Building and testing CHEOPS
Date: 15 March 2016
Copyright: Airbus Defence and Space
This film clip, produced by platform contractor, Airbus Defence and Space (ADS; formerly EADS CASA Espacio S.L, Spain), is a compilation of sequences showing the CHEOPS assembly, integration and verification (AIV) test activities in the six month period starting in Summer 2015. These activities were carried out at facilities in Spain, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
The short film includes scenes documenting the following milestones:
the integration of the platform Structural Qualification Model (SQM) at ADS Spain in Madrid;
the integration of the instrument Structural and Thermal Model (STM) with the SQM to make the Spacecraft Qualification Model, also in Madrid;
vibration testing of the spacecraft SQM at RUAG Space in Zurich, Switzerland;
preparation of the spacecraft SQM for acoustic testing at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) in the Netherlands;
release shock testing at the ADS facilities in Spain;
testing the release of the CHEOPS baffle cover that will protect the payload from dust and dirt until the beginning of in-orbit commissioning activities;
and, finally, detaching the instrument STM from the platform.
The film also shows the CHEOPS Electrical Functional Model (EFM) and the related on-going test activities.