WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS FOR WEEK ENDING 31 JANUARY 2003:
PREPARATIONS CONTINUE FOR SPACE VEHICLE SPIN BALANCE
The space vehicle test team is continuing to prepare the vehicle for the upcoming spin balance test. The flight batteries have been installed on the vehicle
and the thermal vacuum instrumentation has been prepared for spin balance. Mass simulators have been installed on the vehicle to substitute for some of the
not yet installed flight hardware. The vehicle is ready to be weighed and balanced. Action items from the recent Test Readiness Review are in-work.
Photo: The spacecraft outside of the thermal vacuum chamber in the test area.
SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED GMA LEAKAGE TEST
The GMA test team has successfully completed a leak rate measurement of the GMA. The results show that the leak rate of the GMA into the probe is
significantly better than earlier worst case predictions. The new leak rate measurements have been performed using a simple technique thereby giving very
high confidence in the measurement accuracy. The improved GMA leakage rate provides good confidence in the GMA mitigation plan for VAFB.