Testing OBA, A Key Piece of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope
The Outer Barrel Assembly (OBA), part of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, is made of two main parts: the shell section and the support struts. Watch this time-lapse video to learn more.
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Transcript
00:00:00 [Music throughout] [Testing Roman: Outer Barrel Assembly] [Outer Barrel Assembly (OBA) Static loads test of carbon fibere support struts with aluminum mass simulatorts that mimic other parts of the spacecraft. The structure is rotated and tipped differencely for each test.] [Spin at 3 G Final test of the strut portion of the OBA.] [Removal from Centrifuge Strain sensors and lower mass sims are removed, then the structure is detached and lifted from the test platform.] [Mass Sim Removal The cone-shaped metal that simulates the OBA shell section is lifted off, leaving the interface ring and struts.] [OBA Shell Section Preparation In a cleanroom, protective wrap and mass sims are added to the OBA’s other half, which will shield the mirror.] [Move to Centrifuge The shell section is lowered onto wheels andpushed by hand to the centrifuge facility.] [OBA Struts Preparation Legs and interface ring are prepared to connect to shell section.]
00:03:55 [Shell Section Lift Preparation A load-distribution frame is prepared and attached.] [Shell Section Lift Lifted and moved to connect with support struts.] [Complete OBA Assembled The two halves are reconnected for the first time since testing.] [Moved into Centrifuge The OBA is pushed into centrifuge by hand since no cranes connect the two spaces.] [Section Separation The shell section, now with the interface ring attached, is removed and lifted off the struts, which are pushed out. ] [Shell Section Attached The shell section is carefully bolted to the centrifuge test platform and 94 sensors are individually connected.] [Spin at 3.9 G First test of the shell section with a 13.7 rpm spin.] [Return to Neutral The roughly 600,000-pound centrifuge is smooth and balanced enough to push by hand.] [One Down, Five To Go The shell will be rotated and tipped for the next spin ... ] [One Down, Five To Go The shell will be rotated and tipped for the next spin ... ]