James Webb Space Telescope's "Spine" Passes Health Tests (Forwarded)

Rob Gutro
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. January 30, 2007

James Webb Space Telescope's "Spine" Passes Health Tests

The "spine" of the James Webb Space Telescope, called the backplane, is in
great health for space, according to scientists and engineers. Recent
tests show that the backplane, which supports the big mirrors of the
telescope, can handle its trip into space and operate correctly when the
observatory launches in 2013.

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will explore many wonders in space
-- from distant galaxies to nearby planets and stars. From the first light
after the Big Bang to the formation of star systems that can support life
on planets like Earth, JWST will give scientists clues about the formation
of the universe and the evolution of our own solar system.

The telescope is as big as a two-story house and involves 10 different
technologies. Engineers thoroughly test each of them to make sure that it
can do what it's intended to do, and that it can survive the trip into
space and a life in the harsh space environment. The technologies are both
hardware (like the backplane) and computer software.

The backplane endured freezing conditions during the "health tests" at
NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. It is the largest
structure ever tested in freezing temperatures, a necessary step to make
sure it won't move in extreme cold.

"We need it to hold steady while we're observing," said Dr. John Mather,
JWST Senior Project Scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in
Greenbelt, Md. "These tests show that it will do that," he said. The
movements were so small they were measured in nanometers (one nanometer is
smaller than a human hair).

The backplane was tested in cold as low as minus 405 degrees Fahrenheit
(30 Kelvin) to minus 351 Fahrenheit (60 Kelvin) over periods lasting two
to three days. From late June through mid-September, the tests took place
in a special vacuum chamber at Marshall's X-Ray Calibration Facility.

All of the JWST technologies have to pass this same test. If they all
pass, it means these hardware and software systems can handle their space
trip and work in space. Scientists and engineers then "engineer" them, or
apply them, to make them work with other technologies on JWST.

Northrop Grumman Corporation leads a team that is designing and building
JWST under a contract with NASA.

"These results represent a tremendous achievement for the JWST team,"
noted Martin Mohan, Northrop Grumman's JWST program manager. "The
backplane performed even better than expected and demonstrates the
telescope's ability to stay accurately focused."

[NOTE: Images supporting this release are available at
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/...WST_spine.html ]