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Northrop Makes
Spacecraft Progress For NASA's James Webb Space Telescope By Jim Douglas |
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December 7, 2011 - Northrop Grumman delivered to NASA
the flight software that will enable the James Webb
Space Telescope to communicate with its ground station
nearly a million miles away after it passed formal
verification testing. The company is leading the
telescope's design and development effort for NASA's
Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.
Northrop Grumman engineers verified that the flight
software met the Webb mission requirements for ground
commands to the spacecraft and science data delivery to
the ground station. Formal verification testing of
flight software for launch and deployment is slated for
completion by summer 2012, followed by software for
attitude and thermal control. The spacecraft program has also completed critical design reviews that represent substantial progress for the bus design. These include the primary structure that supports the observatory during launch and operations. |
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This
350 kilogram graphite composite structure is designed to
support 6.5 metric tons, the propulsion structure module,
which supports the spacecraft propulsion subsystem
responsible for orbit insertion and maintenance and the cone
assembly, which mates the primary observatory support
structure to the Ariane 5 launch vehicle.
"Early
completion of flight software verification testing achieved cost
savings and significant risk retirement for the program," said
Andrew Cohen, Webb spacecraft manager, Northrop Grumman
Aerospace Systems. "With the addition of three spacecraft
critical design reviews completed, as well as advancements on
our propulsion systems, we are making important progress." In addition, technical progress continues on several other major components. A critical design review confirmed a thermal upgrade to 16 monopropellant rocket engine (MRE-1) thrusters which were modified to withstand the high temperatures on the spacecraft generated by both the sun and reflected heat from the sunshield.
The 6-inch
long MRE-1 thrusters provide one pound of thrust each to unload
momentum and provide precision attitude control on orbit.
Propulsion engineers have also completed building four flight
Secondary Combustion Augmented Thrusters, which provide eight
pounds of thrust each and supply orbit maintenance after the
launch vehicle finishes its burns. |