FY 19 RMO Workshop GSFC Tour Schedule

Friday, November 3: 12:30 – 3:30

Tour Notes

1) This is primarily a walking tour. When not on the bus, expect to be standing or walking.

2) Please wear closed-toe shoes; no sandals.

3) This schedule is tentative, and may be revised based on availability of GSFC resources.

4) The tour is limited to 25 participants. Please do not request to participate unless you can make a firm commitment to attend.

12:30 Depart Building 21 Front Entrance (GSFC Shuttle Bus)

Stop 1 Building 3 Hubble Space Telescope (HST) – Mission Operations Center (approx. 40 min)

HST’s mission operations—those functions of the mission that operate together to assure the health, safety, and performance of the spacecraft—are performed by the operations team in the Missions Operations Room. Tools used by astronauts during HST’s servicing missions are on display, along with hardware the astronauts removed from HST during those missions. A 1/5 scale model of HST is on display in the building lobby.

Board Shuttle Bus

Stop 2 Building 29 GSFC Cleanroom – James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) (approx. 20 min)

The High Bay Clean Room, often called the world's largest clean room, prevents dirt, dust, and other contaminants from damaging spacecraft components. A robust ventilation system (which incorporates 9,000 square feet of HEPA filters located along one entire wall) circulates almost one million cubic feet of air every minute to help protect against contaminants.

For many years, the High Bay Clean Room housed sophisticated replicas of HST components. Now it hosts a replica JWST Pathfinder telescope. JWST will study every phase in the history of our Universe, ranging from the first luminous glows after the Big Bang, to the formation of solar systems capable of supporting life on planets like Earth, to the evolution of our own Solar System.

Buildings 7/10/15 Integration and Test Complex (approx. 30 min)

The Integration and Test Complex provides facilities, instrumentation, data analysis, and engineering capacity to test spacecraft, instruments, and

FY 19 RMO Workshop GSFC Tour Schedule (cont.)

- 2 -

Stop 2 components for the various environments and conditions induced by ground (cont.) handling, launch, powered flight, and orbital operation.

The Space Environment Simulator (SES), a massive thermal vacuum chamber, exposes spacecraft and their components to the rigors of space. Measuring 65 feet tall and 35 feet wide, the SES uses pumps to eliminate all but the tiniest traces of air in the chamber. The SES can reach temperatures as high as 200 degrees and a low as minus 430 degrees Fahrenheit.

The Acoustic Test Chamber exposes payloads to launch noise. Speakers use an altering flow of gaseous nitrogen to produce a sound level as high as 150 decibels.

Vibration platforms simulate launch conditions by shaking the spacecraft up to 2,000 times a second to test the structural integrity of the spacecraft.

A high-capacity centrifuge replicates the intensified feeling of gravitational pull during a launch. Measuring 135 feet long, the apparatus can accelerate a 5-ton payload up to 30 times the force of Earth’s gravity.

Building 29, Room 150 Satellite Servicing Projects Div. – Robotics Operations Center (approx. 30 min)

The Satellite Servicing Projects Division (SSPD) continues NASA's legacy of satellite servicing and repair. The Robotic Operations Center is SSPD's newest facility for satellite servicing development. Within its black, curtain-lined walls, the team is testing technologies and operations for multiple exploration and science missions. Board Shuttle Bus

Stop 3 Building 32

Earth Science – Mission Operations (approx. 30 min)

The Earth Science Mission Operations (ESMO) project is responsible for spacecraft maintenance and operations for Earth Science missions conducted by the Earth Science Projects Division. The control rooms for missions such as the Global Precipitation Measurement, Aura, Aqua, Terra, and others are located here.

3:30 Return to Building 21 Parking Lot