Today, Sentinel-3A will be put in its container for storage over the Christmas break so the last few days have been spent finishing this part of the testing phase and preparing to put our baby to bed.
Thales team member checking Sentinel-3A. (ESA)
We finished up testing the satellite on Thursday 17 December, which included the ‘launch configuration test’. In parallel, the Thales team worked on the satellite’s multilayer insulation. At the end of the day the satellite was electrically disconnected so that it was ready for storage. The equipment needed to actually put the satellite into the container was also brought into the cleanroom ready for the move.
Placing Sentinel-3 on dolly. (ESA)
The electrical checks at the launch pad were also completed and the upper stage was returned to the MIK. The upper stage fairing was opened and the Breeze removed and put back in the main hall for storage. This left free access to the satellite container. The ‘Launcher Pre-Shipment Review was also finalised and successfully closed.
Checks on Sentinel-3. (ESA)
Progress towards the end of our pre-Christmas tasks continued on Friday. The satellite was disconnected from the electrical ground support equipment, removed from its test stand, moved onto the dolly and rotated to a horizontal position ready to be moved to the container.
Sentinel-3 horizontal on dolly. (ESA)
The network people went to the Mission Control Centre to test the link with the MIK again. The test showed that the connection was unstable, which is the same issue we had a couple of weeks ago. However, they found that one of the parts was defective and so it was replaced, resolving the problem.
The Satellite Standalone Post Test Review also took place on Friday. It confirmed that all tests are considered to have been successful.
On the launcher side, the booster was returned to the MIK after the dry run activities at the launch pad. Now all the launcher elements (booster, Breeze and fairing) are ready to enter their storage period and to restart the activities after the Christmas break.
The size of the team in Plesetsk is decreasing as tests finish and people return home for Christmas. We are now down from 46 to 25 people in total.
Saturday was a relatively light day, focusing mainly on preparing the satellite for storage. This included finishing the configuration of the multilayer insulation, cleaning the satellite container and installing the instrumentation that will monitor things like temperature and humidity during the storage period.
Team and Sentinel-3A ready for storage over Christmas. (ESA)
Sunday was a rest day, which gave people time to pack up their personal thing for their journey home.
Conditions at Plesetsk: −9 to −11°C snow…….most of the day, a nice carpet of fresh snow gives us a ‘White Christmas’ feeling (we know it looks as though everyone at home is going to have ….. warm green Christmas!)
From the ESA Sentinel-3A team at the Plesetsk cosmodrome in Russia.
Discussion: one comment
Good luck with the launch !