h promne f h cabr ol b icesd y h new the by compressor. increased be could chamber the of performance the Also of tests. meter,at all independently types operated be thus can one than more by length in3 increased The also was which m-TVA, 3 m-TVA liquid with Nitrogen. the supply to compressor Nitrogen powerful new a obtained IABG other, TV each from WSA two 3 independently / and chambers m-TVA the TVA of operation an ensure to order In Nitrogen. gaseous and liquid by tempered are IABG at chambers vacuum thermal The New nitrogen compressor chambers for TV year in resume service. to directly order test the iour is achieved. They will be integrated into the test system later this With the new tables a signifi cant improvement of the dynamic behav- over by asub-contractor. and the optimization of the whereas was the tables taken production was responsible for IABG constructions. the design, the calculations, of amagnesium consist new tables the alloy andare built welded as place the present ones after 20 years of test service. As the old ones, willre- tables These system. vibration 320kN the deliveredfor were and a the table vibration newlaboratory, For a slipnew vertical table delivered New vibration tables for the 320 vibrationkN system system. management environmental the for confi quality hand, highest er rms 14001 certifiISO cate, on the oth- The matters. customs and gistics lo- all in reliable and trustworthy particularly as regarded thus is “Author- and AEO” Operator Economic as ized status proud- the now holds ly IABG result, a As customs procedures. and its logistics, its system, management environmental its for certifi also ed got It step: another taken has IABG Now TÜV. and ESA through 17025 as ECCS-Q-20-07A and well as an accreditation according 9001 to DIN EN ISO ISO 9100, EN to certifi according by cations years few Space Centre meet the highest standards, confi rmed during the past IABG’s of processes the and system management quality the Both New certifi cations according and14001 ISO to AEO ENVIRONMENT ENERGY & MOBILITY, INFOCOM AUTOMOTIVE Phone +49896088-2030 Fax +49896088-4000 IABG SpaceCentre Einsteinstrasse 20 85521 Ottobrunn space@iabg.de SECURITY DEFENCE & SPACE AERONAUTICS www.iabg.de Germany

2012-09 We giveyouspaceonearth Issue 7 SpaceNews the from Centre We give you space on earth

IABG wins contract for test campaign on PAZ satellite SWARM and LISA Pathfi nder test campaigns at IABG IABG commissioned with investigation of After the performance of the qualifi cation tests on the twin satellites – update VEGA Rocket’s modal characteristics at TerraSAR X and Tandem X for Astrium Germany some time ago at Already in 2010 IABG started with the test campaigns for LISA launch site IABG’s Space Test Centre, we have now been awarded the contract Pathfi nder and the satellites of the SWARM fl eet. The object of the As part of the qualifi cation of all ground operations for the performance of the test campaign of the Spanish version of SWARM fl eet, consisting of three identical satellites, is to measure performed for the launching of the VEGA rocket IABG the radar satellite. The Spanish satellite called PAZ is almost identical the earth’s magnetic fi eld. With LISA Pathfi nder instruments and has been commissioned by the company ELV with an to the German TerraSAR X and Tandem X, both producing important technologies will be tested in orbit which will then be responsible for important qualifi cation section. On behalf of ESA, ELV height pictures of the planet‘s surface in radar range since 2010. the detection of gravitational waves during the LISA mission. develops and builds the Vega launcher which is sup- PAZ is being built by Astrium CASA as prime contractor. Tests posed to transport payloads of up to 2 tons in a 700 include thermal vacuum tests, vibration and acoustic tests, shock The test campaign on LISA Pathfi nder was successfully fi nished km orbit. IABG was appointed to analyze the modal tests, tests for electromagnetic compatibility and the determination some months ago. The satellite has been exposed to thermic, me- characteristics of the carrier rocket on the launch pad of mass properties. chanical and electrical tests in several confi gurations. Also the tests so that the preparations for take-off can be performed safely in terms on the SWARM fl eet is completed and the satellites are prepared for of wind excitation. The test took place on the grounds of the “Centre Bepi Colombo high temperature tests the launch with a Russian carrier rocket. Spatial Guyanais” in Kourou, French Guyana. The ESA mission Bepi Colombo means a big challenge for the Eu- ropean space industry. For 2015, it is scheduled to fl y to the planet The tests were performed with an inert (fi lled with non-ignitable Mercury where after 6 years of travelling it is supposed to study the fuel), otherwise fully functional rocket at the launch pad. The modal magnetic fi eld and its geology. On Mercury, the planet closest to the characteristics were studied during experimentally applied vibrational sun, extreme thermal conditions can be found for which the materials excitation as well as during natural wind excitation. and instruments of the spacecraft need to be designed for. IABG helps to realize the mission, e.g. by qualifying the solar panels of With this qualifi cation test high demands were associated, both in Bepi Colombo. For this purpose a special test device was developed terms of the very short preparation time and in terms of the organiza- with powerful infrared lamps that will be integrated into the thermal tion of the activities since all of IABG’s work had to be integrated vacuum chambers. This construction allows the performance of and coordinated in a more comprehensive qualifi cation program. thermal tests under vacuum conditions and under extreme tempera- Similarly, the demands on the test equipment and the test procedure tures from - 165 °C up to + 215 °C. were also unusual as the huge mass of the rocket had to be excited at very low frequencies. At the same time, the test team itself was Upgrading of IABG’s Space Centre for required to provide a maximum of precision under very unusual satellite projects up to 4 t climatic conditions. For IABG’s Space Centre there will be the opportunity within the coming years to carry out tests on new satellite projects that have a system weight of up to 4 tons. In order to prepare the centre for this kind of test projects, appropriate modifi cations are currently made on Satellite SWARM in the space simulation chamber the test facilities and the equipment, in particular the space simulation (SWARM is an ESA programme with Astrium GmbH as Prime Contractor) chamber, the acoustic laboratory and the facilities for mass property determination as well as regarding the Space Centre’s infrastructure.