XMM upper module arrives at ESTEC despite the snow
9 February 1999
XMM passed an important milestone on 9 February, with the arrival at ESTEC of the upper half of the spacecraft, from Dornier, Friedrichshafen, Germany. The journey from southern Germany to the Netherlands, with the Black Forest pass deep in snow, was quite an adventure in itself for the two extra-wide trucks carrying the upper module and the delicate high-tech imaging camera built by European scientists.The upper module, which consists of the focal plane assembly and associated telescope tube, is at ESTEC for the final sequence of environmental tests.
Last Update: 1 September 2019
