SNIFS Rocket
It has begun. We've finally started ordering rocket parts that will actually be going to space. And it starts with this ~Mysterious Box~
What could it be?!?!?!?
(reposting from Twitter)
#AerospaceEngineering #Astrophysics #SolarScience
Jul 2, 2023 at 3:08pmWeb
Show threadSNIFS RocketJul 2, 2023
Ooh! We got small plastic cases in bags. Wow this is a whole lot of packaging. I should be careful not to drop these.
#Instrumentation #SpaceInstrumentation #Optics
Show threadSNIFS RocketJul 2, 2023
HOUSTON, WE HAVE MIRRORLET ARRAYS!
See that? See that glass square?!?!?!? That's one of our mirrorlet arrays! It's a flat solid piece of glass with 72x72 little tiny curved mirrors etched into it. The mirror coating hasn't been applied yet, so it's not reflective yet.
#Optics #Telescope #Science
Show threadSNIFS RocketJul 2, 2023
♪ ♬ ♫ Measurin' time, measurin' time, everybody it's measurin' time ♪ ♬ ♫
We're using this electronic microscope to measure the mirrorlet arrays and confirm they're what we ordered. The fancy clothes are to help keep our new optic clean of dust and skin and oils.
#Cleanroom #Metrology #Optics
Show threadSNIFS RocketJul 2, 2023
It's our mirrorlet array! And now we can see and measure all the tiny mirrorlets etched into the surface!
You can see the glass in the bottom left corner of the screen. The grid of blue spots are the mirrorlets. Even without a reflective coating, they still reflect lab light.
Show threadSNIFS RocketJul 2, 2023
Now that we've verified it's the right size and the mirrors are the right size, we scan the edges to check for chips, cracks, and protrusions. We'll be mounting this into a metal holder and need to know that it'll fit and that it won't shatter when we vibrate it.
Show threadSNIFS RocketJul 2, 2023
That's it folks, we've confirmed that these are the dimensions we ordered and that there aren't any egregious chips or problems with the mirrorlet array we measured. Now we package it all back up and ship it to the folks who will be coating it with its mirror coating!