above; once airborne, Psyche will derive the power for its electric propulsion systems from large solar panels, inset


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