What is demanded of instruments going to space?
They have to be light, have low energy consumption and not
disturb the environment, since it is in the satellite's environment
the measurements are carried out. If the satellite was disturbing too
much it would not be certain that the data sent to Earth were
correct.
They have to be constructed so they don't get too warm or too
cold, which is hard to manage in space, where the temperature can
change a lot. The parts turned towards the sun can be very warm while
the parts turned away from the sun can be exremely cold.
They also have to be operationable in
vacuum and that makes it impossible to
use an ordinary lubricant on the moving
parts, since it would immediately
evaporate.
If the satellite has to pass through the radiation belts the
instruments have to be constructed to deal with the radiation. And of
course they have to be able to do the measurements they were
constructed for.
The instruments are put through a lot of rigorous tests to prove
that they fulfill all the demands. They are shaken, bumped and
accelerated. They are exposed to heat, cold and simulated space
environment. The instruments are tested in special test chambers to
see if they measure correctly. It would not be very good if it turned
out that an instrument was not working properly once it was already
in space. Then a lot of money and effort would have been devoted to
something that could not be used for anything.
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Updated: webmaster@irf.se, 2003-11-12