Search Results

MIXS (Mercury Imaging X-ray Spectrometer) is an instrument in the remote sensing suite of the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO), part of the Bepi-Colombo mission to Mercury. The optics for the MIXS instrument is funded by the European Space Agency. The development of the MIXS instrument is undertaken by an international consortium, led by the University of Leicester, UK. This is funded by the UK's Science & Technology Facilities Council. The instrument is intended to address scientific issues including: the origin of Mercury, the evolution of Mercury, the nature of surface modifications on Mercury (e.g. cratering, volcanism), There are two adjacent X-ray optics, each with different layouts, for the imaging telescope and an adjacent flux-collector (collimator). Accurate thermal and geometrical mathematical models were needed to model the optics, taking into account the extreme thermal environment around Mercury.

Beagle 2 is the British led Martian Lander which will be transported to Mars by the Mars Express spacecraft, due for launch in 2003. The Beagle2 Gas Analysis Package (GAP) is designed to analyse samples of the Martian soil and atmosphere collected by the Beagle2 lander equipment, for evidence of the chemical signatures of the biological processes associated with life. The GAP has been designed to process complex gas mixtures obtained both from the Martian atmosphere and as a result of thermal (pyrolysis) and chemical (combustion and fluorination) processing of solid samples within the Sample Handling and Distribution System (SHADS). The temperature requirement within the heated section of the chemical reactors is upward of 1000°C. However there is a need to maintain the external surface of the reactor at a low temperature, so as not to have adverse effects on others parts of the equipment.

The Envisat spacecraft has a launch mass greater than 8.0 tonnes and external dimensions of 10.0 metres x 2.8 metres x 2.1 metres. Due to it’s large size, it was necessary to perform the thermal balance and thermal vacuum testing in two stages. Firstly, there was the testing of the Service Module and, secondly, the testing of the Payload Module (PLM). This paper discusses the thermal balance testing of the PLM. The PLM, itself, is 7.5 metres tall; too large to fit into a test facility solar beam. Originally, it was intended to conduct two solar beam tests; one for the upper part and the second for the lower part. Following a revision and re-scheduling within the programme, it was decided to perform a single, non-solar beam, thermal balance test. The thermal balance test would be performed using test specific, electrical, heaters and test facility shroud control.