ESA Science & Technology - Journal Archive
Journal Archive
Journal Archive
#1: Euclid completes thermal-vacuum balance tests
10 October 2019
This is the first entry in the Euclid Test Campaign Journal, a series of articles covering the main events during testing of the Structural and Thermal Model (STM) and Flight Model (FM) of the spacecraft.
#17: Practice makes perfect for CHEOPS inflight operations
25 June 2019It takes collaboration and teamwork to operate a spacecraft. As the CHEOPS launch approaches, a Europe-wide team is preparing to take control of inflight activities once the satellite is in space.
#16: CHEOPS is ready for flight
11 March 2019Recent months on the CHEOPS mission have seen the completion of spacecraft testing and the conclusion of a very important review, which determined that the satellite is ready to fly.
#15: A jigsaw falling into place: CHEOPS end-to-end testing complete
12 February 2019After a successful series of tests, the team that will operate the CHEOPS mission is ready for the activities to follow the satellite launch later this year.
#14: CHEOPS - withstanding the sound of launch and avoiding radio interference
17 October 2018For the CHEOPS mission, September was a busy month of acoustic noise testing and Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) testing at ESA's technical centre in the Netherlands.
#13: CHEOPS – chilled and checked, shaken and not stirred
31 August 2018This summer, the CHEOPS satellite breezed through thermal tests in France and vibration tests in Switzerland, demonstrating that it is ready to operate in the extreme cold of space and also fit to withstand the mechanical stresses of launch.
#12: From star positions to images: CHEOPS operations centres pull together
5 July 2018The latest CHEOPS test campaign can be thought of as the first full dress rehearsal for in-flight mission operations.
#14: Tests, moving to a new home, and more tests
4 June 2018In the last year, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and in particular the telescope and the instruments have passed some key milestones on their road towards launch, now planned for 2020.
#11: Putting things together: the CHEOPS science instrument arrives in Madrid
3 May 2018Members of the CHEOPS consortium could be proud of their achievement as the science instrument of the upcoming exoplanet mission left Bern on its journey to Madrid last month.
#10: It's getting real: testing flight hardware with mission control code
18 December 2017With the flight models of the CHEOPS spacecraft and telescope maturing, crucial tests can now be run with real hardware in place of simulations. The latest such tests involved operating the payload with the Mission Control System to test and validate real operational command sequences.
#9: The CHEOPS scientific instrument is complete
6 December 2017The scientific instrument at the heart of the CHEOPS mission has been fully assembled, marking an important milestone in the development of this small, fast-track exoplanet-characterising mission.
#13: Testing the coolest instrument on the James Webb Space Telescope
18 October 2017As the James Webb Space Telescope progresses toward launch, the telescope and its scientific instruments are undergoing an arduous series of checks to ensure their flight readiness.
#8: Preparing the CHEOPS spacecraft platform and simulating mission operations
12 July 2017In our previous update, we reported on the delivery of the CHEOPS telescope from Florence to Bern. While the scientific payload is being assembled in Switzerland, work in Spain has focused on preparing the spacecraft platform that will carry the payload and provide power, propulsion, communications, and thermal control.
#12: Testing times for JWST
16 June 2017The journey to launch for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is – literally – a testing time for the groundbreaking observatory. After demonstrating that it can come through the ordeal of vibrations and loud sounds associated with a launch, the telescope and its instruments have now been moved to Houston, Texas, for a final three-month test...
#7: CHEOPS telescope arrives at new home
4 May 2017A major milestone for the CHEOPS mission was passed on 28 April 2017, when the telescope flight model was delivered to the University of Bern by Leonardo-Finmeccanica, on behalf of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF).
#11: Preparing for the ride to space
21 December 2016In the second half of 2016, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) was readied for an intensive series of environmental tests, an essential step in ensuring that it will survive the stresses of launch and complete its groundbreaking survey of the infrared sky.
#10: The observatory is assembled
21 December 2016With less than two years remaining before its scheduled launch, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has passed several major milestones, including the completion of its huge primary mirror and integration of its four science instruments with the payload module.
#6: CHEOPS solar arrays tested and built
16 December 2016Over the last 10 months, the CHEOPS solar cell assemblies have been put through their paces in the test facilities at industry and in the Solar Generator Laboratory of the Power Systems Division (TEC-EP) at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) as part of the qualification campaign. In parallel, the flight solar arrays have...
#5: Steady progress for CHEOPS
15 September 2016The CHEOPS mission continues to make steady progress with a number of milestones being successfully met.
#4: Delivery of the Instrument Engineering Model
3 May 2016The CHEOPS spacecraft continues its fast-track implementation with the delivery of the instrument Engineering Model for integration on the satellite Electrical and Functional Model.
—
20 Items per Page