WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS FOR WEEK ENDING 21 SEPTEMBER 2001:
COMPLETED INITIAL SPACECRAFT/PAYLOAD FIT CHECK
The cryo group successfully cleared a blockage in the flight dewar guard tank vent line. A procedure was performed which applied heat to the guard
tank. Helium gas was flowed from the fill line to the vent of the guard tank. The flow was monitored until a clean, large, steady state flow of
helium was detected at the vent. The two primary safety checks (the lead bag temperature and the pressure in the main tank) remained far below
preset trigger points. The payload is now in its nominal cryogenic status.
Photo: Helium gas bottles at the lab.
SUCCESSFULLY DETERMINED DYNAMIC CHARACTERISTICS OF SOLAR ARRAY PANEL
The GP-B team successfully completed a tap test of the spare Solar Array Panel in LM B/153A. The dynamic characteristics of the
solar array panel were determined from the test.
Photo: GP-B Quality Engineer Jim Nix inspecting the setup of the Solar Array Panel tap test in LM B/153A.