Shifts were 24 hours a
day and was done by a large team.
Around the same time as our tests in March 2018, the
Parker
Solar Probe was being
tested in our building.
You could get a ticket
to ride to the Sun by registering on their web site.
After Thermal-Vacuum testing, we did the Acoustic test. This is where
we place the hardware into a large room with two huge speakers
(on the left) that flood the room with sound to simulate
the rocket motors.
A picture for the scale of these horn speakers in the acoustic test
cell.
Time-lapse video on the Goddard Facebook page during our
integration. I appear at the end on the right-hand side.
Here I am inspecting the three tools that will be placed on top of RRM3
by the
Space Station robot. (
Officially
released photos from April 2018).
Story on spaceflightnow.com
with my picture.
The complete RRM3 just prior to shipping to the Kennedy Space Center.
The cross shaped item at the top is the Tool Pedestal with its three
tools (MFT2, VIPIR2 and CST). These are joined with the main
FTM part in space, so this would be the only time they can
be photographed together (
Officially
released photo from April 2018).
Shipping to the Cape
After many years of work we finally ship to the Cape on May 7, 2018.
Truck used to ship RRM3 in the background. A large 50 foot
long truck that was perhaps
half full with RRM3 and its mechanical and electrical support equipment
(May 2018).
The leads do a signoff that we are ready to ship to the Cape.
Arrival at the loading dock of the Space Station Processing Facility
(SSPF) in May 2018.
To verify we are compatible with the Space Station electronics, we
perform a test with
the PRCU test system in the SSPF.
Just like with RRM1, I am the one that is slim enough to fit under
the wheeled stand in order to connect to the blind mate connector that
is under the RRM3 FTM.
In the PRCU test, my colleagues from Goddard control the RRM3 just like
it
is in space through the NASA communications network. This is
the best
test we have that the entire electronic and data system is compatible.
While at KSC, we take the time to tour the hidden historical areas of
the Space Center such as this
Mercury
7 memorial.
The entrance and much of the old Block House (B/H) is restored
from the original Mercury Launch pad.
I also take the time to visit the Atlantis display at the KSC visitor's
center.
Well worth the visit to see the Shuttle. I can remember all
the times
I was inside her crew cabin. What a privilege.
After our tests at the
SSPF, it is time to finally get down to the real business
of testing with Methane gas. This flamable commodity is not
allowed at Goddard,
so we can only test here at the Kennedy Space Center. The FTM
is
housed in the building on the left (called the FTB), and we have a
metal conduit to
the command trailer in the middle of the image. From this
trailer we can control
the RRM3 FTM to perform the internal Methane transfers.
Inside the FTB where the RRM3 FTM is housed. The tent around
the
FTM is purged with clean air and inside of that we purged with
clean Nitrogen gas to prevent the Methane from mixing with oxygen.
(May 2018).
The presence of Methane in our payload complicates the operation of the
system on the ground. We fall under the
rules (aka C1D2), and that means that no conventional electronics can
be operating within 15 feet of the building that houses the system.
This is why in our case we moved our operations computers to
a
trailer that is outside the FTB (with the cables held in a metal sealed
conduit to keep out weather). In addition, for the flight
electronics inside the RRM3, we continuously purge the contents with
clean gaseous Nitrogen. The Lower Explosive Limit (LEL) of
Methane is around 5-15%, so we need to push enough Nitrogen through the
RRM3 to ensure that we do not come close to that even in the case of a
leak.
In addition to that, we placed an enclosure around the
RRM3 and that is in turn purged with clean (HEPA filtered) and air
conditioned air to reduce the chance of build up of gas. It
is
also to create a mini-cleanroom around RRM3 to keep the flight hardware
clean and free of humidity buildup. That enclosure can be
seen in
the image above.
These initial tests in May 2018 were very
important as we had not used Methane before in RRM3. Prior to
this, we had used Liquid Argon and Nitrogen for various tests.
These tests were very useful for us to learn how to use the
system. Once they were completed, we then moved back to the
SSPF
for summer storage. Due to us being moved to CRS-16
(SpaceX-16),
we had time in our schedule for some down time.