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Description
Spacecraft components that are exposed to deep space often require testing at the cryogenic temperature levels they will sustain during the mission. To that end, a test facility not only requires a chamber capable of reaching high vacuum levels, but also the means of reaching temperatures below that of liquid nitrogen.
Moreover, this paper describes the design and implementation of mechanical and electrical ground support equipment by using a cryocooling unit and several other components to perform thermal cycling and conductance test campaigns of in-House-developed thermal hardware products.
The resulting system consisting of structural supports, as well as hardware and software for thermal control and monitoring, has successfully enabled measuring the conductance of custom-designed thermal straps at different temperatures, as well as subjecting them to thermal vacuum cycling between 40 and 350 K.
