Radiators and Thermal SystemThe Wide Field Instrument thermal system keeps the instrument subsystems at their ideal operating temperatures. A system of metal straps and heat-conducting pipes will carry heat produced by the detectors and electronics to radiator panels that face cold space on the outside of the instrument. The excess heat will be radiated away, cooling the instrument components. Thermostats and heaters will precisely monitor and control the subsystem temperatures, holding them in a narrow and stable range so that observations won’t be impacted by swings in temperature that introduce uncertainty in the precision scientific measurements.

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Completion Status

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Design

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Build

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Test

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Integrate

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LocationsNASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterBall Aerospace